It had been 4 years since I had climbed at the New River Gorge, well 4.5 to be exact. I had met the lovely Gnar there fro a Memorial Day trip soon after she had retired to enjoy the good life in West (by God, smile when you say that) Virginia. During that weekend I met Dave and Hanna, friends of Inez, climbed some neat slabs, and wondered around on a hot muggy day with Inez searching for some good easy trad climbs at the Bimbo Buttress. We found very few. Most were dirt-encrusted cracks, corners, and dihedrals. And the newly bolted sport climbs of the Beer Wall and Sandstonia did not exist or were poorly documented.
So fast forward to last weekend and Anne S. and I were speeding through Baltimore (this is sarcasm, traffic was horrendous) on our way to the New. We had a reservation at the infamous Chestnut Ridge Campsite, home of the rule monger, famous for the number of signs posting rules about everything you could think of. But we preferred the order, quiet, shade, and, most important, running water and hot showers, of this campground to the sometimes chaos that is Roger’s Rocky Top Retreat.
It took almost 7.5 hours to make it to the New, and that was from where I work at Edgewood, Maryland. This should have been about a 5.5 hour drive, but traffic conspired against us. Arrive we did, however and we quickly dispatched the tents and crashed.
The agenda for Day 1 was, once again, Bimbo Buttress, or, more specifically, Beer Wall. Since my last visit in 2003, several moderate routes had been bolted here. My memory had the cliff as being dirty and wet, but I figured what the hell, it was close and had easy access. We were armed with Eric Hörst’s guidebook supplement and good directions, plus I had been there before. We had no trouble locating the cliff and were the on;y people there when we arrived, although some others were climbing at the Bimbo Buttress, they were not at the Beer Wall.
We started easy with Near Beer, a bolted 5.6. I had remembered the climbs I did at the New as being just a bit hard for the grade in the easier grades and other than some recent sessions at the gym, I had been climbing since the first week of June at the City of Rocks (see trip report below). So we were gonna start at the bottom. Near Beer turned out to be only an OK climb, with some moves definitely harder than 5.6. Not the perfect warm up for an out of shape (climbing wise) old fart. Anne gave it a go and also had to pause at the crux. We both did the climb again to see if we missed something, but no, it was just a bit hard for 5.6.
We moved on to Micro Brew, a bolted 5.5 just to the right of Near Beer. I made this harder by doing the crux of the neighboring climb (Gilded Otter, 5.7) instead of taking the easy way to the right of a block, but what the hell. Anne got the true 5.5 grade by staying on route. We next did Gilded Otter, with Anne leading and me following, since I had already done the crux on lead.
Time to step it up a bit, so we moved over to Cervesa Verde, a nice-looking 5.8 face climb about 100 feet right of Micro Brew. This climb was more my style, thin edges and fun face climbing. Both Anne and I cruised this one. This climb turned out to be the best route of the day.
After a quick lunch break, we gave Beer Wench (5.8, bolted) a try. The crux appeared to be at the bottom, before the first bolt. I tried doing the climb on sight with just a good spot, but found the crux move to be way harder than 5.8. And with no way to clip the first bolt without doing the crux and looking at an 8-foot ground fall, I opted for the weenie way and borrowed Anne’s new Squid to stick clip the first bolt. Even on TR for the start, I could not manage the crux move and French Freed my way past the first bolt to a good stance. I would suggest 5.10a/b would be a better grade for this climb. The rest of the climb was fun, with mostly easy moves before reaching a second crux at a an upper dihedral that seemed more like 5.8
We still had a lot of daylight left, although it was getting hot, so we walked back toward the descent point to do a route we noticed on the way in. I had originally thought it was El Routo de la Contriverdos (5.8), but in retrospect it was probably Wunderkind (5.6, bolted). The climb was fun and easy, but really should never have been bolted because it was totally G rated using trad gear.
Next objective were some 5.8’s in the Keine Kraft area of Ames Wall. We wandered slowly down the cliff, checking out some cool routes for later trips. Numerous really fun looking 5.10ish routes were marked for later use. We finally found the climbs in question, but to be honest, they really did not look that great. So we blew off the day and headed back to the car. Not a bad first day out after another long layoff.
After a stop at the local climbing shop to buy the latest guidebook and some other incidentals, we went over to Pies and Pints, based on the advice of the staff at Waterstone Outdoors. The food was good; interesting pizzas made from quality ingredients, and outdoor seating with an isolated no smoking area so you could enjoy the outdoors without being smoked out.
Sunday we intended to head to Sandstonia and hit some newer easy routes. We now had the newest guidebook and beta. I had downloaded a note from rc.com regarding access to Sandstonia and where to park, so we had no trouble locating the correct parking lot; however, the trails had changed a bit since the guide was published, so we were using maps from 3 different sources to try to find our way to the cliff. Although we found the power line trail easily enough, the map made it look as if it would be easier to take “Trail 6” to the cliff. Well, to make a long story short, we wandered around the woods on several different logging roads before we finally emerged once again at the power line cut and could see the parking area for the gas well in the distance. Some map gyrations, and we finally figured it out with help from the stakes and stickers left over from the New River Rendezvous in May. So we arrived at Sandstonia about 1 hour later than we thought we would. I don’t feel too bad though because a local guide was also a bit lost and asked us for directions.
At first glance the place looked like a choss pile. It was dark and seemed wet and the rock seemed blocky and loose. The climbing did not look inviting. So I left the first lead up to Anne. The guide we had encountered earlier had set up on Five Five My Ass, so we opted for Bobby D’s Bunny, 5.6 bolted according to the guidebook. I could see from the base that the climb was at least partially a sandbag, especially for the vertically challenged. This became readily apparent when Anne, at 5’8”, could not reach the 3rd bolt to make the clip before doing the crux moves. After several failed attempts to reach the bolt, I finally offered my Teva to give her that extra 1/2 inch she needed. I tossed my shoe up to her and sure enough, it was just enough to allow her to make the clip. Unfortunately, it was not enough to allow her to reach the crux jug, so she had to do a little route-finding to do the crux in a way she could keep the grade near 5.6. After a short fall, she figured it out and cruised the rest of the climb. I followed on TR, then we both led the climb just to be able to claim the lead in the book. Even though I'm only 5'7", I could just barely reach the crux jug by standing on my toes. I would say 5.6 is a slight sandbag for this one, because even if you can reach the crux jug and horizontal, you still need to do a short pull up to continue. I don’t really think a 5.6 climb should require a near pull up. So I say 5.7+, but what do I know. The upper portion of the climb was actually quite nice, a wonderful easy face very similar to a Gunks face. Definitely worth the stars and a real surprise considering what the rock looks like from the base of the cliff.
The guide and clients had by now moved on, so we each took a turn leading Five-Five My Ass. This climb was not worth doing. A one-move wonder with a loose block at the crux, and short to boot. Well, at least it’s another lead in the book.
The next objective was occupied by some German climbers, who had arrived while we were leading Five-Five and had managed to tie up 2 climbs at once. So we went around the corner to a nice little alcove to do Shady Lady (5.7, bolted). Shady Lady was a fun climb with good holds and nice climbing. Probably a bit easier than 5.7, but what the hell. That balances the scales form the slight sandbags we had done so far. We thought about TRing the neat-looking 5.10d next to Shady Lady, but opted to go for more leading instead. With the Germans still occupying 2 routes, we moved up a grade to Geisha (5.8, bolted). The slight off width at the start made Anne nervous, so I gave it a go. What the hey, I could always French Free anything on a 5.8 and taking a hang or 2 was not so bad in my book after not climbing for awhile. The beginning reminded me a lot of Yellow Ridge at the Gunks. The crack would easily take a number 3 or 3.5 cam, but the first ascensionists had obviously opted to make these climbs all bolts, even if trad gear would work (Shady Lady was the same, the opening crack was bolted but would easily take gear). I jammed my way up to the first bolt, then continued to the crux at a short left-facing corner where I had to hang. I then pulled the crux and cruised the great face to the anchors. The steep section near the top that had looked intimidating from the base of the climb was well bolted and very similar to many mini-roofs at the Gunks in the 5.6 range, so it was fun. The only drawback was the face was now in the full sun at 85 degrees, so I was a bit sweaty for the last bit of hanging on. I refuse to use chalk unless I am in a desperate situation, so I just wiped the sweat off on my pants a few times and pulled over the roof to the anchors. Anne followed on TR since she was not happy about the crack at the start, then we pulled the rope and called it a day. It was about 3:00 PM by now and quite hot in the sun. We took the straightforward way out along the power line to the car. Much easier. I guess about 25 minutes of hiking, even with a couple of short, steep hills.
A nice shower and dinner at the Sedona Restaurant (Greek pasta for me) finished off the evening. I had totally forgotten eating there with Inez in 2003, but as soon as I stepped inside I recognized the interior. The food was good and the price very reasonable, although my pasta had a bit too much feta cheese (note to Sedona chef - feta is a strong cheese, you don’t need a shitload of it on a dish !).
Monday was driving day, so we planned to climb at Summerville Lake on the way home for about ½ day, then hit the road. Unfortunately, I managed to miss the turnoff and we drove all the way through Summersville and beyond before realizing the mistake. A quick U-turn had us back on course and I recognized the parking area on the second run. A really neat 40 minute hike through rhododendron along the lake shore got us to the Orange Oswald Wall about 10:00 AM. We both led That Eight (5.7, bolted and a bit of a sandbag) and I then led Jeff’s Bunny Hop (5.8, bolted) and Anne followed before the throngs began arriving and creating a mob scene. Well, it was now 12:30 and again getting quite warm, so we packed up and headed out for the drive home.
Arrived back at the house in Newark at 7:30 PM after and ice-cream and gas break in Farimont, WV, about 6.5 hours after hitting the road from Summersville.
Overall, I really enjoyed the climbing at the New much more this trip and plan on returning over Veteran’s Day. Maybe by then 5.10 will be in the cards again and that will greatly expand the possibilities at the New. Well, better get to the gym to train…
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Oxford-St. Michaels Road Ride
The day of my birthday (49, if you're counting) Ms. T and I decided to do a road ride on the Eastern shore. We had been eyeing the Easton-Oxford-St. Michael's loop since last year. The loop is about 30 miles and allegedly very scenic, very flat, and with a cool ferry ride to boot.
So it was that we left the homestead bound for Easton, MD on Sunday morning. Since the day before was my birthday, we got a really late start, like around noon. A 1:45 minute drive had us parking at Easton, ready to roll.
The route was fairly straightforward. There just are not that many roads on the Eastern Shore that actually don't dead end, so that was not going to be a problem. The roads are well travelled, but have big shoulders, for the most part, so that mitigates the traffic. So, even though it was a Sunday afternoon with nice weather (for awhile) after the summer season, there was still a fair amount of traffic. But the shoulders made the traffic bearable.
We motored right along at about 15 MPH from Easton to Oxford where we found the ferry to take us across the river. Unfortunately, our timing could not have been worse as the ferry was literally 10 feet from the dock when we arrived, motoring away. Too bad. If we had been 15 seconds sooner we could have saved a 20 minute wait. Well, if we had to wait, we could at least enjoy the scenery.
Docks and buildings at the Oxford waterfront.
View across the river from Oxford toward Bellevue.
The bikes taking a rest, waiting for the ferry.
Another set of 2 bikers showed up a few minutes later and we made the ferry crossing to Bellevue together. One the other side of the river, we noticed this boat moored at the dock.
The "Barbara J."
With this warning posted near the stern:
Watch out for the killer crabs !
After a few bad jokes, we continued our northward journey to St. Michael's. About 12 flat miles later, we arrived in the quaint waterman's village. The town was originally settled in the 1650's and is famous for fooling the British Navy during the War of 1812 by placing lanterns in trees to divert artillery fire away from the town. Anyway, it's a pretty nice little burg, with shops, restaurants, old buildings and streets, and a waterman's museum. Not a bad destination for a road ride.
One of the historic buildings in St. Michael's.
One of the small artisan shops in St. Michael's.
A friend suggested lunch at the Crab Claw, so we headed there. It certainly has a nice setting and all, but to be honest the food was just not that good and certainly not worth the price. Next time we'll try another, smaller, more out of the way place and see if we can do better.
So it was that we left the homestead bound for Easton, MD on Sunday morning. Since the day before was my birthday, we got a really late start, like around noon. A 1:45 minute drive had us parking at Easton, ready to roll.
The route was fairly straightforward. There just are not that many roads on the Eastern Shore that actually don't dead end, so that was not going to be a problem. The roads are well travelled, but have big shoulders, for the most part, so that mitigates the traffic. So, even though it was a Sunday afternoon with nice weather (for awhile) after the summer season, there was still a fair amount of traffic. But the shoulders made the traffic bearable.
We motored right along at about 15 MPH from Easton to Oxford where we found the ferry to take us across the river. Unfortunately, our timing could not have been worse as the ferry was literally 10 feet from the dock when we arrived, motoring away. Too bad. If we had been 15 seconds sooner we could have saved a 20 minute wait. Well, if we had to wait, we could at least enjoy the scenery.
Docks and buildings at the Oxford waterfront.
View across the river from Oxford toward Bellevue.
The bikes taking a rest, waiting for the ferry.
Another set of 2 bikers showed up a few minutes later and we made the ferry crossing to Bellevue together. One the other side of the river, we noticed this boat moored at the dock.
The "Barbara J."
With this warning posted near the stern:
Watch out for the killer crabs !
After a few bad jokes, we continued our northward journey to St. Michael's. About 12 flat miles later, we arrived in the quaint waterman's village. The town was originally settled in the 1650's and is famous for fooling the British Navy during the War of 1812 by placing lanterns in trees to divert artillery fire away from the town. Anyway, it's a pretty nice little burg, with shops, restaurants, old buildings and streets, and a waterman's museum. Not a bad destination for a road ride.
One of the historic buildings in St. Michael's.
One of the small artisan shops in St. Michael's.
A friend suggested lunch at the Crab Claw, so we headed there. It certainly has a nice setting and all, but to be honest the food was just not that good and certainly not worth the price. Next time we'll try another, smaller, more out of the way place and see if we can do better.
Deck on the waterfront at the Crab Claw.
We then retraced our route southward from St. Michael's toward Bellevue, doing an extra few miles to avoid travelling on the main road as long as possible. Finally, we had to travel on Route 32 with the traffic, but the wide shoulder made it tolerable.
This boat was moored next to the restaurant and pulled away while we were eating.
Hey, someone is stealing my new boat !
We then retraced our route southward from St. Michael's toward Bellevue, doing an extra few miles to avoid travelling on the main road as long as possible. Finally, we had to travel on Route 32 with the traffic, but the wide shoulder made it tolerable.
Thunderstorms loomed in the distance as we made our way back to the car and we just made it before the rain came down hard. Well, at least our timing was good on that.
A really nice 33 miles in all. Perhaps a bit too much traffic. I think this ride is best saved for a weekday in the fall, or a really warm winter day when all the tourons are gone.
TS
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Iron Hill Sauna
Only 1 word is required to describe the conditions at the Iron Hill XC and endurance race this year:
Sauna.
Well, I suppose you could use "steam bath", but they're the same thing. It was one of those 90-90 days (you know, 90 % heat and 90 % humidity), only the humidity was 100 %.
I was not even going to do this race. Ms Troutboy and I were going to go to Connecticut for some road biking. As a result, I had not done any pre-riding at Iron Hill in preparation. And since I have actually never ridden at Iron Hill, the whole race course was unknown to me. But when the Ms cancelled the road trip due to the crappy east coast weather, I figured why not. It would be the last XC race I could actually do this season, so I needed it to get my 5 races in for the overall points standing (not that I could actually win anything there this year).
So, I did some quick prep the night before, a little tune up on the new cables that had stretched since they were put on 2 rides ago, filled the 100 ounce Camelback to the rim, threw some Shot Blocks in the Bento Box (my top tube pouch for those who aren't familiar [more on that later]), filled the cooler with beer and ice, laid out the clothes, and went to bed.
Woke up to temps of about 85 degrees and 100 % humidity. It was STICKY and miserable. Well, at least the beginner ride was the first to go (with the endurance riders at 0900). Scored a good parking spot, got registered, then just hung out until race time. Bill S (number 1) and Bill S (number 2) were both racing. Bob G was there also, plus a bunch of other Bike Line racers.
The air was so humid it felt as if it were raining and there was a fog/mist in the air. I knew this was going to be a slow race for me. I was not willing to push the speed on a wet course when I had Old Timer's Reunion coming up the next week. I was just going to try and finish in my usual spot behind the top 4 or 5 guys.
As usual at these things, the race started late, with the Enduro Riders going off at about 0920. Our class went almost last - the women's classes went out before us in this one (never seen that before).
The usual suspects were in front at the start, Glenn, Bill, and myself with a another rider who is not a series racer. I lost them after the first 3/4 mile, then I let Ed pass me because he was clearly much faster (as usual). I rode with another Bike Line teammate (Bernie) for a while, then he passed me on a steep downhill with loose wet rocks. I was being cautious, he was racing. I can usually beat Bernie by a minute or two, but he was clearly faster today, so I let him by.
Pretty much found my place and rhythm by then, passed several riders, got passed by more. Rode with Bob G for a little bit when I caught him, but he veered off on the Enduro loop that varied slightly from the beginner loop and I did not see him until my race was done.
In the end, it was a bad race for me time wise, but I did not crash and I did finish. I also blew by a racer in another age group on the last road section. He had passed me on the single track a few seconds before, but I had way more legs on the non-technical sprint. So another season without a DNF.
Another good thing was that I finally found a way to eat while racing. Shot Blocks in the Bento Box were easy to access, easy to chew while breathing, and went down well. I ate about 600 calories worth of them during the race. That's a big plus for someone like me who realy need to eat during any race longer than 45 minutes (and that's pretty much all of them). Also, I managed to down a whole 100 ounces of fluid. I have had a major problem not drinking enough during races the last 2 years and finally stayed hydrated this time.
After the race, I hunkered down leaning over my top tube for a few minutes recovering from the last sprint and a News-Journal photog took my pic and did a short interview. It was a good picture (saw it on his camera back) even if I did look pretty tired, but it never made the paper. They used a pic of one of the junior racers instead.
So that was the season for me, time to concentrate on climbing in the gym I suppose.
Finally, props to the expert/elite and enduro guys and ladies who finished the race in that crazy weather. They did 4 to 6 6.5 mile laps in that soup, a heck of an effort. I heard the expert field elected to do the full 5 laps instead of a shortened 4 lap race, then about half the field DNFed.
TS
Sauna.
Well, I suppose you could use "steam bath", but they're the same thing. It was one of those 90-90 days (you know, 90 % heat and 90 % humidity), only the humidity was 100 %.
I was not even going to do this race. Ms Troutboy and I were going to go to Connecticut for some road biking. As a result, I had not done any pre-riding at Iron Hill in preparation. And since I have actually never ridden at Iron Hill, the whole race course was unknown to me. But when the Ms cancelled the road trip due to the crappy east coast weather, I figured why not. It would be the last XC race I could actually do this season, so I needed it to get my 5 races in for the overall points standing (not that I could actually win anything there this year).
So, I did some quick prep the night before, a little tune up on the new cables that had stretched since they were put on 2 rides ago, filled the 100 ounce Camelback to the rim, threw some Shot Blocks in the Bento Box (my top tube pouch for those who aren't familiar [more on that later]), filled the cooler with beer and ice, laid out the clothes, and went to bed.
Woke up to temps of about 85 degrees and 100 % humidity. It was STICKY and miserable. Well, at least the beginner ride was the first to go (with the endurance riders at 0900). Scored a good parking spot, got registered, then just hung out until race time. Bill S (number 1) and Bill S (number 2) were both racing. Bob G was there also, plus a bunch of other Bike Line racers.
The air was so humid it felt as if it were raining and there was a fog/mist in the air. I knew this was going to be a slow race for me. I was not willing to push the speed on a wet course when I had Old Timer's Reunion coming up the next week. I was just going to try and finish in my usual spot behind the top 4 or 5 guys.
As usual at these things, the race started late, with the Enduro Riders going off at about 0920. Our class went almost last - the women's classes went out before us in this one (never seen that before).
The usual suspects were in front at the start, Glenn, Bill, and myself with a another rider who is not a series racer. I lost them after the first 3/4 mile, then I let Ed pass me because he was clearly much faster (as usual). I rode with another Bike Line teammate (Bernie) for a while, then he passed me on a steep downhill with loose wet rocks. I was being cautious, he was racing. I can usually beat Bernie by a minute or two, but he was clearly faster today, so I let him by.
Pretty much found my place and rhythm by then, passed several riders, got passed by more. Rode with Bob G for a little bit when I caught him, but he veered off on the Enduro loop that varied slightly from the beginner loop and I did not see him until my race was done.
In the end, it was a bad race for me time wise, but I did not crash and I did finish. I also blew by a racer in another age group on the last road section. He had passed me on the single track a few seconds before, but I had way more legs on the non-technical sprint. So another season without a DNF.
Another good thing was that I finally found a way to eat while racing. Shot Blocks in the Bento Box were easy to access, easy to chew while breathing, and went down well. I ate about 600 calories worth of them during the race. That's a big plus for someone like me who realy need to eat during any race longer than 45 minutes (and that's pretty much all of them). Also, I managed to down a whole 100 ounces of fluid. I have had a major problem not drinking enough during races the last 2 years and finally stayed hydrated this time.
After the race, I hunkered down leaning over my top tube for a few minutes recovering from the last sprint and a News-Journal photog took my pic and did a short interview. It was a good picture (saw it on his camera back) even if I did look pretty tired, but it never made the paper. They used a pic of one of the junior racers instead.
So that was the season for me, time to concentrate on climbing in the gym I suppose.
Finally, props to the expert/elite and enduro guys and ladies who finished the race in that crazy weather. They did 4 to 6 6.5 mile laps in that soup, a heck of an effort. I heard the expert field elected to do the full 5 laps instead of a shortened 4 lap race, then about half the field DNFed.
TS
Monday, August 6, 2007
So Long and Thanks for all the Flesh
With Apologies to Douglas Adams....
We've had 2 free vouchers to fly on United for almost 3 years now. Every time we planned a trip, something would come up. The original plan was to fly into Reno and cross-country ski at Royal Gorge or someplace else close to Tahoe-Donner in February 2005. But 2 broken arms on a hiking trip to Glacier National Park in September 2004 meant having to postpone that trip. Fortunately, although the destination on these voucher seats cannot be changed, the dates can. So we postponed the trip for a year. That time, business got in the way and we postponed the trip again. I rearranged the trip to July 2007, for no other reason that there was a gap in the MASS race schedule. It was a good thing we moved it from winter, because this year was a low snowfall year for the region.
Anyway, we were on our way in July 2007, with a brief stay in Portland to attend a wedding. That put us back into Tahoe on Monday, avoiding the weekend crowd. We booked a cottage at this neat little place http://www.rusticcottages.com/ . Some road noise, but a great location and run by some wonderful folks. Lemonade, tea, and cookies on the front porch each night and breakfast in the morning for $85.00 a night. Not bad. Biking and swimming were either across the street, or about 2 miles away. Tons more biking was a 20 minute drive.
Tuesday 24 July
On Tuesday, we checked the local bike shops for a place to rent and scoped the local area. We soon realized there was little to no potential for road riding. The roads were way to busy with little or no shoulder. So despite what all the local literature said about "riding around the lovely Lake Tahoe", don't believe a word of it.
We finally rented two full suspension bikes from the Village Ski Loft http://www.villageskiloft/. The folks there were very helpful and rented as two very nice bikes, a Trek Fuel EX7 WSD for Ms. Troutboy and a Specialized Stumpjumper (replaced later by an Epic) for me. I had never had the need for a FS bike. I've ridden and raced nothing but a steel hardtail for the last 3 years. My only experience on a FS did not sell me on them (a 2 day demo while my bike was being worked on). But the ride on this bike was nice. Especially with the preponderance of rocks on the Tahoe trails. More of that later.
Wednesday 25 July
Trying to make sense of the trail map at Burton Creek.
Easy Singletrack at Burton Creek.
Friday 27 July
After our success at Burton Creek, we decided to try another place in our Mountain Biking Lake Tahoe book - The General Creek Loop at Sugar Pine Point State Park, a bit south of Tahoe City. We did another early start to avoid traffic in Tahoe City and found the Park without any trouble. A couple of false starts and we finally found the beginning of the route as described in the book. The ride began on a paved bike path, then continued on a Forest Service Road. Unfortunately, there was construction on and near the road and the first 3-4 miles of the route was torn up by a tracked vehicle. Apparently, we were on the route of the cross country races for the 1960 Squaw Valley Olympics, as indicated by this sign:
Me at one of the Olympic XC Ski Route markers.
The trail deteriorated even more, until we came to a bridge that marked the apex of the loop we were taking and the departure point for some nice singletrack through flowers. The easy singletrack did not last long, so we turned around at the point where Ms T was walking more than riding. But we did get in another mile or so of easy riding. We then followed the loop continuation back to the campground at Sugar Pine Point State Park where we picked up another nice piece of singletrack that skirted the south side of the campsite. Another mile or so of easy singletrack brought us back to the parking area. We cruised the campground, just for fun and to add some more miles, then called it a morning and headed to lunch and swimming at the cabin and Lake Tahoe.
Easy singletrack and wildflowers just off the General's Loop.
We finished out the day by trying to do the Blackwood Canyon Loop south of Tahoe City. The ride was described as a few miles of paved road, then a couple miles of easy singletrack to the bike path that runs along the lake and Route 80. We found the parking lot and the first part of the ride was as described. I found what I thought was the easy singletrack, but it was anything but. Even I was walking a small section or two and Ms. T was walking almost everything. With only a little daylight left, we abandoned the singletrack and returned to the car via the road. We then continued down the bike path to the far end of the singletrack, where it ended at a paved road in a subdivision. The trail at that end was easy, but I have no idea how much of the trail is actually easy versus intermediate singletrack. Guess we'll save that for the next trip.
Saturday 28 July
On Saturday, we took a rest day and headed to North Start at Tahoe again to take advantage of the free chair lift ticket, do some hiking, and watch the crazy downhillers in full gear. We then headed in to Truckee to catch the New Belgium Brewery Tour de Fat bike festival. If you ever have the chance to be a part of this event, do it. It was a blast. Lots of fun stuff going on, crazy circus acts, a slow race, lots of strange bikes and even stranger costumes, good beer. I took a lot of pictures, but unfortunately the card was full and none were saved. So, no pics from the FTF. But go here http://www.newbelgium.com/vibe_tourdefat.php to see pics on the official web site.
Downhiller at North Star at Tahoe.
Sunday 29 July
On Sunday morning we again did the paved trail along the Truckee River and then took the road up to Squaw Valley for a coffee break before the return trip to Tahoe City. We left early to avoid the weekend cruiser bike crowd, which meant it was pretty chilly when we started. It warmed up nicely by the time we hit the road to Squaw Valley and the rest of the ride was perfect. We grabbed some lunch and a nap, then I headed out by myself for some single track. I chose the Emigrant trail just north of Truckee, mostly for logistical reasons, but I also wanted to see what the rest of the trail was like after the creek crossing, where Ms. T and I turned around on a previous foray.
The trail begins at Donner Park, supposed site of the camp of the infamous Donner Party, a wagon train heading west that became trapped here during a horrible winter when an early snowstorm prevented them from crossing Donner Pass and continued snow made it impossible to retreat eastward. Allegations of cannibalism and/or eating their dead compatriots may or may not be true (thus the post title).
Donner Camp Memorial Marker at the Trail Head.
Trail Head Sign.
I was going to take the trail to Stampede Reservoir, take a quick dip, then return by whatever loop my remaining time allowed. Unfortunately, after the morning ride to Squaw Valley and a nap, I was getting a late start. It was about 1230 and the hottest part of the hottest day of the week when I began (about 90 degrees).
The trail begins with nice easy single track through woods and fields until the crossing at Prosser Creek. The trail through the creek bed is armored for a bit, then one must cross a sandy wash and the actual creek. The water was low enough for the creek to be rideable, but erosion has created a steep rise on the far bank, so I just walked across. This is where Kate and I turned around the other day on our first visit to this trail.
Armored Section in the Prosser Creek Wash.
Right after the creek the trail became a bit harder, with at least one long hill, but overall very friendly. I was having a blast on the rented dual suspension, flying over rocks on the downhills. I was also passing a lot of other bikers. I'd say I passed about 12 others out in the heat of the day. I was also passed by another solo rider.
After several map consultations, mostly to see where I was in my progress to Stampede Reservoir (the trail is very well marked) and a lot of fun, I made it to the boat ramp at the lake. What a zoo. Hundreds of boats and trailers were parked everywhere. And although I saw several dozen people swimming in the lake and the shore was easily accessible, I opted to try to find a more secluded spot to take a swim, especially since I was hoping to keep the bike shorts dry (if you know what I mean). I probably rode an extra 6-7 miles of pavement, searching for the right spot, but never finding it. I did refill water at one of the campgrounds, but the extra miles had drastically cut into my allotted time for the return trip.
So, rather than redo the entire trail, I figured I would do a few miles on the road until I could intersect the trail again, then do the single track back to the parking lot. Unfortunately, I passed by the most obvious reentry point in an effort to save some time, and I was never able to accurately predict the right turnoff from the paved/gravel roads to intersect the trail again. Being short on time, I could not afford to get lost, so I rode the pavement all the way to the main road. I did manage to get back on the trail at the Prosser Creek Crossing bypass and add 2.5 miles of single track to the trip. I made it back to the rental car just in time to make my appointed rendezvous call to Ms. T and, after about 30 miles of biking in 90-degree heat, not a whole lot left in the tank.
It was a wonderful ride though. I would highly recommend this trail. It may not have the scenic views of the Flume Trail, but the riding is better. Although I did not do it this way, it can be done as an out and back for almost 24 miles of single track, with no roads.
I was whipped, so there was no evening ride tonight, just a nice dinner and a session in the hot tub/jacuzzi.
We've had 2 free vouchers to fly on United for almost 3 years now. Every time we planned a trip, something would come up. The original plan was to fly into Reno and cross-country ski at Royal Gorge or someplace else close to Tahoe-Donner in February 2005. But 2 broken arms on a hiking trip to Glacier National Park in September 2004 meant having to postpone that trip. Fortunately, although the destination on these voucher seats cannot be changed, the dates can. So we postponed the trip for a year. That time, business got in the way and we postponed the trip again. I rearranged the trip to July 2007, for no other reason that there was a gap in the MASS race schedule. It was a good thing we moved it from winter, because this year was a low snowfall year for the region.
Anyway, we were on our way in July 2007, with a brief stay in Portland to attend a wedding. That put us back into Tahoe on Monday, avoiding the weekend crowd. We booked a cottage at this neat little place http://www.rusticcottages.com/ . Some road noise, but a great location and run by some wonderful folks. Lemonade, tea, and cookies on the front porch each night and breakfast in the morning for $85.00 a night. Not bad. Biking and swimming were either across the street, or about 2 miles away. Tons more biking was a 20 minute drive.
Tuesday 24 July
On Tuesday, we checked the local bike shops for a place to rent and scoped the local area. We soon realized there was little to no potential for road riding. The roads were way to busy with little or no shoulder. So despite what all the local literature said about "riding around the lovely Lake Tahoe", don't believe a word of it.
We finally rented two full suspension bikes from the Village Ski Loft http://www.villageskiloft/. The folks there were very helpful and rented as two very nice bikes, a Trek Fuel EX7 WSD for Ms. Troutboy and a Specialized Stumpjumper (replaced later by an Epic) for me. I had never had the need for a FS bike. I've ridden and raced nothing but a steel hardtail for the last 3 years. My only experience on a FS did not sell me on them (a 2 day demo while my bike was being worked on). But the ride on this bike was nice. Especially with the preponderance of rocks on the Tahoe trails. More of that later.
So, we hatched a plan of riding together in the morning, eating lunch, me riding somewhere by myself in the heat of the day while the Ms did whatever, then riding or doing something else together in the late afternoon/evening. This plan worked great.
The first day we took a quick ride on a paved bike path in Incline Village. Since we did not actually rent the bikes until about 1800, that's about all we could do. All I can say is there are some niiiice houses along the lake in Incline Village. And, from the start, Ms T loved the Trek Fuel EX-7 WSD. It may not be the choice for many serious single track aficionados, but it fit her perfectly and handled better than anything she had ridden before.Wednesday 25 July
Wednesday morning we continued the pavement theme (to protect Ms. T's hurt shoulders) and biked the path along the Truckee River from Tahoe City. We were having so much fun we continued up the road to Squaw Valley and back, with a coffee stop in Squaw Valley Village. A nice easy ride. So what if it was paved ! We did it early enough to avoid the cruiser crowd.
In the afternoon, we did some hiking in North Tahoe Regional Park to see if the single-track would be Ms T friendly since her shoulder was not hurting from the paved rides. Unfortunately, there was really not too much easy singletrack, but we did have a good hike, then watched some people playing Ultimate Frisbee.Thursday 26 July
On Thursday, I woke up around 0600 and headed to Burton Creek State park for an early ride and to check it out for easy singletrack. I found a lot of nice trails, got lost a couple times, and tried to get a feel for the place. There was plenty of easy double and singletrack for Ms. T. After lunch and a dip in the lake, I headed up the road to North Tahoe Regional Park and rode about 10 miles through there, getting a better feel for the place. Enjoyed a bit of fun single-track, but there were not as many miles as in Burton Creek. Still, with no driving involved in getting to the park from the hotel, it was a good mid-afternoon choice. We returned to Burton Creek in the late afternoon for some more fun. The place was nearly deserted again. I saw a couple of runners on the early ride and we saw only a few bikers in the evening. Ms. T had a blast on the Trek and the easy singletrack. Since this was really only her 3rd or fourth MTB ride, we really needed some friendly stuff and Burton Creek delivered. It's a great place to introduce new mountain bikers to the sport. It also had some hills and a great view of the Lake.
Trying to make sense of the trail map at Burton Creek.
Nice Lookout at Burton Creek, Lake Tahoe in the Background.
Easy Singletrack at Burton Creek.
Friday 27 July
After our success at Burton Creek, we decided to try another place in our Mountain Biking Lake Tahoe book - The General Creek Loop at Sugar Pine Point State Park, a bit south of Tahoe City. We did another early start to avoid traffic in Tahoe City and found the Park without any trouble. A couple of false starts and we finally found the beginning of the route as described in the book. The ride began on a paved bike path, then continued on a Forest Service Road. Unfortunately, there was construction on and near the road and the first 3-4 miles of the route was torn up by a tracked vehicle. Apparently, we were on the route of the cross country races for the 1960 Squaw Valley Olympics, as indicated by this sign:
Me at one of the Olympic XC Ski Route markers.
The trail deteriorated even more, until we came to a bridge that marked the apex of the loop we were taking and the departure point for some nice singletrack through flowers. The easy singletrack did not last long, so we turned around at the point where Ms T was walking more than riding. But we did get in another mile or so of easy riding. We then followed the loop continuation back to the campground at Sugar Pine Point State Park where we picked up another nice piece of singletrack that skirted the south side of the campsite. Another mile or so of easy singletrack brought us back to the parking area. We cruised the campground, just for fun and to add some more miles, then called it a morning and headed to lunch and swimming at the cabin and Lake Tahoe.
Easy singletrack and wildflowers just off the General's Loop.
We finished out the day by trying to do the Blackwood Canyon Loop south of Tahoe City. The ride was described as a few miles of paved road, then a couple miles of easy singletrack to the bike path that runs along the lake and Route 80. We found the parking lot and the first part of the ride was as described. I found what I thought was the easy singletrack, but it was anything but. Even I was walking a small section or two and Ms. T was walking almost everything. With only a little daylight left, we abandoned the singletrack and returned to the car via the road. We then continued down the bike path to the far end of the singletrack, where it ended at a paved road in a subdivision. The trail at that end was easy, but I have no idea how much of the trail is actually easy versus intermediate singletrack. Guess we'll save that for the next trip.
Saturday 28 July
On Saturday, we took a rest day and headed to North Start at Tahoe again to take advantage of the free chair lift ticket, do some hiking, and watch the crazy downhillers in full gear. We then headed in to Truckee to catch the New Belgium Brewery Tour de Fat bike festival. If you ever have the chance to be a part of this event, do it. It was a blast. Lots of fun stuff going on, crazy circus acts, a slow race, lots of strange bikes and even stranger costumes, good beer. I took a lot of pictures, but unfortunately the card was full and none were saved. So, no pics from the FTF. But go here http://www.newbelgium.com/vibe_tourdefat.php to see pics on the official web site.
Downhiller at North Star at Tahoe.
Sunday 29 July
On Sunday morning we again did the paved trail along the Truckee River and then took the road up to Squaw Valley for a coffee break before the return trip to Tahoe City. We left early to avoid the weekend cruiser bike crowd, which meant it was pretty chilly when we started. It warmed up nicely by the time we hit the road to Squaw Valley and the rest of the ride was perfect. We grabbed some lunch and a nap, then I headed out by myself for some single track. I chose the Emigrant trail just north of Truckee, mostly for logistical reasons, but I also wanted to see what the rest of the trail was like after the creek crossing, where Ms. T and I turned around on a previous foray.
The trail begins at Donner Park, supposed site of the camp of the infamous Donner Party, a wagon train heading west that became trapped here during a horrible winter when an early snowstorm prevented them from crossing Donner Pass and continued snow made it impossible to retreat eastward. Allegations of cannibalism and/or eating their dead compatriots may or may not be true (thus the post title).
Donner Camp Memorial Marker at the Trail Head.
Trail Head Sign.
I was going to take the trail to Stampede Reservoir, take a quick dip, then return by whatever loop my remaining time allowed. Unfortunately, after the morning ride to Squaw Valley and a nap, I was getting a late start. It was about 1230 and the hottest part of the hottest day of the week when I began (about 90 degrees).
The trail begins with nice easy single track through woods and fields until the crossing at Prosser Creek. The trail through the creek bed is armored for a bit, then one must cross a sandy wash and the actual creek. The water was low enough for the creek to be rideable, but erosion has created a steep rise on the far bank, so I just walked across. This is where Kate and I turned around the other day on our first visit to this trail.
Armored Section in the Prosser Creek Wash.
Right after the creek the trail became a bit harder, with at least one long hill, but overall very friendly. I was having a blast on the rented dual suspension, flying over rocks on the downhills. I was also passing a lot of other bikers. I'd say I passed about 12 others out in the heat of the day. I was also passed by another solo rider.
After several map consultations, mostly to see where I was in my progress to Stampede Reservoir (the trail is very well marked) and a lot of fun, I made it to the boat ramp at the lake. What a zoo. Hundreds of boats and trailers were parked everywhere. And although I saw several dozen people swimming in the lake and the shore was easily accessible, I opted to try to find a more secluded spot to take a swim, especially since I was hoping to keep the bike shorts dry (if you know what I mean). I probably rode an extra 6-7 miles of pavement, searching for the right spot, but never finding it. I did refill water at one of the campgrounds, but the extra miles had drastically cut into my allotted time for the return trip.
So, rather than redo the entire trail, I figured I would do a few miles on the road until I could intersect the trail again, then do the single track back to the parking lot. Unfortunately, I passed by the most obvious reentry point in an effort to save some time, and I was never able to accurately predict the right turnoff from the paved/gravel roads to intersect the trail again. Being short on time, I could not afford to get lost, so I rode the pavement all the way to the main road. I did manage to get back on the trail at the Prosser Creek Crossing bypass and add 2.5 miles of single track to the trip. I made it back to the rental car just in time to make my appointed rendezvous call to Ms. T and, after about 30 miles of biking in 90-degree heat, not a whole lot left in the tank.
It was a wonderful ride though. I would highly recommend this trail. It may not have the scenic views of the Flume Trail, but the riding is better. Although I did not do it this way, it can be done as an out and back for almost 24 miles of single track, with no roads.
I was whipped, so there was no evening ride tonight, just a nice dinner and a session in the hot tub/jacuzzi.
Monday 30 July
Monday was a travel day, heading back to Reno to repack everything for the early flight home on Tuesday. After returning the rental bikes, we took a short hike along the Tahoe Rim Trail near Mt. Rose to a cool little waterfall. I could definitely feel the thin air at 9,000 feet, even after being at 6,000 feet and riding a lot in the last week. We spent a little time at the base of the waterfall cooling off. I had to wait for a hiking group to clear out before I could really cool off.
Soaking the feet in the cool water, waiting for the crowds to vacate.
So, that was it. The trip to Tahoe finally became reality. It was a great trip and I will definitely return to Tahoe for more biking in the very near future. The Flume Trail is a must do, I need to bike more of the Tahoe Rim Trail, and North Star at Tahoe has some great XC trails in addition to the serious DH stuff. Wanna come ?
Soaking the feet in the cool water, waiting for the crowds to vacate.
So, that was it. The trip to Tahoe finally became reality. It was a great trip and I will definitely return to Tahoe for more biking in the very near future. The Flume Trail is a must do, I need to bike more of the Tahoe Rim Trail, and North Star at Tahoe has some great XC trails in addition to the serious DH stuff. Wanna come ?
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Bonked Again at Fair Hill
Again, no pics. I had the camera, but between racing and attending to an injured rider, I missed all the photo ops.
Fair Hill 2006 was my worst race last year. I failed to drink enough in the almost 100 degree heat and cramped up about 10 miles in, finishing a disappointing 11th, almost 16 minutes of the leader (on my home course too).
So I vowed this year would be different...
The weekend began with some trail maintenance on Saturday morning followed by race prep on Saturday afternoon. A previous engagement and a last-minute errand meant I was too late to be helpful for the trail maintenance, so I stopped here and grabbed some lunch for the volunteers. I already had "recovery drinks" on ice, so I was set in that regard.
Good luck and good timing had me arriving at Fair Hill with 3 hot pizzas just as the volunteers were coming back. The food and drink was well received, so at least the morning was not a total waste for me. After lunch it was race prep. I waited around for something to do, then finally grabbed a Gator and left with Kate and Kathy C (a new TSer) to try to find something useful to do. We met Bill S (number 1) near the humpback bridge and started marking the fields and some hedgerow sections like Disneyland for the course.
Near the end of the day I chatted with a father and son from northeast Pennsylvania who wanted to know if they would be able to park their camper on site in the morning. I gave them the low-down (which is totally different from the down-low, in case you did not know) and told them it would be fine, to just arrive early and talk with Barney, Mr. Parking for the day. They were friendly folks and the father was the former pilot for The Band in their private jet. He acted a but surprised that I knew who they were. Maybe I look younger than I am ?
Unlike last year, the weather was super and we did not get drenched by nasty thunderstorms during the afternoon. We ended the day at Daddyos for dinner, and did not get home until almost 2200. And I still needed to get some stuff ready for the race the next day.
Fortunately, thanks to MR. Howard at Bike Line, the bike was ready to go with an new drive train, new front derailleur, new cables, and some other miscellaneous stuff that required tweaking.
Sunday Kate and I got up early and left for Fair Hill at 0700. My race started at 0900. I planned on racing, then helping in any way I could. Kate was scheduled to be at the First Time Beginner/Advanced Beginner split to direct traffic until all the First Timers went by, then put up the tape to direct Advanced Beginners and walk down to water stop 3 for the rest of the day.
I rode around a bit with Jim V to warm up, then over to the start line to watch the first-time beginners start. A little more prep, then back to the start line for my race. Mr Race Director Bob saw fit to start all Master men with all junior racers, so we had well over 50 guys lined up at the start line. This forced the Master I men way out into the field, requiring us to pedal through 6-inch grass for several hundred yards to reach the grass-free zone of the doubletrack (what are you doing to us Mr. Bob ?).
Uncharacteristically, I had a horrid start. My bike was not totally in gear and the chain slipped, then my right foot came unclipped and I could not get the left clipped either. There were probably 30 people in front of me before I really got rolling. Still, I managed to grab onto Vance's wheel soon after the start. I was not sure where everyone else was due to the mass start, lots of dust, and me being way back in the pack. I hung with Vance for a mile or so, then lost him in slower pack of juniors just after the beginner/sport split. Oh well, I did not think I could keep up with the leaders all day anyway. My strategy was to ride a quick, but steady pace and hope my knowledge of the trails would gain me enough time for a top 5 finish.
I was riding well through Disneyland (only one dab, not my doing) and down the yellow trail. I forgot we were going up the hill toward Crack Head Bob first, then back down the hill before crossing the field into Five Bridges, but I made the near-180 turn anyway and rode the hills in the middle ring, passing a few riders on the way.
Five bridges went well, I like riding it uphill. I managed to pass a few more riders here, but I did get behind one slower rider I could not pass. Someone, don't know who, was riding my tail the whole way, and continued to ride with me through Crack Head Bob as we picked off several more slower riders. About halfway through CHB, I passed Ed on the trail side with a mechanical (he had actually stopped to help one of the junior racers with a pedal issue - way to be a good sport Ed) so I thought I might still be fairly close to the leaders (presumably Glenn and Vance, at least) at that point. I felt good through CHB and on the exit section between CHB and double rocky.
Then, it happened. I bonked again. The long but not steep hill on Double Rocky and the section between there and the water stop three was tough. I was passed by several riders, and although I did not stop at the water stop and rode Barney's Ramp with no problem, the new trail after Barney's Ramp was a killer. I had to (again, as on the Double Rocky hills) go down to the lower chain ring. The bike clicked like an old roller coaster as the new cables began to stretch and kept the derailleur from changing gears properly. Several more riders passed me before I made the field at the top. And although I easily managed to ride the humpback bridge (now back in the middle ring), I could feel I was not as strong as I needed to be. I drank some more from the Camelback, but it was too late. There was only 3 miles to go. I needed the energy for the Double Rocky hills and I was past them now.
Ed finally caught me just before we entered Sawmill field from the new trail and although we battled a bit back and forth through Sawmill Field (mostly because Ed crashed twice), he finally passed me for good just before entering the woods for the final time. I was fairly good through the woods to the finish, but I was lacking my usual big ring/small ring ability in the end and had to finish in the middle ring in only a mild sprint.
The results, initially, were not good. I had finished 10th out of 22 riders in Beginner Master I men, only one place better than last year. But when I looked at the numbers, the ride was really not so bad. The competition in our class this year is so much better than last. Last year I ran the race at 7:53 per mile and finished in 11th, 16 minutes behind the leader, averaging less than 8 miles per hour on a 16 mile course. This year I ran the race in 7:00 per mile at 8.67 MPH and finished 11 minutes off the winning pace. Granted, the course was faster this year, but the good thing is I finished 5 minutes closer to the top spot than last year.
Postscript: On Monday night I finally cleaned up the gear and went to rinse out the Camelback. There were 80 ounces of Accelerade left (from an initial 100 ounces). Once again, I failed to drink nearly enough. And although the liquid was not so much an issue this year because the temps and humidity were significantly less, the Accelerade is my calorie intake for the race. So I probably only took in 200-300 calories during a 13 mile race, about 1/3 of what I would need to keep up a good pace and not bonk.
I really need to find a way to drink and eat more during a race. Until I do, I will not be able to race my best in the longer races (where I actually should be better).
Big thumbs up to the rest of the Bike Line Team who did well, especially Andrea for her 8th place in Expert Women and JW for his win in Expert Men 40+.
RESULTS:
http://www.prologsoftware.com/proracingtiming/results/r07_15_07Final.htm#BeginnerMaster1Men45-49
TS
Fair Hill 2006 was my worst race last year. I failed to drink enough in the almost 100 degree heat and cramped up about 10 miles in, finishing a disappointing 11th, almost 16 minutes of the leader (on my home course too).
So I vowed this year would be different...
The weekend began with some trail maintenance on Saturday morning followed by race prep on Saturday afternoon. A previous engagement and a last-minute errand meant I was too late to be helpful for the trail maintenance, so I stopped here and grabbed some lunch for the volunteers. I already had "recovery drinks" on ice, so I was set in that regard.
Good luck and good timing had me arriving at Fair Hill with 3 hot pizzas just as the volunteers were coming back. The food and drink was well received, so at least the morning was not a total waste for me. After lunch it was race prep. I waited around for something to do, then finally grabbed a Gator and left with Kate and Kathy C (a new TSer) to try to find something useful to do. We met Bill S (number 1) near the humpback bridge and started marking the fields and some hedgerow sections like Disneyland for the course.
Near the end of the day I chatted with a father and son from northeast Pennsylvania who wanted to know if they would be able to park their camper on site in the morning. I gave them the low-down (which is totally different from the down-low, in case you did not know) and told them it would be fine, to just arrive early and talk with Barney, Mr. Parking for the day. They were friendly folks and the father was the former pilot for The Band in their private jet. He acted a but surprised that I knew who they were. Maybe I look younger than I am ?
Unlike last year, the weather was super and we did not get drenched by nasty thunderstorms during the afternoon. We ended the day at Daddyos for dinner, and did not get home until almost 2200. And I still needed to get some stuff ready for the race the next day.
Fortunately, thanks to MR. Howard at Bike Line, the bike was ready to go with an new drive train, new front derailleur, new cables, and some other miscellaneous stuff that required tweaking.
Sunday Kate and I got up early and left for Fair Hill at 0700. My race started at 0900. I planned on racing, then helping in any way I could. Kate was scheduled to be at the First Time Beginner/Advanced Beginner split to direct traffic until all the First Timers went by, then put up the tape to direct Advanced Beginners and walk down to water stop 3 for the rest of the day.
I rode around a bit with Jim V to warm up, then over to the start line to watch the first-time beginners start. A little more prep, then back to the start line for my race. Mr Race Director Bob saw fit to start all Master men with all junior racers, so we had well over 50 guys lined up at the start line. This forced the Master I men way out into the field, requiring us to pedal through 6-inch grass for several hundred yards to reach the grass-free zone of the doubletrack (what are you doing to us Mr. Bob ?).
Uncharacteristically, I had a horrid start. My bike was not totally in gear and the chain slipped, then my right foot came unclipped and I could not get the left clipped either. There were probably 30 people in front of me before I really got rolling. Still, I managed to grab onto Vance's wheel soon after the start. I was not sure where everyone else was due to the mass start, lots of dust, and me being way back in the pack. I hung with Vance for a mile or so, then lost him in slower pack of juniors just after the beginner/sport split. Oh well, I did not think I could keep up with the leaders all day anyway. My strategy was to ride a quick, but steady pace and hope my knowledge of the trails would gain me enough time for a top 5 finish.
I was riding well through Disneyland (only one dab, not my doing) and down the yellow trail. I forgot we were going up the hill toward Crack Head Bob first, then back down the hill before crossing the field into Five Bridges, but I made the near-180 turn anyway and rode the hills in the middle ring, passing a few riders on the way.
Five bridges went well, I like riding it uphill. I managed to pass a few more riders here, but I did get behind one slower rider I could not pass. Someone, don't know who, was riding my tail the whole way, and continued to ride with me through Crack Head Bob as we picked off several more slower riders. About halfway through CHB, I passed Ed on the trail side with a mechanical (he had actually stopped to help one of the junior racers with a pedal issue - way to be a good sport Ed) so I thought I might still be fairly close to the leaders (presumably Glenn and Vance, at least) at that point. I felt good through CHB and on the exit section between CHB and double rocky.
Then, it happened. I bonked again. The long but not steep hill on Double Rocky and the section between there and the water stop three was tough. I was passed by several riders, and although I did not stop at the water stop and rode Barney's Ramp with no problem, the new trail after Barney's Ramp was a killer. I had to (again, as on the Double Rocky hills) go down to the lower chain ring. The bike clicked like an old roller coaster as the new cables began to stretch and kept the derailleur from changing gears properly. Several more riders passed me before I made the field at the top. And although I easily managed to ride the humpback bridge (now back in the middle ring), I could feel I was not as strong as I needed to be. I drank some more from the Camelback, but it was too late. There was only 3 miles to go. I needed the energy for the Double Rocky hills and I was past them now.
Ed finally caught me just before we entered Sawmill field from the new trail and although we battled a bit back and forth through Sawmill Field (mostly because Ed crashed twice), he finally passed me for good just before entering the woods for the final time. I was fairly good through the woods to the finish, but I was lacking my usual big ring/small ring ability in the end and had to finish in the middle ring in only a mild sprint.
The results, initially, were not good. I had finished 10th out of 22 riders in Beginner Master I men, only one place better than last year. But when I looked at the numbers, the ride was really not so bad. The competition in our class this year is so much better than last. Last year I ran the race at 7:53 per mile and finished in 11th, 16 minutes behind the leader, averaging less than 8 miles per hour on a 16 mile course. This year I ran the race in 7:00 per mile at 8.67 MPH and finished 11 minutes off the winning pace. Granted, the course was faster this year, but the good thing is I finished 5 minutes closer to the top spot than last year.
Postscript: On Monday night I finally cleaned up the gear and went to rinse out the Camelback. There were 80 ounces of Accelerade left (from an initial 100 ounces). Once again, I failed to drink nearly enough. And although the liquid was not so much an issue this year because the temps and humidity were significantly less, the Accelerade is my calorie intake for the race. So I probably only took in 200-300 calories during a 13 mile race, about 1/3 of what I would need to keep up a good pace and not bonk.
I really need to find a way to drink and eat more during a race. Until I do, I will not be able to race my best in the longer races (where I actually should be better).
Big thumbs up to the rest of the Bike Line Team who did well, especially Andrea for her 8th place in Expert Women and JW for his win in Expert Men 40+.
RESULTS:
http://www.prologsoftware.com/proracingtiming/results/r07_15_07Final.htm#BeginnerMaster1Men45-49
TS
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Marysville, Part Deux
The MASS race at Marysville in 2006 was my first mountain bike race ever. I had no idea what to expect or how I would do. I had a major crash on Lap 1, smashing my shoulder into a tree.
On the down side:
I lost about 5 minutes trying not to puke and had a very sore shoulder for a few days and a somewhat sore shoulder for a couple months.
On the Up Side:
I managed to continue and finish the race, coming in 4th in my Class/Age group and missing a podium spot by about 2 minutes. I would have easily had the podium w/o the crash. Also, the injury really did not prevent me from riding, just made some things (like hopping logs) uncomfortable.
The rest of the race was tough. Hopping logs hurt badly - and Marysville is all about the logs. Dozens of them. I walked a lot of logs I could normally ride. At the end of the race, I collapsed next to the Bike Like tent, downed some Alleve, and tied an ice pack onto my shoulder. Many thanks were due to Howard Brown of Bike Line who helped me out, even though I was not racing for Bike Line at the time. Many thanks also to Janice S and Mrs. Troutboy who provided drugs, ice packs, and slings.
So, I was wondering how I would feel about the course this year, and in particular about the spot where I crashed last year. As usual, I was nervous as the start approached. Talking with the other Master I men helped, as usual. They are a fun bunch to race with. We're competetive (both mentally and in race times - there are probably 5-6 guys of the usual bunch who can podium in any race), but very friendly. We let faster racers pass, we encourage each other, we share advice.
The Bike Line Tent
The usual suspects were there, Vance (who has won every race this year), Glenn, (who is getting better each race), Ed (with whom I have competed for a podium spot each race and who stopped to make sure I was OK after I crashed at Granogue - then went on the beat me :-) ), Joel (a new racer who continues to get closer to the top guys each week), and others with whom I have raced over the last 1.5 years.
Our esteemed host and MC for the race.
One of Sport Age Groups Awaiting the Start.
I had a great start, as usual, and was first entering the woods. I held that spot for about 1.0-1.5 miles. Glenn had a major crash behind me on a steep hill, but was soon back up and running. Ed blew by me on a short hill at warp speed on his new carbon fiber bike, never to be seen again. Vance passed me shortly thereafter, as I was starting to lose steam, followed by Glenn at a logover on his way to steamrolling the class by more than 2 minutes, despite the crash (Ed was later caught by Vance for the 2nd spot and settled for 3rd).
Sport Vet II Men Awaiting the Start.
Sport Vet II Men Start.
I started to gain some momentum and felt good again. In the twisty section before the course reentered the start/staging area, Joel came up behind me. I was a bit surprised. I thought he was an endurance rider and I had figured I would be fine for the usual battle with Ed for the 3rd spot. Uh oh, game on.
You see, Joel and I had been talking at the start line and he asked how much tire pressure I was running for this course. When I told him 26 front/28 rear his jaw dropped. Apparently he has been running at 50 PSI for each race. I clued him in and told him to knock it down to (at the most) 40 PSI for this course, and said he could probably go less but that would at least ensure no pinch flats today. I also told him to experiment and lower the pressure a couple pounds at a time, until he finds the PSI that is the minimum for a given course (smooth or rocky) w/o getting a pinch flat (or to go tubeless, like me).
So who is now on my ass but Joel, whom I had beaten by at least 2 minutes in the other races. I'd like to think it was my advice that helped him out. Way to go Joel. Anyway, Joel was obviously faster at that point in the race so I let him by, but stayed close. I knew I was a good sprinter and the end of this race is an all-out sprint in an open field.
I had a decent rhythm and caught Joel on the next major uphill, passing him about half way. A low-hanging branch almost got me (one had already nailed me in the head earlier - this branch also got my friend Gary right in the eye during his sport race, but he still finished in the top 10). I warned Joel about the branch and continued. I was feeling OK, but not good enough to really put some distance between myself and Joel and he passed me again at a narrow bridge that he rode and I walked. I walked this bridge last year and was intimidated by it. I could have easily ridden it this year, but it's right after a blind turn and I had to decide to walk it before I reached it. After my bad decision at Granogue to try to ride something I should not have, then crashing and losing a spot to Ed, I played it safe. Joel blew by me, now with only about 1 mile left.
I assumed I could catch him on the last hill, but a very slow endurance rider let him pass, then remounted right in front of me. She dabbed twice on the hill, and with no room to pass, I had to slow down and dismount both times. I finally just blew by her on a very narrow section. It was now or I would never catch Joel because there was not much hill left. Hope I did not cut her off too badly.
I managed to get on Joel's wheel in the last bit of singletrack in the pine section. He asked if I wanted by, but I declined rather than cause a potential crash between us. I knew the wide-open field was only about 100 yards ahead. As soon as we hit the field, I shifted to the big front ring and small back ring and passed Joel, then sprinted to the finish to beat Joel by 2 seconds. We both had run a decent race. I expected to be 4th, at worst, but when the times were posted Bill P had finished 1 minute ahead of Joel and I. I never even noticed Bill passing us, but he must have. Bill is not the kind of guy who would cut the course.
In the end, it was Glenn running a great race to win, Vance in 2nd, Ed in third, Bill 4th, then me and Joel. It was a good race. I finished one spot lower than last year, but I ran a much better race, riding several obstacles I walked last year.
And the spot where I crashed ? I have no idea how I crashed there last year. There was nothing even remotely nasty about that section of the trail. I remember a lot of bumps, so maybe they did some smoothing in that section, or maybe I'm just a lot better than last year. Anyway, I had a much faster time this year, just not fast enough to podium.
Master I Men 45 to 49 Time
1 Glenn Medice 52:15.9
2 Vance Middleton 54:23.6
3 Ed McDaniel 54:39.3
4 Bill Perry 56:26.3
5 Tim Schafstall 57:32.4
6 Joel Oberman 57:34.4
7 Mike Meyer 1:04:50.3
8 Edwin Adams 1:19:20.8
We'll see how it goes at Fair Hill.
On the down side:
I lost about 5 minutes trying not to puke and had a very sore shoulder for a few days and a somewhat sore shoulder for a couple months.
On the Up Side:
I managed to continue and finish the race, coming in 4th in my Class/Age group and missing a podium spot by about 2 minutes. I would have easily had the podium w/o the crash. Also, the injury really did not prevent me from riding, just made some things (like hopping logs) uncomfortable.
The rest of the race was tough. Hopping logs hurt badly - and Marysville is all about the logs. Dozens of them. I walked a lot of logs I could normally ride. At the end of the race, I collapsed next to the Bike Like tent, downed some Alleve, and tied an ice pack onto my shoulder. Many thanks were due to Howard Brown of Bike Line who helped me out, even though I was not racing for Bike Line at the time. Many thanks also to Janice S and Mrs. Troutboy who provided drugs, ice packs, and slings.
So, I was wondering how I would feel about the course this year, and in particular about the spot where I crashed last year. As usual, I was nervous as the start approached. Talking with the other Master I men helped, as usual. They are a fun bunch to race with. We're competetive (both mentally and in race times - there are probably 5-6 guys of the usual bunch who can podium in any race), but very friendly. We let faster racers pass, we encourage each other, we share advice.
The Bike Line Tent
The usual suspects were there, Vance (who has won every race this year), Glenn, (who is getting better each race), Ed (with whom I have competed for a podium spot each race and who stopped to make sure I was OK after I crashed at Granogue - then went on the beat me :-) ), Joel (a new racer who continues to get closer to the top guys each week), and others with whom I have raced over the last 1.5 years.
Our esteemed host and MC for the race.
One of Sport Age Groups Awaiting the Start.
I had a great start, as usual, and was first entering the woods. I held that spot for about 1.0-1.5 miles. Glenn had a major crash behind me on a steep hill, but was soon back up and running. Ed blew by me on a short hill at warp speed on his new carbon fiber bike, never to be seen again. Vance passed me shortly thereafter, as I was starting to lose steam, followed by Glenn at a logover on his way to steamrolling the class by more than 2 minutes, despite the crash (Ed was later caught by Vance for the 2nd spot and settled for 3rd).
Sport Vet II Men Awaiting the Start.
Sport Vet II Men Start.
I started to gain some momentum and felt good again. In the twisty section before the course reentered the start/staging area, Joel came up behind me. I was a bit surprised. I thought he was an endurance rider and I had figured I would be fine for the usual battle with Ed for the 3rd spot. Uh oh, game on.
You see, Joel and I had been talking at the start line and he asked how much tire pressure I was running for this course. When I told him 26 front/28 rear his jaw dropped. Apparently he has been running at 50 PSI for each race. I clued him in and told him to knock it down to (at the most) 40 PSI for this course, and said he could probably go less but that would at least ensure no pinch flats today. I also told him to experiment and lower the pressure a couple pounds at a time, until he finds the PSI that is the minimum for a given course (smooth or rocky) w/o getting a pinch flat (or to go tubeless, like me).
So who is now on my ass but Joel, whom I had beaten by at least 2 minutes in the other races. I'd like to think it was my advice that helped him out. Way to go Joel. Anyway, Joel was obviously faster at that point in the race so I let him by, but stayed close. I knew I was a good sprinter and the end of this race is an all-out sprint in an open field.
I had a decent rhythm and caught Joel on the next major uphill, passing him about half way. A low-hanging branch almost got me (one had already nailed me in the head earlier - this branch also got my friend Gary right in the eye during his sport race, but he still finished in the top 10). I warned Joel about the branch and continued. I was feeling OK, but not good enough to really put some distance between myself and Joel and he passed me again at a narrow bridge that he rode and I walked. I walked this bridge last year and was intimidated by it. I could have easily ridden it this year, but it's right after a blind turn and I had to decide to walk it before I reached it. After my bad decision at Granogue to try to ride something I should not have, then crashing and losing a spot to Ed, I played it safe. Joel blew by me, now with only about 1 mile left.
I assumed I could catch him on the last hill, but a very slow endurance rider let him pass, then remounted right in front of me. She dabbed twice on the hill, and with no room to pass, I had to slow down and dismount both times. I finally just blew by her on a very narrow section. It was now or I would never catch Joel because there was not much hill left. Hope I did not cut her off too badly.
I managed to get on Joel's wheel in the last bit of singletrack in the pine section. He asked if I wanted by, but I declined rather than cause a potential crash between us. I knew the wide-open field was only about 100 yards ahead. As soon as we hit the field, I shifted to the big front ring and small back ring and passed Joel, then sprinted to the finish to beat Joel by 2 seconds. We both had run a decent race. I expected to be 4th, at worst, but when the times were posted Bill P had finished 1 minute ahead of Joel and I. I never even noticed Bill passing us, but he must have. Bill is not the kind of guy who would cut the course.
In the end, it was Glenn running a great race to win, Vance in 2nd, Ed in third, Bill 4th, then me and Joel. It was a good race. I finished one spot lower than last year, but I ran a much better race, riding several obstacles I walked last year.
And the spot where I crashed ? I have no idea how I crashed there last year. There was nothing even remotely nasty about that section of the trail. I remember a lot of bumps, so maybe they did some smoothing in that section, or maybe I'm just a lot better than last year. Anyway, I had a much faster time this year, just not fast enough to podium.
Master I Men 45 to 49 Time
1 Glenn Medice 52:15.9
2 Vance Middleton 54:23.6
3 Ed McDaniel 54:39.3
4 Bill Perry 56:26.3
5 Tim Schafstall 57:32.4
6 Joel Oberman 57:34.4
7 Mike Meyer 1:04:50.3
8 Edwin Adams 1:19:20.8
We'll see how it goes at Fair Hill.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Back in the Saddle Again
Thanks to Sue E. for several of the included photos.
E-mail me for access to full-size photos.
Cue Gene Autry music....
CHAPTER THE FIRST - THE BACKGROUND
As best as I recall, my last outdoor climbing trip occurred in October 2006. That trip, to Seneca Rocks with Inez (Gnar) D. and Anne S, a frequent Gunks and biking partner, resulted in finally climbing The Old Ladies Route (rated 5.2 but more like 5.7 if you do the high option at the start of pitch 2), in which I led exactly 0 pitches. It was a great climb. To those who say lower-graded climbs aren't shit, I say try this one. And it would be best not to try it on a bad gravity day. You'll survive, but it won't be as fun.
Me at Luncheon Ledge, Base of Old Ladies Route
Why, you might ask, did I lead exactly 0 pitches ? Well, it's probably because my lead head was stuck up my ass, but I'd rather use the excuse that I had climbed almost nothing the entire summer because Mr. Carpel Tunnel Syndrome kept causing me to drop things unexpectedly (in addition to requiring strange sleeping positions and icing my wrist after every climbing day).
Fast forward to January 2007. Surgery time. Cut, snip, sew, wrist is as good as new. No pain, no numbness, no icing after every climb. I can sleep again. Happy days. Woofuckinghoo. By mid-February wrist is totally healed. Of course, it's 33 degrees outside, and raining. It is February in Delaware, after all. The closest gym is 1 hour away from home, almost 2 from work. The downstairs wall was clogged with 3 bikes. Still no climbing.
April 2007. The Delaware Rock Gym officially opens. An honest-to-goodness place to climb 15 minutes from home. I joined immediately. I climbed there about 3 times. The climbing gear sat lonely in the office closet while great Gunks days passes. I was still not climbing. Mountain biking or house chores took up every weekend.
But, finally, Miss Gnar Gnar sends an e-mail saying she was planning a City of Rocks trip and did I want to come. I love the City of Rocks. I had been trying to return since my first visit in 2000. I had a googleplex of frequent flier miles to use and enough comp time to equal the half life of Mendelevium-258 (that's 52 days for those who don't want to look it up). It was time.
I'm back in the Saddle Again....
CHAPTER THE SECOND - THE TRIP OUT
There was supposed to be a large contingent, almost 12 people going. Normal climber attrition meant we had 3 people for the entire week plus 1 visitor for each weekend by the time the trip dates came. (This phenomenon of attrition also applies to cavers and mountain bikers. I suspect it applies to skiers, surfers, geocachers, and numismatists equally).
I did a bike trip over Memorial Day (see previous blog), unpacked, repacked, and boarded the plane for Salt Lake City via Phoenix on 9 June 2007, promptly at 0720. But wait, we're not leaving yet.
Pilot: "Folks, we need to change a seat cushion, there will be a slight delay."
Pilot (1 hour later): "Folks, we almost have the seat cushion changed, we'll be underway shortly."
Great. Lovely start to a trip. No way to make my connection from Phoenix to Salt Lake City now. Wonder if there will be seats on a later flight ? Wonder if there is a later flight ? Sure glad I got up at 0-dark-thirty to make that 0720 flight from Philly.
Phoenix, 1130 local time.
Person behind USAir info counter: "Sorry sir, there are no seats left on the next flight to Salt Lake. I can get you on the 6:07 flight".
Me: "What about stand by".
Person behind USAir info counter: "Sorry sir. The stand by list already has 13 names on it."
Me: "How about a meal voucher".
Person behind USAir info counter: "Sorry sir, we don't have any right now. If you come back in 15 minutes, I can get you one."
Undaunted, and knowing how f**ed up the airline industry is, I went to the USAir info counter in another terminal.
Me: "Any seats available on the 1:17 flight to Salt Lake."
Person behind USAir info counter: "Let me see. Sure, plenty. There you go, you're all set for the 1:17 flight to Salt Lake. Do you need a meal voucher ?"
Oh, boy. Back on track. When dealing with airlines and airline employees, if you don't get an answer you like, just find another counter (or hang up and call back). Eventually, one of the drones will give you want you want/need.
Phoenix tarmac, 1:31 local time.
Pilot: "Sorry about the delay folks. We have a bad sensor in the flight deck (pilot speak for "One of our warning lights is on and we don't know what it's for). We'll need to taxi back to the gate to get it repaired."
The nightmare continues.
Gate 1:45.
Flight attendant: "We'll just be a minute. You can deplane if you like, but if everyone would just stay seated we can get underway sooner after the repair is made."
Right. Like I really think you guys can repair a sensor in a few minutes. Jeesh, it took your union guys over an hour to change a seat cushion in Philly. Needless to say, I Tattooed (that is, I deplaned). Went straight to the USAir info counter. Asked and received another food voucher. I love working the system. Ate my food. Returned to the gate where the plane was parked as the rest of the passengers were deplaning. Plane kaput. Need new plane. Go to Gate A18 for new plane. New plane supposed to take off at about 1700.
Salt Lake City, 8:00 PM local time. Timmy finally arrives. 15 hours after my flight was supposed to leave Philly and about 10 hours after my alleged arrival time in SLC. But I'm finally here. Woofuckinghoo. Still have a 3 hour drive ahead, half on gravel roads, in the dark, with cows everywhere.
Well, to finally sum up this pre-climbing drivel so you can read about the good stuff, we arrived at our campsite at about 1:00 AM on Sunday morning, set up camp, and went to bed. Needless to say, I did not get up early the next day.
CHAPTER THE THIRD - THE CLIMBING
Day 1 (Sunday) - Let the Climbing Begin.
Pat Mc from SLC arrived about 1000 and it was time to go climbing. Despite a lack of sleep, I was ready. Much discussion of where to go got us nowhere. It was a bit chilly. It was the weekend. I suggested Owl Rock. It was never crowded and the west face would be in the sun by the time we got there. There were 3 or 4 good climbs from 5.7 to 5.10 we could do with 2 groups of 2. We could set up some ropes, be done quickly, then head to someplace else once the crowds departed for the weekend.
West face of Owl Rock
I had led all these climbs in my last visit, so that was my excuse not to lead. Sue did a good job leading Snack Break Direct (5.8, mixed) with some gear beta from me and I followed (humm, harder than I remember or am I just that out of shape ?) and we set up a TR on Snack Break (5.9, mixed) while Pat and Gnar did Fledgling (5.7, trad). Then we all did Snack Break and Gnar and Pat did Snack Break Direct. The sun actually came out for a little while, but by the time we were done the clouds had rolled in and it was a bit chilly again.
We took a look at the climbs on the Provo Wall, but it was in the shade, someone was set up on Triple Roofs (sandbag 5.7, trad), and my notes from the 2000 visit said the ** recommended 5.5 (Easy Corner) was not really that good. Lack of warmth prompted us to look elsewhere. We continued walking along the east side of the Breadloaves and that brought us to Intruding Dike (5.7***, trad). Why in the world we decided not to climb in the shade at Provo Wall, but decided TO climb in the shade and wind tunnel at Intruding Dike, I will never know, but we did. I ran around to the car for another layer. Sue geared up to lead Intruding Dike while Pat geared up for Hough's Crack (5.7*, trad). Brian Mc (brianinslc) showed up while we were racking to say "Hey". I had led Intruding Dike last trip, so I seconded Pat up Hough's while Gnar seconded Sue up Intruding Dike. Hough's was actually quite nice, despite the cold and wind. Maybe worth another star, maybe not. We regrouped atop the Bloody Fingers wall and began the walk-off descent. I thought I had remembered walking off this rock in 2000, and thinking it was easy. I was wrong. What I remembered was the easy traverse to the rap anchors on top of Bloody Fingers. The walk off was not as trivial as I thought, but definitely doable and with a little guidance from Brian on the last 6 feet, we were back at the car, out of the wind, and layering up to stay warm.
The gang in the Breadloaves parking lot (l to r), Gnar, Brian, Pat, Sue.
Sunday dinner (l to r) Pat, me, Inez.
Inez and Pat modeling the latest rage in haberdashery.
It was good to see Brian again. Last time we met we barely beat one of the worst thunderstorms I have ever seen while climbing Rocks State Park in Maryland. Brian led while I followed with a huge pack because it was obvious we needed to get back to the cars fast (at Rocks you downclimb to the base of the route, then climb out to the trail). Driving rain, huge wind, large hail. It was as if (pick your favorite deity) was really pissed off.
Well, none of that today, just some wind, clouds, and cool temps. Brain mentioned they had 6 inches of snow in the lot just a few days ago. Some of that snow was still visible in the distant mountains.
We reminisced about bygone days and rec.climbing folks long gone, talked about future climbing plans, drank a "recovery drink" or two, and just hung out. The clouds darkened a bit and some thunderstorms began to roll in (Oh no, not again !). Later that night, the wind blew so hard it actually bend one of my tent poles inward, temporarily turning my spacious 2-person tent into a cramped 1-person pseudoshelter. An outward push on the pole and all was back to normal again. Whew ! But I don't know if I'm ever going to be anywhere near Brianinslc again ;-).
This couple rode in on the tandem rig, wondering where they could camp.
Mr. Brian discourage them from bandit camping, and they headed off to register for a site. Brian had to leave to return to SLC, so we said our goodbyes and headed back to camp. Before he left, Brain suggested doing Sinocranium (5.8, bolts) on Steinfell's Dome. "Only 2 moves of easy 5.8", he said. Sounded like a plan to us. Definitely on the list for midweek.
Day 2 (Monday) - Castle Rocks.
Castle Rocks State Park was not open to climbing when I last visited in 2000. I was really looking forward to sampling some of the climbs there. Sue had said she was going to buy the guidebook, but mistook the new Dave Bingham guide as having Castle climbs in it. So, with no guidebook, we headed to the visitor center in Almo to purchase one. One problem, the visitor center had pulled the books off the shelf because it contained so many errors. They had a photocopied guide available for $9.50, or they would copy pages for $0.50 each if we wanted. We picked a good-looking rock (Fenceline Rock), copied a few pages, then headed off to Castle Rocks.
A flat approach trail let us into the heart of the Castle, where we began our search for Fenceline Rocks. Signposts led the way to the end of the rock, but we veered right instead of left, missing the face that matched our picture. No problem, we could see bolts in the distance on what looked like a fun face climb. We guessed it to be about 5.7 and Pat led it while I wandered around trying to find the the climbs on Fenceline Rock.
Approach to Castle Rocks
Ah, success on both accounts. I found the Fenceline climbs and we all led the unknown bolted face climb that went at about 5.8ish. The first move was the crux, the rest easy 5.5. slab. The sun was out, it was warming, and it was a good day. And I had done my first lead in along time.
I'm back in the saddle again...
Inez on unknown face climb (5.8ish?), Castle Rocks
We moved around to Fenceline Rock (which I now knew we had walked right up to, then veered right) and dropped our gear at the base of Really Sweet (5.7, bolts). There was a party just finishing the climb.
coincidence number one....
Gnar: "Hey, Tim, isn't that Wendell Broussard. Remember, we talked with him in the Gunks a couple of years ago ?".
Me: "Uh, I don't know. I have a hard time remembering my wife, let alone someone I met once 2 years ago."
Gnar: "Yep, I'm sure of it. And I think that's the same person he was climbing with then, also."
Well, turns out it was Wendell and his partner, who was now the current campground host at COR. Small world. We had the first of several wonderful chats during the week with Warren about climbing, Red Rocks, the Uriostes, Scary Larry, current ethics. You name it.
So, they finished Really Sweet and we all took turns leading it and the nice climb next door, Patina Pies (5.8, mixed).
Me belaying Gnar on Really Sweet
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Gnar, on Really Sweet
Gnar belaying Sue on Really Sweet.
Gnar belaying Sue on Really Sweet.
Sue on Really Sweet (5.7)
One of the other group on Patina Pies (5.8).
It was starting to get late and Pat had to return to SLC, so we packed up, headed out, an called it quits for the day. Sue, Gnar, and myself spent a nice couple hours at Durfee Hot Springs (see Andy Cairn's muti-part trip report in rec.climbing for more on Durfee). Durfee is a great place to relax, but as of June 2007 they do not have a "real" shower. Best you can do is wash your hair, cum swimsuit, at an outdoor shower head. I think the idea of wearing clothes in a hot spring is absurd. The idea of showering with clothes, moreso. But this is Conservative, Idaho. They're nice people in Almo, so go with the flow.
Day 3 (Tuesday) - Steinfell's Dome (Sinocranium, 5.8***, bolts).
Theater of Shadows (left, on Jackson's Thumb) and Sinocranium (right, on Steinfell's Dome). Lines approximate.
Braininslc recommended it, it was the longest climb at the City, and it was slab. I love slab. Slab is good. Almost 1,000 feet of slab is more than good. So it was that on Tuesday, Sue, Gnar, and I headed for Steinfell's Dome. Another late start had us at the lot at the crack of 10ish. We should have slept longer. The lot at the Circle Creek Overlook trail was full. We figured out this was also where everyone parked to access the newly developed areas west of Steinfell's Dome, so we had hope there would not be a conga line on Sinocranium. About 45 minutes and several hundred feet of elevation later, we found out this was not the case.
Conga Line on Sinocranium
And there were still 2 parties in front of us. Oh well. The climbing was easy so all groups should move fast. We made the trek up, might as well wait. We had some food and water, enjoyed the view, watched the other parties in front of us, talked with the other folks before they departed, took some photos, and hung out in the shade.
Start of Sinocranium
More of the low-angle start to Sinocranium.
Finally, about 1 hour later, we took off in the midday sun. Sunscreen good. Inez led Pitches 1,3, and 5; Sue led pitches 2 and 4. I stayed in the middle and did pretty much nothing except climb and take a few pictures. The climb was enjoyable. Easy slab stuff with enough bolts to totally outfit some climbing areas. As is obvious in the photo of the start of P1, the beginning of the climb is pretty darn easy (like 3rd class easy). Inez commented that the entire frist pitch would be the approach in Tuolumne and I could not argue with that. The hardest part of the first pitch was perhaps 5.3.
Pitch 2 had a little bit of 5.6ish slab right off the belay, but other than that it was again pretty easy, albeit fun, slab climbing.
Sue starting the lead, pitch 2.
Sue at the crux of pitch 2.
Inez coming up to the P2 belay on Sinocranium.
Our timing was pretty good and because we had 3 persons and all other groups on the climb only had 2, we did not have to wait again once on the climb.
Brian had said the crux was 1 or 2 moves of 5.8+. It was clear from early on that the crux was the 4th pitch, up what looked (from the ground) like a weakness through an overhanging wall. Once we reached the pitch 3 belay, it was clear the crux utilized an aplite dike in a corner, but it was not overhung (as it appeared from the base of the climb), but was actually at about an 85 degree angle and did not look bad at all. Plus, it was clear it was very well bolted.
It was Sue's pitch and she took a little bit of time figuring out the moves, but looked smooth and comfortable during the lead. I went next and soon found out why Sue took some time. It was very awkward to use the good holds in the dike and maintain balance because the footholds out to the right were not that great. I will say nothing more except that I did not make it up the crux in style ;-); however, Inez did and she soon made the 4th pitch belay and took off on the final lead.
Sue approaching the crux, P4 of Sinocranium.
Sue at the crux, P4, Sinocranium.
The guidebook said look to the right for the rap anchors, but that info was way off. Inez finally found the rap anchors about 80 feet higher off to the right side of the summit. An 80 foot scrable up and an interesting downclimb led to the anchors (no fall zone here for sure).
Inez and Sue at the rap station.
Inez and Sue at the rap station.
We soon found ourselves on the ground and back at the base of the climb, about 5 hours after starting. It was now about 1800, so we called it a day and headed back to the car for a recovery beverage, then to the park visitor center to use the pay phone (since there was no cell coverage nearby).
I called home while Sue and Inex chatted up 2 other climbers in the lot who had also used the phone. After I finished my call they introduced themselves. They were from North Carolina and one of the guys was named Emil..
coincidence number 2...
Me: "Emil? Emil Briggs"
Emil: "Uh, yes, How did you know ?"
Well, how many climbers named Emil are there from North Carolina after all. Yep, is was our own Emil from rec.climbing past. We reintroduced everyone using internet names now that Inez realized who it was (she had not made the connection) and had a nice conversation about rec.climbing, mutual friends, places climbed. The usual stuff. We stood in the lot talking until about 8:00 PM, then hoofed it back to camp for dinner, beer, and fire.
Day 4 (Wednesday) - Theatre of Shadows.
We formulated a plan the night before. Since we got behind some parties on Sinocranium and could not do both it and Theater of Shadows in the same day, we would knock of TofS first thing today (wednesday). There was no particular rush since the climb does not get sun until about 10:00 or 10:30 this time of year and we did not want to freeze while doing it. So we had a leisurely breakfast, then drove to the parking area about 9:30. The hike in was so much easier than the day before, probably a combination of acclimitization and bypassing the last steep part that you need to hike to get to Sinocranium. At the base by 10:30, but again there were 2 parties in front of us and as many dogs as people at the base (at least one barking wildly, dog that is). One of the parties was Emil and his bud from North Carolina. We knew they would be fast. The other party was a couple. The woman was going to lead the entire climb and it was only her 3rd or 4th lead. Hummm. We opted to wait anyway and enjoyed the view. The owners of Barky the Dog came down very soon and took the noisy pooch away (yah) and we settled in for the wait. The new leader, to her credit, was actually quite efficient and the cue dwindled quickly.
It was my turn to lead today and Sue would take over as middle-(wo)man and rope tender. I took pitch 1, which gave me pitches 1 and 3 and Inez pitches 2 and 4. The crux (such as it was) occurred about 50 feet up at the 8th or 9th bolt (I kid you not - did I mention this thing was a boltfest, take 20 draws with you to clip them all). I would estimate the crux moves at about 5.5 and nowhere on the climb did I encounter any move near the 5.7 rating the climb is given. Nevertheless, it's a fun romp up a great piece of rock, with nice views of the City of Rocks. Kudos to Kevin Pogue for putting the time and effort into bolting this and Sinocranium.
Tim and Inez at the P1 belay.
One double-rope rap off the back and a descent down the gully that separates Stenfell's Dome from Jackson's Thumb and we were back at the base of TofS by 3:00PM and back at the car enjoying recovery drinks by 4:00.
Tim and Inez at the rap station.
Still plenty of daylight left (it does not get dark until close to 10:00 PM out here, but after 4 days of climbing in the sun, the consensus was to call it a day, soak in Durfee Hot Springs, and come out fresh tomorrow).
Day 5 (Thursday) - Raindance and Site 18.
I think Sue was getting tired of all the slab climbing and really wanted some crack. But she had done all the stuff on Elephant Rock and a quick guidebook perusal did not reveal anything of interest on the sunny (in the morning) east faces, so Sue graciously agreed to do another slab, then wait for sun on the west face of the Lower Breadloaves to do some of the great cracks there. So it was we made the trek down into the valley to Flaming Rock. I had Raindance on my list from my first visit to the City in 2000. Kate and I had done pitch1, but an impending storm and a slow party forced us to rap before finishing the climb. No chance of that today; it was sunny and bright and we were the only party at the base of the climb when we arrived late morning.
Since I had already led P1, Sue took that and I would get to lead the crux P2 so I could count the climb as done in my book. I remembered P1 as pretty easy, nothing odd, and sufficiently bolted (this is another Pogue route). Sue negotiated the pitch, brough up Inez, who's turn it was to be middle-(wo)man for the day, and I
followed last.
Inez, negotiating P1 of Raindance (5.7, bolts).
A bit harder than I remembered with some thinking involved to find the easiest moves, but a fun pitch. Some reshuffling at the mini belay ledge and I was off for pitch 2. The crux is right off the belay (hate when that happens), so I clipped a draw on one of the anchor bolts before heading left to the crux. Always good to avoid those factor 2 falls onto your belayer, dontcha know. The crux looked harder than it was, but I would say that, unlike TofS, the move did deserve the 5.7 rating. A couple of footholds, a few more feet up the rock, and it was a romp to the top. Another fun slab route. I was having a blast now. Back into the leading rhythm and mindset (even if it was only 5.7 slab and about 5 grades below the slab I was climbing before the carpal tunnel set in a couple seasons ago). The techniques are the same and I could finally feel myself "stepping ang going" as I like to call it. Just seeing a foothold, knowing it would be good, stepping up, and moving on. Did not need to be the best edge or scoop on the rock, because the angle was way less than vertical. Just step and go, step and go, step and go. What fun. I brought up Inez and Sue and we enjoyed the view for a bit before rapping back to the base. There is great potential for more routes on this rock if someone had the initiative and time.
Inez on the rap off of Flaming Rock.
It was looking like lunch to us, so we hiked back up the hill to the car for some tasty sammiches while we decided where to go next. Despite her predilection to cracks, Sue also wanted to check out Area 18. She had marked it in the book the first day we were here. Despite the sunny, hot day and the west-facing aspect of Area 18, we decided to give it a look.
On the way in, we met Warren and Dottie, heading out after (sensibly) spending the morning at Area 18 and some of the other nearby crags. Armed with Dottie's approach beta, we had no trouble finding the crag. Unfortunately, the were about 8 people in 2 different parties already there, with ropes strung on almost every climb. Inez was not willing to wait it out, so she took off for a nice hike back through the City and up to the campsite to wait for Nancy, who was due in today. Sue and I figured since it was a sport area, the incumbents would be done shortly, so we waited in the shade.
Area 18 is a nice spot with about 6 good climbs and some nice shade to boot. We hung and watched, chatting a bit with the group there, ascertaining that Hans (the most experienced of the group) had been climbing with robdotcalm of rec.climbing and rockclimbing.com. Coincidence number 3.
We finally got our turn and Sue and I each led Skin the Cat (a fun 5.7) and Looker (a testy 5.8 face climb with really fun moves). I climbed Looker a second time, just because, and we headed back to the car after checking out Bomber (5.9) and Grand Traverse (5.8, trad) that both look good. Next time out we'll bring the trad gear and do them all. I was very happy with my onsight of Looker. It was a hard 5.8 with some spice, definitely not a gimme, like everything else I had led thus far.
That pretty much finished this day, what with the hike in and the long wait to climb. In retrospect, we probably should have moved on when we saw the large group there. Oh well, you know what they say about hindsight.
We returned to camp and waited for Nancy to arrive. The sun began to set, so I wandered down from our campsite to the Breadloves parking lot to take some photos and soak up the warmth of the last sunlight. Before I left, I asked Sue for a description of Nancy and her vehicle. Just as I was walking down the last hill to the lot, I saw a person and car matching Sue's description. I waved wildly as the driver turned around to head back down the road, and just got Nancy's attention at the last minute. Most excellent timing. It seems Nancy had been driving and (as had we) not realized the camp sites had recently been renumbered. And with no cell service in the park, it was like the old pre-cell phone days. We exchanged introductions, then carried Nancy's gear up to the camp site where we settled in for a really nice pasta and pesto dinner, followed by the nightly foamy beverages and warm fire.
Some of the best times climbing are those sitting around the campfire after a day of climbing, just sipping on a cold beer and talking with old (and new) friends. It's what makes camping and climbing (or biking) such a great combination. Especially in the desert where it seldom rains on the camping parade.
Day 6 (Friday) - Cruel Shoes and Tahitian Wall (aka, more slab)
Well, if a steady diet of slab were not enough, the concensus for the final day was, you guessed it, more slabby stuff. Inez and Sue had been rained off Cruel Shoes a couple years ago, so they were definitely into doing it again. I think Nancy just wanted to climb, so did not care. Me ? My mantra is "slab good". This is probably because my upper body strength is similar to that of my grandmother (may she rest in peace). And I mean in her current state of deadness, not when she was still roaming the planet. So, with 2 groups of 2 there was no need for a middle-(wo)man today. Just me and three lady ropeguns. Of course, the route was in the sun. Why not, we had climbed every other route this week in the sun, why stop now ? Even though it was the hottest day of the week so far. Hey, these California chickas are used to the heat, right ? And me, a good ol' southern boy would freeze in the shade anyway. And what with the lack of humidity, I had hardly sweated all week, even when the temps were in the mid-80s. It was dry heat, ya know ;-) Of course, an oven is a dry heat too. Well, anyway, we reached the base of Stripe Rock after a nice hike in and pulled out the gear. And I mean gear. In addition to the cornucopia of styles, lengths, and colors of quickdraws, we had trad gear. Inez and Sue remembered that a piece or two would be good at the start of the climb. The problem was they could not remember which piece or two would work. So, of course, I brought every size cam up to about a number 2.5 Friend, or about 7 cams in all. Nothing like some extra weight. Well, at least the walk in was flat and it was more akin to an alpine rack than a Gunks-we're-walking-on-the-carriage-road-and-don't-know-what-we'll-climb-so-let's-bring-everything-rack.
The chicka ropeguns at the base of Cruel Shoes.
Inez and Nancy roped up while while Sue and I sat back and waited. Nancy and Sue took pitches 1 and 3 while Inez and myself drew pitch 2.
Nancy at the crux, P1 Cruel Shoes.
Nancy just past the crux, P1 Cruel Shoes (5.7, bolts + 1 piece gear).
Cruel Shoes turned out to be my favoite climb of the week. It was deserving of the rating (5.7), unlike TofS, with numeorus moves in the 5.6-5.7 range. And, since Kevin Pogue put up this route, is was also well bolted, but not nearly so much so as TofS and Sinocranium, so there was at least some sense that you really were on lead. In essence, just a super climb. Fun and safe for a confident 5.7 slabber. I thorougly enjoyed my lead and can't wait to get back and lead the other 2 pitches next time.
Sue and I arrived at the final belay. Inez and Nancy had done some scouting for the rap achors alleged to be off the back (west) side of Stripe Rock that would allow us to get back to the ground with 1 double-rope rappel. I understood she had not seen the anchors, so I took off on a fact-finding mission, armed with the beta from the guide book (the previous edition, that is) that said to walk left from the top of the climb toward the obvious dike, then down a ramp to the rap anchors. Note that the new edition of the guidebook does not contain this info, only a cryptic "160" with a rap arrow at the top of the climb. It does not say the rap is off the back (west) side of the rock, nor how to find the anchors. And the diagram makes it appear that the rap is 160 feet to the next anchor on the east side of the rock. It may well be, but that would require 2 double-rope raps to get off.
Anyway, after first heading too far to my left (which also looked like a ramp) I returned to the top of the dike at the summit of Stripe Rock. Since I was now facing the other direction, I could clearly see the correct ramp and it was a quick romp down to the rap anchors. Note that, although the downclimb is pretty easy, there is death fall potential to reach these anchors and some folks might want a belay (which is easy to give by lying in a scoop at the summit).
An easy rap brought us back to the ground and a short walk back around to the east face of Stripe rock brought us to our gear. Cruel Shoes was now completely in the shade (perhaps we should have waited and done something else first?) Naw, the sun was fine as afar as I was concerned. It's a dry heat ;-)
Sue and I had to drive back to Salt Lake City, but there was still time for some more climbing, so Nancy and I decided to check out the Tahitian Wall (which was, of course, now in full afternoon sun). A 10 minute walk brought us to the left side (facing the rock) and Bikini Candy, a 2-star bolted 5.8. Looked good to us, so Nancy and I decided to each lead it. Inez and Sue followed on TR to help with the time crunch.
Nancy and I at the Base of Bikini Candy (5.8, bolts).
Nancy led it easily and left the draws for me. The crux was a slabby, layback start, but there were several nice 5.7ish moves before you could finally clip the anchors. Another fun, safe climb and a good one to end the week. Glad I led this one.
Me, leading Bikini Candy (5.8).
Me, leading Bikini Candy.
Stretching it out on Bikini Candy.
Patina good !
Almost at the anchors.
The climbing was done for this trip; we only had the walk out and drive back to SLC. Inez and Nancy were staying one more day, but I was trying to get back for a mountain bike race on Sunday (that I never made, just too beat after the long flight home).
Cue scary music for foreshadowing...
Nancy: "Hey Tim, you seen any rattlesnakes yet this trip."
Me: said in a haughty manner "No, but we still have the walk out."
Cue the familar Jaws shark attack music...
Nancy and I finally got a chance to talk a bit and were enjoying the walk back to the car. We were walking a bit faster than the Inez-Sue tandem and were a few hundred feet ahead of them when we both heard the unmistakable sound of a member of the Crotalus/Sistrurus genera to our left. Being the well-educated, common-sense-bearing humanoids we are, we both immediately jumped to the right. To our left was a lovely 3-foot long, wide-bodied specimen of some rattlesnake species. We waited for Inez and Sue to catch up so we could warn them to stay left and then watched as Mr. Snake glided into the desert, probably a fitting sybol to the end of our little trip.
Some celebratory recovery drinks (not too many for the driver, of course) and Sue and I were off across the Idaho desert, dodging cattle, back into the land of the Book of Mormon and Pat's abode (home of Roscoe the 170-pound wonder dog), where Pat had cordially invited us to spend the night so we would have an easy time making our flight back.
I just cannot express how great it was to be on a climbing/camping trip away from the "home region" once again. The climbing was super. So what if we climbed nothing harder than 5.10a the entire week. That can wait until later in the season. We had fun. Lots of it. I met new friends, climbed some really fun multi-pitch slab routes, something the Gunks just does not have, and best of all,
I'm back in the saddle again....
See y'all out there on the rocks.
Respectfully,
Boy of Trout.
E-mail me for access to full-size photos.
Cue Gene Autry music....
CHAPTER THE FIRST - THE BACKGROUND
As best as I recall, my last outdoor climbing trip occurred in October 2006. That trip, to Seneca Rocks with Inez (Gnar) D. and Anne S, a frequent Gunks and biking partner, resulted in finally climbing The Old Ladies Route (rated 5.2 but more like 5.7 if you do the high option at the start of pitch 2), in which I led exactly 0 pitches. It was a great climb. To those who say lower-graded climbs aren't shit, I say try this one. And it would be best not to try it on a bad gravity day. You'll survive, but it won't be as fun.
Me at Luncheon Ledge, Base of Old Ladies Route
Why, you might ask, did I lead exactly 0 pitches ? Well, it's probably because my lead head was stuck up my ass, but I'd rather use the excuse that I had climbed almost nothing the entire summer because Mr. Carpel Tunnel Syndrome kept causing me to drop things unexpectedly (in addition to requiring strange sleeping positions and icing my wrist after every climbing day).
Fast forward to January 2007. Surgery time. Cut, snip, sew, wrist is as good as new. No pain, no numbness, no icing after every climb. I can sleep again. Happy days. Woofuckinghoo. By mid-February wrist is totally healed. Of course, it's 33 degrees outside, and raining. It is February in Delaware, after all. The closest gym is 1 hour away from home, almost 2 from work. The downstairs wall was clogged with 3 bikes. Still no climbing.
April 2007. The Delaware Rock Gym officially opens. An honest-to-goodness place to climb 15 minutes from home. I joined immediately. I climbed there about 3 times. The climbing gear sat lonely in the office closet while great Gunks days passes. I was still not climbing. Mountain biking or house chores took up every weekend.
But, finally, Miss Gnar Gnar sends an e-mail saying she was planning a City of Rocks trip and did I want to come. I love the City of Rocks. I had been trying to return since my first visit in 2000. I had a googleplex of frequent flier miles to use and enough comp time to equal the half life of Mendelevium-258 (that's 52 days for those who don't want to look it up). It was time.
I'm back in the Saddle Again....
CHAPTER THE SECOND - THE TRIP OUT
There was supposed to be a large contingent, almost 12 people going. Normal climber attrition meant we had 3 people for the entire week plus 1 visitor for each weekend by the time the trip dates came. (This phenomenon of attrition also applies to cavers and mountain bikers. I suspect it applies to skiers, surfers, geocachers, and numismatists equally).
I did a bike trip over Memorial Day (see previous blog), unpacked, repacked, and boarded the plane for Salt Lake City via Phoenix on 9 June 2007, promptly at 0720. But wait, we're not leaving yet.
Pilot: "Folks, we need to change a seat cushion, there will be a slight delay."
Pilot (1 hour later): "Folks, we almost have the seat cushion changed, we'll be underway shortly."
Great. Lovely start to a trip. No way to make my connection from Phoenix to Salt Lake City now. Wonder if there will be seats on a later flight ? Wonder if there is a later flight ? Sure glad I got up at 0-dark-thirty to make that 0720 flight from Philly.
Phoenix, 1130 local time.
Person behind USAir info counter: "Sorry sir, there are no seats left on the next flight to Salt Lake. I can get you on the 6:07 flight".
Me: "What about stand by".
Person behind USAir info counter: "Sorry sir. The stand by list already has 13 names on it."
Me: "How about a meal voucher".
Person behind USAir info counter: "Sorry sir, we don't have any right now. If you come back in 15 minutes, I can get you one."
Undaunted, and knowing how f**ed up the airline industry is, I went to the USAir info counter in another terminal.
Me: "Any seats available on the 1:17 flight to Salt Lake."
Person behind USAir info counter: "Let me see. Sure, plenty. There you go, you're all set for the 1:17 flight to Salt Lake. Do you need a meal voucher ?"
Oh, boy. Back on track. When dealing with airlines and airline employees, if you don't get an answer you like, just find another counter (or hang up and call back). Eventually, one of the drones will give you want you want/need.
Phoenix tarmac, 1:31 local time.
Pilot: "Sorry about the delay folks. We have a bad sensor in the flight deck (pilot speak for "One of our warning lights is on and we don't know what it's for). We'll need to taxi back to the gate to get it repaired."
The nightmare continues.
Gate 1:45.
Flight attendant: "We'll just be a minute. You can deplane if you like, but if everyone would just stay seated we can get underway sooner after the repair is made."
Right. Like I really think you guys can repair a sensor in a few minutes. Jeesh, it took your union guys over an hour to change a seat cushion in Philly. Needless to say, I Tattooed (that is, I deplaned). Went straight to the USAir info counter. Asked and received another food voucher. I love working the system. Ate my food. Returned to the gate where the plane was parked as the rest of the passengers were deplaning. Plane kaput. Need new plane. Go to Gate A18 for new plane. New plane supposed to take off at about 1700.
Salt Lake City, 8:00 PM local time. Timmy finally arrives. 15 hours after my flight was supposed to leave Philly and about 10 hours after my alleged arrival time in SLC. But I'm finally here. Woofuckinghoo. Still have a 3 hour drive ahead, half on gravel roads, in the dark, with cows everywhere.
Well, to finally sum up this pre-climbing drivel so you can read about the good stuff, we arrived at our campsite at about 1:00 AM on Sunday morning, set up camp, and went to bed. Needless to say, I did not get up early the next day.
CHAPTER THE THIRD - THE CLIMBING
Day 1 (Sunday) - Let the Climbing Begin.
Pat Mc from SLC arrived about 1000 and it was time to go climbing. Despite a lack of sleep, I was ready. Much discussion of where to go got us nowhere. It was a bit chilly. It was the weekend. I suggested Owl Rock. It was never crowded and the west face would be in the sun by the time we got there. There were 3 or 4 good climbs from 5.7 to 5.10 we could do with 2 groups of 2. We could set up some ropes, be done quickly, then head to someplace else once the crowds departed for the weekend.
West face of Owl Rock
I had led all these climbs in my last visit, so that was my excuse not to lead. Sue did a good job leading Snack Break Direct (5.8, mixed) with some gear beta from me and I followed (humm, harder than I remember or am I just that out of shape ?) and we set up a TR on Snack Break (5.9, mixed) while Pat and Gnar did Fledgling (5.7, trad). Then we all did Snack Break and Gnar and Pat did Snack Break Direct. The sun actually came out for a little while, but by the time we were done the clouds had rolled in and it was a bit chilly again.
We took a look at the climbs on the Provo Wall, but it was in the shade, someone was set up on Triple Roofs (sandbag 5.7, trad), and my notes from the 2000 visit said the ** recommended 5.5 (Easy Corner) was not really that good. Lack of warmth prompted us to look elsewhere. We continued walking along the east side of the Breadloaves and that brought us to Intruding Dike (5.7***, trad). Why in the world we decided not to climb in the shade at Provo Wall, but decided TO climb in the shade and wind tunnel at Intruding Dike, I will never know, but we did. I ran around to the car for another layer. Sue geared up to lead Intruding Dike while Pat geared up for Hough's Crack (5.7*, trad). Brian Mc (brianinslc) showed up while we were racking to say "Hey". I had led Intruding Dike last trip, so I seconded Pat up Hough's while Gnar seconded Sue up Intruding Dike. Hough's was actually quite nice, despite the cold and wind. Maybe worth another star, maybe not. We regrouped atop the Bloody Fingers wall and began the walk-off descent. I thought I had remembered walking off this rock in 2000, and thinking it was easy. I was wrong. What I remembered was the easy traverse to the rap anchors on top of Bloody Fingers. The walk off was not as trivial as I thought, but definitely doable and with a little guidance from Brian on the last 6 feet, we were back at the car, out of the wind, and layering up to stay warm.
The gang in the Breadloaves parking lot (l to r), Gnar, Brian, Pat, Sue.
Sunday dinner (l to r) Pat, me, Inez.
Inez and Pat modeling the latest rage in haberdashery.
It was good to see Brian again. Last time we met we barely beat one of the worst thunderstorms I have ever seen while climbing Rocks State Park in Maryland. Brian led while I followed with a huge pack because it was obvious we needed to get back to the cars fast (at Rocks you downclimb to the base of the route, then climb out to the trail). Driving rain, huge wind, large hail. It was as if (pick your favorite deity) was really pissed off.
Well, none of that today, just some wind, clouds, and cool temps. Brain mentioned they had 6 inches of snow in the lot just a few days ago. Some of that snow was still visible in the distant mountains.
We reminisced about bygone days and rec.climbing folks long gone, talked about future climbing plans, drank a "recovery drink" or two, and just hung out. The clouds darkened a bit and some thunderstorms began to roll in (Oh no, not again !). Later that night, the wind blew so hard it actually bend one of my tent poles inward, temporarily turning my spacious 2-person tent into a cramped 1-person pseudoshelter. An outward push on the pole and all was back to normal again. Whew ! But I don't know if I'm ever going to be anywhere near Brianinslc again ;-).
This couple rode in on the tandem rig, wondering where they could camp.
Mr. Brian discourage them from bandit camping, and they headed off to register for a site. Brian had to leave to return to SLC, so we said our goodbyes and headed back to camp. Before he left, Brain suggested doing Sinocranium (5.8, bolts) on Steinfell's Dome. "Only 2 moves of easy 5.8", he said. Sounded like a plan to us. Definitely on the list for midweek.
Day 2 (Monday) - Castle Rocks.
Castle Rocks State Park was not open to climbing when I last visited in 2000. I was really looking forward to sampling some of the climbs there. Sue had said she was going to buy the guidebook, but mistook the new Dave Bingham guide as having Castle climbs in it. So, with no guidebook, we headed to the visitor center in Almo to purchase one. One problem, the visitor center had pulled the books off the shelf because it contained so many errors. They had a photocopied guide available for $9.50, or they would copy pages for $0.50 each if we wanted. We picked a good-looking rock (Fenceline Rock), copied a few pages, then headed off to Castle Rocks.
A flat approach trail let us into the heart of the Castle, where we began our search for Fenceline Rocks. Signposts led the way to the end of the rock, but we veered right instead of left, missing the face that matched our picture. No problem, we could see bolts in the distance on what looked like a fun face climb. We guessed it to be about 5.7 and Pat led it while I wandered around trying to find the the climbs on Fenceline Rock.
Approach to Castle Rocks
Ah, success on both accounts. I found the Fenceline climbs and we all led the unknown bolted face climb that went at about 5.8ish. The first move was the crux, the rest easy 5.5. slab. The sun was out, it was warming, and it was a good day. And I had done my first lead in along time.
I'm back in the saddle again...
Inez on unknown face climb (5.8ish?), Castle Rocks
We moved around to Fenceline Rock (which I now knew we had walked right up to, then veered right) and dropped our gear at the base of Really Sweet (5.7, bolts). There was a party just finishing the climb.
coincidence number one....
Gnar: "Hey, Tim, isn't that Wendell Broussard. Remember, we talked with him in the Gunks a couple of years ago ?".
Me: "Uh, I don't know. I have a hard time remembering my wife, let alone someone I met once 2 years ago."
Gnar: "Yep, I'm sure of it. And I think that's the same person he was climbing with then, also."
Well, turns out it was Wendell and his partner, who was now the current campground host at COR. Small world. We had the first of several wonderful chats during the week with Warren about climbing, Red Rocks, the Uriostes, Scary Larry, current ethics. You name it.
So, they finished Really Sweet and we all took turns leading it and the nice climb next door, Patina Pies (5.8, mixed).
Me belaying Gnar on Really Sweet
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Gnar, on Really Sweet
Gnar belaying Sue on Really Sweet.
Gnar belaying Sue on Really Sweet.
Sue on Really Sweet (5.7)
One of the other group on Patina Pies (5.8).
It was starting to get late and Pat had to return to SLC, so we packed up, headed out, an called it quits for the day. Sue, Gnar, and myself spent a nice couple hours at Durfee Hot Springs (see Andy Cairn's muti-part trip report in rec.climbing for more on Durfee). Durfee is a great place to relax, but as of June 2007 they do not have a "real" shower. Best you can do is wash your hair, cum swimsuit, at an outdoor shower head. I think the idea of wearing clothes in a hot spring is absurd. The idea of showering with clothes, moreso. But this is Conservative, Idaho. They're nice people in Almo, so go with the flow.
Day 3 (Tuesday) - Steinfell's Dome (Sinocranium, 5.8***, bolts).
Theater of Shadows (left, on Jackson's Thumb) and Sinocranium (right, on Steinfell's Dome). Lines approximate.
Braininslc recommended it, it was the longest climb at the City, and it was slab. I love slab. Slab is good. Almost 1,000 feet of slab is more than good. So it was that on Tuesday, Sue, Gnar, and I headed for Steinfell's Dome. Another late start had us at the lot at the crack of 10ish. We should have slept longer. The lot at the Circle Creek Overlook trail was full. We figured out this was also where everyone parked to access the newly developed areas west of Steinfell's Dome, so we had hope there would not be a conga line on Sinocranium. About 45 minutes and several hundred feet of elevation later, we found out this was not the case.
Conga Line on Sinocranium
And there were still 2 parties in front of us. Oh well. The climbing was easy so all groups should move fast. We made the trek up, might as well wait. We had some food and water, enjoyed the view, watched the other parties in front of us, talked with the other folks before they departed, took some photos, and hung out in the shade.
Start of Sinocranium
More of the low-angle start to Sinocranium.
Finally, about 1 hour later, we took off in the midday sun. Sunscreen good. Inez led Pitches 1,3, and 5; Sue led pitches 2 and 4. I stayed in the middle and did pretty much nothing except climb and take a few pictures. The climb was enjoyable. Easy slab stuff with enough bolts to totally outfit some climbing areas. As is obvious in the photo of the start of P1, the beginning of the climb is pretty darn easy (like 3rd class easy). Inez commented that the entire frist pitch would be the approach in Tuolumne and I could not argue with that. The hardest part of the first pitch was perhaps 5.3.
Pitch 2 had a little bit of 5.6ish slab right off the belay, but other than that it was again pretty easy, albeit fun, slab climbing.
Sue starting the lead, pitch 2.
Sue at the crux of pitch 2.
Inez coming up to the P2 belay on Sinocranium.
Our timing was pretty good and because we had 3 persons and all other groups on the climb only had 2, we did not have to wait again once on the climb.
Brian had said the crux was 1 or 2 moves of 5.8+. It was clear from early on that the crux was the 4th pitch, up what looked (from the ground) like a weakness through an overhanging wall. Once we reached the pitch 3 belay, it was clear the crux utilized an aplite dike in a corner, but it was not overhung (as it appeared from the base of the climb), but was actually at about an 85 degree angle and did not look bad at all. Plus, it was clear it was very well bolted.
It was Sue's pitch and she took a little bit of time figuring out the moves, but looked smooth and comfortable during the lead. I went next and soon found out why Sue took some time. It was very awkward to use the good holds in the dike and maintain balance because the footholds out to the right were not that great. I will say nothing more except that I did not make it up the crux in style ;-); however, Inez did and she soon made the 4th pitch belay and took off on the final lead.
Sue approaching the crux, P4 of Sinocranium.
Sue at the crux, P4, Sinocranium.
The guidebook said look to the right for the rap anchors, but that info was way off. Inez finally found the rap anchors about 80 feet higher off to the right side of the summit. An 80 foot scrable up and an interesting downclimb led to the anchors (no fall zone here for sure).
Inez and Sue at the rap station.
Inez and Sue at the rap station.
We soon found ourselves on the ground and back at the base of the climb, about 5 hours after starting. It was now about 1800, so we called it a day and headed back to the car for a recovery beverage, then to the park visitor center to use the pay phone (since there was no cell coverage nearby).
I called home while Sue and Inex chatted up 2 other climbers in the lot who had also used the phone. After I finished my call they introduced themselves. They were from North Carolina and one of the guys was named Emil..
coincidence number 2...
Me: "Emil? Emil Briggs"
Emil: "Uh, yes, How did you know ?"
Well, how many climbers named Emil are there from North Carolina after all. Yep, is was our own Emil from rec.climbing past. We reintroduced everyone using internet names now that Inez realized who it was (she had not made the connection) and had a nice conversation about rec.climbing, mutual friends, places climbed. The usual stuff. We stood in the lot talking until about 8:00 PM, then hoofed it back to camp for dinner, beer, and fire.
Day 4 (Wednesday) - Theatre of Shadows.
We formulated a plan the night before. Since we got behind some parties on Sinocranium and could not do both it and Theater of Shadows in the same day, we would knock of TofS first thing today (wednesday). There was no particular rush since the climb does not get sun until about 10:00 or 10:30 this time of year and we did not want to freeze while doing it. So we had a leisurely breakfast, then drove to the parking area about 9:30. The hike in was so much easier than the day before, probably a combination of acclimitization and bypassing the last steep part that you need to hike to get to Sinocranium. At the base by 10:30, but again there were 2 parties in front of us and as many dogs as people at the base (at least one barking wildly, dog that is). One of the parties was Emil and his bud from North Carolina. We knew they would be fast. The other party was a couple. The woman was going to lead the entire climb and it was only her 3rd or 4th lead. Hummm. We opted to wait anyway and enjoyed the view. The owners of Barky the Dog came down very soon and took the noisy pooch away (yah) and we settled in for the wait. The new leader, to her credit, was actually quite efficient and the cue dwindled quickly.
It was my turn to lead today and Sue would take over as middle-(wo)man and rope tender. I took pitch 1, which gave me pitches 1 and 3 and Inez pitches 2 and 4. The crux (such as it was) occurred about 50 feet up at the 8th or 9th bolt (I kid you not - did I mention this thing was a boltfest, take 20 draws with you to clip them all). I would estimate the crux moves at about 5.5 and nowhere on the climb did I encounter any move near the 5.7 rating the climb is given. Nevertheless, it's a fun romp up a great piece of rock, with nice views of the City of Rocks. Kudos to Kevin Pogue for putting the time and effort into bolting this and Sinocranium.
Tim and Inez at the P1 belay.
One double-rope rap off the back and a descent down the gully that separates Stenfell's Dome from Jackson's Thumb and we were back at the base of TofS by 3:00PM and back at the car enjoying recovery drinks by 4:00.
Tim and Inez at the rap station.
Still plenty of daylight left (it does not get dark until close to 10:00 PM out here, but after 4 days of climbing in the sun, the consensus was to call it a day, soak in Durfee Hot Springs, and come out fresh tomorrow).
Day 5 (Thursday) - Raindance and Site 18.
I think Sue was getting tired of all the slab climbing and really wanted some crack. But she had done all the stuff on Elephant Rock and a quick guidebook perusal did not reveal anything of interest on the sunny (in the morning) east faces, so Sue graciously agreed to do another slab, then wait for sun on the west face of the Lower Breadloaves to do some of the great cracks there. So it was we made the trek down into the valley to Flaming Rock. I had Raindance on my list from my first visit to the City in 2000. Kate and I had done pitch1, but an impending storm and a slow party forced us to rap before finishing the climb. No chance of that today; it was sunny and bright and we were the only party at the base of the climb when we arrived late morning.
Since I had already led P1, Sue took that and I would get to lead the crux P2 so I could count the climb as done in my book. I remembered P1 as pretty easy, nothing odd, and sufficiently bolted (this is another Pogue route). Sue negotiated the pitch, brough up Inez, who's turn it was to be middle-(wo)man for the day, and I
followed last.
Inez, negotiating P1 of Raindance (5.7, bolts).
A bit harder than I remembered with some thinking involved to find the easiest moves, but a fun pitch. Some reshuffling at the mini belay ledge and I was off for pitch 2. The crux is right off the belay (hate when that happens), so I clipped a draw on one of the anchor bolts before heading left to the crux. Always good to avoid those factor 2 falls onto your belayer, dontcha know. The crux looked harder than it was, but I would say that, unlike TofS, the move did deserve the 5.7 rating. A couple of footholds, a few more feet up the rock, and it was a romp to the top. Another fun slab route. I was having a blast now. Back into the leading rhythm and mindset (even if it was only 5.7 slab and about 5 grades below the slab I was climbing before the carpal tunnel set in a couple seasons ago). The techniques are the same and I could finally feel myself "stepping ang going" as I like to call it. Just seeing a foothold, knowing it would be good, stepping up, and moving on. Did not need to be the best edge or scoop on the rock, because the angle was way less than vertical. Just step and go, step and go, step and go. What fun. I brought up Inez and Sue and we enjoyed the view for a bit before rapping back to the base. There is great potential for more routes on this rock if someone had the initiative and time.
Inez on the rap off of Flaming Rock.
It was looking like lunch to us, so we hiked back up the hill to the car for some tasty sammiches while we decided where to go next. Despite her predilection to cracks, Sue also wanted to check out Area 18. She had marked it in the book the first day we were here. Despite the sunny, hot day and the west-facing aspect of Area 18, we decided to give it a look.
On the way in, we met Warren and Dottie, heading out after (sensibly) spending the morning at Area 18 and some of the other nearby crags. Armed with Dottie's approach beta, we had no trouble finding the crag. Unfortunately, the were about 8 people in 2 different parties already there, with ropes strung on almost every climb. Inez was not willing to wait it out, so she took off for a nice hike back through the City and up to the campsite to wait for Nancy, who was due in today. Sue and I figured since it was a sport area, the incumbents would be done shortly, so we waited in the shade.
Area 18 is a nice spot with about 6 good climbs and some nice shade to boot. We hung and watched, chatting a bit with the group there, ascertaining that Hans (the most experienced of the group) had been climbing with robdotcalm of rec.climbing and rockclimbing.com. Coincidence number 3.
We finally got our turn and Sue and I each led Skin the Cat (a fun 5.7) and Looker (a testy 5.8 face climb with really fun moves). I climbed Looker a second time, just because, and we headed back to the car after checking out Bomber (5.9) and Grand Traverse (5.8, trad) that both look good. Next time out we'll bring the trad gear and do them all. I was very happy with my onsight of Looker. It was a hard 5.8 with some spice, definitely not a gimme, like everything else I had led thus far.
That pretty much finished this day, what with the hike in and the long wait to climb. In retrospect, we probably should have moved on when we saw the large group there. Oh well, you know what they say about hindsight.
We returned to camp and waited for Nancy to arrive. The sun began to set, so I wandered down from our campsite to the Breadloves parking lot to take some photos and soak up the warmth of the last sunlight. Before I left, I asked Sue for a description of Nancy and her vehicle. Just as I was walking down the last hill to the lot, I saw a person and car matching Sue's description. I waved wildly as the driver turned around to head back down the road, and just got Nancy's attention at the last minute. Most excellent timing. It seems Nancy had been driving and (as had we) not realized the camp sites had recently been renumbered. And with no cell service in the park, it was like the old pre-cell phone days. We exchanged introductions, then carried Nancy's gear up to the camp site where we settled in for a really nice pasta and pesto dinner, followed by the nightly foamy beverages and warm fire.
Some of the best times climbing are those sitting around the campfire after a day of climbing, just sipping on a cold beer and talking with old (and new) friends. It's what makes camping and climbing (or biking) such a great combination. Especially in the desert where it seldom rains on the camping parade.
Day 6 (Friday) - Cruel Shoes and Tahitian Wall (aka, more slab)
Well, if a steady diet of slab were not enough, the concensus for the final day was, you guessed it, more slabby stuff. Inez and Sue had been rained off Cruel Shoes a couple years ago, so they were definitely into doing it again. I think Nancy just wanted to climb, so did not care. Me ? My mantra is "slab good". This is probably because my upper body strength is similar to that of my grandmother (may she rest in peace). And I mean in her current state of deadness, not when she was still roaming the planet. So, with 2 groups of 2 there was no need for a middle-(wo)man today. Just me and three lady ropeguns. Of course, the route was in the sun. Why not, we had climbed every other route this week in the sun, why stop now ? Even though it was the hottest day of the week so far. Hey, these California chickas are used to the heat, right ? And me, a good ol' southern boy would freeze in the shade anyway. And what with the lack of humidity, I had hardly sweated all week, even when the temps were in the mid-80s. It was dry heat, ya know ;-) Of course, an oven is a dry heat too. Well, anyway, we reached the base of Stripe Rock after a nice hike in and pulled out the gear. And I mean gear. In addition to the cornucopia of styles, lengths, and colors of quickdraws, we had trad gear. Inez and Sue remembered that a piece or two would be good at the start of the climb. The problem was they could not remember which piece or two would work. So, of course, I brought every size cam up to about a number 2.5 Friend, or about 7 cams in all. Nothing like some extra weight. Well, at least the walk in was flat and it was more akin to an alpine rack than a Gunks-we're-walking-on-the-carriage-road-and-don't-know-what-we'll-climb-so-let's-bring-everything-rack.
The chicka ropeguns at the base of Cruel Shoes.
Inez and Nancy roped up while while Sue and I sat back and waited. Nancy and Sue took pitches 1 and 3 while Inez and myself drew pitch 2.
Nancy at the crux, P1 Cruel Shoes.
Nancy just past the crux, P1 Cruel Shoes (5.7, bolts + 1 piece gear).
Cruel Shoes turned out to be my favoite climb of the week. It was deserving of the rating (5.7), unlike TofS, with numeorus moves in the 5.6-5.7 range. And, since Kevin Pogue put up this route, is was also well bolted, but not nearly so much so as TofS and Sinocranium, so there was at least some sense that you really were on lead. In essence, just a super climb. Fun and safe for a confident 5.7 slabber. I thorougly enjoyed my lead and can't wait to get back and lead the other 2 pitches next time.
Sue and I arrived at the final belay. Inez and Nancy had done some scouting for the rap achors alleged to be off the back (west) side of Stripe Rock that would allow us to get back to the ground with 1 double-rope rappel. I understood she had not seen the anchors, so I took off on a fact-finding mission, armed with the beta from the guide book (the previous edition, that is) that said to walk left from the top of the climb toward the obvious dike, then down a ramp to the rap anchors. Note that the new edition of the guidebook does not contain this info, only a cryptic "160" with a rap arrow at the top of the climb. It does not say the rap is off the back (west) side of the rock, nor how to find the anchors. And the diagram makes it appear that the rap is 160 feet to the next anchor on the east side of the rock. It may well be, but that would require 2 double-rope raps to get off.
Anyway, after first heading too far to my left (which also looked like a ramp) I returned to the top of the dike at the summit of Stripe Rock. Since I was now facing the other direction, I could clearly see the correct ramp and it was a quick romp down to the rap anchors. Note that, although the downclimb is pretty easy, there is death fall potential to reach these anchors and some folks might want a belay (which is easy to give by lying in a scoop at the summit).
An easy rap brought us back to the ground and a short walk back around to the east face of Stripe rock brought us to our gear. Cruel Shoes was now completely in the shade (perhaps we should have waited and done something else first?) Naw, the sun was fine as afar as I was concerned. It's a dry heat ;-)
Sue and I had to drive back to Salt Lake City, but there was still time for some more climbing, so Nancy and I decided to check out the Tahitian Wall (which was, of course, now in full afternoon sun). A 10 minute walk brought us to the left side (facing the rock) and Bikini Candy, a 2-star bolted 5.8. Looked good to us, so Nancy and I decided to each lead it. Inez and Sue followed on TR to help with the time crunch.
Nancy and I at the Base of Bikini Candy (5.8, bolts).
Nancy led it easily and left the draws for me. The crux was a slabby, layback start, but there were several nice 5.7ish moves before you could finally clip the anchors. Another fun, safe climb and a good one to end the week. Glad I led this one.
Me, leading Bikini Candy (5.8).
Me, leading Bikini Candy.
Stretching it out on Bikini Candy.
Patina good !
Almost at the anchors.
The climbing was done for this trip; we only had the walk out and drive back to SLC. Inez and Nancy were staying one more day, but I was trying to get back for a mountain bike race on Sunday (that I never made, just too beat after the long flight home).
Cue scary music for foreshadowing...
Nancy: "Hey Tim, you seen any rattlesnakes yet this trip."
Me: said in a haughty manner "No, but we still have the walk out."
Cue the familar Jaws shark attack music...
Nancy and I finally got a chance to talk a bit and were enjoying the walk back to the car. We were walking a bit faster than the Inez-Sue tandem and were a few hundred feet ahead of them when we both heard the unmistakable sound of a member of the Crotalus/Sistrurus genera to our left. Being the well-educated, common-sense-bearing humanoids we are, we both immediately jumped to the right. To our left was a lovely 3-foot long, wide-bodied specimen of some rattlesnake species. We waited for Inez and Sue to catch up so we could warn them to stay left and then watched as Mr. Snake glided into the desert, probably a fitting sybol to the end of our little trip.
Some celebratory recovery drinks (not too many for the driver, of course) and Sue and I were off across the Idaho desert, dodging cattle, back into the land of the Book of Mormon and Pat's abode (home of Roscoe the 170-pound wonder dog), where Pat had cordially invited us to spend the night so we would have an easy time making our flight back.
I just cannot express how great it was to be on a climbing/camping trip away from the "home region" once again. The climbing was super. So what if we climbed nothing harder than 5.10a the entire week. That can wait until later in the season. We had fun. Lots of it. I met new friends, climbed some really fun multi-pitch slab routes, something the Gunks just does not have, and best of all,
I'm back in the saddle again....
See y'all out there on the rocks.
Respectfully,
Boy of Trout.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
East Coast MTB Festival, Stokesville, VA
Sorry folks, no pics (the wife had the camera for her trip).
Bob G, Bill S (number 1), and I left for the East Coast MTB Festival sponsored by IMBA and the Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts (MORE) in Stokesville, VA near the George Washington National Forest on Friday around noon. Sure wish we had left earlier. The drive down took us almost 6 hours with the traffic delays we encountered.
Some other Delaware Trailspinners had already arrived by the time we left and scouted out a campsite for us. Plus, Chris (Crash) Jackson had a site already reserved.
We pulled in around 1800, registered, and set up camp. Not too many folks had arrived yet. The facilities were pretty darn good for a closed campground. The site we had was flat and shady with a fire ring and picnic table.
We drank a few beers, ate some dinner, checked out the moon from the telescope in the onsite observatory, and settled in for some sleep.
Woke up to blue skies and fine riding temps on Saturday. Bob G, Bill S (number 1), and myself opted for the Hard Ride (Reddish Knob, with a shuttle to the top). Randall, Andrea, and Todd (el presidente) opted for the killer hard ride. Crash went for the hard ride with the option of riding to the top of Reddish Knob instead of being shuttled up.
A lot of people signed up for the Reddish Knob ride, maybe 40 ? The logistics of getting 40 bikes and people to the top of Reddish Knob actually got worked out pretty fast and we left the campsite just about on time at 1015 or so. We did have to put some folks in the bike trailer for the ride out and we were definitely crammed in the van, but we knew we made the right choice when we passed Crash near the top of the mountain huffing and puffing his way up the road.
At the top of Reddish Knob the large group split into 3 smaller groups. Two groups opted for other descents while our group took the easiest of the descent options. There were some "newer" bikers in our group, but I migrated toward the rear anyway assuming I would be one of the slower riders. Dave Scull and his wife from MORE were also along. We had shown them around White Clay/Middle Run a few weeks earlier.
We weren't 50 feet into the trail when some riders began walking their bikes. Not too much farther, we reached a scree slope where everyone did the hike-a-bike. After that, though, the trail was ridable. I managed everything but one or two very short steep hills.
The group beagn to separate not too far from the hike-a-bike and I realized I was nowhere near the slowest rider in the group. Bob G and Bill S (number 1) had started in the front and were already long gone. I tried to be cool and stay with the group/wait for stragglers, but the bugs were just too bad to stand around and wait, so after talking with the ride leader, getting directions, and making sure it was OK, I ventured on down the trail, pretty much by myself. Only saw one other person the rest of the day, a rider who was not with our group but had passed me while I waited during one of the group "catch up" rests.
It was quite nice riding my own pace. The trail was obvious and the leader had given me correct directions for the one or two turns I needed to make. Besides, all trails led down to the gravel Forest Service Road, so I would not get lost.
The downhill portion of the trail was OK, but long downhills really don't get me all thnat excited. As a result, I suck at them. But I made it down the mountain without falling or dabbing, albeit at a much slower pace than Bob and Bill had done. No one was waiting for me at the base of the trail, so I just headed back to the campground on my own.
I enjoyed the ride and would do it again if I was in the area, but it was certainly not my favorite trail of all time.
Bob and Bill were hanging out drinking a beer when I arrived back at camp. We waited for Crash to return so we could all ride something else because the Reddish Knob ride was only about 8 miles of singletrack and we wanted more.
Chris finally showed, but he took off with his sigot Carol so she could ride something easy. Bob, Bill S, and I took off up the campground road to do the Lookout Mountain trail and perhaps return via the North Gorge Trail. Well, we never got that far. The Lookout Mountain Trail just kept climbing and although we made all the correct turns, the trail became less used as we progressed upward. We finally turned around after about 5 miles, not sure how much elevation we had to gain before reaching the top of the mountain (a later map check indicated we had only about 200 feet more vertical gain and about 1 mile of horizontal distance to the top).
We met Randall and Andrea at a junction on our way back to camp. They were returning from their epic ride of over 40 miles and were the only people left in their group. Everyone else had opted for a short cut home. Andrea had fallen a couple of times and had some lovely bruises and contousions.
Bob, Bill, and Randall went screaming back down the downhill toward camp while Andrea and I took a more conservative approach; her because she was tired and hurt, me because I am a downhill weenie. We stopped for a beer at Randall and Andrea's camp, then another at our camp, took a swim at the fine swimming hole near camp, and then hopped over to the Todd (el presidente) camp for some fine chicken fajitas. We totally missed the pot luck dinner supplied by the event sponsors, but we did manage a free beer around the campfire. Spent some time talking to Dave Scull from the MORE group we had recently guided around Middle Run/White Clay until the rain got steady enough to force us under the pavillion, then to bed, eagerly awaiting an epic ride on Sunday.
Most of our group wanted to do the Southern Tarverse Ride on Sunday. We prearranged (to the best of our limited ability) drivers and passengers to reduce the amount of cars in the parking area and allow us to get an early start. The trail seemed pretty obvious, not really a way to get lost. Basically it's park the car, ride up the gravel FS road, turn left, and ride for 17 miles until you hit the paved road, then return to your car. We opted to not bother waiting on a guide and left the campground right about 0900 with 3 cars in our caravan. Our group consisted of me, Bob G., Bill S (number 1), Crash Jackson, Randall, Andrea, Todd (el presidente), and Dave McG. and one other person from MORE. Dave Scull and some other MORE folks were going to ride up Jerkemtight Road and do the last bit of the Souther Traverse. They had missed this part last year when the assisted in the rescue of a fallen biker (broken leg) and had to spend the night on the mountain.
The parking lot had only a few cars when we arrived, but we parked judiciously to avoid being blocked in by the later hoardes we knew would arrive. A brief prep, then we were off up the gravel road. I kept expecting the grade to get steep, but it never did. It was a steady uphill, but never anything that moved me out of the middle chain ring. The expected slog up was actually a pleasant ride in dappled shade. I would talk with a couple riders, then motor on until I caught the next group, talked to them for awhile, then moved on, repeat until I found another rider at my pace and rode to the top with him.
The first 1/2 mile after the road was fun, nice single track on a broad ridge over moss, like riding on on air, but the trail soon skirted to the outside of the ridge and became a narrow, uphill track with a severe penalty for failure off to the left. I walked ridable trail for the first of many times that day as I became accustomed to riding the narrow single track with a steep drop off to the side. The trail moved from one side of the ridge to the other, almost always a narrow track with a drop to one side, with the occasional rock garden here and there. I rode most, walked others, and was able to keep up with our group enough to catch them at rests for the first 6 miles or so. After that, though, my downhill skills (read: lack thereof) got me behind and I was always pulling over to let folks pass on the downhill, only to catch them again on the next uphill, then finally lose them on the next long downhill.
I was finally caught and passed by the last of our group (Bob G) while I stopped for a food break. I got caught up again on the next uphill and Bob and I pedalled along for several miles, him blowing me away on the DH and me catching up on the uphills. I was getting much better at negotiating the narrow uphills and became more comfortable on the trail; unfortunately, about 4 miles from the Jerkemtight junction, Bob got a flat on a rock garden on his tubeless 29er. I'll spare the gory details of how I ended up loaning Bob a 26" tube for his 29er tire (yep, I had spares, despite being a tubeless guy myself) or why it took us at least 45 minutes to change a tire, but suffice to say we decided that with no more spare tubes between us and being at least 45 minutes behind the group, we should opt for the Jerkemtight descent, rather than finish the rest of the trail. Yes, we knew we were missing what everyone says is the best part of the Southern Traverse, but discretion being the better part of valor and all...
Well, we expected the Jerkemtight bail option to be a fairly easy downhill on an old FS road to the pavement, then a short road ride back to the car. Boy were we surprised. Jerkemtight Road has not seen a car in at least 10 years. We must have crossed the stream 15 times before we reached the gate at the bottom of the hill, including one portage 40 feet up and over a huge stream washout that totally elmininated any semblance of a road. The ride down Jerkemtight took longer than finishing the trail would have, but Mr. Bob did not relish the fast downhill on an undersized tube with not enough pressure, not to mention the 18 mile road ride back on the same low tire (again, I'll spare the gory details of why the tire was not properly inflated). And, of course, we had no idea how long the Jerkemtigh descent would take. Had we known....
We finally made a nice gravel road just as a major T-storm hit the mountain. A little close lightning and some really hard rain accompanied us most of the way back to the car, but make it back we did, totally drenched, but unscathed. Felt sorry for anyone still up on the ridge.
We made it back just a few minutes after the rest of our group, mostly because our road ride was only 6 miles while theirs was closer to 18. We downed a "recovery drink", then headed back to Stokesville where we broke camp and began the drive home.
All in all a great weekend. I think we'lll definitley be back for the next Bikefest. And Bob and I have a score to settle with the Southern Traverse.
TS
Bob G, Bill S (number 1), and I left for the East Coast MTB Festival sponsored by IMBA and the Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts (MORE) in Stokesville, VA near the George Washington National Forest on Friday around noon. Sure wish we had left earlier. The drive down took us almost 6 hours with the traffic delays we encountered.
Some other Delaware Trailspinners had already arrived by the time we left and scouted out a campsite for us. Plus, Chris (Crash) Jackson had a site already reserved.
We pulled in around 1800, registered, and set up camp. Not too many folks had arrived yet. The facilities were pretty darn good for a closed campground. The site we had was flat and shady with a fire ring and picnic table.
We drank a few beers, ate some dinner, checked out the moon from the telescope in the onsite observatory, and settled in for some sleep.
Woke up to blue skies and fine riding temps on Saturday. Bob G, Bill S (number 1), and myself opted for the Hard Ride (Reddish Knob, with a shuttle to the top). Randall, Andrea, and Todd (el presidente) opted for the killer hard ride. Crash went for the hard ride with the option of riding to the top of Reddish Knob instead of being shuttled up.
A lot of people signed up for the Reddish Knob ride, maybe 40 ? The logistics of getting 40 bikes and people to the top of Reddish Knob actually got worked out pretty fast and we left the campsite just about on time at 1015 or so. We did have to put some folks in the bike trailer for the ride out and we were definitely crammed in the van, but we knew we made the right choice when we passed Crash near the top of the mountain huffing and puffing his way up the road.
At the top of Reddish Knob the large group split into 3 smaller groups. Two groups opted for other descents while our group took the easiest of the descent options. There were some "newer" bikers in our group, but I migrated toward the rear anyway assuming I would be one of the slower riders. Dave Scull and his wife from MORE were also along. We had shown them around White Clay/Middle Run a few weeks earlier.
We weren't 50 feet into the trail when some riders began walking their bikes. Not too much farther, we reached a scree slope where everyone did the hike-a-bike. After that, though, the trail was ridable. I managed everything but one or two very short steep hills.
The group beagn to separate not too far from the hike-a-bike and I realized I was nowhere near the slowest rider in the group. Bob G and Bill S (number 1) had started in the front and were already long gone. I tried to be cool and stay with the group/wait for stragglers, but the bugs were just too bad to stand around and wait, so after talking with the ride leader, getting directions, and making sure it was OK, I ventured on down the trail, pretty much by myself. Only saw one other person the rest of the day, a rider who was not with our group but had passed me while I waited during one of the group "catch up" rests.
It was quite nice riding my own pace. The trail was obvious and the leader had given me correct directions for the one or two turns I needed to make. Besides, all trails led down to the gravel Forest Service Road, so I would not get lost.
The downhill portion of the trail was OK, but long downhills really don't get me all thnat excited. As a result, I suck at them. But I made it down the mountain without falling or dabbing, albeit at a much slower pace than Bob and Bill had done. No one was waiting for me at the base of the trail, so I just headed back to the campground on my own.
I enjoyed the ride and would do it again if I was in the area, but it was certainly not my favorite trail of all time.
Bob and Bill were hanging out drinking a beer when I arrived back at camp. We waited for Crash to return so we could all ride something else because the Reddish Knob ride was only about 8 miles of singletrack and we wanted more.
Chris finally showed, but he took off with his sigot Carol so she could ride something easy. Bob, Bill S, and I took off up the campground road to do the Lookout Mountain trail and perhaps return via the North Gorge Trail. Well, we never got that far. The Lookout Mountain Trail just kept climbing and although we made all the correct turns, the trail became less used as we progressed upward. We finally turned around after about 5 miles, not sure how much elevation we had to gain before reaching the top of the mountain (a later map check indicated we had only about 200 feet more vertical gain and about 1 mile of horizontal distance to the top).
We met Randall and Andrea at a junction on our way back to camp. They were returning from their epic ride of over 40 miles and were the only people left in their group. Everyone else had opted for a short cut home. Andrea had fallen a couple of times and had some lovely bruises and contousions.
Bob, Bill, and Randall went screaming back down the downhill toward camp while Andrea and I took a more conservative approach; her because she was tired and hurt, me because I am a downhill weenie. We stopped for a beer at Randall and Andrea's camp, then another at our camp, took a swim at the fine swimming hole near camp, and then hopped over to the Todd (el presidente) camp for some fine chicken fajitas. We totally missed the pot luck dinner supplied by the event sponsors, but we did manage a free beer around the campfire. Spent some time talking to Dave Scull from the MORE group we had recently guided around Middle Run/White Clay until the rain got steady enough to force us under the pavillion, then to bed, eagerly awaiting an epic ride on Sunday.
Most of our group wanted to do the Southern Tarverse Ride on Sunday. We prearranged (to the best of our limited ability) drivers and passengers to reduce the amount of cars in the parking area and allow us to get an early start. The trail seemed pretty obvious, not really a way to get lost. Basically it's park the car, ride up the gravel FS road, turn left, and ride for 17 miles until you hit the paved road, then return to your car. We opted to not bother waiting on a guide and left the campground right about 0900 with 3 cars in our caravan. Our group consisted of me, Bob G., Bill S (number 1), Crash Jackson, Randall, Andrea, Todd (el presidente), and Dave McG. and one other person from MORE. Dave Scull and some other MORE folks were going to ride up Jerkemtight Road and do the last bit of the Souther Traverse. They had missed this part last year when the assisted in the rescue of a fallen biker (broken leg) and had to spend the night on the mountain.
The parking lot had only a few cars when we arrived, but we parked judiciously to avoid being blocked in by the later hoardes we knew would arrive. A brief prep, then we were off up the gravel road. I kept expecting the grade to get steep, but it never did. It was a steady uphill, but never anything that moved me out of the middle chain ring. The expected slog up was actually a pleasant ride in dappled shade. I would talk with a couple riders, then motor on until I caught the next group, talked to them for awhile, then moved on, repeat until I found another rider at my pace and rode to the top with him.
The first 1/2 mile after the road was fun, nice single track on a broad ridge over moss, like riding on on air, but the trail soon skirted to the outside of the ridge and became a narrow, uphill track with a severe penalty for failure off to the left. I walked ridable trail for the first of many times that day as I became accustomed to riding the narrow single track with a steep drop off to the side. The trail moved from one side of the ridge to the other, almost always a narrow track with a drop to one side, with the occasional rock garden here and there. I rode most, walked others, and was able to keep up with our group enough to catch them at rests for the first 6 miles or so. After that, though, my downhill skills (read: lack thereof) got me behind and I was always pulling over to let folks pass on the downhill, only to catch them again on the next uphill, then finally lose them on the next long downhill.
I was finally caught and passed by the last of our group (Bob G) while I stopped for a food break. I got caught up again on the next uphill and Bob and I pedalled along for several miles, him blowing me away on the DH and me catching up on the uphills. I was getting much better at negotiating the narrow uphills and became more comfortable on the trail; unfortunately, about 4 miles from the Jerkemtight junction, Bob got a flat on a rock garden on his tubeless 29er. I'll spare the gory details of how I ended up loaning Bob a 26" tube for his 29er tire (yep, I had spares, despite being a tubeless guy myself) or why it took us at least 45 minutes to change a tire, but suffice to say we decided that with no more spare tubes between us and being at least 45 minutes behind the group, we should opt for the Jerkemtight descent, rather than finish the rest of the trail. Yes, we knew we were missing what everyone says is the best part of the Southern Traverse, but discretion being the better part of valor and all...
Well, we expected the Jerkemtight bail option to be a fairly easy downhill on an old FS road to the pavement, then a short road ride back to the car. Boy were we surprised. Jerkemtight Road has not seen a car in at least 10 years. We must have crossed the stream 15 times before we reached the gate at the bottom of the hill, including one portage 40 feet up and over a huge stream washout that totally elmininated any semblance of a road. The ride down Jerkemtight took longer than finishing the trail would have, but Mr. Bob did not relish the fast downhill on an undersized tube with not enough pressure, not to mention the 18 mile road ride back on the same low tire (again, I'll spare the gory details of why the tire was not properly inflated). And, of course, we had no idea how long the Jerkemtigh descent would take. Had we known....
We finally made a nice gravel road just as a major T-storm hit the mountain. A little close lightning and some really hard rain accompanied us most of the way back to the car, but make it back we did, totally drenched, but unscathed. Felt sorry for anyone still up on the ridge.
We made it back just a few minutes after the rest of our group, mostly because our road ride was only 6 miles while theirs was closer to 18. We downed a "recovery drink", then headed back to Stokesville where we broke camp and began the drive home.
All in all a great weekend. I think we'lll definitley be back for the next Bikefest. And Bob and I have a score to settle with the Southern Traverse.
TS
Friday, May 18, 2007
Tuesdays at Fair Hill With theTrail Spinners, Episode 2
It was yet another beautiful day at Fair Hill. I showed up early and did a quick run through the new trail and then back to the lot, about 1.5 miles. Approximately 15-20 riders showed for the regular Tuesday beginner ride. We split into 3 groups from the start. The fast sport and expert folks took off in one group, followed by the regular sport racers, and finally the beginner group. The beginner group had about 10-12 riders. I was still coughing shit from my lungs from Sunday's race at French Creek, so I stayed with thebeginner group.
Ray led down the red trail and we stayed in one group. I alternated from the middle to the end while taking some photos, mostly running sweep with Barney, who spends a lot of time maintaining the trails here.
Rest Stop Along the Red Trail
Classic Ray at the Short Steep Uphill after Crossing 
Barney at the Same Spot.
Ray led down the red trail and we stayed in one group. I alternated from the middle to the end while taking some photos, mostly running sweep with Barney, who spends a lot of time maintaining the trails here.
Rest Stop Along the Red Trail At the first rest stop about 3 miles in, everyone wanted to continue, no bailers. We did split into faster and slower beginner groups. I swept the faster group. We took the connector over to the trails between Big Elk Chapel Road and Route 273, crossing Big Elk Chapel Road after the short steep hill just up from the "dump".
Classic Ray at the Short Steep Uphill after Crossing the Creek.
Barney at the Same Spot. We played around on the trails behind the horse stables, then crossed 273 to continue riding part of the Beginner Race Loop. We actuually bypassed the race start, since it's double track, and took a short detour on the orange trail. A flat tire slowed us a bit, but we were soon rolling again down the orange trail at a pretty good clip for a beginner ride (maybe 7.5 MPH) with everyone doing just fine. We then looped back to the bridge over 273 near the 2 (formerly 3) field downhill. At this point, a few folks wanted to head back to the car, so we skipped the downhill and Disneyland and headed down the 2-track to the lot.
At the humpback bridge, several folks bailed while the rest of us went over the bridge to hit some more of the great trails between Big Elk Chapel Road and 273 that we missed on the first run through.
Humpback Bridge
We took the old standard route through and across the horse show field area, into the woods on the other side, then back up the 2-track to the horse show field again, then the new section of trail Barney cut in a few weeks ago.
Emerging From the Woods into the Field on the New Trail
Back to lot from there with plenty of daylight to spare. The forecast called for rain on Wednesday and Thuirsday so I wanted to sneak in some more riding, especially with 45 minutes of daylight left. I talked Bill S (number 2) into some more riding since he had been helping his cousin, new to mountain biking, learn how to ride and had not ridden very far or fast yet tonight. We did a quick run through CrackHead Bob, meeting the remnants of the slower beginner group, led by Bob G, and Bill S. (number 1). Bill S. (number 2) was moving fast through CHB and by the end of the run I was about done. I limped back to the lot where it was time for a refreshing recovery drink. Total of a little over 16 miles. Not bad for a beginner ride night.
Sweet Fair Hill Single Track
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Coughing Up a Fur Ball
Sorry, no pics from the French Crek Race, I forgot my camera. You'll have to settle for this link to a photo from Michael L. Kirk, the offical MASS photographer http://mlkimages.smugmug.com/gallery/2831920#152544932.
So the French Creek MTB Race was last Sunday. A ltttle bit of rain on Saturday night threatened to cancel the event (it was shine only), but mercifully the rains stopped pretty early in the evening and the race promoters pushed the start back one hour to allow for more drying of the course.
Bob G. and I drove up from my house to get there in plenty of time for his race (1100) and that left me plenty of time to get nervous for my race (1300). Of course, we did not know the times had been pushed back an hour, so we were there plenty early. In fact, we got there well before the elite/open racers took off at 1000.
Bob and I had ridden the beginner course on Monday and it seemed like a fun route; however, to prevent 2 road crossing and in deference to the technical nature of the course, especially for true beginner racers, the promotoers shortened the beginner course to approximatly 5 miles (my odometer at the end of the race actually had 5.66). So it would be a short race; an all-out sprint. Definitely not to my advantage; I don't usually get warmed up until about mile 5.
Hatti W-S, Lisa W, and myself waited for the last of the sport group to depart, then headed up the road for a warm-up spin. We caught the last of the sport racers at the top of the initial road climb by taking a short cut and cheered on fellow teammates Chris J and Bob G as they rode by. After the last of the sport group went past, Hattie and I continued down the race course while Lisa returned to the team tent to deal with a low tire. We rode the first downhill section, then the first uphill through the rocky section. That was about all we had time for, so we retreated back to the tent area after about a 2 mile warm up.
Finally lined up at about 1320 for the start of the beginner race. It was a bit later by the time the got to the Master I and Master II men. Both groups left at the same time. The narrow starting spot on a single lane road made it hard for me to work my way to the front of the pack, so I got shoved far to the right.
The start was a fairly long uphill, with some steeps, on a gravel road. I started in middle-middle to get a good jump, but not spin out on the gravel. I had already rehearsed this earlier in the day. I got stuck behing a very slow rider and wathced as the field pulled away. I was already boxed in and could not pass him on the left due to another slow rider, so I had to move. I announced, then passed on the right in the leaves. It did not take long to get around, the guy was going really slowly, and I was soon back on the gravel and gaining on the pack. I figured I would just catch the tail end and see how it went. I geared down a ring, stayed seated, and found a rhythm. I was soon picking off guys one by one, not straining too bad. I wnet between the last two riders about 3/4 of the way up the hill and was now free.
I had hoped to be first at the top ofthe hill. There had been an accident at this point in th epert race and the started had requested that we hold our positions at the top of the hill until we reached the single track. I did not want to behind someone on the initial single track downhill and subsequent climb, so I really wanted to be first at the top of the hill.
Mission accomplished. I was clear at the top of the hill and shifted into the big ring to extend my lead. I was well in front by the time we hit the single track and I was now wondering if I could actually win this race. It was a short race after all and I had just smoked the entire field on the initial climb without expending too much energy. Never even left the saddle.
Well, my visions of winning soon vanished as the one rider passed me on the narrow downhill without even a peep. Caught me by surprise. I could not keep up on the next uphill and lost him. A near dab on a tricky turn lost me another spot or two as some other riders passed. I could not tell if they were in my class or the Master II class, but I presumed I would need to catch them to podium.
I held my place and found a good rhythm now. The course would be fairly easy from here on out with only i hard climb, 2 muddy spots, and one tricky downhill. I was doing well on the downhills. No doubt losing some ground to the front runners, but I was not riding the brake and comfortable with my speed.
I passed 3 riders at the mudholes by riding right through using the line Bob and I had scouted on our pre-ride Monday (thansk for the advice Bob). I could not tell what class they were in, but I suspected they were Vet I or Vet II slower riders and that I may or may not have gained on a rider in my class.
Still in rhythm and doing well, feeling strong. I came up on the tricky rocky downhill without recognizing it and had a lot of speed as I was trying to catch 2 guys right in front of me. They went right, one made it right through. I made the split decision to try Bob's line of Monday to the left on the outside over leaf-covered rocks. No time to brake now; I would have made it except the second guy who went right bobbled and fell toward me. I dabbed and had to paddle my way through, losing precious time.
I would need to make up time on the last hill or on the sprint to the finish. I was pretty confident I could make up time in both places because I am usually good at the sprint and I had riddent the entire hill in the middle front ring with Bob on Monday.
So the French Creek MTB Race was last Sunday. A ltttle bit of rain on Saturday night threatened to cancel the event (it was shine only), but mercifully the rains stopped pretty early in the evening and the race promoters pushed the start back one hour to allow for more drying of the course.
Bob G. and I drove up from my house to get there in plenty of time for his race (1100) and that left me plenty of time to get nervous for my race (1300). Of course, we did not know the times had been pushed back an hour, so we were there plenty early. In fact, we got there well before the elite/open racers took off at 1000.
Bob and I had ridden the beginner course on Monday and it seemed like a fun route; however, to prevent 2 road crossing and in deference to the technical nature of the course, especially for true beginner racers, the promotoers shortened the beginner course to approximatly 5 miles (my odometer at the end of the race actually had 5.66). So it would be a short race; an all-out sprint. Definitely not to my advantage; I don't usually get warmed up until about mile 5.
Hatti W-S, Lisa W, and myself waited for the last of the sport group to depart, then headed up the road for a warm-up spin. We caught the last of the sport racers at the top of the initial road climb by taking a short cut and cheered on fellow teammates Chris J and Bob G as they rode by. After the last of the sport group went past, Hattie and I continued down the race course while Lisa returned to the team tent to deal with a low tire. We rode the first downhill section, then the first uphill through the rocky section. That was about all we had time for, so we retreated back to the tent area after about a 2 mile warm up.
Finally lined up at about 1320 for the start of the beginner race. It was a bit later by the time the got to the Master I and Master II men. Both groups left at the same time. The narrow starting spot on a single lane road made it hard for me to work my way to the front of the pack, so I got shoved far to the right.
The start was a fairly long uphill, with some steeps, on a gravel road. I started in middle-middle to get a good jump, but not spin out on the gravel. I had already rehearsed this earlier in the day. I got stuck behing a very slow rider and wathced as the field pulled away. I was already boxed in and could not pass him on the left due to another slow rider, so I had to move. I announced, then passed on the right in the leaves. It did not take long to get around, the guy was going really slowly, and I was soon back on the gravel and gaining on the pack. I figured I would just catch the tail end and see how it went. I geared down a ring, stayed seated, and found a rhythm. I was soon picking off guys one by one, not straining too bad. I wnet between the last two riders about 3/4 of the way up the hill and was now free.
I had hoped to be first at the top ofthe hill. There had been an accident at this point in th epert race and the started had requested that we hold our positions at the top of the hill until we reached the single track. I did not want to behind someone on the initial single track downhill and subsequent climb, so I really wanted to be first at the top of the hill.
Mission accomplished. I was clear at the top of the hill and shifted into the big ring to extend my lead. I was well in front by the time we hit the single track and I was now wondering if I could actually win this race. It was a short race after all and I had just smoked the entire field on the initial climb without expending too much energy. Never even left the saddle.
Well, my visions of winning soon vanished as the one rider passed me on the narrow downhill without even a peep. Caught me by surprise. I could not keep up on the next uphill and lost him. A near dab on a tricky turn lost me another spot or two as some other riders passed. I could not tell if they were in my class or the Master II class, but I presumed I would need to catch them to podium.
I held my place and found a good rhythm now. The course would be fairly easy from here on out with only i hard climb, 2 muddy spots, and one tricky downhill. I was doing well on the downhills. No doubt losing some ground to the front runners, but I was not riding the brake and comfortable with my speed.
I passed 3 riders at the mudholes by riding right through using the line Bob and I had scouted on our pre-ride Monday (thansk for the advice Bob). I could not tell what class they were in, but I suspected they were Vet I or Vet II slower riders and that I may or may not have gained on a rider in my class.
Still in rhythm and doing well, feeling strong. I came up on the tricky rocky downhill without recognizing it and had a lot of speed as I was trying to catch 2 guys right in front of me. They went right, one made it right through. I made the split decision to try Bob's line of Monday to the left on the outside over leaf-covered rocks. No time to brake now; I would have made it except the second guy who went right bobbled and fell toward me. I dabbed and had to paddle my way through, losing precious time.
I would need to make up time on the last hill or on the sprint to the finish. I was pretty confident I could make up time in both places because I am usually good at the sprint and I had riddent the entire hill in the middle front ring with Bob on Monday.
Unfortunately for me, I did not catch the rider directly in front of me before the hill and he dabbed, causing me to lose momentum and dismount. I passed him on the run and restarted, catching several riders at the top of the hill who were just remounting after walking the steep section. Good, now as far as I knew I only had about 4-5 guys in front of me from both the Master I and MAster II class. I knew at least 2 of them were Master II, so I had a good shot at a podium. I geared down to middle/small and quickly caught the next rider. He offered to let me pass, but my bike skills were not good enough to get around him on the rocky singletrack. He was sure I could catch the next guy who he thought was less than 30 seconds ahead. I finally got around when we hit double track and moved to the big ring, pedaling as fast as I could. Never did catch the next rider, but I was also clear of everyone behind me for the final sprint.
Good news was that I did podium in the MAster I class, 3rd place, about 12 seconds out of 2nd, but several minutes behind the leader (probably the guy who passed me on the first downhill after the initial gravel road ended. In all, I finished behind 5 others in the Master class and 39th overall in the beginner group.
I'll take that finish at a course that did not play to my strengths. The course was pretty technical and very short. I am just not that good at my bike skills yet and I need a longer course to really make up the time I lose in the tech sections.
Now for the title of this entry: I coughed like a madman for a good hour after the ride, wheezing like an asthmatic. I was not the only one either. Later that night my chest felt like I had a bad chest cold/mild pneumonia. I felt that way all night and the next day. Finally started breaking up by Tuesday, but it's now Thursday and I still have crud in my lungs. Maybe the mica in the dust kicked up by 400 bike racers ? Not sure, just know I hope it does not happen this week at Granogue.
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