Gnarly rescue taking place in Laguna

StrandLeper said:
But I am not sure how one falls 200 feet going down telonics.
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Just to the right of the rock rollers after the waterfall. The proper line has you ripping through there about 30 feet to the left of said 200 ft. cliff. Don't crash there.

I don't have a good photo of the area, but it would be to the extreme left of the photo, about where the trail meets the left edge of the photo. If you watch the news video on the GoFundMe site you can see this rock roller right at the top of the cliff.

Chris Rocks Telonics.JPG
 
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BTW, more than a few people made some assumptions when they heard it was a rider in his 50s named Chris. I had a few interesting texts and phone messages.

Healing vibes to our rad brother for taking the tumble we all fear. I'll kick in some $$$ and some prayers, for what it's worth.
 
mike said:
Note to self: When poaching, don't create a public spectacle.
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Hard to call Telonics poaching when it is publicly ridden 100s of times a day and no agency or alleged landowner is interested in doing anything to even slightly deter users. There is absolutely no evidence of it being illegal, except folklore. There was a race on the trail last Wednesday evening, complete with corporate vans parked in the upper cul-de sac and chase vehicles down in the canyon. Not a single ticket, warning or even "hey buddy" issued. Lots of industry press, however.
 
There are other trails near telonics that lay people will confuse as telonics some with exposure. The don't ask don't tell policy in Laguna worked well for years, between Strava and industry magazines I am surprised that more enforcement has not taken place. I know they ticket in Aliso Woods and Laguna Wilderness Parks but Telonics seems to escape.

Dean
 
Looking at the OC Parks maps, Telonics is not on their property. Not sure whose property it is. Certainly at least some private, maybe some City of Laguna Beach? Until they make an issue of it, it isn't an issue.
 
Last I heard, up top City owned land but managed by the county (or was at some point). A few years ago Oc parks was gonna buy it but the deal fell through. City could enforce if they wanted I think. Probably decided long ago it was futile.
 
herzalot said:
Just to the right of the rock rollers after the waterfall. The proper line has you ripping through there about 30 feet to the left of said 200 ft. cliff. Don't crash there.

I don't have a good photo of the area, but it would be to the extreme left of the photo, about where the trail meets the left edge of the photo. If you watch the news video on the GoFundMe site you can see this rock roller right at the top of the cliff.

View attachment 16020
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That has to be it. My first time down Telonics I didn't take the line in the pic. I went more to the left and crashed. HEHEHE. Landed and skidded stopping myself with my head looking down said cliff face. Needless to say I followed my friend the next time that day.
 
That's a pretty good view of the area ^^^^^

Anything can happen - flat front tire, other mechanical error, bucked by suspension on one of the rollers - things can go bad in a hurry, and as you can see, that leeeetle drop off is right there, waiting for you. Most of us never even notice it when riding the trail, but if you've walked it, you've seen it.

I almost always agree with Jim, but I disagree about signs and/or fencing. They would most likely be torn down and thrown over the edge. I am willing to bet Chris knew there was a cliff there, but like all of us, couldn't imagine things going bad enough to actually force him over it.

It's nature. There are cliffs, and trees, and rocks and cactus, and ruts and dirt and things. If it were a man-made feature, that would be different.

Wishing Chris a complete recovery.
 
herzalot said:
Most of us never even notice it when riding the trail, but if you've walked it, you've seen it.
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I've done a lot of cross country hiking in the Sierras. One of my pet peeves was these piles of rocks called "ducks" that people would stack, supposedly to mark a route. They were almost always a waste of time because the routes were obvious, like hike up the valley and aim for the pass. I'd generally knock them over because I felt each of us who was off trail deserved to see the wilderness without signs of previous visitors' passage.

One time they made sense though. They were in stacks of three and marked the edge of a cliff. It wasn't obvious, even for us on foot. I left those ducks standing and think something similar here could be beneficial, because a lot of riders probably don't have the luxury or wisdom to explore the trail before riding it. Many probably saw a video and are psyched and going for it.

Chris may have known the cliff was there and was still unable to avoid going over, but others undoubtedly don't. A fence might be unwarranted, but some sort of markings seem in order since the cliff is hard to see and unexpected. Paint or orange tape could be enough for a head's up. Like Gary said, it's happened before.

Healing vibes to Chris and wishes for a complete recovery.
 
StrandLeper said:
To @herzalot 's point, I am not unfamiliar w telonics. I never knew that cliff was there.
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You don't really notice it since you're paying attention to the rollers. I knew there was a drop, but never realized how close it was until looking at google maps after reading this:

cliff on telonics.JPG

Circled area is the cliff and ravine. Long line is the trail. Arrow shows just how close the trail is to the cliff at the bottom of the second rock roll. Not saying that's where he went off, as I have no idea.
 
I knew there was exposure there but not like that.. Seems to be the case on many trails though, you have your sights on the trail coming at you and not the side. Except for Strawberry Peak, I saw the exposure at slower speeds on that trail and almost became a victim of it.

More angles of the spot:

upload_2016-4-27_11-0-50.png


upload_2016-4-27_11-1-15.png
 
Here's an update on Chris from https://www.gofundme.com/hukillfund. Their fund raising is at about 60% of the hoped for amount, so donations are still needed.

"My dad is able to sit in a wheelchair for hours at a time. He has been moved to a rehabilitation center where he can go outside and get some fresh air. He is moving more and is in better spirits. He is also talking more. He still has a neck brace on but he is able to wear normal clothes now. We are hopeful that he will make a full recovery, it's just a matter of time!"
 
THX for the update. This could have been me after more than one time after I have left the trail un-expectedly. I have been on that section of back door Telonics many times.

Dean
 
I'm a big believer of steering your bike with your eyes.
The attempt to warren riders of the up coming cliff might cause them to lose their focus (on the actual trail) and steer right over the edge.

I never road that trail, and 'm not suggesting a solution (if one is needed) to the problem. Just pointing out that I have a keyboard and an opinion ;-)
 
I've always felt the best way to respond to an accident is to prevent it before it happens.

Back in my road biking days, we'd point and call out hazards to riders behind us, like a parked car they might smack into. Or rocks, glass and other debris. Didn't have to warn about cliffs, but is there no way for mountain bikers to extend this courtesy to fellow riders, even if those riders aren't sitting on their wheel?
 
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