I made it up Comp Hill at Hollister!!!!!

buckwi1d

Member
Dec 2, 2002
35
0
I'm back safe and sound from a GREAT weekend and have SO much to tell!!

Saturday morning Tim (my hubby) and I and his sis and bro-in-law (Kelley and Ryan) and some friends packed up bright and early to go riding at Hollister. Spent most of the day tooling around trails and being mellow. It was just one of those fun days where you all just cruise around and enjoy yourselves. At the end of one of the trails, we popped out at the bottom of Comp Hill (Competition Hill between the MX and TT tracks) and stopped for a bit to watch the people charging it which is always fun. Let me tell you about why this hill is kind of a rite of passage to me for those not in the area:

1) It's long
2) It's steep, slippery and rutted out in spots
3) Only maybe 60% of the people who try it actually make it
4) It's right in front of the main road so everyone watches you
5) Everyone except Tim tells me I should never try it because it's crazy to come back down the hill if you bail since I'm a beginner....and none of the other girls in our group are interested to try it

So with all that said, what do you think happened?! Everyone except for Tim and I and our friend Kris went back to camp, but we stayed to watch a few more people try it. Tim looks over at me and says, "So you wanna try it?" OK now he knows that I want to try it, but it looks so sketchy and beyond my ability level - never thought I would think about doing it 2 months after learning to ride and getting my TTR. Ryan (his bro-in-law) totally thinks I would get hurt trying it and if I did I better go up in first gear. Well I just decided to go for it so I knocked it into first and took off with my heart pounding in my chest. Got about halfway up and BOO-YA bike got squirrely and I dropped it! OK now this doesn't sound so bad until I look down and see a vertical drop - not only do I have to pick up my 180 pound bike and turn it around while on a steep, sliding dirt hill, but then I have to ride it DOWN the steep hill!!! YIKES Thank goodness Tim and Chris came up to help me turn it around and get down because I was freaked out!!!! They were so cool, supportive and impressed that I had charged it so I felt great for even attempting it!

I was tired after that so we went back to camp to chill for a little bit - Tim told everyone I had charged Comp Hill and they were all like NO WAY!! This 16 year old kid we had with us decided if I girl would try it, then he had to too! WHATEVER girls can kick butt just as much as guys - get over it while you're young! Anyhow, so our whole group trucked back over to the hill so I could give it one more go and Stephen could try it too. He tried 3 times and everytime bailed before he got halfway and someone had to hike up to help him get his bike down.

I sat forever looking at the hill trying to psych myself up to try it one more time. Which is extra hard when you keep seeing people bail and crash going up and then falling coming back down. No one in our group even knew if I was actually gonna go again - least of all me. Finally I just decided to go for it and grabbed a fistful of throttle and charged it in second gear this time! It was SO bumpy and crazy and my bike's front tire was off the ground and the back end was getting a little squirrely but I just held on, kept the throttle pinned AND ...

I MADE IT!!!!!!!!! :)

I can't even explain how incredible it felt when I made it to the top!!! I was shaking from the excitement and adrenaline and I felt SO great!! Tim rode up after me and met me at the top and couldn't stop screaming how great I was - he was so excited and proud of me and it felt great! Like I was on top of the world.

After we rode the back way to get down the hill and back to our group, Tim's sister who had no interest in trying it before decided to try it. She gave it a few good tries, but just couldn't make it. OH WELL there's always next time. Anyhow I'm still in the BEST mood from it!! All the guys were so impressed! It's extra exciting that I was the only one of us beginners that even wanted to try it and I was the first and only to make it!! Now I feel like a real dirt bike rider and I love it!!!!!!

Ok back to real life...thanks for listening!
 

Kawidude

D'oh!
LIFETIME SPONSOR
May 23, 2000
1,386
0
Great job Buckwi1d! I've been up that hill many times myself. It's still pretty intimidating even after you've been riding for a long time. That's awesome that you tackled it after only 2 months of riding! Just imagine how good and confident you'll be in 2 years!
 

GETMETOCA

Can't Wait For Tuesdays
Mar 17, 2002
4,768
0
I've stared that hill down more than a few times, but still have not tried it. Good job!!!!!!! And Congratulations!!
 

NVR FNSH

~SPONSOR~
Oct 31, 2000
1,235
0
Originally posted by GETMETOCA
I've stared that hill down more than a few times, but still have not tried it. Good job!!!!!!! And Congratulations!!

I bet you'd clean that hill if I came down there and 'pushed' your arse up it.... I know I can yell loud enough to be heard over a KTM 250!!!!!! I bet you didn't think you'd make it up that hill at Reno either :aj:

Great job buckwild!

Brian
 

Kawidude

D'oh!
LIFETIME SPONSOR
May 23, 2000
1,386
0
Originally posted by GETMETOCA
I've stared that hill down more than a few times, but still have not tried it. Good job!!!!!!! And Congratulations!!

I've seen you ride at Clear Creek and you'd make Comp hill with no problem! The trickiest part about that hill is that right as you're approaching the top and thinking you've got it made, it gets real bumpy and loose. Just keep it pinned!
 

bscottr

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Sep 20, 2001
1,255
0
Originally posted by buckwi1d
I MADE IT!!!!!!!!! :)

I can't even explain how incredible it felt when I made it to the top!!! I was shaking from the excitement and adrenaline and I felt SO great!! Tim rode up after me and met me at the top and couldn't stop screaming how great I was - he was so excited and proud of me and it felt great! Like I was on top of the world.
Awesome report! :thumb:

Queen of the hill. :)
 

Karna&Justin

~SPONSOR~
Sep 27, 2001
174
0
Great Report Buckwild! It reminded me of the first time I made it up Competition Hill on my XR200. I just did the same as you, 2nd gear full throttle and pinned it. I was shaking with adrenaline, myself. After the second and third time the rush goes away but you will keep finding challenging/intimidating terrain, hillclimbs, etc., and will keep improving by trying.

BTW, I tried competition hill again last summer during a Hollister ride with Natalie (GETMETOCA) and totally biffed it about 1/2 way up. It was so slippery and dusty and there was this big rocky mound that I, unfortunately, migrated to. I managed to loop my bike. Oh well, It made less work for me to turn it around and ride back down. I can't wait to tackle it again!

Karna
 

firecracker22

Sponsoring Member
Oct 23, 2000
3,217
0
Congrats! 

GETMETOCA, I know how you feel about staring it down, I feel the same way every time I hit the brakes after clearing the double . . . and rolling the triple that's smaller and comes right after it.  One of these days . . .
 

rickyd

Hot Sauce
Oct 28, 2001
3,447
0
Congrats on making Comp Hill :) I remember back in the day i was nervous about it til i went riding w/some freinds.. W/out word they all charged up it so i had no choice but too do it.. Anybody know if the will open "The Mile Climb" at Hollister?? :laugh:
RIck
 

Michelle

Sponsoring Member
Oct 26, 1999
1,245
0
Congraulations & great report (keep 'em coming).
Okay, so this hill's famous - anyone got any pix, preferably with people crashing on it? Just to get an idea of it. Hmm, helmetcam anyone?
We had a club training day the other year & the first obstacle they send us to is this huge hill, slippery as hell, rutted to all heck, bits of tree everywhere, & some rocks. Now, this wasn't part of the training, this was a warm up to allow the organisers time to get ready. Those of us who needed the training didn't get back in time, would've been okay in the dry, but I got the heebies watching some of the guys coming back down it. It's way cool fun to come down, but I've never tried going up it - must give that a go when I'm left to entertain myself. (oh, the organisers learnt a lot that day, they haven't run another one yet lol - we still love hassling them about it)
But again, congratulations, sounds like you're going to be a great rider with no fear.
 

Lissa

"Am I lost again?"
Apr 28, 2002
562
0
Congratulations on conquering the hill.  :thumb:

 Being a woman, we are not born with 'b@lls', We have to earn' em. You earned some when you made that hill look like a ant mound! Granted I'm from the East coast, but we have some insanely tricky steep hills here too. Keep the progress up and keep makin' the dudes feel like wimps (in a good way)! :laugh:
 
Last edited:

buckwi1d

Member
Dec 2, 2002
35
0
Oops let me try that again?!

Thanks for all the support everyone. I'm still grinning ear to ear thinking about my ride up that hill and I can't wait to go back this weekend! :)

I don't have any pics of me going up Comp Hill (although I hope to soon), but here is one I found online of it. Not really a great shot though because it cuts out a lot of the hill and doesn't make it look as steep, but you get the idea~


47b3dd22b3127cce94af3b44fb870000001610


Originally posted by slickpuss
Sweet! That hill can get pretty nasty. What kind of bike were you using?

2003 TTR-125L!!! My very first dirt bike ever - got it for Xmas!
 

Fe_princess

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Sep 7, 2001
519
0
Originally posted by buckwi1d
and I dropped it! OK now this doesn't sound so bad until I look down and see a vertical drop - not only do I have to pick up my 180 pound bike and turn it around while on a steep, sliding dirt hill, but then I have to ride it DOWN the steep hill!!!

Welcome to the world of dirtbiking! :p
Sounds like you're off to a perfect start :thumb:
I applaude your bravery on the hill :yeehaw:
Once you've made it up, down starts looking a lot scarier :(
 

buckwi1d

Member
Dec 2, 2002
35
0
Welcome to the world of dirtbiking! :p
Sounds like you're off to a perfect start :thumb:

Thanks!! :) I'm going back this weekend and hope to get a photo this time!

Ooh and on a side-note, I was looking at a map of Hollister Hills last night and discovered that Comp Hill is a Black Diamond trail!!! EEK My very first and hopefully not my last! ;)
 

rickyd

Hot Sauce
Oct 28, 2001
3,447
0
Hey, i may be out there tommorrow, 2003 Nissan Frontier and a trailer w/2 KX's and possibly a yz85..
RIck
 

fryboy

Member
Feb 21, 2003
18
0
Congrats on making the hill climb! I have looked on the map and can't find a trail named competition hill so I am assuming you are referring to "Twin" or "Rancho Hill" ?

Thanks for sharing the story.
Fryboy
 

ktmboy

~SPONSOR~
Apr 1, 2001
2,474
0
That picture looks like the hill is hardpack with the loose stuff on top---very challenging! I know all about pictures not telling the whole story, since the pictures other members of the Wrecking Crew have posted of the sand hilll in Phelan don't look near as steep or tall as it really is.
My son had a similar experience out at Jawbone canyon this past Thanksgiving weekend: He'd only had his bike less than 1 year, and I don't get to take him out as often as I'd like, so he was very intimidated by steep hills until this particular weekend in which I was able to spend a lot of one-on-one time coaching him. On the last ride of the weekend I took him over to a very steep sand hill, and kept sending him up over and over again, each time with pointers and suggestions until he finally made the top. I know exactly how your husband felt, because I felt that same pride well up inside when I saw how excited he was at his accomplishment.
There's no comparison to how it feels to conquer a nasty hill that instills fear in your heart! Congrats on the first of many triumphs!
 

rickyd

Hot Sauce
Oct 28, 2001
3,447
0
Hey Buckwild,
Were you out at Hollister this past saturday (3/22)?? Reason i ask is we were on this trail and right in front of us this lady crashed reall hard on a ttr125 and i stopped too make sure she was ok til her husband/boyfreind got back.. She was saying it was her 1st wreck and such.. Thought it may of been you perhaps..
Rick
 

buckwi1d

Member
Dec 2, 2002
35
0
Fryboy~ Not sure why it's called Competition Hill, but on the map I think it's the black diamond named Twin. :)

KTMboy~ Thanks for the props! It was the toughest hill I've ever tried and ever made and it made me feel SO good to get to the top my first day trying! Can't wait to go back and conquer it again and again I hope! Next time I will get some pics though - most I see just don't do it justice.

RickyD~ Nope it wasn't me thank goodness! Sadly I had to move into a new place this weekend, so no riding for me. However, this weekend it's ON!! :)- I'm a curly mop-top on a 125L though so I'm pretty easy to spot when I head up the hill. This is me the day I got my bike.
47b2cc11b3127cce9365351eb48d0000001510
 

Y2Z

~SPONSOR~
Apr 6, 2002
411
0
wow my friend has a ttr125 and i cant believe you made it up there! my friend is a pretty good rider and that bike couldnt get him up much.

congrats
 

rickyd

Hot Sauce
Oct 28, 2001
3,447
0
Buckwild,
I'll be out there this saturday, should be there by 8am.. I drive a 2003 Nissan Frontier (granite color) w/a Dale Earnhardt Jr front license plate.. WIll have a 2001 kx250 for sure.. Possibly a 2001kx 125 and a 2003 kx65 and a Ktm200.. I'll keep an eye out for a Mop Top HAHA
Rick
 
Top Bottom