Saturday, October 29, 2005

A 'HOLE' lotta work

Today the plan of attack was to fix a big hole on the trail and then go for a ride.

At the end of the day I would say I pulled off my plan without a hitch.

I arrived at the Woodlot early in the morning to get a good start on the trail work before going for a spin with Rob and John.


This a picture of the hole BEFORE I went to work at it.


The Hole filled with a ton of rock.


The Hole after all the rock and dirt work was complete.


A comparison of the hole before and after the work was done.


I must say I was really happy with the work I did on that hole. It will never fill with water again and should run smooth for many years.

Almost as soon as I was finished fixing the hole, Rob and John showed up to go for a ride. After putting the tools away we started climbing up the road to Cabin trail. This was Johns first ride ever on his new bike so a nice blast down Cabin trail seemed appropriate. He rode quite well for a new guy so there were no worries about the trails we rode. From Cabin trail we made our way to Snakes and Ladders and rode the new dirt work that I just finished.

After Snakes it was over to Shotgun and a quick blast down that trail to the cars. Excellent ride and build day.


Sunday, October 23, 2005

Getting Dirty Again

Today's weather was what most would call wet and miserable but to me it was perfect riding and building conditions. My plan today was to head up to Snakes and Ladders and start buffing up the trail from the top all the way down addressing virtually every issue on every section of the trail.

I was riding the Stiffee today and had just installed some new barend/grip lock ons and new pedals (last week I destroyed a pedal). As I approached the trailhead to Shotgun on the road up I could see 3 guys through the mist. The closer I got to them the more recognizable they were. It turned out to be Ewan, Jamie and Rich. In passing them I said hi and kept on pedaling to work on the trail. Once I reached the Snakes and Ladders trail head I parked my bike near the spot I was to be working on and made my way down to the tool stash. I came back with a bucket, shovel and a pick axe. My goal was to fix a muddy hole that had formed in front of a small log ride near the top of the trail.

I dug up all the black punky mud and dirt and tossed it to the side. I then filled it with 5 bucket of rocks, then 5 buckets of gold dirt. I then went back to the stash of tools and picked up the rake. Raking dirt into place is really important because it enables you to get ride of the rocks and stick that may be in the dirt used. While I was working on the trail 2 people came by that had never ridden The Woodlot before and were kind of asking for directions. I told them where they were on the mountain and how to get to different trails. They thanked me for working the trail and continued down Snakes and Ladders.


The completed dirt work for the log approach



Once I was finished 2 other guys showed up at the top of the trail on BIG bikes (an A-Line with Monsters and 8-Ball with Monsters). They turned out to be the first guys down the new dirt work (bastards!). I put on my helmet and armor and started down the trail. It wasn't long before I caught them on the trail. They let me pass at the rock drop and I was on my way ripping the trail. I hit the newer jump section quite well but a tad too hot blowing over a berm and having to jump off my bike. I also stopped at the other stash of tools on the trail to make sure they were all there. While stopping the 2 guys on big bikes passed me but I again caught up to them on the long log ride section and I just kept riding the trail all the way down flowing everything.

The ride to Hoots was nice an easy as normal and surprisingly I did not see anyone on their way up. I it Hoots at a reasonable pace and then pedaled up to the Shotgun trailhead. I must say that Hoots has taken a beating. Especially the section in the clear-cut. Months ago it was in really good shape but now there are spots that need a it of lovin.

Anyway on the way to the trail head of Shotgun I could see that there was a rider just ducking into the trail about 45 seconds ahead of me. Lately I have been trying to push myself on my rides to go faster and faster. I saw this as an opportunity to try and catch that rider so as soon as I was at the trail I put on the gas. Almost immediately I ran into some people that were eying up the jump just near the top of the trail. They let me pass at the berm and I pedaled up to the jump an tabled it bigger than I ever have. I then kept riding as fast as I could to catch the guy I had seen duck in ahead of me. By the time I reached the clear cut I saw him. He had just dismounted and it looked like he was looking for his friends. As I passed I told him that they were eying up the jump. The rest of Shotgun was flowing quite well and the usually super mucky sections have been re-worked to drain allot better. So out to the car it was and I packed up and I was on my way home. 3 hours of building and riding and I was exhausted.

Saturday, October 15, 2005

Work and a Ride

I went to the woodlot to do a little work on Quick Hit (removed the last jump) and moved all the tools back to Snakes and Ladders. I then went for a good ride (Krazy Karpenter, Toadstool, B-Line and Shotgun.

Half way down Shotgun I knew there was something wrong with my pedal. I blew out all the bearings and the non-drive side pedal was TOAST.

Lots of work done and a great solo ride on the hardtail.

Saturday, October 08, 2005

Last '05 Whistler Day....New Cranks as well

Well today was my last day of Whistler riding for the '05 season. It was glorious. I was riding solo, so there was nothing holding me back and I could go where I wanted when I wanted. To my surprise they opened Garbonzo at about 11am so after 3 runs from mid station, I was able to go to the top.

Nothing like a bike covered in Whistler mud!!

In total I did 5 top to bottom runs and 6 runs from mid station. In other words lots of vertical. I must say that Freight Train is a wicked trail but the steep gnarliness of Original Sin and Goats Gully is where it is at.

I cannot wait until next year.

Wednesday, October 05, 2005

Night Ride Premier

It has been a week and a half since I last rode so I have been itching to get out on the trails. This is the first night ride of the year. Tim and I. We hit the Woodlot riding Cabin Trail, Snakes and Ladders and Shotgun. It was great to get out in the dark again on the hard tail and Tim and I had an absolute blast.