Me and .thumper. headed up to Lory State Park yesterday to check out the jump park/pump track they got going up there, and here's a report if you haven't been!
So first things first - if you go, BRING SPARE TUBES! The ground is still pretty littered with goatheads, and it can make for a long day if you don't bring tubes. We talked to some people that said they Slimed their tubes just for riding here. .thumper. and I both caught flats, and had to wander over to Road 34 to pick up spares. Thanks to Matt who was manning the counter at Road 34 for getting us what we need! We rocked the thorn-resistant variety and that seemed to work very well! I'd be willing to bet that the more the park gets used the goathead problem will eventually go away as more people pick up the nasty little buggers with their tires and take them out of the park.
Besides the goatheads, the park itself is really dang cool! The dirtjump lines are all small to medium in size, and everything is tabletopped and well built - perfect for learning to jump or perfecting your skills. At the end of each line was a berm to help bring you back around towards the top... I had TONS of fun no-braking into these things and getting my back wheel to drift a bit... BRAAP. We even had the bright idea to go BACKWARDS through the smallest line, sprinting into the berm first and then pump pump pumping our way back to the beginning. The slight downhillish slope of the place had other plans for us though... we made it but it wasn't as easy as we thought it would be! By the end of the day, .thumper. and I had backsided every dirtjump in the joint, which for me was an accomplishment as (if you know me you know) I don't do the dirtjumping thing anymore, and it's been over a year since I've dirtjumped. But the jumps themselves gave me that extra confidence (like I said, tabletopped and well built) so I rocked it and I'm glad I did!
The pump track is awesome... you've probably heard it before but the outside line is FAST and LONG... I had a little fun by trying to manual between every even set, and even accomplished it once. Just like the Count on Sesame Street: 8 rollers in the first straight plus 4 rollers in the second straight equals 6 manuals AH AH AAAAAHHHH!!! The inside lines are tight and tricky, but if you perfect your form you could RIP through some of the lines. Really interesting combos and transfers abound, if I wasn't so tired from two days of moto and and a day riding 4X at Chalk Creek (yeah that's right suckers!) I would have played around in there some more.
I checked out the skills park a little bit, but it wasn't so much my cup o' tea. Very beginner friendly, with some cool little stunts and "skinnies" and such to ride around on, with some mild pumpy rollers and little berms. PERFECT for kids or a person that has never been exposed to this type of riding!
All in all it's a great place, a fantastic addition for the mountain biking community, and a true step in the right direction for "freerider/gravity/downhill/jumping" folks. With the mountain bike market heading more towards this type of riding, this is a great way for that end of the riding spectrum to be legitamized in the eyes of state land managers, the general public, and the industry at large. We saw tons of different types of people riding: from freehuckers to DH racers, families, kids, and even a completely lycra-clad XC guy learning how to jump his hardtail in the small line of dirtjumps. Someone mentioned that it would be easier for him if he lowered his saddle, but I thought it was cool he was learning to control his bike exactly the way he rides it on the trail: clipped in, with flat bars, and the seat all the way up.
Go check it out if you haven't already, just remember extra tubes! To wrap it up, here's a diagram from LeeLikesBikes so you know the layout of the place and what to expect:
So first things first - if you go, BRING SPARE TUBES! The ground is still pretty littered with goatheads, and it can make for a long day if you don't bring tubes. We talked to some people that said they Slimed their tubes just for riding here. .thumper. and I both caught flats, and had to wander over to Road 34 to pick up spares. Thanks to Matt who was manning the counter at Road 34 for getting us what we need! We rocked the thorn-resistant variety and that seemed to work very well! I'd be willing to bet that the more the park gets used the goathead problem will eventually go away as more people pick up the nasty little buggers with their tires and take them out of the park.
Besides the goatheads, the park itself is really dang cool! The dirtjump lines are all small to medium in size, and everything is tabletopped and well built - perfect for learning to jump or perfecting your skills. At the end of each line was a berm to help bring you back around towards the top... I had TONS of fun no-braking into these things and getting my back wheel to drift a bit... BRAAP. We even had the bright idea to go BACKWARDS through the smallest line, sprinting into the berm first and then pump pump pumping our way back to the beginning. The slight downhillish slope of the place had other plans for us though... we made it but it wasn't as easy as we thought it would be! By the end of the day, .thumper. and I had backsided every dirtjump in the joint, which for me was an accomplishment as (if you know me you know) I don't do the dirtjumping thing anymore, and it's been over a year since I've dirtjumped. But the jumps themselves gave me that extra confidence (like I said, tabletopped and well built) so I rocked it and I'm glad I did!
The pump track is awesome... you've probably heard it before but the outside line is FAST and LONG... I had a little fun by trying to manual between every even set, and even accomplished it once. Just like the Count on Sesame Street: 8 rollers in the first straight plus 4 rollers in the second straight equals 6 manuals AH AH AAAAAHHHH!!! The inside lines are tight and tricky, but if you perfect your form you could RIP through some of the lines. Really interesting combos and transfers abound, if I wasn't so tired from two days of moto and and a day riding 4X at Chalk Creek (yeah that's right suckers!) I would have played around in there some more.
I checked out the skills park a little bit, but it wasn't so much my cup o' tea. Very beginner friendly, with some cool little stunts and "skinnies" and such to ride around on, with some mild pumpy rollers and little berms. PERFECT for kids or a person that has never been exposed to this type of riding!
All in all it's a great place, a fantastic addition for the mountain biking community, and a true step in the right direction for "freerider/gravity/downhill/jumping" folks. With the mountain bike market heading more towards this type of riding, this is a great way for that end of the riding spectrum to be legitamized in the eyes of state land managers, the general public, and the industry at large. We saw tons of different types of people riding: from freehuckers to DH racers, families, kids, and even a completely lycra-clad XC guy learning how to jump his hardtail in the small line of dirtjumps. Someone mentioned that it would be easier for him if he lowered his saddle, but I thought it was cool he was learning to control his bike exactly the way he rides it on the trail: clipped in, with flat bars, and the seat all the way up.
Go check it out if you haven't already, just remember extra tubes! To wrap it up, here's a diagram from LeeLikesBikes so you know the layout of the place and what to expect:
