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Ah, Sedona (48 posts)
|  Ah, Sedona | GnarlyOne
Nov 27, 2001 9:20 PM | | Ah, yes, Sedona. The land of pretentious snobs, expensive art galleries, numerous vortexes, crystal freaks, and prime mountain biking venues. On Sunday November 18, 2001; 5 of us set out to do the Cathedral Rock/Buddha Beach/SubRock loop. That equates to 25 or so miles of singletrack through the red dirt and slick rock of the high desert. It also equates to 25 miles spent with friends, enjoying the sunny day and the beautiful scenery of Sedona. And so, here's the story of our latest little ride in Sedona.
Our fearless leader was, once again, ScottN. Scott knows every turn along the maze of trails, and kept us on course; even when we all veered onto the (new to us) Llama trail. I don't know how he does it - I'm sure if I were to fend for myself out there, I'd be taking at least one wrong turn!
And then there was Brett, the Crazy Chicken (aka El Pollo Loco). Brett did not earn this nickname for any sort of "Chicken"-like approach to mountain biking. "Crazy" is definitely more like it! On this ride, Brett was feeling a bit under the weather, which was to my advantage, as I could finally keep up with him. I decided to follow his gnarly lines on the downhills - lines I would never had tried on my own. "Crazy" is definitely the word!
And then there was Rich. A new rider with our group. Rich managed to pummel us into the ground, even though he was riding his old fully-rigid Diamondback (aka Dinoback, as in Dinosaur) commuter bike. I wish I had caught his launch off of the 2 foot ledge that scares the @*&% out of me!
And Greg (aka Skogan), who came all the way from Canada to experience some desert sunshine. He had a blast tackling our little slickrock and singletrack haven.
And, so that concludes the story. I hope you enjoyed reading about a great group of friends, pedaling through some amazing scenery, on a nice sunny Sunday in Arizona.
Respectfully submitted by The GnarlyOne, Submarine Rock, Sedona, Arizona, USA.
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| Sedona sucks ... | K'Endo
Nov 27, 2001 9:29 PM | | at a rate of nine point eight meters per second squared. I remember that's precisely the rate I was sucked down to the Sedona dirt on those launchers!
REALLY wish I'd spent more time there.
It's cold here.
Kn. |
| Nice pics! | Pirate Girl
Nov 27, 2001 9:40 PM | | I recognize that area well, especially the island where all the pink jeeps turn around for the 360 degree view. We always got stuck there letting them go by. For some reason the folks in the jeeps were always surprised we were riding bikes out there instead of sitting in the back of a jeep snapping pictures.
Didya do the staircase? My technical abilites haven't seasoned enough yet to allow me to ride down it. That thing freaks me out. I would like to see someone ride down it someday. I still have yet to ride the llama trail. Is it hard to find/follow? Little horse is just so much fun though that I may have to do a second little loop to hit them both.
I gotta go back there in the summer. It's probably gettin' chilly up there about now. It has been hitting freakin' 29 degF in the evenings in Tucson! This desert girl can't take the cold. Bring back the sun!
P-)
Worship the sun, absorb the energy of the sun... |
| Llamas and stairs | ScottN
Nov 28, 2001 6:23 AM | | If you're talking about the huge staircase that the Jeeps drive down, nope, none of us has tried it, up or down. We normally go to Sub Rock and then up the Jeep road or trail to Chicken Point and then off. I'll have to check out the staircase sometime though.
The Llama trail starts about 2/3 of the way down the Little Horse trail, so you don't have to loop back to do it again (really). The cool thing about it is that it lets you avoid all but 1/4 mile of the Bell Rock Path on the way back to Oak Creek Village. There's only one tricky turn that you can miss if you're going too fast, but other than that it's very cool.
Speaking of cool - it's going to be in the 50s F this weekend up there! You're sure you don't want to join us? ;-)
SN |
| Huh? Stairs? Where? | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 9:09 AM | | Where are these stairs? Do they look like fun? |
| Maybe these stairs? | Laker3peat
Nov 28, 2001 9:48 AM | | I was there last weekend also, and I found several stairs. |
| Those stairs are in Pete's sedona video. | JRinCA
Nov 28, 2001 9:55 AM | | Spring Fling (the original!). |
| I only roll them stairs.... | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 10:22 AM | | ...I think Scott's talking about a different set of stairs, since the Jeeps don't go here... |
| THE staircase | Pirate Girl
Nov 28, 2001 10:52 AM | | Yep, a whole staircase of stairs. If you follow the pink jeeps, they go down this, which is why there are tire-size ruts eaten into the rocks. They are nasty. This picture doesn't do it justice (steeper than it looks, etc.)
P-) |
| doesn't look familiar..... | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 12:05 PM | | ....so, nope, I don't think I've ridden it. We must take a route that goes around this, somehow. |
| Ah Yes! The staircase... | El pollo loco
Nov 28, 2001 4:16 PM | | That's the spot Scott and I were talking about when we were there that day Charlie. Where some guy almost flipped his rig over goin' down to fast. I drove the Bronco down it with no problems though. (Go figure)
Thanks for the post G.O. I'm still not feeling well so you riding this weekend? |
| I caught your cold..... | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 4:25 PM | | ...or somebody's cold....
Riding this weekend will depend on whether or not I can get over it....it does seem to be on its way out, though! |
| What the heck ... | Duncan!
Nov 27, 2001 10:12 PM | | is that blue stuff around the top of each picture? I'm pretty nostalgic after seeing pictures of "shadows" too. D. |
| ah, you poor Vancouverite..... | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 9:11 AM | | ...that would be what the sky looks like when there are no clouds hiding it! :-) |
| Clouds? I wish ... | Duncan!
Nov 28, 2001 9:40 AM | | on a GOOD day here you can see clouds through the fog and mist. D. |
| i dont think.... | stokey
Nov 28, 2001 9:20 AM | | skogan ever returned to canada after the last trip :)
looks great!
thanks
g |
| damn i'm jealous, its 4 degrees here right now!!! | sskb
Nov 28, 2001 5:21 AM | | we are already planning a trip to sedona in march.
Thx for the nice pictures to torture me! |
| Beautiful G.O!!! | kristian
Nov 28, 2001 6:04 AM | | That looks like SO much fun! I have got to get down there again sometime! |
| Llama trail..... | Pisgahboy
Nov 28, 2001 6:10 AM | | was a hoot. I rode it last month when I was out that way. Did a loop from Oak Creek Village up the Bell Rock path to Mystic then out Sub Rock to Pequeño Caballo (that's little horse to y'all gringos). Found the Llama route on the way down and took that over to the Bell Rock/Courthouse stuff. Many large grins ensued. Always fine ridin' out there. Kudos to Bike and Bean for the java, good vibes and for turning me on to Nokian tires. 2.3 Gazzaloddi's rule!
Daydreaming about high desert singletrack in west NC. Again. Guess DuPont will have to do this afternoon. ;-)
A. |
| So, uhhhh..... | Joe Steel
Nov 28, 2001 6:31 AM | | There WILL be a Spring Fling III right!!? (please??) I'm counting on it.
I gotta get over there. That stuff looks great. |
| I just can't get used to..... | celly
Nov 28, 2001 6:47 AM | | skogan wearing baggies. It's about time. ;-)
Hey Char, been thinking about you lately. It keeps snowing and snowing up here. Roads are a slippery mess. Gotta love 4X4.
bc |
| baggies? | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 9:08 AM | | Skog didn't wear the baggie shorts until we did National -- he's wearing his traditional spandex in these photos.
BTW: He cleaned the famous Waterfall when we did Nationa -- on his third try. I'll probably post something complaining about how easy he made it seem! |
| Loved National! | skogan
Nov 28, 2001 11:07 AM | | That trail was so much fun! Especially the Waterfall.
Still grinning over that ride back down! |
| Looked like baggies to me...... | celly
Nov 28, 2001 11:45 AM | | Maybe just my monitor. ;-)
I'm not surprised at all he can go the falls. Just wait until he shows you the infamous "microwave drop" up on the Benchlands. It's brutal to walk this section, let alone ride it. Last time I was there skog cleaned it with ease. What a butthead. ;-) |
| Better get some... | skogan
Nov 28, 2001 10:21 AM | | glasses, looks like black spandex to me... I did exchange the lycra jersey for a white T-shirt on that ride though...
Hey, ixnay on the nowsay alright ;o) |
| I was gonna mention.... | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 10:23 AM | | ...that Celly was scaring me with all that snow talk! brrrr..... |
| Winter is a good thing...... | celly
Nov 28, 2001 11:49 AM | | You didn't seem to mind during your visits last year.
Hey skog, when are we skiing? All moved into the new place (albeit surrounded by hundreds of boxes). I could use some free time for a change. Haven't done ANYTHING on a weekend (outside of packing and moving) for over a month now. I'm itching to get out there. Never takes much to get Spike out there either. |
| Working this weekend | skogan
Nov 28, 2001 12:08 PM | | but I will be free the next two. We will definitely have to get out there, maybe next weekend.
So when is the house warming party ;o) |
| We don't have that much snow down...... | celly
Nov 28, 2001 1:11 PM | | but sounds like a lot more than you have. City's pretty white and it's snowing lightly from my vantage point in the office.
Next weekend will work. I think I'll sleep all this weekend. Will be the first weekend in eons I don't have to slave away.
Housewrecking, er warming party, TBA. ;-)
bc |
| Dammit! | jilm
Nov 28, 2001 8:04 AM | | Very nice. Good pics. Wish I was there instead of at ( sigh ) work. |
| I missed Ya | HoJo
Nov 28, 2001 8:46 AM | | We must have just missed seeing you. We have just returned from a week of Sedona Bliss. Great rides every day, perfect weather... WE also did a similar loop on 11/18. That Llama trail and Equestrian by pass are great connection trails to avoid the Bellrock pathway. Will try to post pics in a few days, I have some great ones of my 9 year old on the Sub rock, Chiken Point, Mystic Loop, and good friend John, aka Johnny Bravo, hopping off all the big drops.
I rode a new trail, Huckabe to the top of the Mongolo(sp) RIM, past the Cowpies and Merry-Go-Round rock. Not a great ride by Sedona Standards but a real grinder, 6 miles of climbing and loose rock. The view was spectacular but the loose rock climb started to suck after a 4 miles.(Maybe I suck at long climbs)
Great pics glad you had fun in MTB Mecca.
later
HoJo |
| get that canuck home! | brodiegrrl
Nov 28, 2001 9:07 AM | | he has driveways to plow!
http://www.canmorealberta.com/news/index.html#forecast |
| brrrrr.......that looks COLD! | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 9:14 AM | | And he thinks I should move.....brrrrrrrr....... |
| just don't look at the satellite image... | brodiegrrl
Nov 28, 2001 9:23 AM | | Its ok for you to move so long as you keep a place in Arizona to get away from the winter for awhile...
Don't you like real winters? |
| real winters? | GnarlyOne
Nov 28, 2001 10:39 AM | | I just drive to 'em!
http://www.arizonasnowbowl.com/CONDITIONS.HTM |
| ...need.....more.......desert.....riding...... pictures.. | KriZkit
Nov 28, 2001 9:38 AM | | Thanks G.O. They sustain me through the long dark cold wet winter. I'm looking out on a slush filled parking lot and airport runway. Mostly a monochrome gray landscape. Of course I can't really complain, Alberta would be much more of all those qualities above mentioned. |
| D@mn you Gnarly-1 | JimC
Nov 28, 2001 9:56 AM | | what more can I say. Postpoing SNAG has turd out best, have had a ton of bills and dental work arrive unexpectedly, so a trip woulda kinda been hard to fit in financially.
Thanks for the pix! Jim |
| Uh, Sedona... | skogan
Nov 28, 2001 10:12 AM | | At first I was less than keen to visit Sedona on this trip, after having visted the town last spring and finding it annoyingly pretentious. But I remembered the scenery being amazing and I was looking foward to the chance to ride with Scott and Brett again, after freezing to death on the White Rim with them last spring...
Well, it didn't take long to change my opinion of the place. The riding was incredible and actually getting off of the roadside turnouts and into the backcountry gave me a greater appreciation of the beauty of the area.
Great post on a great trip... |
| TELEEEEE | brodiegrrl
Nov 28, 2001 10:20 AM | | what are you DOING riding in shorts in November! Geesh I'm dissapointed, here I thought you were a die hard Alberta mountain man!
Get back to Canmore, get on that fleece and ski!
You're confusing your body man! |
| I was out... | skogan
Nov 28, 2001 10:29 AM | | three weeks ago before I left for the desert, getting turns on Bow Summit!
Nov 10-11 weekend: Saturday - Tele turns on Bow Summit
Sunday - 2 hours skate skiing, 2 hours mtn biking
Oh, by the way... I was wearing shorts and a short sleeved jersey on that ride in Canmore, gotta love Chinooks!
Pray for snow! |
| "Pray for Snow"? | celly
Nov 28, 2001 11:55 AM | | Are you back? Look outside, man. it hasn't stopped snowing much in town for the past few days. Was a "glorious" day to be moving on Saturday with all the snow. Two-car garage and can't use it with all the boxes inside!
You getting all the white stuff out there?
bc |
| Hardly snowed... | skogan
Nov 28, 2001 12:02 PM | | in Canmore, we missed all that stuff Calgary and everywhere else got.
I had exactly one inch to sweep off of my driveway when I got home yesterday.
Heading up Spray this afternoon and then to Lake Louise tomorrow for some skiing though, looking foward to it!
Weather man is calling for a storm to roll in from the west tonight, hope he is right! |
| that's OUR snow! | brodiegrrl
Nov 28, 2001 4:02 PM | | hopefully...
snowfall warnings all day today and for the next few days. I'm trying to find someone to go skiing with on Friday!
MEC won't have T2's in until mid Dec!!!! the F4#$#ers! |
| By the time... | skogan
Nov 28, 2001 6:41 PM | | your snow makes over the Coast, Selkirk and Purcell ranges their usually isn't too much left for us folks on the other side of the divide. Still, the weather man is calling for snow right through sunday :o)
Those new T-2's look sweet with that third buckle and all. I ended up getting rid of my old T-1's and picked up a pair of last years T-2's on sale. Definitely love them for climbing, still not sure about descending yet. I'll give them a workout at Louise tomorrow.
Have fun friday! |
| Dec. 26th/27th/28th | brodiegrrl
Nov 28, 2001 7:06 PM | | we'll be at kicking horse resort!
We plan to ski the 27th and 28th. I'll probably bring both sets of skiis.
What are you up to?
email me. |
| Eh girl...!! | TinyTank
Nov 28, 2001 10:38 AM | | Thanks for the pictures. It's always nice to see pic of familliar faces having fun and how can I know enjoy seeing Sedona again.
Hope to get to visit you soon.
Annie
tt\ |
| Fantastic post, gnarly! | mugg
Nov 28, 2001 11:46 AM | | I always look forward to your excellent post. Really beautiful out there in sunny AZ. Thanks! |
| Hey GO, thanks for the good memories! NM | CraigH
Nov 28, 2001 12:11 PM | | nm |
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