Most of you who know the Graveyard run will know of the section near to the halfway point where you drop down slightly to the right and then go through a V-tree – good fun, especially in the wet when the roots are all nice and slick!

Was up there last night and unfortunately part of the tree has now been removed – anyone know who has done this and why? It looks like the work of a chainsaw but I can't see why a ranger would have done this – please enlighten me if it was?

If this was done by a rider – please explain the reason, because the only conclusion I can draw was the inability to negotiate a simple obstacle that was a fun part of the trail…

Must have been the work of a Ranger – why would a rider remove that bit, it's great?!

I know! Just recently though an alternate route that goes around the V-tree has appeared – why I don't know but maybe that's why the section of tree was removed…

Also known as T2 part of the t trails.

If you're talking about the bit I'm thinking of that is really bad news. That little bit is a challenge in the wet for sure. It was all still there on Sunday morning.

Is it the one about 10 meters from the next cross roads with the little saddle you ride over?

Jools – yep that's the one. It must have been taken down on Monday, just curious to find out if it was done for a legit reason (by a ranger) or by a rider 🙄

Very unlikely indeed to be the Ranger – but I'll check.

Surfa Rosa on Holmbury has also seen a bit of chainsaw action – it's a rider. Apparently trees were too close together. Plenty of others get through the gaps in the trees just fine. Might be the same rider, but I wouldn't want to speculate.

too many fashion followers with slack head angles and wide bars!

That is really annoying, there was alreay a chicken run off to the left if you needed it. What makes people think they can cock things up for others like this?

I know that the guys from Hurtwood control are a little concerned about the erosion caused by people skidding over roots as it makes steps like the ones at the top half of BKB which some people find hard but that bit is almost all roots and doesn't seem to be getting any deeper over time.

Blimey. If it was a rider, that's properly anti social – bad enough a few years ago when someone cut down the trees at the start of Xmas pud because they were a bit close together… I could get through them fine with 28.5 inch bars…

I didn't ride the graveyard trail on Saturday but did notice some recent chainsaw work on some pitch hill trails.

If it is a rider, maybe they should consider f**cking off to a trail centre if they want sanitised trails?

steps like the ones at the top half of BKB which some people find hard

Well, they were a bit hairy going full pelt into them on 31mm cross tyres on Sunday afternoon.

I know the bit you mean on T2 – as you say was nice and tech in the wet when carrying speed. what a shame 😥

It can't have been a rider – surely not! I do often wonder how sustainable the whole Surrey Hills thing is. A lot of the people you see riding in the area have a really surly "did you knock my pint" attitude (when did mtbing stop being an offshoot of the surf community and become something you do on stag weekends?) and this is part of it.

I've noticed lots of alterations made to perfectly good and fun trails all over the hills – mostly short cuts across (rather than around) corners – why oh why can't people just follow the trail? To most of us part of the fun/challenge of a trail is piecing it all together and getting to grips with each trail and maintaining flow… is it not ? (maybe it's just me!)

Have also noticed various tree alterations where things can be a bit tight – I think leggy blonde has a point about the bars…

Never seen a rider with a Chainsaw before

The start of T2 also has had a tree removed, at the very start where its tight and twisty through the trees, the challenging bit to get right fast. Well whoever it is has removed one of the trees so you can now pretty much ride straight through, removing the flow.

This is totally wrong, on a number of levels – partly because it makes the trail less fun, but mainly because it's basically a bad thing for people to chainsaw trees in a forest for no good reason. Seriously though, who ever sees riders pootling around with a chainsaw? For this reason I can't believe it would have been a rider.

definately a rider, know who it is.

The first tree i disagree with, the flick through the offset trees at the start of T2 was fun, now it is just faster, this will erode the next corner massively.

The second tree, the 'V' tree, did not flow, was annoying at any time of year, and made people ride around it (another line has appeared). So removing it, improves flow and maintains the original trail line.

At least the person in question is putting some effort into the trails, they don't just maintain themselves, and they don't just come into being by themselves.

I wonder how many people commenting on here have actually performed any trail building/maintenance themselves?

Just get out there and do it, find a puddle that doesn't drain, and drain it, find a blown out corner that people are straightlining, and block the straight route and build the corner right.

>The second tree, the 'V' tree, did not flow, was annoying at any time of year, and made people ride around it (another line has appeared). So removing it, improves flow and maintains the original trail line.

FFS!

>At least the person in question is putting some effort into the trails,

By chainsawing away the bits *they* don't like! FFS x 2

>I wonder how many people commenting on here have actually performed any trail building/maintenance themselves?

Yes thanks, without chainsawing live trees down.

I agree with Dave, that Stump/V tree was a pain and a new line has appeared making trail wider and less sustainable.

I was on the last Hurtwood maintenance day.

It's not for one person to decide what does and doesn't work on the trails there.

The V tree was perfectly fine to ride especially if you can actually ride a bike. Yes there was a second line opening up which could have been closed off quite easily forcing people back onto the original line. Now what was a little tricky bit has been removed so some incompetent bell end can get his jollies without being scared.

FFS.

I'm not sure I know the exact tree in question, but I do know the area and the great trials round there.
So I'll choose my works carefully here – It's bloody thoughtless of some eejit to go hacking trees down just because THEY don't like it, and please can those that know him pass on the message so he hopefully won't do it again.

i don't know the trail in question, I must admit – but this….

The second tree, the 'V' tree, did not flow, was annoying at any time of year, and made people ride around it (another line has appeared). So removing it, improves flow and maintains the original trail line.

just strikes me as wrong.

If we find something in a trail that 'doesn't flow well' we either learn how to ride it so it does, or just accept that there's part of a trail that is an obstacle you we have to slow for. We all bemoan trail sanitisation when a farmer puts 10 tonnes of aggregate over what we see as a perfectly good track, and this in my mind is no different.

(I've been on dig days too btw)

Must admit that stump caught me out last time I was there – would never think of altering what is part of the natural trail – there are plenty of tame ones if that's your thing.

Reminds of a stump that was removed from the path on the side of Wolvens Lane a few years ago – was a bit tricky to ride through so someone removed it.

Boycot cycleworks until we find out who it is?

We need a lynch mob.

fingers crossed this guy doesnt find any of the more technical trails on the other side of Pitch hill, if he does I expect they will be tarmaced over soon to 'maintain the flow'.

These trails are maintained by Hurtwood, therefore its not ok for riders to 'fix' bits of trails they dont like, any such activity is illegal trail building and can only cause animosity with the land owners.

If you dont like a trail the way it is either contact Hurtwood and attend a dig day, or ride a different trail. Or you could always find your own secluded spot in another county, and build something you can ride that makes you feel like totally rad mtb god!

The second tree, the 'V' tree, did not flow, was annoying at any time of year, and made people ride around it (another line has appeared).

You have got to be shitting us. Annoying – What does that actually mean?

Also (im getting annoyed now! :D), these trails represent somebody elses work, and it p*sses me off no end when I spend valuable time building to find some tw*t has knocked it down because they cant ride it. The moral here is dont mess with other peoples work, if you dont like it build your own!!

Don't get muddled up here. The official trail maintenance on Hurtwood extends only to Yogurt Pots/Parklife and BKB at the mo.

Having said that, if a trail has been altered why assume that it is because the alterer can't ride it themselves? Usually it is because a lot of other people are choosing not to ride it and either skid through it or ride a new line. So maybe that bit would have got eroded away and/or by-passed anyway.

Perfectly true Glen but the alternate line could have just as easily been closed off rather than removing a tree. There are materials all over the hill for doing that.

I'm not saying anything about this particular trail, jools – only that it is wrong to always assume that an alteration is done for dumbing down reasons. It might have been done for an intelligent reason.

Everyone here is assuming that the person who made the alteration did so because they lack the technical ability to ride that section quickly.

What if that person is actually a far better rider than almost any of you can ever hope to be? Would that change your opinion of the act?

That would be unlikely though wouldnt it gee..

I know a trail out in the Chilterns which I hadnt ridden for some time & I rode a few wks ago (actually will be out there later today), it was quite jinky & a little fast..But..it seems over the Summer the jink has been taken out of it people straight lining it..Now its good that more bikes are getting ridden but its bad that trails are being sanitised due to to lack of ability. If you cant ride the trail as is leave it the **** alone!

No.

If that person is a fantastic rider they ought to appreciate that most riders like to be challenged, it's even worse if they are good as they are being hugely patronising.

Perhaps they'd like to hold my hand down the double headed dog too?

In that case it was very thoughtful of them to adapt the trail to give everyone else a chance of keeping up.
Let's be realistic though, the only reason for carting a chainsaw up a big hill on your own is for selfish reasons. However you look at it good or bad this was one person doing what he wanted, I don't remember seeing any threads etc on opinions regarding changes to the trail.

That would be unlikely though wouldnt it gee..

You would think but I am not so sure. I honestly don't know who it is, but it might be one person I know of, based on Davefarmer's comments, and if it is then he's one of the best riders on the Surrey Hills.

geetee – even if they're a technical riding god who could nose wheelie backwards through that gap while blindfolded and juggling fire with their left hand, IMHO it's still the wrong solution. Better solutions would be blocking the alternate line or just digging themselves a totally new bit of trail that links to the sections either side with all the flow & features they want.

Don't know Pitch Hill but I entirely agree with the sentiments expressed above. "Natural" trails should be challenging. Only by mastering the various challenges and obstacles can you hope to improve as a rider.

and again