Harding/Joplin/STT/Luge

[TURNERob]

6 of us came for this ride yesterday and it didn't dissapoint. Arrkelly (on his 1st ever STR group ride.....FINALLY!), Ladd Jasper, Bananaseat, IntenseKipp (breaking in his brand new 5 Spot), Dino and myself.

The climb up Harding started off with pretty tacky dirt which would eventually take its toll on almost all of us. Overall it wasn't that muddy at all but the dirt was slowing you down just enough that it made the climb seem even longer and harder than it is. I was coming in and out of energy climbing up.....ended up 3rd to 4 corners but I was pretty much toast and the last climb up to Modjeska I totally bonked. Thankfully there was hardly anymore climbing after that.

A few of us put some armor on and bananaseat prepared himself against the poison oak. I had only done Joplin once before and knew it was going to be a sketchy ride for awhile. I personally layed my bike over 3 times on this trail (but somehow manged to not scratch my 5 Spot on only its second ride) and I'm not one to crash very often. Last time I crashed twice so I guess I was just going faster this time The trail is in excellent condition actually aside from needing some trimming. I know Dino enjoyed the trail as he exclaimed, "this is probably my favorite singletrack" only 2/3rds of the way down! The trail is all basically rideable except for one noteable drop about 1/3 of the way down. I came up to it and Arrkelly and Ladd were on the sides just watching so I just went for it. Made it down the drop then my right foot/pedal clipped a big rock at the bottom and my foot came out of my shoe (shoe still clipped in) and I fell over with my left foot still clipped in. Not sure if anybody else attempted it or not after watching that

We all made it down to Old Camp without any major accidents and we just chilled for about 10 minutes or so and gather up some strength to climb out of there. On our way up Dino and Bananaseat were bothing having some cramping issues but we all made it up to the saddle and breathed a sigh of relief towards the downhill to follow. I hung towards the back with Bananaseat since I was pretty wasted and wanted to make sure he didn't have anymore cramping issues. We came around a corner and saw Dino fixing a flat......seems like he gets at least one rear flat coming down from Old Camp everytime!!! He fixed her up and we made it down to the Luge.

Ladd went 1st, then Dino and I followed. Couldn't believe how fun the Luge was! The dirt was incredible and the trail was just balls out fast! I kept yelling out going down the last half I was having so much fun. A great way to end a long ride like that. Arrkelly hopefully you'll join us for more STR rides in the future. Everybody else it was a great time as usualy even though a few of us weren't feeling like our usual selves. Now here are my pics:

Our 1st rest stop (or 2nd for a few of us) about half way up Harding:


Look at those 3 beautiful 5 Spots:


Oh yeah, and here's a couple of lonely Santa Cruz's:


Views from Harding:


The climb ahead of us:


Dino coming into 4 corners:


Great views from 4 corners:


more pics below:

[TURNERob]

The group resting up:


Waterfall/creek pics from Joplin:




Yes there is a trail there somewhere:


Ladd negotiating the tricky switchback:


Dino on the same switchback (check his front tire going over that rock):

[ECOdork]

Looks great! Now I really want to get out there! Hopefully Harding will be a bit easier rolling next time out....

[LBmtb]

Very purty. Did Bret eat on that switchback? Am I hallucinating or do I see poison oak in those pictures?

[Skeeter]

uhoh George poison oak is everywhere even in this post.

be careful

[TURNERob]

Originally Posted by LBmtb

Very purty. Did Bret eat on that switchback? Am I hallucinating or do I see poison oak in those pictures?

No Bret made it twice down that switchback, and Dell cleaned it as well.

There is PO EVERYWHERE on Joplin Gonzo, but not quite as bad as Viejo Tie/Chiquita though if you ask me. Joplin is one very fun and technical trail, just worried about how overgrown it is going to get after all this rain we've been having

This was one heck of a ride. My legs are shot today and when I got home after the ride I was riding the couch all afternoon!

I've never done Harding to Joplin before but have seen it (Harding) from the STT and it always looked intimidating to me. Much to my surprise it wasn't nearly as tough as I thought it would be, but DONT GET ME WRONG it still is a grinder. We stopped a couple of times to rest, the ass-factor was kickin' in pretty hard for me so a few times I'd have to throw it into a higher gear and stand up and mash for a hundred yards or so. This helped ease the ass-factor. Like Rob said, Harding was in pretty good shape, some areas were slower/soggier than others but the temperature was perfect for climbing. We passed this one dude who seriously asked us on 3 different occasions, "how much farther is it to the top", he even asked us as he was going downhill, what the f**k?!?! So, we make it to the JOPLIN trailhead, gear up, talk some smack then head on down. The top portion is a bit tricky, there are a couple tight switchbacks that are doable if you have the confidence to let your front wheel ride high while your back wheel rides in the rut. Lots of loose shale makes this trail a bit tricky, but as long as you keep rolling you will do just fine. I was very tempted to do the rocky/drop/roll that Rob came out of his shoes on but decided against it, I didn't want to risk injury quite yet. The rest of the trail carves its way down along the creek and crosses it on a couple occasions, there is one really, really loose steep left hand turn that is very hard to maneuver on. I stopped with Dale and Von Skip and we all took turns cleaning it with Stu at the bottom, he cleaned it before we made our runs at it. After that we cruised and then came into some more fun techy turns, this time the turns were more stable, but they were littered with roots and large rocks, some with moss on them. Again, the key was to keep your momentum up and let your suspension do what it does. I cleaned the first right hand turn of the S-turn but then dabbed when making the left. After one final creek crossing that I dipped my right foot in we made our way to Old Camp and saw a group of 3 or 4 riders, one of which was on a Trans Blue Heckler . We rested up for a few then as I was climbing out my left leg started cramping. I had to stop and ***** & moan about it, then ended up hiking about 1/2 out of Old Camp, then hopped back on the saddle to the saddle to regroup. After another couple of minutes we rolled out, I went first and was having a great time unti that one little climb and I dismounted because my legs were fried, Von Skip and Dale passed me and Stu was right behind me. Got back on the bike and continued on and then when making a left I must have pinch flatted because all of a sudden I heard the dreaded noise of a flat and the extremely loose/wobbley back end. Thank goodness Stu had some Co2 cartridges because my mini-pump sucks ass and I was too tired to haggle with pumping up a flat. He filled up my tire in about 3 seconds, very nice!(*note to self: buy a Co2 inflater set up). After that 10 minute delay we continued to the Luge and regrouped then bombed down. I have NEVER seen that trail in such great shape. I was on Dales ass the entire time and Rob was closing in on us. We could hear him hootin' and hollerin' as we railed every turn and floated over every rock. I don't recall seeing once ounce of slick mud on the Luge at all. Much to my surprise I cleaned that last little climb after crossing the bridge heading out of the Luge. I didn't think my legs had it in them to get me up that. We arrived at Cooks and Aldo gave me and Dale a lift back to our trucks and when I came back to Cook's a cheeseburger and soda were waiting for me (thanks Stu).

[CalEpic]

Anybody sac up on that gap jump at the beginning of the Luge?

Negative Craig, I know I didnt have the extra energy, not sure bout the other dudes.

[TURNERob]

Originally Posted by DINO

Negative Craig, I know I didnt have the extra energy, not sure bout the other dudes.

I thought about it but man was I beat....the Luge did bring some life into me though.

[Von-Skipp]

Awesome ride yesterday! Good call on the Harding Joplin route as there was not much mud at all.
Great ride to break in my new 5Spot. I was worried that this bike wouldnt climb as nice and my Tracer, but I was wrong! Going down Joplin showed me how plush and active the rear suspension is, then coming down from Old Camp showed me how stable she was high speeds. I hate to brag, but I'm really impressed with the 5Spot. The Luge just topped it off and I was sold.

Nice meeting you Stu, you should join us next Saturday for another long ride(lots o' climing).

~TurnerKipp

[Ladd Jasper]

Great ride, boys. A worthy shakedown for Kippie's Spot, I'd say.

Though the first 5 miles or so of Harding totally owned me, I started feeling pretty good after that. Joplin delivered as usual, and the flow of upper STT is always fun. Figured the Luge would be a mess, but couldn't have been more wrong--never seen it smoother, cleaner or faster. Thought I was flyin' down that thing, but apparently still held HUCKELHOFF back...apologies for the blockage, bro.

A little Tour de Live Oak action had us drafting all the way down to the trucks, a last bit o' fun before we stashed the bikes for some grub. Topped off by a chili dog at Cook's and a nice long nap back home, the day couldn't have been better.

Stu, good to meet and ride with you--we'll have to do it again soon.

[ArrrKelly]

Nice meeting everybody! Lets do some more Epic rides for sure.

[guero]

::bump:: for another classic RR!!!

[genusmtbkr5]

Just a reminder that these areas are now closed.

[TURNERob]

Ahhhh, the good ole days!

[DeeZee]

Originally Posted by TURNERob

Ahhhh, the good ole days!

our favorite rides.

Gawd I miss it

[CalEpic]

Time machine, baby

[xhuskr]

Originally Posted by CalEpic

Time machine, baby

or anti-fire machine?