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I shot this footage on National Trail, South Mountain, Phoenix. Nothing too spectacular, just a little XC riding down the waterfall and steps, two technical spots that South Mountain is famous for.

The highlight of the day was waiting for a group of senior citizens to walk up the waterfall, they asked me if I was going to ride down that…I said, sure am. Some said they just couldn’t stand to watch…the rest gathered around and became spectators. When I successfully made it down they all cheered for me. Nothing like putting on a show for a bunch of old people (who were mighty fit I might add).

Riding my 2006 Trek Fuel EX 9. One sturdy steed. Riding music, Comfort Eagle, provided by CAKE.

24 Hours of Moab started at noon today…Though I wish I was there soaking up all the red dirt, I’ve been doing the second best thing…following the race as it happens from the real-time results page.

The Google Earthlings are in second to last place as of 7:30 PM Saturday night for the 5 person coed class.

For Men’s solo, after 5 laps Nick Martin, Nat Ross and Josh Tostado are all within 2 minutes of eachother. Lynda Wallenfels is leading the women’s solo after 5 laps. Go Lynda!

This is awesome. If only someone was filming some helmet cam with a live feed… Granny Gear also has the map of the course overlayed in Google Earth. Pretty sweet to feel the action hundreds of miles away.

Live audio from Moab is at ride424.com. Thanks Blue Collar for the tip. Just in, the race has been postponed until 7AM tomorrow morning… Moab has gotten some serious rain…

Dave Wissenbach, a GPS and mountain bike enthusiast, has labored diligently to map many of the South Mountain trails. You can download his GPX file from his South Mountain website as well as view details and photos of the trails.

I’ve taken Dave’s GPX file and loaded it into Google Earth, creating the ultimate South Mountain GPS trail guide. Although the GPS tracks don’t always align with the view in Google Earth, it’s close enough to follow the trail. Also included are waypoints marking trailheads and other interesting South Mountain info. Have fun with this!

Trails included: Pima Canyon, Mormon Loop, National, Hidden Valley (Fat Man’s Pass) Desert Classic, Corona Loma, Telegraph, Ridgeline, Javelina, Beverly Canyon, South Ridge, San Juan Road, Warpaint, Geronimo, Scout Camp and Holbert.

Dale Wiggins’ Topo of South Mountain is even more descriptive and includes Alta, Mine Drop, Ranger, Los Lomilitas, Kiwanis, Old Man, Secret, Goat, Helipad, and the Pima East Loop.

Related South Mountain Posts

South Mountain Google Earth Mapped

South Mountain, Phoenix; Javelina to Mormon

National/Mormon Loop: South Mountain Phoenix

Employees at Google are going to ride the 24 Hours of Moab race this weekend. The team is sponsored by Google and plan to track the race in GPS then upload the data to Google Earth for all to enjoy. Pretty cool. Read all about their preparations on their blog:

Google Earthlings - 24 Hours of Moab Blog

Thanks to the Google Earth Blog for pointing me to this story.

While at Interbike 2006 I stopped by the Mike and the Bike booth and took this photo with Mike Ward, author of Mike and the Bike. The children’s book is one awesome read. My wife recently gave it to me for my birthday and I read it to my kids. It’s a story about Mike and all the places he goes on his bike…. My kids favorite part is when Mike wears his helmet to bed. My favorite part is how Mike takes such good care of his bike and cleans it after every ride.

Mike Ward was at Interbike promoting his next book, “Lucille the Wheel” due out next year. For anyone that has kids, Mike and the Bike is an excellent choice in reading. Illustrated by Bob Thompson, a foreward by Lance Armstrong and a CD that includes a narration by Phil Ligget, as well as seven original songs by Tennesse and Mike Ward, Mike and the Bike is a book all cyclists, young and old will enjoy.

If that’s not enough, a percentage of the proceeds of the book are donated to the Lance Armstrong Foundation.