Day 1 of 2016 - Family Hike to Potato

A Rare Occasion, Mid-Week, Mid-Day Ride to Potato

Today I took the day off (well kinda, I ended up working from home until noon) and rode to Potato.  I started from my house and headed to Marshal Canyon.  From Marshal Canyon, I accessed the CWT and headed up to Potato.

I told myself to chill on this ride but ended up making it to Potato in great time.  Once at the top, I was soaked.  The ride was great, the weather was great, and the view from the top...

Today is Halloween so I finished the day by taking the kids Trick or Treating.  We stuck to our neighborhood and needless to say the kids scored!

A Quick Ride Up to Potato

Its a race against sun down ... and I won!

Potato, Potato! A Quick After Work Ride

So after work I road to Potato.  I didn't really have Potato in mind when I woke up this morning and thought about my ride.  I new my ride was going to be on the mountain and I had a bit of difficulty deciding which bike to take, the CX Kona or the hardtail Trek.  I ultimately decided on the Trek. 

So the idea to ride to Potato came to me a couple hours before I left work.  Daylight is starting to creep away but I really wanted to maximize my ride. I wanted to get a good work out so I few calculations in my head and I knew I could make it to Potato.

My Trek has gears, which was a nice treat while blasting up the mountain.  I was at awe by the seemingly unlimited amount of gear choices and I was at the top of Potato in no time.

To Potato with Antonio

Sometimes plans don't pan out as expected.  A week ago I rec'd a FB message from a fellow racer asking if I was interested in a ride to Potato on Saturday.  Its been awhile since any type of MTB ride so I was all in.  I invited Eric and his group, Mike L (and his buddy Scott), Antonio and the friend from FB. 

Eric and his group arrived at our meet up location early and was pressed for time.  They took off early.  Mike L and Scott arrived a few minutes late and we decided to wait 10 minutes for Antonio.  My racer friend from FB never showed up.  After 10 minutes of waiting around Mike L, Scott and I decided to head up Marshal Canyon.

Shortly entering Marshal Canyon, we crossed paths with Antonio.  Antonio continued to Oak Mesa looking for our friend from FB.  I told Antonio FB Friend is a no show but he insisted on seeing for himself.  I told Antonio we'll see him up Marshal Canyon.

Mike L, Scott and I headed up Marshal Canyon fairly quickly but Mike L was having some trouble keeping up.  He's been off the bike for a few months and getting back into the swing of things can be difficult.  Scott and I rode up a few miles into Marshal Canyon and stopped short of the "Three Bitches" before deciding this is a good place to wait for Mike L.  The "Three Bitches" are three sections of fairly short but steep climbs.  I think either Romeo (whom I haven't ridden with in ages) or some dude from SC Velo coined the term. 

I tell Scott I am going to ride back to Mike L and soon enough Antonio was coming around the corner.  A few seconds following Antonio was Mike L.  He's bonked.  Antonio and I decide to break apart and ride together up Marshal Canyon to Potato.  The ride was fast (at least for me) and we were at the top of Potato in no time.

At Potato, we snapped a few pictures, and spoke with a very chatty Park Ranger before heading down for a loop around Burbank to Cobol Canyon.

To Potato with Bicycle Friends

On Saturday, Antonio, Imeh and his father, Matt and so many more decided to ride to Potato.  I started from my house and rode up Burbank, then down Marshal Canyon to meet the rest of the group at Oak Mesa Elementary School. 

We ended up getting to a late start at about 8 am.  Matt, Imeh's father and brother headed up Marshal Canyon before the rest of us.  They wanted to get a head start as catching them would be inevitable, or so we thought.  The rest of us headed up about 5 to 10 minutes later.

With bigger groups there is always a greater variance in skill sets.  The first part of Marshal Canyon was marked with frequent stops to re-group.  Finally, Antonio, Imeh and I decided to ride our own pace and catch up to his father, brother and Matt.  

We found Matt on the side of the trail.  He busted his dropout on a rock and was "jimmying" his derailer and chain to get it to at least be in rideable condition. I thought for sure Matt would opt to turn around, effectively finishing his ride.  Instead Matt decided to head up to Potato as a single speeder!  Great job!

We finally "caught" Imeh's father at Yellow Gate.  Imeh's brother decided to end his ride early and dropped down Cobal Canyon.  

Together we all made our way up to Potato.  At this point my energy was starting to wane and the last 3/4th till the top was the hardest.