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Pain Freak · 03-14-2008, 04:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tedroy

... Should rain around 8PM Sat. Go for it! Couch reserved for Sunday...
Btw... Did I say yer all nuts? Thats some serious F'n climbin'. I know all the locals do this ride, but jeez, that is some serious busting. I guess I AM gettin' old. Have fun all Y'all

This is a walk in the park for you. C'mon out, the pace will be a slacker pace and we'll have a great time.

Mazer, there will be a bail out option if you don't feel like continuing. Instead of continuing up to IP, you can just head down El P. Still the ride only has about 3500 feet of climbing and at a slower pace most won't even realize we climbed it.

Liz, it's going to be great weather manana.

So lets go!

Rossage · 03-14-2008, 06:15 PM

I'll be at JPL by 8. I'm in a big yellow van..

Gabriel Zink · 03-14-2008, 07:01 PM

Mike, got directions to where we are meeting?

epicriderat · 03-14-2008, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dirtmistress

MAN! I am so tempted to do this but really don't want to be wet and cold. I wish I was a decider like the prez!

Liz, You will not be cold and wet. No rain scheduled for tomorrow. Come on out and ride.

dirtmistress · 03-14-2008, 08:13 PM

Sorry Mike! My internal thermostat is all messed up and I am so not into being cold right now. If that changes when I wake up, I'll consider going. I may join a couple buds on the road for a MC training ride. Many bail outs for that if I get cold. Lots of spring and summer rides coming up so I know we will do this one. I'd love to hit it when it's warmer!

Gabriel Zink · 03-14-2008, 08:13 PM

Directions to the trailhead anyone?

Pain Freak · 03-14-2008, 08:15 PM

Gabe, some of us are meeting at the JPL parking lot and then riding over to the trailhead on Lake. Which directions do you need? We will be leaving JPL parking lot no later then 8:15, we should start climbing Lower Merrill about 9 to 9:15 am. I'll have my cell on in the morning. (909) 224-8045.

Gabriel Zink · 03-14-2008, 08:17 PM

JPL Parking lot, I don't think there will be parking on lake.

Pain Freak · 03-14-2008, 08:22 PM

Gabe, if you want to meet at JPL find your way to the 210 and exit Windsor make a right and just go down the street you'll see the parking lot with a buch of bikers in it.

Lake almost the same thing 210W to Lake Ave go right to the end of the street, when it curves it turns into Alta Loma just park here and you'll see the trailhead.

Both places will be packed we just park a little farther away.

JoeTruth · 03-15-2008, 06:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dirtmistress

Sorry Mike! My internal thermostat is all messed up and I am so not into being cold right now. If that changes when I wake up, I'll consider going. I may join a couple buds on the road for a MC training ride. Many bail outs for that if I get cold. Lots of spring and summer rides coming up so I know we will do this one. I'd love to hit it when it's warmer!

Uhm, not sure where you are but here in the 210 foothills, it's a nice 70 degrees with clear blue skies. Go join your gang and have a great day riding.

Be safe everyone!

dirtmistress · 03-15-2008, 06:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeTruth

Uhm, not sure where you are but here in the 210 foothills, it's a nice 70 degrees with clear blue skies. Go join your gang and have a great day riding.

Be safe everyone!

I decided I need to get in some long road miles for the Mulholland challenge! Next time!!

dirtmistress · 03-15-2008, 01:33 PM

Hope you guys had a great ride. Mt. Wilson cam is socked in and shows 35 degrees. I could tell it was nice earlier! Can't wait to hear.

mazer75 · 03-15-2008, 09:07 PM

Hey I hope you guys had a great ride today. Sorry I missed it. Did a solo ride up Brown Mtn to El Prieto, starting about 9:45am, and conditions were perfect! I came across like 1 billion hikers though (on both the climb and in El P), but I was of course extremely courteous and told everyone "good morning!"

Any pictures from your ride today? How was it at IP?

CupLess · 03-15-2008, 11:16 PM

Not a good view from IP... overcast!

We did have one rider Daniel Johnson go over the cliff... ~60 ft!!!
Luckily nothing serious has been spotted as of yet.....

The extent of the injuries, so far....

[SIZE=2]He has multiple bruises, cuts and scrapes and he fractured his Pelvis, S-2 vertebrae in his back (the second one above the pelvis) and fractured a rib.

[/SIZE]

VTVic · 03-15-2008, 11:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CupLess

Not a good view from IP... overcast!

We did have one rider Daniel Johnson go over the cliff... ~60 ft!!!
Luckily nothing serious has been spotted as of yet.....

The extent of the injuries, so far....

[SIZE=2]He has multiple bruises, cuts and scrapes and he fractured his Pelvis, S-2 vertebrae in his back (the second one above the pelvis) and fractured a rib.[/SIZE]

Wow, that doesn't sound good at all. Where did he fall? I'm sorry to hear about this and hope he has a quick recovery.

bighit8 · 03-15-2008, 11:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CupLess

Not a good view from IP... overcast!

We did have one rider Daniel Johnson go over the cliff... ~60 ft!!!
Luckily nothing serious has been spotted as of yet.....

The extent of the injuries, so far....

[SIZE=2]He has multiple bruises, cuts and scrapes and he fractured his Pelvis, S-2 vertebrae in his back (the second one above the pelvis) and fractured a rib.

[/SIZE]

Ohh sorry to hear that, speedy recovery for him!Gives me a heavy heart.

Pain Freak · 03-16-2008, 06:13 AM

Yeah, I'm very sorry for Daniel's fall. He seemed to know exactly what was wrong with himself. This guy showed super human ability in dealing with this pain. A true stud, for sure.

Basically from what I learned upon coming up to the riders was that Daniel had missed a switchback and went over the side. Like I stated earlier, this is not a trail that will let you get away with mistakes. He then flipped over the side and his bike flew over Gabriel Zinks head as Gabriel was on the lower part of the trail. Gabe stopped and heard some thuds. He turned around and seen Daniel in a tree/bush about another 20 feet or so down the side of the cliff. He managed to break through some of these bushes breaking 2 to 3 inch limbs as he fell. It looks like he fell 60 feet and was very lucky he didn't fall onto the trail, but flew out over it. Gabriel went down to retrieve him and a few others by that time had joined in. How they got him up I really don't know as I was sweeper for the day (or until we got off the Merrills) and it was a cliff face for the most part. We decided to send some guys down for help and we would see what we could do with Daniel. He had lost consiousness, so we were all concerned with this too. But he regained it very shortly and was very coherent. Someone asked if he could walk, and he said he'd give it a try. And let me tell you, this was no easy task for him. I was walking from behind him while another rider who I forgot his name walked in front as we supported him as much as we could, but all the hard work was done on Daniels part. Every step he took was with great difficulty, but he continued on and we cover about a half mile or so like this. Every step he took his legs would shake like he was about to collapse, but he never complained, just would stop occasionally to catch his breath and maybe to let the pain to subside a little. After the half mile or so we heard a chopper, but we weren't sure if it was for Daniel or not. It was, and I was very glad for his sake it was. Don't forget, he had just walked downhill on a very rocky trail for over half a mile. This to me took a superhuman effort and he never once complained. He did tell us what he thought was wrong and he was right on the money. He said I think I broke my pelvis, and maybe my back, but he said as a fact, not as in complaining. His complexion was very drawn and lost a lot of color from his face, but he just sucked it up. Frank gave him a little shiat talk to keep the mood a little lighter and that helped a lot with Daniel trading quips with him. The helicopter guys asked if we could get him over a little more to where they could set the litter down to level ground or closer somewhat to level ground and we got Daniel into it. We then helped get him over to a saddle where the heli was able to get in closer and then they llifted him out. I'm very grateful to these guys as I don't know how much more Daniel could take. They are a very professional bunch. Daniel was telling them what to do though. One light moment was when the said "abrasions on his leg" and Daniels says, "Oh, there's a lot more then just my legs", and he wasn't kidding. We all laughed a little at that and it really helped to see him in a little bit of a joking manner. We got a few pix of him being lifted into the copter, and I'll see if I can get them posted here.

I truly hopes he gets better soon and I feel so very sorry for him. He really was enjoying the ride up till that time.

And although I did call this an easier ride before Joe corrected me, I meant it is an easier ride as far as the climbing goes, as long as you don't race up the hill. The technical aspects of this trail are some of the toughest SoCal has to offer, with the penalty for mistakes severe, as we have seen with this incident. So if you decide to ride here please keep it in mind that others have paid dearly when making just the slightest of mistakes.

Take care Daniel, heal fast!

Rossage · 03-16-2008, 07:00 AM

This was my first ride with a bunch of guys from STR in the 'Gabes and we were having a blast. The Middle Merrill was in great shape an everyone was amazed at the great conditions due to the recent trail work. Then I heard the cry "Rider down!". In the few minutes it took me and Epic Ride Rat and a few others to get there, Gabe and the leading riders were already pulling Daniel from the bushes. Man, he really took a tumble. It was just like Pain Freak said.
I had EMT training years ago nd I could tell Daniel wasn't in good shape. His helmet was broken in three places. His eyes were glazed and not focusing, and according to everyone there, he had lost conciousness for at least a few seconds.
We had seen some Forest service people doing trail work down the mountain on Lower Merrill and we decided I should try to get some help-hopefully without having to call for the chopper. I had found out during the climb that Pain freak had some medical trainiing too so I knew he could help out also. I went down Merrill to Echo Mtn ruins-no Forest service. I went down Lower Merrill until I found hikers who told me that the Forest service crew was at the bottom of the trail. I went back to the ruins-sill no sign of the STR crew helping Daniel, so I decided to make the call.
After talking to many agencies (CHP, LA Fire, Pasadena PD, LAPD?), I finally get the LA Sheriffs and the chopper was sent.
Within minutes of making the call, Jason showed up at the trail junction, and others trickled down during the chopper extraction. The hikers got all the good photos-none of us seemed to be taking photos-just riding.
Daniel' injuries were severe and definitely life threatening and the camraderie and support shown by EVERYONE on that mountain made me proud to have you guys as friends. EVERYONE worked as a team, no panic, no confusion-it was an amazing display of human emotion and perseverance.
Daniel-you are super-tough, and I'm amazed you walked 10 feet down that trail. I hope none of the injuries are lasting, I hope you heal quickly and I hope to see you out on the trails again some day.
Rossage

VTVic · 03-16-2008, 07:00 AM

Thanks for the update guys and hope Daniel's recovery is a fast one. My heart goes out to him and his family. Also big props to all of you that helped him out. This is one thing I truly appreciate about mountain bikers, when things go bad you can be sure someone will be there to help you every step of the way.

03-14-2008, 08:15 PM	#47 (permalink)
Pain Freak Directionally Challenged	Gabe, some of us are meeting at the JPL parking lot and then riding over to the trailhead on Lake. Which directions do you need? We will be leaving JPL parking lot no later then 8:15, we should start climbing Lower Merrill about 9 to 9:15 am. I'll have my cell on in the morning. (909) 224-8045. __________________ "The best rides are the ones where you bite off much more than you can chew—and live through it." — Doug Bradbury "When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realised that the Lord doesn't work that way so I stole one and asked Him to forgive me." — Emo Philips

03-14-2008, 08:22 PM	#49 (permalink)
Pain Freak Directionally Challenged	Gabe, if you want to meet at JPL find your way to the 210 and exit Windsor make a right and just go down the street you'll see the parking lot with a buch of bikers in it. Lake almost the same thing 210W to Lake Ave go right to the end of the street, when it curves it turns into Alta Loma just park here and you'll see the trailhead. Both places will be packed we just park a little farther away. __________________ "The best rides are the ones where you bite off much more than you can chew—and live through it." — Doug Bradbury "When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realised that the Lord doesn't work that way so I stole one and asked Him to forgive me." — Emo Philips

03-16-2008, 06:13 AM	#57 (permalink)
Pain Freak Directionally Challenged	Yeah, I'm very sorry for Daniel's fall. He seemed to know exactly what was wrong with himself. This guy showed super human ability in dealing with this pain. A true stud, for sure. Basically from what I learned upon coming up to the riders was that Daniel had missed a switchback and went over the side. Like I stated earlier, this is not a trail that will let you get away with mistakes. He then flipped over the side and his bike flew over Gabriel Zinks head as Gabriel was on the lower part of the trail. Gabe stopped and heard some thuds. He turned around and seen Daniel in a tree/bush about another 20 feet or so down the side of the cliff. He managed to break through some of these bushes breaking 2 to 3 inch limbs as he fell. It looks like he fell 60 feet and was very lucky he didn't fall onto the trail, but flew out over it. Gabriel went down to retrieve him and a few others by that time had joined in. How they got him up I really don't know as I was sweeper for the day (or until we got off the Merrills) and it was a cliff face for the most part. We decided to send some guys down for help and we would see what we could do with Daniel. He had lost consiousness, so we were all concerned with this too. But he regained it very shortly and was very coherent. Someone asked if he could walk, and he said he'd give it a try. And let me tell you, this was no easy task for him. I was walking from behind him while another rider who I forgot his name walked in front as we supported him as much as we could, but all the hard work was done on Daniels part. Every step he took was with great difficulty, but he continued on and we cover about a half mile or so like this. Every step he took his legs would shake like he was about to collapse, but he never complained, just would stop occasionally to catch his breath and maybe to let the pain to subside a little. After the half mile or so we heard a chopper, but we weren't sure if it was for Daniel or not. It was, and I was very glad for his sake it was. Don't forget, he had just walked downhill on a very rocky trail for over half a mile. This to me took a superhuman effort and he never once complained. He did tell us what he thought was wrong and he was right on the money. He said I think I broke my pelvis, and maybe my back, but he said as a fact, not as in complaining. His complexion was very drawn and lost a lot of color from his face, but he just sucked it up. Frank gave him a little shiat talk to keep the mood a little lighter and that helped a lot with Daniel trading quips with him. The helicopter guys asked if we could get him over a little more to where they could set the litter down to level ground or closer somewhat to level ground and we got Daniel into it. We then helped get him over to a saddle where the heli was able to get in closer and then they llifted him out. I'm very grateful to these guys as I don't know how much more Daniel could take. They are a very professional bunch. Daniel was telling them what to do though. One light moment was when the said "abrasions on his leg" and Daniels says, "Oh, there's a lot more then just my legs", and he wasn't kidding. We all laughed a little at that and it really helped to see him in a little bit of a joking manner. We got a few pix of him being lifted into the copter, and I'll see if I can get them posted here. I truly hopes he gets better soon and I feel so very sorry for him. He really was enjoying the ride up till that time. And although I did call this an easier ride before Joe corrected me, I meant it is an easier ride as far as the climbing goes, as long as you don't race up the hill. The technical aspects of this trail are some of the toughest SoCal has to offer, with the penalty for mistakes severe, as we have seen with this incident. So if you decide to ride here please keep it in mind that others have paid dearly when making just the slightest of mistakes. Take care Daniel, heal fast! __________________ "The best rides are the ones where you bite off much more than you can chew—and live through it." — Doug Bradbury "When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new bicycle. Then I realised that the Lord doesn't work that way so I stole one and asked Him to forgive me." — Emo Philips

03-14-2008, 06:15 PM	#42 (permalink)
Rossage Senior Member	I'll be at JPL by 8. I'm in a big yellow van..

03-14-2008, 07:01 PM	#43 (permalink)
Gabriel Zink your hero	Mike, got directions to where we are meeting?

03-14-2008, 08:13 PM	#45 (permalink)
dirtmistress	Sorry Mike! My internal thermostat is all messed up and I am so not into being cold right now. If that changes when I wake up, I'll consider going. I may join a couple buds on the road for a MC training ride. Many bail outs for that if I get cold. Lots of spring and summer rides coming up so I know we will do this one. I'd love to hit it when it's warmer! __________________ http://www.bichonsandbuddies.com/ Shannon; "You see the problem is that God gave men a brain and a penis...but only enough blood to run one at a time".

03-14-2008, 08:13 PM	#46 (permalink)
Gabriel Zink your hero	Directions to the trailhead anyone?

03-14-2008, 08:17 PM	#48 (permalink)
Gabriel Zink your hero	JPL Parking lot, I don't think there will be parking on lake.

03-15-2008, 01:33 PM	#52 (permalink)
dirtmistress	Hope you guys had a great ride. Mt. Wilson cam is socked in and shows 35 degrees. I could tell it was nice earlier! Can't wait to hear. __________________ http://www.bichonsandbuddies.com/ Shannon; "You see the problem is that God gave men a brain and a penis...but only enough blood to run one at a time".

03-15-2008, 09:07 PM	#53 (permalink)
mazer75 Rocket Man	Hey I hope you guys had a great ride today. Sorry I missed it. Did a solo ride up Brown Mtn to El Prieto, starting about 9:45am, and conditions were perfect! I came across like 1 billion hikers though (on both the climb and in El P), but I was of course extremely courteous and told everyone "good morning!" Any pictures from your ride today? How was it at IP?

03-15-2008, 11:16 PM	#54 (permalink)
CupLess Junior Member	Not a good view from IP... overcast! We did have one rider Daniel Johnson go over the cliff... ~60 ft!!! Luckily nothing serious has been spotted as of yet..... The extent of the injuries, so far.... [SIZE=2]He has multiple bruises, cuts and scrapes and he fractured his Pelvis, S-2 vertebrae in his back (the second one above the pelvis) and fractured a rib. [/SIZE]

03-16-2008, 07:00 AM	#58 (permalink)
Rossage Senior Member	This was my first ride with a bunch of guys from STR in the 'Gabes and we were having a blast. The Middle Merrill was in great shape an everyone was amazed at the great conditions due to the recent trail work. Then I heard the cry "Rider down!". In the few minutes it took me and Epic Ride Rat and a few others to get there, Gabe and the leading riders were already pulling Daniel from the bushes. Man, he really took a tumble. It was just like Pain Freak said. I had EMT training years ago nd I could tell Daniel wasn't in good shape. His helmet was broken in three places. His eyes were glazed and not focusing, and according to everyone there, he had lost conciousness for at least a few seconds. We had seen some Forest service people doing trail work down the mountain on Lower Merrill and we decided I should try to get some help-hopefully without having to call for the chopper. I had found out during the climb that Pain freak had some medical trainiing too so I knew he could help out also. I went down Merrill to Echo Mtn ruins-no Forest service. I went down Lower Merrill until I found hikers who told me that the Forest service crew was at the bottom of the trail. I went back to the ruins-sill no sign of the STR crew helping Daniel, so I decided to make the call. After talking to many agencies (CHP, LA Fire, Pasadena PD, LAPD?), I finally get the LA Sheriffs and the chopper was sent. Within minutes of making the call, Jason showed up at the trail junction, and others trickled down during the chopper extraction. The hikers got all the good photos-none of us seemed to be taking photos-just riding. Daniel' injuries were severe and definitely life threatening and the camraderie and support shown by EVERYONE on that mountain made me proud to have you guys as friends. EVERYONE worked as a team, no panic, no confusion-it was an amazing display of human emotion and perseverance. Daniel-you are super-tough, and I'm amazed you walked 10 feet down that trail. I hope none of the injuries are lasting, I hope you heal quickly and I hope to see you out on the trails again some day. Rossage

03-16-2008, 07:00 AM	#59 (permalink)
VTVic Senior Member	Thanks for the update guys and hope Daniel's recovery is a fast one. My heart goes out to him and his family. Also big props to all of you that helped him out. This is one thing I truly appreciate about mountain bikers, when things go bad you can be sure someone will be there to help you every step of the way.

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