In this issue:

1. Trail work suicide missions

2. Club member “Pua” Sawicki wins over-all at the 12-Hours of Temecula

3. Help save access to the front country trails in Santa Barbara

1. TRAIL WORK SUICIDE MISSIONS

Pushing yourself to the point of exhaustion or pure pain takes many forms. For some it is the discipline and pain to finish a grueling ride and set a personal best; for others it is a sacrifice of time to clear a trail reclaimed by nature.

There is a certain satisfaction and sense of accomplishment for those that test the demands of a ride – and the demands of reclaiming our trails from nature; in both endeavors sacrifice and discipline plays a big part – especially when it comes to cutting back poison oak.

At our last trail work session brushing Holy Jim and Trabuco, Steve Foster and Ethan Yotter were assigned to cut back the low lying “stringers” of poison oak growing on the Holy Jim Trail. Another member of the Warrior’s Society that has an ongoing furious battle with poison oak, and a love of battling it, was assigned to cut back the poison oak on the Trabuco Trail.

Only a select few are chosen for this “suicide mission” to cut back the areas of trail “taken over” by poison oak. Cutting back poison oak usually entails running a weed wacker with a Teflon blade attached – thus exposing yourself to the oil of the plant that causes the severe infection.

A few are blessed with the ability to fight oak on its own terms, suffering only minor wounds in the battle to reclaim our trails; But others, such as Steve Foster and Ethan Yotter – are not so fortunate as was the case for them both. Steve Foster is also active in trail work and access issues in the county park system and is a valued member of the Warrior’s Society.

The true test of a Warrior is not what he does for personal glory, but what he does to protect the tribe. Sacrifice for personal glory in one’s riding ability is a legacy of self, sacrifice for the benefit of the tribe to protect our access and battle against the ravages of poison oak is a legacy of self-sacrifice and the protection of the tribe. To combine both is a legacy to follow and a lesson to all…

Ya Ta Hey to all our volunteers, who in order to protect our tribe, have brushed the trails felt the slings and arrows of poison oak.

2. CLUB MEMBER “PUA” SAWICKI WINS OVER-ALL AT THE 12-HOUR OF TEMECULA

Pua took the overall solo lead (men & women) on the first lap and is back in the winners circle. She also will be in an upcoming spring issue of Shape Magazine.

For the full story and pictures to go:

http://teammata.com/news/

Congratulations Pua!

3. HELP SAVE ACCESS TO THE FRONT COUNTRY TRAILS IN SANTA BARBARA

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/382471548

Here is a link to a petition to help us keep access to the front country trails in Santa Barbara. Please send this along to your friends that mountain bike

In this issue:

1. “The Traverse” race on Saturday, September 8th

2. The Holy Jim, Trabuco and West Horse Thief Trails completely brushed

3. Running event in the Santa Ana’s on Sunday, February 4th

4. Hike the Morgan Trail on Sunday, January 28th

1. “THE TRAVERSE” RACE ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 8TH

Our new endurance event in 2007, “The Traverse,” is a 41-mile race with 7,000 +- total elevation gain. It will start at 5:00 a.m., which means most contestants will be done by 12:00 p.m. (7 hours) and get most of the climbing out of the way by 11:00 a.m.

After your feedback we decided to run the course from Black Star to the Trabuco Canyon Trail on the Main Divide. The start will be at Black Star Canyon Road and the finish will be at the end of Trabuco Creek Road and Trabuco Canyon Road (where the Pow Wow finish is). There will be one Aid Station at 4 Corners (Maple Springs and the Main Divide, a little over half of the way).

The event fee will be $65.00, which will include an event t-shirt, raffle prizes, food after the event, finishing awards for all finishers and CASH PAYOUT TO THE TOP 3 FINISHERS IN THE EXPERT AGE CATAGORIES AND EXPERT SINGLE SPEED CLASS. THERE MUST BE A MINIMUM OF 5 PARTICIPANTS IN EACH AGE GROUP OR THE AGE GROUP WILL BE COMBINED.

We will have the following classes and age groups:

Intermediate Class (male and female):

17 to 30
31 to 45
46 and up

Expert Class (male and female):

17 to 30
31 to 45
46 and up

Single Speed Class (male and female):

Intermediate (no age classes)
Expert (no age classes)

Only the expert classes will race for prize money, which will be determined based on participation and sponsorship cash provided by our major sponsors. We are hoping to have $500 for first place, $250 for second and $175 for third.

All those who finish will receive a finishing award.

Registration will open after the Toad Festival in May. Participation will be limited to 300.

From your feedback we believe this event will sell out like the Pow Wow so if you are serious about participating register as soon as registration opens.

2. THE HOLY JIM, TRABUCO AND WEST HORSE THIEF TRAILS BRUSHED

We had another great turnout at our trail work event last Saturday, January 20th. Thanks to all our volunteers, including the Trail Angels, which made it such a success!

We have now completely brushed the Holy Jim, Trabuco and West Horse Thief Trails and removed all the poison oak encroaching on the trails.

We gave a good two-year cut to 75 percent of these trails so in 2008 we can focus on repairing the Holy Jim and West Horse Thief Trails where the trail bed or their switchbacks are failing.

We will be taking February off from trail work so we can focus on the Pow Wow. Our next trail work event will be in late March or early April and we will be working on the Chiquita Trail.

3. RUNNING EVENT IN THE SANTA ANA’S ON SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 4TH

On Sunday, February 4th there will be a 50-K and 50-Mile run in the Santa Ana’s. The course will include Harding Truck Trail, the Main Divide Road between Harding and West Horse Thief, the West Horse Thief Trail, The Trabuco Trail and the Holy Jim Trail.

We have a lot of traffic on the trails with participants of both the run(s) and the Pow Wow out practicing so please use care when on the trails and avoid them the day of the running event.

For more information on the event see the Saddleback Twin Peaks 50K and 50 mile run’s web site at:

http://www.twinpeakstrailmarathon.com/

4. HIKE THE MORGAN TRAIL ON SUNDAY, JANUARY 28TH

The Santa Ana Mountains Natural History Association (SAMNHA) of the Cleveland National Forest invites you to join us for a hike on the Morgan Trail in the San Mateo Canyon Wilderness on Sunday, January 28th. We will be joined by an entomologist, geologist, and several naturalists. The trail is 5.4 miles, easy to moderate in difficulty.

Meet 8AM at the San Juan Loop Parking Lot (across from the Candy Store) on Ortega Highway (19 miles east of I-5 or 10 miles west of Grand Avenue in Lake Elsinore). We will shuttle from the parking lot to the Morgan Trailhead and hike one way on the trail. Participants should arrive at least 15 minutes early, wear appropriate clothing (long sleeves and long pants recommended), sturdy shoes, hat and sunscreen. Bring water and a snack. You are welcome to bring binoculars, camera, field guide books. Rain cancels the program.
End time: 2PM
Parking fee: $5 or Adventure Pass

If you would like more information on the hike or the Santa Ana Mountains Natural History Association go to: www.freewebs.com/santaanamountains or contact Debra Clarke, Wilderness/Trails Manager at 951.736.1811×3227 or drclarke@fs.fed.us

Upcoming programs:

Sunday, February 4
History Through Time
Geology caravan through the foothills

Saturday, March 31
Ecology of the South Main Divide Road area

?, April ?
Butterfly Hike with the North American Butterfly Association

Saturday, May 5
Ecology of Hidden Ranch

Saturday, June 2
National Trails Day – West Horsethief/Trabuco trail loop hike

?, July ?
Interpretive Hike and Insect Lighting at Caspers Wilderness Park

Saturday, August 18
Coastal Geology Walk

Saturday, September 29
Public Lands Appreciation Day – Twilight Hike at Aliso & Wood Canyons Wilderness Park

Sunday, October 21
Nature Hike at Starr Ranch National Audubon Sanctuary

Saturday, November 3
Hike the Harding Truck Trail and help search for the Neptune Crash site

Saturday, December 29
Trabuco Trail to see the Madrones

In this issue:

1. Our 2nd Trail Work Event of 2007 – Next Saturday, January 20th

2. Endurance Training Seminar presented by Vision Quest Record Holder

3. Proposed Warrior’s Society Events in 2007 – your input needed

4. The Project Rwanda Ride an outstanding success!

1. OUR 2nd TRAIL WORK EVENT OF 2007 – NEXT SATURDAY, JANUARY 20TH

For our second trail work event of 2007 we will be brushing the West Horse Thief and Trabuco Trails.

We will meet at the Holy Jim Trail Parking Area at 8:00 a.m. and work until 2:00 p.m. Lunch and drinks will be provided after the trail work. Bring a pair of gloves, snacks and water for while you’re on the trail, a change of cloths (optional) and a chair to sit in during lunch. We would appreciate your help.

If you can help out RSVP to:

countingcoup@warriorssociety.org

We are hoping to finish up the brushing of all the single track trails in the Trabuco Canyon area so we can take February off to focus on the Mountain Bike Pow Wow. Our next trail work event will be in March and we will be brushing the Chiquita Trail.

2. ENDURANCE TRAINING SEMINAR PRESENTED BY VISION QUEST RECORD HOLDER

Team Sho-Air member Cameron Brenneman, the geared and single speed suspended record holder of the Vision Quest event, will be presenting a seminar on training for endurance. The seminar is sponsored by Sho-Air Racing, Manitou, Shimano, Clif Bar and Cytomax. The seminar will be held on Thursday, February 8th starting at 7:00 p.m. at the REI store in the Terra Bella Mall in Huntington Beach. The Store is located off the 405 Freeway on Edinger Avenue at Beach Blvd.

The presentation will last about 30-45 minutes and then participants will be free to ask any questions they might have. The main focus will cover periodization and training for a peak event. This would be very beneficial for people who are training for Vision Quest and other events that are coming up.

The info can also be applied to any sport.

The presentation will include the following:

Planning for a peak event:
A. Periodization-what it consists of
1. Base training
2. Moderate intensity training
3. High intensity training
4. Tapering for a peak event
5. Benefits
6. How to deal with plateaus’

B. Overtraining-what signs to look for
C. Recovery-importance & how to decrease recovery time

3. PROPOSED WARRIOR’S SOCIETY EVENTS IN 2007 – YOUR INPUT NEEDED

The Warrior’s Society has decided to end our relationship with the Flying B due to problems we have had with one of the property owners. We are hoping that these issues are resolved in the future but we cannot count on them being resolved in time for our 2007 season.

Because of this, the only events we have concretely planned are the 2007 Mountain Bike Pow Wow (sold out) and the Toad Festival, to be held on Saturday, May 12th. The Toad Festival will be a fundraiser to support an organization that works to prevent teen suicide. Registration for the Toad Festival will begin in mid-March.

We are considering promoting another endurance event called “The Traverse” that will take place in the Santa Ana Mountains. The course is still under consideration but the proposed course will begin at Trabuco Creek Road where it ends east of O’Neill Park (the Vision Quest Finish Line). From the start you will ride up Trabuco Creek Road to and up the Trabuco Canyon Trail to where it ends at the Main Divide Road (the road that runs along the top of the Santa Ana’s).

From this point you would head north on the Main Divide Road and traverse over the top of the Santa Ana Mountains, including the back side climb up to Saddleback Peak. After passing Saddleback and Modjeska Peaks you will continue on the Main Divide Road hitting all the minor peaks until you reach Black Star Canyon Road. You will then descend down Black Star Canyon Road to the finish line at the Black Star Canyon gate (where we start the Vision Quest). The length is probably around 40 miles with about 7,000 feet of total elevation gain. The event will be a race with prize money for the top Open Class finishers.

We may also consider running it the opposite way, starting at Black Star and ending with participants descending down the Trabuco Trail and out Trabuco Creek Road.

Another event we are considering is a race up Holy Jim, across the Main Divide and down Trabuco, also with prize money.

We would like your input on these proposed events or any other suggested routes you feel would be a good course for future events.

4. THE PROJECT RWANDA RIDE AN OUTSTANDING SUCCESS!

Doug Grant, the organizer of the Project Rwanda Ride, has a wrap-up posted on their web site at:

http://www.projectrwanda.org/50mileride.php

Congratulations to Doug and his friends for organizing this ride!