Shaun’s Rides

Henry Coe EPIC Wild Flower Ride

Kelly Cabin Canyon Trail

Park Condition: Perfect!  The creeks are flowing, wild flowers are everywhere, and its not too hot.

Riding Condition: The trails are starting to dry up, but right now there’s minimal dust.  Watch for loose dirt in areas exposed to lots of sunlight.

Population: Minimal.  There were a handful of other bikers at the start of this ride, but once we got half way in we didn’t see another person for 2 hours.

This is the best mountain bike ride I’ve ever been on!  Henry Coe offers a ton of challenging single track with excellent views.  Kelly Cabin Canyon Trail has just been maintenanced and is practically unridden.  The trail consists of very tight single track, about 30 creek crossings, and spectacular natural meadows.

This 4 hour ride starts at the coyote creek entrance to Henry Coe.  You can see the route info and all of the ride stats (elevation, duration, maps, etc…) at my garmin connect page.  Be sure to click on the terrain view to see the topo version – it’s unbelievable.  The Henry Coe Official Website says that trails range from “steep, to very steep, to ridiculously steep” and they mean it.  You need to be in good to great shape to really ride here.

On today’s ride we encountered meadows containing a variety of 10 or more wild flowers, sprawling hillsides of Poppy flowers, and even some wild turkeys!  The weather was a nice cool 65-70 degrees, and the water was comfortable (some creek crossings came up to my knees).

This is definitely a ride I’ll be doing again and again – an absolute gem that highlights why mountain biking is so awesome.  Check out the flash slideshow below.

[svgallery name=”Henry Coe 04-04-2009″]

Water Dog – Saturday Morning Training Loop

Top of Finch Trail

Park Condition: Dry- no dust

Riding Condition: Normal

Population: Crowded – I think everyone was out because it was the first nice Saturday in about a month

I hit Water Dog at 8:35 this morning. The first thing I noticed was the abundance of vehicles parked near the entrance to Lake Road Trail which was odd for early Saturday morning.  It turns out that there were a lot of folks trying to get out and enjoy what was forcasted (and turned out to be) a very nice day.

I finally got my Garmin Edge 705 and this is the first ride I was able to actually log.  You can see all of the detailed info on this ride at my garmin connect page.  Check out the player, its a really neat way to see the ride.  You can also view the terrain mode to get an idea of what the ride looks like – very cool.

Last weekend at Water Dog I had a rabbit just about kill me when it rain straight into my front wheel’s spokes.  This week I was cruising along down the 18 switchbacks on Finch trail, rounded a switchback, and there was a 3′ rattlesnake sprawled across the trail.  I had no time to stop so I ran over it.  I must’ve surprised it because it never had a chance to coil or I would’ve been in trouble.  I don’t think I hurt it too bad because it managed to slither away pretty quickly.  I was shaking so bad I had a hard time negotiating the rest of the switchbacks and you can see my heart rate rise in the middle of the decent which is pretty awkward looking!

It was nice to get out and test the Edge 705 at my local stomping ground, but next week will be the real test when I go to Henry Coe.

Water Dog Again – Morning Ride

Water Dog - Fireroad Warmup

Park Condition: Moist – Not lots of mud, but the ground is nice and sticky with no dust

Riding Condition: Fast

Population: Very Low

I went out early this morning before Lucy’s swim lessons so I could get in a good ride before the predicted rain hit for the weekend.  There was a huge difference between Wednesday’s ride and today.  The muddy corners are dry enough to be really sticky, there was only a few people out – all hiking with dogs, and the amount of wildlife encounters was significantly increased.  I got to see about 30 rabbits and 3 flocks of grouse.

One rabbit actually ran square into the spokes in my front wheel.  It happened so fast I didn’t have a chance to react, or even slow down.  I’m pretty sure the little guy was hurt but he tumbled off into the brush so I don’t really know.  This was a great reminder that no matter how well I’m feeling on the bike, nature needs to be respected.

I was able to ride the same route as Wednesday in 1 hour 15 minutes instead of 2 hours.  I could be that I’m stronger in the mornings instead of after work but the lack of waiting around for groups of 30 riders to clear sections probably helped a bit too.

WaterDog – Wet n’ Fun

WaterD og Creek

Park Condition: Moist – Recently Cut Back

Riding Condition: Fast

Population: Crowded

I got to ride Water Dog today after work.  It’s nice and green right now with enough water and mud to keep things interesting but definitely ride-able.   Most of the park is still moist enough to be really sticky, but you have to watch out for mud spots in the tight corners.

I don’t have GPS data for this ride because my Garmin is still in transit.  Hopefully It’ll come in by next week and I’ll have some charts to share for my upcoming Henry Coe ride.

Wednesday nights are usually packed at the dog, and this was no exception.  A very large group from Passion Trail Bikes kept me stopped for a few minutes, but they’re nice guys so I really don’t mind.

Someone has recently cut back the brush which was desperately needed.  This is the first time in well over a year I didn’t get whacked in the face coming down the switchbacks on Finch trail.

Also of of note is a new section on the top of Finch that connects the top of the switchbacks to the very top of Finch Trail.  This is a recently cut trail and its still pretty tight so if you’re highly susceptible to poison oak you might want to avoid it.