got brakes? mt. elbert yard sale
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dude. what happened?
gotdirt said:
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wtf!
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Has a different meaning if you remember the Drew Cary show.gotdirt said:
Heal up, and please post the vid:thumbsup:
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I think I will bleed my brakes this morning before I head up there. I had a rear failure the otherday on something half as steep as Elbert.
Come on! Wake up and get the videos rollin and the stories flowin!
Glad your OK though from the sounds of it. Tell me about the North side! I am intrigued! Your exclamation to stay away draws me in!
Come on! Wake up and get the videos rollin and the stories flowin!
Glad your OK though from the sounds of it. Tell me about the North side! I am intrigued! Your exclamation to stay away draws me in!
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Pain pills knock ya out?
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one-handed keyboard pecking
well the short story is that my old-ish, probably-shoulda-been-bled, 160mm/XC, grimeca brakes weren't up to descending the highest peak in colorado...
that said, i was exceedingly lucky-- this coulda been catastrophic. i basically crashed on the only segment of the mountain that wasn't strewn w/ jagged rocks o'death.
but first, the summit ... after basically pushing/carrying our bikes (other than the occasional 60 yard ridable sections here & there) up from about treeline, we made it to the top (to the utter disbelief of all of the hikers!).
14,433 ft -- highest bike in CO (since mine is standing up
):
![]()
let the fun begin (one of the few switchbacks up there):
![]()
steep, loose, & rocky:
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IE, clearly smarter than i (body armor, full-face helmet, 8" travel bike...):
![]()
chris, on the maiden voyage of his spankin' new nomad w/ the plush free-ride fork :thumbsup::
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almost to the scene of the crime (i was robbed from the rest of the ride!!).
...you can see where the trail disappears on the ridge to the right. * :
![]()
*over that ridge the trail drops even steeper, basically straight down. at the top i was behind chris, trying to modulate my speed (alternately pumping f/r levers). my brakes quickly started to fade; as i flew by chris after nearly running him over i thought, "this guy is gonna think i'm a jack*ss for passing him like that on the downhill". (he later told me he was thinking: "d*mn, i want my money back for this nomad if the guy on the xc bike can overtake me like this!"
![]()
of course the pic doesn't do it justice; the perspective kinda flattens it out (we're probably just a bit under 13,000 ft at the top of this hill).
...it wasn't long after i passed him that i realized i was in serious trouble-- i've got both brake levers to the bar now, and i'm not slowing down, the bike is pointed straight down the mountain, and i don't know what is over that next ridge! now i was flat out scared and officially out of control. to make matters worse, my forearms and hands are now on fire, burning and cramping and i realize that i'm literally not gonna be able to hold on to the bar, much less the brakes, for much longer. :eekster:
my only choice was to try to cut off trail, perpendicular to the fall line, and cut some speed (cyclo read 28mph). i cut right, and immediately had the dreaded sensation of my hands just letting go-- despite my brain screaming "hold the f**k on!!!". i collapsed like a rag doll as the bike came down hard on the right. i distinctly remember seeing the green grass coming up at me in a blur, in slow motion, as i turned my head and hit the ground.
my divet:
![]()
the wind knocked out of me (hate that feeling), i'm squirming on the ground trying to breathe, at the same time taking mental note of where the pain is coming from. chris & taylor run up to me (the latter telling me later he was thinking, "where the h*ll are they gonna land a chopper up here?!"). i catch my breath, realize i'm missing a shoe (but thankfully none of my teeth!), my new pack has been ripped from my waist, and my leg is bleeding in a few places...
well the short story is that my old-ish, probably-shoulda-been-bled, 160mm/XC, grimeca brakes weren't up to descending the highest peak in colorado...
that said, i was exceedingly lucky-- this coulda been catastrophic. i basically crashed on the only segment of the mountain that wasn't strewn w/ jagged rocks o'death.
but first, the summit ... after basically pushing/carrying our bikes (other than the occasional 60 yard ridable sections here & there) up from about treeline, we made it to the top (to the utter disbelief of all of the hikers!).
14,433 ft -- highest bike in CO (since mine is standing up
):
let the fun begin (one of the few switchbacks up there):
steep, loose, & rocky:
IE, clearly smarter than i (body armor, full-face helmet, 8" travel bike...):
chris, on the maiden voyage of his spankin' new nomad w/ the plush free-ride fork :thumbsup::
almost to the scene of the crime (i was robbed from the rest of the ride!!).
...you can see where the trail disappears on the ridge to the right. * :
*over that ridge the trail drops even steeper, basically straight down. at the top i was behind chris, trying to modulate my speed (alternately pumping f/r levers). my brakes quickly started to fade; as i flew by chris after nearly running him over i thought, "this guy is gonna think i'm a jack*ss for passing him like that on the downhill". (he later told me he was thinking: "d*mn, i want my money back for this nomad if the guy on the xc bike can overtake me like this!"
of course the pic doesn't do it justice; the perspective kinda flattens it out (we're probably just a bit under 13,000 ft at the top of this hill).
...it wasn't long after i passed him that i realized i was in serious trouble-- i've got both brake levers to the bar now, and i'm not slowing down, the bike is pointed straight down the mountain, and i don't know what is over that next ridge! now i was flat out scared and officially out of control. to make matters worse, my forearms and hands are now on fire, burning and cramping and i realize that i'm literally not gonna be able to hold on to the bar, much less the brakes, for much longer.
:eekster:my only choice was to try to cut off trail, perpendicular to the fall line, and cut some speed (cyclo read 28mph). i cut right, and immediately had the dreaded sensation of my hands just letting go-- despite my brain screaming "hold the f**k on!!!". i collapsed like a rag doll as the bike came down hard on the right. i distinctly remember seeing the green grass coming up at me in a blur, in slow motion, as i turned my head and hit the ground.
my divet:
the wind knocked out of me (hate that feeling), i'm squirming on the ground trying to breathe, at the same time taking mental note of where the pain is coming from. chris & taylor run up to me (the latter telling me later he was thinking, "where the h*ll are they gonna land a chopper up here?!"). i catch my breath, realize i'm missing a shoe (but thankfully none of my teeth!), my new pack has been ripped from my waist, and my leg is bleeding in a few places...
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Terry, I'm very glad to hear you weren't seriously hurt; you were incredibly fortunate, as I'm sure you know. Well done getting off the bike at that speed as well as you did, whether it was intentional or not, your brain worked it out and you walked away. I guess there's something to be said for a set of good ole' V-brakes in extreme environments, eh?
In answer to Taylor's question:
Geez, man, if I thought you were that serious about getting into a helicopter, I might have suggested some other options!gotdirt said:
In answer to Taylor's question:
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