Ridenfool

Was out there working on Rabbit Hole and Corkscrew today. The surface was slippery as snot in places. RHR has had about an inch and a half of rain over the past few days. Saturday might be mostly okay, Sunday should be pretty freakin' nice. Did some fine-tuning on four berms that ought to help them flow even moh-bettah than befoh.

Its been over a year since the last post in this thread and I'm excited to report that more trail has been added. 🚵‍♂️ Wheel mileage from TH to TH is ~17.5 miles, and there have been multiple reports of 1200-1300 ft. of elevation gain measured when riding the big loop. GPS mileage from a phone app will show less distance, but your legs will know you went further. 🥵 What was originally named Tea Party in the early build stages eventually became "Rabbit Hole" and is rumored to be quite popular with riders for its challenges and flowy goodness. We are constantly improving flow at RHR by adding berms and bench cuts that have received a lot of great feedback from riders. If you have ridden Rocky Hill recently please post a few words here on your experience, as well as suggestions for further improvement. Funny stories will be awarded bonus points. 😁

On the new section at the beginning of Lemonade I've tweaked a couple of existing berms and added another 6 or 7 small berms to help carry speed on the downhill part. Also smoothed several bumpy bits for better flow. I'll be back out today and see what sort of mischief I can get into while I wait on a warranty wheel replacement. If I can't ride I gotta work on trail! The forecast is looking good for the weekend with sunny skies and the outdoor air conditioner will be running extremely well. Come get some miles in the Pines! EDIT: Finished another new section on Rabbit Hole and cut it into the loop.

Overnight, RHR has received an inch of rain. I wouldn't expect the trails to be primo until at least Tuesday. I have just been informed that there could be another top secret trail addition in the works. It might be done in time for the EE. Sorry about that Antonio 🙄. 😏 bwhahaha

I think Paul may be warming to the idea of letting the EE ride all of Rabbit Hole. Just for the Excrutiation Effect it will bring to the riders taking the Exam.

One rider I was talking to on Friday told me he now plans his ride to follow the loop to the first water station, then, he'll go left to ride Black Trac and Rabbit Hole and bounce back over to SwitchBack from Sofa King, just after the Sofa and before reaching the Grind. After that, he goes back up and rides Karaway through Litterbox back to where Black Track begins. At that point he takes Grey's Highway to turn R on Wellhead road over to pick up Sofa King. He skips Black Trac and Rabbit Hole on the second pass, and goes on down Sofa King to the Grind, the Wall, etc. and back to the parking lot. This way, he said, the tough stuff is all ridden while he is fresh. It is a clever strategy and I'm going to try it soon. I may make it a route for MTB Project and call it Wurst First.

Got wheel mileage that includes the new section on Rabbit Hole. The Big Loop totaled 17.44 miles TH to TH on today's ride. Adding in the Start/Finish loop to the pavilion/showers and back to the TH brings it to 17.74 miles. We might actually squeeze 18 miles out of this place with a little more work. More new berms on Pam's Picnic Loop and Corkscrew.

There is a double top secret way to get around it. Ride the road to the campground, then go all the way back through the campground to the fence and turn right. This takes you onto the beginning of Pams Picnic. Enter the trail to the right of the big berm. When making the berm I built a lead-in for campers to jump on there.

Got a lot of work done during the race yesterday and finished up a new section on Rabbit Hole this morning. Immediately upon cutting in the new section riders came streaming through. A dozen or so over the next fifteen minutes. This was excellent timing as I was able to watch them through some of it and see where I needed to tweak the bench cuts a little more. After another month or two of wheels on it I expect it will be another fun addition to my little version of Wonderland. While working out there today, on three separate occasions riders stopped to thank me for the efforts and each said Rabbit Hole was their favorite trail at Rocky Hill. Music to my ears.

Forecast for rain has been reduced to 0.12 inch overnight. Conditions on Saturday should be great after a light sprinkle! Edit: Now down to 0.07 inch a half hour later.

Paul has also put a dent in the leaves piling up, but said he is fighting a losing battle as they are still falling from the trees.

Looks like the weather is shaping up nicely for this weekend's event. As of Thursday, the forecast for rain has fallen from 1.5" earlier in the week to only 0.25 inch now for Friday, and is showing clear for Saturday. At the rate the rain forecast has been falling it may not rain at all. Temperatures will range from 53* - 67* throughout the day. Racers can expect a dust-free course and air conditioned riding on Saturday.

Have you considered the cost of a replacement motor for an Amish/Acoustic bike? Could price out at more than an arm and a leg. 😏 (and don't even try to make a warranty claim...)

Thanks again Antonio. I know the spot. There was an alternate line put in there (unnecessarily) that over the past several months several folks have told me makes taking the original line confusing. Plus, this new line doesn't seem to get ridden, except by the fellow that created it.

Thanks for the info. I believe I know exactly where on Black Trac to look for this spot. It would shortcut the trail. I think the block there was moved recently during trail work and didn't get put back. As for Corkscrew, that map above is missing a couple of new sections. Here's what it looks like now. Also, GPX attached, if that helps to narrow it down. Corkscrew_.gpx

I saw a Tesla out there as I was leaving today, I guess that was you. 1. Is this the switchback that starts after going up and down a section of Fat Chuck's and taking a banked left turn? The trail parallels the road before going back up a few switchbacks. Trying to figure out where to look for this. Where the trail I'm thinking of tops out there is the Fat Chuck's section with brush laid down as a divider, and to the right, the end of Corkscrew where it goes by a deer blind before turning downhill and crosses the road into Mini Me, which is also divided by brush. Let me know if this sounds like the place. 2. On Lemonade, I rode it today and think I remember seeing what you describe. 3. Was that split on a climb? We reopened the old line to the left as the new line I built thinking it would be easier was not. Either one takes you to the same place in a hundred feet or so. The left is faster, but the right might be handy for passing slower riders. On my lap today I caught a handlebar on a tree on Black Trac and renewed my membership with The Over The Bar Scar Club. I don't know if I'll be able to do any work for a few days while I heal. Kinda feel like a sack of potatoes that got tossed into the trees from a moving vehicle. At least I lived up to my motto, "If you're not bleeding, you're not having any fun!" As for the climbing, the terrain allowed us to have the first 90% of climbing in that first section you describe 😳, and then have the last 90% of climbing toward the end. 😲😉

Changes to the race route that I noticed while out working today: Paul cut out the beginning and end of Rabbit Hole from the race course. I guess he thought it was too much to "endure" for an Enduro/Marathon event. 😉 Added, there will be a road ride at the start of Rabbit Hole that skips all of that trail to the right of Wellhead Road. Coming out of Rabbit Hole riders will entirely miss the new switchback section (recently added to make it easier), and will also leave out nearly all of that fun downhill on Sofa King between the end of Rabbit Hole and the sofa itself. 🤷‍♂️ He did leave the part of Rabbit Hole in the middle, which is better than cutting out Rabbit Hole entirely. Racers, if you would enjoy riding the whole Rabbit Hole in next years race, let Paul know.

The course for the Marathon is now marked with arrows. It uses all trails except Loblolly and Y-Knot. When you come off Lemonade onto the West Fenceline jeep road you stay on the road until you rejoin the course at Litterbox, Rabbit Hole is included on the course this year. There was also mention of some sort of abbreviated start lap to get the overall mileage right. Get with Paul for details. I've heard nothing regarding the route to be used for the EE.

Rainfall at the pecan orchard next door to RHR was 0.18 inches. Just enough to knock the dust back and tighten up the berms nicely. Saturday and Sunday should be just about perfect on trail surface and outdoor A/C aspects.

The latest update on my ride software finally started reporting accurate elevation gain. The full 17 mile 'Big Loop' at Rocky Hill provides about 1300 feet of climbing.

Picked up a sixer of this at a gas station in Smithville before heading out to ride. Quite the perfect recovery drink after a lap at Rocky Hill Ranch. The flavor was absolutely wonderful and the ABV offered muscle-relaxant qualities that were "sorely" needed. Didn't attempt it, but it may be possible to spread this on toast with a knife. I do enjoy a stout that I can chew.

Trail conditions are excellent and anyone with time off for the Turkey-day holiday can expect good temperatures and clear skies this week. There is forecast a chance of very light showers (0.03") in the AM on a couple of days to knock the dust down and tighten up the trails. Camping is a consideration for anyone wanting to do a lot of riding, or who just likes sleeping in the woods and hanging out with friends. In the past few days there have been several more berms added and some trees removed in places to provide better flow. Plus, a Toucan can now be found on a perch decorating Rabbit Hole if you can spot it. Come get some. You know you wanna.

If nothing comes up I'll plan to join you for a lap. I need more excuses to ride rather than work on trail. 😁 The only thing I have planned Friday is watching the second Starship orbital test flight. Launch window is 2 hours, starting at 0700.

With the higher temps and humidity cycling lower each day it likely will be okay by tomorrow (Wednesday) and great on/after Thursday.

Yesterday I skipped Black Trac, but a friend rode it without issue. I did find a couple of greasy spots on Rabbit Hole, but it wasn't terrible. I expect today was better. Everything else was just about perfect on Saturday. I didn't get out there today, though the Pivot Demo was on site. Paul told me he had suggested the Demo tell their riders avoid Black Trac and Rabbit Hole, It will likely be okay again by Friday or Saturday if the weather forecast doesn't change. Edit: Forecast has improved, so trails may well be fine as frog hair by Thursday/Friday