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VIDEO: Return to the Redwoods Part II - Heavily Rooted

 12/12/2014

To be fair you’re going to encounter roots on every trail in the Redwoods, even on the kids loop, but in this video I’ve tried to capture some of the gnarlyiest rooted sections I rode.

Important note: None of these trails are black trails. Some locals ride down them on hardtails!

I don’t know if your local trails feature roots but apart from the Redwoods I’ve had virtually no experience riding them. On the first two days of this trip it was particularly wet and my god sliding around on the roots was terrifying. I’d never fully appreciated how slippery roots were, I’d never fully appreciated the Brits fascination with grippy tyres, and I’d never fully appreciated why experienced riders liked them so much.

Put a rock in front of me and I’m pretty much in my element. Living on the northern beaches of Sydney we’re surrounded by rocks but there are virtually no rocks in the Redwoods. In fact you will come across more Aussies in the Rotorua Redwoods than you will rocks – seriously!

Heavily Rooted features a fair section of the Billy T trail, one of my favourite trails in the Redwoods. Te Tihi-O-Tawa was a totally different experience in the mud than it was after a long dry spell last January. The masses of small roots were too slippery for me to confidently hold momentum. I certainly didn’t enjoy TTOT to the same degree as last time but then again there were other trails I didn’t enjoy last time that blew me away on this trip.

The other trail featured heavily in this video is Hot X Buns. That was a whole new level of confronting challenges. Hot X Buns is some ridiculously steep, rutted and rooty sections broken up by sections of tight steep climbs. It is the “most Enduro” trail I’ve ever ridden. Racing down Hot X Buns must sort the men from the boys, from the 40 year old fat bastards. 

I rode Hot X Buns on day 2 and it spooked me. The effort to get there, the power needed to ride it, how hard you are on the brakes and focus needed to get off-and-on them through the technical sections kept me from riding it again – it was a real mental challenge something I wasn’t sure I had in me again after so many long days riding. 

I do however regret not going back up for another assault on Hot X Buns. Next time for sure.

Other great rooted trails include:  Under Billy (which I rode a lot), Roller Coaster, G Rock, Corridor, Gunna Gotta, and Grinder, but as I previously mentioned all trails have roots in the Forest.

My choice of music for this episode captures the intense, twisted, screaming mental torment of riding Heavily Rooted.

Click on the photos to see full size versions

The lower end of Corridor, this particular section looked a lot harder than it was, while other sections were a lot harder than they looked.

The start of the Hot X Buns trail after riding (or more accurately walking) up from the bottom of Eagle vs Shark via Lentil Link and Sidewinder.

I didn't like the look of those roots toward the bottom of Hot X Buns. However I walked back up and tried it again without incident. As featured in the video.

The top of Te Tihi-O-Tawa (after a good walk up the hill)

The Tickler - a steep stepped trail that runs from the end of Katore Jumps down into the valley and back up to Pipeline/Red Tank Rd.

MTB-TV'S ROTORUA REDWOODS FEATURE VIDEOS

Return to the Redwoods Full Feature
Return to the Redwoods
Full Feature (Parts I, II, III & IV)

 

Whak-en Outrageous My Last Day in the Redwoods
Whak-en Outrageous
My Last day in the Redwoods
Return to the Redwoods 1 - We're going to the Redwoods
Return to the Redwoods - Part I
WE'RE GOING TO THE REDWOODS

 

Return to the Redwoods 2 - Heavily Rooted
Return to the Redwoods - Part II
HEAVILY ROOTED
Return to the Redwoods 3 - XC Lower Mountain 		Pedally Days
Return to the Redwoods - Part III
XC LOWER MOUNTAIN PEDALLY DAYS

 

Return to the Redwoods 4 - Eagle vs Shark
Return to the Redwoods - Part IV
EAGLE VS SHARK
 

Trail Centres and Trails featured in this blog

 

Comments:

This website is brought to you by MTB weekend warrior Aaron Markie.
There are plenty of great websites out there with a wealth of information about Mountain Bike Trails,
however in my experience its hard to get a good mix of info, maps, photos and videos of trails I've never ridden.
The idea of this website is to tie those 4 elements together and give you a more detailed look at the MTB Trails I ride.
If you have anything to add then let me know.