Redlands Strada Sterrata - 11/14

Discussion in 'Trailhead' started by Cyclotourist, Nov 5, 2015.


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Added to Calendar: 11-14-15
  1. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    That's "dirt roads" in Italian according to The Google!

    I've wanted to put together a more dirt-oriented version of the Redlands Strada Rossa for a while now. The RSR has about 50% dirt, and it's high quality stuff, but a lot of asphalt connecting it. Kicked around some ideas and came up with this: http://ridewithgps.com/ Only about five of the 38 miles are asphalt, which anyone in marketing can explain to you is the same as 100% dirt!

    It includes all kinds of surfaces. Santa Ana River crossing on dry beach sand. Sandy roads. Rocky flat-ish singletrack. Buffed singletrack climbing. Fire road descents. Suburban sprawl roads. LOTS of goatheads. Weather should be beautiful. Rain the last couple days packed down the sandy portions a bit.

    Rolling at 9:00 on Saturday the 14th, leaving from in front of Augie's Coffee in downtown. Finishes at Gourmet Pizza Shoppe also downtown. Bring a U-lock and leave it downtown for when you get back as start/finish are right by each other.

    Things to consider:
    • This isn't an official ride you have to register for, just a bunch of riders getting together checking the trails out. We're ramblers, not racers. See below.
    • We're not trying to promote this all over the internet. Portions of these trails can't accommodate a ton of riders.
    • It's nearly 40 miles with over 30 miles of dirt. While not highly technical, it's NOT a beginner's ride.
    • It is 100% unmarked. You either ride with a local, or you trust your device to tell you where you are.
    • Also 100% unsupported. Water, food and toilets are marked on the map. That's the extent of it.
    • Myself and the group I ride with are slow. It will take us a solid six hours based on past experience. If you're a fast or an impatient rider, you will not be happy about that.
    • But we're good people! We're slow because we stop and talk about bikes and bike touring and don't drop anyone! It's an informal riding club, so we're chummy and clubby, but I think you'll like us pretty well.
    • We also consume lots of pizza and beer at the end of the ride. We'll happily hang out if you want a salad and water.
    • Serious about the goatheads. Run tubeless, use Slime, or have some effective tire liners.
    If you want to come out and ride with us, go for it! I want to keep it low key, it's not a big to-do like the RSR. So far there's about 10 of us going. Another five or 10 would be a great addition!
     
    Varaxis, ridinrox, tortoise and 8 others like this.
  2. Faust29

    Faust29 Moderator

    Location:
    irgendwo
    Name:
    B. Bunny
    Current Bike:
    I gots some bikes.
    I've never ridden up that way... Sounds like fun. I will check with my significant other and see if it's a possibility.

    Either way... Thanks for taking the time to come up with the route and share! :thumbsup:
     
    Mikie and Cyclotourist like this.
  3. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    It will be a fun day in the saddle! My regular ride is either the first 1/3 or the last 1/3. This is combining them with a great middle-third in Crafton Hills. Those that came out for the RSR will recognize a lot of these trails, but this is a lot more dirt. At least a higher % of it, as RSR is also longer. But this has a lot more sandy areas that road and cross bikes would be miserable on. RSR's goal is to be able to ride any bike on, this is definitely fat-tire only.
     
    Mikie likes this.
  4. mtnbikej

    mtnbikej J-Zilla

    Location:
    Orange
    Name:
    J
    Current Bike:
    SC Chameleon SS, SC Hightower
    I'm a definite....maybe. :geek:

    Would be nice to hit some new dirt....especially after going round and round this weekend.
     
    Mikie and Faust29 like this.
  5. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Well that's the idea of all these rides... to show off what we have in Redlands! Then you'll promote it as a biking destination to your friends, bringing a group of them out! We have some really passionate riders here, and want our community to be considered a bike friendly destination!

    The paved SART section will hopefully be completed into town sometime this century. We can be the start or end point for SART riders.
    I'd love to see the dirt portion of the SART get more love as well. We could be the destination for more dirt rides like the Hell Ride.
    This route crosses the Hell Ride route at mile 9.6 BTW.

    Plus we have some great less epic trails that should be shown off as well. Only down side is that it gets too damn hot in the summer!
     
    Runs with Scissors and Faust29 like this.
  6. Grassblade23

    Grassblade23 Member

    Location:
    Fullerton
    Name:
    Dan
    Current Bike:
    Surly Karate Monkey
    I rode RSR and Hell Ride this year and loved both. This ride sounds like fun. I'm not sure if I can make it happen, but I will try.
    RSR Mentone.jpg
    I used the road bike for RSR, but I'll bring the mtb for this ride if I can make it.
     
    Mikie, Faust29 and Cyclotourist like this.
  7. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Great photo!!!
    Pull this one off for the All-Redlands Triple Crown!
     
    Mikie likes this.
  8. CarlS

    CarlS Member

    Location:
    Temecula, CA
    Name:
    Carl
    Current Bike:
    Walmart $50 special
    How "rocky" is the rocky single track? I would ride my hardtail MTB but my feet/ankles are really weak when it starts getting chunky. How sandy is the sandy stuff?

    I'm 90% sure I can make it. but need to get my hall pass approved.
     
    Mikie and Cyclotourist like this.
  9. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Great, hope you can make it! You came to RSR, didn't you?

    The sandy part is really sandy. It's riding across the flood plain of the Santa Ana. Depending on how I'm doing, I can ride most of it on 2.25" tires, but other times I'll just get off and push across. After that there's about a mile of mixed sand double track. It's firmer packed, but has spots that are really sandy as well. It's not primo surface for riding, but it's cool for the adventure of thing seeing what's out there! I ride it a couple times a month.

    The rocky portion is only about half a mile in length, and not continual rocks, and not at speed (basically flat). Most of the rocks are pretty rounded as they're river rocks. I'd say don't worry about it. I've rode it on a cross bike and touring bike as well as my 29er and drop-bar 29er. Have enjoyed it every time!

    Both of these sections are in the beginning of the ride, the first 1/3, so we'll be hitting them at our freshest. It's the climb up to Crafton that comes next that'll really work you over!!!
     
    Mikie, Faust29 and CarlS like this.
  10. CarlS

    CarlS Member

    Location:
    Temecula, CA
    Name:
    Carl
    Current Bike:
    Walmart $50 special
    OK sounds great. well, maybe not the pushing part in sand. but yea should be OK. maybe we will get some more rain to pack that sand down. .

    No. I signed up but got totally sick and couldnt make it.
     
    Mikie and Cyclotourist like this.
  11. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Okay, I remember that now.

    Everyone around me at work is sick with the flu... really hoping I don't get it!

    The sand part isn't that bad... I rode over it last weekend before the rain, so it'll only be better now!
     
  12. Grassblade23

    Grassblade23 Member

    Location:
    Fullerton
    Name:
    Dan
    Current Bike:
    Surly Karate Monkey
    Is that the segment off Garnet called baby heads? That was an experience on the road bike, but seems like it'd be no biggy on a HT or FS.
     
    Mikie and Cyclotourist like this.
  13. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Another RSR veteran, excellent! That little bit of singletrack going into Mentone is one of my faves! Tough on a road bike. But no, this one is further up Mill Creek wash. Mile 13.2 on the route above. It's just a short section. Not really tech. I'm just mentioning it so nobody complains... :)
     
    Mikie and Grassblade23 like this.
  14. riiz

    riiz Member

    Location:
    Redlands, CA
    Name:
    Eric
    Current Bike:
    Santa Cruz Heckler/Killmaleon
    I'm a definite maybe. More so, if the wife and kids take off and do their own thing.
     
    Mikie and Cyclotourist like this.
  15. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    More RSRers! Hope it works out for you, as it's going to be a fun ride! A lot of the route is on the RSR (Crafton, Oakmont, San Tim trails) but with the addition of the river bottom trails that just can't be done on CX or road bikes. It's a damn fine route if I do say so!

    I rode a chunk of the Mentone singletrack yesterday, just confirming the "rockiness." Here's one picture showing a section that's kinda' representative of what's out there. The rocky sections are pretty short, and it's more a case of picking the line to ride around them rather than having to ride over them.
    22439055427_365ebbcb35_b.jpg
     
  16. Faust29

    Faust29 Moderator

    Location:
    irgendwo
    Name:
    B. Bunny
    Current Bike:
    I gots some bikes.
    The non-Dot race is in Caspers on the same day, but I think I've had enough racing for awhile. The 12 Hours of Temecula was enough. Unless something crazy happens this week, I will be there... :thumbsup:

    edit: I see lots of street parking on Google, but it looks like they are metered- short term? Where's the best spot to park for all day?
     
  17. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    This is pretty much the opposite of a race :)

    All day parking at the beautiful Redlands Mall.
     
    Runs with Scissors, Faust29 and CarlS like this.
  18. Faust29

    Faust29 Moderator

    Location:
    irgendwo
    Name:
    B. Bunny
    Current Bike:
    I gots some bikes.
    Looks perfect... And I see that Augie's is open nice and early. I'll shoot to be there with time to spare, as I can't pass up a good coffee house...
     
  19. mtnbikej

    mtnbikej J-Zilla

    Location:
    Orange
    Name:
    J
    Current Bike:
    SC Chameleon SS, SC Hightower

    Damn....I'm out then. Already committed to volunteering.
     
  20. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Augie's is a VERY bike-friendly place. They support the Bike BBQ and IEBA a lot. And make the best cappuccinos you'll ever have!

    Bummer, but you're doing a good thing as well. IF it works out to come, we'll be here!
     
  21. LLPoolJ

    LLPoolJ iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    Moreno Valley
    Name:
    James Johnson
    Current Bike:
    Specy Epic, Stumpu and Enduro
    Hmm sounds like a good time. Let see how work and camping prep go this week.
     
    Cyclotourist likes this.
  22. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    It promises to be a good time for sure. Why go on a bike ride if it's not fun!?!?!? :)
     
    LLPoolJ and Runs with Scissors like this.
  23. riiz

    riiz Member

    Location:
    Redlands, CA
    Name:
    Eric
    Current Bike:
    Santa Cruz Heckler/Killmaleon
    The link for the route no longer works btw
     
    Cyclotourist likes this.
  24. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Ooops. I copied and updated it... and the edit button is gone from the top post. Thanks, and here it is: http://ridewithgps.com/
     
    riiz likes this.
  25. OTHRider

    OTHRider Well-Known Member

    Name:
    Duke
    Current Bike:
    '18 Salsa Cutthroat
    Man, I wish I'd known about this sooner. Dan, go for the triple!
     
    Cyclotourist likes this.
  26. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    It started off as a "Lets try this proof of concept" sort of a thing, then I invited some of my regular riding buddies, and now it's here! Growing a little bit every time! If this flows well and we get some good feedback, the goal (well, mine anyway) is to turn it into a regular fall event to compliment the RSR in the spring. RSR is about 50-60% road as we just can't string that much dirt together without going up to SART (think Hellride). But that's okay, as it's intentionally supposed to be mixed-surface. A SoCal gravel grinder. This thing if it takes off is still gravel grinder in that we're not on singletrack that much, but it will be fully dirt under your wheels!

    I'm hoping we can all stay together and make it a group ride, but the larger it gets, the tougher that is to maintain. And that's fine, I don't mind people taking off and doing it on their own pace (faster or slower). But I'd like to keep everyone together. There are a couple of hard to navigate sections with hidden trails or at leas not obvious trails as well. You can't get lost, but you can miss some of the singletrack, which I presume folks around here are interested in!!!
     
    riiz, ridinrox, Faust29 and 2 others like this.
  27. bigringrider101

    bigringrider101 Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Winnetka CA
    Name:
    Berni Avila
    Current Bike:
    Jones Space Frame Ti truss for
    I'll try to make this one. Should know for sure by Wednesday night.
     
    Faust29 and Cyclotourist like this.
  28. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    Now I'm freaking out that I've over sold this one!!! :)
    Fingers crossed it's a good as talked up!
    Sounds like four in, and two maybes.
    Everybody needs to show up with a print out of their avatar so we know who is who!
     
    Faust29 likes this.
  29. LLPoolJ

    LLPoolJ iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    Moreno Valley
    Name:
    James Johnson
    Current Bike:
    Specy Epic, Stumpu and Enduro
    I should be there. Looking forward to some new dirt.
     
    Cyclotourist likes this.
  30. Cyclotourist

    Cyclotourist iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Redlands
    Name:
    David
    Current Bike:
    Don't fence me in!
    That's the idea of it. Just check out something new!
     
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