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You may have read Joe’s post about El Moro and how there were trails named by the characteristics of what it could offer. So when Joe and Dan mentioned “I think I can” I had immediately pictured this cartoon.

Well if you know me, I HATE climbing…hate it with a passion. I can’t stand the long boring ascent that seems like it never wants to end. I also can’t stand how my nuts get numb and how my knees start to ache.

Well, something weird happened to me this weekend. As we started our climb to I think I can, my mind went through all sorts of direction. First I was irritated with the climb, then I started thinking about how well I was doing. Then I saw how far, Dan, Priscilla and Joe were, then I started hating it again. Ok so the weird part…I started to like the climb. Sure my lungs were burning, my legs were gone and my nuts felt numb, but I liked what I was doing.

There was something about climbing this mountain that made me appreciate what I could do and what it offered. I’m in no cardio shape like the rest of the group, but I was pretty proud that I only had to stop once, and that was because my knee/calve was starting to ache. But as soon as I got back on, I was happy. I don’t know if this was the same high that runners get, but I was in bliss. It just felt good.

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This weekend MtnBikeRiders.com headed out to El Moro (aka Crystal Cove State Park).  Priscilla, RL and I were joined by our friends Dan and Gabe.

We started at the Ridge Park entrance and headed down Redtail Ridge to Rattlesnake.  The first part of our ride were primarily descents.  There were different levels of downhill through fast fire-roads, singetracks and technical sections.

Reaching the bottom of the canyon we climbed out to the middle section of Mach One. From here is another fast descent on a fire-road, hence the name Mach One. Reaching the speeds into the 40mphs was not a problem.

We started our real climb up “I Think I Can”.  This was a long grind up… It’s interesting how some of El Moro’s trail names live up to their name.  At some point the climb got the best of Gabe.  No shame in that as from my understanding this was his first “real” mountain bike ride.  Reaching the top of this trail, we rested for a bit before another climb up Moro Ridge.  This was a gradual climb towards to top but not as steep as I Think I Can. 

We were almost there…  Reaching Missing Link we headed westbound on another singletrack where it eventually it took us to our starting point, then back to our cars.  This was a good ride.  We had our fair share of climbing and descents.  Below is a video of our descents through several segments of El Moro.

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This was a fun filled weekend of riding.  I rode both days making trips to a popular Orange County trail – El Moro and my local trail – Coal Canyon.

Saturday: I headed out to El Moro bright and early for a solo ride.  It’s been awhile since I’ve been here.  Last time out w/the MtnBikeRiders’ crew, El Moro was closed due to rain.  Arriving at the Ridge Park, I noticed that the parking lot was full.   There will be a lot of hikers, joggers and mountain bikers on the trail…  I entered the park through the northwest corner which starts on a fast fireroad that descends towards a technical singletrack called Rattlesnake. 

                           On the way to Rattlesnake.

The trail was in excellent shape…   making my way out of Rattlesnake, the trail transitions into a graded-like  singletrack covered with tall plantation.  From here the fun continues as it switches from singletrack to a fast fireroad which eventually leads into Mach One – another fast descent, hence the name. 

                              Looking up from the bottom of Mach One.

I climbed up a steep fireroad called – I Think I Can.  As I reached the top there were many riders gathered at this junction.  Apparently there was the S.H.A.R.E. Poker ride which I had totally forgotten about. 

        S.H.A.R.E. Poker ride checkpoint.

       Checkpoint at the top of I Think I can; rider picking his card.

There were many faces present that I have ridden with in the past.  From here on until I exited the park, the trails were busy with participants from the Poker ride.  Overall the trail was in great shape.  There were a few sandy spots, but that’s expected.  Fun ride!  

Sunday:  I rode Coal Canyon with my co-worker/friend Val.  He lives close to me, however much closer to the trail.  I rode approximately a mile and half from my house to meet Val; from our meeting point we rode another mile and half to the trailhead.  We started at 6am to beat the heat.  Val is new to mountain biking so he wanted a crash course with what our local trails had to offer.  This would be his first ride on anything that has a consistent climbs.   

              On the way to the trailhead; paralleling the 91 fwy.

The ride was uneventful being that it’s nothing but climbs.  However, the trail did take an early toll on Val.  Within the first mile he ended up walking his bike.  This is nothing to be ashamed of as we’ve all done it and it’s a part of riding.  After a few breathers, he was able to regroup and continue to ride.  We rode up to the two mile marker and headed back down.  I was able to capture our descent through my helmet cam, however it’ll take me longer to put together a video.  

               View of Chino Hills and the San Gabriel Mtns.

Overall the weekend was great for riding.  We are heading into our summer heat so plan your rides accordingly. 

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Taking a quick break to scope out the smooth rock descent

Khoa, Steve, Tim & I got out to El Moro near Newport Coast for a loop. The beauty of El Moro is that it is right next to the beach which makes El Moro a great place to ride when it is hot out. Although there is not much tree coverage, being closer to the ocean reduces the temperature and boy was it hot in Southern California with temperatures reaching triple digits farther inland where I live.

Tim taking it with ease

El Moro started with some fun singletrack which led to a short fireroad descent that led to the most overgrown singletrack I’ve ridden through to date. The weeds were taller than me and the other plants we rode through left scratches on my arm including one that was deep enough to bleed. One section required a continual “ducking�? while pedaling manuever to avoid getting my faced whipped by the weeds. Khoa made the comment that sometimes being short has its advantages. At that moment, I couldn’t agree more. By the way I performed a quick tick check afterwards. Highly recommended when riding through areas with bushes and other vegetation inundating the trail.

Some of the best parts of this ride didn’t even involve riding. It involved being at the top of a climb and looking back on the beautiful Pacific Ocean. Khoa’s camera phone pictures, thanks Khoa, do not do justice to the magnificent ocean. Yes, that’s the Pacific behind us and no, it did not just turn turquoise. haha. We took a detour just to get a better look at it (well worth the detour, I might add).

Turquoise Pacific Ocean

The ride ended on a slightly sour note as I grazed a cactus leaf on the way back to the car. It left a few thorns in my shin and flatted my rear tire out about 200 yards from the car. I was too lazy to change it so I just hoofed it out. No worries though the bike is ok.

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