12 KENTER WHOOPS

KEY AT-A-GLANCE INFORMATION

Length: 7.6 miles

Configuration: Out-and-back

Technical difficulty: 5

Aerobic difficulty: 3

Scenery: Mandeville Canyon, Santa Monica Mountains, West Los Angeles

Exposure: 95% exposed to sunshine

Trail traffic: Moderate–heavy

Trail surface: Dry hardpack—20% singletrack

Riding time: 1.5–2.5 hours

Access: Sunrise–sunset, 7 days a week

Maps: USGS 7.5-minute quads: Beverly Hills, Topanga

Special comments: This ride is on private property that is open to the public. Wear pads and possibly a full-face helmet if you plan on doing big jumps.

GPS TRAILHEAD COORDINATES (WGS84)

UTM Zone 11S

Easting 362101

Northing 3772233

Latitude N 34.04′54″

Longitude W 118.29′41″

DIRECTIONS

From I-405, exit onto Sunset Boulevard and head west about 1.25 miles. Turn right onto Kenter Avenue and drive to the end, about 2.1 miles from Sunset, and find street parking. The trailhead is clearly marked with a large gate at the end of Kenter.

In Brief

The Kenter Whoops are a marvel of human engineering and excavation. Created by local riders over the last 20 years, this 0.9-mile-long roller-coaster ride of whoops and jumps would surely have been bulldozed long ago had it been part of the state park system. Thankfully, the landowners have left this gem alone and have kept the area open to users. Some of the double jumps on this trail are Evel Knievel huge and should be attempted only by experienced dirt jumpers who drape themselves in protective gear. Because of the extreme difficulty, this is by far the most technically demanding ride in the Santa Monica Mountains. However, you don’t have to be Brian Lopes to ride here—every double can be ridden around safely.

Description

The Kenter Whoops is a relatively small part of the large riding area located on top of Kenter Ridge. Just riding the whoops alone, although exhilarating, provides very little cardio workout. To afford a complete fat-tire experience, this route includes an extended fire-road climb well beyond the whoops area, as well as some out-and-back action on a little-known piece of singletrack that descends into Mandeville Canyon.

Out of respect for the dirt jumpers who built the whoops, ascend on Kenter Ridge Fire Road instead of going against the grain up the Kenter Whoops trail. After roughly 1 mile of moderate climbing, you’ll see the entrance to the Kenter Whoops on the left of the trail on the other side of a concrete embankment and small section of fence. There you may see some armor-clad-full-face-helmeted stunt riders straddling their specialized dirt-assaulting bikes. Keep spinning up the ridge; you will join that motley crew later on.

Deker Williams no-looks the gap at the Kenter Whoops.

Sweat starts to flow after another mile, and uphill dirt becomes a steep pavement descent with a gate at the bottom. Dismount and step around the gate, and then ride for a half mile on Canyonback Road through an affluent community that one hopes will not edge the Whoops into oblivion through expansion. At the end of Canyonback Road, cross another gate on your left so you can rejoin Kenter Ridge Fire Road and pedal on the raw earth your bike craves. After another half mile of moderate ascending, keep an eye out for an elusive singletrack offshoot on your left. Called Hollyhock Trail by locals, this twisty, seldom-visited descent into Mandeville Canyon was once paved with asphalt. Mother Nature has taken back all but a sliver of this defunct street. Where else would an off-road cyclist enjoy being on pavement?

The Hollyhock singletrack descent is roughly 0.75 miles long, but you will have lost just more than 400 feet of elevation by the time you reach the end at Mandeville Canyon Road, so prepare yourself for a workout when you head back up to Kenter Ridge. Keep the faith, though, salvation is just ahead—you’re a few pedal strokes away from the one of the most precious trails in Southern Cali: the Kenter Whoops.

Be sure you lower your seat before you begin bombing down the trail, especially if you plan on doing any aerial stunts. The whoops and jumps on this trail actually began as water bars designed to divert floodwaters down the hillside to prevent trail erosion. The first few whoops aren’t very steep or high, so they are an easy initiation into the world of dirt jumping. After about an eighth of a mile, some carefully sculpted steep-faced jumps bob up on either side of the trail. Each jump, called a double, consists of two consecutive humps; the first hump launches you up and, with enough speed, over the second hump. Or you can take it easy and dip up and down both humps, or just take the easier path down the middle. A gifted rider can take off and land on the downward face of the second mound in perfect rhythm. Some of the gaps are more than 20 feet across, so don’t try them unless you are very experienced. A little more than a half mile down this virtual motocross track, you’ll see some of the most popular doubles, as well as the “Gap,” a double jump with a 15-foot-deep gulch between the takeoff and landing. This is a good spot to take a break (out of the way of the riders, of course) and marvel at the skill and grace of jumpers taking precise lines down the trail and fearlessly gliding through the air.

The last quarter mile has a few doubles with 30-plus-foot-long gaps that, believe it or not, have been cleared by a few mortal humans. Like all the obstacles you’ve seen, these are optional stunts. At the conclusion of the whoops, only disabling injury will keep you from taking another run, so turn left onto Kenter Ridge and begin your laps.

After the Ride

For an eclectic fusion of Asian and Latin cuisines, as well as cheap beer, check out Wahoo’s Fish Tacos on 11911 Wilshire Boulevard; (310) 445-5990. For vegan food that even meat eaters love, go to Native Foods on 1110 Gayley Avenue; (310) 209-1055.