Cambridge has 3 pump tracks, but nothing but run down play areas and enormous new housing developments nearby (Marliegh). I’ve suggested a pump track to the local councilors (newly elected Green party, so keen) and got the following response.

Has anyone got some advice on how to proceed or useful resources?

The next steps for your Pump track would be to find out whether this is something that your neighbours want too . It would be really helpful if you could write a short description of what you would like to have and why that could be shared in a consultation. At the moment, we have a lot of other residents’ suggestions, but you are the only person who has mentioned a pump track to us.. So it would be important to show wider community support.

There’s a few threads on here. I think @WorldClassAccident started one on the same subject, unless my brain is telling me lies again.

and this article from STW last year https://singletrackworld.com/2021/09/how-to-build-a-pump-track-the-right-way/

Be prepared for baffling levels of local council interdepartmental shit-housery.

Back in my race organising days over ten years ago I was one of those asked for input on the MTB trials built in the local park. They had some money left in the cap-ex budget and asked for ideas.

Next to the car park is a kids play area and a big flat grass paddock (half the size of a football pitch). At the time this was used as a place for people to take their dogs to crap. I suggested that this would be an ideal spot for a pump track and showed some images to cap-ex guy, who had already spent £125k on the trails. He said it was a marvelous idea, but it would get knocked back by the parks department because they had a wide bladed small tractor type mower for that paddock, and the undulations associated with a pump track would require them to use a narrower mower.

They spent the money of some sculpture instead, including a giant set of sycamore wings which straddled the top of the trail. These looked brilliant until some idiot knocked them over.

Our tiny village in Cumbria had velosolutions build one.

Basically we fundraised for a playpark had that built and had money over.

We had a site (community field).

We have a very engaged parish council, and a number of others getting this off the ground.

One well connected person got aggregate and plant hire for free.

The whole village turned out to wheel barrow the special grade of tarmac from the truck to the Velosolutions team that laid it.

Funding came from from the British Cycling Places to Ride programme, district council and villagers fundraising events etc.

so:

1) get the community engaged in getting behind it. Helps if you already have a decent playpark
2) write bids for funding
3) call in favours and help build it to minimise cost
4) get Velosolutions to design and build it, no point in building a crap one.

https://www.facebook.com/100027300021926/videos/1443074139485243/

If you haven’t got velosolutions money then have a look at the clark and kent pump tracks.

Really good and a lot of my local ones are C&K

C&K Pumptracks

C&K are pretty good but they quoted velosolutions money to us so velosolutions got it.

Steps:
Committee
Constitution
Charity status
Feasibility study
Put out for tender
Planning
Ask community
Raise enough money to show commitment
Raise big money
Build

(Took us 7 years but for the first 3 meetings were in the pub so…)

I secured funding and did the track design for this track, happy to give any pointers.

https://instagram.com/gwpbiketrack

took 2.5yrs from first knobble of Councillor to first kids riding on the track. Did lots myself, but pulled in help from anyone that was willing!

concept, design and what was built:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CdK_MNiqCCH/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=

cost just under £150k inc vat. 50% from Sport England/BC under places to ride, 50% from council and they picked the VAT up.

tendering was a nightmare.

Woking Borough Council were excellent.

@onehundredthidiot – where is that one located she is a beauty?

Hawick Scottish Borders.

@scruffythefirst – Not sure if it’s helpful, but they’ve just built a new one on St Andrews Recreation ground in Cambridge, which I think was done by C&K. There are at least 3 on this side of town now I think (St Andrews Rec, Browns Field, Nuns Way), plus one down in Trumpington and the track in Milton Country Park. Not sure if there are others I haven’t found. I’d have thought trying to get the developers of Marleigh on board with providing it might be a good idea too, as they may be able to put some funding into it/

I’m in the process of finishing fundraising for a redesign and resurface of a pumptrack we built in our village in 2013. We originally used the Lee likes Bikes Pumptrack nation ebook. What I found later was this type of design tends to suit ex-BMX and 4X pro racers and isn’t so hot for kids on balance bikes on the gravel surface.
There’s good reason professional contractors charge so much and finish in tarmac.
If you can’t get your local council interested (and there will be lots of hoops), then is there a parish council with some land available?
Be prepared for a long haul either way, and unless you are very lucky it will be mainly on your shoulders. Try and get as much engagement from local people/riders/bike shops/etc. If you can get a LOT of public engagement, it will help your cause.
Funding was a nightmare through COVID, and I don’t imagine it’ll get any easier with the cost-of-living issues currently facing most people and funding organisations. There is money out there, but it can be a needle/haystack process to find funders who will donate to your specific project.
Not trying to put you off at all, but you need to go in with your eyes wide open.
If anyone would like to donate to my GoFundMe, I’ riding the Cumbrian Cracker on a Raleigh Shopper to raise the profile of the pumptrack funding.
https://gofund.me/514a01f2

Not sure if it’s helpful, but they’ve just built a new one on St Andrews Recreation ground in Cambridge,

That’s what kicked this off, East Barnwell always seems to lag behind in funding for everything, the local park playground equipment is trashed.

Marliegh have been less than helpful, although the new local green councilors are trying to help.

Browns field isn’t great for kids, and covered in leaves. I didn’t know about nuns way, will check it out. They are all north of the river though.

Browns Field is a bit sketchy in winter, not sure it’s good for anyone when wet or covered in leaves!

There are some dirt jumps on Coldhams Common, but not been there physically. Suspect they’re a bit more advanced and aimed at a different market than a pump track though.

The dirt jumps do have a kids level line round the edge but it’s pretty boggy in winter. It’s all volunteer dug as well, I feel like the council should be spending some money in the most deprived area of Cambridge for a purpose built multi use facility.

I will get my organisation hat on.