August 10, 2012

Mt Potosi

Last Saturday, we took the RZR up Mt Potosi. At 8,517 feet it's one of the highest points surrounding Las Vegas and it's not too far from the house. The trail is about 5 miles to the base of the mountain from Blue Diamond and another 5 up the mountain. We got up ok, though I was nervous... It's incredibly steep on the way up.

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Some is gravel, other parts are asphalt. The RZR doesn't handle well on streets since it's designed for offroad. We managed and got to enjoy lovely views.

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Look how wee Las Vegas is.

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On the way down we ran into trouble. We believed we burnt up the belt from riding down in low. Frank did it out of habit, the Mtn was spitting us out so fast. Midway the RZR came to a hault, we couldn't shift. The only way to move was to coast in neutral. By doing so we burnt up the brakes. They were so hot we had no pedal by the time we reached the foothills. We put rocks at the tires and let the brakes cool. Fortunately, the ability to brake was restored once they cooled. We coasted as far as we could, we'd run out of momentum and we'd take turns pushing to get it going again. We did this until we reached where it connects to the main trail. We were lucky to have cell service. I suggested we call Darren, Frank's cousin's boyfriend. He has experience offroad, has a trailblazer and lives the closest. Thankfully, he was home. I stayed behind with the RZR and Frank set off on foot to meet him. I loaded my camera bag with water and gave him the GPS and Spot communicator in case he lost cell service. I had put a towel in our storage bin before we set out, it came in handy to give me protection from the sun. My view for the next hour.

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50 minutes later they returned. I never saw another person so it was so fortunate Darren found his way. Frank had him stop at the truck and pick up the tow rope. We tethered the RZR to the trailblazer and Darren towed us the 5 miles back to the truck and trailer. We couldn't drive the RZR up the trailer, so we parked the trailer at the bottom of a hill. I steered and they pushed it up onto the trailer. It was such a relief. It could've went horribly wrong in so many ways, but we kept our cool and remained level headed the whole time. Now, we know to always carry an extra belt and the tools to change it. But we now know it wouldn've have helped. The problem wasn't the belt. It is the trans. We're waiting to hear how much the damage will be.

I'm glad we conquered Mt. Potosi, but we will not be doing it again.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ouch - glad everything worked out okay - Canadian EH!!:)

Len said...

Where did you start this trip from Blue Diamond? I came from main road from the south, near Goodsprings. I took my arctic cat utv up there and was amazed at the steep terrain and the asphalt. Saw a snow cap near the top of the south point.

Kellee said...

When heading west on Blue Diamond/160 before the mountain pass on the left there is parking lot and restrooms. We stage there and ride into until we meet up with the main trail that goes to goodsprings. The vacinity near the road is real popular with mountain bikers. After a couple washes it opens up to a huge trail system. We've seen petroglyphs and wild horses.