Nice pic, David. Those kind of climbs are really challenging, but the good thing of that huge stone is the awesome grip it has. You don't have to care about your rear wheel drifting do you can be more radical moving on your bike to gain stability on the front one. Nice day, in the end it wasn't so cold, but of course, the Sierra will keep on working as a huge fridge till spring comes, so wrap yourself up...
minus 1 to your comment lad, that damned stone can actually slip, remember our last time there.... although not only for the grip but for our beforehand well earned tiredom and an unavoidable lack of skills. Furthermore... get it on and make your way back, we need you for the Mc's crew XXX
Yeah!, not in winter yet we have to look like an eskimo to avoid catching a severe cold. Nice pic on the rock! Well, not having been at that high altitude on my bike, I guess both of you are right. The problem comes when you unexpectedly lost traction and your balance. If tyre size doesn´t play much of a role, there is always a cause to lost grip: sand on trail, potholes, painted, wet, smooth or frozen surfaces, just when you thought every inch in the section is in the same condition of grip. But they´re not. Experienced bikers like you get a fishtailing like sensation but luckily not enough to throw you. The rest of bikers can easily hit the ground especially if the slippery trap comes when cornering...
So I'm right. It's not a matter of traction. It has to do with a million other things, hasn't it? In my case my lack of skills and power made me put my feet on the ground, but granite, when it's dry, combined with the tyres, it's like a gum sticked to a sidewalk
Like you guys said, there's a lot going on when riding on challenging terrain, things like traction, speed, skills, how fit you are, tiredness, concentration. Actually I've been thinking about the mental side of things lately. You know, you're moving along and looking ahead, making line choices, anticipating what's coming, deciding how you're going to take it. Sometimes, especially when I'm tired, I find myself actually losing concentration, and that's not good, you have to be at 100 percent or slow down. Even the best mess up, lose concentration for a second, miscalculate, whatever. Have you heard the latest about Cedric Gracia? http://enduro-mtb.com/en/bad-news-cedric-gracia-injured-at-megavalanche-la-reunion/
Photos from C. García Instagram: Considering the demanding circumstances in which enduro bikes are to be used, do you know of a tougher vehicle no matter the price? In any case, I wish everybody who is in the process of recovering from a fall to get well asap. Just as well that I don´t like enduro, otherwise I´d fall off the bike every other ride... You all run circles around me!
Photos from C. García Instagram: Ver el archivo adjunto 3608683 Considering the demanding circumstances in which enduro bikes are to be used, do you know of a tougher vehicle no matter the price? In any case, I wish everybody who is in the process of recovering from a fall to get well asap. Just as well that I don´t like enduro, otherwise I´d fall off the bike every other ride... You all run circles around me!
Road bikes have their slice of the pie. Finally, after two missing Fridays, I think I can make it for our next road bike day!. Miss it a lot.
There really isn't much information about Cedric Gracia's latest accident, nothing about how it happened. Was it a jump? Did he ride into a tree? In any case, this was a man who did truly insane things on his bike, like riding off cliffs in Utah at the Redbull Rampage. 20 seconds into this video you can see his winning run in 2003. I mean it's a joy watching these guys, but for me it's like dreams of flying, you know, it's just a dream! when you're asleep! but for these guys it's real. Well, hope he's recovering well. Well, let's not forget you can wipe out on a road bike as well. Have to admit I'm not really sure what happened to the guy. His front wheel turned one way and then the other, and then over the handlebars he went. Must've really hurt. On a mountain bike I'm often wearing elbow and knee pads, so falls tend to be less serious, but on a road bike... Glad to hear you're up for a ride on Friday, tho it's 6 December, a holiday, so I'm not sure what kind of turnout we're going to have. FVELAS, formally Juan Carlos, says he can't make it, and I'm not sure about Big, so we'll just play it by ear. On another note, today I got on an exercise bicycle for a hour and six minutes, and according to the machine lost 1,000 calories. Actually I stayed on it till it reached that mark. Have to admit, it is a good way to stay fit. My wife and daughter were fretting, thinking I was overextending myself. Enjoyed that. They don't go on rides with me so don't realize it's pretty tame stuff. I'm usually far more tired after a Friday ride.
Yeah, A stationary bike becomes an alternative to riding in cold weather when lack of time or serious wind chill is a factor out there. But as I see it, there are two major problems with exercice bikes: Boreness and absence of a cool down system. Except for those computrainers, those models with lcd images in them like that of Mario´s, How can anyone planning to get on the device without getting a little boring? Maybe listening to music while exercising, air conditioner or hair dryer near you...
Yeah, boredom is a problem. In my case I rode it while watching TV so it was all right. As far as cooling down goes, if you find you're getting too hot all you have to do nowadays is open the window, and you'll cool right down. Of course my family wouldn't be too happy about that. But hey, I'd rather ride a real bike anytime, but if you're short of time, like I normally am Monday to Thursday, it's not a bad option.
Speaking of endos, check out this video on how (not) to cross a river. I think if the rider had shifted his weight back he might've been all right. http://www.ruedasgordas.es/como-no-cruzar-un-rio
Crossing a river can be tricky. Before any green light I guess you have always to scan the water for rocks, potholes and traps but, yeah, your right, that guy doesn´t seem confident enough to gain momentum putting his weight back. It´d have be better for him to take off his socks and walking his bike across, wouldn´t it? Anywayyyyyy, see U tomorrow for our road bike day. No rivers to ride over!
Inter, it was great seeing you today for our ride to Canencia on skinny wheels. It was a beautiful day, and I was having a particularly good day: hard to explain why sometimes we have good ones and sometimes not-so-good, but I felt strong going up Canencia. In your case, you did well considering you haven't been riding much lately. I think if you're busy and finding it hard to find time for our lovely sport, you might have to resort to your exercise bike. Actually I'm convinced that, although it lacks the excitement and interest of a real bike, it is a way to stay in shape. I'll probably use one on week days when it's hard for me to get out for a ride.
Thak U for the photo, Chain. Yeah, you blew us away at Canencia!. You are in an excellent shape man. This is the time of the year in which a lot of cyclists keep their bikes at home as winter is coming up, but your shape is definitely better than it was just two months ago. I will consider wider use of biketrainers but I´m afraid that´s not your real secret to be in such good shape... A great road bike day today. I´m happy becasue (as you say) despite lately I didn´t do much of cycling, I could get by riding to Canencia and back home. Not a bad average considering the distance and difficulties of the ride after such no-bike period of time.
OMG! That's you beside the Fountain of the Pussy up the mountain pass! If you are married and stare at it for a while what comes to your mind is just that... XD XD
Actually Jorge, I put that picture up to trick you. You see, it's really a Rorschach test and I wanted to find out what it would reveal about your subconscious. Frankly, I'm worried. But I'll give you a another chance. Now here's a perfectly innocent picture of some rocks in Boulder Park. Now, please be honest, and tell me what you see, then I'll decide if you're obsessed, ha ha ha
So today we ended up doing El Pardo. It's always a great place to go, even tho it's not in its best moment, I mean it hasn't rained lately so the ground is loose and slippery for this time of year. We could do with some rain, tho it's not that biker friendly. Anyway, have some pics! Don't I just love them? So here's a mellow moment just pedaling along. And here it is rough. Looks even more spectacular thanks to the camera angle.
And my favorite jump. Modesty aside, I thought I was doing pretty well today, you know, getting good height on my jumps, really leaning into the corners and berms. Actually I've been feeling pretty good lately, haven't crashed for a while anyway.
now I do know I'm a dirty minded. Don't worry about that, Jorge, I can see exactly the same as you and Chain can see... He tries to look like a naive married man but we all know that's not true, ha ha! BTW, those are stunning photos, David. Seeing you jumping like this is really tempting. I hope to be riding back in brief, and one of my "must do"s is visiting you.
