More Paradise Royale

It seems as though I can't stay away from this trail, or at least try and get down there whenever I possibly can. My buddy Matt came down from Portland, after family activities in Eugene, to come hang out for a few days and get on some dirt after a long hiatus. We first had some wrenchin' to do on his steed before making tracks, and all but the wavy rotor we got it rolling. The community forest chanted only a few blocks away where we got a training ride in, but the real mission was to head south to the King Range.

This was the first time actually staying down at the Tolkan Campground, which is literally a spit's distance from the trail. We left camp setup for our return, ate a bagel sandwhich, a apple cinnamon hammer gel and hit the trail.

This was Matt's first time on Paradise Royale. The ascent can always be a bit frustrating but Matt kept a positive attitude. The weather was perfect which made the riding that much more enjoyable.
The crazy Tanoak grove heading back up to the trail head is always a delight. My buddy Scott calls it the octopus forest for good reason. The second day of riding was quite brutal. The moment we departed the trail head it started raining hard and didn't let up the whole ride. The ridge up top was fiercely cold and windy. I lost feeling in my hands and feet for most of the ride and could barely enjoy the downhill section. I realized then how as minimalist as v-brakes may be, only having about 5% stopping power that day was a little scary. My hands and wrists were sore from squeezing what little friction I could create. Once I figure out how I'm going to pay for school this semester it looks like some disc brake research is bumped up on the priority list.

The fungus photo is the only shot I took on day two. With the rain coming down I kept the camera holstered safely in the Camel Bak, putting most of my energy toward getting out of the woods alive.

Paradise Royale Video

Section from Paradise Royale trail.

T-day Break Riding

Although the weather wasn't ideal for riding during break, we did get some nice pedaling in. On friday we went down to Redwood State Park with the intention of riding for the day and heading south from there to sleep in tents and hit some more single track the next day. Unfortunately (or not so unfortunately) my chain broke and not a one of us brought a chain breaker. Because of the cold and rain I think we were all secretly stoked to load up the bikes and head back north for some dinner and great beer at Eel River Brewery. We decided over dinner to go home, warm up, fix our bikes and head out early with Don's Donuts in hand. But not before heading to Scott's for another round of great homebrew and viewing of "Seasons" by the Collective. The next day turned out to be magnificant, and Kevin decided to be a macho man and take along Scott's 7 inch travel Iron Horse. We all got to sesh out some sections of single track with the steel horse while Kevin got the honors of lugging the 40 lb. tank up the climb. Thanks Kevin.
Click on the pic for a slideshow.

Paradise Royale round II

Got a chance to head down to the King's Range again with a great crew. There had been some recent rain so the trail was perfectly tacky, making a lot of the steep uphill sections easier to bite. The weather was great, a bit chilly when we first got there, but with the climbing we warmed right up. Chris took a spill this time, pasting his blood on some trail stones. Click on the pic to see a sideshow, although I didn't get a chance to take many photos. Enjoy.