I Rode My Bike Today...

Heat Schmeat all around @Grego
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(Yesterday) B*. First ride on newly installed Forekaster V2 3C Maxx Terra EXO TR up front. Initial impression was favorable. Very dark with no moon. Plenty of candlepower available. Been using a recently acquired Gloworm X2 V2 helmet lamp and like it alot. The battery has a meter that shows the number of hours left and it holds enough juice for three night rides before recharging. At about 3 miles from the gate, stopped for a long conversation with a hiker. Some noteworthy intel was provided, such as : 1. The Forest Service has declared the top portion of Indian Truck Trail as unrepairable after a number of failed attempts and 2. Hikers traversing Upper Holy Jim Trail, have reported that they can't find a connection to Cold Water Trail. I don't if that little sign is still there or not? Critters encountered- lots of big spiders, a scorpion, a centipede and a dragonfly. Short but certainly entertaining jaunt. 8.71 / 1.050

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A very toasty O'Neill, STT, Cadillac loop yesterday with @Ocpop on his shiny new s-works. It looks suspiciously look his old epic but a different colour and less cables. We met near Vista at 7:30, it was already warm and would just get warmer throughout the morning. Probably should have started an hour or more earlier. Saw a few groups on the way up to and across STT to the top of the Luge. Was a bit worried they might have graded STT but its only the first few turns that they've bothered with. Quite a few walking FU Hill, I don't blame them, it was baking. Goat Hill was no better, very little shade. Someones attempted some brushing up there but to be brutally honest I don't think they know what they're doing. Cadillac is ok at the moment, theres one spot I walked, its rideable but you'd have to be very committed cos if you come off it ain't going to be pretty. We took our time on the way down, just below the hairpin corner with the truck down the chute they've run a blade through, there was a pretty big hole there to navigate and thats gone, weirdly they haven't really bothered to do anything below that though. Cruised back down the wash and into O'Neill before bidding adieu. The climbs back up Monastery and Ridgeline to get home finished the legs off. Definitely not in good riding shape at the moment :(.
 
Heat Schmeat... :laugh:

Last week it was the Heart of the Front Range ride with @buggravy . This week the special guest was @redwoods. :thumbsup: I call it the heart, because there are 4 main trails on the front side, and we rode the middle two- Middle Merrill and Sunset.

Climb up Lower Sam, across Echo Mountain Trail, and up the Mount Lowe Road to Inspiration Point (7.4/3200). A few hikers here and there, but we were largely alone. It was toasty, but not horrible as there are long shady stretches on the climb. Third major climb in a row that I've gone the distance without shifting. It's not exactly single speeding, but I think it's helping to get some leg strength back.

Middle Merrill is insane right now. My legs were cooked by the bottom. :laugh: Sunset is more overgrown than even last week... I don't know the variety, but there is a red flower on long stalks that is growing onto the trail from top to bottom. Pretty... But I took quite a few off the face. Pat found an iPhone in the middle of the trail. We checked the emergency contact, but couldn't get a call out. Luckily, the owner found us near the top of the Horsey Trail, and we chatted for awhile. :thumbsup:

Tacos after... 16.6/3600



Hmmm... One of These Days... :whistling:
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Steve, my buddy Mike, Krankn Kiwi rode it a few years ago and said it was very narrow and the switchbacks were all dismounts. He is on another level so I dismissed it. Lots of hikers too.

Faust29 said:
Heat Schmeat... :laugh:

Last week it was the Heart of the Front Range ride with @buggravy . This week the special guest was @redwoods. :thumbsup: I call it the heart, because there are 4 main trails on the front side, and we rode the middle two- Middle Merrill and Sunset.

Climb up Lower Sam, across Echo Mountain Trail, and up the Mount Lowe Road to Inspiration Point (7.4/3200). A few hikers here and there, but we were largely alone. It was toasty, but not horrible as there are long shady stretches on the climb. Third major climb in a row that I've gone the distance without shifting. It's not exactly single speeding, but I think it's helping to get some leg strength back.

Middle Merrill is insane right now. My legs were cooked by the bottom. :laugh: Sunset is more overgrown than even last week... I don't know the variety, but there is a red flower on long stalks that is growing onto the trail from top to bottom. Pretty... But I took quite a few off the face. Pat found an iPhone in the middle of the trail. We checked the emergency contact, but couldn't get a call out. Luckily, the owner found us near the top of the Horsey Trail, and we chatted for awhile. :thumbsup:

Tacos after... 16.6/3600



Hmmm... One of These Days... :whistling:
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Tom the Bomb said:
Steve, my buddy Mike, Krankn Kiwi rode it a few years ago and said it was very narrow and the switchbacks were all dismounts. He is on another level so I dismissed it. Lots of hikers too.
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The Castle Canyon Trail? Yeah... I don't see it being a good trail for riding, but it's one of those things I'll try once just to see it. :laugh: Tom Sloan was about the same...

According to Strava, it gets ridden a couple dozen times per year, so about the same as Idlehour in popularity.
 
evdog said:
What's with the switch to night rides? If I'd known you were down for those I might have hit you guys up last weekend.
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DangerDirtyD said:
I’m down for those.
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A certain someone has been doing rides after work, which has been his M. O. in past years as well. We start before dusk and finish at or just before dark. Evening rides is all I've had the time for myself lately as well.
 
You guys are crushing it in the heat, what gives? Steve and Mike...way to lose the crowds!



Today I had a nice ride – if a little warm – around Marlette Lake with my neighbor.

It’s not every ride that you get blown away by something you encounter. We did today. And it was not the views, as magnificent as they are on this ride. It was these two guys:

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These guys are 75 and 84 years old. In good humor despite having to push bikes up some features. They don’t want a motor, although the older gent said he’s begun thinking about it. Begun. At 84. They promptly silenced my 62-yo friend, telling him he "hasn’t seen Sh!t for decline yet." We shared the trail up a ways until the old boys got to their lunch spot.

I don’t recall ever being in quite the company so far from a TH and so high up. Inspiring and virtually awe inducing is what it is to me. And humbling.


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Another evening El P loop. This time it was the Tres Amigos: @Luis, @Faust29, and yours truly.

On the way up we saw the same gal who almost killed me last night when she was tearing down Fern TT. She giggled when I reminded her about it. :cautious:

We got to El P when the daylight was almost gone. Needed lights on from the moment we dropped in. It's crazy how dark it can get in there, with it's dense canopy. Too dark for pics once we got down into the creek but I think Luis got a selfie with all of us in it up at the saddle.

Does anyone know where I can get a tee with a "I LOVE EL PRIETO TRAIL" logo on it? :inlove::laugh:
 
mike said:
You guys are crushing it in the heat, what gives? Steve and Mike...way to lose the crowds!



Today I had a nice ride – if a little warm – around Marlette Lake with my neighbor.

It’s not every ride that you get blown away by something you encounter. We did today. And it was not the views, as magnificent as they are on this ride...

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These guys are 75 and 84 years old. In good humor despite having to push bikes up some features. They don’t want a motor, although the older gent said he’s begun thinking about it. Begun. At 84. They promptly silenced my 62-yo friend, telling him he "hasn’t seen Sh!t for decline yet." We shared the trail up a ways until the old boys got to their lunch spot.

I don’t recall ever being in quite the company so far from a TH and so high up. Inspiring and virtually awe inducing is what it is to me. And humbling.


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Wow. Just wow...
 
SnakeCharmer said:
Another evening El P loop. This time it was the Tres Amigos: @Luis, @Faust29, and yours truly.

On the way up we saw the same gal who almost killed me last night when she was tearing down Fern TT. She giggled when I reminded her about it. :cautious:

We got to El P when the daylight was almost gone. Needed lights on from the moment we dropped in. It's crazy how dark it can get in there, with it's dense canopy. Too dark for pics once we got down into the creek but I think Luis got a selfie with all of us in it up at the saddle.

Does anyone know where I can get a tee with a "I LOVE EL PRIETO TRAIL" logo on it? :inlove::laugh:
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This selfie? Yea I guess there’s evidence of me out on the dirt :p
 
Yep... El Prieto loop with Snake Man and Luis. It was a cool 93 when I rolled from the house, but the climb up Fern has quite a few spots that feel like the AC is on. :inlove: It was actually quite pleasant once we got past the first few turns. :thumbsup: Luis may have been off the bike for a bit, but he's already looking like his old self...

Fun romp down Fern and through El Prieto... Dark from top to bottom. Glad I took a big light tonight. :thumbsup:

Strava says this was my 200th ride on Stumpy. o_O :eek::confused: Bikes are fun!

12/1500
 
evdog said:
Where is that??? Got a friend asking for bikepacking routes and I was about to suggest the Lake Trail....
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https://goo.gl/maps/9Yz4jESC7AhSt8Pe9

Ev, the Lake Trail avoids a lot of the rim, so, a good choice overall. The part connecting Mt Rose Hwy to the trails west of Mt Rose is pretty high, and it's "adventurous" in dry conditions. Right now (likely anytime I do it again), counterclockwise, I would just drop the highway to the Lake, get a sandwich and work back up somewhere. I'd expect snow patches anywhere above 8000' around the lake right now. I did variants in spots both times I did it. A lot of the Lake Trail is raw or even theoretical, depending on the track version. Not undoable by any means, but requires navigation on the bars and footwork or scrambling to stay on some parts. Winging it in spots works out but I would not want to work through snow coverage.
 
Rode Tapia yesterday from home starting at 6P. It was 100 when we left and a hot blowing wind - miserable. By 7P, it was actually pleasant with a little shade from the mountains, temps down to 94 and the breeze began to cool off. The only other riders we ran into were the hard-core gang all over 55yo. No youngsters out yesterday!
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