Chris managed to arrange some free time on Saturday for a weekend ride, so we got a crew together for some trail time. During the week, the discussion went around about Wailuna, so the die was cast and we met at the park a little after noon. Root was in as was Ckucke. The Wandells were probably going to be on the water, so they were out. Scat had other plans, but changed his mind at the last moment and arrived with Ckucke. CKH was already there when I rolled in. His Yeti was sporting the new Magura Louise brakes I put on for him on Thursday. The black smears on the rotors indicated that he had gotten some break-in time on them. Ckucke and Scat rolled up, followed by Root. We weren’t really sure if Jeff and Sara were in or not, but after an unsuccessful phone call, we geared up and started up the hill.
The weather was clear and warm. The temperature didn’t seem as oppressive as out at the Ditch. Either the winds were cooler, or the humidity was lower. We took it easy up the road so as not to wreck the legs before the trail. A cool downslope breeze kept things bearable until we got to the top of the subdivision, where the albizia trees blocked the wind. Back out into the open at the water tank, the breeze resumed. While we rested at the log in the swamp gum grove, a couple of riders climbed past us. The first one was Tom Leery. I’m not sure if he recognized any of us. That was a blast from the past. Guess all of us old farts are still riding! Saving the legs on the road made the singletrack climbs achievable. We took another break at the ‘Uluhe fern trail junction and had a rant session about disrespectful kids, hopeless parents, and of course fixies!
We headed up the climb. My legs just got into the burn by the top, and I rolled through the melaleuca roots to recover, but was faced with the second pitch. The legs were burning at the top, having been worked extra from powering through some bobbling as the front tire was bounced from side to side in the worn groove. A brief level section promised relief, but the promise was unrealized as the third pitch loomed steeply upward. Cresting the top, we descended through the second melaleuca grove and climbed to the first powerline pole. The trail became narrower and rose in increasingly steeper pitches as we strived for the summit. The open sky was traded for the shade of Koa trees, but at the sacrifice of the breeze. We tried our best to clean the climbs, but the last push-up to the second powerline pole would be only rideable by some trials god.
At the top, we took a long break before dropping down the ridgeline toward Royal Summit. The trail, though grassed-in and not visibly eroded, was noticeably more rooty and bumpy. The two critical drops along the descent had mellowed since the last time I dropped in: There was no sensation that the front wheel was going to tuck under. The invasive plants working their way up from the Royal Summit side were visible earlier on. The clidemia has been up to the summit from years ago, but weird grasses have become established at the first powerline pole along the descent. Weird grass and that d-shaped Velcro seed weed are growing all around the ‘Ohia rest. Whoever is coming up to do a “public service” by weedwhackering the trail is actually doing a disservice by broadcasting the weed seeds all over the place. Pulling the weeds by hand and bagging them would be impractical. Some kind of chemical mitigation is required. The Koa tree at the ‘Ohia rest has succumbed to some kind of disease or insect pest.
At the end of the singletrack, we took the right down the finger ridge downhill. The trail was more worn-in, but still was predominantly off-camber. The previously loose sections were brushed clean of dirt and were rooty instead. The climb up was a steady spin. Scat was starting to feel the exhaustion of the ride. At Rusty Nuts, he was falling into delirium. For a moment it looked like he was going to start craving brains. We climbed up the trail and reached the dirt road quickly. I remembered the climb being a lot more brutal. We backtracked up the road to the old fence to do the berms and g-out along the roadside. Descending down through the trees, we hit the berm line and came across some rickety stunts with a teeter-totter. The construction was sketchy to say the least. The stunt was built in an area tight with little trees, so a safe bailout was impossible. We happened across two other riders coming up from Royal Summit. After exchanging niceties, they continued uphill, and we continued downhill. Crossing the road, we found ourselves on the outside of the fenceline. The new trail had a few little bumps and bermed turns before breaking out into the open at some large gap jumps and a launch down the grassy hill face above the urn trail.
The rains were approaching, so we headed uphill slightly, connecting to the bottom of the unbermed turns. We crossed the gap, then churned the bermed turns at the road switchback to a dusty cloud then crossed over to the gully run. Riding up the plateau on the left of the road, we dropped through the moonscape, hitting the small jumps along the way. A rider with his son and wife walking behind him went up the road. Kid was dressed to ride, so I guess he and Pop would take turns hitting the stunts. The Missus wasn’t set up to ride. After a brief schooling by Scat at the roll-in, we hit the road and worked our way back to the cars. There was no vehicle parked at the curb cut at the Royal Summit park, so we were finally able to take it, cross the sidewalk, and fly the rebating hillside down to a smooth landing on the grass in the park. There was little traffic on the sidestreets on the way down, but back on the main road near the bottom of the hill, I was forced to bury the brakes as oblivious mom and her minivan full of kids pulled out into the street from the left without seeing the horde of brightly colored bikes and riders that she about took out. The look of horror on the faces of her kids and the driver of the similar minivan in back of her at the stop sign was classic. It almost made it worth it. I stopped briefly at the bottom of the dip along Komomai to record the lowest part of the ride on my altimeter, thus sacrificing my momentum up the hill. Starting the climb from zero, I passed Scat looking somewhat hungry for brains at the first townhouse driveway on the way up. He was cramping up. I caught up to CKH before the park. He had a good time on the ride. I was tired afterwards, but didn’t feel as wilted as I would have if we had hit the Ditch. I had loaded a little more water than usual in the hydration pack and had drained it all. All of us were pretty much empty on bars, gels, and fluids.
Altimeter data (all measurements are approximate elevation in meters above sea level)
Parking lot = 95m
Wailuna gate = 170m
End of road = 220m
Log rest = 295m
Second powerline pole = 410m
Summit = 435m
Ohia rest = 390m
Start of dirt road = 350m
Bottom of downhill = 250m
Back up dirt road = 315m
Bottom of Komomai = 60m
Parking lot = 95m
D = 17.16 km (10.66-miles), Vavr = 10.1 km/h (6.3 mph), Vmax = 53.1 km/h (33.0 mph), T = 1-hour, 41-minutes (total trail time approximately 4.5 hours), Vertical climb = 340m (1115.5 feet)
More pictures here
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