Despedida Dirt

Well Gary's heading back to Idaho (who da ho?) on Wednesday, so yesterday was his last chance to get a dirt ride in. So it's off to La Mesa with King and the gang. We rode in a big group with a bunch of first-timers but it was a real fun ride. Our ranger/trail guide clued us in to this new route they were buiding that effectively creates a loop to Tower 1. It used to be an in-and-out ride, so we were all giddy with anticipation. This new trail skirts the perimeter of the park, and it consists of nice singletrack and forest trails. Plus a smattering of rocks and a short but vicious climb that I stalled on. Gary made it up with no problem (as did the other geared riders)...but that was my only dab of the day. All in all a nice ride and a perfect sending off for Gary!


singletrack soundtrack:
Sleeping In - The Radio Dept.

We also had a camera crew from GamePlan covering the ride. Looks like I'll get my 5 minutes of fame, unless they edit me out hehe

Unfortunately, they were also on hand to document Jovan's flat tire fix, as seen below.

Afternoon riding

the ride's singletrack soundtrack was:

Tell - The Radio Dept.

King, Vic and I met up for a mid-afternoon ride in Maarat yesterday. Weather was perfect, with some a bit of sun shining down on us and a cool breeze blowing.

We decided to do some "exploring" (a creative way of saying we got a bit lost), and ended up backtracking at some points. The whole ride was well worth it though, as the photos attest:


View of the city from one of the higher points of the ride. To the left is Laguna de Bay, straight ahead is Makati and Manila Bay, and to the extreme right would be La Mesa. Wish I had a more capable camera!


"My GPS says...", that's Vic


Ridin' and smilin'! Looks like King's fully recovered from last June's mishap


Me taking a breather



Ride down or walk it? We walked it. Too steep and too rutted for our tastes.

Going up...

the ride's singletrack soundtrack:

All Mixed Up - The Red House Painters



So this is how I look when my heartrate is on the redline, going up a hill. This shot (taken by Jed Santos) was taken during last weekend's ride at La Mesa - and I was part of a 10-rider gaggle led by King. There were several other groups of riders too, and it was a great day to ride and enjoy the lush scenery - as well as contribute to the preservation of the area by paying the entrance fee.

This was the last big hill before heading back to the parking lot. Vic and I broke off from the group and did some exploring :)

Did feel the effects of my efforts later in the day, though. But it was well worth it. Cleaned all the climbs, and Spanky with the Maxxis Ignitors worked like a charm - well, mostly. Back at the parking lot I decided to check all the bolts on the bike (lesson learned!) and as I torqued down on my crankbolts, one of them snapped. It was a Salsa one to boot. Should've known better. Never run alloy chainring bolts on a singlespeed. Luckily All Terra had some stainless steel bolts and spacers for sale. I duly grabbed a set of 10, and replaced all 4 alloy bolts on my crank. Problem solved, with spares to boot.

ChriSStmaSS riding!

So today King, JM and myself decided to squeeze in a quick ride in Maarat. Route was Ka Tobias - Yes/No - Ka Vergel and back to Ka Tobias, and we took off at 7:45am with perfect December weather - a cool breeze blowing in despite the morning sun.

It was the first real trail ride for JM's Seven Sola, and what better venue than the varied terrain that Maarat offers. We turned into Yes/No after the initial climb and the rolling terrain was a blast to ride. We rested a bit to take some photos, before continuing the descent and the subsequent hike-a-bike down, and up, some really rutted trails (thanks to the rains and the frequent use of the area by dirt-bikers). Altogether a good ride with around 20+km of mileage.

Funny that this ride had it's share of close and not-so-close calls: JM took a spill when his front wheel slid out from under him when going downhill. He landed on a thicket, but was otherwise unscathed. King on the other hand, lost his tire patch kit and spare chain links when they fell out of his jersey's rear pocket, and landed in the fishpond at Ka Tobias - we were chilling out in one of the "floating" huts on top of the fish pond. As for me, well, a scary moment during the final downhill when after a slight jump my Mary bars rotated downwards. Luckily this happened during a straight and I was able to get them back to their original position by yanking them up and doing a wheelie. Could've ben much, much worse, and much, much messier!

Note to self: when ANYTHING on your bike starts to creak or make funny sounds, DO NOT take it for granted. Investigate immediately and check bolts often for correct tightness!

Another thing I've been noticing recently is that whenever I ride, songs start playing in my head! recent rides include the following tracks:

It's Different For Girls (Joe Jackson remake) - Boy Kill Boy
Cars and Girls - Prefab Sprout
Long Time Coming - The Delays

and today's soundtrack?

Chains - The Wolfgang Press

Enough chatter! Here are some photies:


"The King is number 1!" says JM


Spanky the Monkey, King's GF and JM's ESSther taking 5


Another (artsy) angle


Ruts galore



JM's Seven Sola


King's GF


Sorry, no photos of Spanky - you guys must be sick of seeing MY bike by now!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Trails to you!