May 2008 Ride Log
Spring is in the air...
Tuesday May 27
Railroad Path / Pequonnock River Valley - Trumbull, Connecticut
It had rained in the morning but by the noon, it was very nice out. By late afternoon I had heard that it was about to rain so I ran out to my car since the windows were open. It just started to rain as I got to the car and I went home. After dinner, it was sunny again so I figured I'd get a ride in. Just as I get to the Tait Road parking area at 6:15 PM, it started to sprinkle and the weather forecast on the radio called for thunderstorms. It was cloudy but looked like it was going to pass. As I headed down the railroad bed, it started to rain a little and I forged on. After I cross over the Coyote Crossing, I hear the sound of thunder and begin to think maybe this wasn't a good idea.
After about a half a mile I saw some blue sky and the rain went away. The trails were quite tricky as all the rocks and roots were wet and slippery. I rode on to the old dam and stopped on the other side. That was as far as I wanted to go so I started to ride back. I rode over the rock jump that I had crashed on back in October. First time over the rock since the crash but didn't try to get any air.
Did the loop at the top of the trail by Indian Ledge Park and rode the riverside trail over the new armoring. Back over the Coyote Crossing and back down the railroad bed. The ride total was about an hour and a half.
Monday May 26
Railroad Path / Pequonnock River Valley - Trumbull, Connecticut
The perfect weather weekend continued into Memorial Day. I parked at the Tait's Road lot and rode in. Nice way to warm up although there were a lot of people and dogs out walking. I crossed over the Coyote Crossing and instead of my usual right down the white trail, took a left toward Indian Ledge. Looped around to the stream to cross over my new armoring work. It is so much better. Back up to the white trail and on to the lake bed. Rode over to the yellow trail and met up with John who was out hiking with a friend. After chatting, I headed over to the old dam, rode over the wavy rock and on to the top of the hill south of the dam. All without stopping.
Over to the red trail and back down to the yellow trail, up the fire road and over to the "picnic tables". From there I headed to my favorite ladder roller. This is where it gets interesting. Each time I approach the drop, I think to look for the ladder. For the past 10 months it has been there. Except for this time. Fortunately I was going slow enough to look over and was able to stop at the edge. It would have been a hard drop if I hadn't.
Hooked up with the white trail and headed back toward Indian Ledge Park where I did the river trail again and over my new armoring job. Over the Coyote Crossing and up to the railroad bed. I got back to the car after one and half hours of riding.
Sunday May 25
Indian Ledge Park / Pequonnock River Valley - Trumbull, Connecticut
After some careful planning and the purchase of a nice 1200 pound capacity cart from Tractor Supply in New Milford, I was ready to tackle the move of a large rock. There is a small stream crossing just north of the Coyote Cross that has been corduroy' ed with logs but unfortunately the logs are rotting and sinking into the mud.
Tom from work agreed to help out. My son Jimmy and I met him and his children at the Indian Ledge parking lot in the morning. We hiked about a half a mile in to where the large flat rock was. I'm not sure what I was thinking but it didn't take long for me to realize it was too heavy for the two of us. For some reason I though two people could pick it up but it was difficult for the two of us just to pick up one side. Even if we could have got it on the cart, it would have crushed it at the first bump. Never mind having to pull the cart over rocks, roots, and everything in between. In fact, a backhoe is the best tool to move this thing. So we left it.
On the way back, I found some manageable rocks that were flat. We soon got them to the stream crossing. I pulled out most of the logs from the stream bottom and we got the biggest of the rocks in place. Added a few more to start the first phase of armoring the crossing.
Monday May 19
Pequonnock River Valley / Indian Ledge Park - Trumbull, Connecticut
Met up with John again at the commuter lot and rode up to Indian Ledge Park. On the way back, we stopped by the old dam and discussed ways of improving the trail. There is some mud that could be eliminated if there was better drainage. Did about two hours of riding.
Sunday May 18
Pequonnock River Valley / Indian Ledge Park - Trumbull, Connecticut
Parked at the commuter lot and rode in early on Sunday. Did the usual ride up to Indian Ledge Park and back down by the river. Switched to the white trail and rode back taking various trails to mix things up.
Stopped at the river where the old dam would have been and took pictures of some concrete structures that may have been part of the original dam. Picked up some trash along the way. Did about 2.5 hours of riding
Saturday May 17
Indian Ledge Park / Pequonnock River Valley - Trumbull, Connecticut
Hiked into the trail with my son Jimmy after parking at the lower Indian Ledge Park. We had a hand saw with us to cut up a blow down. This tree is located on the blue trail which is supposed to be used by hikers only. I rarely take the blue trails any more but did take it for the first time in many months. Glad I did since a blow down that I was able to ride under had sunk to where it was difficult to get under. My intent was to cut up the tree but it was too big. We made it a roll over instead after cutting the branches off.
Wednesday May 14
Pequonnock River Valley / Indian Ledge Park / Old Mine Park - Trumbull, Connecticut
Met up with John after work at the commuter lot off Daniel's Farm Road in Trumbull. We rode up the white trail, then over to the yellow to go up the trail west of the fire road to the "picnic tables". Hooked up with the white trail again to Indian Ledge Park. The yellow trail goes along the river to Coyote Crossing where we went up to the railroad bed. Since we were there and I was curious about the new boardwalk in the Parlor Rock area, we then went on to check all that out. One thing lead to another so off we went to Old Mine Park where we climbed the main trail up to the a point where I spotted a steep trail to the left. We hike-a-biked that up to find that it lead down the other side. After getting to bottom, we went on to the railroad bed, down to the crossing again and over to the blue trail. Took most of the blue trail to the lake bed, where we got over to the white trail and over to the old dam. Once past that we took the blue trail again to the end. The entire ride was 2 1/2 hours with the sun coming down as we got to the lot.
Monday May 12
Pequonnock River Valley - Trumbull, Connecticut
I got called for jury duty this morning. Luckily I was able to be let off around noon. The day wasn't too good for riding so I figured I'd set off for the bridge at Coyote Crossing, near Indian Ledge Park. I had pre-cut a piece of 2x6 to 4 feet and packed it in the car. Hiked my way into the park and got over to the bridge where I conducted repairs. On the way back I moved a lot of branches onto a trail braid.
Saturday May 10
Case Mountain - Manchester, Connecticut
Unfortunately I got called into work early and was late for my class at the MCC in Manchester. Arrived at 10 AM but was unable to find where the rest of the class was on campus. Frequent attempts to locate the others by riding into the area woods and bike pathways would be futile. I was beginning to think that perhaps the class was canceled and I didn't know it. One of the students husband had posted on MTBR a ride at Case Mountain that afternoon. After contacting John for the ride, I was able to determine that the class was indeed taking place. Very frustrating since I knew they had to be close by. I hung out until 12:30 until John's wife Dawn returned from class. I followed Dave and Dawn over to Case Mountain.
We parked at the Case Pond Lot at 75 Birch Mountain Road in Manchester. It was not too far off exit 4 on I-384. I've found on the internet that trail maps may be available at Line Street. The best map of Manchester trails including Case is here.
Being this was my first ride at Case, I can't say for sure what specific trails that we had taken. We took a climb up to the summit for a spectacular view of the Connecticut River valley with Hartford rising up in the middle. The climbs were many but I felt were not too bad with my constant riding during the winter and the nature of the low grades. I'm sure there are places that are hike-a-bike but we didn't see too many.
With climbs come downhill's and we did many of those as well. John and Miles were usually out front and I followed their lines over drops and blazing fast sections. The bike held up great and handled fine over some very rocky and fast single track. The chain did come off a few times but I've since adjusted the RD to reduce it (hopefully). I really want to get rid of the big ring, replace the RD with a short cage, and reduce the chain length.
Many features familiar to those who ride there were passed including the stream at the iron bridge, the small foundation, and the "L" shaped wall. Toward the end of the ride we were getting quite tired but having a lot of fun. A decision had to be made to take the blue trail back or the "carriage" road. It was suggested the blue trail would be more fun, but the carriage road faster. We took the carriage road down. It was fast, so fast that I felt I was surfing on gravel but never felt a loss of control. Whenever I came upon a small rut across the gravel road, I preloaded the suspension and jumped over.
At one point about half way down, there was a rut with golf ball sized gravel. I wasn't prepared to jump it but quickly lifted the front wheel at speed and both wheels kit the other side. The bike was completely in control and handled it great. The carriage road was a blast with a very long smooth down hill with lots of suspension induced air. At the bottom I was smiling from ear to ear. We rode for at least three hours but I didn't feel too tired and wanted to do more.
Wednesday May 7
Railroad bed / Pequonnock River Valley - Trumbull, Connecticut
Tom and I left work and met at the Tait's Road entrance at 4:30. The nice temperatures continued from yesterday although rain is forecast for the next two days. Rode the smooth hard pack on the railroad bed and dropped into the valley at the Coyote Crossing. Took the white trail into the old lake bed, circled around into the yellow trail.
While I was sitting on my bike resting, I felt something wrong with my rear rotor. All six bolts were loose! As I was tightening the bolts down, I saw a small crack across one of the "fingers". It wasn't a big deal for the ride home, but I'd have use the front brake more than the rear. I'll have to install my spare that was originally on the front wheel. A little thread lock wouldn't hurt either. We got back to the Crossing at 6:30 and made ride along the railroad bed in 20 minutes.
Tuesday May 6
Pequonnock River Valley - Trumbull, Connecticut
Really nice day with temperatures in the 70's. Parked at the commuter lot off Daniel Farms Road and rode in at 6:00pm. The right wrist is still a little sore from last weeks fall. Rode the red trail for a while and stayed to the right near Rt25. I was able to make the upper stream crossing that I had crashed on last week. I had enough of the upper trail and dropped down to the fire road. I was surprised to see a Ford SUV driving up the fire road toward Rt25. Couldn't really see who was driving and there were no state markings on it. They were driving at a slow rate so I didn't feel like they were a problem. I followed the truck for a short time and turned left toward the north end of the old lake bed.
Met up with John who's last day at work was yesterday. We chatted to a short time at the root trail leading from the lake. We soon parted ways since he was returning south to his car and I was headed north. I rode on to Indian Ledge Park, turned and rode along the river. Checked out the boardwalk near Coyote Crossing for missing planks (all ok) and headed south along the white trail.
I took a left off the trail and rode up toward the picnic tables. I must have missed a turn because I found myself riding around the top of the mountain near the town compost area. It was a nice ride up there with all the twists and turns. Many of the trails I was familiar with but some I wasn't so sure. It was easy to find my way since all I had to do was listen for traffic on Rt25 and go in that direction. Eventually I rode downhill along side the fire road and instead of crossing, turned toward the north end of the lake bed. Once there, I headed south toward the old dam.
One of the things I like to do is to ride around the dam, over the spillway edge, and then ride the wavy rock that was once the spillway, all without stopping. I have done it once before and this was to be the second time. Come to think of it, I didn't stop until I got to the stream crossing near the entrance. Nice 1 1/2 hour ride covering a lot of ground.
Sunday May 3
Manchester Community College - Manchester, Connecticut
Skills Class Part 1 of 2 - Not so much a ride but a chance to learn (and unlearn) skills. When I first heard of the two day class a couple of months ago and found out it was only $40, I had to sign up. Now that I have upgraded most of the parts on my bike, the only thing left is me. And that's a tough upgrade.
I arrived at 9 am and found that everyone brought their bikes into the classroom. Mine was still out in the car but it wasn't a big deal since I quickly retrieved it during break. We introduced ourselves, including our class expectations and discussed the basics of bike components. The skills part began out in the field where our instructor, Salem, showed us the importance of moving within the "cockpit" of the bike. With little effort, the bike will naturally go over obstacles only when we move backward and forward. By quickly moving the hips back, the front wheel becomes lighter and will roll over logs. We practiced this technique a few times in the grass while he watched and provided feedback.
Once that was done, we rode into the woods where Salem moved a small log across the trail. Just to prove that what we were about to do would work for more advanced obstacles, he rolled over a log that was between two and three feet above the ground. Very impressive as I would have walked over it.
We all moved over to the smaller log and practiced shifting our weight back when approaching the log. When doing this technique, timing is everything of course and few students didn't lift in time and went over the handle bars.
Approaching the log slowly, I shifted suddenly back and caused the front wheel to lift and touch the rising side of the log. Once the front wheel had cleared, I then shifted my weight forward and that permitted the back wheel to roll over the log. It felt strange to shift my weight forward when the back wheel was rising, but it all worked out fine. That will take some practice.
Noon came quickly and we had to depart. Hopefully I can get some practice in before the next class.
Thursday May 1
Railroad Bed / Pequonnock River Valley - Trumbull, Connecticut
Endo! - Rain is forecast on and off for the next few days and with a bright sun over the valley, I left work early and headed to Tait's Road. The Town of Trumbull has done a nice job of putting down a hard pack surface on the old railroad bed without using asphalt. The entire two miles of railroad bed is smooth for walkers, strollers, and bikers.
I rode almost to the end and crossed over the river at the Coyote Crossing. The boardwalk needed repairing again so I stopped with a precut piece of wood and replaced the broken slat. Continued on to the white trail and headed south toward the old dam.
Climbed up to the top of the dam and stopped to take some pictures, two are shown below. Took the short roller to the spillway and almost went over the bars on the wavy rock south of the dam.
Up the large hill and turned left onto the red trail. Took that through it's technical sections and headed down the hill to the upper stream crossing. As I approached, I thought that I may be too far to the right. No worries, I have a Cannondale Uber! The front wheel stopped at a large root just shy of the crossing and stopped. Before I knew what happened, I was headed over the bars.
The crossing is a smooth rock ledge with a little water running over it. At the last second, as the bike and I were rotating over the front axle, I put my hands out as if to do push-ups but did not have my arms locked. As I hit, I tried to let my arms absorb the hit but allowing my arms to fold up. My chest and helmet hit the rock surface to end the fall.
The wind got knocked out of me but didn't take long to clear up. My right wrist hurt more than anything and at first I wasn't sure if it was broken. I was able to move my wrist so I felt it was ok. My shoulders felt fine which was a big relief since this was the first big hit my body has felt since the big crash back in October last year. I crashed at the same crossing last summer about thirty feet down stream from this attempt. My Canon D30 camera was in the padded backpack and suffered no damage as my body took the hit. With my pride damaged, I ended up riding (and walking) back using mostly my left arm.
After making it to the Coyote Crossing, I grinded up the hill to the railroad bed. Just as I got to the top, my right lower leg cramped up. Hurt like no tomorrow. I coasted for a while until I could pedal. Fortunately the railroad bed grade is downhill so not too much pedaling effort was needed. Sure hope I'm not getting too old for this. Never!