Nightbiking

Kelly Pasco drops the hammer on a Mob Shop-led night ride.

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Rincon Riders make the turn.

DO IT IN THE

dark S T ORY BY BRA N DON FA S TMAN PH OT OS BY PA UL K E L LY

CAN TELL YOU THAT WHEN WE STARTED OUT, WE WERE SURROUNDED BY AN AVOCADO GROVE. I can tell you that the temperature rose as we ascended above the inversion layer and the trees gave way to chaparral. I can tell you that the chill returned when we reached the peak of our ascent, and our sweat began to dry. I can tell you that, when we looked out from the mountain past the lights of the city below, all that pierced the blackness

I

of the nighttime Pacific were glowing oil platforms slurping energy from the depths below. I can tell you that I was with the Rincon Riders, a group of avid mountain bikers who live in Carpinteria.

I can tell you that, contrary to the sense of smallness you may typically feel when playing in the mountains, riding at night can make you feel like you’re at the center of the world. There’s nothing but you and the 10 yards of dirt and rock ahead of you, illuminated by lights affixed to your helmet and handlebars.

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What I can’t tell you is exactly where we were. Although the Rincon Riders are extremely conscious of trail etiquette, they aren’t quite sure if it’s kosher to ride this particular trail at night. So they ask me not to print our location.

There are a lot of reasons to do it in the dark, however. In the winter, if you have to work during typical business hours, you might not have a choice but to squeeze in a mountain bike ride at night.

Also, with limited light, familiar trails become more challenging. “It’s more exciting but it’s less dangerous,” Ed Brown, the owner of Open Air Bicycles in Santa Barbara told me. Because a narrow beam keeps him “pinpoint focused,” Brown figures he has actually crashed less at night than in broad daylight.”

Brown leads a weekly Wednesday night ride that starts from the upper

“There’s no one else out there.

We own the mountain.”

- Sergio Alvarez

Mike Billgren's rocky road 30

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A star studded night for Sean Ramirez Spring 2016

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Rincon Riders ready to roll

From left, Mike Billgren, Brett Labistour, Ben Anderson, and Pete Thompson imbibe post ride.

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Bright lights over a little city

Mob Shoppers Kelly Pasco, front, and Sean Ramirez

State Street location of his shop. For years, though, he spent his Wednesday nights chasing Sergio Alvarez around the Santa Ynez mountains. Alvarez, eminence grise at Hazard’s Cyclesport—the oldest bike shop in Santa Barbara—also leads a weekly night ride attended by some of the area’s strongest cyclists.

Alvarez guesses that the ride, started in 1985 by his former coworker and racing buddy Aaron Cox, is the oldest in California. Back then, mountain bikes went into storage for the winter, save for the occasional full moon ride. As lights have become cheaper and smaller, especially with the advent of LED lights, it’s become easier to give the autumnal equinox the proverbial one-finger salute.

What Alvarez loves about night riding is that the trails are empty. “There’s no one else out there,” he says. “We own the mountain.”

Along with dressing in layers, packing

a cell phone, planning your ride, and letting others know where you are, he suggests using a light of at least 750 lumens.

It’s best to ride with two lights, one on helmet and one on handlebars. As Ben Anderson, one of the Rincon Riders, explains, “It’s good to have one on your helmet because you should be looking where you’re going,” not just where your bike is pointed. If you’re on a budget, Anderson adds, you can find cheap and powerful CREE lights on Amazon.com, although they may not be as reliable or durable as the brand name lights at your local bike shop.

Even after doing it for this long, Alvarez says he’s still finding new loops to conquer, such as a recent epic through Blue Canyon that didn’t end until midnight. (Typical rides start at six o’clock and last two or three hours, but this ride was a birthday gift to one of the Hazard’s regulars.) As Alvarez put it, “We’re still able to make history.” | Spring 2016

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