[Hulkamaniac]

Okay, I want to hear your thoughts and opinions! Constructive criticism is welcomed, but I'm not looking for flames and the such. Likes and dislikes. Suggestions of what you would like to see (features, trails, etc) and stories about your weekend would be great. Rider input is a big thing for us, so here's your chance to be part of what's happening at Snowshoe. Check the site http://ride.snowshoemtn.com for pics and updates in the next couple of days.


Overall, I thought the Freeride Festival was a huge success. Positive vibes from everyone, amazing riding, great weather (well, until late sunday afternoon!), and met a lot of monkies. Trails held up well considering the rains (nearly 7 inches in the last two weeks) and we now know exactly what needs immediate attention. The weekend was our proving grounds of sorts and I thoroughly believe we far exceeded our own expectations.

Look for new trails and features to be built all summer long on both the basin side of the mountain and the Western Territory. Thanks to all who came and made this weekend a success and hope to see you all again!!!!!

Thanks to all

 

[Capt. Jack Sparrow]

Got back late last night from Snowshoe. I had an awesome time. Thanks to everybody at Snowshoe for designing that place to be so mountain bike-friendly. Not only was the riding spectacular, but the food was deeeeelicious, and none of the restaurant employees gave me dirty looks when I used the restroom when I was all muddy. Keep up the good work!

 

[Hulkamaniac]

Ya know, it didn't dawn on me exactly who you were until late sunday afternoon when a few Richmond guys were talking about other VA peoples. You were definitely ripping it up for sure, along with all the entire female contingency that showed up (may have been small in numbers, but not in skill/talent!). Glad to hear you had a good time!

 

[abyker]

I was there on saturday and now want to live there. It was amazing. You guys did an awsome job! I thought the upper trails (A,B,C...) were a little sketchy (at least on a hardtail) but the lower ones were bad a$$. The stunts were beautiful especially the teeter on J. My only gripe is that it can't be open in the winter too, unless we get some significant global warming. Anybody got pics?

 

[gastro]

Got back late last night also. What a fantastic riding experience!Everything was first class. Mad props to the Snowshoe crew for their considerable (and continuing efforts). The shuttle bus even waited to get to the summit before breaking down.

This weekend was my first time riding bikes up there, and although I was a little underequipped bike wise, I was able to begin to develop a whole new set of skills.

Nothing but grins here. I'll be back every chance I get.

Can't wait to snowboard some of the features this winter as well.
Muwaahaahaahha!

 

[DamienC]

Originally posted by gastrocnemius
The shuttle bus even waited to get to the summit before breaking down.

Hahaha...that was awesome. One dude got off to ostensibly hit the DH courses and everyone else was waiting to go further up to the village. Then the black smoke starts billowing out from the engine and collectively everyone thought "umm...not a good sign..." and shuffled out of the bus quickly.

It was indeed a fantastic weekend and I'll post more after I've had a chance to collect my thoughts. I'm sure this won't be the only thread with Snowshoe opening weekend commentary since I met so many 's there this weekend.

 

[whale]

Originally posted by DamienC
Then the black smoke starts billowing out from the engine and collectively everyone thought "umm...not a good sign..." and shuffled out of the bus quickly.

like i said... at least it was almost at the top of the mountain when it broke down

i will also post some thoughts and pictures after i clean out my car

 

[bagtagley]

The only word I can think of to describe saturday is Perfect. I had an absolute blast on the freeride trails. We ended up riding almost everything on the eastern side, and it's all nicely done.

We managed to ride almost the entire day without incident...that is until we headed over to ride the old expert course. My friend tweaked his shoulder off the turn drop, but was okay. Less than a minute later, I blew the take off (same drop), landed cock-eyed and broke my hand as i slid to a stop. Pretty frustrating considering I've done that drop more times than I can remember. Even more frustrating was the fact that I was determined to hit the big ramp at the and of H before the weekend was over. Oh well, I'm going in for surgey next week most likely, but you can expect to see me up there again as soon as the cast comes off.

Despite the injury, I still had a blast. Definitely one of the most memorable weekends I've had down there. My only request is that you guys keep doing what you're doing. Thanks again.

Trying like hell to make the tranny from the low ramp

 

[mobius]

Great weekend it was a nice place and wonderful riding. I spent so much $ on stuff and love the place and think i progressed good there. I would say put in the berms we all saw the wood piled on the turns and some berms would help us turn through the steep mess. Also, towards the bottom of the H trail i think? it has that stream that towards the end ud smash into and get pure soaked that should have a small bridge over it and where the berms were that last one with mud was nassssssssssssty although i mastered turning through it fast.


Overall im in love the place seems to be really really shore like interms of nature,stunts,trails, overall wetness. I bought my season pass and will be back.

 

[DamienC]

Unfortunately I didn't take many riding pics (too busy riding...go fig)...but I'll start off with dessert first... West Virginia stylie

Whale smashing a deep fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich topped with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream

 

[CBJ]

I am still tired from the drive home and I had to get up early as my grandmother died yesterday so I am flying to Denmark tomorrow.

Besides that the BrooklynFreeriders gang had a great time and I think everything build and all the trails where great and I was blown away with the friendliness from all the staff. Trail wise I love berms, long DH runs like the expert and sport cours and if there would be business enough to run the lift in stead of the shuttle that would be sweet.

All in all Snowshoe rocks,

Claus

 

[DamienC]

Originally posted by CBJ
I am still tired from the drive home and I had to get up early as my grandmother died yesterday so I am flying to Denmark tomorrow.

Besides that the BrooklynFreeriders gang had a great time and I think everything build and all the trails where great and I was blown away with the friendliness from all the staff. Trail wise I love berms, long DH runs like the expert and sport cours and if there would be business enough to run the lift in stead of the shuttle that would be sweet.

All in all Snowshoe rocks,

Claus

It was great to meet you and the rest of your crew. I was the one on the Banshee whose pedal body you found under one of the ladder bridges. Sorry to hear about your grandmother but I'm glad you hear you made it back to NYC in one piece. Hopefully we'll see y'all there again sometime this season.

 

[whale]

Originally posted by DamienC
Whale smashing a deep fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich topped with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream
[/B]

mmmmm... i'll have another! with some RIBS and lots of every kind of BBQ sauce they had.

 

[Castle]

I had a kick ass time! Nice meeting all you monkies and snowshoe staff, the whole scene was really good, everyone was super cool! The trails are too much fun, the stunts are really well built and I can only wait for more to come!

I agree with Mobius on the berming and filling in the holes..... and make more drops like the one coming around the left hand corner to Butta ass tranny!

Trail Names! Stunt Names! I hope monkies can help name these trails/stunts! the ACBHJ so on got kinda hard to keep up with and just didn't do justice to the trails they deserve names!

I'll see you as much as possible! I'm shootin to come back up sometime this weekend.....

thanks for the good times!

 

[whale]

Originally posted by CBJ
I am still tired from the drive home and I had to get up early as my grandmother died yesterday so I am flying to Denmark tomorrow.

Besides that the BrooklynFreeriders gang had a great time and I think everything build and all the trails where great and I was blown away with the friendliness from all the staff. Trail wise I love berms, long DH runs like the expert and sport cours and if there would be business enough to run the lift in stead of the shuttle that would be sweet.

All in all Snowshoe rocks,

Claus

nice to meet you too claus! very sorry to hear about your grandmother. i was the guy pretending to ride DH on the zig-zag! "everything's dual slalom right?" hopefully, that picture of me doing the drop stunt (before i crashed) turned out well... i can't wait to see all the pics you guys took at snowshoe.

-will

 

[BigMike]

I gotta get up there! Sad I missed the opening, but I had other plans. All I have heard is good things though!

 

[eric1bss]

The A, B, and C trails were all great. I loved the sketchy, steep terrain. The stunts were pretty good. You asked for constructive criticism so here goes. The gap jump with the racers edge banner was practically un do-able. The landing wasn't too great and the two take off ramps were either too steep or not steep enough. I would have liked to see some BIGGER DROPS (over 10 feet) with nice wide transition landings, possibly wood ladder style, and straight forward take offs. More skinnies would be nice too. My favorite was the A-frame with the skinny on the left and the steep roll in on the right. I had a great time!

 

[Salami]

Eric and everyone else, do you have pictures? and post them already!!


What did the 4X course look like?

Much more details and pictures please. 5 more weeks until I am there

 

[whale]

Originally posted by Salami
Eric and everyone else, do you have pictures? and post them already!!


What did the 4X course look like?

Much more details and pictures please. 5 more weeks until I am there

a collection of pictures coming together here

i am curious about the 4X course as well...

 

[Salami]

Originally posted by whale
a collection of pictures coming together here

i am curious about the 4X course as well...

Thanks, I found them right after I opened my eyes and looked at the other posts in this forum. :


I still want to see 4X pictures!!!

 

[whale]

Originally posted by Salami
I still want to see 4X pictures!!!

anyone... anywhere? bueller... bueller?

 

[8it]

We got some 4x pic's. CBJ (riding the stinky after he blew the 5th on his Orange), me (blue bullit), Rob (M1) and Scott (stinky) got some shots of us riding the 4x course. As soon as Rob sends me a link to where he is hosting the pics I'll post them up here.
The 4x course, to qoute one of the great minds of our time (crazyeddie), was, "INSAAAAAAANE!!!!" Lots of flow and very steep and fast, I would love to see the pros on that course cause they are going to kill it!

 

[Capt. Jack Sparrow]

I would like to suggest that there be some quicker eating options up there. I know that's a lot to ask... but in the middle of busy day of biking (for those of us who didn't bring our own food), having a sit down meal at the outdoor cafes really cut into the riding time. The food was delicious, but more than was really necessary for folks who want to grab a quick bite and hop on their bikes again. Also, one of my teammates is vegetarian and didn't find many veggie options. He ate catfish po-boys almost the whole time.

I looooove the fried pickles!

 

[whale]

Originally posted by 8it
We got some 4x pic's. CBJ (riding the stinky after he blew the 5th on his Orange), me (blue bullit), Rob (M1) and Scott (stinky) got some shots of us riding the 4x course. As soon as Rob sends me a link to where he is hosting the pics I'll post them up here.
The 4x course, to qoute one of the great minds of our time (crazyeddie), was, "INSAAAAAAANE!!!!" Lots of flow and very steep and fast, I would love to see the pros on that course cause they are going to kill it!

sweet! looking forward to it. i think you guys are the ones that damienC, stiff, and i hooked up with briefly for some pics... the 4 crashes in a row on the rock drop. i was crash #2 on the zig-zag.

 

[Tweek]

We Jackalopes had a killer time, and it was great that the rain held out until about 4pm on Sunday. As far as my critique goes: The structures were absolutely solid and well-built, really no shoddiness to be found. The teeter needed some attention, but I'm sure Stuntmatty will chime in with more detail on that.
It'd be nice to know what sort of feature is ahead so that when you come to the end of it, you know whether it's a ramp, dropoff, or whatever. Maybe a little side view line diagram on that sign -- I dunno.
Some of the runoffs to the drops were pretty sketchy, either because of the trail conditions or you had to make a quick turn in some rocky/rooty terrain. Not impossible, but I shyed away from some of the bigger drops because of it. (I know -- I should grow a pair and just hit it. ) Also, like what was said before, the first 100 yards or so of A, B, and C were pretty treacherous, but if/when it's dry, it'd probably be fun and easier to clean.
Another plus -- The lift lines were barely even lines at all, and kept moving.
That's all I can think of for now (gotta go to a meeting).

 

[Hulkamaniac]

Originally posted by Capt. Jack Sparrow
I would like to suggest that there be some quicker eating options up there. I know that's a lot to ask... but in the middle of busy day of biking (for those of us who didn't bring our own food), having a sit down meal at the outdoor cafes really cut into the riding time. The food was delicious, but more than was really necessary for folks who want to grab a quick bite and hop on their bikes again. Also, one of my teammates is vegetarian and didn't find many veggie options. He ate catfish po-boys almost the whole time.

I looooove the fried pickles!

I hear ya, I really wish there were more food options on the mountain as well. The food outlets are largely privately owned and thus make their owns menus, prices, etc.

 

[whale]

Originally posted by Capt. Jack Sparrow
I would like to suggest that there be some quicker eating options up there. I know that's a lot to ask... but in the middle of busy day of biking (for those of us who didn't bring our own food), having a sit down meal at the outdoor cafes really cut into the riding time. The food was delicious, but more than was really necessary for folks who want to grab a quick bite and hop on their bikes again. Also, one of my teammates is vegetarian and didn't find many veggie options. He ate catfish po-boys almost the whole time.

I looooove the fried pickles!

yeah, i think it was best to byof for the afternoon... or eat a HUGE breakfast to hold over all day. i'll have to try a fried pickle next time.

so... catfish po'boys are vegetarian?

 

[Hulkamaniac]

Originally posted by Tweek
We Jackalopes had a killer time, and it was great that the rain held out until about 4pm on Sunday. As far as my critique goes: The structures were absolutely solid and well-built, really no shoddiness to be found. The teeter needed some attention, but I'm sure Stuntmatty will chime in with more detail on that.
It'd be nice to know what sort of feature is ahead so that when you come to the end of it, you know whether it's a ramp, dropoff, or whatever. Maybe a little side view line diagram on that sign -- I dunno.
Some of the runoffs to the drops were pretty sketchy, either because of the trail conditions or you had to make a quick turn in some rocky/rooty terrain. Not impossible, but I shyed away from some of the bigger drops because of it. (I know -- I should grow a pair and just hit it. ) Also, like what was said before, the first 100 yards or so of A, B, and C were pretty treacherous, but if/when it's dry, it'd probably be fun and easier to clean.
Another plus -- The lift lines were barely even lines at all, and kept moving.
That's all I can think of for now (gotta go to a meeting).

Tweek,
Thanks for your input, all rider input is highly valued and taken seriously. The teeter issues were something that is hard to plan for, I am amazed at how much action that thing saw all weekend. It's our first attempt at building a moving feature, so things are bound to need a little tweaking (no pun intended).

I'll pass along the idea you had about trail signage. We finally got the real trail signs in on Saturday evening (delays with them being made kept them from getting here sooner). We had hoped that the "look before you leap" wording in the waiver would hit home with people. Do you think wording like "drop" or "jump" on the signs would be adequate?

Most all of the drops/jumps were placed and routed in a way to give you a safe run out afterwards. Unfortunately the terrain (roots, rocks, mud, etc) don't make it easy to land all the drops successfully. As much as we would like to change that, it's simply an attribute of the terrain and not much can be done. We are going to armor those landings with rocks and such as needed though, but it was something that you have to do after things have been ridden. This is the same thing with planned berms and such, we simply had to see exactly how the trail would work itself out when riders got on it.

A, B, and C trails are pretty hairy at the tops. That section is mainly used to discourage people from bombing down the slopes. Some work needs to be done to those trails to make them more user friendly, which probably means benching them out and making lots of dirt berms for the turns in those sections. Again, this was something we had planned on doing, but needed to see how the trail developed prior to doing extensive work.

Again, your comments and concerns are appreciated and being taken seriously. We take pride in our attention to rider input. Thanks for coming up and helping make the weekend a success!

 

[8it]

Originally posted by whale
sweet! looking forward to it. i think you guys are the ones that damienC, stiff, and i hooked up with briefly for some pics... the 4 crashes in a row on the rock drop. i was crash #2 on the zig-zag.

Yeah I was crash #4 on the bullit, good times!

 

[Capt. Jack Sparrow]

Originally posted by whale
so... catfish po'boys are vegetarian?

Whoops, I meant to say, "My teammate doesn't eat poultry, beef, pork, buffalo, etc."

On the contrary, I ripped into a burger with pork barbecue and bacon on top of it Saturday night!

 

[Tweek]

Originally posted by Hulkamaniac
Tweek,
Thanks for your input, all rider input is highly valued and taken seriously. The teeter issues were something that is hard to plan for, I am amazed at how much action that thing saw all weekend. It's our first attempt at building a moving feature, so things are bound to need a little tweaking (no pun intended).

It's a great teeter. It just needed some screws instead of nails for the ballast area is all.

I'll pass along the idea you had about trail signage. We finally got the real trail signs in on Saturday evening (delays with them being made kept them from getting here sooner). We had hoped that the "look before you leap" wording in the waiver would hit home with people. Do you think wording like "drop" or "jump" on the signs would be adequate?

That was a waiver I signed???

Word descriptions may not work for the most part, because you guys put a lot of nice options for almost every structure -- like a ramp vs. a drop. Maybe more detail on the trail maps would help. I know I was caught off guard with the 2 little steps down to the skinny on one of the features. But words would probably work for single things like drops (maybe say large/med/small?) and the teeter. I'm sure there's more than one solution.

Most all of the drops/jumps were placed and routed in a way to give you a safe run out afterwards. Unfortunately the terrain (roots, rocks, mud, etc) don't make it easy to land all the drops successfully. As much as we would like to change that, it's simply an attribute of the terrain and not much can be done. We are going to armor those landings with rocks and such as needed though, but it was something that you have to do after things have been ridden. This is the same thing with planned berms and such, we simply had to see exactly how the trail would work itself out when riders got on it.

A, B, and C trails are pretty hairy at the tops. That section is mainly used to discourage people from bombing down the slopes. Some work needs to be done to those trails to make them more user friendly, which probably means benching them out and making lots of dirt berms for the turns in those sections. Again, this was something we had planned on doing, but needed to see how the trail developed prior to doing extensive work.

Sounds like you're already on it. I realize the terrain plays a huge factor, like drops that looked pretty straightforward really weren't because of a softer-than-expected landing. But with what you have planned, it's going to get better. I was more than happy to help work out the kinks.

Again, your comments and concerns are appreciated and being taken seriously. We take pride in our attention to rider input. Thanks for coming up and helping make the weekend a success!

 

[Gee Spot]

Like Tweek said we Jack-a-lopes had a great time.....
I thought the stunts were awesome... maybe a little more chicken wire on the steep stuff (just because it seems to be so wet there). Also, you had stunts for all levels of riding, which makes it fun for all....

I like Tweek’s idea of a little warning of what is at the end of the stunt so you can keep your “Flow”…..
I’m a flow rider….once I stop I seem to lose my Mojo (and my confidence).

I personally liked the beginning of A, B, and C…. I think if it dries up a bit, it will be awesome… Every time I rode the beginning of those trails my blood started pumping and the excitement after cleaning the section was a rush you can only feel and trying to explain is usually useless…. The big smile on everyone’s face is “Enough said.”

As far as the other side of the mountain…. Mad love over there…. Now that is what mountain biking is about for me…… I love Downhill Mountain biking and those trails rocked…. The only problem over there was the marking of the trail…. Didn’t know where the heck I was going…. (Thanks to Capt. Jack Sparrow and her crew we had a great run) Even with me and Echo getting flats from the sharp rocky section….. Great fun!

All I have left to say is….. I wish it wasn’t so far away…….

 

[stuntmatty]

Originally posted by Gee Spot
Like Tweek said we Jack-a-lopes had a great time.....
I thought the stunts were awesome... maybe a little more chicken wire on the steep stuff (just because it seems to be so wet there). Also, you had stunts for all levels of riding, which makes it fun for all....

I like Tweek’s idea of a little warning of what is at the end of the stunt so you can keep your “Flow”…..
I’m a flow rider….once I stop I seem to lose my Mojo (and my confidence).

I personally liked the beginning of A, B, and C…. I think if it dries up a bit, it will be awesome… Every time I rode the beginning of those trails my blood started pumping and the excitement after cleaning the section was a rush you can only feel and trying to explain is usually useless…. The big smile on everyone’s face is “Enough said.”

As far as the other side of the mountain…. Mad love over there…. Now that is what mountain biking is about for me…… I love Downhill Mountain biking and those trails rocked…. The only problem over there was the marking of the trail…. Didn’t know where the heck I was going…. (Thanks to Capt. Jack Sparrow and her crew we had a great run) Even with me and Echo getting flats from the sharp rocky section….. Great fun!

All I have left to say is….. I wish it wasn’t so far away…….

Yeah, what she said

As for the teeter, screws are a must on the board over the "rock chamber" counter weight area. You may want to change the material used to weight it though. The rocks did nothing but bounce around and cause damage to the cover board. At one point Gee Spot came over the teeter and the rock weight was catapulted out of the chamber. Very dangerous if someone were to be hit. The teeter also failed to return.

It seemed to me that you only needed a few pounds of counter weight. Screwing a few 2x4 peices might work better, and the screws keep it easy to adjust vs. nails.

Another suggestion I'd like to offer concerns the axel. I noticed that you drilled holes in the wood and ran a pipe through. I normally use the same method, however I drill larger holes and drive a short length of larger diameter pipe into them. I then run the axel through those holes, and keep everything well greased. Maybe that's overkill but it seems to function smoothly over time and keeps things from freezing in the winter.

Keep up the great work, you guys are slowly transforming that place into a world class destination. I can't wait to go back.

 

[whale]

Originally posted by Gee Spot
All I have left to say is….. I wish it wasn’t so far away…….

yeah, can we pick up the mountain/resort and drop it on DC? the national zoo has been slowly killing off all the animals anyways it would be a great place to put it and it would be nice to have a local mountain

 

[whale]

Originally posted by 8it
Yeah I was crash #4 on the bullit, good times!

has your buddy put up any pics of the crashing drop session or MX course?

 

[Mattoid]

Wow, the weekend was a blast! I really enjoed the stunts, and i hope to see more go in over the summer. One sugjestion that everyone in my group made was to have more drops like the one on H. The one im refering to is the one right after a sharp left turn that could be hit at 4-7ft, a trail featuring 3+ drops just like that along with other stunts would have a greta feel to it. One stunt that worried me was the ladder to the rock to drop to flat... i dont mind the drops to flat (but it hurts the trails flow) but in this case you had to stay right off the drop to avoid the tree, and stay on trail and you had to stay left to avoid the sizable rock stiking out of the trail. There were also a couple of muddy pit type areas that would have been fun to have another way around. Perhaps a skinny to the left or right and let the people who dont wanna do that ride the normal line.

All sugjestions for improvement aside, i had a great time, i bought a season pass, and im going again next weekend!

 

[whale]

Originally posted by Mattoid
One stunt that worried me was the ladder to the rock to drop to flat... i dont mind the drops to flat (but it hurts the trails flow) but in this case you had to stay right off the drop to avoid the tree, and stay on trail and you had to stay left to avoid the sizable rock stiking out of the trail. There were also a couple of muddy pit type areas that would have been fun to have another way around. Perhaps a skinny to the left or right and let the people who dont wanna do that ride the normal line.

if this is the same drop that i think it is... i bounced off of that tree the first time i did it because i wasn't expecting the right turn and came down it pretty fast. at least i didn't go to the right off the drop and land on that nice big rock though. it was a tough line to land... but a lot of fun. i got a little movie (.avi) of it when one of 8it and CBJ's friends (guys from brooklyn?) dropped it.

i think this is the drop you are talking about:

right click, download, and play

 

[Echo]

Hey Hulkamaniac, nice meeting you and thanks for all your hard work getting such a great riding spot set up. Any level of rider can find challenges and fun there.

I made a movie that has some pretty classic footage of the teeter problem, once I find a place to host it I'll let ya know

 

[Mattoid]

HAHAHA that vid captures that drop perfectly, still fun, but a tranny of some sort would make it that much more fun despite being smaller. Hey hulk, maybe a ladder tranny would be easier to build than a dirt one?