Sunday Pleasantly Green Thomas McCormacked

Parked up Nelson's and we hauled up to into Britten, Pleasant, Greenwood, Thomas. Dot Com for a coffee and then around and up the McCormack's Bay Drayton Reserve. 

20kms with nearly 700 m climbed

Sunday Stooge Trail Cut

Rode up to top of Vic, Thomson's #1 and dropped back down, stopping in the oak-flood forest to cut a new line in. It's a weird one but it's a start, and avoids the wet spot - with a bit of work and some riding I reckon it could be something...

Minimalia 5.8 kms, 201 m climbed.

Quick Saturday Morning Stooge Pre-Heat

Limited time and fixing for 30+ degrees.  T had headed off on a walk earlier, and I needed to ride before the heat, but had Paul coming at 9 to get his brakes bled.  

Headed up the usuals thru Vic.  Took in both the Thompson's, nicely flowed, then back up road to top.  Down around the jumpies, Worm back up to Traverse.  8.35am, I thought, I'll ride 5 minutes each way on the Travers, see if I can see T.  Headed out around to the first high point, stopped and rang her, no answer, rode a bit more then spotted a black figure walking up.  Cool.  I'll ride to her.  Stopped to let a rider through around towards carpark stop and it was Fiona from work, brief chat then I jetted to T just below the pond.  8.40, left her, bit of Traverse - 8.45 at top of Vic, jumpies, into the pines and gums, all the way down, Dogparkcarpark, brief look for new line, nothing that didn't need lots of cutting, then all the way out and down to H'Ell, clamber to road, 8.55, rolled back down to home a couple minutes to 9 - to find a text from Paul just come in saying "i'll be 15 minutes".

Continuing the 8ish km theme of the last couple, 8.76 km and 292 m climbed.

Wednesday Coupla Livings Laps Sprung.

Nelson collected me from mine, and we headed over through Gov's Bay to Allandale. 

On the bikes, and up through the farm, into Totara Valley, climbing away, and gasping.  Warm and humid.  At the top of what was Rhymes-with-Orange we decided to head up above the Outdoor Education Centre, climbing up this technical, onga-onga infested steepness.  I walked a bunch.  I feels like a different section of trail every time I ride it.  Eventually out the top and we headed up to the big cabbage tree to take in the view.  I didn't feel like climbing higher, so we decided this was the top.  I could hear shining cuckoo below us.

Down, dodging a badly placed gorse bush and then on the edge of the forest Nelson clipped a nettle with his hand, getting him through the glove.  Through the gate and tech, tight, narrow, glorious descent.  Such a lovely wee piece of trail, tho hard!  No time flat back to the Outdoor buildings and back into the main loop.  Around, wending through Mississippi then climbing (ugh) up to top of Zanes and dived in.  Very fun.  Neither of us were ready for the tight turn into steep climb half way down and I nearly ran into the back of Nelson.  Got going again and flowed on out.  

Around the bottom and climbed back into Totara, slightly slower this time, but feeling okay until the last of the steep.  A harrier was making a lot of racket above us, and further up we saw it hassling a pukeko.  around into Mississippi, slightly smoother than previous lap, then climb to Zane's and dropped in, faster still, fun fun fun, both of us prepared this time for the brief climb and cleaning it, then flowing out the end.  Around the bottom, into the start of Totara Valley and as we swooped into here I felt like my back tire was going flat, washy washy, but it held and we blitzed out the bottom back to the car. 

Less kms and only very slightly marginally more ups than Tuesday's Stooge ride.  8.06 kms, 370 m (Nelsie's said 381 m)

Loopy Stooge, 1st Tuesday of the year

First ride for the new year, after a couple of weeks no riding, minimal walking, lounging in the Koh Samui heat, with uncomfortable plane rides at each end.  Nice to get out on a short(ish) mega-loopy up and down in Vic Park tonight. Up some sections a couple times each but seldom down the same way.  Fun times and tech-levels increasing for the Stooge too.

Usual climb over 19th, skidder, gutser.  Hard work on that, given the long break off the bike, all the Pad Thai, Pad See Ew and Chang beers consumed over the past fortnight.  Tried a wee jiggle of an approach just below Brakefree, that didn't really work, but no matter.  Up to top and into Thomson's #1 for the flow and back up the road.  

Dropped into and around the jumps, flowing all the way down Brake Free and then out the bottom of it (rather than into Sesame) and across back up to top again.  Down around the jumps and into Worm climbing to the Traverse to drop down into PedalFine, bailing left off that and climbing back to the track across below the see-saw, first section of Brakefree again, bailing out to drop down the rocks into the Gums, taking my right hander down and out to Skidder again.  

Into the middle entrance, dropping into Rad to Razza's, trying out the new line to the right in here, baulking and walking two drops (which shouldn't be a problem next time) and then continuing down below into Brentzone trying to work out how to get down across to the new bit next to Corporate Ladder I found last time.  Didn't quite get it right, but now know where to go next time, down this, then back up Corporate Ladder and up the usual around Radzone back to Skidder.  

Back up the Gutser just to the Sesame turn-off I (jiggle-)climbed earlier and flowed on through into the Gums to take the left hand line this time, dropping down through here (rutty!) and then all the way below to the road at 19th.  Below road from here, flowy flow, coaster to Dogparkcarpark and flowy fun down through here.  Took my line to the right to avoid the wet and it's fucking worked its way up into my trail and is mucking that up too!  (will have to get up and cut a higher track...).  Nice flow from here though, down and out to H'Ell, clamber onto road.  

Rather than dropping home from here, I headed back uphill, dropped into the 'To Harry Ell' track, then back up to the climb-exit to the lower Dogpark carpark (by the comms tower) and headed down into Charles' track, tight(!), then out from the halfway point, behind the houses for the hoon home.

Well wreathed 8.3kms, with 362m scrambled

Steep Sunday's Stoogin'n'Snakin' Around

Sweet ride tonight. For a bit of a change, first off was up the steep behind the houses to the dog park, chuffity chuff.  Then the usuals, road, 19th etc. Into Thompson's #1 for a quick blast, then back up the road, straight into down around the jumps and straight into the Worm, up to Traverse to cruise around to Fourpause. Bumpy! (therefore slower - it's really rutted and chunky now). 

Into the landingstripzone, taking the left (older) line, chunkier rocks and more mileage than the direct route, Ali Express, dropping down around and through the fence then following the vague sprayed/worn grass into a new flow path, looping out through the sheep shit and piss zone and back, and all the bumpy rocks the way down onto Old Skool.  Bit of a rest at the usual spot.  

Dived into the biff baff boff of Old Skool, some nice flow regardless, then straight into the valley and upwards, stopping at the bench where the steppy walk track comes out.  Up this wee valley, walking the steepest and riding what I could and up the steppy walk track to Hidden Valley / Bowenvale Bonus, in reverse of usual direction, down then peeled left onto the walking track up into the valley.   Lovely narrow bushy singletrack.  Up valley and a right at the sidle, little bit of flow around into the MTB valley /bottom of Brents, fenceline, etc.  Up Corporate Ladder, checking out a new line back down briefly, then back up Corporate out top of Sneaky, around past 40fter up the usual way thru the RadZone.  

Finally, over Skidder out the single-track, below the road, into DogParkCarpark and 235, blasting down through here, ducking well below the lowered tree and stopping briefly to sort-of leaf-rake my new line (so people will notice it), then riding, down through the oaks, and final fun blast down to end, clamber to road and home

Steep 12.4 kms with 543 m snagged.

STuesgeday Night Nun Spin

Off the back of doing the Abel Tasman over the weekend, my legs were recovered somewhat, so I headed out for a fun wee chuff up and back last night on the Speedbomb.  

Quite hot evening, headed up the usuals, not really knowing where to head.  On the way up the road section, I stopped to snap-send-solve what appears to be the top end of the waterleak in the oaks.  Onwards then to head up over 19th, through skidder, up the gutser and beyond.  Chatted with a dude at the Thompsons #1 turn off - he was interested in my bike (he'd seen the Kendallweed session in Whistler on it).  I headed down Thompson's-both and him up.  

Through Dyer's and up the Summit, I contemplated dropping into the park but wasnt sure about the last lift timing, so continued to the top of the Nun.  Small rest here then dropped in.  Flow was good, only mildly jarring in a couple of places.  Good roll though, and lots of good vibes.  All the way down to the Kiwi again, and back up Summit Rd where I chatted to another dude up top here about the threatening sky, no rumbles, but heavy dark cumulus underbellies hanging around.  He'd just ridden up from the bottom of CAP - he'd been down there half an hour earlier (about when I would have been too, if I'd headed down rather than Nun!) and they'd stopped lift access due to risk of a thunder / lightning strike.  Just as well I hadn't dropped in!  I wouldnt have relished climbing back up Bengal etc...  

Back into Vic, and down the usuals, over the jumps, Rabbit, Rocks (gnarly today), and Gums (DRY!), all the way through to 19th, then below road (giving a walking woman (of a couple) a hell of a fright , even though I was coming past nice and slow), then through and out to road, coasting into Dogparkcarpark trail.  Flowy flow, detour into my new line, then "fuck!"  The little shits building jumps in there have fucking dismantled my favourite jump.  SO annoying.  They've built this dumb jump line through there, a berm of which is now part of the flood, therefore ruined, and fucking broken down was what the smoothest jump in there to waste the wood on other bullshit.  I'm fucked off.  In fact, I'm gonna go back up there and fix the fucker back to how it was.  

Marginal 10 kms travailed with 328 m climbed.