The Surly Mountain Biking Thread

[TwiceHorn 30851]

17 hours ago, jw4381 said:

Northern New Mexico is in a good monsoon this summer. Thanks be to Zeus. 
 

Did a ride today nw of Fort Collins with my sons today. Good fun, but man I’m slow. 
 

It's mostly just age, I think.  You have to be in a lot better shape than a younger dude or gal to be able to whoop them most of the time.

It does make it kind of gratifying when you are able to smoke younger folk.

So, weird occurrence at Boulder Park trail, which is immediately south of Redbird/Dallas Executive airport.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/small-plane-crashes-near-dallas-executive-airport/ar-AA1056XK

It appears that it crashed right next to the trail.  It would be kind of amusing if they left airplane chunks around the trail like they sometimes do car bodies and parts.

 

[sasquatch69 576]

On 7/30/2022 at 8:34 PM, jw4381 said:

Northern New Mexico is in a good monsoon this summer. Thanks be to Zeus. 

We were in Taos for four days last week.  Had family shit to do most of the day, but I'm the only early riser of the bunch so I got up before 6am 3 of the 4 days.  Did hikes 2 of the days (Devisadero Loop, which was mentioned upthread - it's a great hike but I can't imagine trying to do that first uphill on a bike - and the El Salto del Agua Cañoncito trail near Arroyo Seco, which was gorgeous). 

The last morning I took my bike up to Horse Thief Mesa near Arroyo Hondo.  Had a great ride, mostly, except when I took a jeep trail shortcut to shorten my ride a bit due to time and got stuck in quicksand-like mud (which I should have expected given the monsoons mentioned above).  Took 10 minutes of scraping it off with a stick once I got back to the singletrack to make it rideable again, and then chunks of mud flew off for another mile or two.  Views along the Gorge couldn't be beat, though.

 

[TwiceHorn 30851]

2 hours ago, sasquatch69 said:

We were in Taos for four days last week.  Had family shit to do most of the day, but I'm the only early riser of the bunch so I got up before 6am 3 of the 4 days.  Did hikes 2 of the days (Devisadero Loop, which was mentioned upthread - it's a great hike but I can't imagine trying to do that first uphill on a bike - and the El Salto del Agua Cañoncito trail near Arroyo Seco, which was gorgeous). 

The last morning I took my bike up to Horse Thief Mesa near Arroyo Hondo.  Had a great ride, mostly, except when I took a jeep trail shortcut to shorten my ride a bit due to time and got stuck in quicksand-like mud (which I should have expected given the monsoons mentioned above).  Took 10 minutes of scraping it off with a stick once I got back to the singletrack to make it rideable again, and then chunks of mud flew off for another mile or two.  Views along the Gorge couldn't be beat, though.

 

So, it appears you've taken your bike on a number of fairly long trips, now.  Just put it on a rack, or have something else?

What rack, may I ask?

I have a Kuat Transfer that I am pretty happy with.  For no particularly rational reason, the idea of a long trip, say more than 100 miles, makes me nervous.

[sasquatch69 576]

1 hour ago, TwiceHorn said:

So, it appears you've taken your bike on a number of fairly long trips, now.  Just put it on a rack, or have something else?

What rack, may I ask?

I have a Kuat Transfer that I am pretty happy with.  For no particularly rational reason, the idea of a long trip, say more than 100 miles, makes me nervous.

I use a Thule Insta-Gater in my truck bed, usually with a couple additional tiedowns to help minimize any motion on the front wheel. It makes me feel better to have it in the bed and not on a hitch rack.  I did use a hitch rack a couple times on longer trips (a cheap one) for my kids’ bikes, and wrapped a couple cable locks around the bikes/hitch as additional proection. But honestly, if you have a Kuat, those things are about the best you can get besides a 1Up.

Edited August 4, 2022 by sasquatch69

[jw4381 3044]

Shame on you for not hanging out for beers!

[TwiceHorn 30851]

On 7/28/2022 at 8:37 AM, TwiceHorn said:

I am having the world's longest new bike day with the Ripley AF, going on four months now..  I am faster on it, by about 1 mph, on most of the trails I ride, and I don't really get why, except that it seems to be a really efficient pedaling platform.  I think the more positive steering may be a factor, too, in the twisty stuff we have around here and I have concluded that that is mostly a stiffer fork, maybe the shortened offset some.

And that means my sort of minimum ride of five-six miles takes me less time than it used to, so my rides are getting shorter in time.

On the flip side, I'm riding more days a week, but the same old trails, so the boredom factor sets in.  It doesn't stop me from wanting to ride, but after I ride the whole trail, I have trouble getting fired up to do it again.  And, the heat's not really helping much either, although  a ride before noon is pretty comfortable, overall.

The boredom factor is making me want to improve my skills some, particularly very ledgy climbs and drops, but I'm having trouble finding the right size drop to practice on.

So, in keeping with this, today I went out to River Legacy in Arlington.  As has been mentioned, some people call it a paved trail painted to look like dirt.  Largely true.

Was wheels down at 1030ish, and it was feeling pretty warm, so I wondered if I would regret the ride.  I took off, and the first mile or so has some climbs and drops that slow you down a little, and I skipped most of the Prairie Loops, which are unshaded and would have been hot af.  I got to the sort of skills area called FunTown that's about 2.5 miles in and clocked 9.6 mph.  Kind of a whoa, as that's pretty fast for me.

The rest of the trail from FunTown back to the trailhead is flat, but pretty twisty, so I really wasn't sure if I would speed up or slow down.  I didn't really flog it, but I made sure not to coast much or "let up" and I didn't do all the little side loops off of the East Loop because it was hot and those are a little extra twisty.

I finished up doing a tad less than six miles at an average speed of 10.1 mph.

I have never broken 10mph on any trail, at any significant length (sure a few "segments" here and there, but never a whole ride).

Feels a little pathetisad to say that, but I am 56 years old.  And this fucking bike is fast.

The corollary to all this is that the ride was just over half an hour, which is short for me.  It was 93 when I finished, and I wasn't beat but was feeling the heat.  And I knew keeping going would drop it below 10 mph.  So I quit.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

Cuyuna tomorrow.  Haven't been this excited for a ride since my last trip to NWA.  Got a 12 mile loop right out the front door of our Airbnb lined up.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

Cuyuna/Crosby was absolutely fantastic. In the discussion with NWA for full on embrace of mountain biking in the community, and having a very extensive and varied network of trails. Friday we rode about 18 miles of incredible XC single track in the Mahnomen Unit. Rode right out of our Airbnb in Crosby and was on single track in less than a block.

Flowy as hell, with some long climbs and descents and great views. It was 90+ but there was no humidity. It rained Friday night into Saturday AM, and the iron ore red dirt handled it really well. We rode in the Sagamore Unit (about 6 miles out of town) and those trails were quite a bit different. One was almost technical with tons of highly manufactured rock gardens that had turned into death traps due to the rain. The other trails were these stupid flowy wide ones that you could absolutely rip on.

I highly recommend riding here if you’re ever in the Upper Midwest.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

Very nice.  Hard to imagine 90 up there.  I went one summer with the gf from Brainerd and it was pretty much sweet relief from here, although humid and skeetery.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

Did something today I've only done once or twice before, forgot my water bottle.  And I've never done it on a 90+ day.  I did have a bottle of water in the car, but it wouldn't stay in my cage and I didn't have any other means of carrying it.  Should have gone and found some water at a gas station or something, but this is Boulder Park, down in the hood.

Because I have always managed to bring water, I don't really know what it feels like to get dehydrated on a bike/trail.  I usually ride loops A and B at Boulder and add in E if I am feeling froggy.  I got down to the part where loop B meets A and was feeling fine, not too sweaty yet, but a bit dry in the mouth.  I figured skipping B was the smart move, although it would mean a very short ride.  The return leg of A is about half unshaded and fairly climby, and I was sweating like a pig by the time I got to the "big" climb out.  So, that was probably wise.

I always take short breaks to drink on a ride.  It's as much mental and kind of a cool-off as anything else.  That is, I'm not feeling thirsty or tired, I just do it because.  Not having the option to drink is weird, and taking a break without anything to drink is also weird.  I'm usually pretty well hydrated before I ride, from coffee and a bottle of water or two, but I didn't really want to experiment with dehydration bonking, particularly once I started sweating hard.

I did, however, do the climbout without stroking out.  Kind of a shameful three mile, 30 minute ride.

Also, I was kind of hoping to see the plane crash site, but I think it's on loop B.

Edited August 9, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

19 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

Very nice.  Hard to imagine 90 up there.  I went one summer with the gf from Brainerd and it was pretty much sweet relief from here, although humid and skeetery.

We noticed almost all of the houses in Crosby didn't have central air.  Our Airbnb had slapped in some window units at the last minute.  The locals said it was as hot out as it gets up there, and many people had opted for the lake instead of the trails, which was nice.

For us, a humidity-free 90 didn't feel bad at all, especially in the shade of the woods.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

19 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

Did something today I've only done once or twice before, forgot my water bottle.  And I've never done it on a 90+ day.  I did have a bottle of water in the car, but it wouldn't stay in my cage and I didn't have any other means of carrying it.  Should have gone and found some water at a gas station or something, but this is Boulder Park, down in the hood.

Because I have always managed to bring water, I don't really know what it feels like to get dehydrated on a bike/trail.  I usually ride loops A and B at Boulder and add in E if I am feeling froggy.  I got down to the part where loop B meets A and was feeling fine, not too sweaty yet, but a bit dry in the mouth.  I figured skipping B was the smart move, although it would mean a very short ride.  The return leg of A is about half unshaded and fairly climby, and I was sweating like a pig by the time I got to the "big" climb out.  So, that was probably wise.

I always take short breaks to drink on a ride.  It's as much mental and kind of a cool-off as anything else.  That is, I'm not feeling thirsty or tired, I just do it because.  Not having the option to drink is weird, and taking a break without anything to drink is also weird.  I'm usually pretty well hydrated before I ride, from coffee and a bottle of water or two, but I didn't really want to experiment with dehydration bonking, particularly once I started sweating hard.

I did, however, do the climbout without stroking out.  Kind of a shameful three mile, 30 minute ride.

Also, I was kind of hoping to see the plane crash site, but I think it's on loop B.

When I first started I wouldn't always bring a bottle with me.  Since then, I've become a card carrying member of Team Camelback and almost get a little nervous in the handful of occasions I find myself without my Camelback.

This becomes far less important south of 80 degrees, and when I'm fat biking in winter I won't even bring any (it just freezes), but north of 80 I just feel kinda naked without my water supply.

[jw4381 3044]

Yeah I take my camelback religiously. 
 

Yesterday’s fun:

 

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

That seems like the perfect combo of distance and elevation for an hour's ride.

[jw4381 3044]

Seems slow to me. I’ll get faster as I lose weight maybe…

[sasquatch69 576]

2 hours ago, jw4381 said:

Seems slow to me. I’ll get faster as I lose weight maybe…

That's about my pace also.  It's about getting out there and doing it.

Is that the gorge?

[jw4381 3044]

Yes. This is south of town. 

[TwiceHorn 30851]

That's like 8mph.  Unless that's all downhill, that's always respectable on a trail.

I went and looked at Strava for some of the times on my recent PR stretch at 10+ mph.  The KOM speeds are like 17.😵😵

More than the physical aspect of it, I don't know how they carry that kind of speed amongst the trees.  I rather suspect those speeds/times were achieved on gravel bikes.  River Legacy is certainly rideable on a gravel bike.  I haven't seen many out there, but I have at Harry Moss, and the narrow bars and steep head angle are a definite plus in the tight and twisties.

Any time you see a gravel bike, or even a hardtail racebike on one of the trails, it's pretty much get out the way.  Of course those people are always wearing spandex.  I see a dude at Moss riding an S-Works hardtail fairly often in full kit.  Get out the way.

And, one of the dudes in my little riding group, who is one of the stronger/faster riders in our group recently picked up a racy carbon Cannondale with a lefty fork that weighs about 25 lbs, maybe less.  He can now drop any of us pretty much at will.

I'm never going to really want to give max physical effort on something I do for fun.  But more than the physical effort, I just don't feel safe carrying that kind of speed on any of our trails, much less while giving a huge effort.

Edited August 12, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[TwiceHorn 30851]

Woof.  Got a little rain this week that actually shut down a couple of trails. Also dropped the temps a bit.

So I went up to Katie Jackson about 10:30-11, temp when I left the house a very manageable 82.  Forgot to look at humidity though.  Although I have been riding at lot at temps well into the 90s, the humidity has been well under 50%, also.

Today it read 61% at Love Field, and I have concluded that KJP is a little extra steamy, certainly with moist dirt around.

And it was pretty ugh.  Not intolerable, but a lot worse than low, mid 90s with low humidity.  Gross.  Still managed to pound out 7 miles at 8+ mph.  There was some hero dirt, so that was nice.

I almost drove up to Frisco NW, but it's twice as far and also relatively shadeless.  That was probably a good decision.  The lack of trees probably helps with the humidity some, but I have been up there and been "felled" by heat and humidity before.  It's worse out in the sunlight than the shade.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

I was checking the DORBA site to see which trails were open and lo, LB Houston is back.  It was the first trail I ever rode and has been closed for something like five years due to City work on sewer lines.  It's not a "great" trail, but has some length and is nicely in the woods.  It's also out NW Hwy in a skeezy ass part of town with tit bars and porn shops and hot-sheet motels.  One of the trailheads or parking areas is always full of cars with nasty old men in them trolling for  . . . something.  I'm always a little wary of what I'm going to stumble on there.

Again temp mildish but humidity fairly high, a little bit nasty and I actually got a little tired riding 8 miles despite no climbs or technical sections.  Although it's mostly cleared out, it's not well marked, and I was going from memory and a lot of things just don't look the same.

Nevertheless, kind of fun from a nostalgic pov.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

Anyone have experience with trail construction and maintenance?

I've posted a few pics of riding out at county park that's really close to my house (I can ride out my front door) and I was out for supper last Thursday and ran into the head of the county conservation department.  He gave me a full green light to start maintaining the trails throughout the year, including widening and trimming some of the trails that have already been blazed for winter snowshoeing (which I've ridden in early spring and are already pretty fun/challenging singletrack).  The other really exciting part is he's now going to allow fat biking on the skate XC ski trails in the winter.  There was an older couple that used to lead up all the XC ski maintenance that was very against it, but they permanently winter in Arizona now, and he's opening up the trail system to new volunteer maintenance and usage.  I'm really excited about that.

This year I'll probably just focus on sprucing up the existing trails, but next year I'll look to expand.  We just got a skidloader mounted brush cutter at the farm that could eat that undergrowth for breakfast.

So I mostly I'm just pumped for the opportunity, but I'm also curious if anyone has any tips, advice, or stories to share about this sort of thing.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

Here's a tipsheet that some of the trail stewards round these parts reference. https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5343897.pdf

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

Thanks!

[TwiceHorn 30851]

Damn.  On my fourth or fifth ride since the humidity came back and it's still nasty.  I'm not really acclimating at all.

Did another ride out at LB Houston.  It is a basically boring trail, but it's new boring, so I'll take it.  One weird thing, though.  Although the trail tread is mostly identifiable, it hasn't been ridden a lot.  So in the sun-scorched parts that would normally be "kitty litter" or loose over hard, it's flat out deep loose, almost like sand.  So what I thought would be a drift-bite situation in some turns, like loose over hard, turned into driiiiffffft then kind of dig in, not bite, but plow up a furrow dig in.  Pretty weird.  In the shady parts, it's just a bit bumpy.

One other oddball thing.  It wasn't maintained for 4-5 years, but has been cleared well lately.  Not sure if it's the clearing or something else, but it's a lot less tight in most places than it used to be.  It used to have those "privet tunnels" that were kind of spooky-cool, but no mas, it's now several feet from the trail tread.  Maybe some rain will bring it back.

Edited August 17, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[sasquatch69 576]

I need to get out to LBH - haven’t ridden there in 15 years or more.

I’ve gotten into a paved-trail kick this week - done three loops from North Dallas down along SoPac Trail to WRL, around the lake then back up via the WR Creek Trail. I started at Harry Moss the first two times, and then Valley View this am to get a longer ride.

I share this here because I’ve seen past comments (from @TwiceHorn and others) about the value of road/paved trail riding for building endurance. I am already feeling that - I did 54 miles between those three rides, and each one felt a little better. I’m really looking forward to trying a DORBA trail again to see if it feels different - and if I should start rotating between the two more often.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

8 hours ago, sasquatch69 said:

I need to get out to LBH - haven’t ridden there in 15 years or more.

I’ve gotten into a paved-trail kick this week - done three loops from North Dallas down along SoPac Trail to WRL, around the lake then back up via the WR Creek Trail. I started at Harry Moss the first two times, and then Valley View this am to get a longer ride.

I share this here because I’ve seen past comments (from @TwiceHorn and others) about the value of road/paved trail riding for building endurance. I am already feeling that - I did 54 miles between those three rides, and each one felt a little better. I’m really looking forward to trying a DORBA trail again to see if it feels different - and if I should start rotating between the two more often.

Yeah, it helped me quite a bit, especially adding in the singlespeed experience.  And, I think carrying a faster cadence got my off the mtb exercise plateau and kind of jumpstarted my metabolism and got me to lose more weight than mtb alone.  The other thing is that its easier/safer, for me anyway, to ride to near exhaustion on the street/paved trail.

One thing to kind of watch for though.  Paved riding got me more comfortable holding a higher gear on the trails, which actually wound up slowing me down and tiring me out a bit on the tight and twisties.  Carrying a high gear into a turn and then trying to accelerate out of it is a bit of a beating.

Then you add in the Ripley, which is an absolute rocket, and I'm going faster and "completing" rides that used to take the better part of an hour in 30-40 minutes.  I have always had trouble motivating myself to "go round again."

I have ridden about 100 miles a month since getting the Ripley.  With an assist from the parched weather, I haven't really ridden on the road much.  Looks like we might get some rain here soon that will put me back on the paved trails/streets.

Also, if you ride the White Rock Creek paved trail going north, around Forest Lane, you'll have the option to take Cottonwood Creek trail north.  It's full of homeless encampments and gatherings right along the trail.  I didn't have any hostile encounters at all, but blowing through a group of them seems like it might set the stage for something unpleasant.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

Got a little more rain, but not much in my particular area, so the close-in trails still open.  Cooled off quite a bit too.

Went to Moss at about 1130 because the temperature (85ish) permitted and tried to let the humidity burn off, still upper 50%. 

And, got hero dirt, and it was gross as fuck because of the humidity.  Felt pretty good going fastish, but a lot of debris on the trail slowed me down, and then random faceslappers.

But the real highlight of the ride was an armadillo that moseyed in front of me on the trail.  We were on a crash course and I SLAMMED on the brakes.  And just barely avoided an endo.  My back wheel must have been 2-3 feet in the air and the jewels and my top tube became intimately acquainted, while the armadillo scurried off into the trees.

I have heard that armadillos can walk/run right in front of you, but that was a first.  It was also a very light colored one from what I have seen of them, maybe young?

[sasquatch69 576]

On 8/18/2022 at 7:50 AM, TwiceHorn said:

Yeah, it helped me quite a bit, especially adding in the singlespeed experience.  And, I think carrying a faster cadence got my off the mtb exercise plateau and kind of jumpstarted my metabolism and got me to lose more weight than mtb alone.  The other thing is that its easier/safer, for me anyway, to ride to near exhaustion on the street/paved trail.

One thing to kind of watch for though.  Paved riding got me more comfortable holding a higher gear on the trails, which actually wound up slowing me down and tiring me out a bit on the tight and twisties.  Carrying a high gear into a turn and then trying to accelerate out of it is a bit of a beating.

Then you add in the Ripley, which is an absolute rocket, and I'm going faster and "completing" rides that used to take the better part of an hour in 30-40 minutes.  I have always had trouble motivating myself to "go round again."

I have ridden about 100 miles a month since getting the Ripley.  With an assist from the parched weather, I haven't really ridden on the road much.  Looks like we might get some rain here soon that will put me back on the paved trails/streets.

Also, if you ride the White Rock Creek paved trail going north, around Forest Lane, you'll have the option to take Cottonwood Creek trail north.  It's full of homeless encampments and gatherings right along the trail.  I didn't have any hostile encounters at all, but blowing through a group of them seems like it might set the stage for something unpleasant.

Thanks for sharing that experience - that's helpful, especially the bit about high gear comfort level and its effect on MTB riding.  

I've had a couple of friends who have had borderline-scary experiences on the Cottonwood Trail connector under the High Five interchange, so I avoid that and stick to WRC.  It's a damn shame they built that trail under there and don't do anything to police/maintain it.

[Braff Zacklin 13299]

Are there any post-ride moments better than the instant cooling you feel after a brisk ride on a hot day, when you're covered in sweat from head to toe, and a breeze kicks up and hits you at just the right angle?

Glorious!

 

Quaffing a can of Coke or beer after an intense pedal is also up there, but that cooling shot o' wind tops it all for me.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

2 hours ago, Braff Zacklin said:

Are there any post-ride moments better than the instant cooling you feel after a brisk ride on a hot day, when you're covered in sweat from head to toe, and a breeze kicks up and hits you at just the right angle?

Glorious!

 

Quaffing a can of Coke or beer after an intense pedal is also up there, but that cooling shot o' wind tops it all for me.

Seems like round these parts lately, the way to get that is to get back on your bike and move out at speed.  When you stop, it's just gross.  I always have to save myself a few swallows of water, at least, for the post-ride cooldown.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

21 hours ago, sasquatch69 said:

Thanks for sharing that experience - that's helpful, especially the bit about high gear comfort level and its effect on MTB riding.  

I've had a couple of friends who have had borderline-scary experiences on the Cottonwood Trail connector under the High Five interchange, so I avoid that and stick to WRC.  It's a damn shame they built that trail under there and don't do anything to police/maintain it.

Also, although I guess it's a bit out of the way unless you're in Irving, the Campion Trail is loooooong, and actually pretty nice, shady, and more wooded than you might expect.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

On 8/20/2022 at 5:50 PM, Braff Zacklin said:

Are there any post-ride moments better than the instant cooling you feel after a brisk ride on a hot day, when you're covered in sweat from head to toe, and a breeze kicks up and hits you at just the right angle?

Glorious!

 

Quaffing a can of Coke or beer after an intense pedal is also up there, but that cooling shot o' wind tops it all for me.

I'm a big fan of that feeling when the cold pierces your lungs when the temps get low enough.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

On 8/19/2022 at 10:44 PM, sasquatch69 said:

Thanks for sharing that experience - that's helpful, especially the bit about high gear comfort level and its effect on MTB riding.  

I've had a couple of friends who have had borderline-scary experiences on the Cottonwood Trail connector under the High Five interchange, so I avoid that and stick to WRC.  It's a damn shame they built that trail under there and don't do anything to police/maintain it.

Whew, I rode the singlespeed Friday for the first time in a couple of months because the trails never closed.  I didn't go hard or long or fast, just a casual ride to do something.  And man, I felt it. Even though I have been off both bikes for 10 days or so thanks to rain and a leaky innertube, I don't think the mtb would have made me sore.  Some of it, I think, is just the different pedaling positions.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

This damn thing, the next-to-last climb-turn on Harry Moss Blue, rarely fails to get me.

I have historically always gone right on this, although I note (and it's obvious here), that the rocks to the left probably offer an easier path, but it's exposed further to the left and avoiding a bar strike on that tree is a key consideration.  Like everything around here, it changes a little bit after big rains or long droughts.

That small root right after the biggish one seems almost perfectly positioned to halt your momentum after bumping over the bigger one.  But it seems like it is always something different.  Today it was a pedal strike on the root by the front wheel in the pic.

You can't see it in the pic, but the whole thing is obscured from the run-in because you have to turn a pretty sharp right to climb it.  So you kind of have to go by memory as to how to attack it.  Carrying a bit more speed/momentum would probably help, but it's a little hard to do because it's blind.

I have successfully ridden it a few times, but without any real strategy, just luck.  Lately it has been foiling me.

Edited August 31, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

That looks like something that would piss me off.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

1 minute ago, Al_4_ISU said:

That looks like something that would piss me off.

It's annoying, for sure.  Doesn't seem like it should be that hard, but it has me kind of flummoxed.  I don't often or ever session things like that.  But today, after dabbing on it, decided I'd check the rollability of the rocks and how much clearance I have with the bars, but that's all I did.  It was humid and after dabbing and checking it, I was starting to get hot and the skeeters were swarming, so I just soldiered on.

That whole section of the trail has a series of little sharp climbs, turn around the tree, and head back down.  It is surprisingly challenging.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

1 minute ago, TwiceHorn said:

It's annoying, for sure.  Doesn't seem like it should be that hard, but it has me kind of flummoxed.  I don't often or ever session things like that.  But today, after dabbing on it, decided I'd check the rollability of the rocks and how much clearance I have with the bars, but that's all I did.  It was humid and after dabbing and checking it, I was starting to get hot and the skeeters were swarming, so I just soldiered on.

That whole section of the trail has a series of little sharp climbs, turn around the tree, and head back down.  It is surprisingly challenging.

I still struggle at times with an individual strategically placed little rock garden, or unusually rooty spot.

We've been a little wet this summer, so my last few rides have had me skidding off the roots a little more than normal.

I really don't care for rock features unless it's pretty dry and they aren't going to cut the shit out of my tires.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

1 minute ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I still struggle at times with an individual strategically placed little rock garden, or unusually rooty spot.

We've been a little wet this summer, so my last few rides have had me skidding off the roots a little more than normal.

I really don't care for rock features unless it's pretty dry and they aren't going to cut the shit out of my tires.

Yeah, we don't have all that many rocks/rock gardens and I generally have more experience with roots (and strikes on roots seem less cringey than on rock things), so on something like this, I tend to try the roots rather than the rocks.  Plus exposure just freaks me out a bit, and the idea of going too far left past/on the rocks gives me the willies.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

29 minutes ago, TwiceHorn said:

Yeah, we don't have all that many rocks/rock gardens and I generally have more experience with roots (and strikes on roots seem less cringey than on rock things), so on something like this, I tend to try the roots rather than the rocks.  Plus exposure just freaks me out a bit, and the idea of going too far left past/on the rocks gives me the willies.

What kind of exposure do you guys have?

[Braff Zacklin 13299]

22 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

What kind of exposure do you guys have?

Twice only wears a thong when he rides, so ... pretty bad.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

1 minute ago, Braff Zacklin said:

Twice only wears a thong when he rides, so ... pretty bad.

Only when I'm wearing a chamois.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

24 minutes ago, Al_4_ISU said:

What kind of exposure do you guys have?

Well nothing extreme like white line, but to the left of and just beyond those rocks is a pretty good tumble into the briar patch.  It's more an issue of where you end up than how far you fall to get there.

Harry Moss is surrounded by big suburban streets, Greenville Avenue, Walnut Hill, and the SoPac Trail, you can kind of see one of them above that little climb.  The streets are all on "levees" or built up sections, and a lot of Moss is "cut in" to those sections, so there's a pretty good fall, usually to the left, on quite a bit of the trail.  A couple of years back, a newb on clipless fell on one of those sections, didn't unclip, and spiral fractured his femur on the way down.  Good thing Presbyterian Hospital is a quarter mile away.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

9 minutes ago, TwiceHorn said:

Well nothing extreme like white line, but to the left of and just beyond those rocks is a pretty good tumble into the briar patch.  It's more an issue of where you end up than how far you fall to get there.

Harry Moss is surrounded by big suburban streets, Greenville Avenue, Walnut Hill, and the SoPac Trail, you can kind of see one of them above that little climb.  The streets are all on "levees" or built up sections, and a lot of Moss is "cut in" to those sections, so there's a pretty good fall, usually to the left, on quite a bit of the trail.  A couple of years back, a newb on clipless fell on one of those sections, didn't unclip, and spiral fractured his femur on the way down.  Good thing Presbyterian Hospital is a quarter mile away.

Agreed there.

We don't have any vertical exposure, but there are a few sections of trail where dumping off to the side could lead to sliding and tumbling at least 100 vertical feet, and lots of briars, rocks and sticks along the way.  Those aren't sections where you have to make any remotely technical uphill maneuvers, but you still wouldn't want to eat it there.

[sasquatch69 576]

22 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

This damn thing, the next-to-last climb-turn on Harry Moss Blue, rarely fails to get me.

I have historically always gone right on this, although I note (and it's obvious here), that the rocks to the left probably offer an easier path, but it's exposed further to the left and avoiding a bar strike on that tree is a key consideration.  Like everything around here, it changes a little bit after big rains or long droughts.

That small root right after the biggish one seems almost perfectly positioned to halt your momentum after bumping over the bigger one.  But it seems like it is always something different.  Today it was a pedal strike on the root by the front wheel in the pic.

You can't see it in the pic, but the whole thing is obscured from the run-in because you have to turn a pretty sharp right to climb it.  So you kind of have to go by memory as to how to attack it.  Carrying a bit more speed/momentum would probably help, but it's a little hard to do because it's blind.

I have successfully ridden it a few times, but without any real strategy, just luck.  Lately it has been foiling me.

Looking at that photo gave me minor PTSD.  That damn spot gets me nearly every time.  I've started out doing the bypass first at HM, then the whole section on the other side of the bridge, and after doing orange and blue and getting back to trailhead I do the normal blue route with all the ups/downs since I'm warmed up by that point.

[TwiceHorn 30851]

On 9/1/2022 at 12:44 PM, sasquatch69 said:

Looking at that photo gave me minor PTSD.  That damn spot gets me nearly every time.  I've started out doing the bypass first at HM, then the whole section on the other side of the bridge, and after doing orange and blue and getting back to trailhead I do the normal blue route with all the ups/downs since I'm warmed up by that point.

Yep, I always ride some kind of warmup before doing that Blue.

Finally popped my cherry on Northshore this morning.  Was a little pressed for time, so just did E1 and E2, but pretty fun.  Parking lots crowded as hell, but not too bad on the trails.

Maybe getting a bit acclimated to the humidity.  It's 91 now and got off the trail 45 minutes ago, but whole ride felt pretty good. 

Edited September 4, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[Braff Zacklin 13299]

I've posted Sam Pilgrim vids before, but I had to share his latest cuz he's just so ridiculous. Laughed my ass off. The best segment starts around 6:30--some serious Wile E. Coyote shit going on.

 

[TwiceHorn 30851]

It was cool today, starting in the lower-mid 70s but a little humid, still.  Went up to Frisco NW, which doesn't seem like a very popular trail, but I kind of like it.  It may offer the best turning practice of any trail in the metroplex.  I wish it wasn't such a haul out there for me.

Parts of it are wooded and shady, and parts are open and climby/descendy, but with the deeply rutted trail treads typical of Collin/Denton County trails.  It was cloudy and breezy and downright pleasant in the shade, but as soon as I got into the middle, open parts, of course the sun came out and beat down on me.  At about 51% humidity, it wasn't a killer, but less pleasant than it could have been.

The climbs and descents in the middle, open parts are very "switchbackish" and it seems that the ruts are deeper than on the climbs than the descents, where a lot of the switchback, or hairpin-type turns are actually pretty flat and you're carrying some good speed.  I wish I knew the trail a bit better to anticipate the flat turns and really try to shred them, or at least learn to turn.

[Braff Zacklin 13299]

Installed four-pot front calipers on my squishy over the weekend and am loving the upgrade. Even without the larger 203mm rotor (which won't get here until Wednesday), the difference in power required and power applied is substantial.

[Al_4_ISU 12376]

Does that make it touchier or less?

Our in-town bike shop is closing at the end of the season and I'm going to have to start learning more about my own maintenance.  Although I'm friends with both owners and they'll work on my bike for beer in their garages.

[Braff Zacklin 13299]

1 hour ago, Al_4_ISU said:

Does that make it touchier or less?

Our in-town bike shop is closing at the end of the season and I'm going to have to start learning more about my own maintenance.  Although I'm friends with both owners and they'll work on my bike for beer in their garages.

These are Shimano brakes, so even the single-piston varieties are "touchy" in that the bite point is early. SRAM brakes tend to give you more initial modulation, but I think either are easy to learn and adapt to.

For me, the bite point on the two-piston version feels about the same as on a single-pot model, I'm just not having to pull on the lever as hard to get the same amount of stopping power. Depending on how high you want to climb, you can descend for 10, 20, even 30 minutes straight without stopping, so the extra power for less effort should reduce hand fatigue/arm pump, and the larger rotor will help dissipate heat.

I would recommend learning bike maintenance for anyone who rides a lot. Most shops do a good job (or want to do a good job), but getting it done quickly is occasionally more important than getting it done right.

Do you buy your own parts? If so, consider adding a couple of tools to each order. A chain whip here, some P-handled allen keys there. Before you know it, you'll have what it takes to cover 99 percent of your maintenance needs.