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Bonsai Nut
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Introducing myself :)
01/26/20 at 1:55pm
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Hi all;

New poster, old biker Smiley  I'm in the process of moving to the Mooresville / Troutman area, and am excited about hitting some new dirt!!  I currently live in Orange County, CA, and my local trails include the ocean trails around Laguna Beach as well as the trails back in Whiting Ranch and Cleveland National Forest (Santa Ana Mountains).

I'm more of a cross-country biker than anything.  I like to hit the trails at dawn and go back into the woods far enough that I wake up the mountain lions Smiley  I'm up early this morning for a ride... just drinking my coffee atm.

Looking forward to hitting the trails and meeting some new people.  I was in Lake Norman State Park several months ago and chatted up a biker in the parking lot.  Sounds like a lot of nice dirt, with an interest in new connector routes and events.  Excited about the move!

Greg P (aka Bonsai Nut)
(oh and in case people are wondering, I am really big into bonsai)
  

“...there does seem to be a correlation between how hard people work for something and how much respect they have for it.” - Kioti
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traildog
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #1 - 01/26/20 at 2:23pm
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Welcome to the area!  Old, Old biker here.  Plenty of options in this area of the country and fortunately, no mountain lions.  Coyotes, foxes, raccoons, 'possums, deer and turkey are the wildlife you may expect to see, depending on when you ride of course.  Short track racing is on now into February, not my thing, but its available.  More in to cross country also.  Mainly ride Whitewater Center just due to proximity to where I live.
  
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IntheBush
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #2 - 01/26/20 at 5:42pm
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Welcome.

Hope you like rain.  Smiley

« Last Edit: 01/26/20 at 9:14pm by IntheBush »  

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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #3 - 01/26/20 at 7:54pm
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I had an owl dive bomb me at Beatty Wednesday night. That was new. 

Welcome Bonsai. if you like xc you’re in a good spot with LNSP and Mazeppa nearby, and Warrior Creek a bit to the west.
  
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Bonsai Nut
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #4 - 01/26/20 at 10:20pm
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I rode my bike today...

Heavy marine layer hovering over the coast.
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Climbing out of the canyon it is nice and clear.
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Looking north towards the San Gabriels.  Still a little snow up there just barely visible.
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18.5 miles, 3460 feet.  Beautiful morning in the mountains... and no mountain lions Smiley
« Last Edit: 01/26/20 at 10:23pm by Bonsai Nut »  

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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #5 - 01/27/20 at 2:04am
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If that's your local stuff, I have to ask-why you moving to NC?  I suppose ones retirement goes further here and there's way less hippies if that bothers you but it looks like you've got heaven outside your door.
  
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IntheBush
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #6 - 01/27/20 at 11:32am
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I concur..

Nice pics.
We've got some great local area trails that will definitely keep you on your toes and that are rideable year round.
And the mountains are challenging..

But compared to what you're used too, the first thought that comes to mind is you're going to have a hard time finding mountain bike nirvana here.

  

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Bonsai Nut
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #7 - 01/27/20 at 2:29pm
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SurlyDave wrote on 01/27/20 at 2:04am:
If that's your local stuff, I have to ask-why you moving to NC?  I suppose ones retirement goes further here and there's way less hippies if that bothers you but it looks like you've got heaven outside your door.


There are some nice trails here, for sure, and I will miss them.  However I also miss the beautiful deciduous forests of back east, the hero dirt single track winding through trees, the fall colors and change of seasons...  Also, much of what we do here is impacted by fire damage and/or risk.  Seems like every year is another big fire, and another 20,000 acres of back-country that is nuked back to the stone age.  Right now half of my favorite single track back in Cleveland National Forest is "off-limits" while they wait for the scrub to recover so the trails are stabilized.  I may never get the chance to bike on them again.

And then there's California.  Take everything bad you have ever heard about California, and believe it Smiley  Then assume it is worse than it sounds.  Since we moved here 20 years ago, the population of California has grown by about the same amount as the entire population of North Carolina.  And all of those people live in a narrow band along the coast.  The congestion is terrible... housing prices are through the roof... our schools are the worst in the country... our top marginal income tax rate is 13%... I could go on and on.  And the more the government tries to "fix" things, the worse it gets.

I get that I will have a two hour drive if I want to bike Pisgah National Forest.  But I also hope to be living within easy biking distance of Lake Norman State Park.  And everywhere I look I see communities around Charlotte that are interested in the biking community, and want to increase trail mileage and improve/expand bike lanes.

Did you know Tarheel TrailBlazers are actually mentioned in the Strategic Plan of the city of Troutman?  It's what brought me to this site!
  

“...there does seem to be a correlation between how hard people work for something and how much respect they have for it.” - Kioti
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #8 - 01/27/20 at 2:46pm
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IMHO you are going to love it here.  Most trails locally are cross country style.  The mountains are two hours away if you want more gnarly stuff.  That being said we are spoiled with the amount of trail options we have.  This is a great site to learn about what's going on in the local MTB community.  Enjoy!
  
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Bonsai Nut
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #9 - 01/28/20 at 3:44am
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JustinCeez wrote on 01/27/20 at 2:46pm:
IMHO you are going to love it here.  Most trails locally are cross country style.  The mountains are two hours away if you want more gnarly stuff.  That being said we are spoiled with the amount of trail options we have.  This is a great site to learn about what's going on in the local MTB community.  Enjoy!


Thanks!  And if I ever feel reminiscent, I can just go to:

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Those are high-definition streaming live cams from the top of Santiago Peak, which is the area where I frequently ride.  During the day I can look through the "west" cam, and almost make out my neighborhood Smiley  It's a good way to check if conditions are good for a ride Smiley

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« Last Edit: 01/28/20 at 3:50am by Bonsai Nut »  

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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #10 - 01/28/20 at 3:04pm
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when folks around these parts ride up on you, they tend to not say much, and grunt and grone a lot. Sometimes you might think it's a bear. I moved to the area 14 years ago, and still haven't found out where to get eyes in the back of my head. This may prove to be fetal if you go ride in Pisgah. You may think it's a Charlotte area rider, when it actually might be a bear
  
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Bonsai Nut
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #11 - 01/28/20 at 3:12pm
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Impaler 58 wrote on 01/28/20 at 3:04pm:
This may prove to be fetal if you go ride in Pisgah. You may think it's a Charlotte area rider, when it actually might be a bear


I use a bear bell when I am back in the National Forest - not for bears, but for mountain lions.  Even though attacks are rare, they do happen, and they happen where I bike.  In Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park (which isn't even as remote as Cleveland National Forest) there have been two attacks in the last ten years - including one fatality.  In my avatar, the woman on the left was attacked by a mountain lion and dragged by the face off the trail.  Fortunately she was biking with a friend who was screaming and throwing rocks, and two guys came down the trail and joined in and they were able to get the lion to let go and run off.

There was an attack on a three year-old kid (hiking with his parents) just two weeks ago.  Fortunately his dad threw a backpack at the mountain lion, and the lion dropped the kid and grabbed the pack.  Shortly afterwards, a mountain biker noticed a mountain lion in a tree overlooking the trail... carrying a backpack.  Glad it wasn't a kid instead.  (The kid is going to be fine, btw)  The rangers had to destroy the lion, which makes me sad, but lions are not to be messed with out here.

Guess this is a long-winded way to say I am used to being "critter alert" where I bike.  Attacks are still going to happen, and the risk won't stop me from biking.  We don't have any black bears in CNF, but they are up in the San Gabriels and the San Bernadinos.  I have bear spray in my bike locker if I ever bike where I think I might need it, but I actually haven't ever used it.  No brown bears / grizzleys in California however. 

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« Last Edit: 01/28/20 at 3:25pm by Bonsai Nut »  

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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #12 - 01/28/20 at 3:53pm
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Hey Greg!  I'm Will Washam, I live in Mooresville and am on the board of the Trailblazers and generally get myself into way too many advocacy, trail planning and trail building projects, lol.

You will be stoked on the variety of riding within a 20 min. drive.  We have LKN State Park (which is my most frequent riding spot), Mazeppa Park, and Fisher Farm (with all it's associated loops) all within 20 min of Mooresville.

The town of Mooresville has been really stoked on the use they have seen at Mazeppa so far and I wouldn't be surprised to see more mileage added there in the coming years.   

Fisher Farm has a great recent addition called Cedar Valley Bike Park which is arguably the best jump trail in CLT.  Add that to the other single track and you can put some great rides together out there.

LKN State Park is, well, the bomb!  There are 9 different loops that comprise the "Itusi" trail system and since they switch direction every year you get a refresh on all of you rides every 12 months.  I've been riding there as my main trail system for over 10 years and I still enjoy every single ride.

As folks mentioned, Mooresville isn't too far from Lake Hickory Trails (newly revamped trail system in Downtown Hickory), and of the Wilkesboro trail (Warrior Creek, Over-mountain Victory Trail, and Dark Mountain, ~30 miles total single track).  It's 1.5hrs to Rocky Knob Park in Boone, NC, and ~2 hours to the lift accessed mountain biking at Sugar mountain and ~2:20 to the lift accessed and connected xc trails at Beech Mountain Resort.

Enjoy the riding and I'm sure I'll see you out on the trails.

-Will
  

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Bonsai Nut
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #13 - 01/28/20 at 4:09pm
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TrillWill wrote on 01/28/20 at 3:53pm:


Enjoy the riding and I'm sure I'll see you out on the trails.

-Will


Thank you for all of the great info!  My daughter has been accepted as a transfer student @ App State, so some Boone trips may be in the immediate future Smiley
  

“...there does seem to be a correlation between how hard people work for something and how much respect they have for it.” - Kioti
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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #14 - 01/28/20 at 4:57pm
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Bonsai Nut wrote on 01/28/20 at 4:09pm:


Thank you for all of the great info!  My daughter has been accepted as a transfer student @ App State, so some Boone trips may be in the immediate future Smiley


Nice, my wife and I are App State Alumni.  They have a great cycling/mtb club.

  

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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #15 - 02/14/20 at 12:32am
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Some photos from yesterday's ride down Joplin and the Luge in Cleveland National Forest...

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« Last Edit: 02/14/20 at 12:36am by Bonsai Nut »  

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Reply #16 - 02/14/20 at 2:06am
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What some of us would give for some weather like that right now..

Here, it is a muddy, rainy mess.

Not always like this. The past two winters have been fairly warm, but extremely wet.
  

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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #17 - 02/14/20 at 3:05pm
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Just saw a note that January 2020 was the warmest January on record in North America...
  

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Reply #18 - 02/15/20 at 12:03am
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I don't doubt it..

The warm I can deal with. 

Normally, this time of year is generally cool and drier.
Many days where the low temps are in the upper 20's to 30's with highs in the 50's to 60. Prime riding weather later in the day, or an extra layer or two in the morning.

The last two years has been more like fall all winter long. Milder temps, but bi-weekly bouts of heavy rain. 

A lot of the trail surface around here is clay. When it gets water logged it turns to mud, and most trails close to prevent damage. There are a few exceptions with better drainage and a more rocky surface.

Within this general area, you will definitely want to check out Rocky River trail (private and well maintained place, $3 to ride last time I was up there, near Concord) and Uwharrie (Uwharrie National Forest, near Albemarle). Good drainage and generally open when nothing else is.. More of a mountain feel and without the long drive.
  

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Re: Introducing myself :)
Reply #19 - 02/15/20 at 12:22am
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I'm a former TTB from NC and I was in the Navy from 1970- 1974. I lived in Monterey, Ca. from July 73-July 74, but had only a road bike. I didn't start riding MTB until I got out of the Navy. I moved to WV. in 2016 and I sure do miss that warm weather. It's 8 degrees here and we have 4" of the white stuff on the ground!

Welcome to NC. Greg!!
  
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