Topic: Wet trail etiquette (Read 4144 times)

Garry · « **on:** May 14, 2009, 04:23:30 PM »

Hi all,
The Tampa Bay area got like 2 inches of rain yesterday - we are way over due for rain, and soon will be in the rainy season. On the one hand this is good for the trails; on the other hand it is bad for trails that have clay content and are low lying - which is pretty much all of the technical trails.

In order to keep the more sensitive trails in good condition we ask that you give them a day or two to drain some before riding on them. I know, I know, "it's a day off and I'm going to ride." No problem there, so with plenty of trails at our disposal to ride on, staying off the more sensitive, muddy, and slick clay ones until they can handle the traffic means better trails for all and less work for the few who actually do the maintenance.

If you find yourself on one of these trails that is getting rutted out with bike tires, just turn around and hit a dryer less sensitive trail until it has a chance to drain.

We don't want to have to close off trail sections, so if we just police ourselves by respecting the more sensitive trails that we have, then the trails remain in great condition to enjoy.

Thanks for your understanding of the wet, muddy, and clay type of trails we ride on.

Garry

E90X + 1.1.11 · « **Reply #1 on:** May 14, 2009, 04:27:46 PM »

that is great advice - the big suck is that people that never work on trails and aren't swamp members will be the worst ones about rutting up the clay....they are the ones that usually poach the trails before they are open or are closed off as well

I am going to take advantage of the newly cleaned bike lanes that ahve finally got all the debris washed off them that had been building up for months

ClintonRH · « **Reply #2 on:** May 14, 2009, 04:31:31 PM »

I'm headed out to Flatwoods right now. But I'm taking the 28mm slicks on the cross bike for the pavement. I'll give the trails some time to dry before I run the 35mm cross wheels around since then tend to dig ruts even when it's dry.

KRUNNCHERO · « **Reply #3 on:** May 14, 2009, 04:41:25 PM »

You refer to your tires in millimeters...cool. I guess I would be running 60.96mm then.

Garry · « **Reply #4 on:** May 14, 2009, 05:58:53 PM »

Quote from: FACTORells on May 14, 2009, 04:27:46 PM

that is great advice - the big suck is that people that never work on trails and aren't swamp members will be the worst ones about rutting up the clay....they are the ones that usually poach the trails before they are open or are closed off as well

I agree with you Fells, but getting the message out one way or another. Some LBS's read the posts and they may just pass the word too.

Darrinw2001 · « **Reply #5 on:** May 14, 2009, 07:26:10 PM »

This is Posted to the BAADR board and Yahoo group as well. Good trail stewards we all should be!

ClintonRH · « **Reply #6 on:** May 14, 2009, 09:45:53 PM »

Quote from: KRUNNCHERO on May 14, 2009, 04:41:25 PM

You refer to your tires in millimeters...cool. I guess I would be running 60.96mm then.

When they're mounted on the cyclocross bike yeah. That's what they're marked in. Converting them to inches would be an unnecessary step and frankly I really like metric. I wouldn't convert my MTB tires to metric though because that would be just as silly but in reverse (which is still silly).

cryptiq · « **Reply #7 on:** May 15, 2009, 10:18:33 AM »

Hey guys, I'm coming down to WTA on Sunday from Gainesville...normally I ride the entire offroad loop main trail, with the exception of when I get on Indian. Looking at the weather forecast, I'm guessing I should stay off of Indian, any recommendations for an alternate trail? Should I just stay on main the whole way?

catman · « **Reply #8 on:** May 15, 2009, 10:32:56 AM »

Just asking, but why would you come all the way down here from Gainesville to ride WTA? Have you been to the other trails that are not that much further south?

Or Croom?

BPK72 · « **Reply #9 on:** May 15, 2009, 10:34:51 AM »

I was thinking of driving up from Ft Lauderdale today for a late afternoon ride at Boyette and again tomorrow morning. Would any of those trails be a problem to ride today after the rain you got yesterday?

cryptiq · « **Reply #10 on:** May 15, 2009, 10:42:37 AM »

Quote from: catman on May 15, 2009, 10:32:56 AM

Just asking, but why would you come all the way down here from Gainesville to ride WTA? Have you been to the other trails that are not that much further south?

Or Croom?

My buddy is picking up a new bike today (in Tampa) and we're both out of shape, so wanted to start with something familiar. I moved up to G'ville in August of last year, and I'm ashamed to say just last week I got my bike back together to ride. I really miss Alafia, I've asked around up here and there's apparently not much that compares. I would definitely like to hear some suggestions if you know of any decent trails close to me. From what I understand, Ocala Nat'l Forest is mainly flat track, but Santos is supposed to be fun...I've not seen either in person though.

Darrinw2001 · « **Reply #11 on:** May 15, 2009, 10:54:27 AM »

Grandpa is in good shape and has a couple of new reroutes that make it more fun now. Indian did had a couple of puddles yesterday, but if you go around the outside of them you should be OK. Gator Bait had I small puddle but again, just stay away from the mushy part and the trail will be OK. If the trails get too bad they will close them.

treadlight · « **Reply #12 on:** May 15, 2009, 10:55:01 AM »

Quote from: BPK72 on May 15, 2009, 10:34:51 AM

I was thinking of driving up from Ft Lauderdale today for a late afternoon ride at Boyette and again tomorrow morning. Would any of those trails be a problem to ride today after the rain you got yesterday?

Boyette should be dry its possible some sections of the trails are wet but not soggy.

Have fun.

treadlight · « **Reply #13 on:** May 15, 2009, 10:59:32 AM »

Quote from: cryptiq on May 15, 2009, 10:18:33 AM

Hey guys, I'm coming down to WTA on Sunday from Gainesville...normally I ride the entire offroad loop main trail, with the exception of when I get on Indian. Looking at the weather forecast, I'm guessing I should stay off of Indian, any recommendations for an alternate trail? Should I just stay on main the whole way?

I would stay off Indian, that sections is fun when dry but easily damaged when wet.

Luis · « **Reply #14 on:** May 15, 2009, 11:01:23 AM »

Quote from: treadlight on May 15, 2009, 10:59:32 AM

I would stay off Indian, that sections is fun when dry but easily damaged when wet.

It hasn't rained in 4 months... I'm pretty sure everything has dried already.

Garry · « **Reply #15 on:** May 15, 2009, 11:03:45 AM »

Quote from: Darrinw2001 on May 15, 2009, 10:54:27 AM

Indian did had a couple of puddles yesterday, but if you go around the outside of them you should be OK.
If the trails get too bad they will close them.

IMBA discovered that if you ride "around" wet muddy sections of trail it makes for a more rutted out, wider trail that is no longer single track. It is best to ride through the center if the base of the trail can sustain the traffic, or if it is so bad just ride a dryer trail until it drains and can be ridden without causing long term damage.

catman · « **Reply #16 on:** May 15, 2009, 11:04:48 AM »

Quote from: cryptiq on May 15, 2009, 10:42:37 AM

Quote from: catman on May 15, 2009, 10:32:56 AM
Just asking, but why would you come all the way down here from Gainesville to ride WTA? Have you been to the other trails that are not that much further south?

Or Croom?

My buddy is picking up a new bike today (in Tampa) and we're both out of shape, so wanted to start with something familiar. I moved up to G'ville in August of last year, and I'm ashamed to say just last week I got my bike back together to ride. I really miss Alafia, I've asked around up here and there's apparently not much that compares. I would definitely like to hear some suggestions if you know of any decent trails close to me. From what I understand, Ocala Nat'l Forest is mainly flat track, but Santos is supposed to be fun...I've not seen either in person though.

Croom is way better than WTA from what I've heard. Santos is the best in Florida in my opinion and most other people I've talked to.

Garry · « **Reply #17 on:** May 15, 2009, 11:12:07 AM »

Quote from: BPK72 on May 15, 2009, 10:34:51 AM

I was thinking of driving up from Ft Lauderdale today for a late afternoon ride at Boyette and again tomorrow morning. Would any of those trails be a problem to ride today after the rain you got yesterday?

They should be okay to ride as Croom and Boyette fare the best after rains from all of our trails that we maintain. With that said, a couple sections may be less than ideal for riding because of wet sloppy clay conditions. It's pretty easy to tell which ones they are as you enter them.

Boyette has 25 miles of trails. No big deal to skip 3 or 4 miles of slop.
Alafia has 15 miles of trail. No big deal to skip 3 or 4 miles of the worst wet stuff.
Wilderness Trails has 25 miles of trails. Skipping the 2 or 3 miles of the muddiest isn't hard to do either.
Croom has 55 miles of trail. Skipping a couple bad spots is pretty easy if you follow the map.

ClintonRH · « **Reply #18 on:** May 15, 2009, 12:58:08 PM »

Got an impromptu day off today (no work so I just used a sick day rather than dick around all day then get sent home early) so I went for a quick ride around this morning at Hole in the Fence to try and work my legs loose from yesterday. Indian has one soft wet muddy spot that could probably use a board as it's too big to hop at speed and there's no good way around it that wont just make the spot bigger. Other than that it's mostly dry and very rideable. A few soft damp spots and puddles but nothing that looks like it should become a problem but I don't consider myself an expert by any means so I'll defer to the experts on that verdict. Gatorbait also has a rather large puddle but it had solid trail under it so I wouldn't worry too much about it. A few small puddle that were already rutted down to firm stuff or had a route around.
Overall the ground has a great balance between tacky grip with just a little bit of shiftiness. Found myself carrying more speed through the corners than I usually do but the straights felt like there was a bit more drag than I usually feel. Neither of my tires packed up at any point but I've never had a problem with that.
Hogwild had one section on the edge of the trail where the sand was really wet. Had a soupy consistency that almost reminded me of quicksand but only a inch or so deep. Don't think I would have even noticed it if I hadn't been trying to straighten out the liner of my shorts in a straight section and let the bike coast off the edge of the trail. Stopped and played with it a while because it was neat how the deep tire tracks would very slowly fill in til there was just a small depression where the tire track had been. It was like mud but it looked relatively solid. I'm going to guess that moisture content of the soil has to be just absolutely perfect to cause that.

cryptiq · « **Reply #19 on:** May 15, 2009, 02:46:48 PM »

Quote from: catman on May 15, 2009, 10:32:56 AM

Croom is way better than WTA from what I've heard. Santos is the best in Florida in my opinion and most other people I've talked to.

Cool thanks, I'm eager to check them out now

I loved the technicality of Alafia, but I also enjoy a good fast paced trail that doesn't have much stopping/starting or drastic elevation changes. I mainly ride to lose weight, the fun is just an added bonus.

Slowy · « **Reply #20 on:** May 15, 2009, 08:33:01 PM »

Quote from: Garry on May 14, 2009, 04:23:30 PM

..............means better trails for all and less work for the few who actually do the maintenance.

leave it to garry to throw in the subliminal messages...

slowfatguy · « **Reply #21 on:** May 15, 2009, 09:58:46 PM »

Quote from: Slowy on May 15, 2009, 08:33:01 PM

Quote from: Garry on May 14, 2009, 04:23:30 PM
..............means better trails for all and less work for the few who actually do the maintenance.

leave it to garry to throw in the subliminal messages...

subliminal message or god's honest truth?

MBruns · « **Reply #22 on:** May 16, 2009, 09:42:35 AM »

We rode Boyette on friday morning most was very nice with some rain, however canyon was a bit greasey and we spoke to a group that came out of ridgeline and said alot of it was the same way so we decided not to ride it. It should be good later in the weekend. Great Job Swamp !
Mike Bruns

Daniel · « **Reply #23 on:** May 16, 2009, 07:58:15 PM »

We did boyette this morning. Removed much rain debris from trais. Most of the trails were GREAT! Well packed, and moist but not muddy. There are sections of ridgeline we walked through becuase they were pretty soft.

Rockhopper · « **Reply #24 on:** May 16, 2009, 11:02:52 PM »

Hey Cryptic -- If you now live in Gainesville, you should check out San Felasco, which is just north of the city. It's not Alafia. It's more cross country, but much hillier than, say, WTA. If you hit all the loops, it's a solid work out. I'd say at least 20 miles of trails. Probably a bit more. Here's the map:http://www.sanfelasco.net/docs/San%20Felasco%20Bike%20Trail%20map%2005%202009.pdf

Dave In Odessa · « **Reply #25 on:** May 18, 2009, 08:42:20 AM »

Yeah, if you make San Felasco your home trail, you WILL become a badass rider. Its not overly technical, but naturally hilly (rolling hills though). Its the system I love to go up to ride on, but half way through I'm cursing the place and swearing I'll never be back HAHA.

Skinman · « **Reply #26 on:** May 18, 2009, 05:26:54 PM »

Hey guys I just joined and have some questions about the trails this week. I took off the whole week to ride, (I've got total work burn out). I rode Boyette Friday, Flatwood/WT/MB Saturday, my private trail Sunday, and Santos today. Santos handled the rain very well. I was going for Alafia, Boyette, Carter and croom next in that order.
Can you help me with what trails to avoid? I am determined to ride but dont want to trash the trails. I could just keep going back to santos....but want to change it up.
BTW....Krunch Saturday is my last baseball game so count on me and my son helping at least one Saturday a month.....I got the OK from the wife. (you know me as skinner29er)
I know nothing about real trail building but want to learn. I come from the school of "Run over it 1000 times until its a trail!"

slowfatguy · « **Reply #27 on:** May 18, 2009, 05:35:37 PM »

Skinman, if it has just rained the trails to avoid at Alafia are Moonscape, Rabbit Ears, and parts of Gatorback, Rollercoaster, and the whoops on Bridges. They are all clay and tend to stay really greasy and slick. At Boyette Canyon and Ridgeline are the only ones I know of that get slick. There are a few other places, but not entire trails.

I'm sure someone else will add more.

catman · « **Reply #28 on:** May 18, 2009, 05:50:04 PM »

Quote from: Skinman on May 18, 2009, 05:26:54 PM

Hey guys I just joined and have some questions about the trails this week. I took off the whole week to ride, (I've got total work burn out). I rode Boyette Friday, Flatwood/WT/MB Saturday, my private trail Sunday, and Santos today. Santos handled the rain very well. I was going for Alafia, Boyette, Carter and croom next in that order.
Can you help me with what trails to avoid? I am determined to ride but dont want to trash the trails. I could just keep going back to santos....but want to change it up.
BTW....Krunch Saturday is my last baseball game so count on me and my son helping at least one Saturday a month.....I got the OK from the wife. (you know me as skinner29er)
I know nothing about real trail building but want to learn. I come from the school of "Run over it 1000 times until its a trail!"

Private trail? Thought there was only one private trail "jimmy cotton"

If this rain keeps up I'd just shoot for Boyette (give it some dry time though) and Croom. Can't comment of how Carter will ride when soggy.

Skinman · « **Reply #29 on:** May 18, 2009, 06:11:52 PM »

OOps...should have known that would raise a question! I have a preserve behind my development. The fire crews burn there once a year or so and create some paths through the woods and open fields. I ride a short 8 mile (2 paved) loop from my house. I have only seen 1 or 2 bikers ever back there. Lots of dog walkers....
Its nice for getting in a quick sprint before dinner. The grass is so overgrown except for my tracks its almost like a singletrack. I have gotten familiar with the people I see walking their dogs so there isnt any angst. I also used to run my dog "Bubba the Mountain Bike Dog" back there but he is retired ....Ithink he's about 12.

Garry · « **Reply #30 on:** May 18, 2009, 06:23:25 PM »

The Abyss's at Boyette take a beating after the rains as do Sidewinder and SWAMP Thing. A couple of the drops in Pandemonium are made of clay too. But if you skip those trails and are looking for mileage then you can still get in about 19/20 if you ride everything else. Once we get the two ways done on Spider Berm and West Meadow we are going to try and make the quadrants more fun and interesting so people are more inclined to ride those in the bad weather while keeping the clay trails rainy day no go's. Croom is always a favorite in the rainy season.

Skinman · « **Reply #31 on:** May 18, 2009, 06:43:27 PM »

Thanks... I think I will go back to Santos. It really handled the rain well. I had to cut it short when it started to pour...but even then the blue trails were in decent shape. I may not have this kind of hall pass again for a while!...If I stick to blue and yellow with an occasional red I may get 30-35 in......

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Author Topic: Wet trail etiquette (Read 4144 times)

Luis