Today was supposed to be another fun big-group newbie ride, but because of the rains it was cancelled… but there were some of us who still “pushed” through despite the risks of a much wetter/muddier trail. It was worth it!
More photos hereI went with Bruno, Alan and AJ. I ended up being the newbie there as the former two already compete… and AJ while a “newbie” biker as well, seemed to have this monstrous endurance!
What’s Old is New Again
We did the exact same path we did last time, but deviated at the end by extending a bit to a different area 1 We reached the perimeter walls of the Reserve before heading back.
However the experience was totally different now, to say it was harder was an understatement.
I got dizzy at the same exact spot; the first major uphill – which kinda suggests that that particular uphill was more arduous than the others that followed… and that it was the first one you’d hit doesn’t help (since I don’t warm up or anything). Next time, I’m definitely going to pace myself there.
Cleats
This was also the time I decided to wear cleats. I’m not sure if it was a dumb or smart move given that the first time I had chosen to use them outside of road conditions had to be in a more dangerous situation. I’m so glad that I didn’t experience falling because of them… was always able to clip-out somehow.
Fall
I did fall however – in singletrack path we loved to bomb through the first time we went. Apparently the “bamboo-rail” paths are super slippery when wet; so when Alan and I got to one part… we slid out of control hahaha! Good times! But Bruno only got a shot of me falling hahahaha!
I’m still glad though, that I didn’t fall because of the cleats.
Cramps
I also got my first taste of biking cramps. Not the cramps that come from putting some unnatural strain on a body part, 2 I get that a lot whenever I would try doing some weird posture but a natural cramping up of the hamstrings because of muscle fatigue.
I guess a factor would be that the trail; while it was the same route, it was much more difficult because of the wet mud – everything felt so much heavier! Also, I couldn’t hydrate properly at some point; I already sucked out all the liquid part of my bladder… leaving just the ice (and coincidentally, that’s when I started cramping up as well)
Didn’t give up though, so that’s a good thing. I did feel frustrated on the downhills on the way back because I couldn’t go as fast as I wanted; the cramps would return and I’d instead use the downhill runs to “stretch” my legs – which doesn’t really put me in a good “downhill posture.”
Overall
The best description I could give this ride was that it was a man’s trail ride; because women would definitely hate it… and God knows I myself found myself cursing so much at some point wether it be because of cramping up, or how heavy the fucking soil was, or how the uphills seemed to never end. But it was very fulfilling as far as “no pain, no gain” is concerned
We finished the same route plus a few extra kilometers by lunch (I think) – that’s about 2-3 hours earlier than when we did it when it was dry and shorter. So that definitely felt like an accomplishment for me.
I think the mud is okay with me.. the problem is that if the cleats get muddied, the mud can cake and it’ll be hard to unclip :O so that’s a bit scary.
When you fell, the shoes unclipped just like that?
Aha, one more thing.. after this, with you using the cleats off-road for the first time, would you recommend cleats for a newbie at La Mesa (say, along the easier trail you did last time)? Some MT bikers are complimenting my decision to get cleats this early. But there are some who also believe in sticking to platforms and toeclips – parang Mac vs. PC ata eh, hahaha.
@Ria
Yep, the shoes just unclipped – I guess it’s because my pedals were the multi-release type. It is worth saying though that I think it would depend talaga on the pedals you’re using. Bruno (one of the bikers I was with) had just upgraded to Crank Brothers Eggbeaters and claim that they release much easier than his “lower end” Shimano SPDs (I use the XTR SPDs) despite being single-release.
About the caking; haven’t experienced it hardening yet since it was pretty wet that day. But again, there’s a pretty good chance din that “that” difficulty would depend din on the design of the cleats. Looking at my friends Eggbeaters… its hard to imagine how even caked cleats would get “stuck” on them. Also mine are said to be coated with Teflon and have an open-binding mechanism specifically designed to shed mud better… so those may (or may not) have been factors.
About off-road usage of cleats; that’s a really good question… not sure if I know the answer to that. My knee jerk reaction is to say yes because I didn’t experience problems, despite having the same fears any newbie cleat user would have… but then again, I might have been just lucky that time din.
Wearing cleats kse daw talaga is one of those things that you can’t avoid falling down once in a while no matter how good you are.
So I guess the real question is how averse you are to getting your legs scraped. If you absolutely don’t want to “blemish” your legs (which is perfectly understandable for a woman), impossible ata ma-achieve yon on clipless.
And, once more, depende din talaga sa design/construction ng pedals.
What I did for La Mesa that day was to wear knee pads sa umpisa to be safe… then mga halfway through inalis ko na sila when medyo napansin ko na manageable yung terrain. (Well, actually inalis ko din kse nagka-cramps ako, and baka daw dahil nacoconstrict yung blood flow sa legs ko)
With regards to toeclip vs. clipless. From what I see on how toeclip pedals work – a toeclip system for MTB riding is kinda risky. Parang hirap imagine how “safe” a toe-clip system works on an off-road setup.
My opinion is that you can still get your feet stuck on a toe-clip system (I mean stuck long enough to fall, siyempre mas madali siguro to disengage when you’re already on the ground) if you don’t commit to muscle memory the disengagement motion.
Having said that, assuming that you have the motions committed to muscle memory… you need fast disengagement sa MTB especially on off-road conditions, and that’s where lalamang ang clipless over the toeclip. In other words, it’s faster (and less prone to errors) to twist your feet to release on a clipless system – rather than having to move your whole lower leg back (no matter how small the movement is) to release on a toe-clip system. Given off-road pa, you’re not sure ano angle ng katawan mo when you have to clip out; what if your weight is being pushed forward… medyo mahirap hilain na legs mo palikod non… mas madali to just twist your feet di ba?
And from what I’m seeing how toeclips work, they put a lot some weight on the pedal up front which will swing the pedal downwards when not in use… so “putting them on” would be quite a hassle especially when you’re in motion. So just imagine having to do that off-road, where you’re have to disengage once in a while, while having to keep moving.
I think they’re really better for road use if ever someone considers using them. Using them on an MTB is just asking for trouble.
I’d say you made the right decision just going straight to clipless. Tutal, even if you went through the whole toeclip “stage” – it would only be temporary… you will have to graduate to clipless sooner or later. And once you do, you’ll experience the same learning curve regardless if you came from platforms or toeclips. So kung ganon din pala, eh di dumeretso ka na para di ka na gumastos sa toe clips hahahaha
Sa 19th, before Jeline’s dinner game ka ba to bike around the Village?
Wow thanks for that reply. Regarding leg blemishes, I think I’ll wear tights.
Ack, I should’ve gotten multi-release cleats. I have the lower-end Shimano pedals, single-release. But it’s easy to disengage since the setting is loose.
About the 19th, sayang I won’t be able to bike with you guys. I actually have work that day (Monday deadline, and the materials will not arrive till Sunday morning – TV work eh). The Soulsearch dinner will be my break time. 😀
And I have yet to get used to putting the bike inside our Jazz. It took two of us, the last time.
I want to get shoes/cleats like yours (yung may teflon coating).. hmm, reward ko na lang siguro sa akin when I’ve improved. Hehe.