Rode the short loop on Lummi Mt. with Al Rosen, Mark Adriance and Mark Belles, which was good company indeed.

The ride reminded both Mark B and me of Red Mountain -- a relentless climb up a steep old cat road that had regressed into single track. The most technical section comes a little after half way when you are confronted with a narrowing rock chute that harbors slickening moisture through the hottest days. I walked it, along with a couple other brief sections, but found myself at the summit first. "I see you brought your light climbing bike," Mark B chided me, referring to the fact I was riding my Specialized Stumpjumper FSR XC instead of my Cannondale Jekyll.

When we got back at Al's, we had pizza and beer before riding back on the 7:30 pm ferry to the mainland, where we'd parked our cars.

Approximately 1300 verts.

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.