Sunday, hot hill work

Out on my lonesome leaving home about 9.20, drove and parked at bottom of Bowenvale on Eastern Tce - and caught up with an old friend, Ben, who I'll definitely ride with sometime soon.  Headed up Major Aitken Drive, figuring there might be a bit shade on the way up.  There was, tho it was still pretty warm getting up there.  Ground away and got to the gravel and grabbed some shade up the first section on a nice singletrack next to the gravel.  Then out in the open thankfully a bit of breeze around.  Under the pylons and then up to the high part hung a right and climbed up onto the singletrack, heading for the landing strip then up the last gravel, feeling a bit weak from the heat and the downhilling yesterday.

Brief break at the start of the Traverse, breeze cooling a bit, then I was off.  Good ride around here, tho the wind was a headwind for a start.  Met a couple of uni-cyclists (one of which was a young girl (9 or so?)), and was sort of chasing a guy on a carbon XC steed.  Good blast down to Vic Park-top and then through Thomson and Thompson and across an insanely busy Kiwi, cars clusterfucked everywhere...  Up the road slowly gaining on XC dude, catching him juuuust at the top of Worsley.  Cooled right off here in the breeze under that big pine and chatted to a few other bikers.

Off down the Body Bag, hugging the left hand lane (on account of a guy riding up the middle), which only gave me a little bit of gorse sting on the way down.  Into the park, climbing up the steep trail, and touching base with Paul and family who were celebrating Luka's birthday down at base.  Into Yeah Yeah Gnar and then a little way down decided Tommy2's, why not (just over a year since last down here).  Into here, it was cool, following pretty much exactly where it used to.  Bloody dusty as hell, but fun, and familiar and I rocked my way down it, cleaning everything.  Out the bottom and into DOHC, blasting.  By the bottom my arm pump was mental, and quite sore.  Popped into the base and said happy birthday and caught up with peeps and had a beer (nothing else on the menu or in the fridge appealed!).  Then off again, down the road, freshly watered, so not dusty, and then around the foot of the hills back to the car.

A smidge under 20kms, 660m climbed, 1.5 hours.  Hot.


Later Edit:  the next day the fires started, burning for a week, over 2000 hectares, including most of the park, and the Thompsons, top of Harry Ell and Marleys, and all the way across the top of Worsleys Rd to Kennedy's and into Gov's Bay.

Twosdee Knight Worsley chuffing

Nelson collected me outside work just after 5 as usual and as usual the traffic was diabolical, hindering our progress towards Worsley Rd.  Up to the top into the misty cloud, drizzle threatening and rain forecast later.  Found a park, the place was packed with vehicles (and yet did we see many people in there??? - the place is a sponge!).  For a change we headed up the main track, all the way.  No rain means it's smoothed out quite nicely, and both of us cleaned the whole way up with maybe one light foot dab each.  Good to go.  I was struggling with air, and stopped part way to have a puff of some asthma.  Takes a while to kick in, so I took it easier from there on up. 

At the top of the forest we were surprised by how wet it was under the edge trees.  The moving mist was accumulating and dripping on all the trees around the usual meeting point.  We got going up the extra climb and it was greeeaasy in here, on account of it being on the edge of the forest, but you could see that just a few metres in it was all dry.  All the way up to the top and we dropped into Tommy2's.  Bombed on down and the trail was good.  Maybe a quarter of the way down we saw a trail off to the left called Sargent Choco.  So, figured we'd give it a look.  A few metres in and there's a massive gap jump, with no real bunny route round either, so walked this, then another jump further in...  One of 'those' tracks...  Persevered and there was some super steep stuff, a couple bits Nelson rode that I walked, and some obvious jumpy drops that only someone insane (or indeed wearing fullface, armour, on a big travel bike) would ride.  It tapped back into Tommy2's maybe half way down and we rolled to a stop for Nelson to have a snack.  I had one too.  One rider rode past while we sat there, and we could hear scuffing of other riders off in the distance on Throw The Goat to our right, and on Alices below us.  (but considering all the cars, where was everybody?).  Rolling again, onwards down, awesome flow on down to the bottom where I think we encountered a few riders...

Into the climb out and up back onto the main track for round two, saying gudday to Nick at the Junction.  Climb climb climb and cleaned it all again, including the hardest rocky section with an audience of a couple of guys who weren't cleaning it.  In the deepest darkest gorsey section there was a guy with loppers taking off overhanging gorse.  Thanks, bro!  Cleaned out to the top and there were a bunch of girls including Ann from work on her first ever ride.  They headed down and we headed up again.  This time dropping into my recent favourite newby, dropping down through the cool canyon and then into the sweet dark fir forest, across the creek, through the meadow over the rocks then across the slope for ages finally joining back into Tommy2's and blitzing it all down again to the bottom, this time finding a fun, fast trail dog and a couple other riders.

Up the climb again and into the Guts climb track up to the cliff top, cleaning it all but suffering endlessly.  Here we met up with Ann and the girls again, Nelson took their photo (for them!) and they headed down Waynes and Listerine while we headed on up the Original to the very top, watching riders on the jump that's on the left just before the rocky section, and checking out Wasabi a little further up.  Turned around at the top and headed down Tommy's.  Pretty greasy on the roots in the first sections, but not bad.  Nelson did the big jump and landed with a krunk and a burp.  Then we rode back up a ways to a trail I'd spotted off to the left (downhill side) quite near the start.  Down this, found some large gap jumps (with bunny lines this time) and quite a lot more country in here.  Got to the point where it looked freshly scratched out and unfinished, had a look (down steep rocky droppy into tight corner (nearly to the main track?).  But rode off down the older looking trail which eventually took us across to Tommy's again (but with another extension off to the left below).  Into Tommy's bomb bomb bomb and then into Fight Club.  A new log drop (not very big) just in from the original 'start' of Fight Club and down we fanged.  Nelson had a record time down here, I wasn't quite so fast, especially not after the shits were put up me by the losing of a foot on some rough roots...  We dropped into the end at the same time as other riders were bombing down the next trail to the exit...  Rude little non-hello-saying groms. 

Climbed out again, and up the first section of the Guts climb up to the pylon gap where we turned around and dropped into Shortcut to Suva.  Picked the right hand line and bombed down this. I'd ridden this ages ago, cleaning the steeeeeep rock rollover part way down this time, bombing down finally to the climbing track again.  Climbing this again, out, across the main track and over into the Jumpy (fence gap) track.  Once again I didn't do the fence jump, but got good air on some of the lower down jumps, rolled out the end, up to Epitaph and fanged down this to the carpark, where we found Ann and the girls again, having a beer.

Not even 14kms, but 690 m of altitude climbed...

Scorching Wednesday Night mechanicals

Nelson picked me up from work and we waded across the city's traffic flows to Worsley's Rd.  Parked on the flat by the poplar trees.  Still about 30 degrees, so energy sappingly hot.  Up the road, slowly does it, then into Fluffy Sheep for the climb.  Nelson gapped me and I struggled.  Should have checked, but I was having a few niggles with my shifting... (had been on the way to work as well).  On up the road and then through the gate and up the sort-of-singletrack in the long-grass then into the trees, where the shade was helpful, but the heat was so overbearing and was making me really struggle.  All the way up I had to hold back so's not to puke.  Nelson wasn't waiting for me until the top of the B-Line tracks.  I felt like shit.

On up the further climb, past Debby/Alice's, and on up to top of Tommy2's and Throw The Goat.  Another nice rest here chatting to a young(ish) dude on a nomad.  Nelson was trying out his chest mounted Go Pro so followed me in.  After the first couple of pedal strokes I went to change gears and they dropped straight down to top gear, with no response from the shifter.  Hmmmm...  Continued all the way down, fanging and weaving, dust plume choking back Nelson from my tail.  Good run all the way down, altho the pedalling was a bit slow...  We got to the bottom, arms pumped with braking, and quads burning with the non-stop descent, and proceeded to work out what to do with my gears...  ended up with this fix:

 pulled the cable through and out, and then attached it and wrapped it around the chainstay to hold it in 2nd gear (for the climbing).

Got rolling and it was super low for those bits of climbing, but got me up eventually to the junction (where there were heaps of peeps).  It slipped into 3rd as we entered the Guts track, so I rode as far as I could and then had to walk.  Rode again at the pylon gap and kept on up for a while past Fight Club and then walked again up to the clifftop.  There were some others walking ahead of me so I didn't feel too bad about it.  Nelson was waiting at the cliff top, (where some dickhead 4wders had recently had a fucking fire! dumbshits).  On up the Original B-Line catching the guys that'd been walking, me managing to ride all the way to the rocks that always get me.  Onwards and all the way to top.  Then on further up again (walking this time) and we hooked into the newby with the canyon.  Good run down the top bit then Nelson had a flail on the log, breaking yet another of his flash blade spokes!  Onwards down, through, under, around and back into lower Tommy2's and the dust storm blast down here.  Final climb out, slow for me, then across the main drag and into the jumpy trail in the trees.  Normally quite pedally this one so I was slow down it, but got a couple of good jumpies near the bottom.  then around, Nelson peeled off up to do Epitaph, while I just rolled down the grassy 'single' track.

Onto the road, and rolling rolling rolling down, taking the new grass 'singletrack' on the left of the road where it flattens off and heads around the corners, then down and into the Farside trails.  I chose Utopia, and it was good.  Swoopy swoopy, not too much pedalling (not that I could) to do, kept speed through corners and it was a blast.  Finally, out onto the road and down back to the car, the last hundred metres or so rolling very slow.

693m altitude, 15.43 kms...

Sat'day Morning Jettison through the forest

Headed out about 9 with Jet, in the Fiat, across town to Worsley's, for a ride of ever diminishing circles.  Parked up top and headed on up the main drag, riding the ridges - multichoice singletrack I called it.  Cleaned it pretty much all the way up, a couple dabs, and then up past the Forest Closed sign and into the B-Line zone.  Clambered on up the upper access track and dropped straight on into Tommy2, flowing down the loamy trail, swooping 'round the bends and rolling over the drops and roots.  Lovely flowy ride down, just the sound of the birds, happy jet alongside or behind, the brakes hussing all the way down down and occasionally the scrape of a tire on loose dirt, rocks or roots.  Through the bottom and climbing around and up the access track.  At the junction headed up the Guts track, climbing climbing climbing, catching a couple dudes after the pylon gap and passing them up at the corner.  Last leg to the clifftop was a puffer, but rode it all at my own pace, finally selecting granny for that last section.  A few bods at the top, I rode on past and up the Original, with variations.  Blew out the rocky section Nelson cleaned last time, and then headed back up for the top, and on up the upper access.

This time dropped into my new one, up just past the entrance to Deb's, and down through the canyon.  Took a pic in here, cos it was such a nice zone.

Then it was across and down through the dark forest, and across the creek.  Looked like a bloody trailbike had been through, the wankers.  Still, they'd carved the track out a bit, almost defining it better.  Into the open space and around the cool rock, rode it all the way through and into the forest for the long and off camber sidle.  Appeared that motorbike had peeled off up the hill here, while I swooped up and down across the slope and tucked back into Tommy2's.  Down this, once again, lovely buzz down here and through the bottom and back up the access track to the Junction.  What a day.

Next up it was back up the Guts climb, just up to the cliff top this time, so, basically, all the worst of it.  No one else around here.  Was disgusted to see broken bottles on the clifftop and trash chucked over the cliff edge.  Fucking 4wheel-driver cunzors.  Into what was Wayne's World, is looking rather un-ridden, then around and across to the lower reaches, then straight into Fight Club for a swoopy joyful blast down here dropping on through to the bottom and back into the access climb.

Final time up the Guts, this time just to the pylon gap, chatting with a couple guys here before heading back down first on the left hand side then across into our old favourite swooping down through the trees and over that feature that used to seem like such a big vertical drop, then around into the new exit from this, back onto the access climbing track, just above the watertank down there.  Back up to the junction and across the main Worsley Track, into the forest and down the jumpy track, jumping some, rolling round others.  Climbed over the fence gap and then down the final section, jumping more and rolling around others, out the bottom and down the 4wd track, then climbed up to where people park and down the new finishing track, which turns out is called Epitaph, back to the car.  Nicely nicely.

Finally a ride, Sunday morning, Jet in the forest

After bad weather and multiple trips away (2 weeks running to Wellington, and then 3 days in Hamiltron) all conspiring with family time to not let me out on the bike, I managed to get out this morning.  Dropped a friend at the airport at 8.30 and proceeded to the top of Worsley's Rd with Jet and bike in tow.  Ending up doing basically the same ride as last with Nelson.

Headed up the main trunk line, oldskool worlseys, chuffing away, mildly asthmatic to start.  9.05 about half way up just before a couple of heinous greasy sections further up which incited walking, and required the cleaning of the shoes and tires before further progress could be made.  Finally made the top of the main network and headed up the way towards Tommy2's.  Stopped to examine a fallen branch across the entry to the new trail Nelson and me found last time we were up there.  Cleared a couple of smaller bits off it but more work needs doing if this track is ever going to be regularly used.  A guy rode past as I was doing this, and so I followed off up after him, seeing him disappear into the forest at the top and therefore couldn't tell which choice he took.  For the first time I sat my ass down whilst pushing the new button on my handlebar and the seat lowered, and off I popped, down Tommy 2's.  Excellent blast down here, expecting it to be slippery but it wasn't and I cleaned it all perfectly, lowered seat really out of the way.  Right down near the bottom was a couple of guys walking up, and the guy I'd seen before chatting with them, I rode past and then avoided a saturated muddy looking section before heading through the bottom and out onto the main exit track.  Push button, seat up, and keep rolling, pedalling onwards upwards around.  Dude I'd seen before caught me up and we chatted a bit towards the top.

Up the guts track I went cleaning all the lower section, albeit with a short rest 2/3rds of the way up.  Rolled through the pylon clearing, gasping for air and onwards up the straight then round the corner where I just had to get off and walk.  Too fat from too much time off the bike and too much beer and too much good food.  Too much!  Out onto the cliff top, "lovely day for it" to the rider here, and onwards up the Original 'B' Line as we called it.  Actually stayed on it this time, and saw that where we came up last time is now signposted called "Basically Simple"  A little further up, between this and Tommy's is one called Wasabi.  Onwards to the top, and on up the Tommy'2's access to the new track.  Rested here for a bit, ate the rest of a onesquare, then dropped in.  Seat not-so-down this time, and into the cool gulch and rocky cobble trail, through a couple different forest types, following the creek for a bit, then into the open section, red rocks, and back into the steep off camber forest and across to Tommy2's and then on down faster than the previous run.  Out the bottom again, seat up and rolling on back up the climbing access track. 

Up the guts again, walking a bit of the first section, and then riding out all the rest of the top bit to the Clifftop again, and a sit-down rest on the rocks admiring the view.  Into the Original trail down then onto lower Waynes World and into  Fight Club, roosting and blazing and popping and floating.  Sticky quagmire just after that fallen-log berm, then smooth runnings the rest of the way down and out.  Seat up again and climbing up the exit trail, phonecall on the way.  Finally out the top and into the last downhill section, baulking on the fucking log again, but blasting out the rest of it.  Down to the upper carpark, and through the broken fence onto the new section we found last time down to the lower main carpark.  Wet and greasy this was, cos of being open to the elements and frost having thawed.  Took it pretty slowly, and then on the rocks right next to the carpark my front wheel slipped then wedged, my weight was too far forward, and so over the bars I went, crashing to the solid rock ground with no aplomb whatsoever.  Cranked my left knee, right shin, right hip, and mildly tweaked wrists and shoulder.  damn.

Tuesday Worsley lappagia

Nelson picked me up, as usual, outside work at 5ish.  Top of Worsley's, parking above the gate for a change.  Cold wind blowing through here.  Nelson needed to lube his chain, so I took off down this new trail in the grass and broom, fun wee blast, with a couple of dumb corners, a nice wee jump, and a rocky section, down to the lower gate on the main carpark.  Back up to the car via the entry track from here, wheeeeezing something wicked, and he's gone, already chased me.  So, waited here and layered off til he got there, and off down the new section of trail again, then onwards up the climbing entry track, dying in the steep section, losing traction, and wheeezing more to the point I thought I was gonna die, again.  Walked a bit, then got rolling again and eventually caught up to Nelson waiting.  We rode on up, taking a wee side detour, for which we turned our lights on briefly, then continued climbing without them again.  Up through the climb amongst the Braille track I led and set the pace, which was good, while Nelson talked.  Swooped through the top to the main track and then on up to the top of the forest.  Lights on for heading up towards Tommy2's, cleaning it all despite the 32-36 gear ratio.  Spotted a new trail, just up the track from the old entrance to upper Debbie's.  Walked down to check it out, and it looked promising.  Decided to save it for the next round, so continued on up, snacked briefly and got into it. 

Nelson led the way, setting a good speed, swooping back and forth dropping down through the forest.  Got steeper and steeper, brakes got noisier and noisier.  I baulked the rocky corner above the one I offed on back in May (and had a run in with back in Feb too).  But got back on straight after it and rode through the corner I'd offed on, which now has a line out of the bit I was avoiding those other two times.  Off down the rest of it, steeeeeeepage down and just above all the jumps in the bottom, Nelson spotted a line coming down from above.  We walked up to check it out.  INSANE, vertical.  On we went and looked at a wee jump I've always wanted to do.  I rolled into it a couple times but just couldn't bring myself to do it.  Nelson did it after a couple of other dudes rode through it.  Followed them up the exit track, me overtaking one, and Nelson leaving all of us for dead.

Up the guts track, I walked a bunch of the lower half, but cleaned the rest to the clifftop.  Onwards up and found a caterpillar track through the forest, then a new track that sort of headed towards Tommy's but then joined back up to the original track above that rocky guts we never cleaned (except Nelson did once!).  On up to top and then continued on up towards Tommy2's again, only this time stopping for a rest at the top of the newby we'd found.  Waiting here we spotted a light coming, thinking it would be the dudes who were behind us earlier, but no, it was a lone woman.  She was obviously spooked, two random guys hanging out in the forest, so she didn't engage with us and rode on up.  We headed down the new track.  What a blast.  Rough as guts to start, with loose cobbly rocks  moving about under pine needles, and probably 100m long section between these two rock walls.  Quite spectacular hunk of country.  Couple of logs in the way, but mostly rideable, and a nice gradient, not heinously steep like so many in here.  Then we were under douglas fir, dark low forest, then into an open area, and over these slippery red rocks, then back into the forest and off camber slopes with swoops and eventually met Tommy2's again, surprisingly high up, maybe half to 2/3rds down.  Blazed down all this faster than before, and cleaning the corner I'd baulked earlier.  Through the bottom and still I didn't have the groove for the jump. 

Up the exit track and met the lone woman waiting up here.  Chatted with her this time  Couple other guys and a dog (she knew them all) turned up and they all got riding, then we followed, Nelson soon over taking the woman, but not me.  Still, I cleaned the entire climb this time, to the clifftop and then into the top of the Original and excellent trip down here, and into Fight Club for the most fun of anything.  Love this track.  Know it so well, just swoop and pop and jump and flow all the way down it.  Final climb and into the final section, now, due to logging, quite open, and forcing you over the line with the log drop in the middle of it.  Last blast below the water-tank is cut short now.  Down to the car and while we're getting ready to go, another lone woman turned up with her dog, getting into the car next to us, obviously not comfortable again... 

Tuesday's Social Worsley Nun Guv'nor

Had left my cellphone at home today, so never got a message from Andy about riding, and had organised with Nelson for something so he picked me up from work and we cruised across to Worsley's and up the hill.  5.45 by the time we unloaded and hit the trail.  This time something new.  Over the gate by the carpark and up the double singletrack through the gorse and broom strewn field, past the bottom of that jumpy trail and into new country.  Good steady climb on well trodden 'singletrack', stopping to check out potential trails below this track.  A guy on a Pivot appeared and told us a bit about the trails, and we cruised on up the hill with him, chatting away now and then, and us in awe of this cool new area.  At a big corner a trail crossed the our track with jumps visible, and it was parallel to our track the rest of the way up.  I'd been in the top of this area another time with Jet.  The jumpy track crossed our track once or twice, and eventually we made the top, across the top of the forest and we were on the main drag of Worsley's just below the Body Bag.

Up the BodyBag we went.  I struggled to keep my lunch down, Nelson and the Pivot dude rolled on apparently effortlessly to the top.  I stopped in the steepest section and breathed very heavily for some time then got rolling again and managed to clean the rest of it, wanting to puke so bad as I laboured across the carpark and just getting it in check as I followed Nelson up the entrance to the Nun.  He was a ways ahead and got off to walk...  Puncture number one.  I rode past him and collapsed at the top of the Nun and he arrived and got to fixing the leak.  Some other riders turned up and we all chatted friendly like for a bit.  One was even on a Switchback, and his mate was on a brandnew XC type bike, first time ever mountainbiking.  One or two other riders cruised through and these guys took off.  Then another guy on a Santa Cruz turned up and was from Rotovegas and after chatting with him for a bit he asked if he could tag along.  No problem, so off down the Nun I led, then Nelson, then him.  Lost the chain just before the steeeep corner, so, got that on again and off down we went - keeping it in a spinnier gear.  Blast down here, swoopy swoopy fun times, easy going, and Nelson sorta holding back a bit to allow the other guy to keep him in view.  I paused at the halfway point, waited for them both to nearly get to me then took off again.  Good blast down the lower section with no sketchy nose wheelies due to the kicker part way down.  I paused again down in the lower swoopies and heard Nelson curse, then spotted the other dude, so got rolling again out to the end.  Our new friend turned up and indeed, another flat for Nels.  Saw him up at the corner on the road waving and fixing so we rolled on up and he patched that.

Rolled on again, up the road, and at the carpark the guy decided he needed to make tracks, timewise, so we gave him directions to the Worsley trails and said goodbye.  Nelson and me headed off over into the Gov's Bay track, which was rolling pretty good.  Nice and tight and close knit, it was good rolling down round that side of the hill, having been practically a year since the last time.  We decided we didn't have time, again, to go lower down and explore into the valley on the new(ish) section of trail, so continued around and up, me cleaning most of it, Nelson all of it, including the very top, which I fluffed and puffed-out on.

Onwards up the road again, this time all the way, with a short singletrack detour on the last section of the walktrack above the road before Worsleys Rd.  Up this, and into the the descent.  Hussin' down the Bodybag, nearly losing it just below the flat (was what a quagmire) spot but just saving it.  Up into the B-Line trails and on up to the top of these.  Short exploration looking for the supposed trail from the top, no sight of it, and then we hit Tommy2's... Awesome blaze down here, brakes getting hotter and hotter, some sketchy moments, but good descending.  Two corners caught me out, and I ended up stopping, perched off the back of the bike, barely able to climb away from it, but rolling away straight away and riding the rest out.  So steep!  At the bottom there was an audience, and as I rolled through announced "woosy lines, me" in case they were expecting me to jump stuff.

Climb climb climb up to the junction then up the Guts track, gasping yet again, but cleaning it all up.  Another chat stop with a random under the power lines, then onwards and upwards to the cliff top.  Into Wayne's World, taking a couple of weird corners but then finding the one I wanted and across and down, Nelson not knowing where he was, thinking I was leading him down the shit track descent shortcut, but no, across to Fight Club and swooping down this, relishing the pump and the flow.  All the way down and through then back into the climb out, faster this time, for some reason, then into the final descent, some time around or after 8 back at the car.  Good ride.

Wednesday evening, Jet in the Worsley repeatish

Afterwork, left home 5.30ish, drove in car with Jet to top of hill, parking with lots of other vehicles, and a dude with a fluoro orange cactus pack had headed off just ahead of me, and a big group of guys were leaving just behind me.  I didn't see the group again til a bit later, but kept the fluoro orange backpack dude in my sights, gaining on him once or twice and him gaining away from me once or twice too...  Just before the top, I peeled off to the right to check out a new (to me) area of trails.  Moseyed down and had a wee poke.  Someone's put in some rolly fast stuff, which would kill altitude too quick, and there's a jumpy trail in there too, with big gaps between ramps and landings.  According to the maps, there's a tonne of country in here that is just ripe for the trail-pickings.  Only rode a little ways down then turned and rode back up an old 4wd trail back to top of forest and headed back for the main drag and on up.  The group of dudes crossed past out of the forest access track and up the Bodybag at this stage.  Rode on up the extra top track all the way up to top of Tommy2's.  and beyond actually, following a section Nelson and me checked out a while back over the top.  It didn't lead anywhere, so I cut across and found Hangloose, or Goat Track as i discovered tonight that it's called, and walked back up it and headed off down Tommy2's.  Excellent roll down here, tho probably holding the brakes too much.  Jet was awesome, as usual, staying exactly where he was needed to be.  Steeper and steeper, a couple of stops, but rode it all, and rolled out the bottom.  How many different lines are there in here??  Rolled out the bottom and up the exit track.

From the junction, headed up the bastard guts track, grinding away, up up to the clifftop and on up the B-line all the way to the top.  Bit of a rest up here, a snack, bit of a chat to a young fella, and after he'd left a dude on a fluoro-green Banshee Rune rolled up.  He headed up the climb towards Tommy2's and I followed but took Debbs's access.  Blitzed on down this, actually hitting the couple of wee jumps in there, then through the clearing and into the forest again, past the ruins, then into the darkness of the Douglas fir and on down down the old Debbie then round and where it crosses the bridge becomes Alice's Restaurant - according to the sign - "an 'All Country' track, strictly not Enduro.  ideal wheel size, 27.5, or if you prefer, 650B..."  Seems to roll pretty good on 26 too!  Anyway.  Rode more of it than the first time with Nelson, but still walked two sections I just wasn't game to fall off on.  Lower half was sweet, with some really techy shit goin' on.  As I met the bottom of Goat and T2 a large group (including the fluoro backpack and the fluoro Rune dude - as well as local semi-celebrities Rich and Mel) were finishing off Yoda and lower Goat.  I watched them roll through then caught them up down on the exit climb track.  Chatting away from the back as we rode up the hill.

At the junction, most of them headed for the other side of the road jumps track (where Nick was digging) and I followed the Rune dude up the guts track as far as the clifftop.  We chatted a little up here about the moon (which is going OFF right this second as I write this, lunar eclipse, or "Blood Moon") then I headed down Wayne's and FightClub while he headed on up.  Awesome run down these two and talked to Matt (on Pete's phone) as I climbed out arranging to meet at Poms later.  Was about 7.50 when I got down the final trail to the end, saying Hi to Nick parked near the bottom, before finishing off to the car.

Thursday evening steeeep Worsley Laps

Chucked the Spot on the back of the Fiat and Jet in the car and we headed for top of Worsleys Rd, parking up dead on 6pm.  Carpark was full, and people were even parking further down the road.  Figured it was gonna be busy in there.  Ahead of me were a couple of guys, and beyond them a couple more.  As we got up to the 'guts' track the closest two ahead went in there, while I continued up the main Worsley track.  Rough as guts as usual, precariously perching the way up on the ridges.  Had to get off in the washed out rocky bit above the 'rest corner', then rode for a while, meeting an XC 29er dude on his way down.  Then cleaned pretty much everything else except maybe a couple of wee gulchy spots.

Couple of women talking at the top and I rolled on through and up to the top of B-Line...  Arriving at the same time was the two dudes that had gone into the forest ahead of me earlier...  One was on a Turner Burner "Nice bike..."  Chatted with them for a minute then they headed down and I headed up.  All the way up to the top and into the right hand that we called "Hang Loose" in the past.  Awesome roll and flow down this, warming up and getting the hang of it again - been a while (since Jan, in fact).  Changed a bit since then, cos of the trees blown out.  Half way down there's a sign post "Yoda -->".  I stopped and walked down it to check out.  Nick had told me about this one, and I could see it was not something for us...  Near vertical rocks just over the crest, down down down it went...  Walked back up to my bike and headed on down Hangloose.  Great run, steeeep but manageable.  Finally out the bottom and I spotted the gap jump that Nick had told me about at work.  NUTS.

Up the access exit track, passing some young folk fixing a chain half way up, and spotted that our old favourite that exited onto this track is no more- trees all over it, but there's others that come out of there...  Then headed up the guts track.  Grinding away in low, sweating up a storm, huffing and chuffing away...  Jet just loping along ahead, happy as anything, sniffing his way around.  Spotted a couple of new trail entrances off to the left (leading to the exits I'd spotted below) but continued on up all the way up the guts to the clifftop, where three guys set off ahead of me, then on upwards all the way to the top, meeting another group on the way, the three guys again, and then three more coming down from the top.  Headed on up the trail towards Tommys2 and Hangloose, but this time stopped at the top of Debbie's lead in, and had a wee rest, txt exchange with Pete, then headed in.

Debbie's lead in, swoopy swoopy, wend wend back and forth then dropping through and over and avoid that mucky bit then through the clearing and over the tree root and down across the off camber and through the rock ruins, and into the dark dark fir forest that was the original Debbie Does Dallas.  Hung a left onto the groms climbing trail and rode this up, zig and zag, then through the rocky clearing and then descending down over the fence, then climbing gently across to my earlier climbing track.  Swooped down this a bit, then cut across to Tommy's track and BOMBED down this.  Swooping and railing berms and catching air and riding better than for ages.  Finished this off and headed across to Fight Club.  Had an absolute blast down this, pumping and squirrelling and amping.  Finally out the bottom and climbed quite happily up the exit track, feeling better than I had on my first two climbs of the night.

At the Junction I headed across the Worsley main drag and through the fence across to the jumpy track in the trees here.  Jumped one or two of the jumps, avoided the bigger ones, and rolled on down to the bottom, then onto the exit roll, faster and faster and faster through the open, broom whipping my hands on the way, finally getting back to the car park at 7.30.  Very happy Jet in accompaniment.

Thursday night Muckvicars Vol 4

Rode over to Nelson's work and we cruised to the top of Worsley's Rd and got riding up the dirt around 5.40.  More wet patches than we'd expected...  guess not a helluva lot of drying has gone on of late.  Anyway, climbing wasn't bad around the main track then into the forest and up the Guts steep little mother trail.  Managed to keep my lungs inside me all the way up here.  From the cliff top through had some pretty greasy bits, and it was just starting to get too dark in the forest here.  At the rocky pretty much unrideable bit we turned the lights on and continued on up to the top. 

We rested here a bit, then some irish dude turned up, and headed back down, and we headed up the access to Tommy's2 track.  Part way up we found a trail leading off to the left, so checked it out.  Headed down and rolled through the edge of the water tank clearing then back into the forest, past two old stone ruins (wtf?) and then into the douglas fir of Debbie Does Dallas, but instead of wending downwards, suddenly it switchbacked round and upwards, through some terrain we'd never seen and suddenly we're on the main original track, up hill from the clifftop, but below the tricky rock garden.  So, wondering where the hell Debbie had gone, we headed back down this new track, finding where Debbie crossed it, and walked down her a bit to see what she was like, but deciding not to risk the tree falls that might be further down riding, so walked back up to the bikes, and proceeded to ride back up it.  I walked lots, Nelson rode lots, on upwards all the way back up to the top Tommy's2/Hangloose access track.

Up to top of this, one or two greasy bits on the way, and found the lead in to Mr Sutcliffe's new steep track, probably best left til summer, and so we chose Tommy's2, and it was a hoot.  Traction was pretty good, not much slippage.  Steepness was awesome, and it was rideable pretty much the whole way down.  Only one or two wet slops.  Out the bottom, down a newer drier line, and onto the climbing exit track.  Good for a start, but sloppier as we climbed, til the last stretch which was horrendous.  Got to the top of it and decided we didn't wanna climb back out of there, which ruled out Fight Club, so we went back up the guts track all the way again, this time my legs were hurtin' bad all the way, even walked a bit before the cliff top.

At the top it was into Tommy's and down down down.  Some sections of flow, but lots of stopping and starting, and second guessing what was where and which to choose.  Rolled out the bottom on a cool new section to the pylon clearing and then into the forest on the left, swooping back and forth down here to the final section, ripping down it nicely, a couple of new lines in here, then past the tank and swooping through the bottom section, done, back to the car before 8.

Thursday post work Worsley, Nun, The Guv'nor, Tommy Too, Debby and a newby

Nelson picked me up for an eventful ride.  We parked at the busy top of Worsleys Rd, and proceeded to get puffed riding up the hill.  The ruts up here are deeper than ever, getting to be quite little canyons, and what was a techy rocky section half way up is now a REALLY techy rocky dry streambed section that we both walked.  Some of the tight little ridges between canyons are getting pretty narrow now too.  For a change, we continued up the Body Bag, which I got off and walked the lowest down I think I've ever gotten off.  I just had no 'climb' in me.  Knackers yard for me, methinks...

Into the top of Nun and a well earned rest, and little bit of a snack before heading off down.  Felt pretty good, everything familiar even tho it was  a couple months since last tackling it.  Bombed all the way to the bottom then back into the annoying climb.  At the half way mark, we headed over to the left and down the Governors Bay trail.  A good year since last down here.  Neat wee blast down, singletrack in great nick, tho a few bushes over growing it in places.  We'd both forgotten how long the flat bit round the bay side was, then it was into the techy climb up the Kiwi side, above the Dyers Pass Rd.  Cleaned a good percentage of it, walked once or twice, and Nelson cleaned heaps. 

Back on the road and Nelson took off chasing and baiting roadies while I just plodded away.  Top of Worsley, bodybag speed rush down, then into the access track up, sunnies off, and on up to top of Hangloose and Tommy's 2.  We chose the latter, cos it'd been a while, and I led the way.  Things have sure changed down here since the first few times, with stupid arse jumps been dug into the middle of the track in places which are just inappropriate.  fucking groms.  dug out on the backsides of them too.  stoopid.  Nelson had a wee brush with a bank in a tight channel part way down, then we picked up our old line which is the bottom of Hang Loose and rolled that out.  Nice. 

Up the logging road, following some other guys, then it was up the guts, internal steep little muthahfuckah me grinding away at it and surprisingly surviving it.  Just before the pylon clearing we spotted a new looking track off to the left and noted it for later.  At the clifftop we caught up with another dude, Justin, and led him to the entrance to Debbie Does Dallas, which rode bloody well, and was heaps of fun.  Nelson and me continued across the slope, while Justin scoped out the rest of it.  Pretty cruisy across the face, then into a little of Nick's track, then cruisy across the face again, til finally dropping down into Fight Club and we finished this off nicely. 

Back up the road and the sun was pretty much below the horizon, so contemplated bailing but decided to go back up the guts to check out the new trail.  I ended up walking a bunch of the steep up.  Still, I do need to exercise my walkingness.  Nelson led into the new track and it was quite cool.  Pretty loose, but a good gradient and it blitzes down through the forest just below the pylon clearing then drops down and meets the logging road about where the old Fight Club shortcut used to come in.  Back up to the central junction and off down the finishing trails.  Nelson was well ahead of me here, and I cruised, getting a flow on, and jumping the wee jump between the trees, then there's this big tree fallen across the trail, with a good lead in ramp on it, and I was like, do I? dont I?  and at the last second decided not to, but too late.  Slammed on my brakes, just about threw myself off the back of the bike, but not before it went over the jump and I followed it over landing badly, tumbling, bike falling on me, rolling, tweaking a muscle in my calf and impacting my shoulder.  Owch.  Straight back on, and rolling again, rode all the rest out, testing the shoulder and stretching the calf... 

Voltaren for a day or two, maybe...  gonna hurt in the morning, I reckon.

Thursday evening Worsley Playpen up down repeat until done.

Picked up car from spenny repair job, and drove to top of Worsley's.  On the way there realised i had no water, so swung by Andrew's.  Didnt look like anyone home, no answer to knock, so helped myself to their tap, then surprised a just woken Jenna from dodgy hidden spot behind trellis...  oops.  no matter.  she was fine with it. 

Parked up the hill, changed and waited and in no time Nelson arrived, with Craig behind, riding up.  Craig helped Nelson with some suspension settings, and so i got going ahead just so's i wouldn't be puking my ring out trying to keep up.  They caught me as i was delayering, and we got going.  Struggled my way up behind them and cleaned pretty much the whole way up.  Up the left to the B-Line starters, and on up to Hangloose.  Nelson led in, me following, Craig going it easy on his retro beast.  Excellent run down.  I stopped at the jump to tighten my thru-axle, while Nelson walked back up to try out the drop.  A bit further down, after the clearing we spotted a trail off to the left, but took the right hander on downwards, relishing the steepness and the edgy-ness, finishing off rolling out the bottom and hitting up the climb back up. 

Back up the main drag, cleaning the tiny section i stuffed up first time round, and nearly dying at the top.  On upwards up the trail to the very top again, and back into Hang Loose, this time checking out the beginnings of a line off to the right before the clearing, and finding it a dead end, but also exploring a bit and finding a cliff over the edge, and hearing voices, and Nelson investigated and it was some climbers... Back up onto the trail, and took the left hander this time, which kinda went back to the original Tommy's 2, but dropping a fair way first, and some really steep and hairy, finally some familiar Tommy's 2, taking it all the way down for the first time since the first time...  nice to see a rideable line around that silly wooden jump...

Back up the access track and into up the steep nasty little guts track, me gasping, up through to the cliff top and into Waynes World.  I led in and rolled it, having a nice time, but as i got to Fight Club i realised no one was following me, so stopped and waited.  and waited.  and waited.  Then started walking back up, up, up and nearly at the top finally see them coming.  Nelson's pedal had caught a wire as he entered the rockgarden at the top and he supermanned, thankfully into something soft.  We continued on down, Nelson tight on my tail, all the way down and out the bottom for the third time. 

Back up the access track and up the guts again, this time just to the pylon clearing and turned back for the oldskool descent back down to the access track, up that for the last time and down and out back to the cars around 8pm.  Awesome ride.

Wednesday Night, Worsley Vicinity Pixies

another week another ride.  Fork service, and new front wheel bearings and new (2nd hand) front derailleur (no more rattle!) all completed last week, bike raring to go!

Collected from Selwyn St by Nelson we battled the traffic across to Worsley's, parking up top.  Nelson packed his folding spade and we headed on up.  Lots of pollen around, a little early this year perhaps?  gorse in flower too, adding to the motes under lights.  Didn't need our lights to start with, up under the power lines and around the corner and into where the washouts are worst, we stopped to move a few rocks in the hope of making it more rideable through this bit.  While we worked, it got a bit darker and lights were needed once we rode the previously unrideable bit and onwards to the next bit that needed some work - this time a small stream of water and diverting it to dry the track taken by us bikers.  Then on up, a cleaning more than last time, except for once or twice and we were at the turn off, gasping wheeze'n'cough.

Off up the grunt and turned off to the newby, Tommy's2, climbing a bunch more, me walking a short bit, Nelson cleaning the lot, and finally to the top.  Nelson leading off and we swooped and twisted our way down down down and down.  Cleaned all the bits I'd botched last time, but one tricky corner with roots caught me out, other than that cleaned it all good.  Our turn off turned up, doesn't look like anyone else has recognised it as a turn off, so we took it anyway, and cruised out the rest of it and out to the forestry track.  Climbing back up to the junction, bit of a rest, and then on back up the main Worsley track, cleaning all the bits we'd fixed earlier, and then stopping for Nelson to carve off a couple of lumps on a particularly bad piece of clay, which made another previously unrideable section rideable.  Good work.  Another wee tweak above it and it was all good, onwards up and off back up to top of B-line trails.

I led in, took the left hand turn and we bombed it, swoop swoop, jumpy, swoop, good run then around and into Fight Club, still in the lead, and really enjoying it, serviced fork performing superbly, getting me through the worst of the rutty sections lower down.  Out the bottom we stopped and had a look at the bottom of Tommy's2, then continued out and back upwards, 2nd time up here for the evening.  As we climbed this time we saw lights of another, then further up when he was climbing behind us, there was lots of noisy lights up on Fight Club, and a guy waiting at the bottom of the singletrack that ends out on this track.  At the Junction we headed over into Dave's/ACJoint/Deliverance, Nelson taking the lead and we skidded (it was really skiddy!) and slid our way down this insanely steep trail.  swooping it all, drops and drops, cleaning it all.  Finally when we made it over where i did my shoulder around the bend and there's a tree across the track.  Climbed up over it and spotted where we could bypass it so did some work on the route, climbed (fuck it's steep!) back up the trail a ways for the run in and cleaned the new line bypassing the tree and then into the final tricky corner and into the gunbarrel finish.  Big slump across exit trail...

Grovelly grunty granny climb out, a couple trees over the trail, carry, lift, and back on, then walking steep rutted washed out skidder tracks.  Nelson put in a good effort and rode heaps, but no one could manage the last corner...  Back up the forestry track, past the bottom of FightClub and for the 3rd time climb climb back up to the junction and then out the bottom section.  All up a good ride.  Fight Club's my favourite bit in there at the moment, for sure.  Dave's/Deliverance is pretty good just for it's shear on-the-edge -ness...

Thursday night more McVicar meanderings

Nelson and me got up the hill tonight.  Almost a repeat of my last ride, but not quite.  Parked up top of Worsley's Rd and hit the dirt.  Rode up at a much better clip than Sunday, cleaning lots more of the mucky bits and feeling not so bad.  Nasty mess where those 4WDs were stuck the other day, but overall maybe a little drier than then.  Up the access to the B-Line Zone and off up the newby, apparently called Tommy's 2 (Tommy apparently being one of the guys building in there; nice job, fella).

Cleaned nearly all the climb this time, bar one or two bits and then I led off into the descent.  Swoopy steep, flowing through, lost it on one corner which Nelson cleaned behind me, then went up to show me how he'd done it again.  On down, more steepness, tho, nothing as steep as in Dave's.  Couple of wee jumpies that you need to know are coming.  I'd forgotten about them from Sunday, but remembered when I saw them and baulked, cos on Sunday they'd nearly thrown me over the bars.  Anyway, down we went for a while, then I figured we were at the point where it cuts back to the left and goes even steeper hangs a right and down into the wooden jump followed by the halfpipey bit and the mudmire, so, here we stopped and dropped the bikes and started scoping out another line off to the right.  I walked ahead looking while Nelson followed me down dragging a stick through the pine needles to guide us later.  I got bluffed, so we found a way further down onto a good bit and continued on down, eventually getting all the way out to where we could see the forestry road.  So, back up towards the bikes, tweaking bits and pieces as we went and then the into the first run.  Both stalled on a rock feature a third of the way down, so dragged the bikes back up a bit and carried rocks and placed them.  Then Nelson did a bunch more work and we gave it another go all the way from the top, all the way through.  I screwed up a couple of bits but the follow through finish is quite good.  Then we rode and pushed back to the top again and rode it again, this time me getting more, and I think Nelson cleaning it all.  Bit of a drop onto the road and back round under Fight Club and on back up to the junction.

Here we headed up the steep forestry bastard climb into a spitty drizzle and mist in the pylon clearing meeting two other guys up there.  Chatted with them and learned the Tommy's details mentioned above, and they continued on up and we peeled off into Fight Club.  Me leading, sweet run down through this, with excellent traction and it felt really easy compared to Tommy's 2, so we had a great run, startling a hare near the top, and a possum at the bottom, me putting the gap on Nelson in the top half, then him starting to catch me in the rougher stuff down lower.  At the exit, my front wheel was looking like it was going off too much to the left, so I stepped off the back of the bike as it went over the drop and it stopped and I kept going and my knee hit my seatpost quick release lever which embedded itself in my knee.  Fucking smarted.  i squatted and stood and moaned for a bit then got it moving and got riding.  had a look at it and it was that kinda white flesh before blood flows, but i covered it and rode on back up, pain subsiding as i rode.  Back to the Junction and in for the final descent, taking a low line below the tank and pretty much missing the worst of the muck there, then the final return to the main track and the worst muck of the evening, and back down to the car through a starfield of water droplets.  At the car, lifted my knee covering to discover a nice wee slit with blood.  And now, at home, its swelled up real nice.

Sunday gloomy afternoon McVicarage

I see a few of the others got out for a bit of a muckfest today, which I couldn't make, so once T was home headed out later in the gloomy afternoon - leaving home after 3.30pm.  Low cloud hanging around the tops as i approached the hills with Jet in the car with me.  My first attempt at taking him for a hill ride, parking at the top of Worsley's Rd, him blisteringly excited when i let him out of the car.

Off we headed, around 4, up the road and onto the dirt, which was not much like dirt and a fair bit more like mud, especially in places.  Bit of a creek running down the ruts and obvious 4wd churning all over the place.  Climbing was greasy, even on the ridges between the ruts, and my tires were hooking up as well as they could, which was pretty good, with minimal slip.  Jet was awesome, tho i had to call him back occasionally, but he got into it the further up we got, staying within 10 or 20 metres pretty much all the time.  There was one or two bits with barely any bikeable trail left on them, due to 4WD churn, coupled with creek flow and soggy muck, so one or two bits were walked.  Up where that 4WD was rolled off the trail (and another time we found one on it's roof), i rounded a bend and there the track was entirely blocked by the 4WD's responsible for all the previously encountered churn.  Luckily it was right where they'd trashed the fence and there was a line to ride in the grass between the track and the forest, so i rode past them then found my way back ontrack where a couple of alcohol-breath-ed youths were standing watching their stuck mates.  Off onwards up Jet and me continued and left up to the B-Lines.

Now, on Friday i was talking to a certain N. Sutcliffe, who has good knowledge of the trails in here, and hinted to me of a new one... (which I'll call FightClub2 until we find out a name)...  So, i followed his hints which involved a little extra climbing to usual, some bits of which were steep and greasy, then it headed off down.  Much like Fight Club in gradient and flow, tho steeper albeit not as steep as Dave's, lots of fun, and would have been waaaay more fun if it wasn't so wet, not that traction was that bad (until lower down).  For the more 'hardcore' bits i made sure Jet was behind me, but mostly he was good cruising ahead.  There was a couple of corners I walked due to total lack of traction.  Then, lower down a wooden jump over a gap I walked, and below that a totally saturated quagmire which would have just dirtied my bike that much too much, so I walked around it...  And finally, rode out the bottom at the same exit point as Fight Club.  Sweeet.  Now, if I'd made the trail, before it headed left across the slope and into the gully with the jump, I'd have run it more to the right, higher and thereby longer down the ridge further, but that's just me, and the forest is open enough that it wont take much to get in and do that (Nelson, next time?) soon.

From here, took the access track back up to the Junction, and headed up the steep 4wd track in the forest, grannying away all the way up to the powerline clearing, nearly to FightClub.  Turned around here cos it was just gonna get darker, and took the first left, then first right, back across the 4wd track and into one of my favourite wee swoopys, Jet on my tail, both of us having a great time, back down to the access track, back up that, and down and out the lower stuff which had a really fucking messy bit below the watertank, and from there on down is a bit ground out.  Finally, the blast down back to the car, Jet enjoying the high speed stretch, and seats down and in the back, "Goood Boy!", 5pm.