March 20, 2010 9:00 AM. 12 attended.
Backbone to Will Rogers State Park from Upper Pacific Palisades
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Join me for a great ride on what is considered by many to be the best single track trail in the Santa Monica Mountains - the Lower Backbone trail between Will Rogers State Park and Temescal Fire Road. We'll use the car-shuttle method to make this mostly a downhill ride as we start at a much higher elevation than where we end the ride.
The Plan:
We'll all meet at Will Rogers State Park (before the entrance) at 9 AM. We'll leave about half the cars there, and then we'll all drive up to the upper Palisades in the remaining cars loaded with some extra bikes and people and start from there. We'll meet up with the Temescal Canyon Fire Rd after a short climb and take it up to Hub Junction. From there we'll do the Eagle Rock loop back to Hub Junction. At Eagle Rook we'll take a little break, enjoy the view and have some snacks. From Hub Junction head back the way we came just about 1/2 mile and then go down the Backbone trail just over 6 miles back to Will Rogers State Park.
I am a big advocate of carpooling but for this ride we'll need many cars as we have to make sure we can fit everyone including bikes in each half of them. If you have bike racks, bring em. Trucks are especially welcome.
Depending on the skill level of the participants we may decide to split the group in two, a fast group and a slow group so that the fast group does not need to wait so much. In that case we need to make sure that we put the fast people and the slow people in different cars.
Distance:
15 miles - about 45% single-track and 55% fire road.
Time Required:
I expect about 3-4 hours or so.
Difficulty:
I will classify this ride as "intermediate" and not suitable for beginners. The trail is not that technical for the most part but does have a few more technical sections. It may also be more rutted than usual due to recent rain. The first part of the ride will consist of some climbing so this will be a good workout. Also, most of it will be on fire road with few technical challenges. If you are unsure if this is a good ride for you feel free to contact me.
Please Note:
The Backbone trail is very popular with hikers so we need to be extra careful going around corners etc. and courteous, especially as we get closer to Will Rogers State Park. This is a treasure in terms of riding that we can't afford to lose.
Directions:
From Santa Monica: Take PCH north and turn right on Chautauqua Blvd. and go up to Sunset Blvd and turn right. Will Rogers State Park Rd will be on your left about 1/2 mile up or so.
From 405: Get off at Sunset Blvd. and head west. Will Rogers State Park Rd will be on your right a few miles down.
Click here for Google Directions
Parking and Fee:
Half of the cars will need to be parked inside the Will Rogers park. This means that those not parking there will split the $10 fee with those who do, so it should be $5 per person.
NOTE:
Please be considerate of your fellow riders and be there early. Make a note of my phone number (above) and call me if you signed up but you can't make it or you are running late.
IMPORTANT:
Mountain biking is an inherently risky sport, especially for those who tend to take chances. You can get hurt. As event organizers we assume absolutely no responsibility for you or your equipment. We are simply mountain biking "buddies", nothing more. If you choose to participate you assume all risk involved. Also, please adhere to the following:
- Always wear a helmet when mountain biking. This is mandatory, no exceptions.
- Make sure your bike is in good working condition, with the tires properly inflated and the chain lubricated prior to the ride.
- Protective pads, gloves etc are recommended on more technical rides.
- Know your limitations, and do not attempt what you are not comfortable with. Hike-a-bike is no shame.
- Bring at least one spare tube, sunscreen, energy bars/food and enough water. Hydration packs are encouraged.
- If you have two-way radios, toolkit, pump/co2, or first aid kit, bring them.
- Be familiar with and follow trail rules and etiquettes.
- Also, if you have someone approacing behind you who is clearly faster than you, be courteous and let him/her pass at the first opportunity.
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Stein
Mark,
I am not sure exactly how many feet of climbing we'll be doing (I don't have a GPS) but 600' may seem about right. Yes, we're not doing the route at geoladders (except for the Backbone portion) but instead driving up Palisades Dr. to a little hidden parking lot near the water tower. There will also be some climbing after we've been at Eagle Rock back up to Hub Junction. However, you do have an option to avoid most of it by heading back the way we came, instead of completing the loop.Posted March 15, 2010 at 11:10 AM -
A former member
Sounds like a neat shuttle ride! Will update my RSVP by Friday at 5PM.
Posted March 15, 2010 at 3:38 PM -
A former member
Chris G you're passing up this ride for GMR? You don't know what you're missing!
Posted March 17, 2010 at 12:05 PM -
chris G
hopefully this will be up on the schedule again so i can try it.
Posted March 17, 2010 at 1:53 PM -
Stein
Mark, hope you can make it. Love to have you along and finally meet you. Chris G., this is one of my favorites so I'll probably put it up again later this year. Hope to see you next time.
Posted March 18, 2010 at 1:06 PM -
Stein
RobV: Not sure if you guys are planning on starting the ride before we get there as you got about 1,120ft or so of extra climbing to do but I am bringing my radios so we can communicate (hopefully). Mine are set to Ch.7, priv.7. Chris Ashford might be meeting us up there as well.
Posted March 18, 2010 at 1:07 PM -
chris G
saw some pics of the trail on geoladders, this looks awesome. will definitely do it next time.
Posted March 18, 2010 at 2:34 PM -
A former member
I'll have some spare radios as well. Would you recommend an XC bike or a Specialized Big Hit?
Posted March 18, 2010 at 3:53 PM -
Stein
Glad to have you onboard Mark. A heavy duty downhill bike will make the uphill climbs a lot harder, so it depends on how strong of a climber you are. Most of the climbing is moderate though, except for a couple of steeper hills in the beginning. In general I think an XC bike is a good choice for this ride as there are several hills and no really challenging technical stuff, but you might have more fun on some of the (optional) jumps near Will Rogers with a downhill bike. I have an XC hardtail.
Posted March 18, 2010 at 4:31 PM -
Stein
First time riding this, I'd recommend an XC bike so you can gauge the trail to see if it is worth bringing a downhill bike next time. In that case I'd probably skip the Eagle Rock loop.
Posted March 18, 2010 at 4:38 PM -
A former member
Good points all around Stein. Cool - I get to try out my new Trek Ex8 on some real mountains! :)
Posted March 18, 2010 at 5:29 PM -
Stein
Ok, Rob, sounds good. If I get there you before you guys get started, you can borrow one of my radios. Just to be clear, are you meeting us where the Backbone trail meets the fire road like last time or at Hub Junction?
Posted March 18, 2010 at 11:48 PM -
A former member
Oh wow - for some reason I thought this ride started at 10AM. Was that changed? No matter. but RobV, I doubt we'll be there by 9:30 considering we have to all meet at 9AM, get bikes and peeps coordinated, drive up, and then ride up a 600' climb. Never done this trail before, but if I were to guess, I'm guessing more like 10:15-10:30? Stein does that sound right?
Posted March 19, 2010 at 8:47 AM -
A former member
Hey Evelyn, if you come, you and I can go down slow. I wanna takes pics anyway since it's my 1st trip out there.
Posted March 19, 2010 at 8:49 AM -
Stein
Rob: Does not really matter to me where we meet, but we'll meet sooner if we meet by the backbone trail. As for when we'll be there, Mark is right, it always takes some time to get organized for carpooling, driving up, and getting ready so my guesstimate would be more like 10:30. I'll try to figure out tonight the best carpooling scenario based on everybody's answers as much as possible to save time tomorrow, but changes are likely.
Posted March 19, 2010 at 11:24 AM -
Stein
FYI: The elevation difference from where we start up to the Backbone trail is 502 ft based on Google Earth, but there are some ups and downs so the amount of climbing will be more, probably about 600 ft or so. Elevation difference from Will Rogers is 1,621 ft. With some ups and downs, probably about 1,800 ft or so of climbing.
Posted March 19, 2010 at 11:50 AM -
Danny
Anybody passing through lakewood? 91/405 freeway? I would like to go but have no transportation...
Posted March 19, 2010 at 4:19 PM -
Stein
Great Eric. If you have a radio, please bring it and set it to 7-7.
Posted March 19, 2010 at 5:28 PM -
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Stein
Sorry to hear that Robert. Would have been great to have you along. See you next time.
Posted March 19, 2010 at 11:53 PM -
A former member
Where's the sun? It's freaking cold out there right now but looks like a beautiful day ahead! I'm getting myself psyched up for the OC to SM drive to come hang with the slowbees. :) See you guys soon.
Posted March 20, 2010 at 5:19 AM -
Chris Chambless
Just my luck. Found my car broken into this morning and had to deal with that. Hope you guys had a fun ride.
Posted March 20, 2010 at 2:27 PM -
A former member
Bummer Chris. If it's any consulation, I got a parking ticket in Santa Monica - $61 fricken bucks! I got robbed by the cops!
Posted March 20, 2010 at 5:44 PM -
Stein
Chris: Geez, sorry to hear that. That really sucks. Mark: Shoot, that sucks too. I guess it turned out to be a pretty expensive lunch. Yes, they are vigilant in Santa Monica giving tickets. I have "supported" the city a fair share myself. They are also good at making the signs confusing. It should have dawned on me when you said free parking as I don't think there is such a thing in Santa Monica. In any case it was great having lunch with you and I hope to see you on future rides soon.
Posted March 20, 2010 at 6:40 PM
RSVPs closed
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A former member
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Stein, if I'm reading this post right, it seems like this would be the map for the area: http://www.geoladders.com/show_route.php?route=293
but we would drive up to the end of Palisades Ct to skip a bit of the climbing. From there it seems we do about 600' of climbing up to the "Backbone" and that the rest is downhill. Does that seem accurate?