The Long Ride

Riding in Corvallis is special because of MacDonald and Dunn forests.  The riding is close to town, varied with fire road and single track, and requires a lot of climbing (there are not a lot of cross country trails).  As a result you can get a work-out in 8 to 10 miles in about 1 to 1.5 hours.  But there are times when you need the "long" ride, something in the 20 miles range.  Starting in January 2011 the Old Men have been doing one of these type of rides each month in preparation for the C2C and to just have more fun riding.

The have names like "The Mean 18" and "The Love Ride."  For April, the ride was "April Showers" because it was going to make you cry.  It was 21 miles long with 3600 feet of climb.  That is 1/3 the distance of the C2C with 1/2 the climb.  A very good prep ride.

Six brave souls showed up at 6:15 a.m. last Saturday to take on the challenge.  We started at the 200 gate in 32 degree weather, went down to the 100 and climbed the 130 route up to the top of Forest Peak. On the last climb of the day (back up the 400) the temp was 54 degrees.  We finished at 10:00 a.m. with 2 hrs and 45 mins of saddle time.

The Brave Riders

Scout Trail



On the Ritz trail system



March Riding in Corvallis

I've said this before, that Corvallis is a perfect place for Mountain Bikers.  You can ride year round, get lots of elevation, and your are surrounded by great rides.  But even for hard core riders, this March has been a tough one.  March is the start of Spring, but in Corvallis it is the "transition" month. There are hints that it is going to get dry (notice I didn't say sunny - yet), then your hopes get dashed. As an Oregonian there are signs you look for in March to make sure that Summer is coming (like Punxsutawney Phil back east). They are, how many days did it rain in March and did it get into the 60's. Well this has been a tough Winter for even hardcore rain lovers. As of today, March 26 and it has rained every day this month and it it reached 63 degrees once on 3/13. It has also rained 5 inches, with a YTD total of 11.2. But don't cry for us (we already have enough water), they are predicting 63 and only a 50% chance of rain on Wednesday 3/30 (but I won't hold my breath, unless the water is up to my nose)!

But the riding is year round

Beating the Winter Riding Blues

Sometimes you just have to get away. Corvallis is a great place for mountain bikers, because you can ride year round. But, even in Corvallis you get tired of "road" rides when the trails are like pudding. So, what is the answer? A road trip to St. George, Utah!


As the snow was starting to fall last week, we took off for Las Vegas where my son picked me up for 6 days of fun in the sun. There are trails all over the St. George area, some are hiking, biking, horses, quads, motorcycles and off-roaders, but they all seem to get along.

It was great fun to ride some different terrain, see the sites, and eat way to much good food. Then the fun ended as we landed back in Portland, to a record setting day of rain (2" in Corvallis), but I still have the pictures as a way to escape again.

No snow here

Green Valley Trail System

Having Fun

Miles and Miles of Trails

The Tail of Two Hangers (and $12.99)

You know that old saying "Never talk about something you don't want to happen because it will?"  Well I believe it (at least a little bit).  A few weeks ago during the climb on a regular Saturday morning ride the subject of what to keep in your saddle pack came up.  As some of you know, I'm the "boy scout" of mountain biking.  I carry everything because I always want to be prepared.  And through the years I've used just about everything in my pack (I am no weight weenie).  I mentioned to the ride group while climbing, that one thing I didn't carry was a spare hanger, we talked about that for awhile then moved on to a new topic. On the way down, just as we finished "Stair Step," right as I was popping back onto the road, I caught a stick or something in the derailleur and with a loud snap, my hanger did its job and broke in half.  I then zip tied my derailleur to the frame and coasted down the road to cars at the Sulfur Springs bridge.

Peak Sports had a replacement for $12.99 and I got to experience replacing it. Not as easy as I thought, but now I think I could do it on the trail.  Moral of the story, don't talk about bad things happening and if you do, make sure you are prepared to fix the results!  Now go ride.

Before

After

Stop Trail Sanitizing

There is a growing trend in MacDonald Forest that is very disturbing, that of "trail sanitizing."  It started last year when someone destroyed the jump on Endo, but in the last few months Bombs Away, The Tower Trail, and Poison Ivy have all had long time log crossing obstacles removed from the trail.  These are "unofficial" trails that are not maintained by OSU, so it must be someone from the Mountain Bike community.  These are logs that be came part of the trail, and for years riders have gotten better learning to clear them.  Now it is not a trail with character, but just something you fly through (which isn't always the best).  Who ever it is, please ask before doing something that drastic.

11 Days of Fun

One of the things I like about mountain biking in and around Corvallis is that you can do it all year long.  I have friends and family in other parts of the country who have to put their bikes away in the winter, but not here.  So over the Christmas holidays I had 11 days off and went riding every day but Sunday.  I still kept my same schedule of 7:00 a.m. rides and Thursday night ride.  The weather was very cold for Corvallis, in the 20's which resulted in getting "frost nip" on one toe, which was interesting because I wasn't out more than two hours at a time (swelled and turned red like a blood blister, but didn't turn black, and felt like some one had stepped on it).

I was able to ride Christmas morning and New Year's morning, in snow, rain, clear nights and cold mornings. Sometimes with great friends and sometimes by myself, and all of it fun.  Some rides were long, some short, and some were on the Single Speed, but it was worth it for the views and getting outside. I even found a few new trails. The result was over 75 miles of riding and 10,000 feet of climbing.  Another great thing about mountain biking in Corvallis are the great views you have, the hard thing is trying to capture them. Here are a few shots, it was a great way to end and start the new year.

From the Saddle to Dimple



Top of Dan's



Perfect

Are we in Corvallis?

Crashing Some More

I think this is the third time that I have talked about Crashing.  It has been a focus because many people outside of Mountain Biking (and some inside) view crashing as a negative thing.  Like it is bad and you are doing something wrong.  I look at crashing in a positive way.  Meaning:

1.  I'm not afraid to try
2.  I at least tried
3.  I've learned I still have things to learn

Being not afraid - Health fear in mountain biking is good (at least for someone in his 50's), it helps me set my limits.  It lets me know that I enjoying being in the air no more than a second or two, but not five or more like the gravity guys (I learned this first as a wakeboarder).  Thus I can push myself, within my fear limits.

Trying - To improve your mountain biking skills, you need to try things.  When I started out, there were sections of my local trails that I would get off and walk.  As my confidence on the bike grew, I started attempting these sections (knowing the worst that could happen is that I might fall or have to unclip and walk). Riding new trails helped this also.  There have been lots of times riding a new trail (like in Bend a few weeks back) where I came to a new obstacle, without knowing it was there or time to think about it and I cleaned it.  That gives you confidence to try those tough ones that you know are coming.  I remember completing a trail, having a blast and then looking at the map and seeing it was labeled as a "Black Diamond" and thinking, wow I didn't think it was that hard. That comes by trying.

Still Learning - I still crash because I still have things to learn about being a good mountain biker in all situations. Recently I carried to much speed into a corner on the "Secret" trail as it went between two trees.  A trail that I have taken a number of times.  I had the choice to hit the tree or bail.  I chose the latter and grazed the tree with my ear and arm going backwards.  The picture shows the results.    I went to Bend and crashed sessioning a great skinny (the picture show how I bailed but the bike stayed).  I have learned that I'm good at crashing.  I may get some scrapes, but I don't lead with my wrist, so no breaks.

The Skinny in Bend



Lead with your head



Rubbing the Tree