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PLATTVILLE – Mountain Biking, this sport drove a dozen dedicated riders to give up their weekend to travel to the Platteville countryside for a wet and muddy time trial.

“Muddy and hilly it felt like I was going backwards,” says Michigan Tech biker Mike Billmeier.

The course filled with steep climbs and challenging turns made this a tough early season work out for the riders.

“You know you are climbing, you are going down technical stuff and it is a really good work out,” says Dubuque biker Ned Gall.

For these weekend warriors mountain biking is a test of their skills.

“You know you train all week and you race on the weekend to kind of see if all that training paid off,” says Ned.

Mountain biking differs from other forms of cycling and the time it takes may surprise people.

“Here like it is a six and a half mile lap and that takes about an hour,” says Ned.

The six mile course offers many challenges to the riders and can cause problems for even the most veteran of the bunch, especially on this day.

“It is a super good work out but sometimes you cannot make it all the way you have to walk some of it,” says Ned.

“A lot of work, death going up hills and it is muddy,” adds Mike.

These weekend workouts and the time spent with friends is what makes it all worth it for this group of riders.

Just hanging out with friends, meeting people, enjoying the sport, and riding,” says Mike.

Daniel Randolph can be reached at Daniel.Randolph@lctv13.com