Steve's Mountain Bike Page
Turlock, California

Tahoe Rim Trail and Flume Trail, Lake Tahoe, Nevada

October 2, 2004

Kip, who I met on one of my first rides a few years ago, was looking for a new frame and he wanted to test the Maverick ML-7 from the Spooner Lake bike shop. So I invited Richard (Cohenfive) and Peter Thomas along. We did a 30+ miler: Tahoe Rim Trail (TRT) from Mt. Rose, Redhouse Flume, up the grueling Sunflower Hill, back north on the TRT down the switchbacks, and then down the Flume Trail to Spooner Lake. Kip let me try the Maverick and it was pretty impressive. Despite being an XL and looking huge, it seemed extremely light to me.

It was 34 degrees when we met for breakfast in the morning. I was a bit concerned when Peter, a Ph.D. student from England doing an internship in the Bay area, showed up wearing just a short sleeve shirt. Since there was a possibility of rain in the afternoon and we were going up to nearly 9,000 ft., I suggested he buy a jacket at the bike shop, which he did. However, by the time we hit the trail it had warmed just enough that we could wear short sleeves, since we were climbing quite a bit. Peter is the most skilled person I've ever ridden with. He has the bike handling abilities of a trials rider and he had no trouble hopping up and down nearly every obstacle on the trail.

Within about the first five miles Richard began having some problems with his front wheel, perhaps due to a fall. Although I have no idea how to use it, I've been carrying a spoke wrench in my pack for at least two years. So Kip used it to true the wheel well enough to allow him to continue. About half way through the ride it clouded up, cooled down, and it started raining a bit. Richard is a much better rider than he lets on in his postings. However, he started a cold the previous day and it caught up to him after about 10 miles. Although he had plenty of opportunities to bail, he stuck out the entire ride despite the ever worsening weather. About the time we reached the four mile downhill to Spooner Lake the temperature dropped 15 - 20 degrees and it really started raining. Add the wind from speeding downhill, and we all got dangerously cold and wet. If the weather had changed an hour earlier I would have been a bit concerned about some of the guys. Since I ride solo at Tahoe a lot I always carry a seemingly 100 lb. pack (including many tools I have no idea how to use), and I had plenty of warmer clothes. However, we knew we didn't have far to go so we just stuck it out. Despite the cold and rain for the last four miles we all felt it was a great trip, especially after some hot pizza!

Click on an image to enlarge it.

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Richard Peter Kip Richard
Kip, Peter		 Kip, Redhouse
Flume dam		 Richard, Red-
house Flume
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Sunflower
Hill		 Sunflower
Hill		 Sunflower
Hill		 Sunflower
Hil		 Another 
Rider		 Richard
Marlette Overlook
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Peter Kip
cool bike		 Richard, Kip
Peter		 Richard Peter shows
his stuff		 Another rider
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Another rider Peter shows
his stuff		 Trail crew Kip Richard Lake Tahoe
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Peter on
Flume Trail		 Peter on
Flume Trail		 Kip on
Flume Trail		 Kip on
Flume Trail		 Peter on
Flume Trail		 Peter on
Flume Trail
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Interesting
Weather		 Richard on
Flume Trail		 Bike work Marlette Lake Me Heading
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