Back from a 10 year hiatus

[dazedone]

Hey everyone,

Just got back in to MTBing after being off for 10 years. I used to ride Sullivan Canyon almost every weekend back in high school and college. I used to ride in Tahoe almost every day when I lived there. The good news is, I am in much better shape now than I was back then. During my 1st year in colege, I discovered beer and pizza and ate at McD's every day. I quit riding and blew up to 315lbs. I have spent the last 3 years getting back down to 205lbs (which is less than I was in high school).

After trying to ressurect my old 1991 Yeti Pro FRO, I decided save up some money and just get a new bike. I could not find decent forks for the Yeti. The forks on there are the original Manitou 1 fork and they are completely dead. I overhauled it, threw some Conti Town and Country tires on there and use it for street riding. I may end up just selling it if I can find a local buyer.

Anyway, I am the proud owner of a 2006 Rocky Mtn. Slayer 70. I have put about 75 miles on it in the week that I have owned it, mostly on the beach bike path. I have not gotten it off road yet (hopefully this weekend), but I did ride it down a couple flights of stairs (what a difference FS makes!).

I enjoy running and I am also an avid scuba diver and have met lots of great dive buddies on the local scuba diving board and am hoping to have the same luck here.

Best regards,
David

[CalEpic]

Welcome to STR - Lots of rides posted here. I'm sure you'll find out there are a lot of cool people to ride/hang out with.

C

[Chaos]

Welcome David!
Great story. Let us know when you're heading down to Orange County. Some good trails down here to explore.

[tkblazer]

great story on your riding background and congrats on dropping all that weight! come join us on a group ride some time

[Pain Freak]

Hope to ride with you soon.

Welcome. Feel free to jump into any of the rides post here or in the Trailhead section.

[Stray_Bullit]

Good for you, dude.....

[dazedone]

Well, I finally got to take the new bike off road today. A buddy from work offered to take me out. He lives 1/2 mile from Chesebro park (lucky bastard).

We climbed up a fire road and I soon realized that a whole different set of muscles is needed for riding than running. I was able to do all the climbs albeit slowly. I probably could have run up the hill faster.

He then took me on some singletrack and I had issues with some of the single track in the more technical areas. I had to walk a few times. I then attempted a steep technical downhill where I hit a rock and endo'ed about 5 feet into it. Picked up the bike and walked down it. I noticed I had a nice cut on my thumb and cursed the LBS guy who said I did not need full finger gloves. Got back on the bike and noticed the rear derailleur was rubbing the spokes in low gear (obviously I bent the RD hanger in the crash). I rode the rest of the ride trying to go a bit faster to keep up my momentum, which helped quite a bit. We also noticed by the dust on my forks that I was not getting all the travel out of it. By about 10am, it was getting HOT, so we headed back.

The bike was nice and dirty and I told my buddy "now it looks like a mountain bike!" I rinsed off and dried the bike and re lubed the chain. I straightened out the RD hanger and readjusted the RD. I the FD was out of whack which was due to the LBS not tightening it to the frame enough. I used to be a part-time mechanic for my LBS back in high school. I don't know how people who dont know how to service a bike can go off-road since they usually need work after a hard ride. I also let some air out of the forks, which should help the travel issue.

I also converted to tubeless with Stan's last night and it held up real well today, so I was pleased.

I am going to stick to the easy stuff for a while until I can get my confidence up. I also need to do more biking and less running so I can build up the right muscles. All in all, I had a blast and I can't wait to do it again.

-David

[Stray_Bullit]

I am sure you are an inspiration to many! Keep it up, I think it's awesome that you are out there doing it. Keep it up!

[tkblazer]

good ride report david.. i've been wanting to try out some rides in the the valley since my dad lives up there. Its a smart move to walk the sections you can't ride. I always tell my friends to do the same thing. In a matter of time you won't even have to dismount your bike at all during a ride

[decepty]

Hey David! Whereabouts are you located? I noticed Cheseboro and thought "Yay, another Valley-ite". Lemme know if you're local so we can ride (and fall) together... I'm in Northridge.

Peace.

[dazedone]

Originally Posted by decepty

Hey David! Whereabouts are you located? I noticed Cheseboro and thought "Yay, another Valley-ite". Lemme know if you're local so we can ride (and fall) together... I'm in Northridge.

Peace.

I lived in Northridge from 92-94 while I was attending CSUN. After the earthquake wrecked the place, I transferred out and went to LMU. I am located near Playa del Rey now. I have no problem coming out to the Valley as long as we go early since the 405 is a parking lot after 8am on weekends.

PM me your info and perhaps we can hook up soon.

-David