Another Wednesday goes long

Lucas is between switchbacks. The trail needed some clearing but the dirt was nice and grippy after you slid through the pine needles.

Bobby enjoying the rewards for all the climbing and clearing we did on the way up.

Nathan carving it up

Even Dogs get cool mountain bike scars

Its a little hard to see but this hole is a little over an inch in diamiter. Were guessing she jumped over a log and found a stick that wouldn't give. No wonder she slowed down. I'm amazed that she could walk at all.

Fathers Day Downhill

My wife asked what I would like to do for Father's Day. Gee let me think. So of course the most downhill I could get followed by beer and BBQ was at the top of the list. Unfortunately the highest we could start at was South Fork trail. Crossing Hearing Creek didn't seem like a good idea. We still managed to get a little over 2 hours in. The families had a ball playing at Sand Bar while we came down. Over all It couldn't have gone any better( unless I'd found a bag of "skill" before we came down). 2.5 hrs 12.88 miles 2600 ft of descent

Nathan's first taste of the techie craziness that is everywhere in the Pinecrest area. I think he liked it. Here you can see that the water was so high that the trail was un rideable in some places.

This is the second time my new North Shore rack got to prove itself . It hauled all the bikes up that bouncy road. The bikes didn't seem to move at all. I still haven't fully loaded it yet.

I think the simplicity of this thing is the best part. Virtually no moving parts and solid steel construction, can't beet it.

Downieville lower

Sean and I got tired of waiting for the Snow to melt on the mountains above Downieville so we decided to sample some of the trail below town. The Sierra Buttes Trail crew connected the North Yuba Trail from town all the way to the rocky rest camp ground (11 miles down stream). We parked at the bottom and rode HWY 49 up to town. Wayno at Yuba saved the day when it turned out that I desperately needed a new cassette. Then we climbed out from town and headed "down" stream. The trail was way better than either of us thought it would be. One of the best loops I've done in a long time. By the time we saw the Rocky Rest bridge we were both completely worn out and looking forward to beer and lunch. 26.62 miles, 2611 ft elevation gain, 4740 calories, 4hrs 21min, 1 cassette, & 2 tires punctured.

Perfect buffed out single track. You just have to be willing to climb for it. All the hills on the North Yuba will eventually reward you with smooth flowy downs that aren't always long enough to recover before the next up.

We couldn't ask for better conditions.

The crew over at the Sierra Buttes are nice enough to put in bridges over all the major crossings.

This is what I thought was a leaf stuck in Sean's tire. He was not happy to share the trail with us. Fortunately he on looks aggressive. Even after several flips with a LONG stick to get him off the trail he never even tried to strike.

Hard to believe we are wearing Jackets in June, But we were all glad to get a ride in at the Arnold trail system. The weather actually was very cooperative, only slight rain.

Lucas was having a ball on some trails that were new to him

Sean leading the way down from the Top Of the world

I'm really glad everyone decided to go rain or shine. Yesterday would have been an easy day to stay inside and be warm, but we all would have missed out on almost perfect conditions.

Not a whole lot of riding going on. Bobby and I did a little tree trimming on some local stuff, but even that was impossible to complete in the time allotted. Picked up me new rack, holds six Mountain bikes and no road bikes. How cool is that, most bike racks are modified roadie systems modified to accept mountain bikes. I figure I could haul 9 bikes without getting crazy. I'm planning a fathers day ride in to Sand Bar flat. Girls will bring the kids and food and we can try out the new shuttle setup on the way out.

Catch Up

A week ago we thought it was spring. Cody, Nathan, and Bobby followed me around some of Deer Creeks best. Other than the crazy overgrown brush it was a great ride and a welcome change to driving down the hill to get our single track fix. 21.71 miles
I think Spring left us. Hard to believe its May 17. Bobby, Nathan and I near the top of Mt Elizabeth. I was feeling good then. After this shot we hit the only single track of the day. We tested the limits of traction. I managed to stay upright, barely. Then we continued through Cedar Ridge over to Big Hill. Nathan showed us a new way down to Italian Bar, not trail but mostly dirt and way more fun than Big Hill rd. The only thing is watch out for the dogs, they saw Bobby riding in the back as there next meal. Lesson learned don't be the last guy when you might be on the menu.

This was the lowest elevation point on our ride (Italian Bar camp). We climbed over 1500 ft by the time we got here. Unfortunately I was starting to drag by the time we got to this point. I plan on revisiting this route as soon as I can, with a little rest beforehand. When we hopped in the truck the final stat were; 40.09 miles, 6hrs29min, 4561ft of gain, 5559 calories burnt. Still a good workout. Thank You Jeanie for saving my ass from the last 5 miles.

You can catch up on training, you can catch up on sleep, but I don't recommend doing both at the same time. I had to bail on a ride for the first time yesterday. I've had to cut rides short before and had to get a ride to save time but I can't remember just taping out before. I thought it would be great idea to do a 45mile ride after working 16hrs with no sleep. I probably would have been OK if I had been riding more than once a week. It was still am awesome ride I just couldn't quite finish. I want to thank Nathan and Bobby for waiting for me while I found out what it was like to hit a wall and stay there for 3 hours. I guess I should have squeezed more riding in this winter.

Busy

Tamarancho is well maintained with bridges and log rides
Every obstacle had an alternate line if your no feeling up to it

Ashton had so much fun he snuck into a second race

Gage must have hit the teeter toter a dozen times.

Just three of about 20 different lines in the North Shore area at Woodward

The last few weeks have been super busy for me but, there has been a little riding going on. Played on the Tamarancho trail for a day up near Mt Tam and the birthplace of mountain biking. I could understand a little more now about the first mountain bikers. The first time I rode up there (Pine Mt loop) I wasn't sure why they bothered. Tamarancho on the other hand is a great trail that makes you work for your downhill, and the beer at Broken Drum Brewery. Lots off flowy smooth single track with super tight switch backs and a little rocks thrown in to keep you honest.
This last weekend I played hookie from work and took my boys to their first mountain bike race. The Sea Otter happens to be the biggest race in the country but they didn't grasp that. With the magnitude of this event you would think the kids race would be well organized, you would be wrong. After about a half an hour of fighting through Disneyland like lines we got the boys racing. They both did great, Gage 2nd, Ashton 3rd. No whining until their race was over and we made them look at all the cool bike goodies on display.
Today I had to go to Fresno so Sean and I decided to hit up Woodward bike park on our way back. This place is not worth a trip but if your in the area it is a lot of fun. There are lots of different things to hone your skills on, but not much in the way of trails in the sense that I am accustomed. We ended up spending most of our time in the North Shore area. There are all kinds of wooden trail from a ladder loop with log rides in the middle to super skinny elevated collarbone breakers. I am planing on taking my boys down next time so they can get some practice on balance and jumping.
I hope to get some actual cardio and distance training in soon.