web site: www.nrmbc.org
885 St. Charles Dr. #11, Thousand Oaks, CA 91360
805 373-8824 e-mail: mtbikesman@aol.com

September 2011

Remember to have your radios for the rides and tune them to channel 5.25.

Summary

The Fine Print

By riding with the North Ranch Mountain Bikers I understand and accept the following:

► I understand that mountain biking can be dangerous and accidents can result in either injury or death.

► I understand there is no charge for the bike rides.

► I understand that the trails the North Ranch Mountain Bikers ride may not be verified for safety or ridability.

► I understand that it is my responsibility to determine if my riding skills match the difficulty of the trail we are riding on.

► I understand that the ride leaders accept no responsibility for my safety on any ride and that I undertake any ride knowing that I and I alone am responsible for my safety on the ride.

WEEKEND RIDES

Saturday, September 3: Wildwood/Lynnmere.   Wildwood is a great place for an easier ride. There's a lot of neat riding (single track, fire road, creek crossings, and a small waterfall). We'll head out towards Lizard Rock via the fire road. At the base of Lizard Rock, there's a short hill that we'll be walking. From here we'll take the singletrack, that has a few technical sections (all walkable), down to the valley floor and head on to the falls for a short break. Then there's a climb up the Lynn Muir trail that we’ll be walking. Then lots of fun to be had on the singletrack that leads out to Lynn Road. After a couple miles of road riding we'll end up back at the main Wildwood parking lot. Meet at 9:00 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E2.5, Technical Rating = T3, 7 Miles and 1000 Feet of Climbing , About 2 Hours , Ride Leader: Randy

Directions:   Take the Lynn Road exit, off of the 101 Fwy in Thousand Oaks, and go north until you come to Avenida De Los Arboles. Turn left and go about 1 mile to the end. From Simi Valley, go west on the 118 Fwy and then south when it turns into the 23 Fwy. Get off on Avenida De Los Arboles and go right for about 2 miles to the end. Hang a U-turn at the end (watch for opposing traffic) and then turn right into the dirt parking lot.

Sunday, September 4: Sycamore Canyon from the Beach - Two Foxes & Wood Canyon.   We’ll meet at the parking lot restroom on the hill side of PCH. We begin with a ride up the Big Sycamore Trail. At about three miles, turn left on to Wood Canyon and then a quick right turn to Two Foxes for some single track riding. At the junction with the Sin Nombre trail we have two options: option 1, take Sin Nombre to Ranch Center Road; option 2, less experienced riders can turn right for a short distance and turn left at Big the Sycamore Trail; turn left at the paved Ranch Center Road. We regroup at the water tower and after a short break, continue down Ranch Center Road and turn left at Wood Canyon. The best part of this ride is blasting down Wood Canyon and then back to the main fire road and on to the parking lot. Meet at 9:30 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E2, Technical Rating = T2, 13 Miles and 950 Feet of Climbing , About 2.5 Hours , Ride Leader: Michael

Helmets are mandatory and please bring a two-way radio if you have one, set at 5/25, it helps keep the group together.
If you plan to attend, please RSVP to mk4524@yahoo.com

Directions:   For those who are coming from the San Fernando/ Los Angeles area: Take the 101 Fwy towards Ventura and exit on Kanan Road (make a left turn from the exit ramp).
Then make a right turn on PCH 1 and head towards Sycamore Canyon (it is approximately 14 miles northwest of Kanan Road and is on the right side).

For those who are coming from the Santa Barbara/ Ventura/ Oxnard/ Camarillo area: Take the 101S Fwy (101N for those who are coming from Thousand Oaks/ Simi Valley) and exit on S Las Posas Road (going towards PCH). Then go to PCH 1 South and look for signs to go to Sycamore Canyon (which is on the left side).

If you don’t want to pay the $12 fee for parking in the lot you can look for parking on PCH. For the ride we'll meet on the park side of Pacific Coast Hwy 1 for the ride (in front of the restrooms, located by the campground/ parking lot area, turn left after you pass the gaurd).

Monday, September 5: Space Mountain/Rosewood.   This is a fun loop ride with lots of singletrack and switchbacks for your biking enjoyment. We start with a singletrack climb up Space Mountain. Then we’ll continue along the Los Robles Trail to the "Lookout" and take a break at the picnic table. Then it’s time to catch some thrills as we make our way down the Rosewood Singletrack to Lynn Road. After a short jaunt on pavement we are back on dirt again. This portion of the trail has a few ups and downs and connects with the whoop-de-doo trail that leads back to the cars. Meet at 9:00 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E3, Technical Rating = T3, 8 Miles and 1500 Feet of Climbing , About 2.5 Hours , Ride Leader: Randy

Directions:   Take the 101 Freeway to the Moorpark Road exit in Thousand Oaks. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Take Moorpark till it dead-ends at Greenmeadow Avenue and park in the dirt lot on the right.

Saturday, September 10: Sycamore: Guadalasca - Backbone Loop.   We start off on the connector trail that leads to Big Sycamore Canyon Road. We’ll descend down into the canyon and take Sin Nombre over to Sage and make the climb up to the water tower. From here it’s a fast and fun decent down Wood Canyon. Then it’s another climb up to the top via Guadalasca. We’ll ride the fireroad over to Backbone and enjoy another great descent. After a short jaunt on Two Foxes we’ll head up the main fireroad and climb up the dreaded asphalt hill. From the top it’s just a short ride back to the cars. Meet at 8:00 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E3.5, Technical Rating = T3.5, 19 Miles and 2900 Feet of Climbing , About 3.5 Hours , Ride Leader: Charlotte

Directions:   Take the 101 Freeway to the Wendy exit in Newbury Park. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south on Wendy until it dead-ends at Potrero Road. Park in the adjacent dirt parking area.

Saturday, September 10: Sycamore Canyon from the Beach - Two Foxes & Wood Canyon.   We’ll meet at the parking lot restroom on the hill side of PCH. We begin with a ride up the Big Sycamore Trail. At about three miles, turn left on to Wood Canyon and then a quick right turn to Two Foxes for some single track riding. At the junction with the Sin Nombre trail we have two options: option 1, take Sin Nombre to Ranch Center Road; option 2, less experienced riders can turn right for a short distance and turn left at Big the Sycamore Trail; turn left at the paved Ranch Center Road. We regroup at the water tower and after a short break, continue down Ranch Center Road and turn left at Wood Canyon. The best part of this ride is blasting down Wood Canyon and then back to the main fire road and on to the parking lot. Meet at 9:00 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E2, Technical Rating = T2, 13 Miles and 950 Feet of Climbing , About 2.5 Hours , Ride Leader: Danusia

Please bring two way radios. Questions? Call Danusia at 805-277-8020. See you on the trails.

Directions:   For those who are coming from the San Fernando/ Los Angeles area: Take the 101 Fwy towards Ventura and exit on Kanan Road (make a left turn from the exit ramp).
Then make a right turn on PCH 1 and head towards Sycamore Canyon (it is approximately 14 miles northwest of Kanan Road and is on the right side).

For those who are coming from the Santa Barbara/ Ventura/ Oxnard/ Camarillo area: Take the 101S Fwy (101N for those who are coming from Thousand Oaks/ Simi Valley) and exit on S Las Posas Road (going towards PCH). Then go to PCH 1 South and look for signs to go to Sycamore Canyon (which is on the left side).

If you don’t want to pay the $12 fee for parking in the lot you can look for parking on PCH. For the ride we'll meet on the park side of Pacific Coast Hwy 1 for the ride (in front of the restrooms, located by the campground/ parking lot area, turn left after you pass the gaurd).

Sunday, September 11: Grasslands - Short Bulldog Loop.   We’ll bike over to Malibu Creek State Park via the Grasslands trail. Once inside the park we’ll proceed along the main fireroad, which passes through a fairly short but technical rocky streambed. After a short stop at the M*A*S*H site we’ll tackle the first 1.25 miles of Bulldog. After the steep but fairly short climb up Bulldog we’ll cut off onto Lookout Fireroad that will bring us down to a paved road in the Malibu Lake area. Then we’ll take Crags Road to a back entrance of the park and pedal back to the cars via the same path as before. Meet at 9:00 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E3, Technical Rating = T3, 14 Miles and 2100 Feet of Climbing , About 3.5 Hours , Ride Leader: Tom

Directions:   Take the 101 Freeway to the Lost Hills Road exit in Calabasas. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Park in the lot for DeAnza Park located on the northwest corner of Lost Hills and Las Virgenes Roads.

Saturday, September 17: Lower Merrill to Inspiration Point and Sunset.   This is a long ride with lots of singletrack thrills, technical challenges and good ‘ol So Cal history. We will park at JPL parking lot, ride pavement eastbound for a few miles, then up the Lower Sam Merrill where we will discover the ruins of what was once a very sheik resort and listen to Echo Mountain mock us. We will then ride the remains of the old Mt. Lowe Railroad Trail, up to the Inspiration Point where, if it’s a clear day, will offer some of the best views of the greater LA area you’ll find anywhere. Now the fun begins as we go down the Middle Sam Merrill, then down Sunset Trail, both white-knuckle adventures. For those not interested in the technical white-knuckle adventures, you can descend back down Mt. Lowe fireroad and meet up at Millard Campgrounds. Then the fun continues as we ride up Millard Canyon fireroad over to El Prieto singletrack which we take down and through the Arroyo, and back to the JPL parking lot. Meet at 8:00 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E5, Technical Rating = T5, 21 Miles and 4100 Feet of Climbing , About 5 Hours , Ride Leader: Tamara

Directions:   From Thousand Oaks: 101E; 134E; 2N; to 210E or 23N; or take 118E to 210E. Take 210 East and exit at Windsor/Arroyo Blvd., turn left at the off ramp onto Windsor and continue for about a mile. Park in the paved parking area on the left near the entrance to JPL, just before the street curves to the right becoming Ventura Street.

Sunday, September 18: Westridge to Eagles Rock w/ Trippet Option.   We start with a short, steep climb up the pavement to get to the Westridge gate. From here it's a gradual climb up to the Nike Tower. We keep riding all the way to the HUB for a quick fuel break then off to Eagles Rock. 

At this point we can decide if we want to go to Trippet Ranch or just do the loop back to the HUB. We will retrace most of our steps from the hub but end our ride with fun, fun descent down Sullivan Canyon. 

Then we will ride back to the cars on the paved road ending with a short, paved climb.



Note: This ride is all fire road with a few single track options here and there. If Trippet Ranch is added, the climbing will go up over 4K. Meet at 7:30 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E4, Technical Rating = T3, 25 Miles and 3500 Feet of Climbing , About 4 Hours , Ride Leader: Wendy

Directions:   From the Valley & TO
101 S
405 S
Sunset Exit: Take a right towards the beach
Drive about 2 miles
Mandeville Canyon: Right
Westridge: Left
Drive to the top past the 2nd BAYLISS street and park on the street. This is a residential neighborhood so please remember to keep your voices down.

Saturday, September 24: Cheeseboro/Dead Cow Rd/Lunch/Palo Comado.   This is a shorter version of the ride where we eat lunch on the ride and then try to finish after you are stuffed and tired. We start at Cheeseboro, head up to Sheperds Flat, & over to Palo Comado Fire Road. We climb up towards China Flats but cut over & up a Single Track to the top of Dead Cow Road. Then we descend down Dead Cow Road (Don’t you just love these names?) and have lunch at El Pollo Loco. After lunch, we head over to the old Jordan Ranch, over to & down Palo Comado, & out. Bring money for lunch. Meet at 9:30 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E3.5, Technical Rating = T4.0, 14 Miles and 1400 Feet of Climbing , About 3 Hours , Ride Leader: Randy

Directions:   Take the 101 Freeway to the Chesebro exit in Agoura. Head north and make a right on Chesebro Road. Follow the narrow road one-mile and turn right at the park entrance. Continue up the paved road 1/4 mile to the top parking lot.

Sunday, September 25: Santa Rosa/Wildwood/Lower Butte.   We start by climbing the hill behind CLU and traverse across the ridge toward the YMCA camp for a quick warm-up. After a short stop we’ll retrace our tracks and cut-off onto the Santa Rosa trail.  This is a very fun singletrack that is moderate to fairly technical.  We will regroup and take a short break at the top of the swithbacks above Wildwood Park.  Once down in Wildwood we’ll head up to Lizard Rock via the Stagecoach Bluff singletrack and down the E-ticket Lizard Rock singletrack to the valley floor and Paradise Falls.  Then there’s a fairly steep but relatively short climb up the beginning part of the Lynnmere trail.  After the climb, turn left for a lot of fun on the rest of the singletrack that leads out to Lynn Road.  We turn left on Lynn Rd. and an immediate left on Avenida de las Flores.  At the dead end we take the trail back into the canyon, past the Nature Center, up the fire road to Parking Lot 2, and continue to the park entrance.  Then we go east on the Moonridge trail and through the tunnel that connects to a path along a wash that drops us at Wildwood Ave.  We go left here for a short distance to the Lower Butte trailhead on the right.  This is the last tough climb of the day.  It's up and over the butte back to the Santa Rosa trail where we stay right for a relatively easy trip back to the cars. Meet at 8:30 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E4.5, Technical Rating = T4, 17 Miles and 2500 Feet of Climbing , About 3.5 Hours , Ride Leader: Jonathan

Directions:   Take the 101 Freeway to the Lynn Road exit in Thousand Oaks. At the end of the off-ramp proceed north. Take Lynn for several miles (it will turn into Olsen Road) until you reach Mountclef Blvd (at CLU). Or, from the 23 Freeway, exit at Avenida de los Arboles and go west. Turn right on Montclef (third stop sign), cross Olsen Rd. and park on the street.

Sunday, September 25: Cheeseboro for Beginners.   We'll be riding Cheeseboro, as it is an ideal place for a beginner's ride. Just watch out for the big rock with poison oak!! We'll ride 'til we drop, (to Shepherd's Flat) and turn around and ride back. I guarantee it will be a fun ride. Meet at 9:00 am and be ready to depart 15 minutes later.
Endurance Rating = E2, Technical Rating = T2.5, About 2 Hours , Ride Leader: Kerry

Directions:   Take the 101 Freeway to the Chesebro exit in Agoura. Head north and make a right on Chesebro Road. Follow the narrow road one-mile and turn right at the park entrance. Continue up the paved road 1/4 mile to the top parking lot.

NIGHT RIDES

Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday Nights.  See Summary Section of the Newsletter for meeting times, ride times are 15 minutes later. The lengths of all rides are between 10 & 15 miles with ride times of 1.5 - 2.5 hours. Lights are needed for the months of September to May. During the summer months they may not be needed, but it's a good idea to bring them just in case there's a delay. The specific routes taken for the night rides will be determined at the trailhead.

Meeting Locations for Evening Rides:

Calabasas Peak at Night.   Take the 101 Fwy to Valley Circle/Mulholland Dr. exit. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south (towards the ocean). Continue south on Mulholland and make a right on Valmar which becomes Old Topanga Canyon Rd. Continue on Old Topanga which will join Mulholland Hwy briefly and then continue on the left. Follow Old Topanga about 1.5 miles and look for the Calabasas Peak trail head on the right across from Summit to Summit trail.

Lang Ranch/Sunset at Night.   Heading north on the 23 toward Simi, get off at Sunset Blvd and turn right. Continue straight until just before you get to the guard shack. Park in the lot on the right.

MTB Backbone From Kanan - Moderate Pace.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Kanan exit in Agoura Hills. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Take Kanan for several miles until you reach the third tunnel. Park in the paved parking area just before the tunnel.

MTB Backbone from Kanan at Night.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Kanan exit in Agoura Hills. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Take Kanan for several miles until you reach the third tunnel. Park in the paved parking area just before the tunnel.

MTB Cheeseboro - Moderate Pace.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Chesebro exit in Agoura. Head north and make a right on Chesebro Road. Follow the narrow road one-mile and turn right at the park entrance. Park in the lower, paved parking lot (the gate to the upper lot is closed and locked at sunset).

MTB Cheeseboro at Night.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Chesebro exit in Agoura. Head north and make a right on Chesebro Road. Follow the narrow road one-mile and turn right at the park entrance. Park in the lower, paved parking lot (the gate to the upper lot is closed and locked at sunset).

MTB Chumash at Night.   Take the 118 Freeway to the Yosemite Avenue exit in Simi Valley. At the end of the off-ramp proceed north to Flanagan and make a right. Park on the side of the road at the end of Flanagan.

MTB Dos Vientos at Night.   From the 101 freeway, turn south onto Wendy Drive, towards the ocean. Continue for about 0.7 miles and turn right at Borchard Rd and head West 0.5 miles. Turn left on to S. Reino Rd taking this South for about a mile passing Maurice Dr. On your left as you pass Paseo de Leon will be a Church parking lot. We will meet there.

MTB Grasslands - Moderate Pace.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Lost Hills Road exit in Calabasas. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Park in the lot for DeAnza Park located on the northwest corner of Lost Hills and Las Virgenes Roads.

MTB Grasslands at Night.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Lost Hills Road exit in Calabasas. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Park in the lot for DeAnza Park located on the northwest corner of Lost Hills and Las Virgenes Roads.

MTB Grasslands/Las Virgenes View - Moderate Pace.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Las Virgenes Road exit in Calabasas. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south on Las Virgenes toward the ocean. Park in one of the dirt areas on the corner of Las Virgenes and Mulholland.

MTB Grasslands/MCSP/Las Virgenes View.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Lost Hills Road exit in Calabasas. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Park in the lot for DeAnza Park located on the northwest corner of Lost Hills and Las Virgenes Roads.

MTB Grasslands/New Millennium/Las Virgenes View.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Las Virgenes Road exit in Calabasas. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south on Las Virgenes toward the ocean. Park in one of the dirt areas on the corner of Las Virgenes and Mulholland.

MTB Johnson's Motorway.   Take the 118 Fwy and exit at Topanga Blvd. in Chatsworth. Head North and it will end immediately. Turn left onto Poema Place (don't accidentally turn onto the Freeway on ramp.) Drive West up Poema Place and park about 100 yards before the guard gate.

MTB Lang Ranch/Albertson at Night.   Exit the 101 Freeway on Westlake Blvd and head north for about 3 miles. When you go past the North Ranch Community Center you will go downhill and the first traffic light is at the corner of Westlake and Lang Ranch Parkway. Turn right onto Lang Ranch Parkway and drive about 0.8 miles to where the pavement ends and Albertson Fire Road begins.

MTB Las Virgenes Canyon at Night.   From the 101, exit Las Virgenes and turn North (away from the ocean). Proceed approximately 1.5 miles to the dead end.

MTB Las Virgenes Cyn - Moderate Pace.   From the 101, exit Las Virgenes and turn North (away from the ocean). Proceed approximately 1.5 miles to the dead end.

MTB Malibu Creek State Park.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Las Virgenes Road exit in Calabasas. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south on Las Virgenes toward the ocean. Park in one of the dirt areas on the corner of Las Virgenes and Mulholland.

MTB Reseda at Night.   Due to the extra drive, we will meet @ 6:15 and ride by 6:30. Meeting place: Take the 101 Freeway to the Reseda Blvd. exit in Tarzana. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south (towards the ocean). Continue up Reseda and park at the Caballero trailhead. Trailhead is on the left. If you pass the Braemar Country Club you’ve gone too far.

MTB Space Mountain - Moderate Pace.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Moorpark Road exit in Thousand Oaks. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Take Moorpark till it dead-ends at Greenmeadow Avenue and park in the dirt lot on the right.

MTB Space Mountain at Night.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Moorpark Road exit in Thousand Oaks. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south toward the ocean. Take Moorpark till it dead-ends at Greenmeadow Avenue and park in the dirt lot on the right.

MTB Sycamore - Moderate Pace.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Wendy exit in Newbury Park. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south on Wendy until it dead-ends at Potrero Road. Park in the adjacent dirt parking area.

MTB Sycamore Canyon at Night.   Take the 101 Freeway to the Wendy exit in Newbury Park. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south on Wendy until it dead-ends at Potrero Road. Park in the adjacent dirt parking area.

MTB Triunfo - Moderate Pace.   Exit the 101 Freeway going south on Westlake Blvd. Go south for about a mile and then turn west (right) on Triunfo Canyon Road. This will lead you to Triunfo Park. Turn left onto Tamarack St and turn into the second parking lot on the left. We start at the far west end of the park.

MTB Triunfo Canyon Trail at Night.   Exit the 101 Freeway going south on Westlake Blvd. Go south for about a mile and then turn west (right) on Triunfo Canyon Road. This will lead you to Triunfo Park. Turn left onto Tamarack St and turn into the second parking lot on the left. We start at the far west end of the park.

MTB Wildwood at Night.   Take the Lynn Road exit, off of the 101 Fwy in Thousand Oaks, and go north until you come to Avenida De Los Arboles. Turn left and go about 1 mile to the end. From Simi Valley, go west on the 118 Fwy and then south when it turns into the 23 Fwy. Get off on Avenida De Los Arboles and go right for about 2 miles to the end. Hang a U-turn at the end (watch for opposing traffic) and then turn right into the dirt parking lot.

Trippet Ranch to Overlook at Night.   Take the 101 Fwy to the Topanga Blvd exit. At the end of the off-ramp proceed south (towards the ocean). Continue up Topange approx. 5 miles until you reach Entrada which is the entrance to the park on the left. Follow Entrada to the park entrance.