RR: San Juan Trail Freeway 2/23

[OMR]

My goodness. I've never seen that many cars at the trailhead parking lot!!! ... or that many riders going up and down the trail. To say it was crowed would be an understatement ... but that said, it was a great morning to ride. Just finding a parking place was probably the hardest thing this morning. There were so many people all with the same idea: Ride the San Juan since it's the best trail after a rain! Finally found a parking spot further down the road and staked a claim.

Ran into so many riders I haven't seen in a long time... also ran into Keith & Jeff (Share) freed from the Aliso Woods trail work (although this would have been a perfect day for it.... too bad!)

Once on the trail, I was reminded the fact that this is a perfect trail to ride after a rain. A tiny bit of mud here and there, but perfect traction. Someone has been working on the lower switchbacks... all rideable... and also some of the washouts... all built up and rideable now.

Gene (Genus) and Matt (OC rider) and I leapfroged each other on the way up. I was glad I wasn't on the single speed. Not enough riding lately to enjoy to climb. Steve (autoduel) was on his and quickly left us in the dust. Kept running into riders we knew on the way up (they were going down) and just had to talk.

There was a huge ... no HUGE... meeting of riders at cocktail rock and it was fun to jaw with everyone in the warm morning sun. After an hour or so of just hanging out, we lowered the saddles and softened the suspension (love it!) and took off down. The trail was perfect for downhilling today... he traction was incredible. You could slide into a corner or switchback, brake and you'd slow down. It was hard to wipe the smile off the face on the way down. Most of us looked like grinning idiots to people on the way up.

Finally down and ran into Steve Tim (riding)and Calvin (running). They had just come down Los Pinos and were stoked on how good the trail has held up. Something to definitely do after VQ.

If you weren't there today, you missed an absolutely great day to ride. The weather was perfect and the trail was even better. Now I have to go clean the bike off.... or maybe I'll just leave it outside in all the rain!

PS: Gene took some pics.. which I'm sure he'll post after fixing his chain & derailuer.... there's a story here

[bighit8]

I was at work.

[TBlazen]

I think you passed us OMR toward the bottom.... We were just starting out and said hello to Gene. Also saw Keith at the bottom before we started...

Man, was it tacky or what?

Sounds like you guys had a bunch of fun...

[OMR]

Originally Posted by TBlazen

I think you passed us OMR toward the bottom.... We saw Gene and stopped to say hi. Also saw Keith at the bottom...

Man, was it tacky or what?

Sounds like you guys had a bunch of fun

Now that you mention it... I remember passing you towards the bottom. You said as you passed me, "There's OMR!" I was having so much fun concentrating on sliding around the switchbacks.

[DeeZee]

Sat is always crowded. That is why I am riding it Sunday

[autoduel]

I arrived right at 9 and made a few rounds before finding a spot of dirt that I could squeeze a car into. The trail was in good shape and the switchbacks seemed easier than I remember, on the way up and down. A few muddy spots and puddles here and there, but the ride up was tacky. Definitely a workout on the SS, but I felt faster up the rocky, steep sections when I stood up and hammered. On the way down I made use of the dual gear setup and found the 38x19 was perfect for accelerating out of the turns. Not as much traffic as on the way up as most have reached cocktail by then. When I reached the lower switchbacks, I ran into Nomad on his way up.

[dstepper]

Was up on the Main Divide and ran into 4 guys that stopped to ride San Juan and bailed because of the crowd. They ended up riding Blue Jay/Divide then down and up Indian TT.

Indian TT is my new favorite way to the Divide. There's pine trees on the way up!

Dean

[kbteachme]

I was there around 7:30AM riding up. Not too many cars in the parking lot when I arrived, but when I left it was packed. It was a great day to ride and the trail was in great shape!

[thistrailisntlegal?]

I got there around 2pm and only ran into a couple stragglers coming down and only a handful of people climbing on the way backdown. Those were definitely some of the best conditions ever, one more day of sun would pretty much make it perfect.

[kentonn]

I was riding down late in the day around 1:30. Witnessed a fellow biker catching a ride with a helicopter. He apparently feel off the side of the trail while trying to pass some riders on their way down. Sounded like he had a clean break above the elbow and some issues with his leg. Hope everything turns out alright for him.

As a side note, we had to carry his bike down. A friend and I each grabbed a wheel, another rider carried the frame. Props to the rider carrying the frame. He successfully rode down one-handed with the frame over his left shoulder. He still managed to nail six of the switchbacks.

[singleminded]

You guys missed all the excitment...see the thread:
SJ bizarre ride

Since i was back riding with my new met TA....I got to participate in the trail extraction.

Brenda was such a trooper.....not only did she comfort the kid till the helo got there
But she also humped her cute butt thru the tough downhill after seeing what penalty can be paid if you screw up....and it was her 1st time

Good job!

[Singletrack Angel]

Well, I got the scoop from Brenda G., who had an awesome time with trail guide Singleminded on her first time up SJT... I wanted to go, but I had Girl Scout cookie duties today (Yes, the cookies are in! If you're expecting some, watch your PM for more info).

As you guys were bombing down SJT, Brenda and Eric were taking it slow and easy and happened upon the poor boy (22 years old) who was injured.

Since Brenda needs some work learning the ins and outs of pic posting, I will post her RR and pics:

"There is one photo of the group of us at cocktail rock, the rest are of the guy who broke his arm, and had to be airlifted. Apparently he was passing some other riders as they were going down, and he hit a loose rock on a very thin traverse along the ridge. My cell phone was the only one that had signal, and I guess I was the only one thinking to call 911 to help get him out of there. He was able to climb out of the ridge, but was in so much pain he laid down on the first flat spot off of the trail. I handed the phone off to Eric so he could direct the emergency services , and I could sit and hold his hand and reassure him. The emergency service people told Eric to clear everyone out of the area , which he did, and the trail was closed in both directions for quite a while. It took over an hour for the helicopter to actually land and get him on a stretcher. I had called his father to let him know what happened so he could meet them at the hospital. Some other riders helped dismantle the guys bike and we all carried different pieces of it down the last four miles to the parking lot. Eric and I took his bike, camelback and helmet to his house in San Juan.. He probably never wants to see his bike again- but we figured it was the right thing to do... The father called us around 4PM to thank us for taking such good care of him, and said that he had dislocated his elbow- but they had given him plenlty of meds by that time so he wasnt feeling a thing. He was not an STR rider- AND he was riding all alone...."

DSC03101.JPG

DSC03104.JPG

DSC03105.JPG

DSC03106.JPG

DSC03109.JPG

DSC03110.JPG

DSC03113.JPG

DSC03116.JPG

DSC03119.JPG

DSC03121.JPG

DSC03122.JPG

DSC03123.JPG

DSC03125.JPG

DSC03126.JPG

[foofighter]

wow it's a great thing that Eric and Brenda were there to give a helping hand. in a way it was good to have that many riders out there today at least you weren't alone

[kbteachme]

I missed the helicopter and the rider down. I really feel bad for him.

[osmarandsara]

Ouch.....I have only been on San Juan Trail once before, and I distinctly remember opting to walk that particular section of trail.........

[allison]

Originally Posted by OMR

If you weren't there today, you missed an absolutely great day to ride.

I must disagree! I hit a blistering personal best out at Fontana today (1:30:45~)!! It was awesome

Probably a great day to ride any well draining trail in So Cal.

Glad all you guys stayed safe!

[Shannon]

Originally Posted by foofighter

wow it's a great thing that Eric and Brenda were there to give a helping hand. in a way it was good to have that many riders out there today at least you weren't alone

I couldn't agree with foofighter more. Brenda and Eric, you guys are awesome. I had my own personal mt bike angel too when I crashed. I had to hike out to the road after my crash and came across a fellow mt biker who drove me to the emergency room, called Bruce and took my bike home. I only got his first name and to this day would still like to find him to thank him for helping me.