scratchy
12-01-2007, 08:18 AM
OK, so we're churning the the stalwards of the Trail forum here, but don't stress there is a bunch of other trail builders who have the forms, just recovering from the madness that was christmas. But wait a minute, it's not about them- it's about thecat here a good read and my first good chuckle. Milats! Pure gold. So without further ado I bring you:
Style of tracks: ST for enjoyment or racing
Name: Craig Flynn
Age:34
Location:Lithgow, NSW
Background: I was a BMX bandit and skate head in my youth I also used to do a bit of road riding with a mate who was training for track races.
While we use to come tearing down steep trails on our dragsters and later BMXs I got my first mountain bike in about 87 but it got put in the garage when i got my licence and stayed there for 10 years or so.
I got back into riding when my daughter was born. At that stage I was into other outdoorsports that required full days and relied on other people so I was looking for something I could just go out an do when I had a spare moment. A mate had been bitten by the MTB bug and I made the mistake of borrowing his bike one day. MTB has taken over my life ever since.
I started out just maintaining the trails I loved to ride. I got into the club aspect when council put out a draft plan of management that had a negative impact on some of those trails.
After taking over the local club by default we began negotiating with other land managers to get more tracks approved.
At the end of the day I love the sport and enjoy putting back into it. For me track building one of the best parts of the whole thing.
I love being outside working in the bush.
Mistakes made?:
With my early attempts I'd often make corners too tight. The best advice I can give is kind of obvious. Have your bike with you, scratch a short section in and then ride it too see how it feels. Form it a bit better and then ride it at speed, does it still feel right? There is nothing worse then spending a lot of time of a bit of trail only to find it does flow. It's always a good idea to have the over all trail marked with bits of tape but work on short sections. Finishing them completely before moving on and changing the tapes as needed as your trail evolves.
Favourite Tool: Fire/rake, Mccead ior what ever else they get called. Also a brush cutter can come in handy.
Free Fairy or Pro Fairy I now own a bike shop so I get a return in that reguard but my work for the club is voluntry
Online Resources http://www.mtba.asn.au/, www.imba.com, http://www.mbwales.com/, and soon NSWMTB http://www.nswmtb.asn.au/ (editors note, it's now live, check it out!)
Your Topic Corners,
I'm no expert but since the others have already taken the more important stuff and I've already mentioned it I'll go with something easy.
General Rant I like a track to flow. That means you don't put a tight corner in the middle for a swooping section. Sure occasionally you may want to put something like that in either as a speed check for the following section or just to keep riders on their toes but in general keep long sweaping corners for fast sections and tight stuff for the slow technical bits.
I've already suggested having your bike with you but I'll stress it again. Great trails arn't made they grow and evolve. You need to scratch out your idea and ride it to make sure it works like you thought it would.
With corners I like to try and swing the trail one way slowly and then swing back the other and back again. Slight left,right and left again type stuff.
Berms are great but off camber is under rated too and a great way to test a riders skill.
When forming a corner I like to look for natural features that can be used as backing, either a natural bank or small bump (Milats as Dave Hughes calls them after ivan's shallow graves) to swing the corner up against. leave a bit of room on the inside because there'll always be better riders who can find and insideline and dirft wide where most of us just cruise around the berm.
Other than that just form you corner and ride it. See if it fits in with the feel of the trail or section and if not change it.
--
Flynny
Thanks for coming
Style of tracks: ST for enjoyment or racing
Name: Craig Flynn
Age:34
Location:Lithgow, NSW
Background: I was a BMX bandit and skate head in my youth I also used to do a bit of road riding with a mate who was training for track races.
While we use to come tearing down steep trails on our dragsters and later BMXs I got my first mountain bike in about 87 but it got put in the garage when i got my licence and stayed there for 10 years or so.
I got back into riding when my daughter was born. At that stage I was into other outdoorsports that required full days and relied on other people so I was looking for something I could just go out an do when I had a spare moment. A mate had been bitten by the MTB bug and I made the mistake of borrowing his bike one day. MTB has taken over my life ever since.
I started out just maintaining the trails I loved to ride. I got into the club aspect when council put out a draft plan of management that had a negative impact on some of those trails.
After taking over the local club by default we began negotiating with other land managers to get more tracks approved.
At the end of the day I love the sport and enjoy putting back into it. For me track building one of the best parts of the whole thing.
I love being outside working in the bush.
Mistakes made?:
With my early attempts I'd often make corners too tight. The best advice I can give is kind of obvious. Have your bike with you, scratch a short section in and then ride it too see how it feels. Form it a bit better and then ride it at speed, does it still feel right? There is nothing worse then spending a lot of time of a bit of trail only to find it does flow. It's always a good idea to have the over all trail marked with bits of tape but work on short sections. Finishing them completely before moving on and changing the tapes as needed as your trail evolves.
Favourite Tool: Fire/rake, Mccead ior what ever else they get called. Also a brush cutter can come in handy.
Free Fairy or Pro Fairy I now own a bike shop so I get a return in that reguard but my work for the club is voluntry
Online Resources http://www.mtba.asn.au/, www.imba.com, http://www.mbwales.com/, and soon NSWMTB http://www.nswmtb.asn.au/ (editors note, it's now live, check it out!)
Your Topic Corners,
I'm no expert but since the others have already taken the more important stuff and I've already mentioned it I'll go with something easy.
General Rant I like a track to flow. That means you don't put a tight corner in the middle for a swooping section. Sure occasionally you may want to put something like that in either as a speed check for the following section or just to keep riders on their toes but in general keep long sweaping corners for fast sections and tight stuff for the slow technical bits.
I've already suggested having your bike with you but I'll stress it again. Great trails arn't made they grow and evolve. You need to scratch out your idea and ride it to make sure it works like you thought it would.
With corners I like to try and swing the trail one way slowly and then swing back the other and back again. Slight left,right and left again type stuff.
Berms are great but off camber is under rated too and a great way to test a riders skill.
When forming a corner I like to look for natural features that can be used as backing, either a natural bank or small bump (Milats as Dave Hughes calls them after ivan's shallow graves) to swing the corner up against. leave a bit of room on the inside because there'll always be better riders who can find and insideline and dirft wide where most of us just cruise around the berm.
Other than that just form you corner and ride it. See if it fits in with the feel of the trail or section and if not change it.
--
Flynny
Thanks for coming