The Surly Mountain Biking Thread

[Al_4_ISU 12661]

On 4/8/2022 at 2:10 PM, TwiceHorn said:

Great temperatures most of this week, 60s and low 70s.  Pretty good ride at Oak Cliff Nature Preserve.

Every time i hit a tree gate I think of Al.  This particular scene struck me as a little bit funny.

The standard mauled trees at bar height.

And, the piece de resistance:

Just how hard do you have to clip a tree to pull an end plug out?  I don't want to find out.

It's funny to me how much more comfortable I've gotten with them over the years - I rode on Sunday AM and rolled right on through gates that got me wound up 2-3 years ago.  I did mash my hand on a tree this winter, but that was riding the fatty on snow and things get slippery and you're going slow as hell and wearing thick gloves anyhow.

I've mashed in an end cap, but never ripped one out.  That's a hell of a snag.

[Al_4_ISU 12661]

Speaking of Sunday, it was gorgeous and all my local trails were open

[TwiceHorn 32104]

Any of y'all ride with a hip/fanny pack for hydration/extra bottle carrying?

I don't seem to care much for riding with my "camelbak."  I'm not sure if it's the pack or just fiddling with the bladder.  But when it gets Africa hot, I feel like I need/want more than my 21oz bottle.  I also tend to like to drink out of a bottle better than a hose.

My riding buddy has a Lab Austere thing that carries two bottles.  I took a flyer on a Dakine Hot Laps 2L that will hold two extra bottles, plus room for tools and shit. 

I also have kind of a problem with my polynylon shorts sliding down over the polynylon chamois underpants when I get sweaty and moving over/around the saddle.  Maybe getting keys phone wallet out of my pockets will help with that.  And maybe the fanny pack thing will drag em down worse.

We'll see.

[Your Mom 4982]

8 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

Any of y'all ride with a hip/fanny pack for hydration/extra bottle carrying?

I'm really picky about that stuff.  Some of them just feel wrong and I can't shake the discomfort.  I've had a typical camelbak and they make my lower back ache after a while.  That's my fault for having a weak lower back, but still..  I've tried two hip belts, the Dakine Hot Laps and the EVOC something or other.  The Dakine has a 2L bladder.  The EVOC has a small bladder and holds a bottle on each side.  My preferred setup for the hip pack is the EVOC pack with the two bottles and no bladder, plus a bottle on the frame.  Rode thjat set up for a year or so and liked it well enough.   Minimal bounce.  I prefer bottles to bladder.  The hose annoys me and I don't mind slowing or stopping to drink.

They both need to be cinched down fairly tight to not bouce and the tightness isn't real comfortable,  but still better than a camelbak.... until recently.  I recently got a Camelbak Skyline.  Love it.  It's a pack on your back but it sits really low.  Almost like a bigger hip pack but with shoulder straps.  I've been on a dozen or so rides with it now and it's my favorite setup of them all.  Hold more than a hip pack, feels way better than a typical camelback

 

Skyline:

 

The EVOC

 

 

 

[jw4381 3251]

Ms. JW and I picked up stakes and moved to Taos this winter. Got her a new bike and we’ve been hitting some of the trails around here. 
This is on the west rim of the Gorge:

[jw4381 3251]

Bighorn sheep on the way home:

Good times 

[TwiceHorn 32104]

5 hours ago, jw4381 said:

Bighorn sheep on the way home:

Good times 

Nice.  Where were yall before?  ABQ?

[TwiceHorn 32104]

On 4/15/2022 at 5:39 PM, Your Mom said:

I'm really picky about that stuff.  Some of them just feel wrong and I can't shake the discomfort.  I've had a typical camelbak and they make my lower back ache after a while.  That's my fault for having a weak lower back, but still..  I've tried two hip belts, the Dakine Hot Laps and the EVOC something or other.  The Dakine has a 2L bladder.  The EVOC has a small bladder and holds a bottle on each side.  My preferred setup for the hip pack is the EVOC pack with the two bottles and no bladder, plus a bottle on the frame.  Rode thjat set up for a year or so and liked it well enough.   Minimal bounce.  I prefer bottles to bladder.  The hose annoys me and I don't mind slowing or stopping to drink.

They both need to be cinched down fairly tight to not bouce and the tightness isn't real comfortable,  but still better than a camelbak.... until recently.  I recently got a Camelbak Skyline.  Love it.  It's a pack on your back but it sits really low.  Almost like a bigger hip pack but with shoulder straps.  I've been on a dozen or so rides with it now and it's my favorite setup of them all.  Hold more than a hip pack, feels way better than a typical camelback

 

Skyline:

 

The EVOC

 

 

 

Yeah I had seen pretty good reviews for that one, but was a little spendy for kind of a trial run.

Rode with the Dakine, experimentally the other day.  Seemed perfectly comfortable, but had some sort of "user issues' getting it strapped on right, particularly with gloves on.  At one point, I decided to swap the pack bottle (just did one to see what it was like imbalanced) with the cage bottle.  

I can't seem to rotate the bag to bring it around front to get to the bottles or storage, so I unbuckled and when I strapped it back up, with gloves, it wasn't tight enough and slid down.  It was low but ok while seated, but I was afraid to come out of the saddle lest it fall way down.

Overall, I think I will like it better than a full pack, but it will take some getting used to.

[jw4381 3251]

18 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

Nice.  Where were yall before?  ABQ?

Los Alamos

[KuЯdt 248]

On 4/15/2022 at 5:39 PM, Your Mom said:

I'm really picky about that stuff.  Some of them just feel wrong and I can't shake the discomfort.  I've had a typical camelbak and they make my lower back ache after a while.  That's my fault for having a weak lower back, but still..  I've tried two hip belts, the Dakine Hot Laps and the EVOC something or other.  The Dakine has a 2L bladder.  The EVOC has a small bladder and holds a bottle on each side.  My preferred setup for the hip pack is the EVOC pack with the two bottles and no bladder, plus a bottle on the frame.  Rode thjat set up for a year or so and liked it well enough.   Minimal bounce.  I prefer bottles to bladder.  The hose annoys me and I don't mind slowing or stopping to drink.

They both need to be cinched down fairly tight to not bouce and the tightness isn't real comfortable,  but still better than a camelbak.... until recently.  I recently got a Camelbak Skyline.  Love it.  It's a pack on your back but it sits really low.  Almost like a bigger hip pack but with shoulder straps.  I've been on a dozen or so rides with it now and it's my favorite setup of them all.  Hold more than a hip pack, feels way better than a typical camelback

 

Skyline:

 

The EVOC

 

 

 

 

I have both of these.  got the Skyline to replace a regular camelbak but it wasn't quite what I was looking for.  It seemed pretty big.  After I got the evoc I just couldn't really go back to something with shoulder straps.  It's the closest I could get to the free feeling of not having a pack at all.  The skyline only gets used on really long days in the summer, but most of the time the evoc with its 1.5L bladder and another bottle on the bike is enough for me.  I'm kind of opposite from y'all in that I prefer the bladder to putting bottles in the pack pockets.  A good hack is to use a retractible badge reel (the kind you attach a security card to for office access) to keep the hose from getting pulled away too easily if that is an issue.

[jw4381 3251]

Not that it matters, but I'm team Camelback.

[Austinvines 318]

I have a 100oz Osprey Raptor. On hot rides in the summer, I’ll sip through most of it on a 2-3 hour ride. Plus it has saved my “tough”sons who only bring one bottle on those rides.

It is great. I can add ice to the widemouth bladder to make it really refreshing. I used to carry a shit ton in it, including a u-lock and a cable, but have trimmed down to some tools in the neat little tool pouch, a tube, inflator and cylinder in one of the larger zip areas, and my phone, AirPods, and wallet in a damp proof zip pocket. Nutrition goes in one or both of the hip side pockets.

Having an iced bottle just to spray on my head and not worry about running out of drinking water is also great.

I’m built for comfort, not speed, obviously.

[Austinvines 318]

I have a 100oz Osprey Raptor. On hot rides in the summer, I’ll sip through most of it on a 2-3 hour ride. Plus it has saved my “tough”sons who only bring one bottle on those rides.

It is great. I can add ice to the widemouth bladder to make it really refreshing. I used to carry a shit ton in it, including a u-lock and a cable, but have trimmed down to some tools in the neat little tool pouch, a tube, inflator and cylinder in one of the larger zip areas, and my phone, AirPods, and wallet in a damp proof zip pocket. Nutrition goes in one or both of the hip side pockets.

Having an iced bottle just to spray on my head and not worry about running out of drinking water is also great.

I’m built for comfort, not speed, obviously.

[Austinvines 318]

I have a 100oz Osprey Raptor. On hot rides in the summer, I’ll sip through most of it on a 2-3 hour ride. Plus it has saved my “tough”sons who only bring one bottle on those rides.

It is great. I can add ice to the widemouth bladder to make it really refreshing. I used to carry a shit ton in it, including a u-lock and a cable, but have trimmed down to some tools in the neat little tool pouch, a tube, inflator and cylinder in one of the larger zip areas, and my phone, AirPods, and wallet in a damp proof zip pocket. Nutrition goes in one or both of the hip side pockets.

Having an iced bottle just to spray on my head and not worry about running out of drinking water is also great.

I’m built for comfort, not speed, obviously.

[Austinvines 318]

Tapa DP

[TwiceHorn 32104]

Yeah, about 1/3 or more of my "hydration" is for refreshment purposes.  I like frozen bottles/ice water.

[Al_4_ISU 12661]

The drinking tip of my Camelback started leaking last year, so I haven't used it much this year.  It's unseasonably cold, so I'm getting by, but I'll have to get it fixed when the heat comes.

[CooterBrown 18289]

The drinking tip of my Camelback started leaking last year, so I haven't used it much this year.  It's unseasonably cold, so I'm getting by, but I'll have to get it fixed when the heat comes.

They’re like $5 on Amazon.

[TwiceHorn 32104]

Kind of a final report on the Ripley.  For some reason I can't put my finger on, it just feels better spinning up hills than the Marin.

I'm not sure if it's the "efficiency" of the DW-link (I didn't notice any sort of bob on the Marin), or maybe the better engagement hubs.  Or maybe the 12sp Deore cassette has a gear that the old one didn't.

[TwiceHorn 32104]

Finally made it down to Windmill Hill in DeSoto/Duncanville.  Very few trail descriptions out there, but some hints that it was hilly.

Sheeeit.  It's a hill like a 75 foot tall loaf of bread with a central trail running down the middle and a bunch of loops coming off of it.  So you only go maybe 50 yards in any direction before you are climbing or descending and many of them are steep, ledgy, rooty, and loose.  I was not prepared for as many climbs as it's got in its three miles, especially the first one I encountered.

It's quiet and rather pretty though, and very clean (no streams washing trash through it).  Good place to kick the shit out of yourself and practice technical climbs.

It was also 80+ and 70% humidity.  I kept thinking some of it would burn off by the time I got out there a little after noon.  No such luck, I was dripping and fogging my glasses.

[texasdago 7772]

I'm here to say hello because I am too cheap to upgrade my bike (although I will very soon especially since I bought new bikes for my boys) but if you see an idiot riding a MTB with no shocks on green/blue trails in Austin that looks like its from 1997 (because it is), yeah, that's me.  I always tell people I'm the idiot skiing on skinny skis.

[wd40 1976]

19 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

Kind of a final report on the Ripley.  For some reason I can't put my finger on, it just feels better spinning up hills than the Marin.

I'm not sure if it's the "efficiency" of the DW-link (I didn't notice any sort of bob on the Marin), or maybe the better engagement hubs.  Or maybe the 12sp Deore cassette has a gear that the old one didn't.

Narrarator:  it's the 12sp

 

[TwiceHorn 32104]

13 minutes ago, wd40 said:

Narrarator:  it's the 12sp

 

Yeah, since coming from an 11sp, I figured they just added the dinner plate, and maybe spread out one or two lower ratios, but there's a pretty substantial difference in the cogs on it.

[sasquatch69 626]

5 hours ago, texasdago said:

I'm here to say hello because I am too cheap to upgrade my bike (although I will very soon especially since I bought new bikes for my boys) but if you see an idiot riding a MTB with no shocks on green/blue trails in Austin that looks like its from 1997 (because it is), yeah, that's me.  I always tell people I'm the idiot skiing on skinny skis.

That was me for the first 1.5 years I was back on the bike after a long layoff (a 1997 GT RTS-3).  It was *technically* full suspension, but with weird geometry and a suspect gearset that tended to crap out in the middle of climbs.  It got me back into the sport after COVID hit, though, and we had some great rides until I finally replaced it with a modern bike last fall.  Either way, that's awesome you're riding, and feel free to share your rides here!

[texasdago 7772]

9 hours ago, sasquatch69 said:

That was me for the first 1.5 years I was back on the bike after a long layoff (a 1997 GT RTS-3).  It was *technically* full suspension, but with weird geometry and a suspect gearset that tended to crap out in the middle of climbs.  It got me back into the sport after COVID hit, though, and we had some great rides until I finally replaced it with a modern bike last fall.  Either way, that's awesome you're riding, and feel free to share your rides here!

Yeah, I know I'm odd man out when I'm riding and I get to be the suspension but I guess it's making me learn the hard way how to ride on Austin's rocky terrain.

We live right by the Circle C Metropolitan Park so I tend to explore the offshoot trails on both sides of Escarpment and then also work through the various network of trails working towards Dick Nichols Park.  Not quite ready for Slaughter Creek Trail but once I upgrade my bike, I think it will get much easier.

Took a hike through the single-track trails to the side of the main Hill of Life trail yesterday... lots of good stuff back there.

[midtown 3357]

Well if I wasn't an honest person: 9 of you would be getting free gloves. Clearly Amazon had a fullflment problem. If for any reason they don't want them back then it's give away time unless you have hobbit fingers. But I doubt the want to give away $300 worth of gloves

[Pescado_Rojo 19593]

I have a pair of those that are so funky they stand up on their own. Great gloves. Especially in spring/ Early Summer when the weeds are tall. The little bit of armor over the knuckles keeps you from getting thorns in your knuckles. 

[TwiceHorn 32104]

Yeah, I have a pair of those that I keep as spares, good gloves.

The Dakine Cross-X seem to be had a bit cheaper on the regular and are pretty similar.

[Al_4_ISU 12661]

I lose bike gloves like I lose socks.

Someday I’ll move out of this house and find 30 pairs.

[wd40 1976]

just got back from Fruita, last night.  17.5 hour drive.  rode with Your Mom, a couple days.  after sifting thru 64GB of footage, I've concluded there's just no point in the gopro.  makes it hard to breathe, and the finished product doesn't even come close to capturing the fun.  we did a day at 18 Road (between scattered rain/sleet showers), then Kokopelli:  Mary's, Horsethief, then Moore Fun to get back to the truck.

I got there a day ahead of him, so I got a day to preride by myself.  wind was insane.  made it unrideable, after a point, esp on the exposed ridges.  checked NOAA later, and it was 25-35 with gusts to 65.  hardest wind I've ever been in.  almost got blown off the hill a few times.  ai may piece some of that together, but there's no way you can feel the sand getting driven into your legs at 50mph.

anyway, this one is decent.  Joe's Ridge/Mojo, end to end.

 

Mom's still out there, somewhere in Moab.  just shreddin'.

[TwiceHorn 32104]

What's the altitude like?  We don't usually hear you huffing and puffing, but that may be all the chunk you usually ride.

[Braff Zacklin 13676]

Great stuff, wd.

Disagree with your conclusion--that looked super fun and flowy, with some nice jumps and rideoffs thrown in.

Turbo jelly, especially since I haven't straddled a bike since October. (Haven't been home since February.)

[wd40 1976]

23 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

What's the altitude like?  We don't usually hear you huffing and puffing, but that may be all the chunk you usually ride.

little over 5k.  still coughing from all the dust during the windstorm on day 1.

but mostly, it's my negative VO2 Max score, crappy nutrition, and my 10sp cassette.  Mom was killin' it on the longer climbs.

Braff, I hope you can get some saddle time, soon.

[TwiceHorn 32104]

11 hours ago, wd40 said:

little over 5k.  still coughing from all the dust during the windstorm on day 1.

but mostly, it's my negative VO2 Max score, crappy nutrition, and my 10sp cassette.  Mom was killin' it on the longer climbs.

Braff, I hope you can get some saddle time, soon.

Poppycock.  We've seen you climb.

That's about like Denver, I guess.  I have had some minor problems hiking at ~8k, don't recall doing anything strenuous at 4-5k and so never had any problems.

Edited April 28, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[KuЯdt 248]

On 4/26/2022 at 8:20 PM, wd40 said:

just got back from Fruita, last night.  17.5 hour drive.  rode with Your Mom, a couple days.  after sifting thru 64GB of footage, I've concluded there's just no point in the gopro.  makes it hard to breathe, and the finished product doesn't even come close to capturing the fun.  we did a day at 18 Road (between scattered rain/sleet showers), then Kokopelli:  Mary's, Horsethief, then Moore Fun to get back to the truck.

I got there a day ahead of him, so I got a day to preride by myself.  wind was insane.  made it unrideable, after a point, esp on the exposed ridges.  checked NOAA later, and it was 25-35 with gusts to 65.  hardest wind I've ever been in.  almost got blown off the hill a few times.  ai may piece some of that together, but there's no way you can feel the sand getting driven into your legs at 50mph.

anyway, this one is decent.  Joe's Ridge/Mojo, end to end.

 

Mom's still out there, somewhere in Moab.  just shreddin'.

 

 

good stuff.   that looks like a fun ride, I need to get out there one of these days.  Mom videos forthcoming? (that didn't sound quite right...)

[Your Mom 4982]

Man that was blast!  I got home this evening.  I'll go through the footage this weekend and get something posted.  Joe's and MoJoe, posted above, are just smiles the whole time.  I think the best riding I did on this trip was Horsethief Bench and Mary's Loop.  HB was just the right amount of chunk and ledges to make is challenging and fun but still doable.  Mary's was fun and great scenery along cliffs.  Moore Fun ended but being more technical than I like but you never know until you try it.  I was wiped out by the time we got to it.  

In Moab I did Lower Porcupine Singletrack and Porcupine Rim.  That's basically the lower half of the Whole Enchilada.  Upper sections are still closed for snow and mud.  The next day I did Navajo Rocks.  It's an intermediate  mix of slickrock and dirt with lots of punchy climbs but nothing too technical.  I probably wouldn't do it again now that I've seen it.   I was planning on doing the Mag 7 and opting out of Portal but that requires either an all uphill return to the starting point or a shitload of extra miles down a gravel road to the end.  I was beat down from the previous days and Navajo Rocks was something easier instead.  I thought about just sucking it up and committing to Portal to make Mag 7 logistically easier but it only took one youtube viewing to remind me I have no business on that trail.  LPS and Porcupine Rim is probably my favorite out there.  13 miles almost all downhill with enough chunk and ledges to make you feel like you accomplished something but not so much as to slow you down too much.  
 

Edited April 29, 2022 by Your Mom

[TwiceHorn 32104]

On 3/8/2021 at 3:52 PM, sasquatch69 said:

There are lots of little down/ups at Big Cedar, on all but the easiest trail (Dragonfly).  The photo I posted is on the other green trail (I Can), and there's another blue trail (Crooked Tree) that's mostly easy but has a couple of big swings in elevation.

My favorite spot in the entire trail network at BC is the northeastern part of the Ranger Loop, past Crooked Tree, because it has an incredible downhill section that opens up at the end into a big open-field valley inbetween the Escarpment hills.  However, the climb out of it, even with a couple switchbacks, is brutal.  I ended up walking a good chunk of it - but there's no shame in that.

EDIT: Here's a video of one part of the back stretch of Ranger Loop where there's a crazy off-camber old concrete bridge that you come up on with little warning. 

 

Well, I finally got out to ride some of Big Cedar.  I didn't dig up these older posts to find out what I should (not) ride, so just strove to ride the two greens to get a flavor for the trail.  

The first green is right near the trailhead, so that's easy, but the second one is a ways past it and can be "gotten to" on the central, Ranger Loop, a Ranger Trail Connect, and an Access Road.  Out in the middle of the trail, I couldn't figure out which was which or exactly where I was going, but managed to find both greens twice and saw some bits of the trail.  It's confusing as hell.  I did see Crooked Tree, which it sounds like I should have ridden, but don't trust DFW blues.  The greens were definitely green, though, but pretty flowy.

Nice trail except for all the confusing criss-crossing.  Caught some glimpses of big drops and other features that will remain permanently beyond my reach.

[TwiceHorn 32104]

Rode with my buddy at Oak Cliff NP this morning.  Was nicely crisp and not too humid.  Had a pretty good ride.

Afterward, he wanted to ride the Ripley and I had never ridden his Tallboy, so we swapped for a mild lap.  Very comparable bikes.  I could tell his was carbon, but I couldn't quite tell what to "attribute" to that fact.  Very comparable bikes, overall.

One thing, and he's a good bit heavier than I, was he said my tires seemed low.  Well, that's probably true, because I started them   off near 30 front and rear (Hans Dampf/ Nobby Nic) because they're heavy and probably slower rolling than the Rekon/EXO I was coming from.  I figured I'd just let them kind of bleed down until they squirmed or felt too soft, and thereby try to figure out a good pressure for them.  Still "feel" pretty hard to me, but they are squishier.  I haven't put a pump or gage on them in a month.

So he dragged out his gage.  10psi front.  12psi rear.  Holy fuck. Lol.  They are stiff, heavy, burly tires and I sweatergawd they were not squirming or bottoming.  Definitely seem to have less supple/soft sidewalls than the Rekon, which would have been squishy af at 10/12.

[Your Mom 4982]

I came home to a bunch of kid's basketball games, track meets, homework drama, etc...  Finally getting these videos sorted through.  I probably should have started with something other than the exact same run WD40 posted above, but I didn't.  So here's Joe's Ridge and Mo Joe from my camera.  Looking forward to sorting through Horsethief and I think I can get it posted tomorrow.

 

 

[Braff Zacklin 13676]

That looks super fun. I hate you both.

🤣😂🤘

[TwiceHorn 32104]

Yeah, that looks like something even a dipshit stiff like me could enjoy pretty well.  

[wd40 1976]

haha, damn.  all those fun jumps of mine look super-lame from a following POV.  

but, yes, the 18 Road area is almost all flow.  y'all'd love it.  most of the jumps are on Mojo, which really just the lower half of Joe's Ridge, after crossing a jeep road.

what's really interesting is this gives a great side-by-side comparison of different gens of cameras.  mine's a 6, and Mom's is an 8.  the wind dampening is 100% better on the 8.  you can hear the tires so much better on Mom's footage.

I have a few other videos I've lazily edited (continuity is #1!).  the Horsethief one following Mom is pretty good, but long.  been thinking how to put together a summary vid of the 3 days without it putting everyone to sleep.

I really liked this trail:  Frontside.  it gets you to the starts of Joe's and Zippity Do-Da.  because of the intermittent rain/sleet, I switched from my Dakine Hot Laps to my Blowfish so I could carry a jacket.  I think the chest strap was rubbing on the gopro harness, so there's some annoying noises, now and then.

 

[Your Mom 4982]

10 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

Yeah, that looks like something even a dipshit stiff like me could enjoy pretty well.  

18 Road in Fruita is fun for everyone at all levels.  There's were tons of families and kids out there hitting the trails with the same topography but less exposure and less climbing.  It's basically a gravel road with a gentle slope the top then pick one of 6-7 trails to the bottom.  Back and forth all day.  

I'm working on more vids this morning.

[KuЯdt 248]

awesome stuff, fellas.  i'm liking the teamwork on these videos, it's always cool to get multiple perspectives of a ride.  I also like the view of that expansive landscape and how you can really see the trail way up ahead.

[Your Mom 4982]

Here's our day at the Kokopelli Loops.  This is right outside Fruita, about 20-30 minutes from the 18 Road trails.  

A few points about this:

 1. I sniffle, grunt, and wheeze a lot more than I realized.

2. Horsethief Bench was my favorite riding on the whole trip.  Just the perfect. mix of fun terrain but mostly stuff you can hit at speed.  The drop-in is the biggest ledge I've ever rolled.  When we scouted it I thought I'd huck off the biggest drop but the other drops are so close to it I didn't have enough speed there.  There's no way I'd have tried to roll it if I hadn't seen a couple other guys do it first.

3.  Mary's was also fun and fast.  Beautiful scenery above the bluff and the river.  Moore Fun kicked the shit out of me.  Tighter turns, steeper chunkier climbs.  I lost count of how many times I got hung up, dabbed a bunch, walked quite a bit, and crashed once on a stupid spot when I just just riding like shit from fatigue.  

It was a great day.

 

Edited May 2, 2022 by Your Mom

[wd40 1976]

well, I enjoyed it.  but I was there, so for me it's about being able to relive the experience, and it works great for that.

here's my last video on this.  covers the interesting stuff (for me) across all three days.

 

[TwiceHorn 32104]

So, is all that rock sandstone? Granite?  I guess it's got more traction than limestone, either way, and isn't damp.   You centex fellers have more familiarity with that.  Looks kind of intimidating.

 

And, it looks like for the most part, a short-travel bike is fine on that stuff?

Edited May 3, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[TwiceHorn 32104]

5 hours ago, wd40 said:

well, I enjoyed it.  but I was there, so for me it's about being able to relive the experience, and it works great for that.

here's my last video on this.  covers the interesting stuff (for me) across all three days.

 

HOoooly shit, that exposure with that wind.

No thank you.

 

Gotta chuckle at you guys huhuh'ing on those kickers.  I'd be giggling like a little girl, until I ate shit on the landing.

Edited May 3, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[Your Mom 4982]

The big stuff is sandstone.  Super grippy.  

[TwiceHorn 32104]

On 5/3/2022 at 10:02 PM, Your Mom said:

The big stuff is sandstone.  Super grippy.  

Did 9 miles out at Horseshoe at Lake Grapevine today, hottest ride of the year so far.  It's sandstone too and doesn't have the big rock, but has some spots of pretty big chunk that I can't handle or am afraid to sacrifice my body, pedals and cranks on.  Still pretty pleased with myself not throwing a rod in the heat.  Cuz it's going to be mid-90s all next week.

 

Also gotta report an epically stupid crash.  I was tooling along a straight section of trail at a fair clip and came across some hikers.  We could see each other well and they moved off to the left and I moved right with lots of room to spare.  There was a tree off to my right, but I didn't clip it.  What did happen was there was some "greenbriar" or whatever that viney briar shit is, hanging from the tree and it caught my right hand, really good.  I either overreacted or the thorns pulled my right hand pretty much like I clipped the tree, which sent me off the bike to the left, cursing a blue streak about 5 feet behind the hikers.  No real harm done, but I did bang the shit out my shin on the right pedal and banged my knee a lick on the frame.  I have only a couple of purplish spots on my hand from the thorns, so that knuckle protection did some unanticipated good.  I felt like kind of a dickbag for not slowing down more, and for cussing so much.

Edited May 6, 2022 by TwiceHorn