Rocky HIll Ranch Trail Conditions

[Ridenfool]

10 hours ago, Albert said:

As always, thanks for the updates.  How many people showed up for the race?

Checked with Paul, 117 Registered, 106 Raced.

[Ridenfool]

Geezers Rule! We got a lot done out there on Tea Party, which, due to popular misconception (everyone is calling the whole trail Rabbit Hole), I will concede to doing the same. Instead of changing names at the road crossing, Rabbit Hole will now be the whole thing back up to Sofa King Fun.

There will be a Tea Party scenic spot on the trail where that sign will be displayed.

On to today's work. Here are a few shots of much of what we did today. Mucho thanks to Steve and Mark for coming out, it was an awesomely productive day!

 

 

 

 

 

Also installed PVC pipes on the two low spots on The Jabberwock and covered them with dirt, as well as polished the exit to flow much better onto the uphill bench cut. As usual, I forgot to take photos of that work.

Edited December 22, 2022 by Ridenfool

[Ridenfool]

Went back out to enjoy the last of the temperate weather before the front blew in. Did get some shots of RHR's version of The Stig riding the latest improvements on Jabberwock.

 

 

 

I put in a new berm on Rabbit Hole for an uphill turn shortly after the second road crossing.

Then, did a little bench cutting on a later section where a steep, winding, climb goes between a couple of pines on the way up. Below is a photo of the bench cut. This will make the exit flow much better than the off-camber that was there before.

I'm calling the trees with the squeeze Treedledum and Treedledee.

Meeting back in the parking lot we sipped cold ones sitting in his pickup as we watched the temp on his dash dive from 55 to 37 or so in minutes. We each bailed for home at that point.

 

Additional update, Paul has been working on building ladder bridges over a couple of the swampy spots on Karaway and Tristy. He's got materials ready and I helped him move two large Cedars into place for one of the spots on Tristy. Another bog on Tristy has been rerouted to avoid the goo.

Things are looking good trail-wise for the Excruciation Exam on the 7th. Hope they get good weather.

Edited December 22, 2022 by Ridenfool

[Ridenfool]

Trail condition update...

It may be a tad chilly at RHR today, and spiked ice tires may be required for the boggy spots.

Just sayin'

[Ridenfool]

The worst of the bogishness at RHR has been dealt with.

On Karaway, a reroute was put into place and wet spots on that new cut were armored with Cedar posts laid on the ground and supplemented with PVC pipe for drainage.

Two spots on Tristy were particularly troublesome, and the second of them was cut out of the loop completely with a bypass. There was a loss of some trail length, but a sacrifice worth making to avoid that mess.

The other was managed with a long bridge over the muck which was finished up today by Paul. Here's a photo...

I guess that is what the trails get for Christmas this year.

Edited December 24, 2022 by Ridenfool

[Albert]

I was impressed with all the bridges out there, really nice to see that type of work!  

Just curious, are there plans on adding more trail out there, or just refining all the existing trail that's been built?  It's great that there's already 15 miles of trail out there, but not sure how much room there is to add more.

Thank you!

[Ridenfool]

There isn't much room left, but there will be more trail added. We've been scouting smaller spots where existing trail could be expanded in bite-sized pieces. If we get the total over 16 miles I'll be thrilled.

Plans are to continue improvements and maybe add one or more skills areas, along with constructed technical trail features with bypass lines.

I finished up the latest version of the map today as well. Here's a sneak peek for review.

Edit: map pdf attachment

TrailMap_Desc_1222.pdf

Edited January 16, 2023 by Ridenfool

[Ridenfool]

Went for a ride on Monday and met a family looking for the Freeride512 area. (512 members) I gave them the low down on how to drive there, then asked if they had the combo for the gate in case it was closed. Then mentioned they could ride their bikes if they wanted to try out the trails. They decided to pay the day use and do that.

My riding bud and I took off on our lap, later meeting the family at the end of Litterbox. They told me they had found Rabbit Hole and rode it twice because it was so much fun. They were happily surprised to find the trails were challenging and a hoot to ride. Better than they expected from "Cross Country" riding. It makes my day to hear feedback like that.

The trails are in great shape, and the new bridge and reroute worked well to address the trouble spots revealed after the recent rains. We are working to make Rocky Hill an all weather trail system to accommodate Murphy's propensity to bring rain on event days.

Edited December 27, 2022 by Ridenfool

[Ridenfool]

I've started a new project to add more to Fofenique. This will be on the North end, as riders go into the old section where the trail turns right, away from the road. This will use up the space between there and Paul's recent extension.

Over the last few days this new section has been flagged and maybe half of the trail has a "first pass" of corridor cutting done. Hopefully, construction will go quickly and it will be into service soon.

Other news, Paul put in a berm on that steep downhill left curve near the beginning of Rabbit Hole. This should offer more confidence to riders building their skills. (the secret to mastery is to have your weight back behind the seat so you can use more front brake to control speed, rather than skidding the rear wheel all the way down)

There was 0.65 inches of rain yesterday. Trails were still damp today when I was working. Saturday afternoon may be okay, Sunday and Monday ought to be very nice as long as the forecast for a few thousandths of an inch is all we get.

Come enjoy a ride in the pines.

[Ridenfool]

Here's a piece of a new uphill section I'm adding to Fofenique. Those logs in the bottom are a soon-to-be completed bridge.

 

... just before the above, another bridge and more fun stuff

 

Might have it finished in a few more days of work. Thanks to a local volunteer for a few hours of help on this.

Edited January 7, 2023 by Ridenfool

[Albert]

I'm all for more wood features, especially if they help avoid areas that get/stay muddy when it rains!  May try to get out there next week again, looks like we're going to have some nice weather!  Also, I need to learn the names of all these new trails.

[Ridenfool]

Finished that bridge for the new section on Fofenique in the photos above, and then did the bench cut leading to it.

Now gotta pretty up the corridor before and after where all the dirt and bridge work was done, then rake the trail surface and move blockages to put it into the loop.

It might be open for business in another day or so.

[Ridenfool]

Well, it is open today. Wrapped up the trimming and disappeared the old trail section that is now bypassed.

I'm resting comfortably, having downed some Recoverite, a Real Ale Devil's Backbone, and then administered a hot shower.

 

In this photo you used to go into a RH curve here. I've straightened that out.

Let me know what you think of this addition to Fofenique.

Trail conditions are superb. Weather is playing fair.

Come get some sweet Rocky Hill trail riding!

[Ridenfool]

For anyone interested, Paul has called TMBRA PayDirt workdays for Saturday and Sunday (1/13-14).

Work will be on another extension to Black Trac of ~0.4 miles with three new bridges and tread work on the trail to be done.

All volunteers are welcome, TMBRA racers will accrue points toward their season score for their help. Anyone wanting to help out with this weekend's project please see the Rocky Hill Ranch Facebook page, contact Paul directly, or send me a DM requesting contact info.

 

Also, Trailforks and MTBProject have been updated to include Kim's Sandy Switch, Rabbit Hole and a few other changes to existing trail. Update the Texas Area to see the changes. (MTBProject updated file will be available Saturday)

 

Trail conditions and weather look great for the next few days, so come check out the new stuff while enjoying the air conditioned comfort.

You know you wanna!

Edited January 13, 2023 by Ridenfool

[Ridenfool]

We had a fantastic work day on Saturday that resulted in opening up another long addition to Black Trac. It includes three new bridges, some bench cuts, and a reversal of an existing trail section. This new stuff offers challenging and fun trail.

Kudos to Paul for laying out the lines for this section, as well as building the bridges.

Thanks to Brian, Daniel, and, Jose (he got first wheels on it) for all their help today.

Sunday may see a third extension to Fofenique open up, and another new section on Pam's Picnic should get some attention as well.

 

Lots of riders out today with near perfect conditions.

 

Edit: We completed the third Fofenique extension on Sunday. Enjoy!

Edited January 16, 2023 by Ridenfool

[Ridenfool]

GPS tracks from yesterday's ride indicate the additions to Tristy, Black Trac, and Fofenique have added 0.6 mile when compared to the previous tracks. Yay! That was a big push over the past couple of weeks.

Edit: This growth is balanced against some loss due to reroutes around trouble spots. Net gain is in the 0.3-0.4 mi range.

Having been going out and sweating while making trail in weather between 45F and 65F has left me completely unprepared for today's scalding 81F forecast. I'm staying inside and resting my weary bones.

Edited January 26, 2023 by Ridenfool

[Ridenfool]

Trailforks and MTB Project have been updated with the new additions. Update the Texas area to see changes on the phone.

[Ridenfool]

There was over 1.5" of rain on Tuesday. More coming. Might be a couple of weeks before things are really nice again.

Naturally, I'll be taking advantage of the soft ground to fine-tune a few spots on the new sections.

[Albert]

11 hours ago, Ridenfool said:

There was over 1.5" of rain on Tuesday. More coming. Might be a couple of weeks before things are really nice again.

Naturally, I'll be taking advantage of the soft ground to fine-tune a few spots on the new sections.

Look forward to getting back out there once things dry out!

[Ridenfool]

It may be rideable by the weekend, but there will be a few boggy spots along the way. Then there is rain in the forecast for several days, though very light (maybe none) for some of those days. Trails are like a box of chocolates...

I did some work out there today and it was still squishy in a lot of places I walked on Black Trac.

[Albert]

Just now, Ridenfool said:

It may be rideable by the weekend, but there will be a few boggy spots along the way. Then there is rain in the forecast for several days, though very light (maybe none) for some of those days. Trails are like a box of chocolates...

I can wait until later next week when it should be properly dry (assuming we don't get more rain then!)

[Ridenfool]

1 minute ago, Albert said:

I can wait until later next week when it should be properly dry (assuming we don't get more rain then!)

Yeah, Monday through Wednesday have forecasts ranging from .25 to .5 each day, but you know how that can go.

[Albert]

2 minutes ago, Ridenfool said:

Yeah, Monday through Wednesday have forecasts ranging from .25 to .5 each day, but you know how that can go.

Yeah, will have to see what actually happens.  Does look like it could be a slop fest if we actually get that much rain each day.

[Ridenfool]

Well, I guess we saw what actually happened. 🙄

Fortunately, there hasn't been ice accumulation out this way like Austin has had. Hopefully there won't be tons of broken branches to deal with.

The rain (~0.75in) over the past few days has everything saturated that I have seen at home and while driving to town. At these temps and humidity levels it will need time to soak in and evaporate.

 

[Ridenfool]

Today I put in a bypass around a particularly sloppy section on Litterbox that holds water for weeks. (by the deer blind, near the end of LB).

Next, I moved over to Black Trac and built a long downhill berm for the entrance to a section that was added last year.  Along with the berm, I performed cosmetic surgery on the hillside so as to make the berm the high point. This dirt shuffle will keep the trail surface above the drainage and prevent water pooling in a spot at the end of the turn. It should now drain across the trail in a sheet to the left (preventing erosion) and will hopefully dry faster.

Also, put in a water bar at the top to carry drainage another direction than down the trail. The trail was developing a rut from erosion. After finding a sizable sandstone rock, I placed it before the water bar to armor it and prevent tires taking it out over time.

I'll check this to see if it works as planned later in the week as there is an inch or more of rain in the forecast for Tue-Wed.

Conditions are still very wet in low spots, though most of the trails drain well and are fine for riding today. I'd recommend folks be careful on Black Trac, Rabbit Hole, and Sofa King or avoid them until they dry more. The Wall is very slippery today.

Next weekend there is a re-scheduled Pivot demo ride. Hopefully conditions will be good for them.

Also, Paul has marked the race route for the upcoming TMBRA event later this month for anyone wanting to pre-ride. The race isn't using the full distance and has cutouts at a few places that bypass a lot of trail. Just follow the "XTRA" signs to remain on the RHR Loop.

Edited February 7, 2023 by Ridenfool