Foothills, GPS, MTBing, Photos, Racing

Mountain Bike Race at San Pablo Etla

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St. Patrick’s Day – Sunday, 17 March 2013 –  found many of Oaxaca’s best mountain bikers competing for recognition and prizes on the race course set up near the new mountain park in San Pablo Etla. The luck ‘o’ the Irish was with eighteen riders who made it to the podium, but not with the many others whose tires got snakebit on the trail and had to push their bikes to the finish line. The race route covered a fair distance on dirt roads, but the exciting part was the singletrack that snaked up, down and around the hillsides, demanding skill and stamina to make it around the circuit. Congratulations to those who won their events! And thanks to all who took part and made it a grand day.

Countryside, GPS, Mountains, MTBing, Photos

Cuatro Venados Loop

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This loop ride is a cousin, of sorts, to the “San Pablo Cuatro Venados” ride which appears later on this page. Both versions of the ride begin and end in San Felipe del Agua, and both feature the very formidable climb up the mountainside to the tiny village of San Pablo Cuatro Venados. What sets this ride apart, though, is that it continues past 4 Venados, crossing through the high country at over 9000 feet elevation, then descends steeply through Santa Ines del Monte to Zaachila before returning to Oaxaca city (on mercifully level ground!). This is one of the epic rides around Oaxaca, and should not be taken lightly. The loop can be ridden in either direction, and is equally difficult either way. Pick your poison! If you can arrange a shuttle, you can eliminate the pain of the huge climb to Cuatro Venados and concentrate on the much more thrilling screamer of a downhill run back to Oaxaca.

The loop ride, start to finish, will take you 56.3 miles (90.6 km). The high point of the adventure is 9281 feet (2829 meters) in elevation. The uphill climb clocks in at 6219 feet (1895 meters). The ride is rated “Difficult” because of the length, steep gradients and altitude. There are no technical sections of trail (the entire route is on paved or dirt roads), but the unpaved sections can be quite rough in places and you will be moving at high speeds coming downhill.

Options for a shorter ride include starting and ending at the Zócalo in the center of Oaxaca rather than in San Felipe. This alone will take 7.0 miles (11.3 km) off the total distance. Using a shuttle to get to Cuatro Venados and riding just one way will cut the route in half. The segment from Cuatro Venados through Santa Ines to Zaachila amounts to just 11.3 miles (18.2 km), is mostly downhill and should take just 3 hours.

Foothills, MTBing, Photos, Racing

Mountain Bike Race at San Felipe del Agua

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Sunday, 17 February 2013, dawned bright and crisp — a perfect day for a mountain bike race on the trail network in the hills above San Felipe del Agua. A large field of contestants – over 140 racers –  turned out for the event, along with quite a few spectators to line the route and cheer on their favorite riders. The race circuit was the same as for last year’s race, with a few slight changes to keep things interesting — see map below. Congratulations to the winners in the various race categories, and a big “Thank you!” to the crew that prepared the race course!

 

 

Foothills, GPS, MTBing, Racing

Pre-ride of the route for the 2013-02-17 MTB Race

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Larry and I went out today and checked out the expected route for the upcoming MTB race that will be here in our neck of the woods this Sunday, Feb. 17th, 2013 (i.e. the Las Carnivoras area near San Felipe del Agua).  The course is different from last year, and they’ve even cut a small section of new trail for the route.

Here is the map of today’s loop of the track.

Countryside, Foothills, GPS, MTBing

San Pedro Ixtlahuaca Loop

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Another of the great rides in the rolling hill country of the western Etla valley, this particular loop is certainly one of the most intimidating, as the climb up through San Cristobal is steep and unrelenting. If you want even more pain, continue up the mountain to Cuatro Venados before reversing direction for a screamer of a downhill run. Your legs and lungs are guaranteed a real workout!  Just be careful to moderate your speed coming down or you may wipe out in the loose scrabble of the dirt roadway.