Biker395 

A group of us went riding in the local mountains again last weekend. Most folks went up to the highest paved road (just short of 8000 feet), but I talked a friend of mine into leaving the main group and doing what some call the "Lobster Ride" (so named, because the route looks somewhat like a lobster).

One thing I love about this particular route is that it has lots of climbing (~12,500 feet), but unlike a lot of other routes, has three awesome descents mixed in.

Here is a video of one of the three ... Glendora Ridge Road. It's a jumpy (gotta cinch the helmet down better), but I thought if nothing else, you all would enjoy the soundtrack. Damn ... they don't do music like that anymore.

Steve B.

Nice.

Barrettscv 

Great cycling and a fun video! Thanks for sharing.

BobbyG

Sweet! The music is, of course, the overture to Tommy, by the Who. When I was a kid in Chicao the part near the end with the French Horns "revving up" was used under Ali no smoking burnouts in tv ads for US 30 drag strip in Chicago. As a kid I thought that would be the most fun in the world. Now I think it's biking beautiful mountain roads like in your video.

TGT1

I'm guessing 39-Crystal Lake and Little GMR are part of that route.

What's the full lobster route description?

Biker395 

That's it.

Here's the route:

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15122857

jppe

Sweeeeetttt!!!

That's a heck of a lot of climbing.

I've been listening to our local radio station that only plays classic rock from the 60s & 70s while painting rooms the last two weeks. Great stuff. Still the best music in my opinion, transcends time. My favorite groups are the Allman Brothers and CSN&Y.....and anything from Woodstock!!

jppe

And I ordered my free GoPro today.

TGT1

Hitting the climb to the ski lifts after 70 mi and 10,000 ft must be brutal!

I guess I'm just sick enough to find that somehow a worthy goal.

Rick@OCRR

Victor (Biker395), Glad you had a good ride with David Z. He and i talked at the Crystal Lake Cafe turn but he decided to go Lobster with you while Linda and I decided to visit Dawson Saddle.

Good news is that the closed section of 39 was quite clear of debris. A Sheriff's truck actually passed us while we were on the closed section and didn't even slow down! Gotta think that was luck but maybe, as you say, Cal-Trans just hasn't been bothering about it lately. Fine with me!

Lots of options on that Karen Climb-Fest ride and I'm sure everyone had a good time riding the options they picked. I remember riding the Lobster with you and Missy still had two cinnamon rolls left when we got to Mt. Baldy Lodge (4:30 PM).

Linda and I only got 9,500 ft. of climbing but since I'm still not back in shape after my broken-clavicle induced lay-off, that was okay too.

Here's our route on Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/643282087

Rick / OCRR

woodcraft

Those other routes have lots of climbing but crummy descents?
Anyway, cool video.

TGT1

The descent for the first 8 miles from Crystal lake is as good as it gets.

Two year old pavement and sweeping views.

gonna have to do the "lobster" from home and put a tail on it one of these days

Brian25

Have you ever checked out any Allman Bros comeback lp's like "Seven Turns", "Shades of Two Worlds" or "Where it all Began" and last but not least "Hittin' the Note"

Wildwood 

Opened this thread hoping to see a tandem Rock Lobster - never seen one.

Biker395 

That last climb is always a gut check. I have pretty low gears, but its always a grunt. And that last 15% section through the bowling alley ... oy. Here's a photo of David Z climbing it. It hurts.




I guess it depends on the kind of descents you like. I'm kinda partial to twisty "technical" descents that test bike handling skills.

The descent off of Dawson Saddle (the one I didn't do) has great views, but has wide, sweeping turns with a 45 MPH speed limit. It's a no brake descent.

On the other hand, the descent off of Highway 39 (at least until the kiosk) has very twisty, with a lot of 15-20 MPH curves. Great views too. And like TGT1 mentioned, great pavement.

The descent in the video (Glendora Ridge Road) is similar ... lots of twisty 15-20 MPH curves, and an awesome view of the San Gabriels. The road sits on the ridge between the city to the south and a deep canyon to the north.

The best of all is Glendora Mountain Road. Lots of twisty curves, flushes, hairpins, great road conditions, and again ... great views. It's an extended descent too. I took a video of it last Saturday and it's over 16 minutes long.

All 3 are terrific, lengthy descents, and it's possible to do them all in a sub 100 mile ride. That's kinda rare hereabouts.

On the other hand, I think descents are like pizza or sex ... even if it's not your favorite, it's still pretty darn good.

Yep!

"Where it all Began" is a favorite of mine. The song "Nobody Left to Run With" rocks true for me, and I love the Bo Diddley beat at the end.