Unwanted Cypress building

I’ve heard from a few builders the last few weeks that trails that they’ve built/maintained and have hundreds/thousands of hours into, have seen unauthorized/unwanted/unknown building on. 

As a PSA reminder, even trails that are not-authorized or permitted, like many of those on Cypress, all have people who have invested their time into. If you want to help out in the woods the best plan is to attend NSMBA trail days or if you want to focus on non-authorized or other specific trails, please search out those local builders and ask if they want help. 

I’m not aware of a single trail on Cypress that is not being cared for by someone, including the legacy trails. 

Please don’t parachute in and do any work on trails without at least trying to find the builders first. They’re just going to rip out your work!

Just a PSA as I’ve been asked to help spread the word to those who might not be aware.

Don't go to Seymour then.  The amount of rogue building, even in the most obvious of places, is getting WAYYY out of hand.  If you ride up Old Buck/Baden to Cabin Fever I pass now 8 unsanctioned loamers that branch off from the aforementioned main route.   Even worse, most are boring, featureless loamers that just go down with no reason, flow or features.  It's even worse on the Darkside.  At some point it is going to come to a head......and sadly it is going to have consequence for the builders of official trails in terms of what they can do and what will be allowed in the future.

/\ 8 unsanctioned loamers now, 8 permanently eroded unrideable fall line scars after a season

Sorry - I don’t mean new trail builds, what’s been happening is people are building on existing trails. 

I know it’s a problem everywhere. Cypress builders just rip it all out.

I feel like this is one of those "unspoken rules" that people need to be reminded of regularly. Reach out to builders before making any changes to trails. We are easy to get ahold of. Post up on trailforks, "hey is anyone maintaining this trail", and you'll get a response. There's really no reason to impose your own vision on a trail that is being actively maintained, it's disrespectful and unwanted. Keep your local trail builders happy and you'll have better trails!

If you want to help out and would rather work solo, grab a leaf rake and a spade and do a lap raking away the debris (there are plenty of branches down everywhere this year) and clear all the existing drains. Ride with a hand saw and remove deadfall. This work is needed most right now. 

Or if you want to come out more regularly, get in contact with the builder and arrange a time to work with them.

Posted by: Polymath

Don't go to Seymour then.  The amount of rogue building, even in the most obvious of places, is getting WAYYY out of hand.  If you ride up Old Buck/Baden to Cabin Fever I pass now 8 unsanctioned loamers that branch off from the aforementioned main route.   Even worse, most are boring, featureless loamers that just go down with no reason, flow or features.  It's even worse on the Darkside.  At some point it is going to come to a head......and sadly it is going to have consequence for the builders of official trails in terms of what they can do and what will be allowed in the future.

Only 8?

Posted by: Polymath

Don't go to Seymour then.  The amount of rogue building, even in the most obvious of places, is getting WAYYY out of hand.  If you ride up Old Buck/Baden to Cabin Fever I pass now 8 unsanctioned loamers that branch off from the aforementioned main route.   Even worse, most are boring, featureless loamers that just go down with no reason, flow or features.  It's even worse on the Darkside.  At some point it is going to come to a head......and sadly it is going to have consequence for the builders of official trails in terms of what they can do and what will be allowed in the future.

Everyone should go to Cypress....  new trails/maintenance all the time there.   Super easy shuttles and quick access for the awesomeness of e-bikes!  Cypress = where real riders ride!

Posted by: LoamtoHome

Posted by: Polymath

Don't go to Seymour then.  The amount of rogue building, even in the most obvious of places, is getting WAYYY out of hand.  If you ride up Old Buck/Baden to Cabin Fever I pass now 8 unsanctioned loamers that branch off from the aforementioned main route.   Even worse, most are boring, featureless loamers that just go down with no reason, flow or features.  It's even worse on the Darkside.  At some point it is going to come to a head......and sadly it is going to have consequence for the builders of official trails in terms of what they can do and what will be allowed in the future.

Everyone should go to Cypress....  new trails/maintenance all the time there.   Super easy shuttles and quick access for the awesomeness of e-bikes!  Cypress = where real riders ride!

But look at all those glorious trails on Seymour, so much variety, which is the spice of life ;)

all the new stuff is on Cypress! Look at all the new work on 5th by Steve!  Hot laps on the east side trails...  doesn't get any better.    Seymours trails are all neglected due to the e-crowd being lazy moochers.

Tongue in cheek aside, Seymour has lots of extreme jank. Slippery roots, loamer bombholes, tight moves, trenches etc. Cypress, at least the sanctioned stuff, is a lot smoother and faster. West side trails have a fair amount of jank but it's different, it's engineered into the trails or a result of the terrain rather than the result of excessive use. And Cypress does see a fair amount of maintenance these days, dare I say it's running better than ever. Not saying that Seymour isn't great, it is. Besides the variety, one advantage of Seymour is long runs; less screwing around with shuttling. But Cypress is overlooked and underused. But it's not cool to ride Cypress, it's the "weird old man mountain." ;) And you're welcome, Loamtohome :D

Some find the planning hard for Cypress too without the beer store at the base like Seymour....traffic in the afternoons if you have to get past the Cut usually sucks too.  Both are great mountains with quite different riding and terrain.

Posted by: gramm

Some find the planning hard for Cypress too without the beer store at the base like Seymour....traffic in the afternoons if you have to get past the Cut usually sucks too. Both are great mountains with quite different riding and terrain.

I love riding Cypress and am really impressed with he proactive building and management of trails that's going on, but I literally live at the bottom of Seymour, so the thought of facing the cut, or general eastbound traffic to get back home is a deterrent for sure. 

That and I often ride mid day, mid week, and it's hard to pull together a few people for a shuttle at those times, and that's the other piece. With the quick shuttle laps it really works best with a few people so you can take turns  shuttle driving, so exactly, it's another piece to coordinate.

While we're on this subject, hopefully not to derail too much, what happened to the climbing trail that was proposed for the Meat Sweats/Jersey Shore part of Cyps? I ride up the BLT all the time and it would be great for connectivity to be able to lap those trails without riding back up the road.

The climbing trail is in, just waiting for the bridge across Marr Creek to be installed before opening it. Those who have ridden it say it is not entirely designed with bikes in mind, which makes sense as it was always supposed to be for the hikers primarily.