LEFTHAND CANYON there and back challenge

[thump_co]

Originally Posted by boulderitedrifter

No more go arounds or short cuts. Trees are cleared as of yesterday. Sorry to take some of the great features out but go arounds drive me crazy.
Enjoy!

Whoa.. all the trees? Including the ones at the very bottom that have been there for years?

[thump_co]

just finished there and back. posting from my phone. 54 minutes including several stops to remove all the damn rocks put on the trail. stacking cheater rocks on the crux uncool. removing ALL the trees at the bottom even less cool. that wasn't your call to make.

[COXR650L]

I guess the rocks are kind of a null point for me, if someone is on the trail and they are getting desperate (ie exhausted, bike problems, etc) and stack a few rock, ehhh, life will go on and chances are they will be gone in a few weeks for what ever reason.

The logs I do agree with, especially on a trail that was made to be difficult and Id like to see what all was removed. It is expected there will be additional obstacles and as long as there is a way to reasonable get over and the skill required is in line with the rest of the trail they should probably be left in place. (Unless there are major go arounds developing..........)

The only log crossing that "needed" to be removed was the huge off camber one. That was sure to result in a go around and I have no doubt someone would get seriously hurt sooner than later.

Originally Posted by thump_co

just finished there and back. posting from my phone. 54 minutes including several stops to remove all the damn rocks put on the trail. stacking cheater rocks on the crux uncool. removing ALL the trees at the bottom even less cool. that wasn't your call to make.

[thump_co]

I do agree that the off camber log had to come out and I appreciate the trail work. The go-over was not very sustainable and had a nasty consequence for failure, but trees at the very bottom had been there for years without any go-arounds developing and were a fun feature. To me that crossed the line between maintenance and trail sanitizing (which is a huge pet peeve for me).

The rocks were more of a personal problem. Someone had laid out about a dozen of them in the singletrack leading up to the crux, then used them to go up themselves and left behind a nice little roosted up pile of loose rock stuck right in the way. I was having a great run and made it from white rock to the crux in about 9 minutes. I tried running through the rocks and lost my momentum on the crux so I had to abort and back the bike down again. I then shut off the gas when I laid the bike over to remove said rocks and forgot to turn it back on so I bogged out halfway up on try two. By try three I was pretty much wiped and rode like a drunken sock puppet up the rest. I guess my view is that if you're going to make modifications to help you clear something, then at least go back after and remove it instead of leaving a mess for the next folks.

On the plus side.. I had a little daylight left after Spruce to get my frustrations out. Since the title of this thread is not restricted just to Spruce, I'm offering an adjunct challenge on the second hardest (IMO) LHC trail. Here's Cavanaugh's Trail (838) in 3m 25s. Shouldn't be too hard to beat. I was running pretty ragged and borked my line near the start.

[thump_co]

Originally Posted by COXR650L

... and Id like to see what all was removed.

You can see the current conditions here. Missing trees start right around 5:22. I cut the vid at the crux to save you all from a solid minute of heavy breathing followed by cussing at rocks. Try the 720p option if you want detail.

Several bike stalls from a too-low idle screw.

[87mcmahan87]

wow freaking impressive ken, i might have to go best my time next weekend just so it will stand against your new aggressive charges! and wow.. no logs at the bottom..... GAY

[silverboy]

Looks like a chainsaw was used? I thought those were banned at Lefthand?
Lame about the logs. If you can't ride it, don't! I have done spruce once, and that was enough to let me know I was in over my head.
But, it did look like there are still a lot of logs conveniently located on the side of the trail? Mountain bikers in the northwest started it, seems to me like moto is the obvious evolution of the log ramps and jumps they make. If we make them big enough, they will be so hard to move no one will bother.... Think Romaniacs Colorado style!

[chacha]

Originally Posted by boulderitedrifter

No more go arounds or short cuts. Trees are cleared as of yesterday. Sorry to take some of the great features out but go arounds drive me crazy.
Enjoy!

Originally Posted by thump_co

Whoa.. all the trees? Including the ones at the very bottom that have been there for years?

Originally Posted by thump_co

just finished there and back. posting from my phone. 54 minutes including several stops to remove all the damn rocks put on the trail. stacking cheater rocks on the crux uncool. removing ALL the trees at the bottom even less cool. that wasn't your call to make.

So I'm just guessing here, but I think maybe boulderitedrifter thought that taking the logs out was okay from the other thread about this trail.


http://www.advrider.com/forums/showt...=792754&page=4

Originally Posted by boulderitedrifter

Rode SG last night for the first time since it opened. I may ride in with my chainsaw next week . Some trees are way fun but some are causing issues. Clearing trees is the easy part. Eroded parts, and slide offs need major attention. I spent 25 minutes getting my bike up Bitch Rock. This was reminder why I typically do not ride LHC but needed to do last minute bike testing. Riding SG solo was challenging.

Originally Posted by thump_co

Nice work. Makes for a great bike test as long as you don't break more than you just fixed. Sounds like you're ready for the time trial:
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=784265

If you saw out the logs then maybe I can beat Chris' time.

[thump_co]

I thought it would be pretty clear for anyone that rides that trail which ones were the new deadfall "issue" logs vs the ones that had been there for years... also thought the humor in the "..beat Chris' time comment" was self-evident.. but maybe not.

Either way.. what's done is done, and I'm glad the new logs came out before they caused more trouble. I'm sure we can find a few others to drag back in and liven it up. In fact, if I can beat the current time, I'm sure I'll find a few immediately after.

[thump_co]

Took another shot at it yesterday. That was a mistake. I've been spoiled with mid-70's temp up at my place all week, had no idea it would be nearly 100 down there.

Miserable heat aside, I doubt I'll ride Spruce again until it gets some serious rain. There's dry grass hanging across the trail through most the switchbacks descending from the white rock side. Even with my CF pipe guard I found myself stopping every fifty feet and looking back to make sure nothing was smoking. The wrecking crew has been merciless on the crux and switchback climbs. The trail "bench" has been almost completely ground away in a few spots from spinning knobbies and no moisture. I didn't ride it back in reverse.

I'd encourage folks be real careful out there. It's a tinderbox. One bike layover and there's a good chance you'd be trapped at the bottom of a blazing valley.

[Forty Years Ago]

Originally Posted by ironbrewer

That reminds me of this short toprope in Eldorado canyon called Northcut variation of Bastille Crack. I think it went at hard 5.10, but was very sequency so people had a hard time with it. I had it wired and used to go up to people on my way home.

Jim:"Whats that you climbing, it looks fun."

Random climber:"Its called Northcut variation."

Jim:"Could I try your toprope."

By this time they are tired and frustrated

Random Climber:" Sure go ahead."

Jim rips up it in about 2 minutes:"Thanks for the rope."

You must have Spruce Gulch wired

It only took three posts before someone highjacked the Lefthand Canyon thread! It would be nice if you exhibited some forum courtesy. I was looking forward to reading about one of my favorite roads.

[thump_co]

Originally Posted by Forty Years Ago

It only took three posts before someone highjacked the Lefthand Canyon thread! It would be nice if you exhibited some forum courtesy. I was looking forward to reading about one of my favorite roads.

I think his analogy was sound.

... and we certainly differ in our definitions of the word "road".

[mylsmkj]

Originally Posted by thump_co

I think his analogy was sound.

... and we certainly differ in our definitions of the word "road".

[mylsmkj]

Originally Posted by thump_co

You can see the current conditions here. Missing trees start right around 5:22. I cut the vid at the crux to save you all from a solid minute of heavy breathing followed by cussing at rocks. Try the 720p option if you want detail.

Several bike stalls from a too-low idle screw.

Wow! first time I've watched video of this. You know it's hard when you're trying to keep your front wheel a couple inches off of the ground to have traction. This trail looks hard even on video.

[ironbrewer]

Originally Posted by Forty Years Ago

It only took three posts before someone highjacked the Lefthand Canyon thread! It would be nice if you exhibited some forum courtesy. I was looking forward to reading about one of my favorite roads.

I hope you are joking. Forum courtesy...really??