Monster Climbs 2023 Trip Report
September 14-17, 2023
Bishop, CA
by Rob Verfurth
Riders: Bob P, John S, Oleg S, Geoffrey M, Neil B, Jodie L, Ruben M, Mike H, Len N, Geoff B, John A, Chris M, Quoc V, Dave V and Rob V
This was the 15th edition of the Monster Climbs trip. Dave Voris is the only Descender to have ridden in all the past adventures. The rides this year were based out of Bishop with great planned routes in the mountains out of the Owens Valley in the eastern Sierras. Special thanks to Bob Proulx for leading all the organizational details and creating the trip brochure with the able help of Dave Voris for the route details.
We all drove to Bishop on Thursday afternoon with most of us staying at the Cielo Hotel. It was clean, comfortable and affordable. Mike Hodges decided to stay at the Creekside Hotel next door. It is definitely nicer but it turned out to be much pricier. The first night the club bought burgers for all who joined us at the Back Alley Bowl & Grill. Quoc brought swag gifts for all and we enjoyed catching up before the riding began. Some of the guys walked down to the Mountain Rambler Brewery to have a beer with Mike who went there for dinner.
Breakfast was early. Bob and I had bought a few extra items to add to the meager eats provided by the Cielo Hotel. We all met outside, loaded the cars and headed to Big Pine by 8 am. It was a short drive south. We all got ready to tackle White Mountain with expected sightings of the Bristlecone Pines. The requisite group photo took place and then we started off at a nice easy pace. Oleg and John S had already driven up to the turn to park the SAG car and were descending back down to meet us on the very early slopes of the climb. Early on we had our first mechanical as I saw John A pointing at the front tire of Jodie; it was definitely not rolling right. Hodges tried to get the group to stop but I suggested some of the strong riders help Jodie. Us slow guys needed to press on; this 23 mile climb with over 6,800 feet of elevation gain was going to take me 3+ hours to get to the top. Bob P, John A and Mike H were heroes in helping Jodie try to fix her tire. They ultimately had to swap out to a spare wheel.
The first 13 mile section of White Mountain up to the SAG car and the turn to White Mountain Road is agonizingly long. The early miles click off but the road ramps up and then narrows before you get to the rest stop. I pedaled up mostly alone as the early fast guys were long out of sight. I met up with Jodie and John A at the rest stop. She had driven up in Bob’s car to get her wheel swapped out. John A waited for others while Jodie & I headed for the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. It is a beautiful climb with great views across to the Eastern Sierras on the other side of the valley. It had a few roller sections with lots of long switchbacks climbing up to a lookout spot. The usual fast guys: Voris, Geoff B, Oleg, John S, Neil B, Geoffrey M and Chris M were well ahead and likely resting at the Visitor Center at the top with an elevation of over 10,100 feet. Bob P and John A caught us while we took a break at the lookout spot, about two miles from the top. We saw Len N coming up as well. Len was a last minute addition to the trip this year due to the injury fall of Bernie. Len rode strong as ever, he never gives up. The old trees were beautiful and the views spectacular, an awesome first day of riding. We finally got to the top and relaxed at the picnic tables in front of the visitor center while the rest of the riders came up. Hodges was having a bad day but he made it to the top. Quoc made it as well. Ruben bonked and turned around about a mile short of the visitor center.
The fast guys started back down the mountain. Hodges, Bob, Jodie and I relaxed a bit more at the picnic table and then headed back to the SAG cars. I grabbed a coke and snacks before heading down the rest of the mountain. Oleg & John S were driving back down in their early SAG car as we were descending. I sped up and tried to hold their bumper. Oleg was driving very aggressively on the tight mountain road. There were lots of curves and one section narrowed down to almost one lane wide. I flew down as fast as I could, cutting corners where I could see there was no oncoming traffic. I hit 62.2 mph chasing Oleg & John; I never caught them but had a blast on the descent.
Everyone was either back at the cars or still descending when I got to the parking lot. The plan was to grab sandwiches at CopperTop BBQ, just a bit farther south from where we parked. Everyone sat outside in the shade enjoying some good BBQ eats; well most everyone. We do have a vegan or two in the crowd. It was now time to get back to the hotel to clean up and relax. Geoff B had come on the trip with some of his great home brews. He called a happy hour before dinner and we all got to sample his delicious craft beers. Thanks Geoff. Dinner on Friday night was a short walk north to Molcajetes Fusion, a unique place with a Mexican vibe and a good menu. We all sat at a large long table and it looked like everyone enjoyed their meal. I saw fresh fish, pulpo and plenty of other Mexican food dishes. I thought it was delicious. We walked back to the hotel and I think most riders went to their rooms, knowing that the ride tomorrow would be challenging.
Saturday morning was another early start. Some guys took stolls to the local bakery and coffee shops to augment their breakfast eats. The early crew left the hotel with the plan to ride to the Pine Creek climb, an 11 mile leg stretcher for the big guns. The full planned day ride was going to be about 100 miles with 10,000 feet of elevation gain. Good on them. Also in the group was Len and Quoc who planned to skip the first climb and head directly up the Sherwin Grade; they still had a big day ahead. The remaining riders: John A, Jodie, Ruben, Bob P and myself left about 8 am to drive to Rovana and park the SAG vehicle in the elementary school parking lot. It was a cool, crisp morning as we immediately started the eight mile climb up Pine Creek. Bob & I were on point and we made it to the top ahead of Oleg & Voris, then many of the other early fast riders as they all came up to the end of the road. The ascent is striking with views of the granite mountains ahead as you climb to the final parking lot for hikers and get almost to the base of the mountain. A fast descent back to the cars and only a short water break before starting the route towards Sherwin Grade.
Since Len & Quoc had skipped the Pine Creek climb, they were well out in front heading towards Tom’s Place. Bob P, Chris M and I rode together for the 15 mile section from Rovana to Tom’s Place, at least on the early miles of relatively flat roads. Neil B was the first to catch and pass us before we got to any of the climbs. He passed us just before we got to the small town of Paradise. After we hit Paradise the real climbing began. As the road ramped up, I fell back quickly and plodded my way along the wide switchbacks up to the top of Sherwin Grade and then the short descent before the last few miles of climbing to Tom’s Place. Most of the fast guys caught and passed me on this section of road. I remember seeing Voris, Oleg, John S and John A pass me before getting to the highway 395 connection. It is a mile of highway shoulder riding required to get to the Rock Creek Road turn by Tom’s Place.
I made the turn and then decided to skip a stop at Tom’s Place and head up the Rock Creek Road climb. My thinking was many of the fast guys were getting water at Tom’s Place but they would pass me well before I reached the top of the 9 mile climb. I was correct that many guys took a break. My huge error was realizing too late that I was in great need of a break as well. I slowly climbed Rock Creek, ate the last of my gels and finished off my last water bottle. My wheels turned into squares and I was making slow progress. From behind came Voris, Oleg, John S and John A, they smiled and quickly passed me. Geoff B came by a bit later and then I saw Hodges coming up the road. I grabbed some water from Mike and continued slowly up the climb. Len was now coming back down from the top of Rock Creek on his way back to Bishop. My pace continued to slow down and I knew I still had almost 5 miles of ascent left; I was done. I turned around and descended towards Tom’s Place. I saw Geoffrey M climbing up as I flew down Rock Creek.
At Tom’s Place, I bought a big coke and a big jug of water. I sat at the table and just relaxed for a bit, feeling much better after drinking the coke and plenty of water. Eventually I headed out alone to retrace my steps back down the Sherwin Grade towards the car. I found Jodie & Ruben at the car. They had turned around after stopping at Tom’s Place. We all jumped into one of the two SAG cars and drove back towards the hotel. We saw Quoc on the road as he was heading to Bishop. We also saw Voris, Oleg & John S on the side road as they were on their way back to the hotel. We did not lose a rider; everyone made it back to the hotel. Kudos to the many riders that got in almost 100 miles for the day and over 10,000 feet of elevation gain; a big day of riding.
Geoff B still had beer, so we called another Happy Hour at the hotel lobby before heading to our planned dinner at Whiskey Flats. This is a restaurant we have gone to for our previous trips to Bishop; it is known for good steaks and wine. We were split into three different tables and most everyone seemed to enjoy the food and wine. Lots of fun stories from the riding the first two days of the trip and numerous other topics. We even discussed more details for the newly planned 2024 Monster Climbs trip out of Kernville. This was discussed during Happy Hour and solidified during chats at dinner. After a nice meal and stroll back to the hotel most called it quits for the evening. A number of us wandered over to the Back Alley Bowl for a nightcap. Bob P, Chris M, Oleg, John S and I enjoyed a beer before heading to get some much needed sleep.
Day 3 started early and was a bit hectic. We all had to pack up our clothes, get some breakfast and then load the cars with all bikes ready to ride Onion Valley. It was a 45 minute drive south to Independence, CA, all the cars parked on the side of Market Street just a few blocks off the highway. We all got ready to ride and took a final group photo. Len started out on the climb while we were still getting ready. A couple of others missed the photo because they just couldn’t get ready in time. I headed up the alluvial fan with my camera in hand taking a few shots of the mountains. The groups of faster riders came up from behind over the first two miles. I took photos of everyone who passed me, put my phone back in my jersey and settled into a slow grind up the road. The climb up Onion Valley is just under 13 miles long and is often compared to Alpe d’Huez due to its steepness, the switchbacks and elevation gain. Onion Valley is longer and has over 5,500 of elevation gain with beautiful long switchbacks after tackling the mind-numbing alluvial fan first five miles of ascent.
You are mostly in your own world of grinding slowly up the road, legs aching from the two previous days of long mountainous rides. I stopped to take some photos of the road going up and some of the great views from the switchbacks. Most of the group was up ahead and likely relaxing in the parking lot at the top. As I approached the final half mile straight road to the top, all the guys came descending past me. I took photos of many and then stopped to talk to Mike H for a moment before heading up again. The parking lot was overflowing with cars from all the hikers and campers that were out in the wilderness on the trails above Onion Valley. I spun around, grabbed a GU and some water, then made my way back down.
The switchbacks kept your descending speed in check and then there was a westerly breeze once I hit the alluvial fan to further dampen any fast acceleration; no speed record set on that descent. Safely back at the cars, I changed into dry clothes, squeezed my bike into the back of my car, ate a couple of the delicious brownies that Erika had made and Oleg was sharing with the rest of the group and then said good-bye to everyone. There were still some drinks and chips from our SAG wagons that I ate before driving south back to San Diego.
The 15th annual Monster Climbs trip was in the books. Thanks again to Bob P for leading the planning of the trip. Thanks to all the riders who came and met the challenge of riding three days filled with epic climbs. It was truly memorable and I think everyone had a great long weekend. The trip for 2024 is coming together with reservations now made at the Kernville Inn for 19-22 September 2024. Mark your calendars. Below is a link to photos from the trip. John A created a Google album where lots of other photos are stored and a link to that is below as well.
View my shared photos:
September 15 – 17,
https://share.icloud.com/photos/046uZpW8lFZQQiJYxR8-uRThg
iCloud link available until Nov 5
Here is a link to MC23
San Diego Descenders Cycling Club 