Louisville Slalom and Downhill KY

[PUcmw11]

Once I get caught up on yard and house work I plan to head out there for a surveillance run. I'm just not sure how soon that will happen. I'll be posting on here when I do.

please do....i feel like I am retelling some epic story of Indiana hills that have gone unnoticed...lol

I need a witness to the fact that (while maybe not 8 miles long like cali) we still have some wicked hills in the Midwest!! lol

[BluegrassSurfer]

Chris:
Shot you a PM. Seems you Southern IN boys have some hot local breaks. Spickert sounds like a good warm up. But, I'm always chasing the perfect "barrel shoot" -- avoiding 100-ft plunges to my death.

Sniff:
I'll be lurking.

ANYBODY:
I would love to find a short (100-200 yd) 20% grade also and carve the edge for 15 seconds.

Edit:
Lost a wheel half-way down my 17% grade (carving) yesterday...talk about intense...

[PUcmw11]

Chris:
Shot you a PM. Seems you Southern IN boys have some hot local breaks. Spickert sounds like a good warm up. But, I'm always chasing the perfect "barrel shoot" -- avoiding 100-ft plunges to my death.

Sniff:
I'll be lurking.

ANYBODY:
I would love to find a short (100-200 yd) 20% grade also and carve the edge for 15 seconds.

Edit:
Lost a wheel half-way down my 17% grade (carving) yesterday...talk about intense...

Lol, talk about an O-#### moment!

[sniffleless]

So the wife is out of town and I got the lawn mowed after work today. That means I'm going skating!!
A little downhill and a little carving session. Maybe slalom if I'm feeling it. Scope out some new hills for sure.
It's Thunder Over Louisville on Saturday. That means lots of people are going to be downtown and no where else. The perfect day to hit up some hills that usually might be a little busy. By late afternoon everyone is trying to get down to the river front so they can have a good seat for the fireworks. I may do that too. I don't know. First skating. Maybe go out to the Cuban place for dinner. That place is always packed. I may luck up.

Anyone down for some skating and Cuban food?

[PUcmw11]

So the wife is out of town and I got the lawn mowed after work today. That means I'm going skating!!
A little downhill and a little carving session. Maybe slalom if I'm feeling it. Scope out some new hills for sure.
It's Thunder Over Louisville on Saturday. That means lots of people are going to be downtown and no where else. The perfect day to hit up some hills that usually might be a little busy. By late afternoon everyone is trying to get down to the river front so they can have a good seat for the fireworks. I may do that too. I don't know. First skating. Maybe go out to the Cuban place for dinner. That place is always packed. I may luck up.

Anyone down for some skating and Cuban food?

**shoots self for being stuck at school with no car* ...lol

[sniffleless]

So I spent my afternoon out exploring the hills of Southern Indiana.
I hit up all the hills that PU offered up plus a few of my own. I found a few gems and a few not okay.
I started with Barrel Shoot and worked my way South on my drive. I didn't get to skate any of these but I drove them and made my assessments. All the roads are narrow two lane roads with no shoulder. Road conditions on many of these are a bit rough. My biggest problem is that there is nowhere to park your car. If the side of the road isn't dropping off into a ditch it's right up on someone's lawn.

Barrel Shoot is insane! Steep, curvy and fast. At one point the hill got so steep in a turn that I couldn't see the road in front of me as I drove up. Sadly there is not much of a run out at the bottom. For the amount of speed you will be hitting more run out at the bottom is a must. You have to know how to slide, drift and speed check to survive this hill. Road conditions at the bottom are a bit rough too.

Moser Knob was okay. Short and you run into an odd intersection. There was some gravel deposited in the turn at the bottom. I'd say best bet is to turn left onto S Skyline for your run out.

S Skyline is a good one. It's a fairly straight shot. Still it looks fun. Pavement is a bit rough in spots. You'll have to watch it on the way down. Decent run out at the bottom. I have a hill like this by my house but steeper.

Spickert Knob. It's a nice little run. Kind of mellow compared to the others. The shoulder on the right hand side is eroding.

On the subject of Spickert Knob. It is a split road. The OTHER Spickert Knob is an insane run. Traffic is a concern. This is the only hill of the PU's bunch that I really had any oncoming traffic. On my drive down I passed four cars coming up. This is a nice windy road going down the side of the mountain. It is a very technical run. Lots of hairpin turns and blind corners. Great long run out at the end. This hill is maybe a bit out of my comfort zone but looks like oh so much fun. One of the best finds of the day for sure.

Then I went on to my own hills I wanted to check out in the Silver Hills area. Got to drive past the house I wanted to buy. It still looks nice and has a little hill running right by it. Places to park your car on these too.

Spring St Hill was first on my list. This is a nice windy road coming down the hill. The run out is a bit sketchy. You will have to blow a stop sign into a downtown neighborhood. Roads are a bit rough down there. On the subject of roads. Spring St Hill is closed. That cuts off the run out option. Why is it closed? Because they just resurfaced the entire road. Brand new black top the whole way down. I couldn't drive it today. I'll have to go back and bike it maybe.

I then drove on out Corydon Pike. There is a nice winding section on this road that should be fun. This is a four lane road. Not terribly steep but is nice and long with some fun turns. Not the fastest but should still be good. It gets a bit flat in the bottom section before one last hill into the run out. You want to be stopping in that last run out section because after that is a railroad crossing.

Lastly is maybe one of the most hopeful run I found. Old Vincennes. This is a long one. It has turns and straight-a-ways and a nice run out. Pavement is okay. The main problem with this hill is some utility work at the bottom right before the run out. They tore up the pavement all the way across the street. It's a big rut filled with gravel. If they patch that well when they finish this could be a good run. If not that could ruin it. Not as advanced as some of the others. A good next step kind of run when you are ready to step it up.

I did spy a few more hills I will go back out and check out. One in a neighborhood that looks like suicide it is so steep. Bill, you might like that one. Another is a hill I have been spying from the interstate but could never figure out how to get to it. Now I know. That one is a two-fer. One on the main road and one in a neighborhood. I spied a few that would be great if not for a) being on private property, b) no run out, or c) having railroad tracks at the bottom.

More to come I'm sure.

[sniffleless]

OH and I had a great carving session today. Lots of tight hard carves and drifting turns. FUN!
I did a little downhill bombing too but after riding real turny trucks the downhill set up just felt wrong. So I went back to carving. I surfed the heck out of a few streets today. Scoped out a few old slalom hills. A few are good to ride again and two others are out and done. It was a good day.

Today is Thunder of Louisville. Big air show and fireworks display to kick off Derby Week. I was going to go down there and do that this evening BUT it looks like it will be the largest turnout ever. That translates to horrible traffic nightmare afterward. So I'll just watch it on TV. I don't feel like sitting in traffic for three to four hours to make a 30 minute drive.

They are calling for rain tomorrow. So I may do another recon trip tomorrow.

[BluegrassSurfer]

Steep and 150 yards long is my kind of carve. Hanging on to high-G, 180 cutbacks for 15-20 seconds -- so close to riding a wave.

[PUcmw11]

Barrel Shoot is insane! Steep, curvy and fast. At one point the hill got so steep in a turn that I couldn't see the road in front of me as I drove up....

Lol...try wrecking a bike on that part...lol (SUCKED ASS!!)
but yeah...I figured that you would like spickert the best....it has the most traffic but the run out is so long...and the first part of the run out...you barrel out of the woods sooo freakin fast!! its awesome....
I know where old vincennes is...my highschool was actually on that road...but its pretty long and winds through the county...where was the part with the hill that you mentioned? I'll have to check it out when I get a chance!! Hope you can find a dry day and get to ride the hills of the sunny side of Louisville (lol) Have fun!! oh...and how was thunder this year? First year in 6 that I didn't make it down to the riverside to watch....

Chris

[PUcmw11]

Spring St Hill was first on my list. This is a nice windy road coming down the hill. The run out is a bit sketchy. You will have to blow a stop sign into a downtown neighborhood.

This makes me laugh because it is one that I can relate to! The best hill we have up here at purdue runs down a hill like s. skyline...but it also happens to be main street in the town...and the second you get to the run out (20 to 25+mph every time) there is this cobblestone intersection that you have to blow through (old towns and their cobblestone...lol)
Well, cobblestone taken slowly is annoying...thud thud thud...over and over again...but that fast...your feet experience a temporary earthquake and its nuts!! its the coolest (and scariest) thing if you have never gone from good pavement to cobblestone that fast...lol good times good times (and I do hate blowing through intersections...out of everyone I ride with...I will most likely be the one plastered to some van's side when they run the stop sign...lol)

[PUcmw11]

there are more than 3 of us on this thread right?!? because when I finally do get home...it better look like this...lol


this is toronto...freakin canadians have the midwest stomped!! We gottta catch up!! I mean look at that...freakin annual "board meeting" it's clever...and allows us all to ride down busy streets in the road in the middle of a city...sounds fun to me!!

[sniffleless]

Most the guys that are active on this thread don't even live in the Louisville area but we have a few guys....very few. It's a good day for me if I can get ONE person to skate with.

[BluegrassSurfer]

I suspect there are a fair number of lurkers around. Nowadays I lurk more than I post.

Chris since you're gone in summer and I hate heat and Sniff is there all the time. I vote for an Autumn Freestyle/Freeride Rally in the Louisville/So. IN area. Any good state parks for camping nearby?

With pneumatic wheels rough pavement isn't as bad (more like choppy water). What is lethal is sand and fine gravel. They were having a Masonic meeting over at the county school complex yesterday. So I had to ride my second choice carve run (gentle start, steep finish, flat run out between 2 rows of cars (cars on each side, one lane left), With all the rain there is a gravel/sand patch right at the bottom of the steep section -- no problem if you go "straight" through it. Because of the gentler top grade, I can do "ultra-tight cutbacks" on this run.

Finished my 10th carve run with some spectators, couple of young women and their mother walking back to their car. They were all stoked and thought the street MB was awesome -- "like a surfboard on wheels." Their brother showed up and they asked me to do it again (had told them 10 was my last). I finally relented and said "one more."

Put on a really good show with my tightest carving run of the day -- really great leans with a crouch or two at the bottom. So I had slowed down pretty well by the time I hit the bottom death patch (sand/gravel)...decided I didn't want to run it out on the straight and walk the extra distance. A little side-slip here...a little side-slip there...then, a real nice near faceplant in sandy gravel It's such a drag to end 11 great rides with a wipe-out on the kick-out

Final Edit:
Only thing worse than sand and gravel for high-G carve is small twigs and "acorns."

[sniffleless]

It was the "last run" curse.

[BluegrassSurfer]

Hadn't thought about that...I believe your right. LMAO

Seemed like that would happen a lot on my last wave surfing.

[sniffleless]

I know where old vincennes is...my highschool was actually on that road...but its pretty long and winds through the county...where was the part with the hill that you mentioned?
Chris

This is the section between Quarry Rd and Cherry.
Cherry is not a bad hill. The pavement is a bit rough and eroded. Just a straight shot.
We had looked at a house a block away from the top of Cherry. Someone beat us to it.

The rain has stopped for now. I think it's time to head out and check out some more hills.

[BluegrassSurfer]

The rain has stopped for now. I think it's time to head out and check out some more hills.

Better hurry. The rain and thunder have started up again out here in West KY. And, it looks like it's headed your way.

[sniffleless]

Yep. Raining again.

Yeah you have to watch the last run curse. That is why you never say "one more run" or "last run" or anything like that. It always kills you. Sometimes it's just because you go extra hard to make it count and other times it's just dumb luck but it always gets you.

Thunder was good this year. Not the record for attendance but close. I watched it all on the TV. I just didn't want to deal with that traffic going home. I did get to see the Osprey flying over my house. I saw the Red Bull acrobatic helicopter flying towards the river. I missed seeing it do it's thing. Watching helicopters do flips and loops and go upside down is crazy. I missed the F-22 but saw it on TV. That plane can do some wild stuff too. Considering how high up it went I think I got the better view on TV. Wish I had seen the A-10's in person. Still one of my favorite planes. The stunt bi-plane was cool.
AND the fireworks were cool as always. I can hear them all the way at my house. I see the big ones on TV and then I go out in the front yard and wait for the sound to come. It takes a little while.

[sniffleless]

Curse you Google maps!!!!
I just found maybe another one. Main Street Hill. I'm going to check it out.



SO I went.
It rained like hell. Interstate was shut down due to wrecks. Flash flooding. Hydroplaning. Yet I persisted and went on.
Main Street Hill is gone. It has been shut off and overgrown. I've seen back country single track mountain bike trails that were more defined and less over grown. So it is out.
I checked out a few others that I didn't get to yesterday. Not all that. Not worth it.
Corydon Pike that I was talking about. Upon driving it again. Real mellow and slow.
Old Vincennes. Man I wish that road wasn't all torn up at the bottom. The more I drive that one the more I want to do it. Great run. I look at it on the satellite maps and the corners don't look that much. I drive it and it feels really windy. I hope they do a good patch job on the section.

So I hit the record store to pick up a few albums I've been meaning to get. All sold out. I swing by Target to buy the DVD I want. All sold out. I stop by the store to buy some groceries. So busy I'm just going to go back later.
Not a great day today.

[PUcmw11]

I suspect there are a fair number of lurkers around. Nowadays I lurk more than I post.

Chris since you're gone in summer and I hate heat and Sniff is there all the time. I vote for an Autumn Freestyle/Freeride Rally in the Louisville/So. IN area. Any good state parks for camping nearby?

."

autumn rally sounds like a Great idea!! I will surely be up to coming home for a weekend for some good riding!! We actually have a sweet skatepark in downtown louisville...deepest bowls are 12 or 14 feet if I remember right, they have a 20 foot full pipe...and they have a bunch of other bowls and smaller stuff for those of us like me that don't ride in skateparks...so that could be fun...I know there are a bunch of guys that ride longboards in skateparks...but that I have yet to try...I am preeeeeeeeeetty sure that'd kill me before the gravel/intersections/surprise cars...lol (I have seen too many episodes of Scars lately...people busting the crap out of themselves!)
And I feel you on the acorns and sand...Sand is what dropped me last summer...and acorns...fell on them a lot on bikes as a kid...not fun! (the only thing is.,..idk if you can camp at louisville's skate park??? I am pretty sure that they have a rule against tents and camping...but not sure...does louisville have a hostel?? 15 bucks a night would be nice!!

Chris