I Rode My Bike Today...

Faust29 said:
Spitfire is fun... and there’s a little loop on the steep section, so you can repeat the drop. :)

There’s also another trail south of spitfire. It wasn’t finished last year... not sure about now. Guess I should check...
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Saw evidence of quite a few newly cut trails to explore. Just hope that the people ( gender neutral description :gotnothing: ) doing it don't go overboard and cause access issues.

Faust29 said:
Hell froze over. :eek: o_O
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Yeah, kind of a shock isn't it!! No wonder felt so cold out there...
 
herzalot said:
Right on - 4200' of actual pedaling up the hill, That's a lot of laps. But that's the cool thing about Skypark, you are thinking about the laps and the downs and just doing the climb to get back for the next one. Then you look at your data and you've got over 4200' of climbing!

Well done sir! :thumbsup:
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After I saw this I remembered my SkyPark visit in May. I think I opened and closed the park. Granted it took me all day as there was a lot of downtime but I couldn't believe the mileage and elevation I got from just riding around in circles. My next trip I'm actually considering riding for an hour or so at a time as I normally would and see how far I can go.
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UPSed said:
After I saw this I remembered my SkyPark visit in May. I think I opened and closed the park. Granted it took me all day as there was a lot of downtime but I couldn't believe the mileage and elevation I got from just riding around in circles. My next trip I'm actually considering riding for an hour or so at a time as I normally would and see how far I can go.
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Wow, that's impressive. I usually stop when I feel my legs start to fatigue, because that's when my technique also starts to fail. I learned that the hard way once at SkyPark when I tried for "just one more run" despite starting to cramp, and I ate all kinds of sh*t on a jump.

With that kind of distance you wore out all the eBike batteries too :Roflmao
 
UPSed said:
After I saw this I remembered my SkyPark visit in May. I think I opened and closed the park. Granted it took me all day as there was a lot of downtime but I couldn't believe the mileage and elevation I got from just riding around in circles. My next trip I'm actually considering riding for an hour or so at a time as I normally would and see how far I can go.
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How many runs does it take to reach those stats there?
 
Out and back on the Bell Trail to stretch the legs after climbing to the peak yesterday... There were several other bikers out, and a couple e-motos.

My Rekon 2.4 that has been on the back since before Kokopelli lost air about 7 miles out. When I looked at it closer, it had several bruises in the center of the tread, one of which was the source of the air loss. Pencil sized hole, where it looks like the rubber just wore thin and bubbled. Koko really shortened that tire's life... The rocky descent from the peak probably finished it off yesterday. I tubed and booted it and headed back out...

My rear hub is also making some noise... Not sure about that. I'll check it out tomorrow. Spare wheel on the Hightower for now.

14/1700
 
Maple Springs-Joplin-Luge yesterday with a buddy. Garmin said 50 degrees in Silverado when we started at 6:45. Wonderful breeze and reasonably cool the whole way up to Joplin trailhead, bugs only occasionally buggy, not too many Jeeps and motos, just one other biker until STT.

Joplin could use a brushing now. Hard to see the trail at some points, and the trail isn't very wide so little room for error. Dry and loose and seemed more difficult in general compared to late May. One unplanned stop I lost my Garmin but didn't realize it until later, so hiked back up around a half mile and found it right where I thought it would be.

The last sharp right hander that drops over the rocks near the bottom, I gave two tries, and the second one I went down good. Meat of the hand took the brunt of my weight on a sharp rock, lucky no breaks, black blue and sore today. Gotta stop doing that. I recall as I was hitting the ground, hearing my bike cartwheeling down the hill. What a horrible sound. Thankfully it was mostly unharmed, got on and finished climb up to STT and down Luge, now kinda hot in full sun.

Not too proud of this one... it pains me to see my bike bouncing around like this.
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knucklebuster said:
Maple Springs-Joplin-Luge yesterday with a buddy. Garmin said 50 degrees in Silverado when we started at 6:45. Wonderful breeze and reasonable cool the whole way up to Joplin trailhead, bugs only occasionally buggy, not too many Jeeps and motos, just one other biker until STT. Joplin could use a brushing now. Hard to see the trail at some points, and the trail isn't very wide so little room for error. Dry and loose and seemed more difficult in general compared to late May. One unplanned stop I lost my Garmin but didn't realize it until later, so hiked back up around a half mile and found it right where I thought it would be.

The last sharp right hander that drops over the rocks near the bottom, I gave two tries, and the second one I went down good. Meat of the hand took the brunt of my weight on a sharp rock, lucky no breaks, black blue and sore today. Gotta stop doing that. I recall as I was hitting the ground, hearing my bike cartwheeling down the hill. What a horrible sound. Thankfully it was mostly unharmed, got on and finished climb up to STT and down Luge, now kinda hot in full sun.

Not too proud of this one... it pains me to see my bike bouncing around like this.
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Sh!t!

Nice of your buddy to film that for you. I guess that's what friends are for... :p Glad it wasn't worse.

I'm bummed I didn't run into you guys up there, but it sounds like you were way ahead of me.


Edit: Sorry, @knucklebuster - I threw that one up on the big screen for the wife to see. She thinks we're all nuts... But she did ask if the bike was ok... :eek:
 
Faust29 said:
Sh!t!

Nice of your buddy to film that for you. I guess that's what friends are for... :p Glad it wasn't worse.

I'm bummed I didn't run into you guys up there, but it sounds like you were way ahead of me.


Edit: Sorry, @knucklebuster - I threw that one up on the big screen for the wife to see. She thinks we're all nuts... But she did ask if the bike was ok... :eek:
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Haha, nuts for sure, no other way :) I actually showed my wife the video, she just shook her head, could have been worse (wife's reaction and the crash)
 
UPSed said:
Yesterday Jennifer and I grabbed a free shuttle from Crazy Bear to SkyPark. It wasn't busy at all and ebikes were few and far between. They actually have signs now that ebikes have to climb with the flow of traffic. We only saw one d-bag at the top while chatting with a couple of the park employees. He came flying through in turbo mode without a care in the world. The park guys told us the next step is to ban them. We did several laps with lunch in the middle. Note to self. Save the beer for after the ride. Fortunately I was able to recover and enjoy the rest of the day. Can't wait to go back.
20 miles and 4k.
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Is that Gene in the picture? If so, it's been years since I saw him. If not, he must be his twin brother :-)
 
Obsidian said:
Wow, that's impressive. I usually stop when I feel my legs start to fatigue, because that's when my technique also starts to fail. I learned that the hard way once at SkyPark when I tried for "just one more run" despite starting to cramp, and I ate all kinds of sh*t on a jump.

With that kind of distance you wore out all the eBike batteries too :Roflmao
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Exactly. I learned the just one more thing several years ago. On my last run I knew it was time to quit.
SnakeCharmer said:
How many runs does it take to reach those stats there?
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Not sure. I did the upper loop 24 times total while waiting for others to get to the top so I'm guessing I did the full climb at least 10-12 times?
mtbfan said:
Is that Gene in the picture? If so, it's been years since I saw him. If not, he must be his twin brother :)
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No Gene with us. :)
 
knucklebuster said:
Maple Springs-Joplin-Luge yesterday with a buddy. Garmin said 50 degrees in Silverado when we started at 6:45. Wonderful breeze and reasonably cool the whole way up to Joplin trailhead, bugs only occasionally buggy, not too many Jeeps and motos, just one other biker until STT.

Joplin could use a brushing now. Hard to see the trail at some points, and the trail isn't very wide so little room for error. Dry and loose and seemed more difficult in general compared to late May. One unplanned stop I lost my Garmin but didn't realize it until later, so hiked back up around a half mile and found it right where I thought it would be.

The last sharp right hander that drops over the rocks near the bottom, I gave two tries, and the second one I went down good. Meat of the hand took the brunt of my weight on a sharp rock, lucky no breaks, black blue and sore today. Gotta stop doing that. I recall as I was hitting the ground, hearing my bike cartwheeling down the hill. What a horrible sound. Thankfully it was mostly unharmed, got on and finished climb up to STT and down Luge, now kinda hot in full sun.

Not too proud of this one... it pains me to see my bike bouncing around like this.
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Good effort Dave, sorry that last difficulty worked against you. Nice save. That is one of the few places on Joplin that one could get hurt, and it’s really mental. (Description for anyone who hasn’t done it.) The weze gasped at the photos, glad to know the outcome was NTB.

Stoked to hear you are still knocking off the big circuits. :thumbsup:
 
mike said:
Good effort Dave, sorry that last difficulty worked against you. Nice save. That is one of the few places on Joplin that one could get hurt, and it’s really mental. (Description for anyone who hasn’t done it.) The weze gasped at the photos, glad to know the outcome was NTB.

Stoked to hear you are still knocking off the big circuits. :thumbsup:
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Thx mike, really mental, the two previous times down Joplin I was able to make that section, so went into it with expectations. But it's gotten more ragged since I was last on it in May. Some other "reasons" for the crash but just comes down to running out of skills.
 
knucklebuster said:
Thx mike, really mental, the two previous times down Joplin I was able to make that section, so went into it with expectations. But it's gotten more ragged since I was last on it in May. Some other "reasons" for the crash but just comes down to running out of skills.
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It does look more ratty than ever. Dude, you have the skills all week. You just have to be in the mood to take it with some momentum; being cautious on it can be terrifying if not dangerous. Next time!! :geek::thumbsup:
 
knucklebuster said:
Thx mike, really mental, the two previous times down Joplin I was able to make that section, so went into it with expectations. But it's gotten more ragged since I was last on it in May. Some other "reasons" for the crash but just comes down to running out of skills.
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That second photo looks like you came down hard... glad the bike (and you) are okay!!!
 
Pissr Dave glad just minor bruises. Thats a tough corner. Good ride buddy. Wish I coulda joined ya.

knucklebuster said:
Maple Springs-Joplin-Luge yesterday with a buddy. Garmin said 50 degrees in Silverado when we started at 6:45. Wonderful breeze and reasonably cool the whole way up to Joplin trailhead, bugs only occasionally buggy, not too many Jeeps and motos, just one other biker until STT.

Joplin could use a brushing now. Hard to see the trail at some points, and the trail isn't very wide so little room for error. Dry and loose and seemed more difficult in general compared to late May. One unplanned stop I lost my Garmin but didn't realize it until later, so hiked back up around a half mile and found it right where I thought it would be.

The last sharp right hander that drops over the rocks near the bottom, I gave two tries, and the second one I went down good. Meat of the hand took the brunt of my weight on a sharp rock, lucky no breaks, black blue and sore today. Gotta stop doing that. I recall as I was hitting the ground, hearing my bike cartwheeling down the hill. What a horrible sound. Thankfully it was mostly unharmed, got on and finished climb up to STT and down Luge, now kinda hot in full sun.

Not too proud of this one... it pains me to see my bike bouncing around like this.
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Faust29 said:
Sh!t!

Nice of your buddy to film that for you. I guess that's what friends are for... :p Glad it wasn't worse.

I'm bummed I didn't run into you guys up there, but it sounds like you were way ahead of me.


Edit: Sorry, @knucklebuster - I threw that one up on the big screen for the wife to see. She thinks we're all nuts... But she did ask if the bike was ok... :eek:
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this is why i do not have a carbon bike
 
mtnbikej said:
Well my body has been telling all week that it is tired....so I chose not to make any commitments, sleep in go for a ride at some point today.

So I did just that. About noon I started to get the itch to ride. I've had a hankerin' for climbing Coal Canyon.

The plan was to climb up to Sierra Peak, then continue on up to the Doplar Ball and Hagador Peak if I was really feeling spunky.

I took the squishy bike, as Coal Canyon is brutal on the SS....and I just wanted a cruise up.

I parked about 4 miles away and rode in.

2:10 roll time and it was warm...but not bad....mid 80's.

My destiniation is at the top of that peak.....
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As soon as I hit the dirt, the temps went up. Occasionally there was a breeze. Otherwise, after the first 1/4 mile....there would be no shade the rest of the way up. Just kept it in an easy gear and worked my way slowly up. My Garmin would top out at 99*....and it felt like it.


The top is getting closer, but still a ways away....
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It was hot and it was dry. I took about 80 oz. with me as it is usually more than enough for a 3-4 hour ride. The trail gets steeper towards the top, it's also loose and rocky. However much easier to climb on the geared bike.


Finally made it to Sierra Peak. Nice breeze and 78*.
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At this point I had been drinking alot...so I took inventory of my fluids....I had already burned through 60-65 oz. I don't think 15 oz. was going to be enough to get me to the Doplar Ball and back. So I wised up and headed down.

First time down Coal Canyon on a geared bike in about 5 or 6 years. Way faster on the squishy bike.

All in all a good ride. Much easier on the geared bike. The heat definitely worked me. I'll be back.

20 / 2960
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I kinda love that climb even though I can’t clean in on my single. It was one of my last rides before the move.
 
Faust29 said:
Fire damage, but I'm pretty sure that's Trabuco Trail in the distance. The section just before you drop to the creek at West Horsethief. The iPhone camera can't resolve them, but the blurry blobs are standing burned trees. I even see some green in there...
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Based on what I've seen when I've been standing on Santiago, it appears the majority of the oaks and sycamores survived the fire. The pines did not - though I would expect to see some pine seedlings pretty much everywhere - since they grow much faster after a fire when they don't have to compete for sun or water. Most of the scrub will have survived, since it can regrow from roots, but it will be a while (three years or so) until it starts looking like bushes again.

Unlike the manzanita that was BULLDOZED around the Modjeska radar towers - which will not be coming back because they tore up the roots. The forest service does more lasting environmental damage than a fire :(
 
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UPSed said:
After I saw this I remembered my SkyPark visit in May. I think I opened and closed the park. Granted it took me all day as there was a lot of downtime but I couldn't believe the mileage and elevation I got from just riding around in circles. My next trip I'm actually considering riding for an hour or so at a time as I normally would and see how far I can go.
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Something doesn't add up. 28 miles and 5700 feet cannot be accomplished burning 1800 calories... unless you weigh less than 90 lbs and are riding a 15 lb bike. Were you riding an ebike? :)
 
BonsaiNut said:
Based on what I've seen when I've been standing on Santiago, it appears the majority of the oaks and sycamores survived the fire.
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I should clarify - this is for Trabuco canyon. Holy Jim canyon (the left branch that has the trail and the falls) was untouched by the fire. The right branch that most people don't see was untouched by the fire on the lower end, but the upper portion burned, so there was a lot of debris run-off that ended up in the creekbed below the falls. So the first mile of Holy Jim (that crosses the creekbed numerous times) will need to be rebuilt. The upper 80% of the trail is untouched and should be in pristine shape - though no one wants to say this because they want to keep people out :(
 
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