Sunday Parking Lots

Met Nelson at a ridiculously full CAP carpark and we climbed the climby Uphill climb, steep bugger tho it is, good for a while and I kinda held my own almost all the way to the Worsley.  Obviously riding to and from work everyday (albeit on the Ebike) and a few extra mtb rides than him is benefiting me slightly.  

Into Worsleys and it really was the worst lees.  Bumped into Rowan (a wilding-pine colleague) walking her dog and her man, and then we grunted off up the climb.  The Body Bag got the better of both of us eventually, me waaaay sooner than Nelson - I thought he was gonna make it for a second there, but gravity and traction got the better of him.  

Up the temporary permafrost to the top of the Nun, we stopped for a bite to eat.  Into the slick and dodgy, me in the lead, never quite trusting it the traction on dampened tires, potential for ice, and slick rocks.  We talked about it later and both agreed the trail is getting tired - lack of use up top and over use below.  Through the muppetsville crossings and then joinings of the Adwenture Park, catching up to a few peops on the lower Nun, then diving into Old Dyers, aka Choir Boy, singing for our supper.  Pulled up just round the valley cos Nelson's bike was making weird rattly noises.  Not really sure what it was, but we set off rolling again and progressed fast enough rolling to overtake a couple on the roll, no pedalling involved, then down through the new 'features' and out to the top of Pork'n'Puha.  

Nelson gapped his way in while I took the nanna way in, and all the other nanna lines next to gaps the rest of the way down.  Good to see the top of 3rd Base again, been a while, then left into the new to me Pork and Puha.  Bomby bomb bomb droppy dropping down, back and forth, down, and then rolly roll pop out down the bottom, catching up to multiple other riders who looked faster than they were.  We definitely more than held our own speed-wise against all the gromlins.  

A sweet spin, with lots of exertion expended.  Kinda similar distance to yesterday, 9.8 kms, with a measly 425 m climbed (compared to what it felt like).

Saturday Morning Heated Steeps

Nelson, O and me left our place and headed up Vic Park Drive, O powering off and causing Nelson to comment as to what a hurry he seemed to be in.  We went up to the main park area and dropped down the old access route to the top of Loess Rider etc. Across the road and O dropped over the normal entrance, whereas N and me took the new way straight off the road into Capt Cooker, dropping down the rocks and around, finding O waiting at the Karma/Shred/Loess start.  

I led off down Loess and at the first corner, pulled up and peeled off the trail.  O continued on down while Nelsie and me explored this new (to us) access trail across towards the 35s...  Several options off the left of it, and maybe 2/3rds along there's this massive rock wall with a route down it, leading into a jump and a berm and off down.  Nelson pushed to top to check it out but decided against the drop.  Who knows the speed you'd have into that jump and corner!?  We continued on across the trail, eventually getting to the 35 zone we knew, and were pleased to see cool 'rules' signage up here "Dont talk about it, dont facebook it, dont instagram it..." (So, officially, i'm not talking about it here).  Dropped in, holding on to the right hand side all the way down, weaving and dodging.  Nelson left me behind and then I wondered if he'd peeled off to the left somewhere because the dust had cleared and I couldn't tell where he was.  I caught up eventually.  I think we'd ridden the bit we finished on before, but who can tell?  Rolled out, much nicer end to it now (not having to climb up to Loess, for a start), finishing down at the skills zone.  Rolled out and around up to the base, spotted O, filled up water, cruised in and caught up with O and friends, then left them to it.

Down the carpark and into the climb.  Foosh...  First bit to the base of long zipline is a prick, but then it's not so bad, zigging and zagging, zigs and zags getting tighter and tighter and tighter.  Passed a few walkers up and down.  Eventually up the ridge and then nice cooling descent and around into the later climb, reminiscing about Daves (ACJoint) track and Fight Club and the likes...  Through the gate and up the Worsley.  Oh joy.  Cooled off in the shade next to the Park gate and then hit the body bag.  Ugh.  Nelson cleaned it, amazingly.  I failed at the usual spot then kinda caused another rider who'd snuck up behind me to fail too.  He practically ran the rest of the way to get ahead.  Nice cool breeze at the top. 

Climbed up to the top of the Nuns and decided on the Gnar.  Nice start, quite easy and relaxed corners, nothing too tech, then you hit the rocks.  We stopped and examined several sections before (or after) riding them, giving a couple of bits 2 goes to get the best lines sorted.  Then, across the Park track and bloomphity bloomph bloomph down the roughest line, near the bottom of which I'd taken a new (to me) line and just perched on top of a ridge of rocks between two nasty bits I did not want to fall into.  Then, as I re-entered the Nun proper, my front end bottomed something wicked and a very weird noise emanated from it...  ugh.  Rest of the run was fast and fun, until the exit to the road, some dipshit had left their bike right across the exit...  I commented "pretty dumb place to leave your bike" as I rode past.  Wish I'd ridden over the back wheel.  Filled up water at the Kiwi, and off up the road we went.  

Into Vic, usual down and around over the jump, loads of people standing around the jumps, and then next to the see saw, guy said "watch how the pros do it" as I went over it, lookin' good.  haha..  First few BrakeFree jumps and out down the rabbit paddock, and hard right over the cattlestop, into the pines, Nelson led down over the log and then I led down through the gums, usual route, swooping back and forth on the edge of traction.  Onwards down, then quick right and walk out the top of the CAP track, and up over 19th, down, around the road, into the carpark track, (broken window glass all over the carpark), bombing, swooping, getting to know this well now, and final climb before final blast down behind the houses...  

A hot af 13.5 kms with, what felt like a lot more than, 541 m climbed.

Tuesday Night Rambling Sneaks and Climbers Before the Squall

Met at Nelson's after work and we rode around Centaurus not really knowing quite where to go yet, but formulating a bit of a plan as we rode.  Turned left into Rossmore Tce, riding up this with my bottombracket creaking like a mo'fo.  Pushed up the steep steps and then rode out Whareora Tce, across Dyers into MacMillan, and up the Whisby 'Rd' walky-steep.  From here it was up Dyers Pass Rd, left into Hackthorne and I grabbed a drink from the fountain at Takahe (cos I'd left my backpack at home).  Up Dyers around a few bends, and we dived into the Sneaky-35 trails.  Last time I kept right, this time we dropped into the left (which proceeded to swoop across the right hand lane).  Back and forth we dropped, swoopy swoopy.  I lost my front wheel momentarily in some loose loam, but kept it together.  A couple of quite greasy spots were interesting.  We travelled further down and to the right than I did last time.  Eventually tho into the lowest section I'd experienced then, and finally across the bottom of the valley, over the log, and up onto Loess for a flowy fun finishing finale.

Across the bottom of the park and straight into the bastard Uphill track.  Nelson motored away, as usual, and I just plodded away as good as my legs could handle.  The whole time we were in the park, from 35 through to this climb and beyond, a helicopter was hovering over (probably) Lord of the Possums.  Cleaned all the zigs and zags, no dabs, and by the time I got to the easier 4wd section, Nelson was miles ahead.  He waited at the top, before the quick speed down then climbing again as the chopper flew over and away.  Around and up to a locked gate, so we pushed around the fence, and on up Worsleys.  Nelson totally gapping me again..  Ambulance and CAP quad came down the road while we climbed.  Up the Body Bag, a couple of guys ahead.  I managed most of the way up, whereas Nelson obviously cleaned it.

Up to the Nun, and we decided on Gnarly Nun.  First time since the scorched earth of yesteryear, was vaguely overgrown, but we picked our way down, cleaning everything very nicely, including some good rocky droppy sections I probably wouldn't have on the Turner.  Then across the 4wd track and onto the super gnarly rocky dh descent down to lower Nun.  One non-rollable, pop-the-front-wheel jump that I mastered perfectly, and we zoomed through the first swoops of lower Nun.  Nelson pulled up with a flat, leaky pig of a tubeless tire that wouldn't seal.  Pumped, rode on down, up road above Thomsons and pumped again at top of Vic.

Could see a big squall making its way across the city towards us from the northwest, so we bailed quickly, straight down to the rabbit paddock, rain and wind howling in as we flew into the rockgarden, and around through the gums.  Felt like trees could come crashing down with the wind thrashing around us, and indeed, a couple had lower down before the last sweep across to the skidder site.  Straight into Shazza's and bombed out the bottom of that straightlining down to Sneaky Ridge, bombing the rocks and through this, over the jump to Bridges and straightlining across and down to Hospital Corner, before fanging it down the valley bottom and out.  Road wet with rain as we made our way back around to Nelson's whereupon the weather fined up again.

Lots of climbing, for not a lot of downward rewards.  19.6 kms, and 712 m climbed.

Wednesday Night Adventure Climb Worse Nun Traverse Lava OldsKool

Pick up from work and across town to park on Ashgrove Tce next to the bridge into Ernle Reserve.  Over this and a mellow cruise up the Heathcote River past Cracroft and then up the gravel into the Park.  Straight into the Uphill climb, ziggy zaggy, jiggy jaggy...  we caught up to some other guys and sat behind them for a while, got past one and were happy enough having a rest behind the next guy, til it opened up and we plodded on ahead, up and over and down and through the midpoint and then on upwards the old way we used to climb out of Fightclub etc.  around and through the gate and up the techknuckle grovel little bitty shitty rut-city.  Cleaned our ways up this and then had a bit of a social rest outside the gate of the park, chatting with others, snacking and resting before heading off up the Bodybag.  Cleaned it a long way up.  Nelson got it all the way, but I blew out pretty near the top, rested, breathed and then got going again, cleaning up the rest.  Nice - best effort for a long time.

Over and into the Nun climb, quick piss stop and off down.  Nelson on fire, me chasing and struggling a little, flying down the Flying Nun, popping and grooving.  Big fuck up on the trail just after the big corner closest to the park - the Pioneer Race had been through on the weekend and all the muppets had fucked up the entrance to that rock you used to jump over...  On down through the rocky sections feeling pretty good, keeping Nelson in sight, but struggling a little to keep up.  Past the carpark and bombing through the lower section, no wuckers, Nelson still getting away but not too far ahead.  Strangely we met some dude riding up, near the bottom, and we finished it off. 

Across Dyers Pass and up the road, Nelson taking the lower Thompson, me staying on the road.  Up here were some dipshit boy racers with a lowered ute, mashed up front and tires off the scuffed up rims.  Dumb-arses had lost it into the barrier.  "Ohh, That doesn't look good.  Whoops" from me, and "Looks like you're gonna need a wheel alignment" from Nelson, to which they slung him some abuse, little shits.  Lucky no one had been riding or driving up cos they'd crossed the centre line to hit the barrier, obviously at some speed, the skid marks were lonnnng - hope the little fuckers get done for dangerous driving.  Into the upper Thomson for us, dropping down the recent wood-chip entrance, laughing at their misfortune all the way.  At the top there was a couple with electric plus-size bikes with kid trailers hitched up.  They'd come up Bowenvale Valley and the K2s!!!

Into the Traverse and a good blat round here, meeting quite a few other riders.  Legs were getting tired on the last few climbs, ending up at the top of Lava Flow.  Guy and a dog were here getting ready to go down, so we headed in and Nelson rode everything...  I walked one or two bits, but rode a heap I'd never had thought of in the past.  Was fun. It's a cool track (7 years since I'd last attempted it).  At the bottom we headed up the steps next to the 3rd bridge (we'd come down them one night back with the Thursday Night Crew).  Bit of a hike, but once you're up it's a cool singletrack across to the Hidden Valley Link Track - avoiding losing altitude on boring track, the creek crossing and the first two hairpins.  Into this and climbing climbing up to Old Skool. Great blast down this, seems to have been cleaned up a bit in the middle traversing section and looks to be seeing quite a bit of traffic.  Fast down the bottom and then out and down the road and round the river and back through Ernle to the car.

All up, 634 m climbed, in 22.1 kms over an hour and three-quarters riding.