Category: Countryside

Countryside, GPS, MTBing, Photos, Racing

National Cup Mountain Bike Race in Huayapam

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The nearby village of San Andrés Huayapam hosted a mountain bike race sponsored by the Federacion Mexicana de Ciclismo on Sunday, 24 April 2016. The event took place in Huayapam’s ecotourism park, adjacent to the two presas which serve as water reservoirs for Huayapam and Tlalixtac. As is the custom with other local closed-course races, the main race was preceded by several rounds of shorter races for kids. The main event got under way about 10:30 am and featured riders from Oaxaca and various other states in Mexico competing in various “Expert” and “Womens” categories.

The course laid out for the race wound back and forth and around the park, at one point crossing over itself on a bridge. The course was 3.1 miles (5.0 kilometers) long, with an elevation gain and loss of 471 feet (143.5 meters) along the way. Depending on what category they were entered in, participants had to circle the course four or five times to complete the race. As race courses around Oaxaca go, this was at a relatively low elevation — 5330 to 5508 feet (1624.5 to 1678.8 meters) — with moderate climbs and few technical challenges, making it one of the easier venues. Even so, the course was sufficiently challenging to keep the riders on their toes.

Countryside, Foothills, MTBing, Photos, Ride Routes

Bike & swim day

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The Biciosos club (https://www.facebook.com/Biciosos-99855150398/timeline/) sponsored a Sunday ride in keeping with the hot weather we’ve had in Oaxaca in recent weeks. First of all, the ride was scheduled for just after sunrise to take advantage of cooler temperatures. And the outing included a stop at a local balneario (swimming pool) in the early afternoon.

The loop ride began and ended at the Plaza Bella shopping mall near the village of Atzompa. The 17 riders in the group pedaled west to San Pedro Ixtlahuaca, then turned south and rode through rolling hill country to Cuilapam. From there the route continued south on dirt roads through farm country, with a brief stop at a small reservoir before winding up in Zaachila, where we stopped for a late breakfast and then spent a couple of enjoyable hours splashing around at the balneario. Afterwards the group returned to Plaza Bella to conclude the day’s outing.

The route covered 31.2 miles (50.2 kms), with an elevation gain and loss of 2030 feet (618.7 meters) through the rolling countryside. The high point was 5482 feet (1671 meters) in the hills south of San Pedro Ixtlahuaca; the low point was 4980 feet (1518 meters) in Zaachila.

 

Countryside, Foothills, GPS, MTBing, Outing, Photos, Ride Routes

Western Etla Valley Foothills

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Sunday, March 13th was a day of clear skies and warm temperatures.  D.,  C., C., P., and E. met up on the highway out Etla way to explore some of the network of paths, trails and dirt roads on the western side of the Etla valley in the scrub-brush covered foothills that sit between the toll highway to Puebla / Mexico City and the pine-covered mountains.

Countryside, Foothills, GPS, MTBing, Photos

Introducing a Colorado Mountain Biker to Oaxaca’s Trails

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Spencer, who hails from Boulder, Colorado, was spending a few weeks in Oaxaca and was anxious to acquaint his Yeti mountain bike with some of our favorite trails. So on this Thursday in early February some other gringos who call Oaxaca home (two of whom are also from Colorado) decided to introduce Spencer to the wholesome goodness of the trails above San Pablo Etla — specifically, the Oaxaca Flume Trail. The group arrived in San Pablo at about 10 am and hit the trail soon after. It is a long slog up a rather steep (11% to 12% grade) dirt road that leads from the valley floor up past the “La Mesita” reforestation area in San Pablo’s mountain park (where an admission fee of 30 pesos per person must be paid) and then continues upward to the start of the Flume Trail. Actually, the climb is just 3.5 miles (5.6 Kms), but it seems much longer, as the elevation gain amounts to 1937 feet (590 meters) and the grade is relentless.  The single track Flume Trail is a skinny, little-used path which — today at least — was heavily overgrown with brush. Though almost entirely downhill, it is still a demanding ride because of the terrain and the downhill slope — which in places has up to a 26% pitch. On this outing the group rode a total of 14.0 miles (22.5 kilometers), starting from a friend’s home and winding up at an open-air comedor in the center of San Pablo.

Countryside, Foothills, GPS, MTBing, Photos

Breakfast Stop In Huayapam

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Today’s Sunday morning shop ride sponsored by Summit Cyclery was essentially a breakfast outing. After a rather mellow ride through the open country between Oaxaca and the nearby village of Huayapam, the group stopped for a substantial and satisfying breakfast at a home-based restaurant in that town. Afterwards the gang returned by a more direct route, stopping for more refreshments at Cafe Brujula, just a few blocks from the bike store.

The total round trip distance on today’s excursion amounted to 10.7 miles (17.2 km), with an elevation gain and loss of 1189 feet (362.4 meters). The Summit Cyclery bike shop was the lowest point on the route at 5190 feet (1582 meters), while the highest point on the trail registered 5636 feet (1717.5 meters) in altitude.