Brilliant. Hope we can do the same.

@HtS – get him tested so you can understand his level of colour blindness, then use the website I linked to on the thread above so you know what he is seeing. You understanding will help him hugely. I’m quite severely colourblind and all that happened was lots of grief at school from the idiots and some teachers all of whom found it hilarious but I really struggled. If his colour perception is bad, the same level as me for example, it could reduce his career options considerably.
It may also make him the centre of interest at parties where he may discover quite a few sympathetic ladies (or gentlemen if that’s his preference) who stick around to chat, a bizarre way of meeting people but it works! 😀

Yep, it was DCC guys up there when I met them 24 pages ago!

@Onzadog – if we can play nice for a bit that would be appreciated, it’s not perfect but Pook has lent me his spare rose tinted spectacles for a couple of weeks so let’s see what happens at the meeting.

Rushup Edge – Update

Peak District MTB (PDMTB) and Ride Sheffield (RS) members have been instrumental in persuading Derbyshire County Council that they must listen to the mountain bike community. On Friday, we were contacted by DCC offering a meeting on December 2nd along with the the BMC, Friends of the Peak District/CPRE and Keeper of the Peak, co-signatories of last week’s Open Letter. Anxious that the meeting should be conducted in the correct spirit, PDMTB and RS pressed DCC that no work should recommence on Rushup Edge until after the meeting. DCC have demonstrated admirable good faith by agreeing to a cessation of works until December 8th at the earliest.

This excellent result would not have been possible without the hard work of mountain bikers right across the Peak District, Sheffield and beyond. The letters, emails, tweets and phone calls have borne fruit and it is testament to the power of our arguments that we haven’t been ignored.

Email confirmation of the cessation and details of the closure were received at PDMTB HQ today (12 Nov 2014)

Further to our telephone conversation this is a quick note to confirm that works are suspended until 9th December 2014 on the route. The route is currently closed by emergency order for 3 weeks after which a temporary closure will be implemented for a period of up to 3 months to allow works to be completed. If you need any further information please get in contact.
Regards,
Richard Bonner, Assistant Head of Countryside Service, Economy, Transport and Environment Department, Derbyshire County Council

Of course, this isn’t the end of the affair. We have to see Rushup Edge reinstated to its former glory and secure genuine consultation in the future, nothing less. Rest assured, PDMTB, RS, the BMC, Friends of the Peak District/CPRE and Keeper of the Peak will continue to fight your corner.

To help us do that, please complete the survey – http://www.peakdistrictmtb.org/index.php/50-survey-rushup-edge-consultation

Thanks

@Onzadog – I would suspect that the dramatic cuts to support services for the disabled as part of DCC’s £157m reduction in costs will figure a little higher on the priority list of most than would access to a high moorland trail.

Just received DCC’s email re the Cabinet Reshuffle – Councillor Dean Collins will be contacted shortly. Thanks for the heads up MartynS.

We have been asked by a couple of MTB Clubs and MTB sections of road clubs if they could affiliate to PDMTB to show support, the answers is a very big yes we would love you to. So, the geeks have set up an affiliation form on the website here: http://www.peakdistrictmtb.org/index.php/affilitate-with-us

Woody21- yes, and in the middle of us discussin the first phase they started work and wasted £250k on what you see there now.

CTC have emailed me this morning, they want to chat and are ok with the approach PDMTB & RS has taken so far – let’s play nicely and we may be able to add them to our letter – I hope to speak to their rep on Monday. Will report back.

Things are progressing.
In the meantime let’s not sit back.
PDMTD has a club affiliation form on the website – it was requested by a couple of clubs on FB, if anyone is a member of or knows members of a club who ride the Peak their support would be very welcome:

http://www.peakdistrictmtb.org/index.php/affilitate-with-us

The speed everyone left out office when the mugs needed washing was almost as fast as DCC flattening a right of way

It’s just loud, unintelligible noise, with someone in weird clothes with a daft hairstyle shouting down the mic.
Oh for the late 70s and the haunting melodies of punk.
It’s 11.30pm he’s in bed, time for a bit of SLF at full tilt, there’s a band that could hold a tune.

The Hope Valley Cycle link or huge £250,000 white elephant is a shining example.
From Hathersage to Bamford, not enough money to get it to Castleton and all they did was widen what was already there and add a very limited number of signs. They used the money because it was there and had to be spent, there were far better options and we discussed them at length but whilst we were in the process of having the dialogue the diggers were deployed and the fate of the project sealed. Real token inclusion at tax payers expense.

@Onzadog – part of me understands why they do shelter behind process, did 3 years penance in a quango filled with paranoid civil servants who would cancel projects at a cost of £10ks rather than risk the projects upset someone influential or fail to deliver. Projects that went ahead had to complete the agreed cycle irrespective of the consequences.

The current process is broken, we need to find a way to get a new process and that’s quite a slog. It’s way bigger than Rushup Edge.

Onzadog – Member
So let’s get organised now. If we don’t, there’s a strong possibility that mountain biking in the Peak District will not exist ten years from now.

We are. We have. Have you joined either PDMTB or Ride Sheffield, did you go on the Picnic Protest, can you do more, get involved – let us know, always room for willing volunteers. The more co ordinated we can be and the less random the better.

@Hezhoff – we do, but they have a raft of legal drivers that we cannot get close to altering unless we act in a concerted manner. Noise and action will go some way to helping but it’s at a higher level that we need to demand change.

It’s the thing keeping pace with you, that you can just see out of the corner of your eye. That and the sound of it breathing. Made all the more scary when it swaps sides.

Evening all. Just about caught up with the mass of posts on here and FB plus a pile if emails. PDMTB was set up to be a voice for MTB riders in the Peak Park. The nature of the current works seem to have become a track too far for many and the lack of re consultation has stirred a lot of people into action.

I’m sure the rest of the team (3 people) at PDMTB would be happy to focus efforts through PDMTB and for it to be the point of contact with DCC & PDNPA, we would certainly want to do this alongside Ride Sheffield as the other MTB group operating in the area – we all have full time jobs and families so anyone who can offer some time and energy would be appreciated.

Unfortunately, all of this blew up over half term whilst some of us have been away on holiday. I am typing this from a Swansea hotel room after my son’s Uni visit, and I will not be back home until tomorrow evening.

I agree with Si & Pook, we need a plan and a co-ordinated approach but I suspect we may have to be fleet of foot if we want to effectively challenge DCC

@pinch-flat – are you sure? Consider the consequences. Pissed off highways authority, pissed off landowner, pissed off other users – that’s going to help our cause a lot. Time & place for direct action and this is neither.

Esme – Member
Roger, it’s Rushup Edge. Just scroll down the page and you’ll see the location on an OS map.
Loads of photos on the Geograph website, divided into gridsquares. Very useful when planning rides (and walks).
POSTED 2 HOURS AGO # REPORT-POST

You posted this ^^^ after I asked about Edale MRT incident 90, which it seems was on the Long Causeway. That’s why I replied. I’m equally confused but that’s pretty normal for me!

Esme – the accident was on Stanage Long Causeway.

And yes it’s Podge, just being the awkward squad but it does help clarify our position. Occasionally he does make an interesting point, wrong, but interesting. 😀

Esme where is the route?

Anyone know the details of the mountain biker incident on Stanage? Was it the long causeway?

EMRT incident 90 on 25 Oct 2014.

Would be interested to know if it was in any way related to the resurfacing work carried out by DCC.

Dunno think he was lip syncing !

We were there too. He was brilliant.
Real talent, would love to hear him cover some classic blues tracks.
Really enjoyed the reworking of his old stuff.

fasternotfatter – Member
and peakMTB have done what?

That is a very valid question and one I am happy to try and answer. It formed at the end of 2013 after coming into existence at the request of a PDNPA member to provide local input from MTBers into a proposed cycle route down the Hope Valley.

It took 3 months to find our feet and identify the people we needed to engage with, as we had widened our remit after Chapel Gate was ‘sanitised’. We had a long meeting with DCC in March and we genuinely believed we had opened the door to working with them. We were promised copies of repair schedules, input into what was being done and that we would be consulted. DCC even agreed to speak at a meeting of a MTBers if we organised it. Over the summer they stopped responding,

We tried to work through PDNPA but it became clear that although they talk a good game, they have no power at all because they abdicated highways responsibility to DCC.

So at the end of the summer we had identified who the protagonists were, including other organisations – Ride Sheffield, Peak Horsepower, NFU, PDNPA and DCC. We had done a number of dig days to repair drainage on trails and formed a good relationship with the ranger in that area. We have identified some options to link up bridleways to create some nice long loops and then this happened. So we have thrown lots of time energy and effort into helping raise awareness of this, promoting the protest, contacting the media and supporting Esther get the picnic protest rolling.

This has been done with a small committee of 6 people which dropped to 4 during the summer. Each of these people has a full time job and squeezes this into balancing work, family and MTB. PDMTB has no funds at all, everything is voluntary.

Other than that we’ve just wasted time and drunk tea.

Hope that helps. 😀

They are indeed, as is the BHS to which they belong.

Edit : double post

Boo hiss, I shall be peddling the mountains of Dorsetshire.
I have a cuppa and a Dorset knob to mark the day.

@al2000 – I am led to believe that the work on the Roych was done by a third party organisation and had additional funding. It really should be a benchmark of quality against the cut price approach we are currently witnessing.

@BWD – up until a few months ago I would have been right behind you – we have offered and tried to help them to understand mountain biking.

Over 6 months ago we invited DCC to come and meet with a group of MTB riders and discuss why they were doing what they doing, listen to our concerns and understand why we had an issue with it. Promised to give us dates, never did, stopped responding to emails.

In that period they have also failed to deliver on promises made when we met them in March: never consulted, ignored concerns re drainage bars, reversed agreement to preserve features on Long Causeway, and on it goes.

May I suggest that whilst all this nice attempt at communication was underway they merrily flattened a lot of well loved routes. We have moved beyond the point of trying to help them understand – we really need to shout now.

Just a final note from me tonight to say a massive thanks to everyone who has taken the time and trouble to do something today – the groundswell of support makes getting sodden and muddy this morning to get some pics well worthwhile.

If we can keep up the momentum over the next week as DannyH suggests we may see some movement, but let’s keep it polite and not berate any other user groups.

Can we just hold off with the negative comments regarding other user groups, we are in dialogue with several of them and they are as surprised and disappointed as we are with what is happening. Let’s focus on challenging the arbitrary manner that DCC has gone about this process and some of the absurd notions in their rationale.

If we can get other usergroups onside rather than attacking them we will have more chance to stop them continuing past the small gate and also starting on other routes.

@SingletrackJenn – you have mail.

@Crazy-Legs – there’s info on the PDMTB website.

@dannyh – unfortunately, I’m sure there will be other opportunities

Indeed, Birthday Boy, it would be great to have allies standing with us.

@singletrackjenn – that’s great news about RS their work on the Eastern Moors is exemary. Sadly DCC seem less willing to enter into dialogue. What about getting behind PDMTB and helping preserve whatever we can from this campaign of destruction?

Here’s your chance to show your support if you can make it.
Been speaking this afternoon to the amazing Dr Esther Hobson who came up with this brilliant idea:

Rushup Edge Picnic Protest

Monday 27th October at 10am.
Meet at the Mam Nick carpark at 10am or on the actually stretch at 10.30.
We plan to ride down to the work and take a picnic, ride and generally walk about. We won’t disrupt the work or make anything unsafe but we need a visual show of our disapproval.

If you want to sign up on the PDMTB FB page then just comment on the post, it’s pinned. We are contacting the press and local media – if we can support Esther and get a crowd up there we can really raise the game.

Don’t judge the current surface, the workmen I met this morning specifically said that there would be some form of top dressing – what they may use is anyone’s guess.

I ran up and down it because it was raining and it was very unstable, not loose like scree but absolutely lacking in any stable platform.

A suggestion just made – it’s reached the small gate – we may be able to stop it going further if we keep up the noise levels – DCC, MPs, Parish Councils, everyone we can find, PDNPA – We really need a “No More! message to get through.

Ok if we are all up for this, one of our members (who can make themselves known if they wish) has suggested that we try and get a pause in the work being done at the gate in order that we can try and discuss what is happening and possibly save the rest of the route over to Chapel Gate.

If you want to do this then we all need to put pressure on DCC to pause and open a dialogue.

So, tweet them on @DerbyshireCC
Post on their FB wall – Derbyshire County Council
Email them on : robert.greatorex@derbyshire.gov.uk
and Peter.White@derbyshire.gov.uk
Phone them on 01629 533190

Keep up the noise, email the local media, if we have sufficient momentum then we may be able to do something. Over to you guys.

mintimperial – Member

All the pics are here for those without FB accounts to look at (rogerthecat I hope it’s ok for me to host these, but just shout if you want me to take them down again!).

Copy and share as much as you like.

@munrobiker – one of our members has been approached by the Sheffield Star so watch this space.

Membership on the FB group and via the website is going bananas at the moment, the more we have the bigger the voice we have.

Hammer the social media channels – @derbyshirecc is the handle to use if you want to grab DCC’s attention.

Back from my little plod around the route – I’m wet, muddy and quietly fuming.
Not about the fact a route is being repaired but for a few very simple reasons:
[list]where was the promised consultation from DCC, and
why this route – it was already at bedrock, what else could erode, and
for whose benefit is this being done?[/list]

I’ve posted a full set of info on the PDMTB[/url] website and the pics are on FB[/url]

And yes, the guy on the ground said this is to connect with the top of Chapel Gate, ruining the nice gritty track over the top.

[tin helmet]

It could be argued that they are just repairing the trails and putting them back to a ‘useable’ condition for the maximum number of users. We have built up a hobby riding badly damaged and poorly maintained rights of way, we can still ride them, they have not stopped us.

[/tin helmet]

It may not be DCC, could be the landowner. Let’s get the info & share it before doing anything that may negate anything positive being done elsewhere. Just for the record DCC is the highways authority for that part of the Peak which falls within the Derbyshire county boundary, they are responsible for the maintenance of rights of way including bridleways and byways etc.

Personally I will be just a little miffed if it is DCC after all the efforts made to engage with them and assurances made.

Cancelled my subs over a year ago but it still arrives regular as clockwork. Got bored with the hyperbole and utter bilge written about what you had to have to ride certain places. I used to read the mags for the sense of adventure and inspiration, when they became self absorbed I stopped. I do buy ST off the shelf most months as it’s a nice unwind on the train to and from Big Town.