I drove up to Horsethief BLM XG, $7.50 for legal flat gravel pit toilet, and populated by 1 other camper. Clear skies, cold temp. A water puddle was in front of my camp site, in the morning after sunrise the ice held a baseball size rock.Great furnace, great convenience. At lights out I turn the control lower, ends up it still runs all night when temp is close to freezing and below. Van loses too much heat for the 6,000BTU furnace to keep up with. I put a thermometer at the outlet that read 117 degrees. The furnace is either on or off, temperature is obtained by continuous running.
So, now freeze thaw mud. I drove past the new trails up on the mesa for fear of damaging them by riding on wet trail. I continued to Bar M to ride thinking that trails would be OK to ride. I geared up and pedaled away. I chose to tackle Deadman ridge which has a lot of chunk. Before I made the trail junction I stopped to ask about a rider who was working on his bike. He greeted me by name, my memory recall failed. Scott of Trail Mix. Cool. Learned work is still on, fact tomorrow, Friday, is a work day. We visited quite a while then pedaled off in the same direction. My turn went right, his went left back to town. Deadman is challenging over rock roll overs and step ups mixed behind blind corners, and that was the good stuff. My rear brake was loosing its performance that I counted on. I needed the brake for moves. Shit. Done day. The woman who was ahead of me finally stopped at a trail junction allowing us to visit. I bailed on taking an easy way back to town. Brake needs help.
At Chili Pepper Monte took over. I asked for it to be bled but he said no because of how good the lever pull was. Problem wasn’t air in the line. He pulled the rotor off and what to his wondering eyes did he see? Grooves in the rotor. Several rides ago I discovered that I had worn the pads down to the metal clip rubbing on the rotor. Trashed Formula rotor. Shop sold me a Shimano. He surfaced the pads. Next ride is test.
Did my laundry at a place right across form CityMarket grocery store, the main player in food and in same strip office building Gearheads is on corner. Gearheads gives free filtered water. I put 3 gallons in the tank, 1 gallon at a time and filled the carry jug.
Friday is trail work day. Meeting place is N end of town. I chose to camp at Goose Island, a BLM XG along the Colorado river. Another 1/2 price spot.
Friday I drove into town and parked on the roadside near where I believed the meeting spot was. Sure enough right on time a pickup stopped. Sandy and Jeff whom I worked w/ last year. Mark joined. He is an accomplished bike packing racer having done the triple crown twice. Phenomenal. Work today was on lower Killer Bee, a black diamond trail from the Bar M trail down to the paved bike path. Beautiful sunny warm day to work, our effort was to create ways for the water to run off the trail by deflections and drains.
Making the original trail was a real effort, all bench cut in those rocks. Future rains will test our work.
Drove back to town and took a shower at the center, a Silver Sneakers participant. Silver Sneakers is for people over 62. For me membership is included in my medigap policy.
Gonzaga plays at 5:00 on ESPN. I drove to Moab Brewery to watch the game and for dinner. The bar tender tuned me in. Game started and right off players started slipping, some falling on the sweat that fell off the players wetting the floor. Just a big fan in each corner of the building. Close up pics of Wiltjer showed sweat pouring off his head. Several nasty falls. Zags down by 2 at half. Refs came out second half and after conferring w/ the coaches called the game. 72 degrees and 89% humidity. I drove out to Goose Island XG to my prepaid spot from last night.
Sat I drove away listening to Wait wait Don’t Tell Me the NPR news quiz show. I take listening to the show seriously making schedule plans for listening time. Humorous.
Today ride plan is Klondike Bluffs, aka Baby Steps, north of town and from the north end. I hope for a camp spot. The road going in had several mud bogs w/ cast in ruts that I slithered thru. I saw the preferred spot way in the back up against the rocks but a rig was occupying it. And, another big ( assessed) mud bog between me and it. I chose a spot out in the open before the bog. My route was the trails on the south side which are green pedalers. I just smiled as I pedaled and used body English in the turns. Great warm up.
I left the fun stuff for a different fun ride on the N side of the road. Just rideable for the most part chunk. Tread is mostly rock.
I rode 18.43 miles climbing 1707′, took 2 hours 29 mins of pedaling. The brake worked better.
My ride finished going by the now vacant preferred spot and crossing the mud bog which was just a muddy blob over firm rock. Cool. I drove the van to the spot. one other camper off aways. Cold clear night. I worked on my bike in the sunshine. Sun dropped behind a butte turning off the warmth and light.
This AM I slept in till almost 8 in sunshine. 32 degrees was the sun warmed temp. Frost was down. I started my ride after 10:00.
Today’s ride was a tough one as it was all on the rocky stuff. Start off climbing Homer to Alaska. The characteristics of these trails are they go up and down the hill contour leading riders by painted lines on the rocks for the route and in places border it to keep us on track. There are rock ribs running perpendicular to the N /S axis of the trails that cause / allow the trail to contour climb them. Well laid out and challenging. There are still moves I can’t make, some because they are on an uphill and I fear I don’t have the gas to climb it. Today in the warm sunshine I shared my 15.51 miles climbing 2027′ in 2 hours 27 mins. Amazing trails using a 600′ elevation gain top to bottom to guide us up, then down, and maybe some around.
I like these trails. Today I encountered maybe 30 riders equally enjoying themselves.
Frost covered my bike. I moved it into the sun which melted then dried the bike. Today at the start the brake was like shit again. perhaps the pads are still not bedded in well or they are wet from the frost but the front brake worked well. Checking that theory I applied the brake on downhills. Finally the full power returned: 1 finger wheel lock up.
This mountain biking is a toy sport. We ride on developed trails because we need a tread. We play outside till ride’s end, load up, and drive back home. We never stay for long. I’m just saying.
The weather forecast has been calling for rain tonight and all tomorrow. I chose to leave the probable mud bogs in the AM and drove down to Willow Springs and its sandy hard pack road. My preferred spot on the bed rock, the second spot from the hard road was taken. I wanted to be on rock and just off the road for traction tomorrow. I took a spot across the road from where I stayed several nights ago which is more dirt.
I ran my water tank dry starting dinner. I poured in the spare 1 gallon to get thru dinner and clean up. I know I can figure a gallon a meal for safety. My propane burn is 1 gal a day to which I pay more attention to than my water. Need water tomorrow from Gearheads standing outside in the rain pouring a gallon at a time into the tank.
Forecast says no riding tomorrow.
Tyson who built Captain Ahab here is back here this week to continue work on the trail. Tyson worked for the USFS and Verde Valley Cycling to propose new trails outside Sedona and spent several months working at Bike and Bean.