[Big B]

First, thanks for all the hard work everyone is putting in to keeping SST progressive and a fun place to ride. The amount of dirt moved in the last couple weeks is impressive for a backhoe...unbelievable for a few guys with shovels and wheelbarrows.

I just wanted to voice my opinion on the new jumps at the top. In short, SST already has a dirt jump park. Why not keep the flow park a flow park, and the leave the dirt jumps for the softies section across the creek.

I'm a pretty average rider, and I couldn't clear the new jumps today with my 7.5" freeride rig. I lose all my speed on the incline when my bike fully compresses. These jumps are not designed for full suspension bikes. They are being designed for hardtails. :teacher:

Why are we putting so much effort into adding softies to the flow park when we could be adding drops, step downs, kickers, etc. The flow park has always been a place where everyone can ride, whether they are on hardtails or V10s. These jumps are not for V10s.

I know they didn't start out to be what they are today, but I hope they get modified in the future so all bike types can ride them.

Ok, I'm done. Please be gentle in your replies, I'm a nice guy.

 

[kinghami3]

They're tough to hit on a full susp., but doable. We were trying to improve that last week by smoothing out the beginning and adding to the berm, which will help pick up speed. I agree though, and I don't find dirt jumps that appealing, but they are an option; you can go around them just as easily. Keep in mind there is still a lot of effort to add to the drops, stepdowns, and kickers, but these are just adding different elements to the mix.

 

[ryan/kona29]

the double at the bottom...well that feals like a DJ to me. but i do kinda sorta agree with what your saying, they would be kinda hard to hit on a fully especially my 51 pounder. when i hit the new line at the top by time i get to the bottom/left hand side gravity shoot i'm tired and can barley stand on my padels cause my legs are burning some much and thats on my hardtail i couldn't imagine a fully. "but if ya cant do em don't try em" LOL still have to give lots of credit to andy and all others who helped build them, great work guys, now we just need a huge dirt roll in at the top



P.S. have you seen the HUGE step up that is being built at the bottom of the road, thats gona be a fun one...for show!!!

 

[DesuL]

If you don't like em don't hit em. Flow is flow and part of the flow is gaps/drops and other stuff.

The top section had NOTHING . Atleast it has something now. Since 3% of the riders out there go and run from top to bottom whats the problem? If you want something out there then buy some shovels, wood and materials and come build something that excites you

No disrespect ment but build what you like to ride, otherwise don't worry about others building what they like to ride. Its not that far out from the whole place getting dozed if the amount of injurys does not go down.

 

[cove rider]

I personally think they are a bit of the lame side and are a bit hard to hit on a fully but i can clear them on my g-spot with my monster t up front no problem! I just think the line is in progress and needs some perfecting is all

 

[jumping_jesus]

The DJ's are easy to hit on a 8" bike i had no problem hitting them on my full suspension but the problem with the new jump that has been put in is that it has disrupted the main trail there and is kind of disrespectful to all the other users of south sea-tac we are not the only people using that park its not the freeride park only that upper main trail is used by many other people then us the jump is ok the placement is BAD and if you cant hit you dont have to it just gives you something to work to up. remember progression is not bad and its nice to see lots of it out at sst. bigger is safer it doesnt hurt as much to come up short as much as it does when you blow up from going to far so to all who cant hit the bigger jumps up top dont bitch about them just progress at riding and jumping. when building there consider the other people who who use sst for other things like walking there dogs, running, cross-country mtb ............ nice jump it needs to better thought out as far as placement and how steep of a landing you should have in porportion of the take off and how long it should be.

 

[DBR X6 RIDER]

IFO haven't seen the latest version of the jump, but have heard enough to be concerned.
I'm not so much worried about the size of the jump as much as the location in regards to the main trail (I know I've mentioned this once or twice in the past). There's stuff that traverses it, but nothing that obstructs it...period.
I'm hoping to get some riding in the next time I'm down there, but if the jump in question is an obstruction then I'll have to get busy on the shovel.:mumble:

Of course you can clear them Jumping Jesus...you can ride on water!

 

[jumping_jesus]

naaahh only part the red dirt my friend. P.S. Is it thursday yet???

 

[jumping_jesus]

go team andy!!!!!! you rock buddy!!!!

 

[DBR X6 RIDER]

go team andy!!!!!! you rock buddy!!!!

Hahaha - I'm a little more reggae than rock this evening.

 

[Netguy]

The DJ's are easy to hit on a 8" bike i had no problem hitting them on my full suspension but the problem with the new jump that has been put in is that it has disrupted the main trail there and is kind of disrespectful to all the other users of south sea-tac we are not the only people using that park its not the freeride park only that upper main trail is used by many other people then us the jump is ok the placement is BAD and if you cant hit you dont have to it just gives you something to work to up.

That has to be the longest sentence without a comma, I have ever seen.

I am on the fence on this one. I think Jason makes a very good point, in that we need to keep perspective on what we build. I dont think his point was to say that he didnt like big jumps. I believe it was more along the lines of, lets make sure we keep building jumps, that big bikes can also get over, without to much trouble. On the other hand, I have seen many people clear the bigger jumps, on big bikes, and we cant knock back the efforts of the builders who continue to evolve SST which inhand, improves and evolves our personal riding skills.

I think in the long run, it is what it is. People are going to continue to build what they want, regardless what others say, so the best thing to do, is go along with it, ride and have fun. Cause when we are all laying on our death beds, it won't matter.

Ash

 

[jumping_jesus]

hey its been a long day and i am well adjusted as far as my mind set goes but i'm glad you enjoyed my bad punctuation i like run on sentences cant you tell j/k ash

 

[fuzzycatnuts]

I agree that what has been done up top is a bit out of hand. No builder at sst has dug out a huge thing of dirt like that. That line was there when they (up untell very recently) raced x/c. I find it a bit disrespectfull.

On the other hand I spent a full day fixing the old lines, x-c line and sandy line up top to make them easyer for the other riders. I also think the orgnial trail is still there and most people have never even riden up top so I dont think it affects "flow riders" (if you dont like it dont hit it). I have hit all the lines up top on my dual suspention bike, once the dirt hardens up it will be easy. It seams that the people willing to work the long hours get to decide how the trails are going to be, I am not sure what to say.

Anyway its almost summer time, time for me to put down the shovel and start riding!

 

[Big B]

I have hit all the lines up top on my dual suspention bike, once the dirt hardens up it will be easy. It seams that the people willing to work the long hours get to decide how the trails are going to be, I am not sure what to say.

It may become easier when the dirt hardens, but I think as of Wednesday afternoon, nobody on a big bike can claim they can hit these, because I was the only one hitting them on a big bike. And they were being modified at the time. Nice guy on a mountain cycle hardtail was doing the mods.

We had a nice chat, and then I tried to get over the first big jump that he had been working on for a few hours. 3 tries, no cigar. The faster I went, the shorter I would come up. Keep in mind that I have ridden every stunt in the flow park. I'm no pro, but I'm not a newb either. I'm not opposed to the opinion that I just lack the skills, but I wouldn't be posting this if I thought that was the case.

Like a lot of people are saying, it's not my dirt, I didn't move it, and I can always ride around it. But all I really hope to accomplish with this little rant is that the next time someone is up there with a shovel, they take a few extra seconds to think about who they are building the jump for, if it's in a good place, etc.

If I was going to put time and effort into building, I would want to make sure it was going to stick around and not get 'voted' out. Because anyone with a shovel can build...or destroy.

last point...honestly, I don't care if the jump stays. I have no problem riding around it, and I think all the guys doing the work are awesome. I'm very grateful to all of them for their hard work, and I usually tell them that. I would just have preferred a jump that throws you furthur horizontally (flow park style) rather then vertically (softies style). Horizontal hucks lend themselves better to big bikes due to a lack of compression issues on the take-off.

It should be obvious why you don't see big bikes riding softies. If it's not, I'll let you try it on my bike.

 

[Big B]

...ok..last, last point.

I was just thinking......what it really comes down to is the radius of the take-off. If the horizontal to vertical transition on the take-off used a larger radius (like the gap on the table) then everyone could huck it. The smaller the radius, the more compression force you get on the bike, making it easier for hardtails to maintain momentum, but harder for big bikes. The mods that were happening on Wednesday were making that transition really tight and quick. The guy even told me that he was doing that on purpose, because it allows you to get more vertical, without making a larger jump.

I would say there is point you should reach where you stop making the radius smaller, and add more dirt to the top instead. I think we are close to that point, or little beyond.

But hey, I'm an engineer, so I over-analyzed crap which usually drives people nuts. If this post makes you nuts, your normal. :looney:

 

[bent^biker]

I havn't ridden that new line yet (hoping to this weekend) but I do know that the park really doesn't have a whole lot that is fun on a hardtail (unless you're Ryan) do to the super flat landings on most of the drops and stepdowns. Perhaps some of the middle section needs a little work on the landings. But more to the point, I don't think it is wrong that there is a section that those of us on hardtails can flow into the middle section.

 

[fuzzycatnuts]

Big-B I see your point but I am not sure that its a hardtail only jump, I saw Ted hit it on a fully on monday. The little run in ramp could be made much bigger to give you more speed and there is also plains to smooth the run in down even more to give you more speed.

I am a bit worried that they have gone to far in building the new jump, as far as disrupiting the orginal trail and digging a huge amount of dirt. I am not sure were the line should be drawn for building and who is going to get upset and complain to the athorties. I wonder if we could get offical permision from the city, like they did in falls city and hoodriver. We could then set guide lines for what and were things are alowed to be built.

As far as you wanting more drops and stepdown sorta jumps you could always come out with a shovel, that way you could make it how you want it. I think there are still plenty of jumps and drops there for everyone to ride, up top for example, theres lots of options from little 1 foot jump to 4 foot drop, all the way up to the new big one.

-Kim

 

[fuzzycatnuts]

I hope they left the orginal xc line and line into the sandy jump alone, I spent a bit of time fixing them on tues after they dug out for the landing.
Anything to report Andy?

 

[Tootrikky]

Flow Park or Dirt Jumps or or or How about 25' gaps with Crocodile pits in between them?? Yeah sounds cool doesn't it!

 

[DBR X6 RIDER]

I hope they left the orginal xc line and line into the sandy jump alone, I spent a bit of time fixing them on tues after they dug out for the landing.
Anything to report Andy?

Haven't been there since Saturday. Couldn't get down there today, but I think I've finally got a roommate. Hoping to get down there either tomorrow, Saturday or both...I'll let Mother Nature decide.:wonky2:

 

[cove rider]

Flow Park or Dirt Jumps or or or How about 25' gaps with Crocodile pits in between them?? Yeah sounds cool doesn't it!

I agree this would be much more insentive to make it over the gap! But where to we order the crocs from? And who gets to feed and care for them?

 

[ryan/kona29]

hey why don't we just throw a bunch of jesse's in there(bighit756)! i mean it would be just the same...a group of little dumb dumbs trying to get there afternoon snack!!! "LOL" . when in the heck are they gona finish that step up at the bottom of the road???


P.S. i will be out there saturday!!!

 

[cove rider]

hahahaha i will be in moab saterday ha owned but not really cause i cant ride i will be taking pics and video. hopefully i can go pirate some internet from the local library and post up a few pics while im there

 

[fuzzycatnuts]

I know this thread it played out but I have to add one thing, the jump that big-b is talking about was made 2 days before he hit it. It needs time to harden up and settle, I hit the sandy sand jump as fast as I could after we built it and totaly cased it. 2 weeks later I hit it same speed and went 10 feet past the landing. I dont think anyone cares anymore but I just had to say that.

 

[DBR X6 RIDER]

I know this thread it played out but I have to add one thing, the jump that big-b is talking about was made 2 days before he hit it. It needs time to harden up and settle, I hit the sandy sand jump as fast as I could after we built it and totaly cased it. 2 weeks later I hit it same speed and went 10 feet past the landing. I dont think anyone cares anymore but I just had to say that.

You would think that after a couple/few years people would realize that point. Whenever I put something new together, I mention to anybody that's checking it out that it will feel slow for a week or so and not to expect much out of it immediately. Nearly every time, those people will be like "this sucks...it's too slow!".

 

[Big B]

I hope your right. Because the flip side is, it is much more forgiving to case it 3 times in a row when it's soft. I'm not going to enjoy casing that when it's hard.

 

[DesuL]

This thread is one of the best discussions on SST I have seen in a while. I think it is very important to keep an easy Xc type line through the whole park and if that is lost then its going to cause trouble. Maybe time to add more warning signs and whatnot. If SST had nothing but big big jumps then I would never be riding at the level I am today. I owe it to the assortment of big and small things that can be used as a learning experiance.

I am just super impressed with the amount of work people put in and the passion people have for the park. My main gripe is I always hear an icecream truck and want a choco taco but the truck never makes it back to the flow park