Issuu

issue 156

guiding and Inspiring travel by bike for sport, recreation and transportation since 1994

MAGAZINE

Crystal Cove!

an overnight trip, a BATventure, an experiential guide

ALSO

in search of dirt

CuyaGuna: Julian, California gear patrol

CABDA: Behind the Curtain asphalt, please

B.Y.O. Ute Route: Cedar City, Utah calendar

Rides, Tours, Events, Races last page

SDMBA: Goals for 2019 and more

www.

bicyclist. xyz

Crystal Cove SP, California

A Destination for a day of riding trails or a multi-day Tour

Rail & Trail Thanks to Poseidon Bike (www.poseidonbike.com) for sponsoring DWR. Their support allows us to bring you articles such as these.

The California State Park features a collection of trails that serve as training grounds for many local trail riders. What isn't known by many of the enthusiasts that cross the wilderness of 'El Moro' are the multiple campgrounds tucked into the trails. They are limited in provisions, no water is available, but doesn't that sort of add to the excitement of a bike-packing adventure? Words and Photos By Chris Reynolds

djacent the emerald beaches of Newport Coast, and tucked away within the ridge that separates the coast from the heart of South Orange County, a protected state park offers wilderness a world away from the hustle and bustle just on the other side of the jagged and wind-beaten coastal hillside. The collection of trails are popular for mountain biking, and relatively well-known as a destination in its own right. The opportunity for disconnecting and sleeping under the stars only gets more rewarding when the adventure to camp is considered. Multiple entry points exist, either from the South, along Pacific Coast Highway at the El Moro turnoff, the West via the Bomber Ridge Trail West Entrance (see page 12 for our experience) or the South-East, via Laguna Canyon Road. The Moro Campground sits at the base along PCH and offers year-around camping for those going the distance along the California Coast. For those looking for a bit more adventure, the Deer Flats, Upper Moro and Lower Moro grounds require a minimum 3 miles of trail riding to enter. With 1000 feet of vertical climbing between the base and the top, route selection is key, especially if packing bags. With the number of trails and campgrounds nestled within the 2,400 acres of wilderness, a day-trip, weekend overnight or multi-day deep dive in the Crystal Cove experience are all available and on offer. What will you come up with? â–˛

Crystal cove, California Orange County, California, USA

Nearby Parking

Moro Campground Entrance (Not Free - Supports State Park) N Pacific Coast Highway, Newport Coast, CA 92651 Coastal Peak Park (Free) 20403 E. Coastal Peak, Newport Coast, CA 92657

Local Provisions

Newport Coast Shopping Center 21181 Newport Coast Dr., Newport Beach, CA 92832 Crystal Cove Shopping Center 8086 Pacific Coast Highway, Newport Beach, CA 92657

ABOVE LEFT Choose-your-own-adventure takes new meaning in the 2,400 acre state park, nestled along the California Coast. Buffered by the sea air, the area keeps temperatures in a range that makes four seasons of exploration possible. Jonny (J Dawg) Morphis of Costa Mesa, CA makes the morning charge up Moro Ridge with the Parra brothers, and Luis 'OC Brakeless' running sweep. Read the full story on page 12. ABOVE RIGHT Moro Ridge extends the length of the preserve and the site of two of the four campgrounds in Crystal Cove. 10 | Issue 156

BICYCLIST Magazine

ridge park road

Newport Coast Shopping Center

bom

Coastal Peak Park

mer

Deer Canyon Campground

ridg

rid ge

fen

ny on

mo ro

slo

e ak

rat

tle sn

ket

ron

am e no n

tic

ge rid

ny on

Upper Moro Campground

Lower Moro Campground

no name ridg e

e idg

r ro

rid ge

ogs

ro mo

Roa yo n

Moro Campground

aC an

Parking

ny on

hw ay

acros

d no

Hig

lin

e.cut

ing

oss

acr

cC oa

cut

ifi

Crystal Cove Shopping Center

Pac

eas y

ridg

Scan the qr code with a modern smart phone camera to get transported auto-magically to the digital 'DWR' archives. neat!

lin

red

tai l

Lag

bfi

Note: Electric Bikes Prohibited

1 Mile

1 kilometer

Paci

fic

Coas

tH igh

way

ific

Pac st

Coa

Hig

Newport Beach

ay hw

QUESTIONS? MORE INFORMATION?

www.bicyclist.xyz -> search 'crystal cove' Double-Track Single-Track www.BICYCLIST.xyz

Caution - Vehicle Traffic

Hike/Bike Only

Open to Vehicle Camping Issue 156 | 11

(Continuing from page 12) Semantics aside, the idea is simple: ride your bike with provisions to sustain the basic comforts of home on the road or trail, in this case for 24 hours, essentially the first two days of any multiday tour. Also, it would offer a stress test demanding enough to ascertain the value proposition on offer. Though it must be restated, we are considering a complete bike for what some spend on their bibs. The value proposition is strong on this one. I talked to Luis to help find willing participants who were interested in this adventure and we're capable to ride under these conditions. Luis recruited friends from his monthly club ride, the Fixed Gear Beer Crew, bringing Ignacio Oseguera, Jonny Morphis and brothers Alex and Mario Parra on board to join us on this overnight excursion. All from various backgrounds, mostly with race or daily commuting experience, few having experience mixing camping and bikes.With six demo bikes, and six riders testing them in different wants, any quality or construction issues would present themselves. The trip would also provide an instructive guide for future adventures, serving as a preparatory introduction to the overlaps of camping, bike travel and backpacking.

Motivation

Carrying your home away from home, contained on your bike, is a freeing experience. When everything you carry has to be considered for usefulness and utility, it can provoke a realization that you can not only exist outside the advertised comforts of modern life, but that you may find it a more enjoyable experience. This can be a profound realization, one that provides a security and self-reliance that is fleeting in todays lattice work of interlaced technological dependences. The longer you’re on the road, the more changed you’ll come to be upon your return home, and I've always found travel by bike accelerates this process. This dilation of time gives you a sense of being away for a long time, when in actuality, your time away was much shorter. That sense is a recognition of the mental development, a building of resourcefulness and tenacity that carries the spirit after the ride is over. Your mental strength is improving, and your sense of time distorts to accommodate this experience. This shifting sense of time becomes especially pronounced when the only goal for the day is not getting lost, getting to camp by sundown and bringing enough water for coffee in the morning. Though we managed to fail at these specific goals for this inaugural trip, our mistakes become your ‘teachable moments’. And minor setbacks aside, the trip was a resounding success.

What you'll be carrying depends on many factors, including what you'll be doing when you're not riding, the weather of the area you're in, and how close you are to civilization. This was a heavy pack with cooking provisions for six people, camera gear, and a sleeping setup to avoid the communal tent party on offer. Whatever you end up taking, keep the heaviest elements of your pack lower in your bag, separate items by their utility, and consider weight. Assume your bags may leak, even if they claim waterproofness. Safeguard the elements of your pack that -can't- get wet (e.g. spices, electronics, goose-down insulated gear etc.) with water-proof stuff sacks. This will also help organization. A stuff-sack with your softgoods (rain gear, extra kit, off-bike apparel) serves as a pillow. Sacks with compression straps are useful for sleeping bags. Whether you use a rack, as shown below, or various bags that strap to the bike, the principals are the same. If using racks, perhaps obvious, look for seat-stay and rear drop-out mounts on the bike you'll be using.

Even with panniers, I prefer basic tools separated in a seat bag. I always know where they are, the bag can be quickly shared with a fellow traveler if needed, and it insures that even on excursions with panniers left at camp, I have tools with the bike. Conveniently, the Poseidon X includes - as stock - a saddle that showcases a common seat-bag attachment interface, a feature that allows easy swapping between bikes. A useful pieces of gear that I've only been able to find directly from the companies' website, is the Click-Stand, a folding, portable kickstand that keeps bags out of the dirt. It provides a convenience I've come to appreciate, and is the most remarkedon piece of gear I've owned. Though I do have a tendency to prefer unremarkable gear while on the tour or trail, the utility of the Click-Stand gets noticed. Here, it's nestled against the 6061 alloy frame of the X, a hydro-formed design that is stiff in the pedal, but won't beat you up over the long haul.

Practicals

For the trip we all carried our own gear for the night, including food, cooking utensils, tents, sleeping bags, and various other necessities for the trip. All of us rode on the Poseidon X, courtesy of Poseidon Bikes, to get the full experience of the new model. We all used our own versions of touring gear to carry our camping supplies.

Preparations for Camping

We planned to camp at Crystal Cove State park because of the proximity to the central location of all the riders. It's also got beautiful scenic views that many locals and tourists visit (see page 11 for more details). Before we left, it was determined we'd head straight to camp, and prepare dinner when we arrived. Coffee and oatmeal in the morning alongside materials for making sandwiches. By mid afternoon, a decision was made to head to another camp, The Camp, an outdoor shopping center of sorts, with a wide variety of options for a range of diets. Located in Costa Mesa, the venue serves as a waypoint between the Santa Ana River Trail and the Newport Coast highlands. A mile or so from the trail, we enjoyed the atmosphere and false sense of accomplishment. (Continued next page) 14 | Issue 156

BICYCLIST Magazine

Filled with tasty rewards, almost like a carrot extending in front of the mule, the handlebar bag provides quick access and a place to stash a harmonica, train whistle, gummy bears, or whatever else you find useful in motivating yourself and the group. Another purpose is to sequester the valuables. If wearing a jersey with pockets, use them for food and stash your ID, credit card, and phone in the handlebar bag. Combining jersey pockets with food and valuables, while traveling over trail, is a recipe for a phone lost somewhere 'bout 10 miles back?' Especially as smart phones have inflated in size, taking advantage of the handlebar-bag allowance provided while 'on tour' is a privilege not afforded to the club-ride set. While speaking on the front-end, the handlebars were a bit narrow for the broad shoulders I bring to the party. The stock width doesn't seem proportionate to the sizing of the frame, at least for the size large I rode, but I acknowledge that my gangling arms aren't proportionate to the sizing of my body, so you may not have an issue with this. Given more time for preparation, I would have liked to take advantage of this mount point to include a more substantial handle-bar bag for my camera. Using an additional point on the other side, and at the crown of the fork, a front rack can be attached to bring items to the front. I prefer riding without a loaded front wheel, so even with such a rack I prefer a more responsive steering, especially on technical areas. This can be an issue if you're carrying a lot, and are of a larger heft, but the 32 spokes laced around aluminum double-walled rims allowed my desire for handling to win over any fear of a busted wheel.

www.BICYCLIST.xyz

A third set of eyelets comes in handy, seen here carrying an MSR fuel bottle. Other uses of the eyelets adopted by the group included various accessories for carrying tools and pumps using this width of spacing for attachment. For the bikes provided on this trek, the Poseidon X, frames include three mounts on the interior, and one on the underside. Speaking on the task of creating fire, there are many options depending on the type of trip you're venturing on, your comfortability with mechanical devices and the geography of your adventure. The MSR WhisperLite Camping stove has long been the default choice for providing the heat for meals for many touring by bike. The ability to use a range of fuel types found around the world, dependability and repairability explicate this choice, and was the source of heat for meals on this trip. The price/weight/ruggedness measures up in a way that we haven't found matched. A less gear intensive option that came in handy were hexamine fuel blocks. The cheap and convenient tablets provide 2025 minutes of burn and can be found in most sporting good retailers, big box stores and even some gas stations. The silent fuel-source provided a camp-fire atmosphere, and a welcomed source of warmth for the evening. Definitely, going to pack on all future trips, even with the MSR.

Where the rubber meets the road or trail is of most importance when carrying your home on your back, or bike. Gearing that makes sense unloaded is a recipe for walking when carrying bags. Though the front triple, a common option for the touring crowd, has been left behind, the industry adoption of larger rear cassette sizes provide enough range for carrying your stuff and yourself. In the case of the Poseiden X, the bike matches a Prowheel RPL 46/34 crankset to a Microshift SpeedBottle 8-speed 11-34 cassette, directed by Shimano Claris R2000 derailleur and shifters. The component choice keeps the overall price of the bike low ($600) while providing enough dependability and repair-ability to be considered for remote tours. The ensemble is slowed down by a set of Tektro mechanical disk brakes that provide all-weather dependability, even for fullyloaded packs on the steepest of descents. This is a welcome change from the squeeze and pray I've previously experienced on loaded bikes after lengthy descents.

(Continued previous page) Beers were drank, burritos eaten and schedules missed. After everything was said and done, a 3:30 departure from the late lunch left another 15 miles of road to clear, 5 miles of grades over 6%, the final push to the hill-top campsites. Making a stop at the Newport Coast Shopping Center (see map, page 11) for some further delays of the final ascent provided us an opportunity to wave goodbye to the sun just as we reached the entrance to the State Park after the grueling trip up the 11% of a local extra credit, Ridgepark Road. As lanterns and lights clicked on, this merry band of travelers bobbled and bounded down the miles of doubletrack to our campsite for the evening located at Moro Flats. The ride continued without incident, the best conclusion for a trip that was pushing for surprises, anomalies and anything that would creep up on a longer tour. The only complaint that came up was a unanimous feeling the handlebars weren't wide enough for the frames. It's clear the landscape is shifting when that's the complaint for a $600 bike amongst demanding riders with fully loaded packs, going down rutted out double-track, and up 11% road grades. Quite impressive how far the industry has come and specifically to Poseidon, what they've been able to achieve in terms of logistical and operational efficiency, making a bike that helps open up the sport to more people. â–˛

Issue 156 | 15