I Rode My Bike Today...

Forecast showed the rain had lightened up so a quick romp up Maple Springs was the plan. Drove through some drizzle up to the trailhead, couldn't get a place to park, the lot was full.o_O Parked down the street a little. Started the climb, no rain.:thumbsup: Several bikers coming down one said it was pouring rain up there. Kept going. Found some more drizzle along the way but it would come and go. Got wet but not drenched. Cloud coverage covered the views. Still a great time riding the mountain. Up at Four Corners temperature took a dive with now a constant drizzle. We called it here. Suited up with another layer then headed down. Trailslayer would take a digger hitting a rock. I rolled up finding his bike down and him standing there saying WTF! Thankfully no injury other than a scrapped knee. Proceeded down a little more cautiously. A the bottom we ran into none other than the Professor and Mini Professor. Chatted for a bit, exchanged numbers hoping to get the teenagers out on some rides together. As the Professor rode away I couldn't help notice his rear wheel was wobbling/bent like crazy!:eek: Could have been just my imagination...:p Awesome to get a ride in today.:cool:
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Maderas84 said:
Tomorrow: Windsor Lot to Brown Saddle, conditions permitting, to Ken Burton Junction and back out via Millard to Horsey and back. I bet the water crossings at El P Trail are raging. Hopefully the water crossing at Millard is passable, if not, back out via El P Road.
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I did this ride today. Great ride! Hero dirt, didn't have to do any of the water crossings in El P. Thanks for the suggestion. I may do this more than the El P loop. Lots of fun new features on Horsey that weren't there the last time I went down.
It was crowded out today. Everyone thats been in isolation had to get out and stretch their legs in this break between rains and before another unpredictable week.
 
Grego said:
Forecast showed the rain had lightened up so a quick romp up Maple Springs was the plan. Drove through some drizzle up to the trailhead, couldn't get a place to park, the lot was full.o_O Parked down the street a little. Started the climb, no rain.:thumbsup: Several bikers coming down one said it was pouring rain up there. Kept going. Found some more drizzle along the way but it would come and go. Got wet but not drenched. Cloud coverage covered the views. Still a great time riding the mountain. Up at Four Corners temperature took a dive with now a constant drizzle. We called it here. Suited up with another layer then headed down. Trailslayer would take a digger hitting a rock. I rolled up finding his bike down and him standing there saying WTF! Thankfully no injury other than a scrapped knee. Proceeded down a little more cautiously. A the bottom we ran into none other than the Professor and Mini Professor. Chatted for a bit, exchanged numbers hoping to get the teenagers out on some rides together. As the Professor rode away I couldn't help notice his rear wheel was wobbling/bent like crazy!:eek: Could have been just my imagination...:p Awesome to get a ride in today.:cool:
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I might’ve been one of those guys telling you about the rain up top.

Pleasant cruise up MS until the dogs and cats started falling from the sky. Except for the visibility factor, the rain felt great.

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I had plans to drive out to Yucca Valley to check in on our family getaway house out there. I brought my bike and garb to ride Section 6 in Joshua Tree in case nothing else materialized...but something did materialize....

I reached out to @redwoods because he and @Tom the Bomb had recently talked about getting back out to ride the PCE while the weather allowed. Tom was under the weather but Pat made plans to pedal up from the bottom to do the Hahn/Goat Trails loop. I jumped on board and met them in Cathedral City. His friend Garren and Garren's son Gavin were there for the ride.

So we headed off from Vons and pedaled through town to do that dreaded Dunn Road climb. OMG, that was a BRUTAL climb. Likely that nastiest climb I have ever done. I pushed the bike at least 25% of the climb, likely more. Nearly 4 miles of complete hell and I considered dropping out several times. I wasn't feeling well anyway which surely played a part. Pat was super cool and did his part to keep me in view as he and the others continued their climb. He kept telling me that the reward was worth the pain and I really wanted to ride those trails so I reached down deep and carried on...slow/stop was my speed.

Eventually we made it up to the tractor where we took a break to refuel. Then, it was off we go onto Hahn. Even though that was more climbing, it's just not as bad when you are climbing ST, IMO. We got to the top together where the sign is. There was 2 or 3 other groups riding this stretch so we let them go ahead to get us some space apart from others. What an amazingly fun trail! So well built and built for speed. We reached the sandy creek bed and carried on toward Wildhorse (I believe?). One group turned left, we went right which was the long way around but with easier climbing. We gathered up again at the top of the hill and it was clear that the ride was starting to tax the guys. I actually was starting to come alive. Weird.

We dropped and rolled through some other stuff and then we hit the Goat Trails. Crazy chunky goodness. I think we finished on Superman which dumped us on just across the lot from where we parked.

Spring is springing out there. Wildflowers are starting to pop. Butterflies and lizards everywhere. And, hero dirt!

Here's a pic of @redwoods showing his enthusiasm in preparation for the DH section of Hahn. And, a couple of videos.


17.42 miles
3130' gain
1456 calories

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SnakeCharmer said:
So we headed off from Vons and pedaled through town to do that dreaded Dunn Road climb. OMG, that was a BRUTAL climb. Likely that nastiest climb I have ever done. I pushed the bike at least 25% of the climb, likely more. Nearly 4 miles of complete hell and I considered dropping out several times. I wasn't feeling well anyway which surely played a part. Pat was super cool and did his part to keep me in view as he and the others continued their climb. He kept telling me that the reward was worth the pain and I really wanted to ride those trails so I reached down deep and carried on...slow/stop was my speed.

Eventually we made it up to the tractor where we took a break to refuel. Then, it was off we go onto Hahn. Even though that was more climbing, it's just not as bad when you are climbing ST, IMO.
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That's why you climb up the Goat trails / Wildhorse/ Hahn and not Dunn Rd. Dunn sucks. Aside from a few steep spots and switchbacks most of the singletrack is climbable. Hahn is actually a pretty nice climb. Then you can descend Art's Johnson or go back down the way you climbed up. Less sucky, more interesting, much nicer riding.
 
evdog said:
That's why you climb up the Goat trails / Wildhorse/ Hahn and not Dunn Rd. Dunn sucks. Aside from a few steep spots and switchbacks most of the singletrack is climbable. Hahn is actually a pretty nice climb. Then you can descend Art's Johnson or go back down the way you climbed up. Less sucky, more interesting, much nicer riding.
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I had never done Hahn and the other connecting trails before and I have dropped AJ the last two visits. So, this time what we did made sense.

Incidentally, we chatted with some locals who said that there is a ST to catch about half way up the sand wash (PCE). He says that it's a gradual climb but it does bypass the fun DH section(s) of Hahn. It's a way to reduce the riding on the sand if your goal is to access the Goat Trails and the stuff around there, it's a short cut.
 
Saturday was my day to ride. More nw trails for me, yewew! Met some locals out by Sumerlin. I was told we’ll be doing Bear’s Best. Ok. Wutevur! Just show me the way. I was not let down. 90% single track. Lots and lots of jagged rock monsters trying to steal your momentum and rubber off your tires. All hero dirt all day. Such a good trail system out there. Wound up with just over 19 miles and a shiot ton of smiles. Can’t wait to do it again. Sorry no pics, to busy riding the epic gnar!!!!
 
SnakeCharmer said:
Incidentally, we chatted with some locals who said that there is a ST to catch about half way up the sand wash (PCE). He says that it's a gradual climb but it does bypass the fun DH section(s) of Hahn. It's a way to reduce the riding on the sand if your goal is to access the Goat Trails and the stuff around there, it's a short cut.
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That sounds like Vandeventer. It takes you over to the bottom of Hahn. It's definitely a shortcut.
 
evdog said:
That sounds like Vandeventer. It takes you over to the bottom of Hahn. It's definitely a shortcut.
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It doesn't look like it according to Trailforks unless Trailforks has that trail (Vandeventer) positioned wrong on the map. The trail I am talking about is unnamed, according to the riders, but posted at the trailhead where it starts at around half way up the sand wash and joins Hahn somewhere in the middle of it, and yes, at the bottom of some downhill section.
 
SnakeCharmer said:
It doesn't look like it according to Trailforks unless Trailforks has that trail (Vandeventer) positioned wrong on the map. The trail I am talking about is unnamed, according to the riders, but posted at the trailhead where it starts at around half way up the sand wash and joins Hahn somewhere in the middle of it, and yes, at the bottom of some downhill section.
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@evdog is right. It's Vanderventer. Drops into the sandy Creek bed just about right where HBV does. Very similar to the rest of Vanderventer, as I recall.
 
rossage said:
@evdog is right. It's Vanderventer. Drops into the sandy Creek bed just about right where HBV does. Very similar to the rest of Vanderventer, as I recall.
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No, that is not where it joins the Hahn trail... unless Trailforks has Vanderventer placed in the wrong position on the map. Trailforks shows Vanderventer nowhere near the sand wash climb. This faint trail joins higher up but in a lower section of Hahn. If you were ripping along, you wouldn't even notice it connecting. We didn't. We only noticed because these riders were junctioning onto Hahn just as we were passing by. The riders said it's a consistent but fairly mellow uphill pedal the entire stretch.
If anyone here has a map that shows otherwise, please share it.
 
SnakeCharmer said:
No, that is not where it joins the Hahn trail... unless Trailforks has Vanderventer placed in the wrong position on the map. Trailforks shows Vanderventer nowhere near the sand wash climb. This faint trail joins higher up but in a lower section of Hahn. If you were ripping along, you wouldn't even notice it connecting. We didn't. We only noticed because these riders were junctioning onto Hahn just as we were passing by. The riders said it's a consistent but fairly mellow uphill pedal the entire stretch.
If anyone here has a map that shows otherwise, please share it.
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Yes. It is Vanderventer and it wouldn't be the first time Trailforks was wrong.
Many people were riding that trail before Trailforks even existed.
Ride it.
Doesn't matter what it's called.
 
Yup, echo what @rossage and @mike said. Vandeventer as I know it isn't on Trailforks. I consider MTB Bills map to be the authoritative source. http://mountainbikebill.com/images/Trails/PalmCanyon/PalmCanyonEpicMap-V3.pdf

The BLM and Agua Caliente tribe both use the same names but apply them to different trails. https://acbci.maps.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=52e4ecb835594cd4a7783ab7d7d05964

And then there's Trailforks and Strava which are user-sourced with names sometimes pulled out of peoples' a$$es.

All of these sources are incomplete in places. Once we go on full lockdown quarantine maybe I'll have time to correct Trailforks at least.
 
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evdog said:
Yup, echo what @rossage and @mike said. Vandeventer as I know it isn't on Trailforks. I consider MTB Bills map to be the authoritative source. http://mountainbikebill.com/images/Trails/PalmCanyon/PalmCanyonEpicMap-V3.pdf

The BLM and Agua Caliente tribe both use the same names but apply them to different trails. https://acbci.maps.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=52e4ecb835594cd4a7783ab7d7d05964

And then there's Trailforks and Strava which are user-sourced with names sometimes pulled out of peoples' a$$es.

All of these sources are incomplete in places. Once we go on full lockdown quarantine maybe I'll have time to correct Trailforks at least.
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@evdog, @rossage, and @mike, thanks for straightening that out.
 
What the hell, decided to try riding up Motorway. It was brutal but I got around 2.5 miles up before the ominous clouds started to gather(my legs were pretty shot too). TBH, it was mostly stopping to enjoy the scenery with a little biking thrown in:whistling: . Rain was coming down hard by the time I got to the bottom. Didn’t see another biker until I got back to the car. He was about to head up motorway despite the rain. I love the Santa Anas!

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@Ocpop - You were just on the wrong bike. I saw two guys the other day who did it in 20 minutes flat. That's faster than some people go down it... :eek: :p

First ride on the Hightower since the gang hit Joplin a couple weeks ago...

Social Distancing San Juan- It was quite cold and wet. It's a 12 mile round trip ride to Cocktail Rock, and it rained for all but the last mile coming down... At times there may have been a few frozen drops. I wore the Showers Pass up and down, which is pretty unusual. But temps in the mid 30s warranted that.

Fun time... No humans within 6 feet of me, but I did have a good vantage point for a spectacular crash! The Professor got a little cocky and ended up somersaulting several times down the trail after getting wonky in a new rut. Pretty sure he aggravated his Joplin injuries, and maybe added a few more points of pain. :facepalm: When I approached the crash scene, I kept a respectable distance... :p I described it as a somersault, but the Professor corrected me that it was more of a cartwheel, with arms and legs akimbo.


Zoom lens... I was actually quite far away.
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12.5/2300
 
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