Read Online Mountain Bike Mania by Matt Christopher - Free Book Online Page A

him, hopping on his bike and taking off in pursuit.
    Ace headed straight for Brookfield Park. It was a big county park, with ball fields, tennis courts, playgrounds, and wooded
     areas with picnic tables and horse trails. Ace sped straight down the paved pedestrian paths. He slowed at one point, pulled
     something out of his backpack, and launched it intoa garbage can. Will passed the same can a moment later, and tried to see what it was Ace had thrown out. But he only caught
     a glimpse of red and something that looked like a can.
    Musta been soda pop or a sport drink, Will figured as he pedaled harder to try to catch up with the speedy Ace.
    “Beep! Beep!” Ace called out.
    Ace shot past two startled mothers, who whisked their toddlers out of harm’s way. When Will rode by a moment later, they yelled
     some nasty things at him.
    Will barely had time to say “Sorry!” to the women, because Ace was already racing toward the wooded part of the park, and
     Will didn’t want to lose sight of him.
    Will felt a prickle of annoyance at Ace. Why did he have to do the things he did? If he hadn’t made such a fuss about “Biker
     Pride Day,” the petition thing probably would have just blown over. And why did he have to litter and scare walkers? It was
     people like Ace who gave mountain biking a bad reputation, Will was beginning to realize.
    Still, Ace had clearly accepted Will as his new,close friend. And Ace was popular. Will didn’t feel like he could afford to refuse that friendship. If he did, he could kiss
     his new status at school good-bye. And besides, now that Danny, his ex–best friend, hated his guts, Will didn’t have anyone
     to hang out with. Since joining the bike club, he hadn’t spent much time with his few other pals. If he made Ace angry at
     him, too, he was sure he’d lose all his friends in the club. Then where would he be? In a social loser land — that’s where.
    Ace led him to a path that was hidden from the rest of the park by low-hanging branches of the surrounding trees. Here, a
     series of natural ramps had been worn into the ground by mountain bikers over the years. There were bumps, jumps, ruts, and
     dangerous turns — a great practice course!
    “Follow me!” Ace told him. “And watch out for the first turn — it’s a killer!” Ace took the ramp at full speed, and Will followed
     at a more cautious pace.
    The ramp was really fun — just hard enough to provide some good thrills without actually endangering your health. It was the
     kind of place whereyou could become a really good mountain biker without risk of running into nonbikers. Right now, that was important to Will.
    After about twenty minutes, the two boys paused to drink some water and catch their breath.
    “Great place!” Will commented truthfully. “It’s cool to have a spot just for mountain bikers.”
    Ace shook his head. “Mountain bikers can go anywhere, kiddo — that’s what these babies are built for!” He patted his bike.
    “Yeah, but Ace, you nearly killed those ladies and their kids back there. You really ought to watch out.”
    “Get real,” Ace said, scowling. “Those people ought to pay attention to the world around them. It’s like, wake up!” He laughed,
     then took a long gulp of water.
    “Yeah, but that’s what gets people mad at bikers,” Will said, trying not to sound argumentative.
    But Ace’s mind was on something else. “Do you realize,” he said, “that those mothers do not go to work? There they are, spending
     their whole entire day with their kids. All day, every day.”
    “Yeah, well, those kids are little,” Will pointed out.
    “My mom went back to work eight weeks after I was born,” Ace said grimly. “My real mother was the TV”
    Will swallowed hard, not sure how to react. “My mom just went back to work full-time last summer,” he ventured. “I watched
     a lot of TV, too, for a while. Till I started mountain biking.”
    Ace emptied his water bottle slowly