One of the local Front Range riders just posted a video of the Sandy Wash trail in Buffalo Creek. I couldn't help myself, i stole it for my personal virtual riding experience for those moments when I'm stuck behind the computer screen. Sit back, crack open the highest rated APV beer you got, mute the sound, crank up Pearl Jam's "Animal" and enjoy the ride.
Chapter 3, The Lunch Loops
Last night as I was finishing a ride in near hypothermia after being sleeted, snowed and rained upon I was thinking how I could live in the desert and be happy. Probably not entirely true as I need trees and the alpine to be truly happy riding my bike but the west or Colorado specifically has taught me to enjoy all environments that has singletrack since that which is my most beloved form, the Alpine, is only open 4 to 5 months a year.
The final bit of our adventure last weekend ends at Tabeguache trail system in Grand Junction otherwise known as the, "Lunch Loops". Bad Andy's cousin Ashley owns, The Bike Shop in Grand Junction and we met him early Sunday Morning for a ride and a tour of the Lunch Loops. I had been here once before but local knowledge is an awesome asset and I relied on him for todays tour.
We set up a Shuttle to the top of the ribbon. A Slickrock slab some 2,000 ft above the parking lot for the Lunch loops and made a speedy descent from there to the Gunny loop.
The Blasphemy of the Misfit...Gears
Descending the top of the Ribbon
Mike the Giant
Ken Woo
The Mad Scientist with Bad Andy trailing in a wash
Riding beneath the cliffs
Ashley of the Bike Shop on his carbon Cannondale 69er with a leftie
At the bottom Ashley helped with the shuttle by taking Bad Andy back get the Mad Scientist truck and Sean I decided we needed a bit more. Specifically I couldn't pass on Holy Cross which is a fun section of trail within the lunch loops that has everything from rocky ledges, big rocks in the trail, small slot canyons and a lot of speed. The guys offered to get AV Boy's truck for him and bring it down so we could keep riding so we took the offer and went out for our second loop.
Looking north from the climb up Pet-E-Kes
AV Boy on a flat section of Eagle's Wing
This is the kind of riding where I excel and where I made it through Holy Cross with one dab to my name and AV Boy came out with bloody stumps for legs and some choice words for one of the funnest trails in the Lunch Loops system.
Chapter 2, Rabbit Valley and the Rims
Saturdays ride was a route originally designed by me to be a sufferfest of all day proportions. Included were to be the Zion Curtain, West Water Mesa, The Arch Loop and the Rims. Only 45 miles and close to 6,000 ft in climbing but what you must learn about the desert is it'll whip the uninitiated, break you and leave you to turn to dust and then forget about you.
Bad Andy sitting of the edge of the cliff's edge, just 50 yards from our tents
I saw Bad Andy's breaking point the weekend before and I knew Mike and Ken hadn't been riding much during the winter months either and as much as I wanted to complete the loop, I didn't have the heart to drag these poor souls into the middle of the desert just to leave their dried out corpses to be another set of relics in the sun.
So I designed the Rims loop. A figure 8 of 20 some odd miles starting and ending in our Campsite of Knowles Canyon overlook.
Trail #2
Herding cows by bike
The Mad Scientist on the Western Rim
Ken Woo
AV Boy
The Mad Scientist and Ken Woo on the Kokopelli Trail above the Western Rim
Mike the Giant on the Eastern Rim
Looking east from the Eastern Rim
Bad Andy kicking up Dust plumes on Brian's Trail
Me and the Mad Scientist sitting on the edge of a sandstone cliff
I Interrupt my Regularly Scheduled Fruita Program
To tell you that the Buffalo Triangle still holds. Buffalo Creek, Beloved buff singletrack of the semi mountainous nature is the place we go when nothing else can be ridden or even if everything else can be ridden then we go because, its just to damn fun to pass up. I Met AV Boy, PBR, and Spike for some chilly action on the buff in tacky Buffalo, Thats "Buff" to you good sir, Creek.
Buffalo Creek was in unusual form as all the granite ball bearings were sticking together in a synonymous form from all the rain we're having. It was 51 degrees and shivering when we arrived, the humidity was high and at 7800 feet we got snowed upon and as we lost 2000 ft it turned to rain. PBR's plan of the epic failed but, we got to ride a secret stash of trail that may be open in something like 2015, and no it wasn't the new black diamond trail being built. Super fun all the same and it had my imagination running wild at all the thoughts and possibilities of new loops. Spike's telling of these secrets can conjure adventures in my mind as grand as that of the Never Ending Story; Rock Eating Giants, Dragons that look like cute little puppy dogs, and an image of the thing that was but never should have been.
If you think your eyes were fooling you, they were not. AV Boy is like James Bond and wears his Tux even to a singletrack party. Why, cause thats how my crew rolls!
Notice the KB Cyclewerks Leg warmers logo artfully and subtly placed on AV Boy's leg. Of course you did, now go buy yourself some and check out their awesome deals on everything else from shorts to jerseys and more. Oh by the way, this blatant advertisement is directly correlated with the fact that KB Cyclewerks is now an official sponsor of the Goat.
Fruita..Understanding the Granny Bonk
Climbing up Collar Bone Hill I went into an understated bonk. My heart rate was screaming at 180 beats per minute according to my Garmin 305 and I was being crushed by AV Boy.
Something to understand is I have not had a granny since May of 2009. The Alfine carries 8 gears alone it simulated a cassette of 13-34 or thereabouts depending on the size of the cog I used with it. I had been trying to conserve but I've trained my body and my legs to push the harder gears and using the granny on anything less then a 20 percent grade had my heart working harder then it would of if I would of just stuck it out and powered through the harder gearing.
AV Boy kept telling me to push a harder gear but my body had gone into shut down mode. Finally relenting to AV Boy's pushing of drugs and nutrients I took a 200 mg pill of caffeine plus a few shots of gel.
Waiting about 15 minutes I found myself feeling better and pushing harder gears and with the descent of Mack Ridge ahead I pushed on, letting the descent sink into my being, my mind loosened and I let the bike fly quickly dropping AV Boy.
Forgive the lack of video skills, I was riding one handed
Deciding to skip Moore Fun was probably a good decision since as soon as we got back to the truck I noticed a missed call from the guys telling us they were in Fruita.
Fruita 1.1...The ultimate camping spot and Koko Loops
The desert grows on me. The lack of available alpine riding gives way to going to far side of the state where dry dusty trails and a blazing sun that I can never escape, gives me that which I crave...an adventure and new trails.
AV Boy showing me his Toyota can handle a little 4x4 action to get to the campsite
Somehow I got roped into being the ringleader. Finder of the campsite, designated trail guide. Keep in mind, I have only been to Fruita once before and never to Rabbit Valley. I scanned the available sites on the topo for camping and found Knowles Canyon Overlook. A grand cliff overlooking Knowles Canyon and the Colorado River some hundreds of feet below.
The view from the door of my tent
After setting up camp, AV Boy and myself made a made dash back to the Kokopelli trails where we set up a good pace for getting them all done before night fall. By the end of the evening though and Collarbone Hill, I was bonking hard. A few pills of Caffine from AV Boy got me through to Mack Ridge but I did decide on blasphemy and to skipped More Fun.
The top of the drop in to Horsetheif Bench
AV Boy on Mary's
Working on getting rid of my farmer's Tan
Troy Built
AV Boy on Mack Ridge
Off to Fruita and Rabbit Valley
The boys and I are taking the weekend off and going to get some desert therapy in Rabbit Valley, just outside of Fruita. AV Boy and myself will be the 1st to arrive, hopefully to set up camp at a overlook of the Colorado river and then head back to Fruita to hit the Kokopelli Loops. While Horsethief Bench is said to be manys fav trail of this area, by far, Steve's and Handcuffs are my favs.
Friday night the rest of the gang will follow including the Mad Scientist, Bad Andy and a few of their friends. Saturday and Sunday will just have to be the surprize for next weeks post. Till then ...Hasta la vista
Blasphemy of the Misfit
To incorporate multi geared bliss on the Falcon including the eva lovely granny gear, I needed a front derailleur. The one thing the Falcon lacks though is braze ons of any sort to secure a cable or its housing as the Mighty Empire believes one gear rules them all or some sort of BS Dickyism philosophy.
I thought I could Macgyver it but, when it came down to securing the cable housing to the frame with a hose clamp to keep the front derailleur cable housing from slipping when there was tension on it, I decided I needed a cable housing stop. Having none at my immediate disposal, I called the Xvelo, who just so happens to be into building frames these days and was told to come over for some torching.
Xvelo Sands and torches the frame inbetween showing me all the juicy bits of finished and half finished projects he has laying about and then goes on to show me the best bit of masking I've seen in some time.
The Falcon is now 2x9 and squishy, but I'll let you wonder for another day how it all came together.
The Falcon is getting a brand new Hyper Drive
The Secret has been released, heavy hub dropped and more gears then I'll know what to do with.
This year's summer of Death Marches will feel that much easier with a granny to help me at 13 + thousand feet.
Spring has finally sprung in Buffalo Creek
Decomposed granite trails, wildflowers blooming, and a few patches of snow to remind us that winter was here but finally is releasing itself from the Front Range.
I met AV Boy for the drive up to BC where we hooked up with Avion Nomad and I had grand visions of distances to Chair Rocks and back and a Sandy Wash finish. My plans didn't roll quite the way I had hoped but we still knocked out a sweet little 25 mile loop with over 2500 ft of climbing.
We climbed up Shinglemill to 543 where the guys were talking about just riding the fireroad to the Colorado Trail on the east side of Deckers Road. There was patchy snowpack above us, where the evergreen forest begins and another section of the Colorado Trail lies. Both AV Boy and Avion were convinced the trail would be under snow but with my constant badgering they relented and agreed to go check it out.
By this point I had been sucking wind. My legs had felt sluggish and every breath had felt shallow, as though I couldn't pull in enough air. As soon as we hit the forested section of the Colorado Trail though, Avion must of felt the change in me because he let me take point and I went into zoom~zoom mode.
Ducking and weaving we hit a few sections of snow but it was completely ridable, frozen into its granular shape enough to give traction.
We dodged the road again , ducking onto the Buffalo Burn Trail and finally made our way east of Deckers Road to the Colorado Trail heading to Chair Rocks. This area of the Colorado Trail is an open rolling hills area, that had at one time been a forest but after a 12,000 acre forest fire in 1994 that is said to burn as hot as 9 atomic bomb blasts, the land will only support scragg and small brush.
Looking back over those hills and seeing that Avion and I had dropped AV Boy(who was the only one riding singlespeed) by a considerable distance I decided to turn us around. The original plan had been to drop Shinglemill and climb up Baldy and drop Sandy wash but Avion decided to call it a night and seeing was 9:30 and I still had an hour drive home, I decided to do the same.
Buffalo Creek is calling, where are you gonna be this weekend?
And thats how you celebrate Easter
Saturday night one of the local rider's band was playing at Ironworks so a few of us took that as a que to have a ride before and back to Ironworks for some brews and tunes. Good ride, good tunes, and good brew as usual.
Afternoon nap of the family on Easter Day means me and the oldest get to escape to Green Mountain and Bear Creek Lake Park for some ridin and horse viewing. I was originally walking out the door to hit Dakota Ridge but Ayla looked like she could use an outing too, so I used the opportunity to have some good ol Daddy and Daughter time.
Yup, that is Daddies 20 lb pack on her 40 lb body.
Just 10 miles in the saddle with Ayla but moments like these are always priceless.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
