I am off the California in a few weeks time to ride some of their singletrack and was just wondering whether anyone on here has any experience of riding there?

If so, I am just putting together the list of first aid requirements I need to keep on board whilst riding, the usual stuff like bandages, saline cleaning solution, stitching stuff, bite stuff etc. goes without saying – but I have heard about 'Poison Oak', so do I need stuff for this? And can you think of anything else that would be useful to have on board?

Any help would be great and thanks in advance.

Riding through much of SoCal you're likely to experience frequent groin strain, particularly in coastal areas.

Dont know about the first aid, but i'd recommend the flume trail in south lake tahoe, or northstar for that bike park experience. Also mammoth is cool, but a bit far off the beaten path. Natural hot springs a nice touch….

Not to be alarmist, and it's highly unlikely that you'd need it, but amongst the bite remedies you take should be one for rattlesnakes. 😯

I have ridden in SoCal quite a bit, around the canyons north of San Diego (OK so it was, like getting on for 17 years ago) and Ratlers are pretty common on the trails.

It's been a while since I rode there too, but there were shops there, with stuff to buy (cheap) and good advice (dare I say better than on here, in this case)

Flume trail – still speed restricted – 15mph??

poison oak – you need to be able to identify it so as to avoid but just brushing past it isn't so bad I was told. Falling in and breaking stems etc is what causes the trouble

I was recommended alcohol wipes or rinsing with lots of water soon after a known fall into the stuff (or later can use "special" washing products for skin & clothes – it can stay on your clothes for ages I think). I once got really sore eyes during a ride and emptied all my water into them, then had a 10 mile ride back to the car with no water in 90-100 F temps and very dry air
(pretty sure it was just sweat/suntan lotion anyway 😳 )

as suggested, aska local pharmacy, or could try asking someone on these sites, they'll maybe even be able to give you specific advice for where you're riding
http://www.geoladders.com/routes.php
http://www.socaltrailriders.org/forum

(I'm off to orange county tomorrow 8) )

(have seen tarantulas & rattlesnakes on the trails, no lions yet although the place I'm staying is where the biker was killed by one a few yrs ago)

Rattler, sunning itself by the side of a fireroad in the Marin Headlands:

I took a venom extractor kit on my Costa Rica kayaking trip last year, but to be quite honest with you, it was purely for the psychological reassurance of my companions. I knew full well that in the event of a serious bite, it would probably be as useful as a chocolate teapot.

Nice work, whereabouts are you heading? I live in Thousand Oaks, NW of L.A. Moved out here 12 months ago with work. If you are anywhere near drop me a line, we ride pretty much ALL the trails from West L.A to Santa Barbara, and there are lots !!

Now its warming up (It was 112 degrees at 18:30 this evening !!) we see Rattlers pretty much every week, saw a HUGE one a few weeks back just chillin in the middle of the trail!! Turantulas that will fit in your hand and Coyotes if you are out after dusk (but they are scared shitless most of the time) I have ridden with a few guys who carry a "Bite Kit" for snake bites, but its simply for giving you more time if you get bitten. Generally the big adult Rattles scarper very quickly, but its the babies that are the dangerous ones, as they cannot control the venom.

One thing I'd recommend is getting the BIGGEST Camelbak bladder you can carry, the biggest shocker for me was the heat and hydration!

If you want any help with anything my email is nathan dot thomas at technicolor dot com

Cheers

Some pics to get you in the mood:

Wildwood – my back garden

Backbone Trail – Kanan – Malibu

Kerneville

Squirrel Mountain

Santa Clarita – Castaic

Some fun at Big Bear – Snow Summit last weekend.

Some good advice here thanks, re the local pharmacies etc.!!

Mmmmm???? Rattlers! 😯

dh – Member

Dont know about the first aid, but i'd recommend the flume trail in south lake tahoe, or northstar for that bike park experience. Also mammoth is cool, but a bit far off the beaten path. Natural hot springs a nice touch….
Yeah, I am going to ride the Flume trail just for the experience & we are also heading to Mammoth too, so thanks for the recommendation! – really starting to get excited now!!

Even more so now thanks to B A C O N!!! Cheers for the pics buddy…..that has really got me going (I'm going to drive the missus mad, seeing that she is staying at home and all I seem to talk about at the moment is the trip!!)

b a c o n – We will be heading your way around the 19th/20th Sept and we should be around for a few days – it would be great to be shown a few places around that area, because at the moment the only one we know around there is Aliso-woods Canyon? Then we were going to take 'Route 1' up the coast to Santa Cruz and see what we came across, but that doesn't mean to say we need to stick to that route, if the riding dictates!?!? 8)

scaredypants

as suggested, aska local pharmacy, or could try asking someone on these sites, they'll maybe even be able to give you specific advice for where you're riding
http://www.geoladders.com/routes.php
http://www.socaltrailriders.org/forum

Thanks for the links buddy – very useful!

Cool, ping me a mail when you're ready.

Also you might want to register on ww.socaltrailriders.org especially if you're planning on riding Aliso, as there are lots of friendly locals.

Nath

b a c o n – Member

Cool, ping me a mail when you're ready.

Also you might want to register on ww.socaltrailriders.org especially if you're planning on riding Aliso, as there are lots of friendly locals.

Nath
Certainly will give you a shout buddy and thank you very much for the offer! Thanks also for the tip on SoCaltrailriders – I will look them up later today.

2retro4u
Marin County, Cali

Bumping this to the top because ltheisinger made it out to California. We first connected here at STW when he asked about riding in the US and I told him to let me know when he was coming out.

He made it out yesterday, and got a ride to remember. Joe Breeze and I were featured a few weeks ago in the BBC programme "The Ride of My Life," and we gave Leon and his mate Chris the same ride that was shown in the film along with some riding that was not in the film. We rode miles of private singletrack and climbed some hills a little taller than what they were used to, finishing with a run down the original downhill course in all the world, my namesake Repack.

Then the two were off to Downieville for another legendary downhill MTB run, followed by the Flume Trail at Lake Tahoe. They are checking off the top ten MTB trails in California in a single vacation. I LIVE here and I don't get to ride all those places.

Think you may have helped make someones holiday a bit special 🙂

haha! was that you on the TV I saw that program was good, and i hope the op has a great time on holiday.

I thought I would just check STW out whilst sat in the RV with a beer waiting to ride Mammoth Mountain tomorrow!

A BIG thanks to Charlie & Joe for showing us the singletrack & of course the 'REPACK'!!! We had an awesome day with two legends of MTB and will never forget the ride and the hospitality shown by Charlie & Joe!

Since meeting up with Charlie & Joe we have indeed ridden both Downieville (Monday) & the Flume Trail (Today)….

More to look at after Mammoth tomorrow – in fact another tens days to go before we finish our riding around California!

I will post up some pics as soon as we get home – but here's a couple to keep you going….

Me, Charlie & Joe at the top of the Repack.

Me Charlie & Joe at the beginning of our ride (note the sign…CLASS!)

Thanks again guys – it was a ride to remember!

theres bears in california, carry bells and pepper spray!! No Grizzlies though!!

Re the sign: BC is British Coulmbia no? Slightly to the North of California if my atlas is up to date 😉

🙄

pe·dan·tic? ?[puh-dan-tik]

Overly concerned with minute details, a narrow focus on the trivial aspects of learning. Striving for the upmost correctness, eliminating ambiguity, and often missing the whole point of the joke![/i]

2retro4u
Marin County, Cali

A better image of the sign we posed in front of. Rules are rules.

I saw the program featuring Repack last night, great little MTB history section.

It's great that two people so tied up with mtb history are willing to meet some riders and show them around 🙂

You've really got to piss a rattler off for it to bite you, though I suppose running it over with a bike might constitute pissing it off. I'd be more concerned about sun protection and hydration personally 🙂

You've really got to piss a rattler off for it to bite you

So beware that the sound of your Hope pro II hubs may well be interpreted as another rattler invading their territory !