Southern California - MTB Ride Oct 27th, Big Bear Ski Lift DH run day

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jsigone
10-01-07, 06:32 PM
Intermediate to advanced riders only

Location: Snow Summit Parking lot
Time: Lifts open at 9am I believe
Cost: $30 per person ALL DAY unlimited amounts up the "hill"
Milage: til your legs fall off cuz there is only about 5% climbing on this day
Trails: EVERYTHING, right and left side of the ski runs. Lower Fallline is the fastest, scariest and best run there. This lil trail will test your skills and push your bike to it's max.
Decent: It's about 1300ft if vertical elevation drop, 82xxft at the top and the parking lot sits at 7000ft. Breathing will be erratic at first but you will get used to it on the top. There WILL be some fireroad, but none like Chino hills or Aliso Woods. These fire roads are cliff on one side, mt on the other, usually pea size gravel top layer and speeds 40+ if you are daring.

Requirements: SKILL is # 1. Know your bike and yoiur limits. A good working bike, GOOD BRAKES (disc brakes are almost a must unless you have some steller rim brakes), more then 85mm front travel a must. XC style race bikes are SCARY coming down some of the singletracks beacuse it's steep and your body is over the bars more. Something of an all mountain rig is best with full suspension. Though I've done this on a $250 hardtail with 85mm travel and I made it down, but I'm crazy type. If you do ride an XC bike, lower your seat a good inch or more and bring a shorter stem if you can. I recommend pads for this type of day, you never know what can happen on the trails.

Bike can NOT be more then 6" of front travel nor have bigger then 2.5" tires. My rig is 5"x5" w/ 2.3's just for example.

Food: I'm thinking the parking lot tail gate type. Do a couple runs, relax, BS then go ride some more.

Riders
jsigone +5

Maybes


Drew12
10-01-07, 09:38 PM
I'm off that Saturday, so I'll put my name in as a strong maybe.
I must say I'd be a little emabarrased to NOT ride up what I ride down...
got to earn the run ya know..

Am I correct in that we will NOT be running down the ski runs, but through
federal forest land?

efficiency
10-02-07, 12:40 AM
Aren't the ski runs on federal forest land? Anyways, I lack the skills and the hardware. I'd rather stay alive.


jsigone
10-02-07, 12:09 PM
the ski runs are not legal for bikes, about 3 yrs ago, there was a DH race where the course was marked wrong and a rider crash and ended up in a wheel chair for life. There are many trails starting off the fireroads on the top that come down the right or left side of the Mt. There are no drops, hucks, boulder gardens or anthing. This place is just steep and fast. Lower fallline rides in and out of a creekbed, so there are roots, rocks, water crossings (very shallow).

Drew12
10-03-07, 10:30 PM
BUMP....Bumpity bump...bump....

axelfox
10-04-07, 12:52 AM
I'm a novice MTBer that used to frequent Aliso Woods. I've always wanted to go to Big Bear and ride the lifts and down on my Specialized Hardrock Comp (no disc brakes). Suicide or can do?

efficiency
10-04-07, 01:09 AM
I really wouldn't go if you describe yourself as a novice, but I've never been there.

jsigone
10-04-07, 10:34 AM
I'm a novice MTBer that used to frequent Aliso Woods. I've always wanted to go to Big Bear and ride the lifts and down on my Specialized Hardrock Comp (no disc brakes). Suicide or can do?

how good are your rim brakes? It's not the stopping power of the rim brakes that suck, it's the power modulation. When I raced SuperD there 2 yrs ago, it use to take me 15 minutes to DH from the top, that 15 minutes of pretty much riding your brakes. With the rim brakes, my hands/wrist got super sore + the bumps and stuff. Disc brakes have great hand modulation. I also tried out the Avid Single Digit7's rim brakes ($30) and they work rather well, I was amost at the bottom before I had hand cramps start up. I still have them on my XC bike and disc brakes on the full suspension beater.

If you can DH all the runs at Aliso (Meadows, Rock It, Lynx and Mathes), you have the skills for BB.

Happytime
10-26-07, 10:43 AM
Jeff, is this ride still going on? (I'm updating the event list)

jsigone
10-26-07, 12:29 PM
ride is canceled due to the fires up there.......breathing at 8k ft up is bad enough already:eek: