Gear Masher

Ayala, Magalang - 711, Mt. Arayat

2009-04-05T15:56:00.000-07:00

Our 1st Mt. Arayat Trek. Bit me 2x...will be back to conquer! Fully armored with full suspension!

More pix here... MTBTrek12 040409

Unang Pagbagsak...Ouch!

2009-04-04T20:48:00.000-07:00

This is my 1st ever semplang ever! At nde lang minsan...2x pa! Arayyykopu! It was a normal downhill ride @ Mt. Arayat kaso naubos powers ko. Can't control my Disc breaks. Pababa palang from 711 nahirapan nako kase nangalay na kamay ko sa kakapreno coz it was really a hell of a trail. Steep, uneven terrain, lots of leaves which makes it hard to break kase dudulas ka parin kahit nagpreno. But if you'll look at the terrain dun pinagsemplangan ko ng 2x...it was a simple downhill...few loose rocks tapos red na lupa. Mas mahirap pa yung downhill sa San Vicente, Bamban dahil dun as in tumatalon pako. Geez! Stupid talaga!....And I WANT MORE!!! Babalikan ko yung Mt. Arayat and I WILL CONQUER IT!

More Pix here ...

Monicayo - Fontana - Bulalo

2009-03-28T06:23:00.000-07:00

Our Last ride for the month of March. From eTel - Pader - Sacobia - going in to Paradise Ranch then turning right to Sitio Monicayo - inside Marcos Village (other side of the Pader to repair Coach Gene's Flat tire) - Fontana (for the free swimming, spaghetti, relenong bangus, pandesal, and rice ... courtesy of Odon) - Our Lady of Peace (para maburn yung Spaghetti at relenong bangus) - then AirForce City (for the Bulalo). Ride, Shoot, Eat then Eat again. That's what we basically did. Ayus dba!

For more pix... MTBTrek11 032809

Viva San Vicente!

2009-03-23T15:43:00.000-07:00

This is my third time going to San Vincente, Bamban aka Little Baguio aka Helipad. Same route going to Sacobia. To the left is San Martin and going to the right is San Vicente. Again, some of the trekkies are not present, but we have a new member of the group which is Ivan Mayrina...este Papi Cedric pala. lolz. Not feeling taking pictures that day, ako naman dapat picturan. Lagi nalang kayo! Hmpt! Lolz. But I couldnt resist, still took a few pics lalo na when we went up sa KUBO with lots and lots of talahib aka Make your own trail.

The best part is always after the trail. Kainan na! Ice Cold Coke (Coke na nilagyan ng yelo), Fishballs, Squidballs, at Halo-halo! Nyaman!

Here are some of the pix... MTBTrek10 032109

Hotsprings Dos

2009-03-15T05:00:00.000-07:00

This is our 3rd ride and the 2nd time we went to Sitio Target, Sapangbato. After Takeshi Castle, we took a different route taking us to another Hotspring site which is nearer than the Koreans Only Hotsprings and the best part...its free for the public.

More Pix Here... MTBTrek09 031409

Return to Saint Martin

2009-03-07T09:34:00.000-08:00

The 2nd leg of our MTB Xtrail ride is at San Martin, Sacobia. This is also the 2nd time we (Avie and I) went there. Mas masaya now because we're on a group. Well, my day started at around 5am (naalimpungatan lang ako). Had spagetti for breakfast then bumili nako ng 1.5L na Gatorade & banana for energy. Our call time is the same, 8am @ eTel parking lot. We set out late since I have to wait for Avie kase 6:45am pa labas nya. And we have to pick-up Jun sa Mcdo Fields Ave (Balibago). It was already 7:50am, so we decided to rent a Jeep to take us inside Clark to "conserve our energy" hehehe.

The group consists of Avie, Me, Didz, Jun, Jheck, Odon, Daisy, and Coach Gene. Not present na si Aljay and Bapa. Di nag confirm sa group mail e. Next week, Sunday na yung ride para makasama na si Kong Pat at Mark. Still a disadvantage for me. Kaso wala akong magawa coz everybody has either Sun-Mon or Sat-Sun day off.

When we got there, syempre kodakan muna. Group Picture! Then taking the usual route, eTel then to fontana from the back road then down to the perimeter road (pader) then Sacobia to San Martin. Syempre picture picture to the max while riding. The noob of the group is Jun aka "Bangis". Kaso nde lumabas pagkabangis nya nung paahon na ang road. Sumusuko na nde pa man nakakalayo. lolz. Kaya yan Jun! Ayaw mangitim kaya nagsuot ng long white socks with matching warmer, 2 shirts and maong cargo shorts. Nde mo aakalain na mag-Xtrail ride kung titignan mo. Balot na balot. parang hip-hop! hehehe.

It was again, a looong ride. Mainit, tirik na tirik yung araw. Nakakadrain. Grabe! Off-Road na incline. But we made it on our first official stop. One of the tindahan at Gawad Kalinga Vill. That was also the same store where Avie and I rested when we first went there. Naalala pa kami nung tindera. Hirap talaga kalimutan ang gwapo at maganda...lolz. Charing! Haay, ang sarap ng Sparkle pagdating dun. Kainis nga lang kase wala silang Mt. Dew dun:( Anyway, pinatulan ko na kesa naman cheers or sarsi tirahin ko. Ayaw na talaga ni Jun...suko na daw. Uwi na daw sya...e ang problem, walang sasakyan dun. Mag bike sya pabalik. Wala syang nagawa but to continue. Lolz.

After our first tindahan stop, we went to the spot where Avie took my picture na nakaset as my background for this blog. Jheck was asking me a few days before where that was. Kaya yun. PHOTO OP! Almost everyone has its own Digicam. Big and Small. Kaya NAGBARILAN kami ng cam. "Take pictures of the picture taker."

Then its downhill from here on...rough road, steep, with lots of land-mines aka "carabao dung". Narating din namin yung sapa. Kanya kanyang pose with the Aeta kids. Photo Op again! Nag lunch na kami dun with our take out food from the canteen sa eTel courtesy of Odon and Avie while listening to the kwentong eTel of Jun. Haay! hanggang dun ba naman trabaho parin usapan...Hmmm...nagvevent lang siguro. After resting, ligo time! Everybody took a dip sa shallow, slippery, rocky, toad & mosquito larva infested stream. Picture picture again..carefull baka mabasa ang cam.

Time to go home na! Akyatan nanaman to! Then its going to be a long downhill nyan. That's the best part. I thought wala nang magiging aberya. But we had 1 casualty. After stopping at the tindahan for an iced cold Pop-Cola (cracked iced in glass) Coach Gene noticed na flat yung rear wheel. Mechanic Jheck in action!

I haven't learned my lesson talaga...Sadly, papasok parin ako after this. As of the time of composing this blog, I'm here at work. Blogging while working. Hehehe. Super antok and tired. Wala nanaman akong tulog nyan. Wala na kasi leave cap kaya nde na nakapag Vac leave and wala naman gusto ng swap off. For next weeks ride, aayusin ko na ngayon palang para maka leave or swap. Sana meron. Wish me luck :)

More Pix here ... MTBTrek08 030709

Pangalawang Pagpadjak

2009-03-04T05:37:00.001-08:00

Sapang Bato - Target - Hotsprings

2009-03-01T12:14:00.000-08:00

Day started late...woke up 7:40ish. 8am ang assembly time sa eTel. Late din si Avie dumating sa apartment. Actually, nagising lang ako nung dumating sya...hihihi...We're Late! Batak sa padjak! Daan nalang tayo sa Hensonville then Friendship Gate. Haay! Pagod nako :( Buti nalang di kami naiwan...yehey! O group pix muna tayo!

Alright, go lets! Daan ng Sapang Bato Gate. Uy may tinadahan, let's buy banana muna for the potassium at d mag cramps. First casualty of the day - Odon. Flat tire. Naiwan na kami ng group. Buti nalang may signal pa ang mga cell kaya Jheck to the rescue! Sayang wala yung cam ko nde na document. tsk! Ride on to catch up with the group. Asus! d pa man nakakalayo flat nanaman? Second casualty of the day - HSDaisy. O eto daisy may spare interior ako. Palit Nikon DSLR yan ha. lolz!

Yan rough road na! loose graba. Hirap pumidal. Suko na si Daisy. Buti nalang may trike. "TRIKE! SA MAY TARGET NGA!" Nauna pa samin. O kumpleto na grupo...stop over muna tayo sa tindahan ni aling Nena. "2 Mt. Dew nga at 1 Sparkle."

On to Takeshi Castle. Last stop before No Man's Land. Hay nako pagod nako! May pasok pako mamaya. Pano na to. **restless** Bahala na si batman kung magmamanok manukan ako sa pod. Anyway, ride na! then take pictures...then ride again...then take more pictures...Kakapagod! Paubos na Mt. Dew the energy drink ko.

After approx. 4 hours, we're here at last - Hotsprings aka "Korean Only Hot Springs. No pinoys allowed." Wala bang McDo o Sbarro sa mga gilid-gilid ng bundok na yan?! Tomguts nako! Anyway, it's faster going back. Pababa na kaya less effort sa padjak. Here comes the best part...Downhill Ride! Whooooo!

Got home at around 4pm. Can't sleep! Diretcho ko na to hanggang kinabukasan then wash-wash the bikes with Joy Ultra and softbrush with johnson's baby powder. Hayyyy, manuk...manok...paki gising nalang ako kapag d nako nagsasalita..."Thank you for calling AOL Tech Support, My Name is Leooo...Ngggoooorrrrkkkk!!!

Lesson learned : Kailangan magdala ng madaming inumin (Mt. Dew, Gatorade, tubig), buy sandals na pangsabak sa wet places...wasak nanaman sketchers ko naiwan pa swelas sa bukal, wag ilalagay ang cellphone sa saddle bag (puro gasgas at nabasa cell ko), at ang pinakaimportante sa lahat...mag file ng leave or swap early para di antok sa work!

Click here for more pix... MTBTrek07 022809

First Attempt -- Tara na at Pumidal -- invite ur Friend and buddy

2009-02-25T09:06:00.000-08:00

Ride plus 1 minus 1

2009-02-19T08:05:00.000-08:00

Another Epic ride with Avie + Dids & Jogs. But Jogs went AWOL with "Douglas"... So we went on with out him. We went through the usual route. Main Gate - eTel - then through the abandoned housing - down hill to Pader - then Sacobia. Lakad Dids! Tulak! Tapos na kami jan...its your turn next. Initiation kumbaga...hihihi :)

Pix here ... MTBTrek06 021709

Thirsty?

2009-02-04T13:27:00.001-08:00

Nakakauhaw talaga when riding. And its hard to drink sa bottle. Di pa malamig :( I saw some rehydration packs at SM Pampanga kaso pangit. Mukhang madaling masira yung bag nya. I want my own CamelBack!!!

With Didz the Game!

2009-01-31T11:14:00.000-08:00

Injury time out! Didz the Game is out!

More pix here ... MTBTrek05 012909

Improving!

2009-01-18T13:03:00.000-08:00

Holiday Season's over and its that time of the year again to burn all the fats and bad cholesterol stored on my body. New Years resolution ...hehehe :) Time to get back on my bike and break out a sweat.

And for the first time I conquered Sacobia's uphill without getting off my bike. Yahoo! Reading all those articles about how to ride inclines paid off. I tested a couple of techniques and found one that works for me. While listening to Eraserheads and Wolfgang as my background music of course. Even the dreaded "pader" is now easy (long incline). Yabang noh! Pressure din kasi si Avie nde na bumababa. She's very tough sa ahon. lolz :)

To all my friends and love ones...

2008-12-30T17:58:00.001-08:00

Ahon nanaman?!?! vs. Yes! Ahon nanaman!

2008-12-24T09:02:00.000-08:00

I searched for tips and techniques on the web about riding uphill since I'm having a terrible time keeping up when riding inclines. If you're mountain biking, chances are you'll come into contact with a rather steep hill, yung galit at mas galit na steep hill. Here are some tips that I found...

1. Practice on gradual ascents before you try a steep climb. Shift into a low gear (Granny: matanda = mabagal...lolz), and experiment until you know which gears feel comfortable on various inclines.

2. Parse the climb into several sections in your mind to avoid being overwhelmed by the miles ahead.

3. Lean forward and keep your back straight while you climb. Keep pressure on your front wheel by leaning on your handlebars. This helps maintain traction.

4. Lean even more on your handlebars if it feels like your front wheel is lifting off the ground - this often happens on extremely steep climbs.

5. Hunch over the handlebars and push your weight into both wheels for steep pitches. Pedal like there's no tomorrow.

6. Keep your legs and arms flexed, but avoid locking your joints.

7. Consider standing up to pedal to break the monotony and exercise different muscles during longer climbs.

8. Switch into a higher gear, and raise yourself into a standing position as you pedal.

9. Keep your weight centered above your pedals and press down on your handlebars as you pedal standing.

10. Practice! Practice! Practice!

Other Tips & Warnings

- If you're tired...Walk! Si Lance Armstrong nga nilalakad yung ibang uphill. See Lance Armstrong at Leadville 2008

- If all else fails, pahinga muna anak baka mag collapse ka.

- Dont look far ahead. Focus your eyes about 5 feet from your front wheel para di ka mawalan ng gana.

- Mind over body...Ahon nanaman?!?!

- Lighter people tend to get more out of standing. Heavier cyclists are more efficient when they hunker down and pedal.
- Prepare by drinking lots of water and eating high-energy foods like Banana. For climbs that last more than an hour, bring along a sports bar or gel to keep your energy level high. Though I havent tried this one yet. Taking energy drinks like Baccus or Red bull also helps.

- Get lots of rest before you ride. Unlike me, I do it after my graveyard shift. Kaya nanghihina agad :(

- Standing takes more energy, so use it with discretion.
- Wear a helmet.

Mainang - Dapdap - Malasa

2008-12-21T06:08:00.000-08:00

Another long ride with Jogs and Avie.

MTBTrek04 121108

Sitio Mataba

2008-12-06T12:58:00.000-08:00

Last thursday morning, undertime ulit. We (Avie syempre) plan to head for the famed "waterfalls." This time, conserve energy muna kaya nandaya muna kami. From the back of Mimosa to the "pader" kaso pabalik...downhill. No effort at all. lolz. No sweat! The good part pa e it was a cloudy day. Nice weather for trail riding :)

We went ahead to Sacobia then turned left papuntang Gawad Kalinga... It was amazing! Great view! Great beer! nyek... We "kinda" asked around where the falls is. Awed by the view, we took a wrong turn. Actually, we didn't turn at all. Hehehe. We went straight. Until we got to the steep road going to the sapa... and more sapa... more dirt & bush. Its like we're in the middle of Jurassic Park. No cellphone signal. Approx. 12km from Mt. Pinatubo.

Time to go back and try again next week.

More pix here ... MTBTrek03 120408

Ride Again...

2008-12-06T11:56:00.000-08:00

After our dreaded first ride with Jogs 2 weeks ago, we filed 2 hours undertime in order for us to start early. We started at 6 am this time. Almost the same route except for the dreaded "pader" plus our first downhill rough road trail ride. Weeeeeeee! kakatakot! Afraid! lolz :) That was at Gawad Kalinga. It's a small village populated by Aetas. We went there while waiting for Jogs to arrive. Di naman kasi makakapasok si Jogs dun e.

Pumunta lang kami sa harap and ask around about the place. For the following weeks trail *wink*

This is also the first time I had a flat tire! Buti nalang I had a spare interior at nandun si Jogs "the vulcanizer" hihihi. Stupid me...I tried to jump about 10 inches na ledge sa expo. Kaso na clip yung rear tire ko at nawala pa grip ko sa pedal. Muntik na si Little Leo ko... grrrr!

A couple of pix here ... MTBTrek02 112708

50k Ride

2008-12-02T15:29:00.000-08:00

Whew first time! A 4 hour long ride with Avie and Jogs. From 9am to 1pm. Spanning the road from Angeles (my apartment) to clark then to eTelecare around Fontana... then down to the "ocho" road along expo filipino going to Sacobia bridge. Uphill... downhill... my leg hurts. Knees stiff. Feet numb. Teka! teka! let's have a short rest. Wasak nako! Picture picture muna....

Ooopsss! Enough...Uphill ulit to the Helipad...Sto. Nino, Bamban aka Little baguio . Then picture picture ulit...feeling Sam Hill.

Tara uwian na... dko na kaya :( Aray ku po! Let's walk muna....puff!

There's still more??? ... the dreaded "Wall" aka PADER. Approx. 4km long steady rise between Sacobia river and the back area of fontana. Mind breaking!

You can click here for more pictures ... MTBTrek01 112008

Next week ulit...

Gear Masher is online!

2008-12-02T07:54:00.000-08:00

Start Blogging now... MTB newby here... this is my blog.