I could Cry!
I headed out to the local trail of choice (Binder) today for a little fun ride with friends. I found myself near tears at several points today.
First, This was the first ride since revisiting the Ouachita Trail. Binder is great, but it just was not in as good of condition as Ouachita, and the technical difficulty is simply lacking at Binder when compared directly to the gardens of Arkansas. That is fine though, because there are a few gems at Binder that I have been restraining myself on lately (did not want to risk injury prior to the Challenge).
Second, Not so fast there Unit! One of my favorite gems has been dismantled!...OH man! The only jump at Binder that has a lip and a decent possibility for flight has been destroyed....nevermore... I guess I am going to have to go out and rebuild it. I do not recall any notification of trail building activities, nor have I heard discussion of plans to tear down this sweet jump. I can only speculate that someone was trying to move some of the dirt from the jump at the top of the hill to the slope heading straight down the hill (see photo).....it has re-washed out already! Unfortunately, it looks as if these efforts were not successful, and we have temporarily lost a nice jump.
Finally, I was starting to hurt all over. I have tight IT bands, and a tender back from work and the race last Sunday. The stress of the week was not moving away, and the aggravation with the damage that many have done to the trails by riding through soupy condiditions was starting to get to me. Combine that with the discovery that my favorite dirt jump is now gone and I was ready to go build my own trails.
Wahhhh, sniff sniff, whahh! I will quit crying now. I will have to find some time to rebuild that jump. I knew that it needed some repair after last winter, but now I have the opportunity to start over and make something really neat. Here is some old video from days of old (last spring) when the jump was in better shape.....now I have a project.
Update!
I called Switzerland this morning to set up returning his stuff that he lost during the Middlefork Epic. Well, I could not resist crying on his shoulder about the jump...he seemed fairly certain that these efforts were not conducted by the ORTA committee.
Here is the good part: Switzerland says that it is no problem to get Parks and Rec. to bring and dump a truckload of soil to rebuild the jump! Now if I can attract the attention of a few willing bodies to assist in the cool-ifying efforts!
One afternoon guys! We can build something really cool...want to lend support?
Build it
Build it and they will come.
Build it and secure 24/7 security to keep the toadies from tearing it down.
A dump truck? Dude you should talk to P&R about bringing in a bunch of loads. You guys could build a bunch of nice stuff into that area.
Mark Ewers
I may not be fast, but I'm 2 old 2 go slow
I agree...
I think I will start with replacing the jump, and re-routing the downhill such that it will erode less. Then I will wait and see if it gets "disturbed" again.
I appreciate what someone was trying to do out there...I just wish I had been around to help.
I will be contacting the Committee tomorrow for their blessing and support on this project.
Took a look myself . . .
I ran over and took a look at the trail work you described. It's an obvious reclaiming attempt. They used the logs from the ramp as "check dams" and filled in the trough with dirt. You could even see where they transplanted some grass on the top to start the revegitation process. All by the book except for one thing. You usually don't start the reclamation process until you open the new tread!
I saw the pin flags you told me about heading off into the woods. I followed them around and they meet back with the trail just above the creek crossing. The route goes back to some old bridges that Nick and Bob put in for a fun diversion years ago. I don't know if the reroute will help with erosion in the long run but the options are limited right there. It will make an interesting run but, again, it should have been built and open before reclaiming the old part. I'm still checking into the who, what and why of it all.
Let me see about Parks & Rec getting the dirt out there. They don't have a problem with doing jobs for us but it takes them forever to get around to it. In the meantime we will just have to bypass the construction zone as best we can. (Listen to me. The way I talk you'd think I've been out there riding more than once in the last three months!)
Hey, Thanks!
Thanks for looking into this...Any assitance or insight you can provide would be appreciated (in my endeavor to rebuild this feature).