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OK, so this might be a bit of a holy grail question but gonna ask anyway.
Someone I know has got access to some private land and we're building some trails. The land is on a slope and is lightly wooded (ie easy to clear hawthorn and brambles). The trails we're putting in will be looking to make the most of what we have.
We've spent a good deal of time up there getting ideas of where we could route the first line but everytime we go up there a new line appears which looks better. Basically we can't decide so we're thinking we're going to put some lines in and see how they run over time and then build them up.
Before we start though, I'm got some experience building but I'm wondering if anyone has any tips on how to get that all important flow into the trails, what to bear in mind when putting the lines in and what to avoid in order to make it as enjoyable and challenging as possible.
Build only when you need too. Clear a wide strip and the line will appear over time.
its easy 🙂
berms, maybe some rollers to manual, so that they set speeds before corners?
Jambo - Good idea, gonna have to do some clearing but will bear this in mind. There is so much potential we just don't know where to start or which line to use 🙂
Jedi - Is that an offer of help??
Lyons - ...and more 😉
you know i'll help you dude!
Mate - You've got your field of dreams - and now I've got my forest of dreams 😉
Never use route on a gradient greater than 20%, have a grade reversal every 20-40yards, always route the trail to the high side of large trees...
If that alone doesnt give a nice twisty flowy feel you may want to think about Berms etc to help keep the flow going at a sticky point for example.
20% = 1in5?
Remember a bike takes up quite a bit of room, I find people often build stuff too narrow. It looks ok until you ride it but it's to narrow to flow ... it tends to end up with lots of brakes being used.
Buy the IMBA's trail-building book. It's excellent. Lots of good advice about building trails for flow as well as construction techniques.
I've just been reading that it shouldn't be more than 10% not 20%, but this doesn't seem very steep.
I get the feeling you're trying to build an "interesting" trail as much as a "flowy" one. Are there any cool natural features you can use? Gullys, bomb holes, narrow gaps between trees or the like?
As an aside.....When did "flow" get co-opted to mean anodine,scalextric like,bermed to within an inch of its life,no braking,no thought required snooze-a-thon?
Mr A - There are some interesting features - but no really interesting features if you know what I mean. The main interesting bits are the amount of trees and some gullys etc.
[i]As an aside.....When did "flow" get co-opted to mean anodine,scalextric like,bermed to within an inch of its life,no braking,no thought required snooze-a-thon? [/i]
It doesn't mean that at all does it?!
The final descent at Kirroughtree is one of the best sections of man-made trail I've ever ridden. Some of the new Blue route stuff at Glentress is close but K'tree is just superb. Enough gradient to keep the speed up, not enough to let it run away. The trail rises before corners so it naturally bleeds off just enough speed to get you round without the rider having to slam the brakes on and create braking bumps. A few little rock jumps, gently banked corners.
The result is something that anyone can ride down but to ride it well and fast requires total concentration and razor sharp bike handling. The trail is built that way to make it last and prevent the erosion that occurs from a badly built trail (see early efforts at Spooky Woods where it cut up badly very quickly, partly due to the incompetence of most riders, partly due to poor design in places, it's mostly been fixed now).
Build a bit broader than you might imagine, trails naturally get narrower (usually) over time, and whilst a bike can ride something 6" wide when you start adding speed and bends it's nice (and more durable) to have some trail width to use (different people take different lines for the same bends etc).
Don't go too tight unless the trail is definitely going to be slow speed.
Berms are fine but there's an art and skill to riding corners well, try and keep some of them small and get plenty of flat ones in there.
Flagging tape and canes can really help when you're planning a line. It's fairly cheap. Pick it up when you're done though.
It's really easy to carry speed on even a gentle slope so long as riders get off the brakes. Braking and water are the two things that really erode a trail. Go shallow and avoid fall lines. Grade reversal is good.
Trail planning is usually a combo of squinting and thinking the trail could "kinda go there" (overall topography, maximising space and avoiding any no-go bits) then look for the features along the "kinda go there" line and do a bit of dot-to-dot to refine the line. All the while during both stages bearing in mind how much time, effort and materials it will take to build where you're thinking.
Oh, and TBH there's still a far bit of guess work / trial and error 😉
Work with the land rather than against it (how very zen ;-). Digging big drainage channels, berms and ramps can take a disproportionate amount of time and effort. Better to work with what you've got sympathetically. E.g. if the land already has boggy spots don't try and solve them, just avoid.
IMBA guidance is great but don't forget it's generic, don't be afraid to deviate a bit but admit when it goes wrong and learn from experience. Lee McCormacks book "Pump Track Nation" has some useful info on berms, rollers, spacing etc.
Just been reading Pump Track Nation - especially the bit on corners and sizes.
This all sounds rather complicated.
We just follow badger trails and cut away the line till its big enough to squeeze down!
Lets hope you don't follow them all the way back to the sett and do anything illegal then 😉
When you say illegal - something like Badger-bating?
? 😯
LOL, I wasn't being serious. However, a trail through a badger sett should definitely be one of those "no go" areas 😉
There's at least one on Mendip where they've actually dug under the main trail!
A copper told me that years ago when he did his seargents exam their were more powers regarding badgers than any other crime!
Plus it would hurt if you ran into one..
bushwacked, cotswolds somewhere?
IMBA book - whatever you may think of their politics, that is a lot of pooled knowledge in that book.
put the flags in, clear the brush, then walk (or if you can, ride) the line before you break the ground. adjust as necessary, re-walk, etc - the "measure twice, cut once" approach.
definitely pay attn to the drainage thing; great flow is ruined by big puddle that speed up erosion.
Otherwise, be smart and keep tools clear or work area etc - it sucks to get hurt from tripping over a spade - and don't go for too much at once; finish what you start completely before you move on, otherwise the temptation to ride really gets you and you leave moved dirt where it shouldn't be and such which creates problems later.
Also, take pics too; it helps to look back over it and to work out why something did work and something else didn't, if you need to go back and repair/change