How many people here are doing the VQ or the CC, and how much training have you been able to get in with all the rain? Just curious
No vision quest for at least another year (not in race shape). I think epic mtn biker is doing it . . .
I am doing the CC. I have been going to a spin class twice a week and have been riding Saturday and Sunday for the last month (except last weekend). This coming Saturday afternoon, we are doing SJT and Sunday I will ride with the guys at The Path, we usually decide that morning, depending on the conditions and who shows up. It's my first Counting Coup. It will be my longest ride ever. In January we did a 37 miles ride we called the Pushakona (we had 4 Kona in the group), it was pretty brutal. To see pictures and description: http://www.fooriders.com/webmain/index.php?module=photoshare&func=showimages&fid=283
Vision Quest Start at Blackstar Canyon up to Beek's Place 8.5 miles up. Go accross Main Divide 9-10 miles lots of climbing up and down. Down Silverado Motorway 3 miles slightly technical downhill singletrack. Go up Maple Springs to Santiago Peak 12 miles all climb. Down backside of Santiago Pead to Upper Holy Jim(very short distance). Down Upper Holy Jim to Main Divide(3-4 Miles of Very technical downhill ST). Down Lower Holy Jim to Trabucco Creek road 8 miles of lightly technical ST with multiple water crossings(right now prob. not ridable) Trabucco Creek road to Trabucco Trail 1 mile slight climb. Trabucco Trail to West Horsethief 1 mile technical ST climb. West Horsethief to Main Divide 4 miles grueling ST with 1 mile Hike-a-bike Main Divide 3-4 miles up and down to Trabucco Trail. Trabucco Trail down to Trabucco Creek Road 4 miles of technical ST. Trabucco Creek road out to LIve Oak Canyon 4 miles non-maint. fire road. 60 Miles 11,000 ft of Climbing. What sucks most is that the Trabucco Trail,West Horsethief,Main Div., Trabucco is a loop so the farther behind you are......there will be 2 way traffic on the lower section of Trabucco Trail until you reach West Horsethief. Counting Coup is the same except they end at the bottom of Holy Jim Trail. They do not have to go up West Horsethief. Their ride will end up being about 48 miles. mtnbikej
I'll be doing my first Counting Coup this year. Only been riding about 3-4 times in the past month ](*,) although I've been on the stationary bike about twice a week. Little nervous about making the cutoff times, but I think I'll be alright. Anybody seen the trail conditions out there lately?
they removed the $10 fee for the early start. You can start at 5 am, hopefuly it will give you plenty of time to make the cut off time. All you need to do is send an email to [email protected] and tell them you would like to start early. I am heading to SJT this afternoon. I am getting as much riding as I can.
My First CC, Too This will be my first counting coup too. Also my longest MTB ride ever with the most climbing. Glad to see there are some others in the same boat. I've been riding or doing some kind of aerobic workout daily. Also trying to do a lot of abdominal work. Did some long, continuous road rides (5 hours) the last 2 weekends. I figure if I can pedal hard for 5 hours I can take a pretty good bite out of the course. Not much dirt lately, of course. Anyway, the toughest part for me will be the 4:30 staging time. I might register the night before and just show up at the starting line a little before 6:00. By the way, to do the early start you have to register the night before and load your bike into their truck that night. Good luck everybody!
:clap: The event is on! They are predicting 30 percent chance of rain tonight and partly cloudy tomorrow. They expect less than a 1/10 of an inch of rain on the peaks from this storm so the creek levels should be ok. Blackstar Canyon Road has been bladed with a D-8 Dozer so mud should not be a problem.
Best of luck, boys! Hope all goes well tomorrow. I'll be climbing a mountain at about the same time, so will join you in praying for decent weather. [-o< Already looking forward to the stories... :read:
3:06 am, just woke up, it's 54 F outside, some light clouds, I see stars, looks great. I'm ready for the long haul. Stories will follow.
We started at 5:00 am, all full of energy, then we hit the mud. The trail up to Hidden Ranch was covered with that clay mud that caked the bikes. after about a mile, my bike was so caked up that I couldn't use my small ring and the rear derailleur was giving some trouble.I stopped many times to remove the mud without success. I am a "granny" climber, so when I got to Beek's Place, I was exhausted, I have a lot of respect for the SS riders. Then came the main devide, where the lack of little ring forced me to walk most of the climbs. I finally made it to the Motorway where I borrowed a brush and some chain lube (I will keep some in my pack from now on) and finally got my shifting back. Going down the Motorway was technical and fun. But my shifting problems had taken a toll and I missed the cutoff time. By then it was almost a blessing, I was pretty spent. The organization of the event was amazing. There was some volunteers all along the course, they even washed my bike at the bottom of Maple Spring. I will sign up again next year and will complete it
I was sloggin in the mud, too. Wrong tires, but the right lube at least (White Lightning Race Day). I was able to complete the rest of the CC course and it was quite an experience. Soaked feet crossing the creeks going up Maple Springs. 39 degrees at the Peak. Then down Upper Holy Jim, which is very technical. On lower Holy Jim, there are a few short climbs. After 8000 feet of climbing and then 1/2 hour of no pedaling, my legs were wanting to cramp a little on the climbs. But made it through that and got to the Holy Jim creek. The creek was really high- waist deep in spots, but it felt good. Had a bite to eat at the second aid station, then out the Trabuco Creek road. The road was pure mud, which spattered everything. And the creek crossings were really deep and fast. Barely safe (keep to the right on all crossings). Two guys went down next to me on the last crossing. About a mile from the finish I cramped again. But it subsided and I finished OK. A little over 7 hours. Next year I'll try VQ.
Sounds like good times. I wanna do that next year. Looks like I have a LOT of training ahead of me if I'll have any chance of finishing :-( Does anyone have pictures?
Here are some pictures from Winston. http://www.fooriders.com/webmain/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&p=174625&t=44768
I made the first cutoff at the bottom of the motorway (barely), but by the time I made it to the top of Maple Springs at 1230 I was told I was the very last rider up there and too late to continue, so I had a long easy coast back down to silverado. I thought I would have more time, but those last 4 miles or so to the peak would have been pretty painful. Had a great time, but next year I'll train more and take the early start option! Thanks to the Warriors Society for the opportunity and great support on the trail.
