Hall Ranch on the Heckler

I've probably written something like this before, but Hall Ranch has to be one of the nicest parks in the world. I'm not sure exactly what is about it; maybe it's the big sky views, open meadows, exposed rocks, and scrubby pines; maybe it's the fun flowing trails; it's probably both; but it's just great. That said we've had a couple of failed rides at Hall Ranch. Once we started up the Antelope trail with the full four of scaq, but Abbey was coming down with a cold, and it seemed that the exertion of the climb hit her like an asteroid. She was miserable, so we just stopped and went home. And last year Quinn took a hard fall coming down the smooth trails through the valley and seriously sprained his wrist. Here's a link to that story.

My favorite way to ride Hall Ranch is to start in the city of Lyons, CO, and ride up the road to enter the park on the Antelope Trail, then ride out and around the Nelson Loop at the north end of the park, come down the rocky Bitterbrush Trail, and roll back into Lyons from the south. Click here for the map.

This time it was just Quinn and me. We did several rides with just the two of us this year since Abbey has been busy being a drum major in the Cherry Creek High School Marching Band. It was a great ride; the Heckler seems to be working out really well for Quinn, and this trail was just the sort of thing it's made for. Here are some pics from the ride:

Alderfer Three Sisters on the Heckler

We were anxious for the chance to get Quinn out on the trail on the Heckler. We decided to go to the trail we've probably ridden more than any other; our favorite loop at Alderfer Three Sisters Park near Evergreen, CO. I thought the heavier bike and larger wheels might slow him down going up hill, but if anything he seemed faster. I'm sure it's largely mental, anyway.

 
This is tricky switchback. It feels scary as you come into it because it appears, from the bike seat, that the trail drops of steeply beyond the rocks on the outside of the turn. From this camera angle it doesn't look so bad. Not a fatal fall, anyway. Most cyclists we see walk this corner, but not Quinn, our switchback master.

Here's the trick to making the tight turn. Rather than stay in the center of trail on the approach, you swing your front tire out and up onto the adjacent rock face so you can cut the corner tight, but keep a smooth arc. The pictures probably show it best:

Quinn's Heckler

This is another retro-blog, written on Thanksgiving Day 2015...

Quinn is now riding a new Santa Cruz Heckler. When we first came to Colorado in 2012, Quinn had just outgrown his Scott Scale, with 20-inch wheels, so we up-sized him to a Santa Cruz Juliana, which I picked up used in Moab. The Julian was about the smallest 26-inch wheel, dual squish bike week could find, with a about a 13-inch frame. It's been a great bike for him. It was a little big at first, but he's grown at least a foot taller since then. So the new Heckler is 17-inch frame with 27.5-inch wheels.

Mountain bikes are rather expensive these days, even the cheap ones, so we were hoping to find a last-year's-model-closeout sort of deal this fall. I also wanted to buy it from a local shop rather than buying it online, so we spent some time looking locally, but most of what we were finding was still too pricey or not quite the right bike. Or both. So when this one showed up on Colorado Cyclist, with only one medium size left, we grabbed it. We didn't tell Quinn it was coming, so it was a pretty nice surprise for him. Lucky little shit.