Riding Near Las Vegas

[BrewMaster]

Does anyone know of good riding close to the Strip in Vegas? I will be out there next week for a trade show and I am hoping to ride in the mornings if there are trails within decent range of the Strip.

Thanks.

[Code Blue]

Originally Posted by BrewMaster

Does anyone know of good riding close to the Strip in Vegas? I will be out there next week for a trade show and I am hoping to ride in the mornings if there are trails within decent range of the Strip.

Thanks.

Call in sick drive to Utah and hit up Gooseberry in the AM and Thunder Mtn. in the PM.

[BrewMaster]

Originally Posted by DeeZee

Call in sick drive to Utah and hit up Gooseberry in the AM and Thunder Mtn. in the PM.

Nice idea, but that ain't gonna happen.

[dubjay]

Check out Bootleg Canyon - about 20-30 minutes south of the strip in Boulder City.

http://www.bootlegcanyon.com/

[Code Blue]

Originally Posted by BrewMaster

Nice idea, but that ain't gonna happen.

worth a try.....

check here

http://forums.mtbr.com/forumdisplay.php?f=96

I had a trip to Tampa FL two years ago and the guys in the FL forum told me where I could rent a bike and where to ride.

Ended up riding an area with tons of wood planks over swamps.......kinda cool.

Good luck!

[BrewMaster]

I just had another idea. Is there any good riding along the 15 near Baker in the Mojave Preserve? I could hit that on my way in or out of Vegas. That would be fun too.

[Fired Yo Momma]

BrewMaster, check out Redrock Mountain lots of fun single track stuff. I believe its off of Blue Diamond Hwy about twenty miles from the strip. You can check out Cowboy trail thats fun. This may help you

http://www.barta-nv.com/id21.html

[soul rider]

mt charelston off hwy 95 towards Reno. the Bristle cone trail is great.
cottonwood canyon of Blue Diamond Hwy...Mustang extended loop or the Dinosuar tooth to mustang loop is great.

[allison]

Hit up the NV forum on emptybeer. There are some cool riders out there. If that doesn't work out, Bootleg Canyon is fun for XC and DH. I really like All Mountain Cyclery at the bottom of the hill in Boulder City.

There is also the Cowboy Trails in Cottonwood, and then the Blue Diamond trails. They are all in the same general area.

[JimN]

[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Blue Diamond, Cottonwood Valley and The Cowboy Trails all offer great XC riding within a 20 minute drive west of The Strip.[/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Easiest option is to head to Blue Diamond, as you can just hop on the bike and get in a good ride without the need for a map or knowledge of the trails.[/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Getting there: Take the 15 south to the 160 North and continue for about 10-11 miles. Turn right onto route 159 and continue for about 3 miles. Turn left onto Castalia Street. Turn left onto Diamond Street, and park at McGhies's Bike Outpost. You can pick up a cheap photocopy map here, but honestly, you probably won't find it to be very useful.[/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Here's a route that I highly recommend: [/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Leave the bike shop parking lot and head right onto Cottonwood Drive. Almost immediately it turns to gravel road and you merge left onto a singletrack. Soon thereafter you'll pass through a deep dip with a steep exit. Just follow this singletrack going left at all junctions that you encounter in the first three or four miles. You'll navigate a section where the sand gets pretty deep, and then the singletrack will dump you onto a dirt road that climbs a short distance to a four-way junction. Continue straight at this junction and immediately bear right (downhill) onto another singletrack. Singletrack crosses a dirt road - continue straight on the singletrack and follow trail signs through a re-routed area. After dropping into a usually dry creek bed, the singletrack climbs out to another dirt road. Pick up the singletrack on the other side of the dirt road and continue on ignoring any other trails that branch off this section. A mild climb brings you to a confusing junction of dirt roads and trails. You want to go left onto the singletrack that crosses (diagonally) the dirt road that you've just been riding parallel to. Sounds confusing, but it'll make sense when you're there. This is a fun section of trail. Not far in you'll come to a not too noticeable tee junction where you want to continue straight. Next junction you encounter you'll want to bear right. Not far after that, you'll navigate a dry streambed section and roll over a decent sized boulder. About a half-mile or so beyond that you'll encounter a junction where you want to go left, and almost immediately left again to climb "The Hurl". This is a really fun and challenging climb on mostly volcanic rock. It's never very steep, and always seems to let you recover between the hard parts. You'll top out on the climb, dip down and do a very short climb to another ridge, and then a sometimes sketchy downhill drops you to a set of hills behind Blue Diamond. There are many ways to go here, but if I remember correctly, going left at the first junction you encounter will dump you out on a dirt road that hooks up with Cerrito Street. Head down the dirt road almost to its end, go left and pass through a dip, and then you'll dump out onto Cerrito Street. Go left onto Cerrito Street, then a quick right and a quick left bring you back to the bike shop. Total distance is probably around 15 miles.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial]Have fun, wherever you end up riding![/FONT]

[allison]

Originally Posted by JimN

[FONT=Arial]Have fun, wherever you end up riding![/FONT]

Listen to Jim; he knows what he is talking about with ride suggestions!!

[JimN]

Originally Posted by mechmann

yes, if Jim wrote a comprehensive book of the best trails and brews in the western US, i would buy it.

Jim...

how is the back? hope all is great with you and the wife!!!!!!!!

Ha! Thanks, Justin! My back is doing pretty well, especially considering that I'm riding nothing but fully-rigid bikes these days. As a long-term solution, I really need to take up yoga or do something that increases both core strength and flexibility. Strong legs from cycling plus poor flexibility do not equal a good combination when you have a screwed up lower back.

Tracy crashed about five weeks ago on Will Roger's/Backbone and broke her left clavicle into about six pieces. Fortunately the pieces of bone stayed pretty well-aligned, so no surgery required. She's now out of the sling and feeling pretty well put back together. I'm guessing that she'll be back on the bike by this time next week.

I'm pretty sure we're both doing Vision Quest this year, so we'll finally start seeing you folks on some rides.

[BrewMaster]

Originally Posted by JimN

[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Blue Diamond, Cottonwood Valley and The Cowboy Trails all offer great XC riding within a 20 minute drive west of The Strip.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Easiest option is to head to Blue Diamond, as you can just hop on the bike and get in a good ride without the need for a map or knowledge of the trails.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Getting there: Take the 15 south to the 160 North and continue for about 10-11 miles. Turn right onto route 159 and continue for about 3 miles. Turn left onto Castalia Street. Turn left onto Diamond Street, and park at McGhies's Bike Outpost. You can pick up a cheap photocopy map here, but honestly, you probably won't find it to be very useful.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]Here's a route that I highly recommend: [/SIZE][/FONT]
<snip>

[FONT=Arial]Have fun, wherever you end up riding![/FONT]

Whoa. Many thanks Jim.

I have always hated going to Vegas because expensive drinks and expensive shows are just not my thing. Now I am looking forward to this trip! I may go to Vegas more often, if for nothing else than to ride! Thanks to everyone for the help.

[Fired Yo Momma]

My mom lives out their and I am considering buying a travel case to bring my bike out their, otherwise I usually rent a bike out their and rental bikes suck.

[JimN]

Originally Posted by BrewMaster

Whoa. Many thanks Jim.

I have always hated going to Vegas because expensive drinks and expensive shows are just not my thing. Now I am looking forward to this trip! I may go to Vegas more often, if for nothing else than to ride! Thanks to everyone for the help.

You're welcome! I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the quality of the riding and scenery. This ride only scatches the surface of what's out there. My wife and I usually add the Cottonwood Valley Loop to the route that I described for you. This brings the route up to about 33 miles total / 90% singletrack.

Don't forget to enjoy a cold one on the front porch of the Blue Diamond Village Store after your ride.

Enjoy!

[26'er Zen Master]

Ok well I am going end of the week with my girlfriend she is kinda new to the bike and I was wondering if there is a reccomendation for some easier stuff or is bootleg or red rock newb friendly?

[CalEpic]

Good advice here. For sure hit up the NV board on mtbr. I've ridden with the guys there many times and they are a great group.

If you're taking newb's I'd opt for Cottonwood over Bootleg. As Mechmann pointed out there are a couple easier XC trails at Bootleg but Cottonwood has a lot more to offer for XC. It's awesome for night riding. I prefer the Late Night trailhead over starting at the bike shop in Blue Diamond.

Mt Charleston is likely under snow at this time.

C

[Pain Freak]

I personally wouldn't take a newbie on any of the trails at Bootleg. Even the easy stuff, if you make a mistake and just fall to the side, some of that sharp rock could do a lot of damage.

Yeah, I've been waiting years for JimN's book. I'm kind of getting pissed it's taking so long....

Hope Tracy's doing okay, looking foward to riding with you again.