...kept me from venturing north yesterday. When the weather forecasts came up for Cottonwood and the regular wind speed was over 17mph, the enthusiasm for driving two hours to ride for 3 hours was deterred. Even Black Canyon City was raging. The temps were still perfect to ride and with calmer breezes blowing down here in the Valley, I sucked it up and headed to the same ole' place: Browns Ranch.
The Mach Wu was loaded up, aired to whatever was left in the squish and 21/26 psi in the front/rear tires. I suited up in:
- Twin Six thermal knickers ('cause it was 61 at the start)
- old jersey
- ??? socks
- Lake shoes
- Giro gloves
- Giro lid
- Camelback with 24 oz of water
- 2x bottles with 2x scoops of Skratch in each
On the way up there was this "fog" floating in my brain. Over the past couple of weeks, there has been a steady stream of Allegra & Flonase in my system to combat allergies (as the trees in the 'hood are blooming). The night before I set aside the Allegra & stuck to Flonase. While I slept well, the grogginess over the past few days had been harder to get rid of.
Roll into the Alma School parking lot, unload and head in. Soft-pedal up to Hackamore and drop down. Even with a fuzzy brain it was clear the surface of the trail is LOOSE. In the Summertime this place is always this way - dry, gravelly sand that builds up on the edges just waiting to send your tires skipping forward despite how much you turn. Tentatively I make my way down and bear right to head towards Cloudburst.
Cloudburst connects at the top of Cone Mountain so soon there is a fight to get up the next climb and not spin out. There is no mash and hammer on this trail. It is more like roll in fast, chunk down a gear and plant your ass and hope the rear tire sticks. Only towards the end can you actually stand up to ease off some of the tension... and even then ya better not get to ambitious.
Right turn and down Cloudburst. I am trying to hit the berms. the ones the old guys that frequent Browns rave about. They seem to love these HUGE built berms. It takes me one or two before I just let go of the brakes. It's not without its own concerns as... again, the trail is LOOSE. With a fuzzy brain that just cannot seem to keep up, I just cruise.
Reach the end, cross the Powerline Road and head over to West Express. My only goal for the day was to squeeze out 2 1/2 to 3 hours... leaning more towards the lower side of that. No heavy/fast/intense riding, just smooth pedaling. The "result" I was hoping for was to figure out,
"Is this lower saddle height gonna help my lower back?"
West Express will definitely start up the test. While the trail is rolling, heading north is mostly going uphill and each uphill section is steep enough to make ya work. As I begin cranking, my back is feeling pretty strong, pretty even... so I am happy. At least when I can focus my brain long enough to remind myself I am happy.
Over the top, left onto Stagecoach and this is gonna be a long interval. From the south end it is a steady 5 mile climb gaining about 200 feet. Not alot of intense climbing but it is unrelenting if you stay on the gas the whole way... all 27 1/2 minutes like it took yesterday.
At first my left knee was aching on some corners. I assumed it was a weird glitch when I twisted at one point 'cause it went away after a few more corners. My power felt good. My legs responded well when I wanted to go hard. It wasn't until close to the end that my lower back, specifically the left side, started to bark. Ease off, pedal easier for a bit and it all comes around.
Was it any faster? Kinda... I set my third fastest time of nine tries: 27:29 (y'day) vs. 26:05 (1/7/2021). On that day in 2021, I was pushing much harder... why?? I don't know. Maybe one day soon I will try it again, see what I have in me. It's a fun little section to hammer.
Anyways, reach the Powerline & take a break. Drop in again and ease out to Hawksnest. This was where I began to wonder if the wheels would fall off. The energy was not there. My heart rate was not climbing. My desire to push any harder was not happening. I keep pedaling though and soon I feel better. My legs are ramping up easier. My breathing is opening up. Picking lines gets smarter. 20+ minutes later I begin to feel like I can ride a bike.
Right onto High Desert... 'cause the rest of Hawksnest just isn't as fun. I get into the small hills portion and tell myself, "Self, maybe take it easy"... and I did. I grind up hills a bit slower, start to feel even better. Left into Coyote Canyon and kick away. The other big difference I am finding with the lower saddle is the ease of spinning a higher cadence. There is no cadence sensor on the Mach Wu but I would assume I am in the low 80's (compared to what has usually been low 70's or less in the past).
Reach Granite Mountain, start the grind up and there it is ahead - a carrot. An old man pushing pretty good up the hill! There is something about someone being ahead of ya that makes you want to ride harder, ride faster... as long as you catch em', you win. Even if you win nothing. My heart rate climbs into Zone 4. I tell myself this is just to test my back out... and sure enough it's barking (I had raised the saddle maybe 3-4 mm a ways back). Close the gap, pass the congenial old fella and keep mashing... but when I reach the intersection with Cholla Mountain, I stop. I lower the saddle back to where it was... and take off.
My carrot is in sight!!
I start out easy, telling myself to just be cool. Well, that goes out the window as I see him further away than I expected. Zone 2 turns to Zone 3 turns to Zone 4. I reach the last 20 feet to his rear wheel as he turns off onto Divide Trail, denying me the pass. I just have to pedal on 'cause... well, now I am tired.
Still I push it up and over Cholla Mountain, stop at the top and breathe. Back to normal, the saddle gets dropped a bit and I take off... on another loose descent. I question myself, "am I just being a chicken?" until the front tire skates a bit more in a good line. I am not chicken today. Maybe.
Weave down past Stagecoach, bear left and head to Watershed Trail. At this point I am two hours in and it is clear that the allergy meds are not allowing much more to happen. Ease it down Watershed but when I hit Whiskey Bottle, that desire to just HAMMER is there.
I give it all I have to get started... and it isn't there. My legs have decided they don't wanna do much more than spin some easy circles. My breathing is good but now my heart rate is kinda stuck. Even when I muster up the kick, it doesn't last. As I reach Latigo, I give in. I spend the first half of the trail just dawdling along... not really trying too hard but not giving up completely. Even if I am slow, it is still fun to be out here.
The second half took a big chunk outta me. It felt like I was going nowhere at all up that one boulder-laden pitch. Up, over and it flattens out a bit... and so does my speed. I watch my heart rate, my mind is wandering... but as I pass the sign post, I realize, "the end is near!" There's a bit more gas in the tank, I power over the top and skid and slither down the rest of Latigo.
Back at the truck, I stop to talk to a guy fixing his derailleur. He's pointing out some of the flaws in SRAM AXS stuff... which is interesting to hear. I watch as two people look like they are loading up into MY truck... before they realize that their truck is one row back (and almost identical to my truck).
Roll over, shed clothes and load up (I did put more clothes on). Head home after stopping at Chula's for fish tacos. The traffic was miserable but when I parked the truck, the anxiety slipped away as I thought about the ride.
More on that later.
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