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allison · 07-22-2007, 04:01 PM

I'd like to preface this RR by saying that I had no desire to ride Coldwater, and I knew it was a trail I wouldn't like. I tried to hook up a SWEETwater trail with the SD peeps, but Justin "pretended" he misunderstood and somehow we ended up doing ITT - Coldwater.

We started at 7 am, and climbing up ITT wasn't too bad. The break at Main Divide was actually pretty nice. Climbing up MD after HJ was pretty bad, and it just got worse. It was hot, no breeze, and there were a ton of motos. A few slowed down and were nice enough to not blow us over with dust.

We took another quick break at Upper Holy Jim, padded up and headed down.

The top of Coldwater isn't *that* bad. Especially the part of UHJ

It does get really loose and deep with leaves and deep DG just waiting for riders to roll down the hills and off the trail. I started to struggle when it got a bit looser and the trail skinnier. There was one hike a bike that was short, and I wasn't feeling too good. Really hot and irritated. We came up on a huge hike a bike. Denny was nice enough to take his Nomad about halfway up and come back to grab my bike. It was *thoroughly* appreciated. I slowly made my way up the rest of the hike a bike and we took another short break before the really steep and loose last section of the trail.

About half of us were out of water. Justin had 5L at the beginning of the day (2L of cytomax) and he was really low on liquids. You'll see how much Ben needed water. He got down on his knees!

It was slow going for me, as I walked the majority of the last mile and felt like I was getting nowhere. It was so steep in places I got tangled with my bike and tried to slip down the trail to try to extricate myself. There was a bit of dust and laughs down below, as Justin and Ben kept going back and forth with tripoding and sliding over in the dirt.

We finally made it to the end. I was thoroughly wasted, covered in dirt, lots of little scrapes. Justin had blood dripping from both knees. Ben was basically covered head to toe in dust.

On to the photos -

Punky Brewster Socom

The boys

Von-Speed Racer up ahead, meanwhile Denny is going the wrong way

Bjammin makes his way up

Where on the trail is Denny?

Find VonSpeedDemon

Ben catches me

Climbing up ITT

Pretty sure that's where we rode down

Mmm...feel the pain divide

Dft, minus a few wisdom teeth, on vicodin, with a dual crown, and still climbing faster than me

Pushing the DH bikes

Descending the top of UHJ

allison · 07-22-2007, 04:02 PM

Look, a part where I was riding!

Not riding...

Got water?

Dirty, scraped, bloody, sweaty

If you're masochist or really skilled, this trail is for you. Otherwise, stick to something fun

bjammin · 07-22-2007, 05:01 PM

Absolute crazy fun. Did I mention I was thirsty?

bjammin · 07-22-2007, 05:01 PM

Seriously though. Thanks for the fun and entertaining ride.

Dirty D · 07-22-2007, 05:21 PM

Great write up and very nice shots too Allison. What a killer ride, and hats off to everybody who participated. The descent is always a hoot on Coldwater - especially towards the bottom - lock & load!

Great ridin with ya'll...

And yea, a couple of extra bottles of Gatorade or Propel would have been nice.

D

Collette · 07-22-2007, 05:31 PM

No token handlebar shot? You're slipping girl!!

Seriously, great pics as usual.

allison · 07-22-2007, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Collette

No token handlebar shot? You're slipping girl!!

Seriously, great pics as usual.

Fire road handlebar shots kinda suck, and I wasn't enjoying the ST enough

I got one yesterday:

PHOTOS from BullitMark. Thanks!!

Jewell of D(enial) · 07-22-2007, 06:09 PM

Wow, I'm really bummed out I missed out on this one. I rode for an hour in spin class instead with air conditioning and lots of water. Looked really *fun!*

Later,
Julee

allison · 07-22-2007, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jewell of D(enial)

Wow, I'm really bummed out I missed out on this one. I rode for an hour in spin class instead with air conditioning and lots of water. Looked really *fun!*

Later,
Julee

Next time we'll trade

You guys need to get your hands on some roadies so we can do the 50mi ride we did yesterday! It was a great ride, mostly flat.

CC · 07-22-2007, 06:28 PM

That sounds pretty epic. Were you guys prepared for it to be so long, hot? How come everyone ran out of water?

allison · 07-22-2007, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CC

That sounds pretty epic. Were you guys prepared for it to be so long, hot? How come everyone ran out of water?

I think Mark, Justin and Denny all had enough. It was just really warm in sections and lots of climbing. Everyone made it down okay, though.

OMR · 07-22-2007, 06:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by allison

Climbing up MD after HJ was pretty bad, and it just got worse. It was hot, no breeze, and there were a ton of motos..... It was slow going for me, as I walked the majority of the last mile and felt like I was getting nowhere. It was so steep in places I got tangled with my bike and tried to slip down the trail to try to extricate myself. .....We finally made it to the end. I was thoroughly wasted, covered in dirt, lots of little scrapes.

You have finally felt the force of Coldwater... in the summer... and lived! This trail is much more enjoyable when the weather cools... you will learn these things as you grow into a butterfly.

Seriously, you have my respect... that's a damn hard trail when you constantly have sweat in your eyes! Way to hang in there girl!

OMR

allison · 07-22-2007, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtber3737

You have finally felt the force of Coldwater... in the summer... and lived! This trail is much more enjoyable when the weather cools... you will learn these things as you grow into a butterfly.

Seriously, you have my respect... that's a damn hard trail when you constantly have sweat in your eyes! Way to hang in there girl!

OMR

This trail definitely is on my list of trails I have no desire to ride anytime soon

It's behind only Joplin!! Which I'd actually like to try again on the Enduro.

CalEpic · 07-22-2007, 06:54 PM

With the humidity today you must have questioned yourselves at times. Let me know next time you do this ride.

C

ps - It's good to see Jason riding something with more than 3" of suspension

Dirty D · 07-22-2007, 06:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by allison

This trail definitely is on my list of trails I have no desire to ride anytime soon

It's behind only Joplin!! Which I'd actually like to try again on the Enduro.

This HAB is where it started heating up real good, and some ran out of water. This HAB climb sux but it's all a part of the CW package. All down from there.

(pic was taken last December)

mtbcat · 07-22-2007, 07:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jewell of D(enial)

Wow, I'm really bummed out I missed out on this one. I rode for an hour in spin class instead with air conditioning and lots of water. Looked really *fun!*

Later,
Julee

well its the truth you snooz ya loose I hit the snooze button and missed out on all the fun

would have made it home sooner last night but the bartender took my bike away. JOD an hour of spin class is way more brutal for us mere mortals than a sunday ride with good friends.

bjammin · 07-22-2007, 07:02 PM

I started out with a 3/4 full bladder thinking "it's only a 20 mi. ride, I'll have enough" *DUMB!!!!*
The heat during that Habbage is what dried me out.
Next time I'll do the following:
1. Fill my bladder the night before.
2. Arrive on time so I don't have to do a 5 mile sprint to catch up with the group!

jeffj · 07-22-2007, 07:03 PM

Nice series of photos, especially the close up descending shots from "UHJ". Those should find their way into frames.

Thanks for sharing.

allison · 07-22-2007, 07:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bjammin

I started out with a 3/4 full bladder thinking "it's only a 20 mi. ride, I'll have enough" *DUMB!!!!*
The heat during that Habbage is what dried me out.
Next time I'll do the following:
1. Fill my bladder the night before.
2. Arrive on time so I don't have to do a 5 mile sprint to catch up with the group!

Dude, you should know better...

you never need to sprint if I'm on the ride

07-22-2007, 04:01 PM	#1 (permalink)
allison Harden the F Up	RR: ITT - Coldwater I'd like to preface this RR by saying that I had no desire to ride Coldwater, and I knew it was a trail I wouldn't like. I tried to hook up a SWEETwater trail with the SD peeps, but Justin "pretended" he misunderstood and somehow we ended up doing ITT - Coldwater. We started at 7 am, and climbing up ITT wasn't too bad. The break at Main Divide was actually pretty nice. Climbing up MD after HJ was pretty bad, and it just got worse. It was hot, no breeze, and there were a ton of motos. A few slowed down and were nice enough to not blow us over with dust. We took another quick break at Upper Holy Jim, padded up and headed down. The top of Coldwater isn't that bad. Especially the part of UHJ It does get really loose and deep with leaves and deep DG just waiting for riders to roll down the hills and off the trail. I started to struggle when it got a bit looser and the trail skinnier. There was one hike a bike that was short, and I wasn't feeling too good. Really hot and irritated. We came up on a huge hike a bike. Denny was nice enough to take his Nomad about halfway up and come back to grab my bike. It was thoroughly appreciated. I slowly made my way up the rest of the hike a bike and we took another short break before the really steep and loose last section of the trail. About half of us were out of water. Justin had 5L at the beginning of the day (2L of cytomax) and he was really low on liquids. You'll see how much Ben needed water. He got down on his knees! It was slow going for me, as I walked the majority of the last mile and felt like I was getting nowhere. It was so steep in places I got tangled with my bike and tried to slip down the trail to try to extricate myself. There was a bit of dust and laughs down below, as Justin and Ben kept going back and forth with tripoding and sliding over in the dirt. We finally made it to the end. I was thoroughly wasted, covered in dirt, lots of little scrapes. Justin had blood dripping from both knees. Ben was basically covered head to toe in dust. On to the photos - Punky Brewster Socom The boys Von-Speed Racer up ahead, meanwhile Denny is going the wrong way Bjammin makes his way up Where on the trail is Denny? Find VonSpeedDemon Ben catches me Climbing up ITT Pretty sure that's where we rode down Mmm...feel the pain divide Dft, minus a few wisdom teeth, on vicodin, with a dual crown, and still climbing faster than me Pushing the DH bikes Descending the top of UHJ __________________

07-22-2007, 04:02 PM	#2 (permalink)
allison Harden the F Up	Look, a part where I was riding! Not riding... Got water? Dirty, scraped, bloody, sweaty If you're masochist or really skilled, this trail is for you. Otherwise, stick to something fun __________________

07-22-2007, 06:28 PM	#10 (permalink)
CC V.P. Kickstand Inspection	That sounds pretty epic. Were you guys prepared for it to be so long, hot? How come everyone ran out of water? __________________ I hUCkeD last night ~ STR Dirty Girl ~ Incycle.com

07-22-2007, 06:54 PM	#14 (permalink)
CalEpic STR Moderator	With the humidity today you must have questioned yourselves at times. Let me know next time you do this ride. C ps - It's good to see Jason riding something with more than 3" of suspension __________________ tkblazer: you pedaled up mathis? nice, i'm scared to ride down it

07-22-2007, 05:01 PM	#3 (permalink)
bjammin STR Veteran	Absolute crazy fun. Did I mention I was thirsty?

07-22-2007, 05:01 PM	#4 (permalink)
bjammin STR Veteran	Seriously though. Thanks for the fun and entertaining ride.

07-22-2007, 05:21 PM	#5 (permalink)
Dirty D Noncompliant...	Great write up and very nice shots too Allison. What a killer ride, and hats off to everybody who participated. The descent is always a hoot on Coldwater - especially towards the bottom - lock & load! Great ridin with ya'll... And yea, a couple of extra bottles of Gatorade or Propel would have been nice. D

07-22-2007, 05:31 PM	#6 (permalink)
Collette Lurker	No token handlebar shot? You're slipping girl!! Seriously, great pics as usual.

07-22-2007, 06:09 PM	#8 (permalink)
Jewell of D(enial) Baby biker coming soon...	Wow, I'm really bummed out I missed out on this one. I rode for an hour in spin class instead with air conditioning and lots of water. Looked really fun! Later, Julee

07-22-2007, 07:02 PM	#17 (permalink)
bjammin STR Veteran	I started out with a 3/4 full bladder thinking "it's only a 20 mi. ride, I'll have enough" DUMB!!!! The heat during that Habbage is what dried me out. Next time I'll do the following: 1. Fill my bladder the night before. 2. Arrive on time so I don't have to do a 5 mile sprint to catch up with the group!

07-22-2007, 07:03 PM	#18 (permalink)
jeffj Sloths Mock Me	Nice series of photos, especially the close up descending shots from "UHJ". Those should find their way into frames. Thanks for sharing.

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