RR: 4S/Black Mountain Loop

This afternoon I had a chance to do a rare evening ride after work. I've been wanting to see if I could combine a couple of the local rides I've done into a loop that would work for a new local ride since my old one is completely grown over.

I figured I'd leave from home, ride the 4S trails behind the Boys and Girls Club, go up Carmel Valley Road to Black Mountain trailhead, do a loop around Canyon Rim, go back up the road to the trailhead, ride across the meadow to the singletrack by the pond, go over that hill, and then ride back the way I came.

It was a great plan, and I recruited Sean to accompany me. He showed up at my place around 5:30 and we were ready to ride.

I hadn't done any maintenance to the Enduro since Noble, and had forgotten that it had started miss-shifting toward the end of that ride. But since this was a quickie local ride, I figured it would be ok and I would give it a full treatment when I got home. I didn't even bring all of my tools. That was a bad call.

About halfway up Carmel Valley Road, the miss-shifting got really bad, and the chain kept slipping off the front rings. I finally got it to stay on for a few yards, and then it just completely snapped, breaking one of the links.

I had left my Leatherman at home, so I couldn't bend the broken link back into place, and I didn't have a chain tool to remove the broken link and shorten it with the powerlink that was already on there. Sean and I fooled with it for a few minutes, but it was no use.

We were just two and a half miles into my beautifully planned ride, and a call to the sag wagon was in order. Rachel picked me up on the side of the road like a little kid, and we waved to Sean as he rode home.

I was pretty bummed, and don't really know what caused the problem. I think I'll thoroughly clean the chain, remove the broken link, replace it with another powerlink, and see if that solves the problem. If not, I'll have to have it looked at by someone who knows what they're doing...

Here are the aborted stats:

Total Distance: 2.50 miles
Total Time: 27:22
Ascent: 201 feet
Average Speed: 5.5 mph
Top Speed: 34.4 mph
Bike: Specialized Enduro Elite
Map:

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Skyline MTB Laguna Weekend (w/Noble Shuttle)

After months of anticipation and build-up, the Skyline MTB weekend in Laguna turned out to be pretty anticlimactic for me. It was no fault of Billy, who did an awesome job organizing the whole thing and planning out rides. Between some external factors beyond my control, last-minute plan changes, poor coping skills on my part, car trouble, and a mystery illness, the weekend was far from the oasis of MTB enjoyment I had hoped for.

We were only planning to stay in Laguna Friday night, because we had a work BBQ Sunday morning to go to with Rachel's boss. But I figured if we were having a great time, we could stay Saturday night also, and just get up early and drive to the BBQ Sunday morning. We didn't end up doing that.

I had been a little ambivalent about how the weekend would go starting from the week beforehand. Nichole told Rachel she and Joel were not coming because Joel was leaving for the academy, so we figured we would not go up early on Friday for an afternoon ride. As late as Wednesday, I figured we would get out of work at the normal time, drop off the dogs with Rob and Michelle, and make it up to Laguna around 7 or so.

Then Joel told me he and Nichole were coming up to Laguna on Friday, but they weren't riding or spending the night. So I plead with my boss to leave early Friday afternoon, got into work before 6:00 a.m. in order to pull that off, and left work around 2:30 so we could get up there and spend some time with Joel before he left for Sacramento for seven months.

Rach had done a great job getting the car packed and ready to go, so when I got home all I had to do was throw the bikes on the back of the Acura, herd the chihuahuas into the car, and we would be off. Except that's not what happened.

I got the bikes on the car, herded up the chis, jumped into the driver's seat, and then: *click click click*. Dead battery. I didn't handle the setback well. With Rachel's help, we jump started the car, loaded everything back in, and got underway only 20 minutes later. But the tone for the weekend had been set. And I was a little stressed out.

We dropped off the girls in Spring Valley with the Walkers and headed for Laguna. We arrived and checked into our hotel room, which was mere feet away from the cabins the rest of the group were staying in, which was nice. The room was adequate, with a mini fridge, microwave, small fireplace, and king size bed. It was rustic and old, but seemed like it would do the trick for a night or two.

Despite getting to Laguna in plenty of time Friday night for a ride, we didn't do one. Billy and his family and Tony and his family were already there hanging out at their cabins, and Joel and Nichole were visiting as well. Since no one was riding, we didn't either. I was a little bummed, but we had a great time hanging out, eating BBQ chicken and S'mores, and having a time of fellowship. I really enjoyed it.

We planned to start the Noble ride the next morning at 9:00 a.m., and Billy and Nate drove down to the Pine Valley trailhead in the morning to drop a car for the shuttle back to the campground.

We actually got the ride underway around 9:20, and the conditions were great. It was a beautiful day, not too hot and clear and cloudless. I started out wearing a long sleeve shirt, but stashed it in my Toolbox about halfway around the Big Laguna Loop.

We started the ride from the campground and rode a mile or so down a fire road that linked up with the Big Laguna Trail. We rode BLT for about three miles until it intersected with the Noble Canyon trail, and we were on our way.

It was a pretty standard Noble ride, and frankly, was not as much fun as the ride Joel and I did a few months ago on the same trail. But saying that is kind of like a little kid saying "this Disneyland trip wasn't as good as the Disneyland trip we had last year..." Noble is always going to be Noble; its a fun, diverse, challenging ride that will never fail to live up to its status as the only IMBA epic ride in San Diego.

We kept up a pretty quick pace for the first part of the ride, and as I rode, my perceptions of the Enduro began to change diametrically from my earlier first impressions. It absolutely ate up everything the trail threw at it. My last time at Noble was recently enough for me to remember little details that had given me trouble before, and virtually none of them were a factor this time. Perhaps even more importantly, the Enduro no longer felt sluggish on the climbs, and the weight really wasn't a factor. I did labor a bit going up the only real climb toward the beginning of the trail, but that was more due to a recent slacking off of my conditioning, not the bike.

The bike was also far more nimble than I anticipated, and I cleaned all of the switchbacks with relative ease and no dabbing. That is, until I blew my rear tire leading into one of them. The flat took forever to fix, and I would probably still be up there if not for Tony's help. I eventually got back up and running, and continued to sail along smoothly after that for the most part.

Even with my new trail machine, I didn't clean Stairway. To be honest, I didn't really even give it a full attempt. That is a gnarly section, and while I rode through some of it, I didn't have the chops to make it the whole way. Nate and Tony each tried, but neither of them could do it either. Billy had decided from the outset that it wasn't going to happen for him, and didn't even make an attempt.

I did, however, ride the log jump that came up next on the trail. The first time I rode it, I landed front wheel first and lost control a little. I regained my balance just in time to keep from wiping out entirely, but still rode a little off trail into the bushes. So I decided to ride it again. Nate did it before I did, and advised me to just pull up as hard as I could right at the lip of the log, and I should be OK.

So I approached the log a second time, maintained some speed, and pulled up as hard as I could just as I reached the lip, like he suggested.

Turns out I took his advice a little too literally.

I landed rear wheel first, with a lot of speed, then tumbled forward, OTB, hard. Both knees hit the handlebars on the way over, and the bike rolled over the top of me. I ended up off the left side of the trail, in a tree. Seriously, the bike was hung up on a branch like an ornament, and I was flat on my back hanging over the edge of a small slope. My right knee in particular really hurt from hitting the bars, and I was embarrassed and a little pissed. The bike, fortunately, was OK.

Turns out it was pretty fortunate the bike and I were caught up in the tree, because if we had kept going, we would have ended up about 15 feet down in the creek. So that was a silver lining. I hobbled around for a few minutes, took note of some other miscellaneous scrapes and bruises I had acquired, and then we continued onward. I did not attempt the log jump again.

We didn't stop at playground that came next because we needed to get back to camp around lunchtime. I was a little bummed, but wasn't sure I would have hit second tree jump, so not that big of a deal. I had hit it on my last ride at Noble, and had been pretty proud of myself. But with my fall just a few minutes before, I'm not sure I would have gone for it even if I had had the time.

From there I handled all of the moderately tricky techy stuff leading up to widowmaker. I actually passed Billy as he got hung up in one of the nasty sections and I was able to find a better line. It was a this point that I was completely in love with the Enduro. I was not, however, able to clean the switchback leading into widowmaker. That thing is truly ridiculous. Does anybody clean that? I can't see how anyone is able to negotiate the rocky descent, and then the crazy sharp left turn, without riding over the edge and into the gorge below.

I actually rode most of widowmaker, but not all. Cleaning it is definitely a possibility someday. I need to maintain enough speed to clean the chunk, while picking the right line to avoid endoing over some of the bigger rocks. I was close today, so someday...

We reached the fork in the trail where we were faced with the choice to head west and ride the road back to the trailhead or head southeast and finish the Noble Canyon trail with the section they call "extra credit." Joel and I had bailed out in favor of the road last time, and I didn't want to make that mistake again. We agreed to do the extra credit, and I'm really glad we did. In fact, I don't think I can claim to have ridden Noble without riding that last section. So I guess it shouldn't be called "extra credit" in my opinion.

The climb at the beginning of EC was rough on me. I had to stop several times to rest, and the other three guys got pretty far out in front of me. The altitude and heat were a factor, but it was just general conditioning that was my true downfall. In reality, the climb was not particularly steep, just long. I want another shot at it when I'm in better riding (and overall) shape. Also, I had begun to experience some shifting problems, and didn't have granny+1 gear which would have been nice. I felt like I was spinning out too much in granny and the biggest ring in the back, but granny+2 was still to big of a gear for me to turn. Eventually, I made it to the top and, after a short break, was ready for the downhill. Which was awesome.

The ride down extra credit was probably the best part of the Noble Canyon trail. It has fun sweeping sections, tricky technical sections, and beautiful views. I didn't even know what the Roman wall section was called as I was riding it, but I cleaned about 90% of it and could have done virtually all of it if I wasn't so tired and we had a little more time to session a spot or two I had trouble with. I cleaned most of the really hard parts though, which felt great. Once again, the Enduro and I were getting along much better.

We finished up at the bottom of the Noble trailhead, and Billy decided to drive us back to the cabins via the road we would have climbed had we done the full Tour de Noble. And after driving it, I now realize that that is one brutal climb. I was exhausted after the shuttle, and I can't fathom doing that climb, then climbing and descending Penny Pines, then descending Noble. That would be rough. But I still want to do it some day.

By the time we got back to camp, it was a little after two. I had initially planned to do an afternoon ride around BLT with the whole group (including the wives,) but because of our car trouble, Rachel and I decided to head back into town at that point and see if we could get the battery fixed before she had to drive it to work on Monday.

As we were packing the car, I started to feel really sick, and my stomach was extremely upset for the rest of the day. I don't know why. Maybe it was from the exertion. Maybe it was sun-related. It could have been minor altitude sickness. I don't know what it was, but it made for a tense and unpleasant ride home.

It was an OK weekend overall. It wasn't as relaxing or long as I had hoped, and I didn't get anywhere near as much riding in as I had anticipated. The car trouble and stress of getting off work early contributed to some of the rough start, and the need to get home early and feeling sick didn't make for a great ending.

With all that said, the actual Noble ride was a lot of fun. The Enduro was awesome, and I feel a thousand times better about my purchase now. The extra credit portion was a blast, and well worth the climbing that preceded it. My riding companions were great, and I enjoyed getting to know them better, especially Tony and Nate, who I hadn't talked to as much before. I also enjoyed starting out at BLT and getting a little extra mileage in before charging down Noble.

My knee does hurt pretty bad, and it's making me limp around like an old man. But it makes for a good story, which is almost worth it...

I didn't take any pictures, which is borderline criminal. Between the pace of the ride, getting dinged up, laboring up the extra credit climb, and not having easy access to the camera, I just didn't get any shots. That is not a mistake I intend to make again.

Anyway, here are the stats for the Noble Canyon Shuttle, my only ride of the weekend:

Total Distance: 16.52 miles
Total Time: 3:25:50
Ascent: 1749 feet
Average Speed: 4.8 mph
Top Speed: 26.7 mph
Bike: Specialized Enduro Elite
Map:

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RR: LPQ

Today was the maiden voyage on the new Enduro, and while I was looking forward to it, I didn't have the excitement one would expect from the first outing on a new (*expensive*) bike. I guess my reservations about the bike and gnawing buyer's remorse had me concerned.

The main reason I shoehorned in a ride tonight is that on Saturday, SDMBA is doing some major trailwork to the $hitz trail, which will wipe out the difficult lower section with the waterbars that is one of the items on my 2008 Goal List. I knew if I didn't ride it tonight, I would literally never be able to cross that goal off my list, because the trail feature I wanted to conquer wouldn't exist.

I bombed out of work as close to 5 as possible, and met up with Sean at the Elephant Bar in RB to carpool over to LPQ. Since daylight was also an issue, we decided to park at the Del Vino trailhead and do an abbreviated ride. The plan was to go right over to the Tunnels, do the regular route there, then down the $hitz, then back up Cobbles and to the car.

The trails were like Grand Central Station. I was amazed at the quantity of riders that were out there, especially for a Tuesday night. We rode right over to the Tunnels, which I still enjoy very much. I was adjusting to the Enduro, and feeling things out. It felt OK, not quite as nimble as the FSR through the tight Tunnel spots, but not a boat either. The Tunnels aren't really a test for a 5"-6" travel bike, so there wasn't much to appreciate there. The climb out was rough though, and I think the extra weight the Enduro carries was a factor. I did it without stopping, but was more tired than my last time through that section on the FSR.

Sean is about 6'2" or so, and was riding his new Stumpy XL, so the Tunnels were a little rough for him. Between his size, the tight spaces, his lack of familiarity with the trail, and being new to clipping in, he didn't have as much fun as he will after a few more times through there.

Sean and I actually split up after the Tunnels, and I headed over to the $hitz for a final attempt at cleaning it. The top was as rutted and nasty as ever, but I stayed to the left and made it through with no real problems, which I had done in the past. As I approached the bottom, I had to negotiate around two guys who had stopped in the middle of the trail, apparently looking for a missing cleat that had fallen out of one of their shoes. I swept to the outside, dropped down the waterbars, and just like that, another 2008 Goal List Item in the books. It was a little anticlimactic.

I think the Enduro played a factor in cleaning it so easily, but more on that in a minute.

From there I climbed back up Cobbles and headed back to the car. The Cobbles climb was a little taxing, and once again I perceived a weight penalty for the Enduro. But I made it to the top without stopping, and was back at the car before Sean even arrived.

While I was waiting, I looked out over the Mesa, which was gated off. There were trees cut down all over the place, and it was a little sad to see that awesome section closed forever. There were still a few bikers who I saw venturing over there, as well as a hiker and his dog. Hopefully the poachers won't cause problems with Pardee or the Rangers that will impact future LPQ trail matters.

I have some real concerns about the Enduro after this ride. It felt heavy, and a little cumbersome. It didn't do a ton for me in the Tunnels, and while it probably did play a role in how easy I cleaned the $hitz, I'd like to think I could have done it on the FSR as well. I may have made a mistake going with an AM-type of bike, especially when climbing is my primary weakness as a rider.

Time will tell if this was the right decision, but at the moment, I'm glad I haven't sold the FSR yet...

Also, I didn't take any pics on this ride. It was a quickie, and with the waning daylight, they probably wouldn't have been any good. I was just too focused on getting a feel for the new ride to stop and take any shots.

Here are the stats:

Total Distance: 6.73 miles
Total Time: 1:02:24
Ascent: 1102feet
Average Speed: 6.5 mph
Top Speed: 20.2 mph
Bike: Specialized Enduro Elite!
Map:
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New Bike

I purchased a new (to me) bike today. Its a 2007 Specialized Enduro Elite, and its a green color. Here are some of the basic specs:

SRAM X9 Shifters
SRAM X9 Rear Dérailleur
Shimano LX Front Dérailleur
Avid Juicy Five Hydraulic Breaks
Fox DHX Air 4.0 Rear Shock
Fox Float RL Front Shock
Trutativ Sylo Cranks
Enduro Bars with Mid-Sweep
Specialized Wheels and Tires

It was a very difficult decision, particularly in light of how carefully I research purchases and the fact that I don't have the luxury of having a stable of bikes.

There were a couple of reasons I decided on the Enduro generally. First, I enjoy and respect the Specialized brand from my experience with my FSR. Also, I wanted my new bike to be a shade more "all-mountain," as opposed to exclusively XC. Which is to say I wanted something with more front and rear travel, both to eat up the bigger bumps and allow me to take technical sections with more speed and greater ease than a shorter-travel XC bike would.

My concern with any all mountain bike was the weight. My climbing woes are well documented here, and I had no intention of shuttling every ride I do from now on, so whatever bike I decided to purchase had to at least not penalize me in the climbs. From all of my research, indications seemed to be that the Enduro was a more than adequate climber and the bike itself would not be a hindrance to my progression as a climber. (My general fitness, strength, time riding, and attitude would still be a factor however. No bike can magically fix those things...)

I had been combing ebay, craigslist, the STR marketplace, and even the MTBR classifieds for weeks, looking for bargains and bikes that would fit my criteria.

Back in early March, I saw an ad on CL from a guy in Alpine selling a 2007 Enduro that he said had only been ridden twice. He was asking $1,900. I emailed him and asked for pictures of the bike and detailed specs, which were not included in his ad. He wrote back and promised to send pictures and additional info, but never did. I shot him a follow up, never heard back, and forgot about it.

Then earlier this week I saw the same ad posted up to Craigslist. I once again emailed the guy and asked for details and pictures. The next few days were a frustrating series of annoying, incomplete emails back and forth with repeated attempts on my part to solicit basic info about the bike. Details trickled out; it had front and rear Fox shocks, Juicy brakes, and was essentially brand new.

Then came the emails trying to make an appointment with the guy to see this mystery bike. I emailed him to see if I could see it before my LBA meeting on Wednesday. He didn't get back to me until Thursday.

But then an interesting series of events transpired that made the whole thing come together. First, I realized that Rachel and I had agreed to help a friend of hers move from her home in Alpine yesterday, which turned out to be mere blocks from where the bike-guy lived. Then Friday afternoon, the guy finally emailed me a picture, enabling me to see most of the components for myself. After that, I finally got the guy to email me his phone number, and I made an appointment to see it Saturday morning before we helped with the move.

Friday evening I even pulled out some cash from the savings account after depositing my paycheck while waiting for haircut. Things were coming together nicely.

When Rachel and I arrived at the guy's house on Saturday morning, and the first thing we noticed was the neighborhood. The homes were nice. Really nice. Huge, gated homes, with massive yards and views almost to the ocean. The guy obviously had money.

We were buzzed in to the driveway from the gated entry to his home, and were met by a couple of kids that looked to be about high school age. Turns out that one of them was the guy selling the bike. It was then clear why getting information and communicating had been such a hassle.

The bike itself was next to the garage, and it looked really nice. The first thing I did was lift it, and it seemed pretty light, especially considering the full suspension. I took it for a spin around the kid's massive front yard, and it shifted well, rode smooth, and felt pretty good. I did notice as I rode it around that it didn't have a big ring in the front. Instead, it had a middle and granny ring, and a bash guard. That threw me a little, since I didn't think Enduros were specifically set up for downhilling. But I have literally never used the big ring on my FSR, so this development was far from a deal breaker.

As I continued to give the bike a once over, I noticed a fairly good scrape on the top tube, but other than that, the bike was pristine. Apparently the scratch had come from taking it off the bike rack. The kid said he had only ridden it twice, and I believed him. The chain grease was still new.

I had done quick research night before, and saw that Enduro Comps were selling for around $1300+shipping on ebay. Craigslists around the country put them between $1500 and $1700.

I began with an offer of $1400, essentially starting low with a willingness to go up a little from there. The kid went inside, asked his dad, and came back to tell me that his dad wasn't willing to take any less than $1700. I wasn't sure it was worth that. I heard that new 2007 Enduros had been blown out of bike shops in December and January for as low as $1500. I couldn't pay $1700 for a used one with no warranty.

We left, and decided to sleep on it. We left kid's house and went to help Rachel's friend with her move. I thought about the bike all day Saturday, and was genuinely uncertain. It was in great condition, and pretty close to exactly what I was looking for. When I got home that night, I did some more research online and saw that the Enduros with the Elite trim were selling for much more than the Comp trims that I had been comparing it to. At that point, I began thinking that $1700 wasn't so bad, especially since the thing was basically new. But I still wasn't sure, and really wanted to avoid making a bad decision.

I went to bed Saturday night without a clear sense of what to do. I prayed about it for a while as I laid there, and my thoughts seemed to crystallize. I actually felt like I received some leading.

I got back out of bed and composed fairly long email to the kid. I detailed my reservations regarding the scratch and the lack of warranty, and offered him $1600. I said in the email that I'd pick it up the next day (today) if he agreed. I hit send around 11:30 PM, and was at total peace with the decision. The bike was clearly worth $1600. Its parts alone were worth more than that. If he went for it, I had a great bike for a good deal. If he didn't, then I guess this wasn't the bike for me.

I wasn't sure he'd respond to the email, particularly given his spotty communication over the past week, but I was determined not to stress about it any more. If he responded, great. If not, I was done chasing him down. I went to sleep with a calm spirit.

We got up for church the next morning, and it was actually Rach that went over and checked my phone to see if he had emailed back. Much to my surprise, there was an email in my inbox from him that had arrived at 6:10 that morning. He had accepted my offer. We had a deal.

His email said that he was playing golf in all morning, and that he would call me when he was done, probably around midday. Things seemed to be coming together nicely, and I felt good about the price and decision to go for it.

On the way to church, Billy called me. I had called and left a message for him the day before, asking for his thoughts, and he hadn't gotten back to me. Now, after I had a deal, he called me back. He wasn't totally sold on the Enduro, and said that it was pretty heavy. I had lifted it, and it felt lighter than the FSR, so I wasn't sure about that. I knew it wasn't going to be as light as a Blur or Yeti, but his reaction had me a little apprehensive. He did say that it was a good jump up from the FSR, and that it was a quality bike that would make me a better rider.

We went to church, and afterwards met up with Adam and Pamella to have lunch with them and Joel and Nichole so that Adam and Joel could talk about the CHP Academy. Just as we were wrapping up lunch, the kid who owned the bike called and said he was home. We picked it up a half hour later, and I was the proud owner of a new bike.

I had a little buyers remorse later that night, when Billy kept sending me other bikes on CL that he liked better. I didn't like them better, but it made me nervous about my (rather large) purchase. I wasn't sure, even after all the research and contemplation, that I had done the right thing. I guess time will tell.

If I had it to do over again, I think I'd test ride a bunch of bikes to get a better feel for how different bikes feel. I'd never even ridden an Enduro before I bought this one, so my frame of reference was pretty minimal.

[EDIT] I didn't have time to ride it Sunday night or Monday evening, but I did make it over to LPQ finally on Tuesday night for an initial ride. And my doubts increased. A lot. At least I didn't sell the FSR...

[EDIT #2] Then I rode Noble. All is right with the world.

RR: Del Mar Mesa

This evening I had the unexpected opportunity to do a final ride over at Del Mar Mesa. After a year of litigation and uncertainty, Pardee Construction was finally going to close down all of the trails on the upper Mesa, including the famed "intestines." I had ridden the little intestines once before with Billy and Joel, and had never done the others. Since I knew this would be my last shot, I got permission from Rachel and headed over.

I didn't have a lot of time, so I decided to drive to the Del Vino Court trailhead and skip all of the LPQ canyon. Today was all about the Mesa; I could ride the canyon parts anytime, but the Mesa was about to be closed forever. I got lost trying to find the Del Vino trailhead, but ended up in an even better spot, parked right at the Carmel Mountain Road trailhead instead.

I didn't know where I was going once I hit the trail because I had only done the small intestines the one time, and only knew the general direction of the others. I headed over to the small intestines, found a spot that looked familiar, and headed in. Turned out that I had guessed right, and that was the portion of the trail I had done before. It was a fun section, with narrow singletrack and some fun but not taxing up and down aspects.


As I reached the end of the small intestines, I ran into another rider who was riding the same section counterclockwise and stopped for a second to chat. His name was Jeff, and he lived nearby and rode the Mesa often. He too was bummed that they were closing it down, and was mostly worried about access to the tunnels and canyon floor from where he lived.

I asked Jeff where the other intestine trails were, and he pointed out some general landmarks not far away. I thanked him and continued my loop clockwise, while he started on his way counterclockwise.

I finished the small intestines shortly thereafter, and decided to ride them again now that I had gained some familiarity. As I rode the short distance back to the beginning of the small intestines, I ran into Jeff again. He had decided to do the clockwise route this time. We chatted for another minute, and then decided to ride together for a while. I followed him through the same route I had just taken, and once again enjoyed the pace and terrain of that section.

Once we finished the small intestines, Jeff indicated that he was going to head home by way of the other intestine trails, and I asked if I could follow him. He agreed, and we rode together for several more miles. He took me through several awesome sections of narrow, up-and-down singletrack, with bushes to dodge and some pretty nice views. There was no way I would have been able to find my way around those trails without a guide, and I was supremely grateful to have run into Jeff.

We eventually came to a spot that I had inadvertently stumbled in to several months ago when looking (in vain) for the tunnels. I remembered the shady area near a single family home, as well as a tricky little drop-in that led down to another short trail in a small canyon below. It was a pretty sketchy drop, and it let right into a loose, rutted section followed by a quick turn. Jeff said that it was too much for him, and I wasn't ready to give up my guide (or attempt that section) so we continued along the rim of that canyon back toward Carmel Mountain Road.

Jeff led the way through another network of trails, and as we passed one section, I could see where that trail that went through the small canyon hooked back up with the one we were on. A seed was planted. From there, we rode to another spot that overlooked the golf course, and I spotted a trail heading off to the west that I was curious about. Jeff was about done, we we rode back to the main fire road (the future Carmel Mountain Road) and said our goodbyes.

I still had plenty of juice left, and there was daylight to burn. Armed with my newfound course knowledge, I contemplated my next move. I decided to ride back to the small intestines, ride them counterclockwise (which I hadn't done yet), hook up with the large intestines Jeff had shown me, take that sketchy trail down into the canyon, meet back up with the main trail, explore the golf course trail, and call it a day.

I did all of that and more.

The small intestines were even more fun counterclockwise, so I'm glad I decided to do that. I did have a small chain issue near the end, but put it back on and was on my way. From there I followed the route over to the large intestines, and crept up t the sketchy drop-in. I thought about it a lot, and realized that this would be my only chance to ever conquer this obstacle. In a matter of hours, it and the surrounding trails would be bulldozed. After two false starts, I went for it. I hit the edge with a little speed, got my butt back over my rear tire, and rode it down. I had a tiny dab all the way at the bottom as I tried to make the turn, and then rode it out from there.



I had planned to ride back out of the small canyon and hook up with the trail that went over toward the golf course. But I saw a small offshoot trail that would take me back up to near where the drop-in was, and I saw an opportunity to do it again, this time with no dabs and no hesitation. I rode (with a tiny HAB) up that trail, and headed back to where the drop-in was. On the way back to the drop-in, I spotted another somewhat hidden trail that led into the small canyon, and filed that away. I hit the drop-in without hesitation, cruised down it, used a little body english to negotiate the turn, and finished the section with no dabs.

My curiosity and confidence had risen by that point, and again took the off-shoot back up to the trail near the drop-in, this time with the intent of riding down the other route into the canyon. I took that "trail," which ended up essentially being a rutted-out mess, but negotiated it successfully and headed back up for one final trip down the drop-in.

This time I was a little cocky, and got off balance in the rut just after I dropped in. My speed was still relatively low, and I went sideways over the bars and rolled a little. With no injuries other than to my pride, I picked up the bike and finished the section, heading back out of the canyon toward the singletrack that went toward the golf course.


I made it to the spot Jeff and I had stopped at before, and elected this time to check out the trail that rose and fell into the distance toward the course.


I shot down the rocky trail, used my speed to climb another short rise, and ended up...pretty much on a tee box. The trail just dead ended right into the course, near what appeared to be the 15th tee. Satisfied with my exploration, I rode back up the trail toward where I had come from, planning on calling it a day. Instead, as I rode back, I saw that there was another trail that went down and to my right. I had a hunch where it went, and decided to take it. Sure enough, it hooked up with an equestrian trail that I had ridden months ago during that same ill-fated search for the tunnels. I rode the equestrian trail for a short distance, then turned around and rode it back up towards the main fire road.

By that point, I had basically ridden every trail I could find on the Mesa. Several trails I had ridden multiple times. But I still wasn't ready to call it a day. This would be my last time ever on the Mesa, and the whole experience had been bittersweet. These were some really fun trails, and I was having a blast riding them. But I couldn't help but think about how many times I had ridden LPQ and not known about this awesome network of trails that were right under my nose. And now that I had explored them, they were being bulldozed. Tomorrow.

I rode back up to the fire road, and then on an impulse, rode the fire road back east towards Cobbles and the lower LPQ canyon. I knew I wasn't going to go to the Canyon floor, it was too late for that. So I meandered around the wide dirt roads that crisscrossed the Mesa for a little bit. As I rode around, I spotted two riders heading over a trail to the east end of the Mesa that I had never seen. It was near the section that I HAB up sometimes to get from the Canyon floor to the Mesa without climbing Cobbles, but shot over to the south. I rode over there, followed the riders that I had seen, and made it to the top of a steep section with an outlook that had a view of the whole LPQ Canyon. It was pretty neat.



I chatted with the guys that were up at the top and were waiting to drop into the Canyon from there. When we were done talking, I turned around and headed back to the Mesa.

I did one last lap through the small and large intestines, and hooked back up with the fire road for the short trip back to my car. I had unwittingly ended up at the perfect parking place for this particular ride.

It was an almost perfect ride. I rode some really fun and scenic trails that I'd never been on, met some neat people, overcame some fears, cleaned some tricky sections, done some fun exploring, and been one of the last to ever ride this particular trail network. But like I said before, my euphoria with the joy of the ride was tempered with the knowledge that literally hours later the entire area would not only be off limits, but completely bulldozed.

That being said, nothing can take away the fun I had today, and the memories I made. I went home extremely happy that I had been able to ride these trails at least once before they ceased to exist, and had a blast doing it.

Total Distance: 15.07 miles
Total Time: 2:40:53
Ascent: 1603 feet
Average Speed: 5.6 mph
Top Speed: 19.8 mph
Bike: Specialized FSR XC Pro
Map:

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Random Thoughts

I don't remember the last time I had a post that wasn't a RR or a GR, but I felt like posting today, so here are the bike-related issues on my mind:

R.I.P Del Mar Mesa
I just heard that the vast majority of the trails on the Del Mar Mesa are going to be closed as of this Monday. Apparently they are building homes up there, which makes me incredibly sad. I've only been MTB'ing for less than a year, so this is my first experience with a trail that I enjoy being closed/destroyed. I like riding LPQ/DMM, and the trails on top including the small and large intestines are about to be history. I've only ridden the large intestines, and am rather upset at the possibility that I'll never ride the little ones. I've spent the last two days trying to re-arrange my weekend to fit in a DMM ride, but at this point things look bleak. And I'm pretty upset.

New Bike Shopping
On a happier note, I've been researching new bikes for some time now, and with us receiving our tax refund this week, I'm getting closer and closer to making the dream of upgrading a reality. The problem is that I've been bouncing around all over the place. Used or new? Specialized or Yeti or Santa Cruz or Intense or Bionicon? What component group do I want/can I afford? SRAM or Shimano?

I'm experiencing a little paralysis by analysis, (which I think Rachel would think is a good thing, because it's keeping me from pulling the trigger...) I have been leaning towards buying used, just because its a much better value, but I'm still enough of a newbie that I don't want to get taken advantage of. I've heard horror stories about people purchasing cracked frames from ebay or craigslist and not having any recourse. But new high-end bikes are expensive. What I may try to do is find a new 2007 that some shop has lying around and grab that at a substantial discount. Or maybe I'll try to be patient until the end of the year and end up with a 2008 that's getting blown out to make room for the 2009's at that point...

A particular object of my obsession the last few days has been the Bionicon Golden Willow. It has some cool technology, which always appeals to me, and seems to be a pretty good climber even with 6" of front travel and almost 5" of rear travel. We'll see if this is actually the one, but its exciting to be shopping either way. I have a possible lead on a 2007 frame from a shop in OC, and if it works, I'd have to buy the components separately and have them build it up. Which is scary to me.

I suppose I should also make an effort to demo some of the bikes I'm considering before making the final decision. I mean, I wouldn't buy a car without test driving it first, and some of these bikes cost as much as a beater car, so I really need to get some demo's in soon.

A Weekend Without Rides?
I may not be able to ride at all this weekend, which is a bit of a bummer. I'll be in the desert for a bit, then have plans with Joel and Nichole so that we can spend some quality time before he leaves for the CHP Academy in a few weeks. If I can sneak a ride in somewhere, I will likely try to get over to LPQ/DMM for a farewell tour. We'll see...

RR: Local Ride w/Black Mtn Canyon Rim Trail

Tonight I had a late hockey game, so when we finished dinner I got a hall pass and shot out the door to get a quick ride in before Rach could change her mind. Now that my regular local ride is essentially gone, I had been thinking about an alternate local route that would be both fun and somewhat challenging that I could do in under an hour.

I'd been itching to ride the Canyon Rim Trail at Black Mountain ever since I did the trailwork there two weeks ago, so I figured that section would at least figure in to whatever local ride I did tonight. Since it was already almost 6:30, I didn't have a lot of time to screw around, so I decided to stick to the trails that I knew on the way there.

I left the house, and made my way over to the dirt fire road that would take me to the 4S "trail" network that runs behind the Boys and Girls Club and around the pond. From there I rode past the Middle School and up Carmel Valley road to the main entrance to Black Mountain Park. I didn't have too much trouble with the paved road climb, though I was in the granny gear most of the time and I did struggle a little with keeping my front wheel straight.

I made it up to the parking lot and took a quick breather to strap on my shin guards, which I had stowed in my pack for the ride over. Rachel and I had actually hiked the Canyon Rim Trail back in January, and at the time, I couldn't imagine riding it. It just seemed too steep, to technical, and too loose for my biking ability. I'm not certain now whether it was the trailwork we did or some advances in my riding skills, but riding it tonight wasn't as difficult as I expected.

The first 150 yards or so are narrow, flat singletrack, which leads to a short bridge followed by a fairly short but steep uphill section.


I bobbled the turn into the section where the bridge is, and had to dismount and walk across, which was annoying. From there I just decided to HAB the 200 yard uphill, since it was pretty steep and slightly rocky.

After the climb, I re-mounted and quickly approached the section that I had worked on a few weeks earlier. I recognized the rut higher up the trail that we didn't have time to fix, and and stopped to take a few pictures of the section that we had fixed.



I restarted, and immediately had to dismount again because I couldn't negotiate the tricky drop and hard left turn at the bottom of "my section." The guys working on that specific part had armored it well, but there was still a series of drops followed immediately by a hard left turn, and I couldn't pull it off. So I walked down it and started again, determined to get some continuity and flow going.

After that, it was smooth sailing. I negotiated some left-over rutted sections, as well as a few additional downhill switchbacks, and before I knew it I was going through the short brush tunnel at the end of the trail that dumped me out on to the paved road.


I knew I wanted another shot at the section of the trail that I had to walk, and wanted to ride Canyon Rim again without stopping for pictures so that I could actually get a feel for it, so I decided to ride back up the paved road to the parking lot and do the whole thing again.

The second ride up was even easier than the first, and I'm starting to wonder if I just need a slightly longer than average warm-up in order to ride effectively. Don't get me wrong, its not like after I get warmed up I'm flying up hills, but I do seem to get stronger after the first 1/2 hour or so of riding, which may be why rides with steep climbs out of the chute (like Daley and Calavera) give me so much trouble. Something for me to think about anyway.

I realized as I began to climb back up the paved road that I had locked out my front fork during the original ride up, and had forgotten to unlock it for the downhill I had just finished. So the entire first trip down Canyon Rim had been done on an essentially rigid front suspension. I am, (as I've mentioned,) an idiot.

I unlocked the fork as I neared the parking lot, and was about to start back down the singletrack toward the bridge when I saw this little guy standing in the middle of the trail:


He stood still long enough for me to snap a pic, then it was time to go. I successfully negotiated the turn into the bridge section this time, and made it across without dabbing or stopping. I even made it up the first short little climb before having to hike the last little uphill section at the very top. Someday I'll be able to ride up the whole thing...

From there I shot through "my section," and was determined to clean the drop and switchback at the end. Didn't happen. I picked too sharp a line, and got sideways in the loose dirt, and went down on my right side, kicking up quite a cloud of dust.

I picked myself up and vowed to clean the rest of the trail, which I did, including the next tight switchback.


I think I would have had an easier time if I had stopped to lower my seat, but since doing so requires an Allen tool, and it was rapidly getting dark, I didn't want to take the time to hassle with it. I think I need to invest in a seat clamp that doesn't require tools to adjust it.

I reached the bottom of Canyon Rim for the second time, and decided that rather than ride down the paved road to Carmel Valley Road and take that home, I'd ride up the paved road a third time and take the fun, short downhill section that shoots off the main trail before Miner's Loop. As I climbed the paved road for the third time, the sun was just starting to set, and I stopped to take this picture as well as the one at the top of this post:


From there I finished my climb to the parking lot, rode the short trail east toward the downhill, and bombed my way back to Carmel Valley Road. This was the section that I had ridden last year where my front tire came off midway down, causing considerable carnage to me and my bike. There were no such incidents this time.

I decided to just take Carmel Valley to Dove Canyon and do a road ride the rest of the way home, rather than double back through the 4S trails behind the pond and B&G Club. I realized at the bottom of Dove Canyon that if I pushed it, I could make it home with a total ride time of less than an hour. So I kept it in the middle ring up Dove Canyon, and made it home in just over 58 minutes total.

It was an awesome ride, and I felt as good as I have in a while. Maybe it was the chance to ride a new section that I'd never ridden before. Maybe it was being able to ride the Canyon Rim Trail after working on it a few weeks ago. Maybe it was not suffering as much on the climbs, and feeling OK about my fitness for the first time in a while. Maybe it was making it there and back in less than an hour, which means this ride or some variation thereof could be my new local ride. Whatever the reason, I came home in a great mood, and it was the most fun I've had on a bike in a while, which was awesome.

Here are the stats:

Total Distance: 6.72 miles
Total Time: 58:31 minutes
Ascent: 919 feet
Average Speed: 6.9 mph
Top Speed: 31.6 mph
Bike: Specialized FSR XC Pro
Map:

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RR: North Lake Hodges

This afternoon Joel and I did a quick ride over at North Lake Hodges. Rachel ran the Carlsbad 5K this morning, and did an awesome job, so she and Nichole stayed home and hung out. Joel had never been to Hodges, and we needed something close and quick so the girls wouldn't get restless, so that was the easy choice.

The ride was pretty standard, actually. We parked at the lot near the self-storage and decided to do the regular route along the lower ridge and around the lake as far as we could go. It was a beautiful afternoon, and we went at a casual social pace. Joel heads off to the CHP Academy in just three weeks, so I enjoyed being able to spend some time with him before he goes.

As we rode up the paved road near the dock and parking lot, we heard sirens and saw a couple of police cars, an ambulance, and a fire truck off to the side of the road. We didn't want to be rubber-neckers, so we just rode by, and couldn't really tell what was going on. We continued over toward the west side of the lake along Del Dios, and enjoyed the singletrack that I still say is underrated by the rest of the MTB community. I just wish it was longer, and look forward to the day they re-open the section that goes all the way up to the dam.


I once again was unable to negotiate the steep ditch that I battled last month, much to my frustration. There was no water in it this time, but I still could not figure out how to get through the ditch at the bottom with enough speed to get up the steep side on the way out. I felt pretty lame. Next time I guess. What I need is to see someone do it, so that I can watch their technique and try to mimic them.

As we turned around at the fence and began to ride the singletrack back toward home, we saw two helicopters flying over head. It was hard to be sure from where we were, but it looked like one of them landed over near the lake parking lot. We kept riding, and as we got closer to the parking lot, we saw several more police cars and were stopped by a ranger who had the road blocked off.

The Mercy Air chopper had in fact landed in the road, causing traffic to be stopped in both directions. We were initially informed by the ranger that he didn't know what happened, but that the road was closed and likely would remain so for the next 20 to 60 minutes. He also indicated that he heard that there was a fatality, but wasn't sure.

We didn't think the incident was bike-related, because it occurred in a place where there really wasn't a trail, and we hadn't seen any bikes when we rode by the first time.

After about 7-10 minutes, the chopper took off, and we were allowed to ride along the edge of the road back and back across the parking lot to the main trail.


The officers were not yet letting cars through, however, because emergency vehicles were still on scene. I found out later that the accident at Hodges was a single-car accident, and there was indeed a fatality, which is unfortunate. There were apparently some strange circumstances as well.

From there we made our way back home, making good time on the short climbs and tried to avoid the gnats that had emerged as the day cooled off a little. I took a few nature pictures, as well as a couple of shots of Joel, but nothing Pulitzer winning.



We made it back home before the girls got too restless, and had a nice dinner out in the backyard. I was a little disappointed I wasn't able to get a new trail or longer ride in this weekend, but that's just the way it goes sometimes, and we did have a lot of fun doing other things Saturday and Sunday.

Here are the stats. Pretty close to the ones from a month ago...

Total Distance: 11.66 miles
Total Time: 1:39:41
Ascent: 923 feet
Average Speed: 7.0 mph
Top Speed: 19.4 mph
Bike: Specialized FSR XC Pro
Map:

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State of the Union

March is over, which means the year is 25% over as well. I thought it would be a good time for a State of the (MTB) Union address to look back at how I'm doing on my 2008 Goals List and 2008 Ride List.

2008 RIDE LIST

I've ridden 9 of the 17 trails on my 2008 Ride List. (Technically, I've ridden one additional one and done trailwork another, but Daley didn't count and though I've done trailwork on Black Mountain, I haven't ridden it, so it doesn't count either.) The trails I have actually ridden and their respective Ride Reviews are available by clicking the links on my sidebar.

By way of projection, I know I'll get to BLT during the Skyline MTB weekend in Laguna in April. And I can do Black Mountain whenever I want because its so close, but have been waiting until my fitness and climbing improve to a point where I might actually enjoy it before going there. Daley and Elfin are in North County, so it shouldn't be too hard to get to those. Also, I know people who ride Sweetwater and MTRP pretty often, so those are likely easily attainable rides as well.

The ones I'm a little worried about are Lake Morena and Santa Margarita River Trail. For Morena, maybe the guys from the Rock will do it again sometime this year like they did last year and I can join them. And for SMaRT, maybe Doug will be willing to show me around there, because its in his old stomping grounds. (Consider this a request, Doug! We'll finally get to ride together.)

I'm glad that I'm more than halfway through my ride list at this point in the year, and I am relatively confident that I'll be able to get all of them before 2009. I also have at least two rides that I would like to do that aren't on the list: La Costa and Ted Williams. I hear amazing things about La Costa, and TW is pretty close, so I will probably make it out to both of them as well. We'll see.

2008 GOALS LIST

As for my more general 2008 Goal List, the results are less impressive. For a full description of the goals themselves, check out that entry. Below is the list, with comments on my progress thus far (or lack thereof) and prognosis for completion by the end of the year on a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being unlikely and 10 being already done):

1. Ride Noble Canyon: (10)

I have accomplished this goal, though I did set the bar fairly low from the outset. All I wanted to do was experience this ride, and I wasn't concerned with whether I'd shuttle it or ride the whole thing. Well, I shuttled it, and even bailed out on the last section, so while I did ride it, I don't think I qualify for the full merit badge. I'll be back up there again in April, and will probably do the full BLT/Noble downhill ride since we're staying right at the BLT campground. On that ride, I'll be sure to finish the entire Noble trail, all the way down to the bottom.

2. Do a ~50 mile/all day-type ride: (5)

This one I haven't done, and haven't even really gotten close. In fact, at this point, I probably couldn't ride 50 miles in a day, unless it was pretty flat and I had all day to finish. I heard rumors of an Archipelago/Islands ride in early April, where they'll ride La Costa --> Elfin --> Hodges --> San Dieguito River Park --> Santa Luz --> Black Mountain --> LPQ, which should be about 50 miles. It would be awesome to be a part of that, but its not gonna happen for me this time. Hopefully they'll do it again later in the year and I can join that one.

3. Do a Multi-Day ride: (8)

I'll likely meet this goal in April during the Laguna weekend. I'll either ride Friday afternoon and Saturday, or Saturday all day and Sunday. Either way it'll be a multi-day ride like I wanted. If I don't for some reason meet this goal in at the Laguna trip, I'll likely be able to do it on another weekend later this year.

4. Do an Out of Town Ride: (8)

I haven't done this yet, but it will happen. For me, Laguna doesn't count even though its an hour and 45 minutes away. There are enough STR rides and Rock MTB rides that take place outside of SD that this goal should be no problem.

5. Do a Ride in the OC: (8)

I obviously haven't done this yet either, but I am interested in shuttling San Juan, riding Aliso, or maybe even doing San Clemente Single Tracks. Again, with the sheer volume of STR rides in those places, it shouldn't be a problem doing one of them.

6. Do a Night Ride (w/Light): (6)

Craig has offered to let me use his light, so may get to do a night ride at Calavera at some point. I had a chance to buy light in March from someone on Craigslist, but I hesitated and missed out. I want to night ride, but it is often harder to schedule night activities than weekend daytime activities, so this one may be an issue. Hopefully this summer there will be a lot of group night rides to beat the heat, and I'll be able to borrow a light and do one then.

7. Clear all of Martha's: (9)

I'm so close on this one, and I already basically did hard part with the downhill, so I just need to clean climbs and one tiny part. Its close to home and I ride there pretty often, so I'm pretty confident about meeting this goal.

8. Clear all of "the ****": (9)

I actually haven't tried this yet in 2008 because that section is not part of my regular LPQ route now. But I need to just get out there and do it, so I can cross this off my list. With the downhill technical riding I've done at ATT, Noble, and even Calavera, this one is no longer as daunting as it once was.

9. Climb Bernardo Mountain: (10?)

This one's a little tricky. Technically I did it, though it was about 80% HAB for me. I'll likely never be able to ride 100% of it, but would like to at least have a better showing than my first effort at some point this year...

10. Improve my climbing skills/general fitness:

This one is hit and miss. I've been getting better, but its hard to stick with riding the stationary bike consistently. It's boring and difficult. I need to keep at it, and continue to eat well and avoid soda and sweets in order to really make some strides fitness-wise. The good news is that since January 27, when we bought the stationary bike, I've ridden 306.5 miles on it. The bad news is that I've been slacking off in the last few weeks, and have not been riding it as consistently as I should be. So I need to get better with that.

I'm glad I set goals at the beginning of this year, they give me something to shoot for in terms of accomplishment and progress. I generally feel pretty good about where I am at the quarter pole, but don't want to lost the momentum I've built in the first three months of the year. I'll check back in at the end of June to see what progress has been made since then...