Donovan's Cycling Services

Well the last few weeks, have been awesome, I’ve been doing some mountain biking up in the mountains of Idyllwild Ca. Without question the mountain range offers some of the best XC riding in So Cal. There are miles upon miles of tight meandering single track. The trails consist of long, fast, rolling descents,  tough climbs, rocky roll overs and some very killer areas to just chill, relax and refuel. The area was settled by the Cahuilla Indians over 2500 years ago so the trails passes by many old Indian camps,early man sites and old prospecting sites. The views are spectacular, the air is clean,the temps are perfect and you can literally ride all day long! You really couldn’t ask for a better set up. I’ve just begun to explore this area and have been fortunate to have a local Idyllwild rider, Dave See be my guide. Thanks so much for a truly EPIC TRIBAL EXPERIENCE!!! Here are some pics of the ride. Sorry no action shots, the riding was to much fun to stop and shoot.

Tim

Well we rode the San Juan Trail on Saturday morning and once again it was an epic decent. The weather was prime, had a great group of riders and the vibe was on. For those of you who have never ridin this trail before, this is one you do not want to miss. With tight flowing rollers, crazy switchbacks and a few rock gardens, this ride has something for everybody. You don’t have to be an expert rider, just take the trail as quick and aggressive as you want. There are no real climbs and the trail has a few quick hike a bike sections .The ride is a shuttle run (2 car min.) 11 1/2 miles long and takes approx. 2 1/2hrs to descend. A full suspension bike is preferred but a hard tail will work fine. Nows the time to hit this ride up before the heat starts to set in as it can get a little exposed on the lower half of the trail. The next tentative date for SJT is June 12th so plan on joining the fun, more details will be coming soon!  Here are a few pics from the ride.

Ride on,   Tim

Just returned from a killer weekend of camping and mountain biking in the Laguna Mountain Recreation Area. With out a doubt, one of the premier MTB areas in all of So Cal! With the Big Laguna Trail and Noble Canyon there is over 40 miles of EPIC single track. There are plenty of camp sites all with instant access to the trails. The Meadows are vast, with views that leave you completely in awe and totally inspired to just ride, ride and ride!!! Noble Canyon is an E-Ticket ride that will get any adrenaline junking going. With smoking fast rollers, a few gnarly rock gardens and the stream following the trail, this decent is one you can not miss. This unique area is located in the mountains east of San Diego with easy access but snow in the winter. Here are some pics from the trip.

Ride On,   Tim

WOW… What a week of weather it has been here in California. With 6 day’s of continuous rain, I was starting to get some serious cabin fever. No riding for a week. Finally today I woke to sunny skies and snow capped mountains, truly a postcard day! So with brisk temps and a huge motivation to get out and ride I grabbed my camera, suited up and hit the road. Oh what a great day for a road ride! The roads were clean of the usual debris due to the on slot of rain, the temps were brisk and the views, well just spectacular. My route was what I like to call the Menifee 8′s. I literally do a figure 8 around the east side of the Menifee Valley. With wide open roads, low traffic and views to die for this is by far one of my favorite rides to do. I leaving right from my house and the ride is about 1 1/2hrs. If I want to add some more mileage I’ll go out to Diamond Valley Lake which adds another 1 1/2-2hrs making for a spectacular pedal through the valley! Well I hope you all got to get your ride on at some point this week. Here are a few pics I took today on the ride., I love were I live!

Keep riding,   Tim

Yeah it’s been quite a long time since I have updated my blog here on my site.  Keeping up with the growth of the business, taking on new projects, paying the bills  and getting a ride in every once in awhile, well my site has suffered. I apologize and pledge to keep up on it with more frequent updating. In fact there will be some changes to the site over the next few weeks as I reorganize and expand! I have now become a dealer for Dumonde Tech Chain Lube (check home page) and will be expanding the used bike sales section over the Xmas holidays. Interbike 2009 was very impressive this year with the bicycle industry looking healthy and poised for a great year in 2010! With lots of new product and innovation the industry continues to stay on the fore front of technology providing comfort and performance at every level! So get out and ride. With cooler temps and those fattening holiday coming up, now’s the time to log in those miles. Remember a happy bike makes a happy rider so don’t neglect your machine. See me for all your full service repair and maintenance needs!

Keep riding,   Tim

Sunset over Santa Rosa

This past week I was fortunate enough to spend some time with family up in mountain bike heaven…. Mammoth Lakes! What an absolutely beautiful place, with mile after mile of sweet single track and spectacular views abound, you will think you have arrived in heaven! Not only is the mountain biking killer but there is excellent fishing, hiking and golf to boot. A true recreation paradise and that’s just the summer months. I myself have been vacationing up in Mammoth for over 40 years and it still excites me just as much as when I was a young kid. The MTB riding up there is some of the best in the world! With a complete MTB park on Mammoth Mountain consisting of ramps, jumps, drops, bridges and over 30 miles of single track, your blood will be pumping all day long. There are also plenty of XC trails off the mountain scattered through out the area and lot’s of scenic road rides as well. If you are looking for adventure on and off the bike then Mammoth is the place for you! Just an easy 5-6 hour drive from the LA metro area. A great place to beat the summer heat! Here’s a few pic’s of the area.

Enjoy the ride…      Tim

How many of you out there have been mountain biking up at Snow Summit in Big Bear Lake Ca. and wondered were all the single track is??? They don’t show it on the web site, trail maps or promos. They don’t physically mark the trails.  The maps just show all the fire roads with a couple of quick little fingers of single track. So what’s up with that? Snow Summit promotes excellent mountain biking, but once they let you of the lift your left pretty much in the dark. Well fear not, I have discovered were they have been hiding it! There is an amazing amount of single track all around Snow Summit. With fast technical descents from the top or gnarly lung busting climbs up, it’s all there for the taking! Yesterday myself and a couple of my hommies hit up BB and had a KILLER session. We spent all day taking the lift up and ripping the single track down. Each decent is approx. 20 minutes of eye popping, heart racing, pure adrenaline rush!!! With cool mountain temps. spectacular views of the lake and surrounding area, we couldn’t of ask for a more perfect day. It was truly EPIC! Here are a few pic’s of some of the action. If you are craving some sweet, real mountain single track and need some guidance, contact us about an individual or group guided ride on the mountain. Your body and soul will thank you.

Enjoy the ride… Tim

This weekend I was finally able to get out of town for some much needed camping and mountain biking. The destination was the Laguna Mountain Recreation Area located in San Diego County. This area has some of the best Mountain Biking in all of Southern California! Camping at the Laguna/El Prado campground gives you instant access to miles of rolling single track around and through out the entire meadows. You can also link up to the famous Noble Canyon Trail from here. The area is simply gorgeous. With breath taking views, crisp clean air and trails for all abilities, it’s a experience you will want to share with your friends and family! If you would like more info on the area, or to set up a guided individual/group ride please don’t hesitate to contact us. The Big Laguna Trail… “BLT” is one place you will want to ride again and again!!! Here are a few pics of the meadows, thanks for visiting the site and enjoy the ride.

Tim

The summer heat is on it’s way and now is the time to tune your bike up! With winter gone and spring just about behind us it’s time to rid your ride of all those creek’s and squeak’s. Water, dirt and grime all can take it’s toll on a bike. On all terrain/mtb bikes, areas like your bottom bracket, suspension pivot point’s, head set, drive train and brakes usually need the most attention. Clogged shift cable housing can also cause poor shifting. With Road, Town and Cruiser bikes the same applies minus the suspension part’s and possible gears. If you are a avid rider you should overhaul your bike once a year, tune ups twice a year. If you don’t ride as much you should at least tune your bike up at least once a year. By doing this you will increase the life of the bicycle and increase your fun as well. Nothing beats a smooth ride!!! Right now here at RIDEWITHDCS.com we can have your bike tuned up and ready to go in 1 day or less. So don’t wait, take advantage now of our competitive pricing and friendly, honest service.

Enjoy the ride,   Tim

A happy bike trail side

New MTB trails at Vail Lake Resort!

The MTB Park is ever expanding at the Resort. With Robert (racersandchasers) and Jason (12 HRS. of Temecula) leading the effort and help from a crew of volunteer’s the Park is really starting to take shape!  Off the main divide, at the top of “The Damn Climb” are 2  killer, sweet ,single track trails that will differently get your heart pumping. One of them, used for the Super D race course, has some white knuckled, ridge line action then moves to a couple of real technical drop sections and ends with rolling single track. Super fun ride!!! The other starts with a steep drop into some killer flowing single track that cuts and winds through the hill’s. A very picturesque ride that will amp you up! These trails with several other’s at the resort offer a lot of great riding for all abilities and levels. There’s a $5.00 entry fee but it includes access to the pool, jacuzzi, showers, water slide and all the riding your legs can handle. Camping is also available. If your interested in riding the resort and would like some one to show you the way around I offer guided rides of the area, check our guided ride/tour’s section for more info. This is one of the best times of the year to get out and ride. With everything in bloom, sunny skies and perfect temps there’s no excuse to not get out and spin those legs and stimulate that mind… Lets ride!!!