TR: I Went to B.C. And Stuff!

[WaistDeepGroomers]

So I had an extra week of vacation this year compared to my girlfriend (thanks Shauna!), so, having spent years as a child JONG building shitty log bridges over the swamps behind my house, it was a natural decision to pay respects to the Holy Land and head to Vancouver, where I'm not sure people even know what sarcasm, or not being genuine, is like. God bless 'em. Anyways, the trip (which is still happening and will be updated infrequently), started with the good folks at Endless Biking in North Van, who Lee tipped me off too.


Kelli and Darren pretty much run the show around here, and Darren, with a broken hand, shuttled us up to Mt. Fromme for the first day so his wife could school me.


Daughter Mila says "Ride here, and don't be a pussy!"


Enduro! I just had to say it...


Digger's Bench. Got to see the legendary trail guy as he did a three-point turn in the parking lot, which was all I got. According to Darren, he's the only guy still living that gets his own picnic bench.


First we rode Bobsled, the first machine-built trail in the zone, built so to accomodate two wheelchair MTB'ers, along with beginners, intermediates, and all those desirous of those fancy new "flow" trails. A little bit bummed to see my log skinny-obsessed dreams come crashing down because everyone here is over riding them, but oh well. This trail was fun, and goddamn it is crazy landscape here! Coming from Jackson, you feel like you're on Endor. Plus there's just gobs of undulating terrain and natural features, so it's not hard to figure out why the riding is super fun here; per vertical foot, there is a LOT of shit going on.


Kelli bike acts down a pretty cool root-rock-bridge combo drop. Steep rollovers are definitely en vogue here.


More rollovers! Finally, a log bridge!


Chief JONG himself breaking the seal on the skinnies I came here to ride but which non-tourists are totally over.

Cool wood/rock line on the Baden Powell traverse trail, gained some speed through here into a fun rocky/droppy section. You can see the original rock line in between the new wood bridge and the hiker's section closer to me.


Kelli rips through Lower Griffen, part of the newer, flowier stuff down lower. I have been having some serious issues with getting the goddamn camera to focus, or me to focus the camera, properly so far.


Beers!


Day 2 (today) was a bit more classic North Shore, i.e. pouring rain the entire day. Total classic though, eh, and only sealed in the feeling of being on Endor/in Borneo/Brazil.


Guide dude JD pops a little wheelie drop on Severed Dick, our first little down on the Mt. Seymour network. Nobody out.


JD cruising through a little S-turn section on Severed that you can't tell is an S-turn. Clearly some mods have been made to a lot of trails to make them more JONG-friendly, as if you had more sack (or rode ten years ago) you were supposed to just go straight down the fall line.


It started raining harder and harder, got darker, and my camera skills also began to bottom out. I think this trail was High School League, which had a bit more flow trails.


By this point I had nothing dry to clean the lens off with, but maybe I'll just rephrase that and say I wanted to make it look super grainy and 35mm-ish. Can't remember what trail this was on...


Real camera was put away at this point, and I thought I was taking video with my new GaperVision helmet camera, but alas it was just taking lots of photos. So much for the season edit. Anyways, fun rock roll/rock section.


This little ender trail called Bottleneck was f'in awesome! Most of the stuff here isn't blazing fast shit, but this was relatively super fast, riding along the side of this hill with just insane jungle foliage, Jurassic Park ferns, and the works, which was really baked in by the total body soak I was experiencing and the lack of vision in both eyes. You could almost tell what was going on.


Anyways, big thanks to the Endless crew for being super accommodating, North Van Holiday Inn, Kathleen & North Shore Tourism for getting this whole trip set up!

Moar vacation to come...

[evdog]

Nice stuff. My former back yard! Sounds like you have some good hookups but comfortably numb in whistler is one of my favorite rides of all time, should still be primo up there if you can make it and want to get your twisty rock fix in. There might even be a wood bridge or two.

[TahoeJ]

Well, that looked fun. I keep meaning to get up to Whistler in both the summer and winter.

[mntlion]

nice looks fun

[shirk]

How long are you in N.Van?

I could drag you down some endless skinny's tomorrow after I get off work if you want.

You are correct that skinny's are no longer envouge here, but that doesn't mean there are not still hundred of them out there. One trip down boundary and you'll have your fill.

[smmokan]

That looks like a helluva lot of fun, I have to say. I need to get up to BC soon.

[LeeLau]

How long are you in N.Van?

I could drag you down some endless skinny's tomorrow after I get off work if you want.

You are correct that skinny's are no longer envouge here, but that doesn't mean there are not still hundred of them out there. One trip down boundary and you'll have your fill.

Dunfee- take him up on that if you can. Boundary is classically fun. Or maybe Natural High Immonator?

[WaistDeepGroomers]

How long are you in N.Van?

I could drag you down some endless skinny's tomorrow after I get off work if you want.

You are correct that skinny's are no longer envouge here, but that doesn't mean there are not still hundred of them out there. One trip down boundary and you'll have your fill.

Hey dude! We'll be here through about lunch, doing a ride near Seymour in the AM, then taking off for a Squamish ride, and then Whistler tonight. Feel free to join us for any of those, we'll be heading up to Squamish around 1 PM. Thanks for your offer!

[Swine]

Hey dude! We'll be here through about lunch, doing a ride near Seymour in the AM, then taking off for a Squamish ride, and then Whistler tonight. Feel free to join us for any of those, we'll be heading up to Squamish around 1 PM. Thanks for your offer!

Oh man, enjoy Squamish, that place is amazing!!!

Did you get the ghetto tubeless all set up for the trip?

[grinch]

Gettin the goods! Great time of yr to b there

[WaistDeepGroomers]

Oh man, enjoy Squamish, that place is amazing!!!

Did you get the ghetto tubeless all set up for the trip?

Yeah man, I'm pumped for a big ride there this afternoon! I didn't end up bringing my Slayer, riding one of Endless' Altitudes this week. Slapped the tires on the Slayer for two rides before I left though; waaaaaay better traction/climbing/cornering that anything I've run before. I'll do the tubeless conversion when I get back next week...

[406]

nice shots, have fun!

[Swine]

Yeah man, I'm pumped for a big ride there this afternoon! I didn't end up bringing my Slayer, riding one of Endless' Altitudes this week. Slapped the tires on the Slayer for two rides before I left though; waaaaaay better traction/climbing/cornering that anything I've run before. I'll do the tubeless conversion when I get back next week...

NIce. That Altitude should be perfect for Squam, I wanted a bit more than 150 for Half/Full Nelson, but everything else was golden with that travel. Keep the pics coming!

[WaistDeepGroomers]

How was Squamish?

Fuckin' SIIIIIIIIIIICK, dude! After riding so much tech, I was just laughing and hollering and screaming going down Half Nelson, which had so much variety of whoops, berms, jumps, hips that it was just like a Sonic The Hedgehog level the whole way down with perfect dirt and maybe four braking bumps top to bottom. Then we rode (I suffered, being in hour six of riding) up the climb to Somewhere Over There, which had some super fun rock rolls and really intense woodwork. Gotta run off to cover the Whistler premiere of Almost Ablaze in a sec, otherwise I'd post more of my pics.

Also, Whistler park is pretty rad! Very few out today, well-maintained big bike rental, and tons of fun berms and jumps. Gotta clean A Line before I leave, but shit are you going way faster than I'm used to hitting jumps... at any rate, pretty incredible riding here. Like, everywhere here. You guys have it good...

[WaistDeepGroomers]

PS if any Whistler mags are at the premiere tonight, HOLLA AT ME. I'll be in a jungle camo shirt with an obnoxious camera. If you are shredding the park tomorrow, PM me with your cell and we'll connect!

[WaistDeepGroomers]

Okay! Finally getting back to updating this TR.

So the third day, I went back to Seymour with a friend, Marty Lazarski, who used to be a ripping XC racer but now just destroys tech trails on 29ers with bald XC race tires. Onto the East side of the road this time...

The trees are big, thick, and plentiful here, and I'm pretty sure this was all new growth since the logging days:


Marty Lazarski:




Wild wet flora (i.e. mushrooms) all over the place. Just crazy how alive the ground is here.




Some high-speed chunky trail was to be had, didn't get good photos on the steeper parts but Marty was able to slam the pedals and get shit moving!




It was absolutely crazy how much shit was going on per foot of trail; just non-stop left-right-up-down-fast-slow-fore-aft-repeat. I don't think the bike was ever flat for more than a second at at a time. That being said, when the character of the trail changed, you really noticed it since things happened so fast. At this point, I was stunned to hear rubber sticking to smooth dirt and the chain quieting down for a brief moment. Marty don't care, though:


Some fun trails over there, definitely the rocks and roots weren't as grippy as Fromme and the main part of Seymour since they don't get ridden quite as much, as the rain made them slick instead of clearing away slippy mud and stuff. Managed to ride the downhills fine even though my rental Altitude had (gasp!) Nevegals on them, although this ride really tested me on the climbs. I think on the North Shore as a whole, I did pretty well on the descents, but must have fallen clean off the bike - like, off the bike, off the trails, ten feet into the woods ass end up - on the climbs 2-3 times. Definitely respect people (like Marty) who just clean climbs here no matter how many gripless roots there are. Anyways, here's Marty jumping alongside a cool tree!




Being a Rocky fanboy, I made sure we stopped by the headquarters nearby after the ride to indulge my Wade Simmons fanboyism. Apparently he doesn't work IN the office, something about riding bikes for a living, but it was cool to see.


Not sure how Rog's bike made it here, but they cleaned it up pretty good...


Factory stuff! These guys run a pretty small operation, and I have no appreciation or understanding of manufacturing equipment, but it was cool to see various machines moving, lots of prototype DH frames, and whatnot.


After the morning ride, it was time to steal the Altitude for a bit longer (thanks, Endless!), and head up to Squamish for an afternoon ride. Being vacation and all, it seemed fully appropriate to squeeze in as much riding in a day as I usually get in a week. Huzzah!

But first we had to drive on some shitty highway, the Sea To Sky something, which made me really long for New Jersey...


We pulled off the highway and drove up some logging road behind a university, and then starting climbing through some logged-up zones:


Moar climbing! After these two climbs + full morning at Seymour, I was fully smoked. But the key when you're a tourist jong is not to ask how much longer there is, how many more switchbacks, what time it is, or look up from your front tire at all:


We ultimately decided on the classic machine-built flow/jump trail, Half Nelson, which after three days of non stop tech, was like riding on a cloud from heaven paved with organic butter and Ben & Jerry's. HERO dirt, like sandpaper, the best of the whole trip, beautiful build, and just stupid stupid cackily, laugh-inducing fun the whole way down. It pained me to stop to shoot a shitty photo that did the trail absolutely no justice.


After that, everyone else marched back up while I limped along behind them. We climbed some stuff, went over a bridge, up and down and whatever, and were eventually atop the first rock roll of Somewhere Over There, which was another stupid fun trail, this time with rad wood builds and rock rolls.

Here Caleb aka bcfreerider, rolls through one neverending log bridge:


Crazy how quickly the light would change based on the density of the trees around, it was like being back East where you had to turn head lamps on even an hour before sunset:


Log bridge S-turns? Yes, please!!


Theo drops a rock roll...


And bcfreerider gets those Larry Bird arms into extension mode for style points:


Moar photos to come from Mecca (Whistler), as well as crappy POV video!

[grskier]

sick trip!!

[theswedishthing]

Fun times out there with you my friend! Stoked we got to play in Squamish, even if just for an afternoon. You're welcome back anytime

[joetron]

Gaaaah. That looks so good.

I must get back there next summer. Never ridden in Squamish<------For shaaaame!

[D(C)]

Great TR. Glad you got to enjoy our trails. It's always fun to hear a visitor's perspective.

[shirk]

Marty's a beast on the bike. Good to see you got out for some great riding.

[WaistDeepGroomers]

Gaaaah. That looks so good.

I must get back there next summer. Never ridden in Squamish<------For shaaaame!

Everyone I rode with told me Squamish was their favorite place to ride. Having only seen two of the trails, I can still see why. Just stupid good dirt, real good pitch of the mountains for building trail, and the addition of big granite slabs to roll down. Next time I go, I'm definitely spending more than an afternoon there.

Great TR. Glad you got to enjoy our trails. It's always fun to hear a visitor's perspective.

Oh man, you guys have it good. Especially being able to ride almost year-round. I was begging for a "flow" trail and a smooth climb at points, being so used to simpler high-speed trails here in Jackson, but it's so awesome how playful and jumpy and interesting every ride was.

Marty's a beast on the bike. Good to see you got out for some great riding.

Marty crushes, and his current six weeks of free time makes me wish I was a firefighter, too...

[LeeLau]

While it's fun gallivanting on fully expensed trips around the world everytime I come back i am reminded of how good we have it. The density of trails and the amount of variety we have is so overwhelming. Just counting bikeable from my front door are 30 odd trails on Fromme, 36 trails on Seymour and that's just the one's on the map. 15 minutes drive is Cypress. 40 minutes drive is Squampton, Burke, Eagle all of which have 100+, 20, 25 trails. If you go 2 hours that spreads the web to Whistler, and the Fraser Valley all of which are just as insanely good.

Dunfee, the next time you come and don't smoke crack and actually plan better than a coked out hooker I'll show you kilometers of skinnies.

Hanrahan if you come Shar will be sure to also go Wardening with you and I will ride my lowly whatever carbon throwaway bike i have for the season and we can ride endless rock faces or whatever trails go well with enduro lingerie