Whiting Trail Work - I don't get it

Grasshopper Jim, I wish I could clone 100 more of you for trail work. Great job as usual!

 

OMR..
Did you just clone me?
Did you just clone me?

 

Jim, I was out there yesterday and was very pleased to see the work you had done.....nicely done.

 

I hit it twice on Saturday. It rocked. Cactus was sand free and fast, while the other downhill (not dreaded) was super fast. Was waaaay fun.

Trails at Whiting were fantabulous

 

I see that didn't get past you!

 

We loved it!!

 

I think the new Ranger--Everardo, along with Sean and Ramiro are doing a great job, and agree that most of the trails are in excellent condition. Please let them know how much you appreciate their work, and their letting me do what I'm doing. Some of what I've been doing is a definite departure from old-fashioned hiking/ equestrian trailwork technique, but makes a lot of sense when you add bikes to the mix. I give them a huge amount of respect to being open to it.

 

Thanks so much for your work here and the Luge kioti.

I rode Whiting (out my front door) on Friday, before your work, and was really pleased with the shape all the trails are in. I can't wait to get down Cactus now.

I spent Sunday at Santiago Oaks and was also blown away by how 'bike friendly' the trails are there. I'll be sending emails to both Rangers thanking them for the attention this week.

 

..

 

Great work out there, I rode Whiting on Sunday and I kept saying "Nice work!!" as I'd hit another turn on Cactus. HUGE improvement!

 

You do Awesome work.

 

Jim! Was that you on Cactus today around noon? I was the guy who cruised by and said something like "thank you for the trail work! the top is really torn up..." I should have stopped and chatted but I was wrecked - I had done Dreaded Hill and Vista Overlook and I was just plain tired, hot and thirsty. I wasn't expecting to see anyone out there and I didn't even see you until I was almost past. I felt kinda guilty after I streaked by because I meant to communicate a more sincere thank you because I really appreciate the work. It was the kind of day where my hair was so full of salt that it was like straw and I'm not sure what words were coming out of my mouth until my ears heard them

If that was you, you are an ANIMAL! It was like 95 degrees out there!

 

Looks awesome. I've got to get back to Whiting. It's been too long.

 

Yep, I was back at it today.. cleaned up a couple turns at the bottom of Cactus. Now I'm trying to remember what you looked like, but there were a lot of riders out there.

It WAS warm, and I would have left earlier but some guy told me the area just above where I was working was "unfixable." I hate that. I said, "I can fix it." It was really too dry to do much today, but I smoothed some braking bumps and filled in some ruts. Then I added some drainage to preserve the main area I worked on, and called it a day.

 

Gonna hit it later when it cools off a bit - mustard was like glue on the top section on Sunday.

Jim - Hope you're at least gonna get some pedaling time in!

 

My shovel has 5 feet of travel.

PS: Thanks for the demo bike, Julie.. those big tires do some serious trailwork all their own :lol:

 

Maybe it's just me, but Cactus is worse than I have ever seen it. Until I got to the area you were working on, I was feeling pretty low about it. Braking bumps the entire way, people cutting their own trails instead of working the flow, loose rocks and ruts, it was nasty.

The interesting thing is that at the same time Cactus was getting trashed, there are trails all over Whiting there were getting ZERO use. I rode up to Vista Overlook, and there was ONE bike track on it since the rain.

I think there should be serious consideration about trying to get another single track descent track in somewhere around Cactus. 99% of the traffic in Whiting rides the same circle route, over and over. The issue with Whiting is not that there aren't enough trails - it's that people don't ride them. Part of the issue is difficulty - the Borrego / Mustard / Cactus / Live Oak route is the easiest loop in the park. The other part (in my opinion) is the one-way traffic flow on Borrego. Bikers go up it... and they have nowhere else to go but up Mustard and down Cactus.

Regardless, it looks like Cactus is the scene of a cattle drive, NOT a mtn bike single track (your worked sections accepted, of course). Even if we worked the entire track from top to bottom, it will still get trashed next rain. (personal opinion)

 

Weird. Bonsai, I know you've been riding Whiting a long time, but it was WAY worse this summer. It was a sandy, loose mess and THEN the Rangers widened it.

I rode on Friday, before the last rains, and the top had some real zoom. The whole thing had the now normal myriad of braking bumps, but at least it wasn't a sand pit. Having some traction and even bank to the turns meant less braking required, which made the bumps a bit easier to roll through.

Having said that, I totally agree that Cactus is completely over-ridden. Another option for decent down from 4-corners would help by splitting the traffic. Also a single track down from Vulture View or Water Tank would spread people out on the park and add more riding options.

 

I'm trying to remember the last time I rode it. Two weeks ago? It was not bad at all (for Cactus). It's like the devil riders descending on it over Halloween or something

I think a descent from Vista Overlook down to the top of Borrego could be cool - somewhat similar to a Meadows - type trail. That would get people looping that section of the park a little more. Combined with a descent from Water Tank you could have a figure 8 with two new trails to play with - while still staying true to the one-way UP traffic on Borrego.

 

"Cactus" was not rebuilt in a day. I've started with the main problem areas (esp. the berms that were removed last July), and added what I could. Thats one guy/two days/total 10 hours trail working time, and it has to be done immediately after a storm. So yes, there are still braking bumps, loose rocks, etc.-- but thats mountain biking. I don't intend to remove them all.

I agree with "no worries" that the trail wasn't THAT bad on Friday. It's better now. It will continue to get better as the rainy season progresses (I've re-established drainage in old spots and added new drainage above my recent work).

IMO, Borrego being one-way for bikes is probably a good thing, because it does limit overall use (for those not ready for Mustard), and prevents head-on collisions with other bikes and hikers. Its a very busy trail.

Unfortunately, riding up to Vista Overlook, or out-and-back on Edison Trail, won't reduce use on Cactus. The only thing that does that is riders descending Whiting Road or going up and over Dreaded Hill, and I saw a lot of people choosing Whiting Road this morning. There is an alternative, but it's presently closed, and I don't know if it can be re-opened. It didn't get much MTB use when it was open, and may have actually 'increased' equestrian traffic on Cactus.

The new Ranger is supportive of mountain biking, and that's a very cool thing. Let's show him he's right to be on our side, and good things could happen.

PS: Another way to take a load off Cactus is turn left at 4 corners and head over to the Luge. Oops, more loose rocks and ruts?!? j/k (Three of us spent @ 4 hours removing braking bumps, ruts, etc. on Sunday, but I think we left enough to present a challenge..)

One more option-- ride up Cactus. You've gotta try it at least once