RR: "Lower Noble" and Extra Credit

This morning I elected to do a little exploring with Billy up at Noble Canyon. Rather than ride the regular route, however, Billy wanted to explore some singletrack near the bottom of the trail that he had been eying on previous rides.

We met up at our usual spot in La Mesa and carpooled up to the lower Noble trailhead. The parking lot was pretty full already, though we only saw a few other riders at the bottom.

We headed out of the main parking lot and headed towards the road climb that most people take when doing the full Tour de Noble. Our plan was a little undefined, but the general goal was to explore the lower singletrack and see if there was another route into Noble Canyon itself.

Instead of taking the road climb at first, we rode a section of brushy singletrack that was actually pretty fun. From there it was a short climb, and then we had a fun downhill singletrack section that eventually ended up on the trail that I've used in the past as a bailout point when descending Noble when I didn't want to do Extra Credit at the end. Instead of heading east towards Extra Credit, we headed west and began the road climb.

We climbed for a mile and a half or so, and Billy pointed out several spots where we could have linked up with some singletrack that paralleled the road. Instead, we kept climbing.

About halfway up the paved road climb, we reached a spot where Billy knew of a fire road that linked up with some singletrack trails just east of the road. We started up the fire road but were stopped by a guy in a Bobcat who told us that the fire road was closed to hikers and bikers.

We tried to plead out case, but the guy became really agitated, so we doubled back down the road a short distance to where we had seen a trail that headed east which we figured would meet up with the fire road anyway.

When we arrived back at that trail, we had some doubts. It was steep, rocky, and looked like there would be some HAB. Also, it wasn't clear from the bottom of the trail whether it in fact did intersect the fire road we had been looking for. After some discussion, we decided to give it a shot.

We HAB'ed for about half a mile up the steep hill, and at a couple of points almost turned back when we couldn't see if the trail intersected the fire road. We perservered just a little higher, however, and were rewarded with the junction we were hoping for. Here is a shot of what we climbed:

From the fire road we headed south (heading north would have taken us back to Bobcat guy very quickly) and began looking for another section of singletrack, which we found after a little while riding along the fire road.

The next section was very entertaining, with some techy spots and tight turns that were a blast. We followed the trail as it wound southeast, and eventually ended up at another fire road that split into two directions. One direction headed east into Noble Canyon.

The other direction headed southwest, back down towards the paved road. We were not here to ride Noble today, we wanted to explore lower Noble singletrack, so we took the trail less traveled and sailed down towards the paved road. During the descent, a bee apparently flew into my jersey and stung me right on the chest. I reached inside my jersey and pulled the stinger out, but the sting still hurt like crazy. Annoyed but undaunted, we soldiered on.

We reached the paved road after a short descent, and instead of taking it back down towards the trailhead, we followed a neat singletrack trail south that paralleled the road for a bit.

It proved to be another fun section of narrow singletrack that clearly didn't get much use. Brush was encroaching on all sides, and we were a little scratched and scraped by the time we reached what we thought was a dead end. We were about to double back and though we'd have to just ride the road back toward the trailhead when Billy suggested we hike up a bit from the dead end to see if we could meet up with the road that way. It turned out to be a good call, and we found that where we stopped wasn't really a dead end, just a place where the brush was a little more dense than even before. We plowed through, and found ourselves at the dirt lot that was next to the road where the Noble bailout trail intersected.

From there we headed farther south for just a short bit to ride a fun section of downhill singletrack that was an absolute blast. It was flowy and packed down, allowing me to get up some real speed. At the end of that short section we doubled back on the singletrack we had ridden earlier, and instead of heading west toward the paved road, we headed east toward Extra Credit.

We climbed Extra Credit, and while I was tired, I managed to clean the climb without stopping which was a first for me. We did stop at the top to rest for a minute and prep for the descent, and then we were on our way.

The first part of the Extra Credit downhill is fun and manageable, but it gets much more technical towards the bottom. Back in April I cleaned about 70% of the techy sections on the Enduro, but today I struggled somewhat. I don't think it had anything to do with the Spider itself, which had been a blast to ride all day. Part of my problem was that I was more tentative than usual. I had fallen over earlier on the ride and put a horrible scratch on the lowers of my beautiful new Fox F100 RLC, which had really upset me. As a result, as I navigated the rocky minefield that is lower Extra Credit, I was more worried about falling and scratching up my bike than I was choosing the right line or keeping momentum like I needed to.

Also, the trail conditions were a little damp up at Noble today, and while there wasn't any mud or puddles, dirt kept getting in my pedals and cleats, making clipping and unclipping difficult. On the fall that scratched my fork, I was unable to unclip and put a foot down to stabilize myself because of the dirt in the cleat and pedal. With that memory fresh in my head, I found myself walking portions of Extra Credit that I had cleaned seven months ago, which was a disappointment.

I did stop to session a spot or two, and cleaned the ones I focused on trying to make, which was nice.

At the end of the trail I took my traditional picture next to the trailhead sign, and we visitied for a few minutes with a group of guys who had shuttled down the main Noble Canyon trail for a while before heading home.

It was a fun, low-key ride that fit the bill for today. I wasn't up for an epic Noble ride and didn't want to do any of the same old north county rides that I had been doing, so some fun exploration at an easy pace was perfect. It was quite a drive to make for nine miles of riding, but the exploration aspect was worth it.

Also, doing a big chunk of the road ride was a good trail run for the full Tour de Noble that I hope to do sometime in 2009. The new trails also provide some fun variations to the Noble route that will make for a more interesting trip out there next time.

Here are the stats:

Total Distance: 9.08 miles
Total Time: 2:24:08
Ascent: 1772 feet
Average Speed: 3.8 mph
Top Speed: 21.1 mph
Bike: Intense Spider XVP
Map:

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RR: Big Laguna Trail (w/Extras)

This morning was a ride I've been looking forward to for a while: Big Laguna Trail (BLT) with the Skyline MTB crew. BLT was one of two rides left on my 2008 Ride List, and while I thought I would have gotten up there before now, it was worth the wait.

I left home early, and met up with Nate at the park and ride at Los Coches. We carpooled up the rest of the way to the BLT trailhead, and had a great time catching up during the drive. We had technically ridden together a few weeks ago at the Spring Canyon ride, but I hadn't seen him much, so that didn't count.

We made it to the trailhead first, but were soon joined by Michael, Billy and his family, and a new Skyline MTB rider, Amy. We milled about for a bit at the trailhead getting ready, and had a short time of prayer before we set out.

We immediately split into two groups, with Billy and his family heading out to do the basic BLT loop around the lake, and Nate, Michael, Amy and I heading up a fire road to the south so that we could work in some bonus trails before meeting back up with Billy and company at the benches for a devotional time.

The fire road wasn't too bad, and actually made for a good warm up.

We inadvertently missed the singletrack turnoff for the trail they call "Little Noble," so we actually climbed the fire road all the way back to 79 near the Laguna Lodge. From there it was a short road ride over to Red Tail Roost and our first taste of singletrack this morning.

We started with some rolling climbs through narrow singletrack, which gave way to some really fun descents. The weather was flawless, and I was having a blast on my new Spider. The turns were a little loose and sandy because of the lack of moisture, but the trail itself was in great shape overall. Nate and I were out in front a bit, and had a chance to stop and enjoy the scenery during a regroup.

Michael and Amy were not far behind, and we got back under way after a short break.

From there it was more beautiful singletrack, including some more swoopy descents. I had not ridden this particular section of trails before, and won't make that mistake again. It was awesome.

We then came to another short climb, and then started down a fire road marked Agua Dulce. It was a short, fun fire road descent that dumped us in to our next significant climb of the day.

As we spun along, I was actually feeling pretty good. The pace was not super-fast, but we were moving along and I wasn't getting tired really at all. At the top of the climb, we made our way through a singletrack cutover that involved a little HAB over some obstacles, and then took a minute for Michael to huck a nearby rock.

After seeing him nail it, I decided to give it a try, and rolled it. [Not pictured]. From there it was another short climb, then over to Chico Ravine.

This was probably my absolute favorite section of trail today; an awesome twisty singletrack descent with some techy stuff near the bottom to make things really interesting. The Spider ate it up, and I was particularly thankful for some suspension changes Nate had helped me with before the ride started.


We took a minute at the bottom of the singletrack to regroup, then rode over to main BLT trail to the benches, where Billy and his family were waiting. Our timing was almost perfect because they had only been waiting a few minutes, and we had a neat time of discussion.

I led a devotional from 1 Kings and Psalm 42 regarding being still and listening to God, which seemed to resonate with people. After we were done sharing, it was time to complete the BLT loop and we got underway as a whole group. I took this shot blind, over my shoulder:

I have ridden around BLT a couple of times, and always really enjoy it. The scenery is beautiful, the trail is fun and varied enough to be interesting, and the last section is always a lot of fun in particular.

Nate and eventually got out in front, and rode at a little faster pace than the rest of the group. This also gave me a chance to get ahead and shoot some pictures of almost everyone:

Michael-

Amy-

Helenka-


Willie-


Billy-

Amanda-

After taking the pics I caught up and rode ahead of most of the group and railed the last section around the north side of the lake. Billy calls that section the roller coasters, and its the most fun part of the BLT loop itself.

Amy did really well for just her second or third time on her new Specialized Myka, and stayed close behind us.

We finished up back at the trailhead at the cars, and hung out for a bit talking bikes and enjoying each other's company. It was an awesome morning of riding, and I'm really glad I went. The new trails we rode other than the BLT loop were a ton of fun as well, and I won't ride up here without hitting them next time.

Here are the stats:

Total Distance: 15.02 miles
Total Time: 2:09:37
Ascent: 2015 feet
Average Speed: 7.0 mph
Top Speed: 25.0 mph
Bike: Intense Spider XVP
Map:

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RR: Cuyamaca Poker Ride

Today I took part for the first time in the annual Cuyamaca Poker Ride. I heard about the event earlier this year, and had signed up for it well in advance. Despite the fact that I had ridden this particular route twice before in the last four months, I was still looking forward to it because of the event atmosphere. I was also excited to see how the new Spider performed.

The day began with an early wake up, and I was on the road around 6:15 a.m. to meet Billy and Bill P. at Grossmont Center. I had some excitement on the drive down that I won't get into here, but regular readers are free to email me for the whole story. It's worth it.

I met up with the Bills at about 7:00, and we carpooled the rest of the way up to the Cuyamacas. We parked on a grass field near one of the campgrounds, and I got in line to check in. Ironically, the line for those who had pre-registered was 10 times longer than the one for same-day registration.


I eventually got signed in and received my t-shirt, and went back to the truck to finish getting ready to ride. The temperature was in the low 30's, and when the wind blew, it was extremely chilly. I had my arm warmers on under my long sleeve jersey, and Billy let me borrow a fleece hat to wear under my helmet, which was a tremendous blessing. We got underway about 8:30, and were part of the first wave of riders, even though there was no "official" start.

The route today was almost exactly the same as the Cuyamaca Ride I did with Billy in mid-June, with one exception which I'll get to later. We rode up the fire road to the Soapstone singletrack, where we encountered our first poker stop.

I don't remember what card I received, but I think it was a four of clubs. The stop wasn't too crowded, and we were back underway, up the Soapstone single tracks, in only a couple minutes.

As much as I don't care for the Cuyamaca Grand Loop, it was actually very fortuitous that I had ridden it twice previously in the last few months. My recent experiences on this trail allowed me to compare clearly how this ride felt on the new bike as opposed to how it felt on the Enduro. The differences manifested early on, as I was able to complete the entire singletrack climb up Soapstone without stopping. At the Cuyamaca SDMBA Night Ride, I had bailed out even before the singletracks due to fatigue. Before that, with Billy in June, I had been forced to stop two or three times on the climb to rest and recover. Today, I did experience some fatigue, but didn't stop, and wasn't even dead when I reached the top.

From the summit we rode the fun swoopy singletracks around the north side of the mountain. Toward the end of that section, I heard riders ahead of me yelling about bees, and saw a woman hiker frantically swatting herself and hopping around. At that same instant, I felt a sharp pinch just above my waist. My jersey had ridden up, leaving a small sliver of exposed skin at my lower back, and I had been stung. I'm apparently not allergic, but it hurt like crazy.

I pedaled on for about another half mile, then stopped at the next climb to asses my wound and take a break. I felt fortunate to only have been stung once, as several riders who also stopped nearby complained of multiple stings, especially on their head. I was particularly thankful at this point for the fleece cap Billy had lent me, which probably saved me from more stings.

I did take an opportunity during my rest period to shoot a picture of Lake Cuyamaca in the distance.

From there it was a quick ride through the next singletrack section, then another poker stop, and then some fire roads which led back to the Sunrise Highway. After a short road ride, I began the climb up Milk Ranch Road.

Once again I was thrilled to have the Spider instead of the Enduro, as I was able to spin a pretty good cadence almost the whole way up Milk Ranch Road. I started to fatigue toward the very top, but made the entire climb without stopping.

From there we began the last significant climb up to Azalea Springs, which was a little rough. I didn't clean the initial steep uphill section, but neither did anyone else near me. After that short HAB, I was able to clean the rest of the climb without stopping, though my pace had slowed significantly. Not having to stop to rest, however, was an accomplishment for me. I did stop briefly at the very top for this picture, which I thought was beautiful.

At the top of Azalea Springs I met up with Billy and Bill, and we started down the fire road descent. I took it a little easy after nearly going over the bars early in the descent, as I was adjusting to the less slack geometry of the Spider. I didn't notice a huge difference between my bikes as far as travel, but the more XC-race geometry of the Spider had me more forward than I was used to, and I found myself almost going OTB a couple of times during the downhill.

Even at my cautious pace, the descent was over way to quickly and I found myself back at the Sunrise Highway. Back in June, Billy and I had ridden the road back to the campground, but this time I was directed by trail guides to an awesome singletrack section across the highway that I had never ridden. That was probably my favorite section of the entire ride. It began with a neat descent down some stair-steps, and included several switchbacks, some fun up-and-down portions, and even a little technical stuff that I enjoyed.

The singletrack ended near the entrance to the campground, and the ride was over. I met up with Billy and Bill at the truck, and all of us commented on how much we had enjoyed ourselves. After a few minutes getting changed, we headed over to the lunch line, where we had spaghetti and salad which wasn't too bad.

We hung around for the next hour or so, meeting new people and waiting for the opportunity drawing (raffle) to start. With only one ticket, I didn't have high hopes of winning, and it was good I didn't get my hopes up.

They had some decent swag, including an XTR wheelset, but the raffle dragged on forever, and we eventually decided to leave a little early. Mostly empty handed. I did end up with two water bottles, one from the Specialized demo booth and one from the volunteers who were throwing them into the crowd. So between the bottles and my t-shirt, I feel like I did OK. Billy got a bottle too.

As we headed home, I thought about the day. Considering the events of the early morning (which I did not describe in detail here), the day could have gone quite differently. As it was, I had a fun ride, on a great new bike, and enjoyed myself thoroughly. I'll probably do it again next year, and I'll definitely do Middle Peak.

Here are the stats:

Total Distance: 19.49 miles
Total Time: 2:38:20
Ascent: 2304 feet
Average Speed: 7.4 mph
Top Speed: 25.6 mph
Bike: Intense Spider XVP
Map:

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RR: Spring Canyon w/Rachel and Skyline MTB

I had a lot of fun the last time I rode at Spring Canyon, and today had a chance to get back there with the Skyline MTB group. It was billed as a beginner ride, and I thought it would be a good chance to have Rachel come along and get a few more dirt miles in at a place that was close to her speed. It was also a perfect place for the maiden voyage for the Spider. I wanted my first ride on the new bike to be at a place where I could familiarize myself with the new geometry and make sure that all of the parts were assembled properly.

We arrived early and parked at the Father Junipero Serra campground. Billy was already there, and I was surprised to see that Nate decided to come along as well. Nate is an excellent rider, and usually wouldn't do a beginner ride, but it was nice to see him and I hoped the pace wouldn't frustrate him.

After a few minutes showing off the new bike, we got underway. We rode through the meadow, under the 52 freeway, and into Spring Canyon. We stuck to the main doubletrack/fire road through the canyon in order to make sure Rach was comfortable, and she did awesome. She made it through several dry stream crossing strewn with babyheads and powered up a couple of short steep climbs with ease. I warned her that the ride north through the canyon was a subtle but significant uphill, and she still did great. Our pace was social, and Billy was gracious enough to stay close and enjoy an easy spin as we enjoyed the morning.

Eventually we reached a good rest spot, and Nate decided to explore some of the singletrack to the northeast. Billy tried to give him some directions:

Rach was still doing great at this point, and I was glad to see she had a smile on her face.

After parting ways with Nate, we continued up the singletrack toward the north end of the canyon. About half a mile from the end, Rach was starting to tire, and we spent a few minutes hanging out and catching our breath. I used the opportunity to take a few pictures of the new bike for posterity. Its pretty.



After our rest, we decided that heading back was the best option for this time, and began the ride back to the cars. Rach was a little nervous on the downhills, but shouldn't have been, because she did great. She had two nice saves that kept her from crashing, and negotiated several turns and short climbs perfectly.

We made one final rest stop toward the south end of the canyon, where the foliage nearby showed some signs of fall approaching.


After our final rest, we headed out of the canyon and back toward MTRP and the parking lot.

It was a fun spin through the canyon, and I was so glad that Rachel was willing to come along. I was also really proud of her for how well she rode. She said she was nervous, but I couldn't tell from watching her. She made good decisions and fought the instinct to dab whenever she started to get wobbly. As a result, she cleaned several sections that I thought she would have trouble with.

I was also appreciative of Billy and his willingness to hang back and give instruction and encouragement. This was clearly a beginner/social ride, and he seemed content to go at Rach's pace, which I appreciated.

As far as impressions of the Spider, those will have to wait until after the Cuyamaca Poker ride tomorrow. We didn't do any climbing or real technical riding today, so all I could tell was that it felt lighter to pedal and the geometry was very different from the Enduro. There was one instance where I stopped to take a picture, and then pedaled hard for a minute to catch up. At my first hard pedal-stroke, the bike leaped forward, something the Enduro never did. So that was nice...

Here are the stats:

Total Distance: 6.76 miles
Total Time: 1:35:10
Ascent: 917 feet
Average Speed: 4.3 mph
Top Speed: 14.7 mph
Bike: Intense Spider XVP
Map:

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