[1000-Oaks]

My second year, it was absolutely awesome as usual! Great people, great trails, free Red Bull and Fat Tire Ale, fun Halloween costume party, lots of giveaways, etc.

Alta Sierra/Just Outstanding and Cannell trails have to be some of the best singletrack in SoCal too, though don't bother with Portugese Pass unless you enjoy miles of fire road climbing. Don't bring a DH rig unless you're a climbing beast or simply like to suffer. (Out of 100+ riders only three or four had triple crown forks. I had one of the heavier single-crown builds at about 37 lbs with a DH wheelset.) Most attendees are XC guys - many of whom freakin' rip uphill AND downhill.

Check it out next year, well worth the drive.
http://www.mtnriver.com/fattire.htm

(I have no affiliation with Mountain River Adventures, the guys who put on the event.)

 

[PatBranch]

Sounds like a good time. Maybe I'll make it there next year.

 

[1000-Oaks]

(from the North Ranch web site)

Cannell Trail. Many people consider this the ultimate ride at Kernville. It starts at the MRA campground with loading your bikes onto the trailer behind the shuttle bus. An hour and a half after the shuttle departs, you arrive at the starting point at nearly 8000' of elevation. The weather is somewhat undredictable in the mountains, so be prepared for anything on this ride. One year there was a couple of inches of snow on the ground! Another year there were snow flurries that turned to sleet and then drizzle as we descended. But usually it is sunny. From the trailhead, we climb just over a thousand feet (and you feel it at this elevation!), mostly on fireroad, but the last bit is on a singletrack. Then we start a fast and furious descent through a creek bed with lots of small broken rocks. If you only have V-brakes, be prepared to pull over a couple of times to rest your hands and wrists here. Next we get to the cabin at Cannell Meadow where we wait, usually for at least a half hour, for everyone to catch up. This is a good place for a snack and photos of your friends. From there it is a gentle ride through the meadow until we get to a rocky canyon that signals the transition to the Cannell Plunge. The Plunge is a steep (sort-of), loose, sandy, rutted trail that clings to the side of the cliff in many places, dropping several thousand feet to the valley floor. There is one nasty but very short and steep little climb about a third of the way down that you can expect to walk up. After that is another 3000 feet of descent to the highway and a short ride back to the MRA campground. Don't forget your camera because the pictures up there can be spectacular!

Length (miles): 20.8

Climb (feet): 1900

Descent (feet): 6700

 

[1000-Oaks]

Alta Sierra. This trail is notable for singletracks through pine forests at the top and lots of fast downhill on fireroads. Because of the elevation, it can be cold at the top, so prepare to dress appropriately. This is a long ride, especially the ride on the highway back to town, so you should plan to have a car in town to drive you back to the MRA campground to pick up your vehicle. Otherwise you'll be riding an extra 3 miles on the highway.

Length (miles): 22.8 to highway, plus on-pavement 4.7 miles to town and 3.1 miles to the MRA campground

Climb (feet): 3500 to highway, plus 350 to town, plus 300 to the MRA campgroung

Descent (feet): 7600 to highway, plus 360 to town, plus 420 to the MRA campground

 

[Ozzer]

Nice!!!
Fortunately, Cannell takes some work to get to -to get misused (sorry, ranting from an excursion with an inconsiderate gravity rider at a local sensitive trail this past weekend).

On a good note, when I want to escape the shackles of work, I go to Mountain Bike Bill's website (thanks for sharing MTB Bill) and ride away along with his many vids.

RIDE