So we drove up to Rays MTB Park in Cleveland from Pittsburgh for the public opening on Black Friday. I wasn’t sure what to expect, and felt that the whole concept was kind of bizarre but at the same time pretty good idea. First off I want to say that the entrance is sketchy as hell, it is just this dilapidated warehouse driveway with little sings that the place is actually there. I wasn’t sure if it was an ambush or what… So after signing our lives away at the front desk we hit the park.
I want to start off by saying that the beginner loop is just that, for beginners, I think that anyone who has ever ridden a bike in their life could complete the small obstacles that make up this loop. The intermediate loop was more interesting, a bunch of nicely banked turns that kept your speed up and shot you into some bridge sections. There were a few teeter-totters to keep things interesting as well as some skinnys to hone your skills on.
The expert loop was were 90% of my day was spent. I thought they did a great job with this. The best part (and it showed with the level of traffic it got) was the jump rhythm section that was on the far side of the park. The jump lips were shaped perfectly and they flowed just like a dirt trail section. The 15’ high bermed turn out of the first 3 was really cool and allowed you to hammer good at the remaining 2 jumps in the section. There were tons of guys hitting it all day, including Joe Prisel who jumped on the coarse and pulled backflips,360’s and no handers. The rhythm section was great for me because I blow at jumping and it was a great spot to hit and improve.
There were tons of techy type bridges in the expert section, a rolling bridge that you had to stall on to keep it going, a teeter totter that pivoted sideways, and some really skinny sections. Along with the skinnys, threw was a drop spot where you could chose 4 different lines depending on how big you wanted to go.
In conclusion I thought the park was pretty cool, parts of the bridges lacked some flow and I would like to see the sections move a little faster. For trials type riders the stuff was great but for the skate/jump style guys that mostly populated the course it was a bit slow. It was obvious that the jumps were a hit and I think there needs to be a lot more box’s to keep the interest going. Apparently all of this is in the works and more jump sections are planned. My vote would be to make the beginner sections smaller and expand on the advanced sections. Anyone who is going to frequent a spot like this most likely is a skilled rider and will spend little to no time in the beginner sections. There was talk of a foam pit and I don’t know if this is actually a reality but how kick ass would that be? I met Ray and he seemed open to any input, which is what will make the park grow. My input would be: QUIT PLAYING *****TY MUSIC, LINKIN PARK IS NOT A GOOD BAND. I was not the only one bitching about this but owell, check it out everyone.
Oh and I will post pics when i get a chance mid next week.
I want to start off by saying that the beginner loop is just that, for beginners, I think that anyone who has ever ridden a bike in their life could complete the small obstacles that make up this loop. The intermediate loop was more interesting, a bunch of nicely banked turns that kept your speed up and shot you into some bridge sections. There were a few teeter-totters to keep things interesting as well as some skinnys to hone your skills on.
The expert loop was were 90% of my day was spent. I thought they did a great job with this. The best part (and it showed with the level of traffic it got) was the jump rhythm section that was on the far side of the park. The jump lips were shaped perfectly and they flowed just like a dirt trail section. The 15’ high bermed turn out of the first 3 was really cool and allowed you to hammer good at the remaining 2 jumps in the section. There were tons of guys hitting it all day, including Joe Prisel who jumped on the coarse and pulled backflips,360’s and no handers. The rhythm section was great for me because I blow at jumping and it was a great spot to hit and improve.
There were tons of techy type bridges in the expert section, a rolling bridge that you had to stall on to keep it going, a teeter totter that pivoted sideways, and some really skinny sections. Along with the skinnys, threw was a drop spot where you could chose 4 different lines depending on how big you wanted to go.
In conclusion I thought the park was pretty cool, parts of the bridges lacked some flow and I would like to see the sections move a little faster. For trials type riders the stuff was great but for the skate/jump style guys that mostly populated the course it was a bit slow. It was obvious that the jumps were a hit and I think there needs to be a lot more box’s to keep the interest going. Apparently all of this is in the works and more jump sections are planned. My vote would be to make the beginner sections smaller and expand on the advanced sections. Anyone who is going to frequent a spot like this most likely is a skilled rider and will spend little to no time in the beginner sections. There was talk of a foam pit and I don’t know if this is actually a reality but how kick ass would that be? I met Ray and he seemed open to any input, which is what will make the park grow. My input would be: QUIT PLAYING *****TY MUSIC, LINKIN PARK IS NOT A GOOD BAND. I was not the only one bitching about this but owell, check it out everyone.
Oh and I will post pics when i get a chance mid next week.
. But.... I will be back as soon as they are over. I go to school in Erie PA and there is basically nothing to ride here at all so i will be making a bunch of trips up there. I just need some people to ride with.
presence was like...
I wait to get back there...
