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windrock-closing

tomvan72

Monkey
Dec 6, 2005
277
0
Asheville
Geritt and i are going to do it in the woods this weekend and you all from the sc should come with your trail bikes for the same reason.
 

Jeremy R

<b>x</b>
Nov 15, 2001
9,698
1,053
behind you with a snap pop
tomvan72 said:
Geritt and i are going to do it in the woods this weekend and you all from the sc should come with your trail bikes for the same reason.
Tom, I gotta head to Greensboro on business this weekend, but I will be back up there next weekend.


And Doug, I am trying to imagine how much rain it would take to wash my $hit stains from trail 1, if I tried to take that bobcat thingy down the trail and make the turn at the bottom.:dead:
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
unfortunately those kicka.. trailbuilding machines will probably never build an inch out here. i've been thinking about them today, and they just don't fit my style. i honestly feel that when you bench a trail you cut the very soul out of it. we have to do it way more than i would like here. and that is the main goal of this seasons trailbuilding is to develop more natural terrain trailbeds with absolute minimum of bench work. nothing feels better under your wheels than natural shifting of camber . one thing that always seems to be forgotten is that i'm not up here to cater to lesser skill levels. that's not a bad thing. i've had the pleasure of watching numerous riders over the past 5+ yrs' here greatly improve their skill levels. this years new trails will be a "little" less technically challenging, with more emphasis on speed and how big your ballz are for staying off the brakes as much as possible. already the four of us working together have done more in just the time since thanksgiving weekend than i planned. this promises to be our most productive off season yet, weather permitting. i'll keep ya'll posted and get mark to take some photos.
 

BKQuill

Turbo Monkey
Dec 19, 2004
1,016
0
Rangers Lead the Way
dhbuilder said:
i honestly feel that when you bench a trail you cut the very soul out of it.
HIPPIE;)

dhbuilder said:
this years new trails will be a "little" less technically challenging, with more emphasis on speed and how big your ballz are for staying off the brakes as much as possible.
:drool: :love: :thumb:
 

Tattooo

Turbo Monkey
Jun 5, 2005
1,859
0
OV
bizutch said:
Can't resist...everybody...feel free to drool about your trail building potential with one of these bad boys!!!

http://www.toro.com/professional/sws/loader/400/index.html

http://www.bobcat.com/products/mtl/index.htm
We used one of these last weekend in Reno, and it kicks ass for making new trails. I am not sure how it would work unless you were really skilled with it for rehabbing a trail, but to build new stuff that's 36" wide, there is none higher. Ask Hacksaw and Kidwoo, that thing ruled.

Heavy though. You're going to need a trailer that can handle over 2500# and a truck that can haul it in.
 

bizutch

Delicate CUSTOM flower
Dec 11, 2001
15,928
24
Over your shoulder whispering
dhbuilder said:
.... . and that is the main goal of this seasons trailbuilding is to develop more natural terrain trailbeds with absolute minimum of bench work. ......
...bench cut...I didn't say anything about a bench cut. That thing is what you need to make a new "Trail 1" doubles section.....in half an hour. Just think of how you can build a series of like 10 table tops (think A Line) in a row deep in the woods where the fat little ATV's can't get to them...
 

Tattooo

Turbo Monkey
Jun 5, 2005
1,859
0
OV
profro said:
Just think about trying to work with that thing in the steeps on trail 1. Nuf said.
I was running it in the steeps this weekend. You can either drag down the hill with the bucket at a 90 to the hill, or you can push down the hill. Either worked pretty good. Having it drag down is a bit intimidating at first, but once you work out in your head that the bucket is locking it to the ground, it works pretty damn good.

We did six months of digging and piling in a little under 10 hours of machine time. Now all we need to do is shape the new lines. I cannot say enough good things about this machine. Built proper berms on top of serious clay deposits, moved a hell of a lot of earth, and did a good job with a monkey like me behind the wheel. I will take some pics of what we did if Saw will let me, post them on here. Good stuff.

I want to use one now to build a benched in DH trail in the sierras somewhere, but I am moving at the end of December to VA. Maybe I'll come out to Windrock and help with this, its a good time.
 

profro

Turbo Monkey
Feb 25, 2002
5,617
314
Walden Ridge
It takes longer than half and hour to build dj doubles with a full size bobcat. I've done it and I know. There may be a few places that this little thing might work i.e. Trail 14, but I don't think you guys can appreciate how steep Windrock is. When was the last time you walked the trails or even raked them or weedeated them? Just on trail 1 alone there are more places you can't take this thing than you can. Think about it...

The steeps on trail 1 are almost impossible to rake without killing yourself. That thing would drag you down the steeps quicker than you could figure out what was happening and I'd never get behind that thing trying to go up them. :dead:
 

bizutch

Delicate CUSTOM flower
Dec 11, 2001
15,928
24
Over your shoulder whispering
Tattoo...thanks for chiming in with some real world experience bro. It always helps to hear from people on stuff like that.

Doug, who said anything about going down Trail 1? Granted...it would make a pretty cool video to see you come down it in your D2 and a pair of Dickies.....
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
sooooo many experts. where are ya'll's trails? you never know, i may get bored up here and strart looking for a new place to ride.
 

profro

Turbo Monkey
Feb 25, 2002
5,617
314
Walden Ridge
Yep, I have been out there everyday this week in the afternoons. I cut in a complete XC loop that enables folks to take any of the 4 "DH" runs and ride all the way back to the top. For those that want to do that kind of stuff. :rolleyes: But its a fairly tech XC trail. Lots of off camber switchbacks and lots of rocks.

However there is one "DH" run that is a total blast. Big bike required with lots of rocks and roots.
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
BKQuill said:
blasphemy I tell ya, blasphemy!!!;)
don't worry, by the time this building season ends we'll have a total of 15 different runs here. and not a crappy one on the mt. this place will play second fiddle to no other.boredom won't be an option around these parts i tell ya.
 

bigdrop05

Monkey
Mar 26, 2005
427
0
profro said:
Yep, I have been out there everyday this week in the afternoons. I cut in a complete XC loop that enables folks to take any of the 4 "DH" runs and ride all the way back to the top. For those that want to do that kind of stuff. :rolleyes: But its a fairly tech XC trail. Lots of off camber switchbacks and lots of rocks.

However there is one "DH" run that is a total blast. Big bike required with lots of rocks and roots.
--
Little wood signs to label those Bigfoot trails ??
I hit those Bigfoot trails last Sunday afternoon.:)

Heavy machinery is dangerous!:dead:
.02
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
doug, i don't know if you'd be interested in this or not. we will be demo-ing those freeride ramp things that brian built a couple of years ago, below his bypass trail. the planks were made of cedar and they might be long enough to run through my planer to re-face them. i'll try to not destroy them when we take that stuff apart. might make some cool looking signs for you.
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
got the call from the a.t.v. club pres. yesterday. it's official, we will be the proud owners of a new gas well at the end of the ridge by the u-turn on upper trail14. thank god i've got three good trail builders to depend on. cause i'll probably spend most of this winters weekends "re-educating" the motorized crew about what will happen if they even think about riding our area. i explained to him that some slack will be granted to those that are just on the roadbed, but to those found on the trails the scene could get unruly. the coal co. supposedly has told the construction crews to have a little more respect than normal when they come into our area. but i'll spend alot of time up there politicing with them as they start the project. just like when they were working on the pavedroad back when they were moving the windmills up to the top. this shouldn't affect the trails other than the trail heads at the trail14 crossings. and hopefully the freeride section will remain unscathed. but we'll see what happens.
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
butch, i never take for granted how lucky i (we all are.) am to have the support that i do from people who don't even ride bikes. that's why i've been building like a madman for the last 5yrs. there's no way i'll let this opportunity slip away. i don't know if there's any where else in the country that has this particular land situation. especially with a good paved road bordering our area.
 

thejames

Monkey
Oct 22, 2004
133
0
austin
just wanted to say that you guys are doing a great job up there, i visited doug last year and i thought that the trails were awesome. i hope to get up there sometime next year again and see the new stuff you have been working on.
 

BKQuill

Turbo Monkey
Dec 19, 2004
1,016
0
Rangers Lead the Way
dhbuilder said:
"new stuff" will be ass kickin fast.(with a "few" rocks.)
As I have expressed my thoughts in the past for an "A-Line" type of flowy and super fast trail. It's the "few" rocks part that makes me wonder what you are up too.:D

I'll be up the weekend of the 7th or 14th to help build...
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
dhbuilder said:
it's official, we will be the proud owners of a new gas well at the end of the ridge by the u-turn on upper trail14. .
Lucky you. Coal Creek put in two wells by my parents farm this spring. Them things is ugly. To top it off they have started logging on there land holdings surrounding the farm. It's not close enough to see yet but close enough to hear.

Have you seen any logging operations by Coal Creek? Do they clear cut or just take out the good stuff and leave the smaller stuff standing? Just wondering what we have to look forward to.
 

bizutch

Delicate CUSTOM flower
Dec 11, 2001
15,928
24
Over your shoulder whispering
jdschall said:
Lucky you. Coal Creek put in two wells by my parents farm this spring. Them things is ugly. To top it off they have started logging on there land holdings surrounding the farm. It's not close enough to see yet but close enough to hear.

Have you seen any logging operations by Coal Creek? Do they clear cut or just take out the good stuff and leave the smaller stuff standing? Just wondering what we have to look forward to.
they clear cut the bottom of trail 1 like it was gonna be a walmart...:rolleyes:
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
BKQuill said:
As I have expressed my thoughts in the past for an "A-Line" type of flowy and super fast trail. It's the "few" rocks part that makes me wonder what you are up too.:D

I'll be up the weekend of the 7th or 14th to help build...
i'm up to no good. as usual. it'll be fast but there's no way i'll ever make it too easy. there's no avoiding rocks up here, even if i wanted to.
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
yeah, the people they have doing their logging, are nothing more than hacks. they bulldoze multiple roads into an area then just drop the good stuff. and leave the wreckage behind. they gave me a good scare this time last year when the had a lease that was going to come into the western half of our land. i went to their foreman and explained to him about what we had going, and how they basically were going to put us out of buisness. then had an on site meeting with the owner of the logging co before i even went to coal creek. he agreed to a buffer zone running down the creek alongside of our southernrocks trail. when i finally went to c.creek, he was amazed that i talked him into that. it took away about a third of what they were permitted to log. that cost them a few $$$ to say the least. just one of the many battles that i'm constantly trying to b.s. my way out of. i'm trying to find out when they'll be putting the well in, so i can talk to them about trying to keep from disturbing as much of our trail heads and crossings as possible. but we will be saying goodbye to a smokin fast section of upper trail 14. let's hope that's all.
 

dhbuilder

jingoistic xenophobe
Aug 10, 2005
3,040
0
bizutch said:
they clear cut the bottom of trail 1 like it was gonna be a walmart...:rolleyes:
giving up that section of trail is probably what allowed me to save the southernrocks/drop-out trail area. again, a small price to pay. we have to remember that these are still "working" mountains.
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
Just Great! That sucks. A private land owner logged about 5 years ago and they did a very nice job. They were very selective about their cuts, left everything under 8 inches, and all the softwoods behind. Now you really can't tell where they came through except that the trees are smaller and there is more undergrowth and some stumps.

If the rumors are true, this time is going to suck.

I can't say too much about the wells. They were put into bottom land right next to the Little Emory River. It was a beautiful hayfield. but it's really not that bad considering. They leave a pretty small footprint. Maybe 1/4 acre or so which holds the well head, a couple of small drainage ponds and a big storage tank. Once it is all set up (takes a month or two) they will only come out everyfew weeks to drain the tank.