We ended the year as we have for the last several years, at the Hammers. Mark Colby and I drove out to Cal's house in Hesperia on Sunday afternoon and spent the night.

On Monday we met Jefe and his son Matt for breakfast and drove out to Means Dry Lake. We decided to do the original and go up Sledgehammer. We finished the first third of the trail (the toughest part)at the mailbox by 10:30 and decided to take the crossover to Jackhammer and do the back half of it. When we go to the bottom it was still early so we went back and did the first part of Jackhammer. When we finished it was about 3:00 and not enough time left to do another trail in the light. Besides Cal's wife Terry had a great dinner waiting for all who went so packed up and headed to Cal's.

The trails are still tough and there were a few tense moments. One was where Mark leaning left with almost no weight on the right tires and he had to go higher on the right to go forward but with Jefe and Cal rock surfing on the right side it added enough weight to hold it down and he got through. Another time Cal slid into a hole with the right rear putting the fender up against a boulder as high as the top of his bed. He banged in the fender but with some rock stacking and sideways pushing he got out. The offcamber waterfall on the first part of Jackhammer has really changed. A piece of the bank on the left side has broke loose and change the line you take and traction was at a minimum. Cal went first and after much trying and different lines he took a new line up the right side that none of us had ever considered before. Jefe was next and he to finally gave up and took Cals line. Then came Mark and his old scrambler Jesse just drove right on up showing everyone how it is done. It was a bright sunny day and t-shirt weather and we saw no other rigs on the trail.

Yours on the trail,
Frank YoYo Hayes.
( KE6RDG )