I Rode My Bike Today...

herzalot said:
@-ROCKY- It's ALMOST time to introduce you to "The Rules" - a self mocking list of rules for cycling that are true / not true. Most of these apply to road cyclists, so I have taken the liberty of writing my own for mt biking. One of these rules is "you do not pack a lunch." You are only allowed Tailwind supplement in your water bottle and/or official "nutrition" bars and gel packs in your jersey pockets, hip pack or (out-of-fashion) hydration pack. Some allowances are made for your own self-made trail mix, as long as you are not wearing lycra (Spandex) shorts.

Don't worry, you will soon become "one of us" the enlightened, on-trend mt biker or one of its many subsets. It's inevitable. The remaining people on this site have become our own unique subset of "been there, done that, too old to keep doing that" mt bikers. That's probably why all the hip, trendy 25-50 year olds have left this site.

Best wishes!
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Herz!! That's great! :thumbsup: You know I broke the not packing a lunch rule today, and found out why that rule is!! :confused: I packed a lunch and took my bike out to Portuguese Bend in RPV and it turned my bike ride in a LUNCHEON!!! I found a bench under a tree, with a scenic view and ocean breeze, next thing I knew it was time to get back to work..:gotnothing: I did have a good time. I had forgotten how steep a lot of the trails are there and felt like I was in over my head on a lot of it. I crashed last time. It's just over half hour to get there for me, so I will return. Anyway I got in a spectacular 3 miles and 400 feet in..:rolleyes:
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IMG_20240522_153107.jpg

And the lunch tree. It was really nice.:inlove:
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Killin it Rocky. I break the rule periodically too! Only on solo rides though :whistling:
Luv yah @herzalot !


-ROCKY- said:
Herz!! That's great! :thumbsup: You know I broke the not packing a lunch rule today, and found out why that rule is!! :confused: I packed a lunch and took my bike out to Portuguese Bend in RPV and it turned my bike ride in a LUNCHEON!!! I found a bench under a tree, with a scenic view and ocean breeze, next thing I knew it was time to get back to work..:gotnothing: I did have a good time. I had forgotten how steep a lot of the trails are there and felt like I was in over my head on a lot of it. I crashed last time. It's just over half hour to get there for me, so I will return. Anyway I got in a spectacular 3 miles and 400 feet in..:rolleyes:
View attachment 93290View attachment 93291
And the lunch tree. It was really nice.:inlove:
View attachment 93292
Click to expand...
 
-ROCKY- said:
Herz!! That's great! :thumbsup: You know I broke the not packing a lunch rule today, and found out why that rule is!! :confused: I packed a lunch and took my bike out to Portuguese Bend in RPV and it turned my bike ride in a LUNCHEON!!! I found a bench under a tree, with a scenic view and ocean breeze, next thing I knew it was time to get back to work..:gotnothing: I did have a good time. I had forgotten how steep a lot of the trails are there and felt like I was in over my head on a lot of it. I crashed last time. It's just over half hour to get there for me, so I will return. Anyway I got in a spectacular 3 miles and 400 feet in..:rolleyes:
View attachment 93290View attachment 93291
And the lunch tree. It was really nice.:inlove:
View attachment 93292
Click to expand...
Now that's a good lunch break :)
 
Rode 2 weeks in a row!

Had'nt ridden since we moved to Arcadia at the end of March. Gear was buried in boxes in the garage that I just never got around to sorting through.. amongst other things. I wasn't sure what I would do for rides now. At the place in Monrovia I chose to ride from the house up to clamshell to do the loop. It's actually been some time since I actually drove anywhere to do a ride. I didn't actually move thaaaat far away, but was thinking now might be the time to start driving to the trails again?

2 weekends ago, I drove.. but to my usual spot (started late so chose to go close). Decided.. hey why not try Clamshell in a clockwise loop.. Biiiig MIstake. It's all fine until the bottom of the firebreak. That thing is steeeeeeeep. I always suspected that it would be tough to climb.. but lets just say I ended up taking my bike for a walk. Even at the top heading east towards the switchbacks there were a couple of short steep climbs that I had to hoof it up. Never realised this riding the opposite way. Anyway, finally made it to the top (again walking up the switchbacks). Did a short loop around the top with the singletrack dropping from the bench (1st half of "clamshell ridgeline on trailforks). There's been a lot of work, somone built a loooong set of stairs on the steep loose part. Should help with trail erosion. Circled back to the top and backtracked to the car. Might be a good route for those super xc racers.. but damn after 6 weeks off, it was especially hard.


Last weekend.. decided hey why not just try riding from home.. Extra mile of pavement each way... but mostly through peaceful residential street. I think it added an extra 7 or 8 minutes total to my ride time... so looks like I can just keep riding from home.
 
herzalot said:
I may end up doing less and less of the kinds of DH I like, but I will never prefer climbing over descending. NEVER! Only very sick and twisted individuals would prefer climbing over descending. And those who won't let themselves enjoy the glory of rear suspension. And maybe those with motors.
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And thus, the beauty of individuality and personal preference!!:p:thumbsup::thumbsup:
 
herzalot said:
I may end up doing less and less of the kinds of DH I like, but I will never prefer climbing over descending. NEVER! Only very sick and twisted individuals would prefer climbing over descending. And those who won't let themselves enjoy the glory of rear suspension. And maybe those with motors.
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The glory of rear suspension! I've been missing the boat there Herz! I want to get on board so I'm going to keep an eye out. I might start a thread asking for suggestions, I'd like to have your input! :D
 
-ROCKY- said:
The glory of rear suspension! I've been missing the boat there Herz! I want to get on board so I'm going to keep an eye out. I might start a thread asking for suggestions, I'd like to have your input! :D
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No rear suspension for you young man until you've paid your dues!

Get some laps on the Fullerton Loop (intro to mtb - no suspension required), Whiting and Aliso down here or something equivalent in LA County. We'll talk rear suspension after you've ridden Rock-It on your hardtail.

Rock It Uphill.JPG


Rock It Pop!.JPG
 
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herzalot said:
No rear suspension for you young man until you've paid your dues!

Get some laps on the Fullerton Loop (intro to mtb - no suspension required), Whiting and Aliso down here or something equivalent in LA County. We'll talk rear suspension after you've ridden Rock-It on your hardtail.
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LMAO!! I was totally on the same page with that! I'm just thinking these current deals may dry up before I'm ready! I guess I'll work up to Rock-It, even though I thought gopher holes on Limestone was pretty bad lol :gag:
 
This is getting to be a habit.

Whiting-Luge-Whiting today. Partly with @Danimal. See?
Dan and Chris Whiting 5-25-24.jpg

Dan decided he could join me for a portion of the ride, but he didn't want to go all the way to The Luge, so he turned around about a 1/2 mile up STT and headed back through Whiting.

I just wanted to see at what point my hip, leg or back would give out. None of that happened. I felt great. Slow as usual, but great.

I made a promise to all with whom I work and she to whom I am married that I would roll off the throttle on the descents. So I did. Quick enough to be fun, but cautious enough to ride another day. 13% slower than my typical 2021-22 Luge times.

Beautiful weather and fun to ride with Dan again. It's been a minute!

15.8 mi 2336' 3/4 of a water bottle. Bikes are fun. Riding with functioning body parts even more funner!

Yeti at Luge Flag 5-25-24.jpg


BTW - I could probably handle Wrightwood (the usual up Boy Scout, down Log Jammer, down Leprechaun and back up to the lake).
 
herzalot said:
This is getting to be a habit.

Whiting-Luge-Whiting today. Partly with @Danimal. See?
View attachment 93326
Dan decided he could join me for a portion of the ride, but he didn't want to go all the way to The Luge, so he turned around about a 1/2 mile up STT and headed back through Whiting.

I just wanted to see at what point my hip, leg or back would give out. None of that happened. I felt great. Slow as usual, but great.

I made a promise to all with whom I work and she to whom I am married that I would roll off the throttle on the descents. So I did. Quick enough to be fun, but cautious enough to ride another day. 13% slower than my typical 2021-22 Luge times.

Beautiful weather and fun to ride with Dan again. It's been a minute!

15.8 mi 2336' 3/4 of a water bottle. Bikes are fun. Riding with functioning body parts even more funner!

View attachment 93327

BTW - I could probably handle Wrightwood (the usual up Boy Scout, down Log Jammer, down Leprechaun and back up to the lake).
Click to expand...
You could totally ride Wrightwood on either of your bikes if you just rode 2,300 feet today.
 
herzalot said:
This is getting to be a habit.

Whiting-Luge-Whiting today. Partly with @Danimal. See?
View attachment 93326
Dan decided he could join me for a portion of the ride, but he didn't want to go all the way to The Luge, so he turned around about a 1/2 mile up STT and headed back through Whiting.

I just wanted to see at what point my hip, leg or back would give out. None of that happened. I felt great. Slow as usual, but great.

I made a promise to all with whom I work and she to whom I am married that I would roll off the throttle on the descents. So I did. Quick enough to be fun, but cautious enough to ride another day. 13% slower than my typical 2021-22 Luge times.

Beautiful weather and fun to ride with Dan again. It's been a minute!

15.8 mi 2336' 3/4 of a water bottle. Bikes are fun. Riding with functioning body parts even more funner!

View attachment 93327

BTW - I could probably handle Wrightwood (the usual up Boy Scout, down Log Jammer, down Leprechaun and back up to the lake).
Click to expand...
fantastic
 
I had a nice ride from Quail Hill down to Crystal Cove and back. I didn't set any land speed records today but I'm ok with that. Lizard trail is silty. I wouldn't want to crash on that trail. There is no soft place to land. Rocks on the trail are smooth and covered in light dirt. People/ Hikers were nice out on the trails- pleasant encounters. Great day out. 24 mi./ 3,650 climbing.

IMG_9719.jpeg


IMG_9723.jpeg
 
No pics of today's ride. I had sh!t to do early so my plans were sudden and disorganized as far as riding goes. :rolleyes:

I pedaled from home base over to JPL again at a lil before high noon. More and more wild flowers every ride now. I took the Flintridge trail again through the neighborhoods on the way over. When I reached Devil's Gate debris basin, I saw route signs posted all over for a run some organization was having and then I saw scattered participants for the duration of the visit to the area. There was a few riders out this time too. Only one e-biker. I did see a rider on a Surron doing a wheelie down the road way, going at least 60mph, headed toward El P, though.
upload_2024-5-26_17-12-38.gif
:mad:

I climbed up to the lower saddle then flew down the DH. Passed by El P today and rolled over to the drop to the Owen Brown Memorial. Bypassed that too and dropped into the neighborhoods below. Rolled pavement back over to JPL, dropped down a short section of the Altadena Trail, then over and onto a little known ST network that makes rolling through the basin a lil more bearable. From there I jumped onto pavement and rolled home.

Didn't feel as good today. Struggled a bit, but not too bad. Saddle sores were my biggest issue. :eek:

20.3 miles
2120' gain
 
I set off for a repeat of Saturday's Whiting-Luge-Whiting successful hip experiment, but didn't quite make it.

As I mentioned in Who's Riding Where, there were indeed the 3,427 hikers on Borrego that I predicted. Most I've ever seen. ...So that was neat! :stop: o_O

Once I got to the end of Borrego and went up to bag Cattle Pond, the traffic thinned dramatically. Nobody on Cattle Pond and only about 1/8th of the people on Mustard. But - as I was climbing Mustard, I noticed my legs were still a bit tired from Saturday and had not completely recovered. OK - no problem.

Up Modjeska - not too bad. Then as I was climbing STT I really began to notice my fatigue. I was craving some calories, but didn't have any with me - only water. :facepalm: By the time I got to the top of the hill before the descent to the Luge Flag, I knew I wasn't going to make the full trip today. I was exhausted and a bit dizzy. I still had a fun, albeit conservative, run down The Luge. It's really overgrown in a couple of sections with near zero visibility - kinda fun in its own way, but not speed friendly. A little beat up in a couple of sections, but that helps test the suspension settings!

The short climb out was rough, and I walked the steep off-camber corner. The last little bit of dh was still fun with a couple of small jumps. Then it was down Live Oak to Cooks for the left turn of shame! (One turns right to return through Whiting). Up Glen Ranch Road back to my car and then emergency refuel at Wahoos. That was the best tasting Wahoos EVER! :inlove:

The lesson I learned as a newbie 35 years ago - that I chose to ignore today - got me! Bring calories! (A few Clif Blocks would have been sufficient). I had a half a bagel and 12oz of Scratch before my ride. Evidently not enough.

Still - what an amazing day out there! Oh - and I saw exactly ZERO other mt. bikers or hikers after I started up Modjeska. None on the STT climb. None at the flag. None on The Luge. One lone rider came by me the other direction as I was resting and putting on pads at the top of STT. He asked if I was OK. I said I was tired, but didn't ask him for food!

That's a pretty long ride report for a nothing ride! Oh - it was sunny and cool.

13.6 mi 2027' Bikes are still fun. :thumbsup: :cool: Undernourished riders, maybe not so much. :bang: :thumbsdown: :oops:
 
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herzalot said:
I set off for a repeat of Saturday's Whiting-Luge-Whiting successful hip experiment, but didn't quite make it.

As I mentioned in Who's Riding Where, there were indeed the 3,247 hikers on Borrego that I predicted. Most I've ever seen. ...So that was neat!

Once I got to the end of Borrego and went up to bag Cattle Pond, the traffic thinned dramatically. Nobody on Cattle Pond and only about 1/8th of the people on Mustard. But - as I was climbing Mustard, I noticed my legs were still a bit tired from Saturday and had not completely recovered. OK - no problem.

Up Modjeska - not too bad. Then as I was climbing STT I really began to notice my fatigue. I was craving some calories, but didn't have any with me - only water. :facepalm: By the time I got to the top of the hill before the descent to the Luge Flag, I knew I wasn't going to make the full trip today. I was exhausted and a bit dizzy. I still had a fun, albeit conservative, run down The Luge. It's really overgrown in a couple of sections with near zero visibility - kinda fun in its own way, but not speed friendly. A little beat up in a couple of sections, but that helps test the suspension settings!

The short climb out was rough, and I walked the steep off-camber corner. The last little bit of dh was still fun with a couple of small jumps. Then it was down Live Oak to Cooks for the left turn of shame! (One turns right to return through Whiting). Up Glen Ranch Road back to my car and then emergency refuel at Wahoos. That was the best tasting Wahoos EVER! :inlove:

The lesson I learned as a newbie 35 years ago - that I chose to ignore today - got me! Bring calories! (A few Clif Blocks would have been sufficient). I had a half a bagel and 12oz of Scratch before my ride. Evidently not enough.

Still - what an amazing day out there! Oh - and I saw exactly ZERO other mt. bikers or hikers after I started up Modjeska. None on the STT climb. None at the flag. None on The Luge. One lone rider came by me the other direction as I was resting and putting on pads at the top of STT. He asked if I was OK. I said I was tired, but didn't ask him for food!

That's a pretty long ride report for a nothing ride! Oh - it was sunny and cool.

13.6 mi 2027' Bikes are still fun. :thumbsup: :cool: Undernourished riders, maybe not so much. :bang: :thumbsdown: :oops:
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And not a word on the views??? Scenery?:p
 
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