Saturday Ride

Skateboarders careened down the road, the first time (I saw them) since the road opened October 1st. They have a unique stopping style that surprised me as they crossed into my lane.

Rick from Pasadena caught me in the midst of my time trial. It was good to have him pace me to the second saddle. We slowed and dodged around the maintenance vehicles as Public Works crews carved out various portion of the mountain. A rare site for a Saturday. Large trucks, scoops and water tankers slowed traffic. Preparation for the next rain continued along burned and non-burned hillside.

Met Oscar another first since early August, Juan and Willie. Talk included bear and coyote encounters, along with the upcoming Tour de Foothills on November 14th.



Another great day of weather the sun was warm and pleasant after a chilly beginning. I rode to fork plus 4.5 getting that extra uphill climb. Spotted Mount Wilson and could make out Station Fire damage some twenty miles away. All in all, a good ride with good friends always a nice Halloween treat.

Monday night ride. This was the last Monday before the time change.

Met Zack! Nice guy.



Good time tonight. 30:00

Late update: In a large dirt turnout about mile maker 10.2, two vehicles and a sheriffs van were stopped. The jeep's front wheels straddled the berm, but not endanger of rolling over the side. The other auto centered in the middle of the turnout. The sheriff sat busily writing notes or tickets in his van. Two blond teenaged females looked very distressed were talking on their cell phones. I hurried past. On my way down, another van driven by a pissed off mom, had joined this morality play. Unfortunately I got ahead of "POM". She had never driven the mountain and didn't realize when she should move around me. With the light waning, I realized I should have stopped and made her pass me. It was a rare event to ride down with an auto on my tail with three distressed people.

It was a perfect day for a ride. Warming from 54F to 91F. Clear skies. Light breeze.



Rick from Pasadena paced me to the first saddle. Traffic was light. lighter than Monday night! Rick a triathlete had tales to tell of ocean swims, running and cycling. Pools have painted black lines to keep you in your lane, in the ocean that black line was wiggling and hungry! From the first saddle I road back to check on Bill.



Beyond the first saddle, mechanical gouges clawed the cliff, leaving the road heaped with scrapped hillside in the turnouts. Preparation for the eventual rains. The pavement relatively free of dirt and rocks still had sandy patches.



Velo Viet Cycling Association commanded presence on the road. Adobe Velo was out in full force. As well as a group of Redlands riders, with their Breathless Agony kits. Remax and my favorite a Caltech jersey. Riders spurred on by my camera sprinted for the photo finish!



The gentle weather egged me on, luring me to ride farther for scenery I haven't enjoyed in months. I rode to the "Point of No Return" or Fork plus four miles. Enjoying the lack of time, speed or distance constraints, I stopped frequently for pictures.



A good day for a ride indeed.

National Park Service Study

The San Gabriel Watershed and Mountains Special Resource Study conducted by the National Park Service has an additional public meeting on Wednesday October 28, 7-9 pm at the Northeast Valley City Hall Auditorium 7747 Foothill Blvd, Tujunga, CA 91042.

This study proposes several different strategies about resource protection, public use and enjoyment of the Angeles National Forest. Start here at the National Parks Site. Be sure to read the alternative concepts document. Then put your two cents in by sending them a comment. The comment period has been extended to Monday November 16, 2009. Or send an email to pwr_sangabriel@nps.gov.

Catching up with Ron

I have been corrected. Fortunately this is not Ron's bike, however the rider of this bike had a collision with an automobile.



Not happy times.



An investigation was pending.

Fluctuations of weather this week from a bone chilling cloud covered ride on Monday evening, to the drizzling dampness of "no ride" Wednesday to the oven temperatures of the Saturday ride challenged the body to keep up. I survived. Barely.

Looking across to highway 39, the stark contrast between the browned burned area and the green area of the forest was delineated by the fire break along the edge. The island of the San Gabriel Reservoir low with water stood out amongst the brackish green water. The right foreground hillside also burnt.




Jason brought a fresh perspective to the ride, his first up GMR since the fire. Bill and Matt filled out the contingency. The heat hit everyone hard and the water bottles were quickly emptied. On the way back from Fork Plus 2, we met Edith, Martin, Alan and Jim from Riverside Bicycle Club. Chris, Alex and Mike also stopped in the shade.

Catching up with Bill

Wednesday's weather, wet and drizzly all day delayed Bill's morning ride around Bonelli until today. His picture of the morning captures a poetic moment.



Fly free to new adventures!

Catching up with Ben

Ben rode in Levi Leiphiemer's King Ridge GranFondo on October 3rd. The event included 103 miles of riding with 6,500′ of climbing starting in Santa Rosa, California.



Ben and Kelly's pictures of the scenery were testimony to the grandeur of our state. Awesome riding Ben!

Rain!

The rain dance worked! Over the past 30 hours, this Glendora gauge collected 1.6 inches of gentle rain. At 7:20 am this morning 1.4 inches of rain fell within the past 24 hours. Another .2 inches drizzled down during the day.



Expected weekend weather is predicted to be sunny and warm.

Saturday Ride

The breath taking beauty of Mt. Baldy stood clear against a clear warm October sky. Two long months have passed since I have last traversed along Glendora Ridge Road. I can't believe that August the 8th was the last time I was here. But I get ahead of myself.



Bill and I headed out around 8 am in the midst of a cool, cloudy marine layer. I brought leg warms, arm warmers, head band, base layer, and windbreaker in case the clouds were thick and the weather didn't improve. The first few miles of climbing were chilly, however blue breaks peaked out between white wisps of sky canopy.

The warm October sun melted the clouds, and poured into my heart and soul. No more work worries here on the road. Plenty of immediate challenges to keep the body and brain occupied. Bill's photo of the valley from the first saddle (mile marker 9.45).



It is soooooo very good to get above it all.

Matt caught up with us before the first saddle. Bill and Matt discussed bikes, weather and life.



Bill made it to Newman's this week before heading back. At the maintenance shed we could see a buck running along the ridge. It was a large animal and it was dodging some thirty or more hunters who were out in force today. Amazing that wildlife escaped the Morris and the Station fires. It is a bit disconcerting when there are so many folks out walking around with rifles.

Met up with Mike and Chris on the way back from the San Dimas Experimental Forest (Fork plus 2.5). They were on their way to Baldy Village. Lots of stories swapped of collisions, San Diego County roads, friends, goals and shared experiences.




Chris reported that his son Alex had ridden to the shed and headed back home to run errands in preparation for homecoming this evening.



It was a great day for a ride. My time trial time was 30:10 an average of 7.6 mph. The cleats were working well and I could get a bit more power out of my legs on certain hills.

Life is good. The road is good. I hope a deer is sleeping well tonight.

Perfect Day for a Ride

The temperature started at a cool 53F, quickly warming with the rising October sun. The air was crisp and clean after weeks of ash and smoke.

The road re-opened after 37 days of closure. Perfect day for riding. The pavement was clear of the sandy silt, however, new swatches of rocks, stones and dirt near turn-outs strewn from vehicles circling in doughnuts were new obstacles to navigate.

Bill started the ride with me and set his own pace. Matt met up with Bill at the S-bends and rode with him to Coyote Corner. We reconvened at the first saddle with new folks: Ruben, Mark and friend. They had a great sense of humor and I really liked Ruben's green dragon squeaky "bell".

Damage from the Morris Fire Burn viewed from Glendora Mountain Road between mile marker 8 and 9. Along the south side the land was barren. On the north side the white or grey colored area burned contained between bulldozer breaks. Bills' panorama captured the lunar brown, black and grey landscape where shrubs and trees once lived stood in stark contrast with the next ridge of dotted greenery.



It was a day of seeing old friends and meeting new ones. Ruben and Mark with mountain bikes, Chris S and his son Alex. Greg from Pasadena, Ray of Baldy Village and Frank of Whittier. Ray outlined his route to Huntington Beach and back with Matt. A mere 112 mile ride.




Chris was impressed with my first mountain foray on Keo Look Classic cleats. I noted the improvement of time with the foot gear. It felt really goooooood to ride the road and see Mount Baldy from the top of Monroe.

Road Status Friday 10/2/2009

OPEN!


US Forest Service confirms the road is open. The gate is open and is no longer blocking access. The Forest Closure sign has been removed. No guards are posted. The Department of Public Works Road closure website still has it listed as closed as well as the permanent electronic sign flashing its message. Glendora Ridge Road is also open.

The road from mile marker 14.00 to 9.45 has some large patches of dust like sand. As vehicles travel through the silt, dust clouds shroud the visibility. Beyond mile marker 9.06 in the dead zone, rocks are free to fall from the hillside since the vegetation no longer keeps them bound.

Please be considerate of others on the road. Particularly the one wearing the red bandana.