MTB Trailcare

A bit of everything this weekend at Nerang - pretty good fun, all in all (bet you don't think so after the next few paragraphs).  Some digging, some trail violations, a new committee for the Gold Coast MTB Club, Specialized Bikes Demo Day at the Velodrome, visitors from North Vancouver and Wellington NZ and a bit of promotional work for mtbtrailcare.com.  Plus, there's a new carpark garbage bin near the velodrome function centre entrance thanks to Peter Hallinan lobbying GCCC after the recent "make nerang velodrome beautiful" days arranged by Ashley.

Before we get to the nuts and bolts - this Wednesday at 4PM, a number of us including the NZ and Canada crew are going for a ride from the Velodrome.  Anyone else want to come for a 90 min ride?

So, here goes the weekend:

Thanks to those who saw fit to tear down the closures on lower Pete's and ride the trail (again).  Maybe the Qld Government closure signs on the orange mesh fence (see previous trail news) don't mean much to you, but seeing as volunteers of mtbtrailcare.com paid for that fencing and the time to install it, it matters to us.  It was a nice touch you bozos used, shredding the fences every time we managed to knit them back together.  Demonstrates the sort of determination and effort that helps dig great trail.  Or destroy it...........

Lower Pete's remains closed.  There is wet soil down over 50cm.  Normally Nerang soil is dry 2cm below the surface.  The soil has been jellified by subsoil water and rider damage - sadly, even after the trail was closed.  We will get it open soon, but lower Pete's is going to see months of renovations and interruption of rider flow while we remake it to a stable form.  

Lower Pete's is a good example of why rushing the construction of trail is dumb.  It is also the reason that mtbtrailcare will spend months getting lower Pete's Pete's and Brett's up to a standard we can accept, before we support any move to have them legalised by QPWS.  We have worked as hard as possible and not been able to keep pace with weather and rider abuse, due to a lack of trailcare volunteers, the inconsiderate attitude of riders and with the misguided need to have trails declared legal ASAP, rather than sustainable.  

Also, sorry if you think that by sitting at home suggesting what needs doing in Nerang, or coming up with gems like "there's a tree down out ...", or "smooth trail isn't durable - you have to make rocky trail", or "the trails out the back handle the weather", or the old gem, "I'm too busy to help", makes you an asset to Nerang, then think again!  Lots more people read this site than work with us.  We know that.  Seems like we have heard "Australians are LAZY" too many time lately.  Not too lazy to ride as often as they want, right over freshly-repaired trails in the rain though.........

Whilst I'm cranky;  why is it that the new committee of the GC MTB Club requires people who already put in lots of hours working on trail to keep the club alive?  Maybe we need to get MTB racing up and running in Nerang again to revitalise the club?  We know that QPWS will not stand in the way of that anymore: so where are the people who want to help it happen?  You aren't helping look after the trails, we know that, so you must have some time and something to offer to the club!

Pull your finger out Gold Coast riders!  Hundreds of people volunteer trailcare time and business support in little towns in Canada, the US, England, New Zealand etc to get the chance to ride a trail network like ours.  Do you really think this trail system is secure?  Face facts, it is ILLEGAL and the only thing that stops QPWS bulldozing it is the committment we have offered to make these trails sustainable.  

Sustainable means more than 2 of us go out to clear drains when it rains.  It means we don't have to rely on more effort from people who live 90 minutes drive away in NSW than from locals (and I mean by multiples of hours from 2 guys who independently drive up from Lennox Head to help regularly).  It means we can continue to prove to QPWS that we deserve to be supported.

Enough misery.  What did happen this wekend:

Specialized Bikes had a Demo Day at the velodrome this weekend.  We were invited to come and show the face of trailcare in the park.  Thanks very much to Specialized and Just Ride for making trailcare in Nerang important and making us feel welcome at your event.

Heavy rain fell overnight despite the BOM sites failing to register any of it - not unusual this year.  Trails were wet and soft again today

Also a special thanks to those riding the demo bikes for respecting trails not up to riding after the heavy 2013 rains.

The trailwork - about time we showed what we did.  The work was done by Doug, Louis and Ash on the bit of Pete's that has never been opened.  Due to heavy rain and lack of transport, the trail had become grassy

The bit we wanted to build was even grassier.  You can see the lower closure in the following pics

We started this work yesterday.  It will not be complete until we compress lots of stone into the tread to harden the sloppy garden soil on clay, despite the grade reversals looking pretty good at the end.  We started by scratching the line out 

We dug lots of soil out.  Some was used to transplant vegetation and further close the old Downhill Track.  Trees and other closures were added after this pic and yet someone managed to ride down the trail between 6 PM Saturday and 10.30 AM Sunday!  To get here, you already had to be on closed trail.  Sad, really 

Today we enhanced the rolling grade dips, leaving only stone armouring to be added to the dips to the get this bit of trail sustainable.  It is really wet and boggy.  You may not be able to see it in the following pics, but any pressure on the tread turns it into slop.  Rocks added in layers will fix that and it will all still drain.

While the rock armouring has yet to be added, the following pics show the intent of the line and drainages on it, starting looking from top down and then back up

Now going up

Lots to be done on Pete's, but we will get it done ASAP