Another airlift on Ladera Ridge

A friend of mine who ended his mtb career on the bump at the fork to Firehose this past May just told me another rider got airlifted from there yesterday. His neighbor's brother wiped out on it. Broke his back, arm, elbow and ribs.

What is the point of that bump anyway? It has taken out a lot of people, including two I personally know.

 

I looked through some of the other threads and found this:

http://www.socaltrailriders.org/forum/rider-down/29560-another-trail-angel-airlift-4.html

And this thread:

http://www.socaltrailriders.org/forum/trail-conditions/29675-ladera-ridge-ladera-ranch-trail.html

 

Are you talking about the table top thing on the downhill over there? My buddy wiped out on it into some cactus. Its pretty scary if you dont know its there

 

Yeah, that's the funny thing. It's like that cactus was placed there on purpose to add insult to injury. Not only do you f yourself up completely, you get some big ass needles stuck in you for good measure.

 

I give prayers and my thoughts are going out to those that have hurt themselves when riding...

 

My opinion: It's only a matter of time before someone DIES because of that bump. All this crap about not calling attention is just that to me, crap. How many lives has this "feature" changed forever? That bump isn't going to stop motorcycles, because well, they can ride around it. Having multiple airlifts calls pretty damn good attention if you ask me. I'm surprised no one has sued because of that bump. That'll get some good attention.

 

picture!!??????

 

Sorry to hear about your friend. so why cant someone put one of these up? If the bump has to be there for certain reasons someone is obligied to put a sign up. IMO

 

You put a sign up, someone's going to tear it down.

 

I disagree, why would someone tear down a sign with the sole purpose of diverting physical harm? Im sure kids sometimes go up there and could do damage. What Im saying is whoever owns the land and created the "bump" should be responsible for maintaining the sign no matter how many times it get torn down.

 

Don't slam me ... but what if it was a water bar that was too big, or a rut in the trail - heck a short block wall or a booby trap ('rumored' on some trails in the B* area) or even better a hiker, maybe one with a younger kid or an animal? If you're riding an unknown location/trail, just because you can go FAST doesn't mean you should. For goodness sakes people, SLOW down until you learn the trail, please ride responsibly.

Prayers to the family and rider that are hurt in this thread...and to ALL riders that have been injured - not just on features like this, but while out pursing their passion and the great outdoors.

Please keep in mind, if you keep this banter up, that particular trail - which is a rare one in OC that is legal for night rides - might be closed.

 

anyone have a photograph of this evil thing?

 

And also the exact location. I have never ridden this trail, so I would like to know in case I venture into this some day.

 

I dont have a pic but there is a nice singletrack smooth downhill so riders tend to fly down it....Little do they know there is a huge table top that isnt visible until you are flying off of it. A lot of people get hurt there. The first time I rode the trail Tree warned us about it and even going slower down the hill I almost ate it.

 

I'll tell you why this "feature" is particularly evil. It's not hiding. It's on a straight level piece of relatively wide single track. It's pretty damn obvious because it's about 3 feet high, and the trail before and after it is straight and flat. You can't miss it. It's looking you in the eye telling you "Look at me! Wouldn't it be nice to roll me at speed?"

You go down a short downhill leading up to it, and people who don't know any better (and some who do) lay off the brakes because it is so damn flat and easy looking. I KNOW this "feature" is bad, and yet right before my buddy broke his back on it, I caught air and realized my mistake enough to correct it. I knew that if I, who knew it was bad, almost launched myself, then I should warn my buddy. I got off my bike ran back to within 50 feet of the feature (it's straight, remember), waved at my buddy, yelled twice for him to slow down, and yet he still ****ed himself up, and I saw it all happen. My buddy is a relatively experienced rider who has gone down Rock It, and should've know better. Instead, I had to run up to him knocked the **** out, moaning on the ground with a broken back.

So, you can put all the signs you want on that thing, I guarantee you people will still f themselves up on it. If my relatively experienced buddy, who had me waving and yelling at him to slow down, and who acknowledged seeing me, but could not make out what I was saying, still managed to stack it, what chance does some slightly careless newbie have? (Holy run on sentence Batman!) You can preach all you want that people should know better and slow down, but guess what? Common sense ain't all that common. It's not that people break collar bones, or maybe an arm or a leg on this thing. This thing pile drives people and breaks necks. It's constructed in such a way that you WILL flip over and land on your f'ing head. Believe me, I know. I watched my friend sail through the air, nose dive and land on his head.

 

That's because I am a bad ass tour guide and hate seeing people get hurt!!!!!

The first time I hit that bump, I expected it to launch me forward and out - instead it launched me UP and OUT, caused my weight to shift unexpectedly and almost put my into the cactus. I took it at a relatively slow speed, even after having just rolled down the hill leading to it. I tend to go slow the first few times on a trail due to the unknown and unfamiliarity of the terrain.

Healing vibes to the rider.

 

First, prayers out to those hurt. Saw the helicopter on Sunday and sure hoped it wasn't one of ours. I've nearly eaten it myself on that particular bump, even after knowing it's there. Go slow and roll over it nice and easy, people. It's an obstacle, not a feature.

That said, if its purpose really is to keep motorcycles off the trail, it doesn't. Couple weeks ago I was about to go down (redacted - the trail that isn't Firehose) and a guy on a motorcycle comes roaring down the trail. Thank goodness I was already off to the side. He seemed as surprised to see me as I was him. What a maroon. That trail is not only popular with mountain bikers, but runners as well. I've seen the Tesoro cross country team practicing there.

I'll add that some of the threads linked above question the legality of the trail we call Ladera Ridge. The section between the electric substation and Firehose, and Firehose itself, is unquestionably legal. It exists on Ladera Ranch trail maps from the beginning of the community. The official name on those maps is "The Ladera Ranch Trail." That said, while the rest of the Ladera Ridge is on maps as well (as is, I think, the alternate route down to Antonio), it's not part of the official network for Ladera Ranch. That certainly doesn't mean it's not legal - it's just not acknowledged on the official LR maps.

No pictures of the bump, just be prepared if you're flying down a hill that it might appear in front of you. There's plenty of time to slow if you're looking ahead. It's especially dangerous if you're heading north, because you have a full head of steam coming down a hill.

 

I've never ridden there but would like to soon. Like others, I'm very curious about the exact location of this tricky obstacle.

Is it about an inch from the top of the satellite photo below?

 

Please note - I did mention I ride that trail quite often and KNOW exactly what is there - have walked it and ridden it and taken many newbies (including my kid) through there before. For those of us that have ridden that trail for some time, the 'bump' has changed through the years, I have seen it MUCH worse. Yet again I wouldn't roll anything on a multi-use trail - especially at speed - if I didn't look at the other side first.Just my lack of skills...and sense of preservation. It would be different if I was in a designated 'bike park' e.g., whistler, or mammoth is the only way I would trust a trail unseen. We can't change trails just because an inexperienced or new riders ride them.

Still, prayers and thoughts for your friend and his family and hope for a full and complete recovery.

 

Yep, that's it. If you need a guide, let me know.