Finally some Mountain Biking that is not Racing

Marke was coming back from the UK after a trip home and had a few days stopover in LA. Of course being a true mountain biker he travelled with his bike meaning that we had a couple of days riding up our sleeves. We meet Matt (an old Uni friend of Marke’s) at Kernville. A lovely wee mountain town in the Southern Sierra Mountains about 3hrs north of LA. Matt drove down from the Bay Area.

The first day was great just hitting up a few local trails in the middle of nowhere. The views were lovely and the tracks heaps of fun. One trail was called ‘Just Outstanding’ and it was simply that. Flowy, bermed and tones of fun. The vista overlooking Lake Isabella reminded me of the Central Lakes Region in the South Island back home. One section in the pics below shows a tunnel if Manzanita bushes you had to rude through.

The next day was our main goal and highlight of our time in Kernville. It’s a trail called the ‘Cannell Plunge’ and it was extraordinary. First up we had to shuttle to the top of the ride. No small drive. It was a 1hr shuttle up to 9200ft (2800m). Yep this ride started at this height. In total there was 2000ft (600m) of climbing over its 26 mile (42km) length, however all this climbing was done at over 8000ft (2400m). I was pretty use to it from my racing however Marke coming from Sea Level in NZ and lots of time off the bike struggled. He got stronger and stronger as time went on which was great, especially considering he had just flown 12hrs from London and still had lingering injuries. A job well done.

The trail was truly lovely and we took our time admiring the views not to mention the great downhills. One rocked quite literally. It was a Rock Garden Decent lasting about 200m of vertical drop. The Enduro loved it and so did I though a few close moments made me realize how remote we were. Especially being all decked out in XC Garbe and no armor (oh and Vic as the pics show no lycra on show here for once…) Still we nailed the downs. Marke and his Anthem had a slower yet much more accurate descent while Matt and his Yeti 575 had some interesting issues. Namely the flex in the rear wheel and seat stays meaning when corners were railed the tire would buzz against the rear carbon chain stays. Yikes.

So after 3hrs of riding and mucking about we reached ‘The Plunge’. Yep we were still at 7200ft after 3hrs and had a downhill all the way to 2400ft. That’s a 4800ft (1500m) Single-track decent after a day of great riding already. I don’t know what to say but having my first 2 crashes in many months meant I was loving it and pushing the limits. We hit over 35 miles per hour on single-track. It was of the best downhills I have ever done and probably the longest. It was flowy, rocky, steep, techy… It had something for everyone, including blind corners for me to crash off. Hehe

Cannell Plunge at EveryTrail

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So after a big drive back to pick up the car we left at the top and some fun Mountain Driving trying to keep up with Matt’s WRX in the Camry Tank we then headed across the hills to the 395 and down to my place. It was a great drive until we hit the ugliness of the LA sprawl at Adelanto and Hesperia. Why people live out here in the desert in cookie cutter homes is beyond me. I know they are cheap but you might as well live on the moon. This country is so contrasting. From some the nicest scenery I have ever seen to the ugliness of the desert sprawl all on a short few hour drive.

Anyway the next day we did the Full Santa Anna River Trail including Morton’s Peak. This is my backyard and I am glad the guys loved it. It was 50km of single-track and was a tougher day than the plunge. In all it was a 65km day and we experienced great views, perfect temps (well it was in the 90s at home though, so a little warm), wicked single-track, a few tough climbs and got really beaten up by all the over grown plants. Geez some of them are spiky like Spaniard back home. Real mean especially when it gets stuck in your hand and you need to pull it out. The Gourmet Pizza Shoppe went down real well that evening as did watching Seasons.

Santa Anna Trail - The Hellride Route

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The next evening I had to drop Marke off at LAX, he called me 15 mins later telling me his plane was delayed so I picked both Marke and Paula up and we headed down to Santa Monica for the night. It was a lovely evening and going to ‘Bubba Gump’s Shrimp House’ of Forrest Gump fame was a cool experience. Man all I can say is that these trips give me the bug. All I want is to fill the car with bikes and mates and go everywhere biking. Bend, Oregon, Moab, Southern Utah, Tahoe, Downieville, Sedona, Golden, Fruita, Breckinridge, Durango, Park City and of course back to BC to a little a little spot by the name of Whistler.

‘Ride Around the Bear’ Century

Well yet another century ride to report on. In the end this race was most enjoyable and very uneventful. This is a very good thing however and much anticipated by me all year. There are no epic crashes to report on, no disasters with ripping tires and having 5 punctures and also no stuff ups with preparation and nutrition.

The race started at just before 7am down here in Redlands on Sat 13^th June. It headed up the big local mountains doing a big loop around Big Bear Lake over Onyx Summit (from the other side) and back down into Redlands on the highway I am familiar with (due to training and the Breathless Agony Race). All in all it was 101 miles long with at least 9000ft of climbing (160km and 3000+ meters). It was just myself as Derek was at a wedding and I went out there with few expectations on myself, except wondering if I could break 6hrs. Anyway other than getting a little lost on the way to the bottom of the hill in the mist and drizzle all went well. I rode all but about the last 5 miles by myself where two of us worked together. I kept catching people that were slower because the 9 people that bet me either started before me or too long after me. Therefore there was noone my speed to ride with. I really enjoyed it though especially when we broke through the cloud layer at about 2000m just before the rest stop at Snow Valley. The ride around Big Bear and down to Angelus Oaks was clear and perfect temperature wise.

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So in the end after slamming it down from Onyx Summit in the fastest speed I have ever done from up there because I had a sniff of getting in under 6hrs I made it in 5hrs 57mins. I was pretty happy and inhaled a bunch of food at the BBQ afterwards to replace what I had burned up. In the end I got 10^th out of 311 males starters. I was stoked with this especially cause I just rode my own race and felt good (relatively speaking) that evening and the next day. Man who would have thought aye. To think for years I refused to get a road bike let alone actually race one. Now I can even do pretty well at these events. Very cool. But just to let you know. Dirt is still where its at  ;-)

So now I only have 2 more races planned. 2 more XC races. I am coming 4^th in the Series (SoCal State Series) so hope to hold that position in the races coming up at Rim Nordic and again at Big Bear. After that I look forward to some downtime in terms of training and just getting out riding my mountain bikes to have fun and explore new trails.

Elings Park, Santa Barbara CalState Race

Well I had a tough race out at Santa Barbara in the last XC race I have competed in. I ended up back in 6^th place after my 4^th place finishing up at Big Bear the week before. It was a 24 mile race with 4 laps. A total of about 3500ft of climbing. It was up and down the whole time with no real good rests. It made for a very tough couple of hours. At this stage Big Bear suited me better as it had longer more steady climbs. Much more akin to the road biking I have been going. The intensity of these shorter XC races is just so much higher and more varied that I struggled in this race.

I ended up about 10 mins off the real fast guys in my category. That did include spending 2-3 mins going the wrong way (don’t ask) and also helping out a buddy who had crashed with another guy who had somehow got his leg between the rear triangle of his bike as well as through a number of spokes. Yikes.

All up the 340 mile round trip to get to the race was worthwhile. Al was there to provide company and someone to talk abotu bikes for the entire trip  ;-) There were some lovely views as it was on the coast and the track itself though a tough day out was fun. Heaps of corners and single-track that was technical enough to keep you on your toes.

The Scene of the Race and ensuing PAIN…

 

Yes yes. I have since had a haircut. Talk about a new meaning to Helmet Hair.

 

Finally Cracked the Top 5

Well I was really thinking about not going up to the Big Bear Shoot Race this last weekend on the 31st May. I am still getting up to speed since I had been away to NZ/Aussie. Anyway I forced myself up there (just to look good in the new Don’s Bikes Race Kit….hehe). After disintegrating my alternator belt on the way up the mountain I made it with plenty of time to spare as it was an 11am race start.

The Race went well. It was my second race on my tubeless wheels and still no punctures. Man what a change for me. Lovin it… Also I had my GPS going for the first time on the MTb. I love the device. It rocks my world and seeing the elevation gain always makes the pain feel more worthwhile. Here is me getting a little more technical than usual. Really its the least I can do since I work with maps and spatial data everyday. Embedded is a Google Maps window with my GPS track I recorded. Have a zoom a pan at the very least. For those not accustomed to such high tech things (Dad) switch between the satellite and topo imagery to get a full experience. Yes you use your mouse to do this  :-) The left mouse button to be exact...hehe

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The Course was just under 24 miles long with a fair bit of climbing. You can view all the cool details on the Motionbased website where I upload my GPS tracks. You will also see the last two 100 mile road races and their associated stats such as elevation profiles. http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/user/mtbkiwi

The course itself can best be described as loose. The Mountains up there are heavily eroded granite so the fireroads and the single-track was all very loose and pebbly. Its pretty interesting riding in the stuff with lots of close calls at speed on the fireroads. A bit of drifting action, normally not intended was a constant reminder to concentrate and not look at the good views all around. The single-track rocked my world. Pretty dusty behind people but it was flowing and pretty technical including a mean loose rocky single-track climb which came close to ripping my legs off. All of this race was above 2000m high so as Damien said its gotta be good for the heart.

 

I got home in 4th. I finally cracked the top 5 voodoo in the Cat 1 category in one of these races. I felt pretty good and was only 1 min down on third and 3.5 mins down from 2nd place. 1st place, well he is untouchable. 8 mins ahead and he would have got 3rd in the Pro field. Can’t do too much about him. Lisa did real well winning her class and Al got 2nd overall out of the single speeders. Crazy nutters they are… Good on them.