Trail Report West - 10/29/09 - Sycamore Canyon - Port Hueneme, CA

Steve O - Bomber Ride.
The West Coast boys had another epic mountain bike ride yesterday. We had the full crew of Ron, Hector, Scott, Juan and Tim. It seems inconceivable, but, this was a ride I've never done within Sycamore Canyon. Anyway we all arrived at 1600 in Sycamore. The summer crowds are long gone and its the perfect time to do some trail poaching. We started at 1615 in cool breezy conditions and took the fire road to Boney Mountain Trail. Juan apparently hasn't gotten the memo that "cotton kills". He was wearing some sort of jumbo cotton hoody. Did I mention this trail is off-limits...and we're bad, bad, bad, bad for riding it. But, the trail is good, good, good. Very narrow singletrack and pleasantly rideable. In other words, bikers haven't tweakered it up. It might be perfect except for the ridiculous gradient that starts after a few hundred meters. Did I mention this climb is hard? Think "Hell Hill" but longer and more technical. We all struggled a bit on the climb, well at least Scott, Juan and I did. It seems Ron is turning into Iron Man material and Hector just is very aerodynamic with those roadie legs of his. The reward of this climb is amazing views from about 1300 ft of the Pacific Ocean, Serrano Canyon and the Oxnard Plain. Attached photo is taken near the top. The other reward is the descent. Think 18 inch wide singletrack with a rolling descent into a canyon. You can really bomb this. Something I started to do until Hector started screaming at me about a "pipe"? Pipe? Bro - I gave that up a long time ago. Well, said pipe ends up being an exposed (open) drain pipe that sits directly next to the trail at a pretty deep gully. Hit this too fast and you will have a problematic encounter with the pipe! Its one of the few technical features on this part of the trail. Ultimately you hit the bottom of Serrano Canyon and basically ride that out back to the main trail. It actually quite dark and overgrown in the canyon and filled with poison oak. There are a couple walking sections through the drainage...but otherwise pretty good. Great trail and Scott had Dos Equis on ice for us at the end. Sweetness. Look forward to doing this trail with you...
Length: ~11 miles
Elevation gain: ~1200 ft
Yikes: Pipe (see above), Poison Oak, Juan in cotton
Temp: 65 degrees
Tim

Pumpkin Report - 10/26/09

RI's Jack-O-Lantern Spectacular...
Here's a small sample of some of the Jack-O-Lanterns at the display at Roger William's Park Zoo.  Highly recommend this incredible show...

...YEP, those are PUMPKIN CARVINGS!!!!

Wobble Report - 10/26/09

Follow up with the surgeon today... x-rays look good (see for yourself) and OMMB is cleared (and encouraged) to walk or go hiking with trekking poles (versus crutches) and biking if able.  Wait, what...YES BIKING!  So I'm planning to do some extended walks this week and if all goes well I'll be on a road bike this weekend! 

Still at Stage 4 (wobble walk without crutches) but Stage 5 is nearly in sight!

Marathon Report - 10/18/09 - Newport, RI

SHE DID IT!!!  Anna completed her first full marathon today!  And she did it in the worst of conditions...during a Nor'Easter with 35-40 knot winds, freezing cold rain, and sleet. 

Many CONGRATS to our favorite Swede! 

Wave Report - 10/15/09 - CA

From the CA surfer boy...

1) Bacteria levels = high (yeah Tim, need to explain this one)
2) Waves = Overhead (due to storm)
3) Conditions = Unruly
4) Crowd Factor = Low (due to 1-3 above)
5) Onlookers = High (due to 1-3 above)
6) Wave count = 3 (with 2 exceptionally large and unruly rides)
7) Wipeouts on takeoff = 2 (longboard w/little rocker unable to deal w/pitching takeoff)*

* operator error a contributing factor...

Tim V.



(nice butt Tim, I see you've been workin out)






...thanks Tim, that was a fun ride, I didn't even get wet - next time please translate to East Coast lingo ;)

And Tim's translation...

1) The bacteria levels are always high right after it rains b/c the rain washes "sheet" down the normally dry riverbeds into the ocean.

2) "unruly" refers to wind chop...something I'm sure he's (ommb) seen a lot of in his lobstering days.

3) "rocker" refers to how flat the board is. more rocker = less flat. Typically longboard have less rocker than small boards. Less rocker is good for paddling, catching slower waves and not so good for pitching fast waves, steep faces, late takeoffs, etc...as those tend to submerge the nose. Once that happens you're done.

...nice!

Waddle Report - 10/15/09 (One Month Since Surgury)

A BLESSED EVENT!  I got news today that I no longer have to take the blood thinner and blood tests are not needed!  What does that mean?   ...I can now once again drink sweet nectars of the Gods!  yep...beer, wine, cava, g&t's, & martini's can now be consumed at will!!

Regarding my vertical status...I'm able to walk for short distances without the crutches. Not really a "walk" but more of a penguin-like "waddle". Great fun.  Tomorrow I begin the outpatient PT.

Tidbit:  AFG is running her first marathon on Sunday.  We'll be there in Newport cheering her on (with umbrellas of course)!!  GO SWEDE-E!!!!

Happy Trails are in the distance,

OMMB

Hobble Report - 10/13/09

Good news... I am no longer under House Arrest! Home PT check out today cleared me for work, driving, and some limited walking without crutches ("full weight bearing activities as tolerated"). I'll be starting the outpatient PT this Friday, that should last about 6 weeks, 2-3 times per week. Although still at Stage 4, the crutches are becoming a nuisance and I hope to be at Stage 5 next week....

And for the sake of celebrating some of this year's "good times", here's one of the classics...

Hobble Report - 10/07/09

Just the latest... I'm still progressing each day with home physical therapy. Pain is virtually gone, aside from some tightness around the hip joints. No real big improvement, but little by little each day I get a bit more leg strength and flexibility (really have to practice my patience!). I've taken a couple walks with crutches this past week, each about a half mile, accompanied by my unwavering companion. Had no issues.

I'm easing back into work tasks, since there isn't much else I can do around the house. I plan to get back to the office next week.

Looking forward to outpatient PT next week.

Still at STAGE FOUR (with crutches)...

Happy (future) Trails,
OMMB

PS- a video for the fun of it...

Trail Report West - 10/4/09 - Gridley Trail - Ojai, CA

- Riders: Hector, Ron, Scott, Tim

- Distance: 12 miles

- Weather: pleasantly cool and sunny

- Temp: low 70's (note that "70's" is "pleasantly cool" in CA)

- Hills: 6+ miles to around 3000 feet

- Notes:

From Tim....

So, the west coast crew hooked up for another epic ride on Sunday. Hector, once again, had this great idea to go ride Gridley trail in Ojai, CA. Gridley can be a little tricky. Its typically either smoking hot, or cold. The last time I rode it, we had to negotiate snow the final 1/2 mile. Well, thankfully, it was a tweener -> pleasantly cool (low 70's) and sunny. That's the good part. Did I mention that Gridley is an uphill slog. Six plus miles of an incline that turns into a suffer-fest @ mile 4 due to an increased grade and decreased traction. Its gotta be around 3000 feet of climbing. I think we all felt small when 3 hard core downhill guys passed us on the way up - on their downhill bikes, w/ all their body armor on their backs. Totally demoralizing! Yours truly consumed a fair number of gel bits and GU to keep the ole motor stoked and just let Hector and Ron pass me by. Well, most of us made it to the top...some folks in better shape (Ron, Hector) than others (me) and Scott (1/2 mile from top). Now for the good part. Gridley is technical, but not requiring of body armor or downhill bikes. The turns are also banked to a degree so one can really rail the descent. After 2 plus hrs of climbing, its sad that the descent is over in about 15 minutes...but it's one sweet time. Points to Scott for not giving up as this was easily the hardest ride he's done to date. Points to Hector for getting the weather right. Major points to Ron for having ice cold "Fat Tire Amber Ales" in the cooler for post-ride carb replen. You'll find our ride profile, GPS and whatever other technical wizardry resides on Ron's i-phone below. I'm dragging a bit today...

Google Earth File

Google Maps Link

GPX File

Tim... thanks for providing me another vicarious ride!

Happy Trails,

OMMB

Trail Report - 10/1/09 (from the Left Coast) - Angel View, Portrero Rd - Thousand Oaks CA

OMMB couldn't resist riding vicariously through his West Coast friends.... enjoy this from Tim V....

- Riders: Hector, Ron, Scott, Tim

- Weather: Hot, dry, and windy

- Temp: California Hot

- Humidity: 2%

- Hills: Hike your bike steep

Tim's account....

So Hector had this great idea to go for a mountain bike ride yesterday. Did I tell you it was hot yesterday? In fact, it was a "Santa Ana" condition. For those non-California types, this refers to hot, dry and fairly windy conditions. In short, miserable riding weather. Did I tell you Hector also had this great idea to ride in Thousand Oaks. After all, its always hotter there than the coast. Did I tell you I haven't ridden in over a month? So we (Scott, Hector, Ron and I) met at Portrero Rd with the intent to make the climb to Angel View. Did I tell you this ride choice was...you guessed it...Hector's idea. Did I mention that my 17 year old asked me if I had a death wish? Her 20 min walk home from school apparently was enough "nature" time. Did I mention that Hector forgot his riding gear. Oh yes. Being the giving person that I am...I donated my extra t-shirt and riding shorts to Hector, while I rode in some fancy plaid shorts (see photo). So off we went on the ride. Did I mention it was dry? Think 2% humidity. Ok, maybe that's an exaggeration. My cancer treated throat began complaining almost immediately and I thought perhaps I might hork up a lung. Did I mention there are two beastly hills on this ride that cannot be ridden...so you must push your bike up them. After all, nothing is better than pushing your bike up a steep, loose hill on a hot, dry merciless day. After pushing hill #1, I must confess to feeling light headed and had to take 5 minutes of shade time while I contemplated hurling. Fortunately, I was able to sort myself out. It turns out my headband hadn't been properly washed and this served to contribute to my feelings of nausea. Apparently these conditions posed no problems for Hector and Ron. Scott was perhaps another story. So we ultimately made it to the top where attached photo was taken by Ron. Notice Hector's smug demeanor, my non-riding shorts and the fact that Scott looks like he's about to explode. Fortunately the ride back is mostly downhill, the temperature dropped a few degrees and the wind stopped. Even "Guzman Hill" was fun to blast down. We made it back to the cars around 1800 where I had some ice cold Tecate's waiting. Good times.

Thanks Tim (I feel your pain)!

Happy Trails,
OMMB