Head Over Heels: How Not to Ride A Mountain Bike on the San Juan Trail

There’s nothing quite like the feeling of utter helplessness that overcomes you when you’re pitched head first over your handlebars and down a steep, rocky slope. Now, any experienced mountain bike rider will tell you that there are three simple rules you need to follow to avoid just such a situation. They are:

1. keep your weight to the rear of the bike by getting your ass way out behind the seat,
2. don’t use your brakes (especially the front ones) when working over the tricky bits, and
3. be sure to maintain enough momentum so that you don’t unexpectedly stop and fall over.

These rules seem simple enough; yet, at the most inopportune times I inevitably forget at least one of them, resulting in the aforementioned cranium led launch into the abyss.

My latest encounter with some challenging downhill single track mountain biking occurred in the mountains just outside of San Juan Capistrano near the coast of southern California. My good buddy Mike has been attacking trails on a mountain bike throughout the west for a good ten years, and currently makes his home in Orange County. During a recent business trip to the area, he assured me that a ride on the famous San Juan Trail is a “must do”. He also insisted that anyone in possession of some basic riding skills (like those I mentioned above) should be able to do it “no problem”.

Now, far be it from me to doubt my buddy’s claims, but I know Mike to be one of those slightly crazed thrill seekers who fearlessly throws himself out of airplanes and thinks it’s cool to push the depth limits of his SCUBA gear. He’s a semi-pro skateboarder that likes to go surfing to “relax”. I figured I’d better get a second opinion.

According to an article in Singletrack Mind (http://www.singletrackmind.com/), the San Juan Trail is “virtually 19 miles of exquisite single track through delightfully scenic and rugged wilderness with not a shred of intervening fire road or pavement.” So far so good. Unfortunately, it goes on to say that the trail is located in “California's most appealing yet unforgiving terrain”, and that “regardless of the distances traveled on the San Juan Trail, one's body and mind are completely drained by trails' end.” If that wasn’t enough to put the fear of God in me, the following description had me convinced my time would be better spent sipping beers in the stands at a baseball game. “The panoramic views are staggering. However, for those who take their eyes off the immediate trail ahead the penalty can be life-threatening, as much of the trail clings to steep hillsides and ravines.”

Still, far be it from me to show any sign of weakness (or sense), and by mid-afternoon this past Wednesday I found myself perched atop an unfamiliar, undersized mountain bike at the top of the San Juan Trail. The trail boasts some pretty large elevation changes, and can be done one of two ways:

1. Really insane riders can start at the bottom and push like hell up 10 miles of steep switchbacks to get to the top, and then turn around and ride back down. This is how Mike usually does it.
   
2. Slightly less cerebrally challenged riders can use the shuttle technique, where a vehicle is left at the bottom, and a second is used to ferry the bikes via back roads to the summit.

Since my conditioning is suspect, Mike opted to swallow his pride and we used option 2. All I can say about that is THANK GOD!! Using the shuttle option, it becomes an eleven-mile ride, with a total elevation drop of around 2,500 ft. Even so, there are numerous uphill grinds, including one climb that goes on for the better part of a mile. Oh yeah, and did I forget to mention the part about it being August in Southern California? We Canadians aren’t used to doing anything in that heat, let alone attempt to ride a bike up the side of a steep, sun-drenched slope.

Mike and I posed for photos at the top of the climb. He’s looking fit and happy. I look like I’m about to collapse.

Which brings me back to the subject of rather unceremoniously ejecting oneself from one’s bike. I was amazed at how skillfully Mike was able to guide his bike over, around, under and through some of the gnarliest mountain biking terrain I have seen. At the same time, I wasn’t at all surprised at how these same challenges regularly resulted in separating me from my bike – sometimes on purpose, other times… And sure enough, at one point fairly early on, bursting with confidence, I hit a rocky stretch at speed, completely oblivious of my neglect for at least two of the three simple rules. Leaning forward to get a better view of the trail I hit the brakes to avoid a big rock and there I went, over the handlebars and into the boulders. Needless to say, I dedicated some skin to the San Juan Trail.

Without a doubt, the San Juan Trail provides some spectacular views of the Santa Ana Mountains and the Cleveland National Forest in Southern California. At the same time, it presents riders with some ridiculously advanced mountain biking challenges. If you get a chance to ride it with someone like me, keep one thing in mind: make sure the dinner reservations are for really late, because it’s gonna take me a long time to get to the bottom!