Essentially lost most of my braking power part way through the ride. The aluminum rims mixed with the mud and the suddenly very thin brake pads to make travel over 5 mph very unwise. I basically crept down the mountain and drove straight to Fairhaven Bike, where I left the bike for brake overhaul (to go with new Mavic 517 ceramic rim sewn on the back) and tuneup.

Approximately 1200 verts. My total for the month of February was 33,709 verts climbed. Happy Leap Year!

Vert Quest chronicles "The Man Known As Mongo's" pursuit of the World Record for climbing on a mountain bike, 404,000 vertical feet, or the vertical equivalent of 13 sea-level-to-summit ascents of Mt. Everest during a 12 month period. Mongo's mountain bike climbing tricks are distilled in Mongo's Over-the-top Guide to Climbing.