Final Rides of 2007

After a week of food, drink and relaxation w/ the family, finally got back on the bike yesterday. Sunday, headed up Sullivan Canyon, over to Rusty Car and back down the Canyon.

Today, New Year's Eve day, did a fun loop w/ a lot of single-track up at Sycamore w/ Miles. It was essentially the same ride from 2 weeks ago except we bypassed Hell Hill and Wood Canyon single-track.

Here are a few pics from the trail...







This is a group of wild green parrots that reside in the trees near the campground...

Pre-Christmas Mammoth Trip

Squeezed in two fun days at Mammoth before Christmas w/ Shoe and Miles. Despite the cold storm which blew through midweek, coverage was kinda thin in places. Highlights were the trees on 14 and Hemlock Ridge which we hiked twice.

Miles and Shoe on chair 23...



A killer view of the Minarets from the top of Hemlock Ridge...



The dreadlocked friend of Miles' SC room-mate getting ready to drop in on Hemlock...

Mammoth Forecast Looking Good

Here's the 5 day NOAA outlook as of tonight plus a photo lifted from the Mammoth site...





A Winter Storm Warning is in effect through Thursday evening. Friday will be the day.

Sycamore Canyon Loop

Rode up in Sycamore Canyon today w/ Miles, Nor, Carlyn and Brett. Sampled some fun new single-track and hit the old favorites. The Hell Hill climb which came towards the end of the ride pretty much finished everyone off. Total mileage was 24+.

Here's a link to ride info plus a few pics.



Nor fixing the first of two flats...



Guadalasca Trail...



Random signage...

Nature Center Ride

Along w/ Mike, checked out Miles' go-to loop in Santa Clarita called simply Nature Center. The short ride consisted of a 4 mile climb followed by a super-fun 5 mile downhill. The top section of double-track sat under a canopy of trees and wound its way down w/ perfect berms on almost all the turns. The rain from yesterday made the conditions tacky and fast.



Midway up the first fireroad climb under Simpsons-esque clouds...



A steep downhill just after the top bermed section...



The bottom section winding through a small canyon...



Stay tuned for helmet-cam footage of this trail.

Mammoth Storm

Looks like the storm people were talking about last week brought a good amount of snow to the Eastern Sierra Thurs and Fri, then blew through. The forecast as of late last week had indicated a *chance* of snow through Mon. Apparently, this is not happening.



The temps are cold which is nice but they need a lot more weather.

Backbone Trail Ride

Rode up Sullivan Canyon, across Rusty Car and down Backbone into Will Rogers today w/ Mike, Nor and Brett. Temps were in the mid 50s w/ some wind. Following the rain on Friday, the trails were in great shape -- firm, tacky and without dust.

Here's a link to MotionBased...



Here are a few pics taken by Brett. Notice how each shot is taken looking down the trail? That's because he was off the front the entire day.

Mammoth Finally Getting Snow

It's always good to see a lot of snowflakes along with the words Winter Storm Warning in the Mammoth forecast. Here's what the NWS site looked like today...



And here's a bit of photographic proof of the storm (lifted from the Mammoth website)...



Pretty similar to an early season shot I took a few years ago, eh?

Bicycle Commuting in Wintry Chicago

Here are a few photos taken by Andre Alforque this morning along his regular commute to Tribune Tower in downtown Chicago. Looks arctic...





This shot shows fresh tire tracks on the Lakefront bike path and an unsettled Lake Michigan off to the right. Andre's commuter ride is a Bianchi San Jose single-speed.



Meanwhile, it's 73 degrees and sunny in LA today and yet I still drove my car to work. Weak.

Sunday Road Ride

From Brentwood up PCH to Topanga Canyon to Mulholland Hwy to Malibu Canyon and back. Click on the map for info on MotionBased...