Mountain Biking 2018

[Monique]

I was climbing the CT on segment 6 outside of Breck, wasn’t paying attention (ie trying to find a breath on that desperate climb) front tire slipped off a root, and voila.

I don't see how that's idiotic ... sounds like a regular day on a mountain bike to me ;-)

 

[Doug Briggs]

Last night's rain is sure to have created some nice tacky trails. The dust is gone. For a day or two...

Some photos from the few weeks. It seems I've been remiss in posting.

K enjoying the scenery.

The Dredge on French Gulch Road. There is some kind of restoration project underway (or soon to be).

My faithful steed.

Returning from an evening ride.

Downed tree on the ditch section of the Little French Gulch trail.

Looking back along Little French Trail.

Mt Guyot with some patches of snow.

Breckenridge from Minnie Mine.

Yours truly.

Some wildflowers.

 

[Erik Timmerman]

I've been trying to remember where I went in Waterbury with some friends a long time ago. Is Perry Hill the place where you park near a river, ride through a field, and then up a big hill? Pretty bad description since it describes most of Vermont, but I know we were in Waterbury and I think it was right off route 100, which looks like Perry Hill.

Park by a river cross the traintracks and under I-89 then up the big hill. A definite must ride in VT.

 

[Primoz]

After 2 pretty hard days on trails, it's time for a bit different biking

Somewhere half through I started to wonder if I will ever manage to put it back together, but some half hour later, all swingarm bearings were checked and greased and bike was back in one piece, so all is good again

 

[Wilhelmson]

Park by a river cross the traintracks and under I-89 then up the big hill. A definite must ride in VT.

That must be the place, but its strange I don't remember going under the highway. The trails were in really nice shape 20 years ago. Some of those downhills between rocks didn't give much choice of lines.

 

[Brian Likes Pow]

 

[Erik Timmerman]

The top of the last downhill on a little ride. You can have a pretty long evening ride on the longest day of the year. Here’s Dave riding onto the bridge.

 

[davjr96]

Anyone else heading to the Tahoe MTB Festival next weekend? I'm signed up for the Sunday AM demos. Pretty exciting to try some new bikes out and also ride the SLT trails for the first time. Considering heading up Saturday to bike Truckee or Northstar.

 

[Brian Likes Pow]

Anyone else heading to the Tahoe MTB Festival next weekend? I'm signed up for the Sunday AM demos. Pretty exciting to try some new bikes out and also ride the SLT trails for the first time. Considering heading up Saturday to bike Truckee or Northstar.

I imagine everyone will be hitting coral/Armstrong area hard but there's tons of fun new stuff over on angora/ tahoe mtn area that will be less busy. Ill probably be checking out the newly built upper clear creek trail that maybe by then will connect to the rim trail near spooner.

 

[luliski]

Took advantage of my boyfriend's shoulder injury and got to try somewhere other than Annadel for mountain biking. Did a short ride at ,Helen Putnam Regional Park in Petaluma. Great single track without rocks. We only rode 2.5 miles because it was almost 100

 

[Ken_R]

Today, for the first time ever I went to a bike park, Keystone. The trails were awesome. Tried the greens and the blues, they were spicy enough for me. Cant imagine the more difficult ones! The bike was awesome for the terrain!

I have to say it felt odd not having to climb!

 

[luliski]

Coastal fog in the distance. It was much cooler today.

Another ride at Helen Putnam Regional Park. It's small, but nice trails.

 

[Doug Briggs]

The tin man has arisen from the debris. He gets rebuilt every year by someone with time on their hands and an artistic bent. This year he resembles Wall-E a bit. The resemblance is in the eyes.

Bill Milner passed at the age of 26 in 1864. This is at the foot of the Humbug Hill Road about 100 m from the Sally Barber Trailhead parking lot. Most people don't notice although it is pretty easy to spot.

 

[Plai]

Well, I survived my first over the handlebars experience on MTB yesterday. 1st timer at the Soquel Demonstration forest and doing either the ridge trail or flow trail, and just hit a pot hole the wrong way. No pictures. No one saw because I was near the back of the pack. Was surprised at just a couple of scrapes and a slightly bent rear derailleur hanger.

Now I'm wondering, does this make me more confident to take more risks, because the fails "don't hurt that much", or will the confidence take longer to return/build because I failed? Right now, I'm pretty "just ok" with the situation. Still looking forward to the next ride.

 

[jmeb]

Now I'm wondering, does this make me more confident to take more risks, because the fails "don't hurt that much", or will the confidence take longer to return/build because I failed? Right now, I'm pretty "just ok" with the situation. Still looking forward to the next ride.

Hard to know until you ride some more. I take falls semi-reguarly mtbing -- once every 3-5 rides. Learning to fall is a good thing to do. You fall if you push your technical level.

I've had falls which really shook me up for the rest of the day. Then I have falls like my last one which sent me sliding 7-8ft down the side of the hill, over-the-bars, scraped up. Within a few hundred yards everything felt fine again.

 

[Wilhelmson]

Well, I survived my first over the handlebars experience on MTB yesterday. 1st timer at the Soquel Demonstration forest and doing either the ridge trail or flow trail, and just hit a pot hole the wrong way. No pictures. No one saw because I was near the back of the pack. Was surprised at just a couple of scrapes and a slightly bent rear derailleur hanger.

Now I'm wondering, does this make me more confident to take more risks, because the fails "don't hurt that much", or will the confidence take longer to return/build because I failed? Right now, I'm pretty "just ok" with the situation. Still looking forward to the next ride.

After a separated shoulder going over the handlebars, kids, and 40th birthday I'm pretty cautious on decents. I save it for skiing where I am not cautiouse at all. Go figure.

 

[Wilhelmson]

If cautiouse were a word I would use it all the time.

 

[Monique]

Now I'm wondering, does this make me more confident to take more risks, because the fails "don't hurt that much", or will the confidence take longer to return/build because I failed? Right now, I'm pretty "just ok" with the situation. Still looking forward to the next ride.

Excellent question! Let us know ;-)

 

[Doug Briggs]

Learn from your fall. I'd ask myself questions like: How did the pothole get control? Could I have avoided it? If not, why not?

Sometimes learning caution and speed limits is the result. Almost always weaknesses in technique are brought to light. These are, first and foremost, indicators of what needs to improve in my riding. Second they are reminders of my frailty in the event that I get injured.

More often than not falls for me come from not seeing the best line and not having sufficient skills to manage the undesirable line.

After my wreck last year that ended up in 3 broken ribs, broken clavicle, concussion and partially collapsed lung, I've moderated my DH speeds. Somewhat. A bit. Well not that much really, but I think about what I'm doing, where I am and what could go wrong a lot more. I have adjusted top end DH speed down a bit unless I know where I'm riding really well.

I look for more speed in the technically challenging sections now. Sections where quick response and agility come into play. It gives me the satisfaction and excitement I'm looking for when I ride but the consequences of wrecking are significantly less.

 

[Monique]

Almost all of my downhill (ski and mountain bike) injuries come from letting ego drive, rather than confidence. It can be hard to see the line between the two, but it's there.