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South Austin Trail Network, The SATN


The Tip

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I noticed some new "features" appearing on trails around the Veloway. One looked interesting but unfinished. Anyone care to share what you're building back there? PM me. I noticed that one line bisects the main trail that parallels the Veloway, which could be a problem if it promotes collisions. 

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People here probably already know, but the profile of hikers on SATN seems to have changed with the coronavirus shutdown. Families with toddlers are venturing far from trailheads and their usual hangouts at flower spots. I even passed a blind person and companion. So good time to keep it slow on blind corners, etc.

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It is an amazing phenomenon to me. They are EVERYWHERE. It's not like our trails are hidden but I'll see the family and think, "Where did you come from? How did you get on THIS trail?!"

Yup, assume someone is around that blind curve. I'm not use to having to ride with my head up so much.

And once again I implore the mountain bike community to be pleasant to the hikers.

Edited by The Tip
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I did 25 miles on SATN yesterday afternoon and saw maybe 10 hikers. Purposely picked trails and that wouldn’t lend themselves to people walking. The only problem I had was some dude at Bauerle with over ear headphones that was blocking the whole trail. I was yelling at him and singing my bell and I walked behind him because he wouldn’t move. I finally broke a cedar branch off and chunked it at him. He jumped off the trail and said he was sorry and just wanted to listen to music. Wtf dude? I told him it was dangerous and he wasn’t alone out there. Maybe he got it.


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17 hours ago, Bink said:

People here probably already know, but the profile of hikers on SATN seems to have changed with the coronavirus shutdown. Families with toddlers are venturing far from trailheads and their usual hangouts at flower spots. I even passed a blind person and companion. So good time to keep it slow on blind corners, etc.

I let the mom know they’re on a trail called Snake Alley. 

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Good joke, but The Tip has a point. In fact it's probably a good idea if we make the effort to give the 6" distance quarantine rule ourselves when passing hikers and let them have the trail, or split the difference. It's snake season and we've got ground clearance!

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1 hour ago, Bink said:

Good joke, but The Tip has a point. In fact it's probably a good idea if we make the effort to give the 6" distance quarantine rule ourselves when passing hikers and let them have the trail, or split the difference. It's snake season and we've got ground clearance!

At Slaughter Creek Trail earlier today.  Tried to shoo it off the trail, as there were quite a few people on foot out.

snake.thumb.jpg.cd84b5bf17021635ad6ded2dbe6789ce.jpg

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On 3/28/2020 at 10:23 AM, Tree Magnet said:

I finally broke a cedar branch off and chunked it at him. He jumped off the trail and said he was sorry and just wanted to listen to music. Wtf dude? I told him it was dangerous and he wasn’t alone out there. Maybe he got it.

This has certainly gotten worse with the increased traffic. I was literally screaming as loud as I could trying to get the attention of two different women at WC last week. We just talked about this recently in the trail running thread too. 

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Back to dirt bike experience - when I can't get their attention with "noise" I show them my front wheel just like on a motocross race. Tuck inside them in a turn and make sure your front wheel gets into their line of sight. If they are even slightly awake and paying attention they will know that you are there and trying to pass them "politely". If that doesn't do it I quit being "polite".

(I wonder what that means???)

Edited by cxagent
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10 minutes ago, cxagent said:

Back to dirt bike experience - when I can't get their attention with "noise" I show them my front wheel just like on a motocross race. Tuck inside them in a turn and make sure your front wheel gets into their line of sight. If they are even slightly awake and paying attention they will know that you are there and trying to pass them "politely". If that doesn't do it I quit being "polite".

(I wonder what that means???)

I've done something like this when there is a turn or the trail is wide enough (BCGB main trail for example).  However, I've never had it where someone had their music on so loud that they couldn't hear me when I was literally yelling as loud as I could right behind them.  Those over the ear headphones are another level.

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  • 2 weeks later...

If you want to be amused, look at the radar from the last few hours. A huge line of thunderstorms aiming at south Austin,  but like a 10 commandments miracle, parting as it goes on either side of us. 

We got very little rain. The trails were okay yesterday. With the wind and sun forecast for today we should be near perfect quickly. 

The Valero Loop and anything south of LaCrosse should be "legal" too. I saw rangers on Beckett at the Entrance to Dick Nichols, so it looks like they are making an effort to enforce this park ban. That means the Veloway stuff and Circle C won't be the best idea perhaps. 

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I was walking on Firehouse yesterday and we bumped into 2 riders on horseback. They were friendly, but definitely going at a good clip, and it could have been bad if they met a biker in a blind corner. So watch out out there.

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2 hours ago, Owen said:

I was walking on Firehouse yesterday and we bumped into 2 riders on horseback. They were friendly, but definitely going at a good clip, and it could have been bad if they met a biker in a blind corner. So watch out out there.

We need more tree gates and horse scrapers (low branches about 6 feet high).

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it's perilous to suggest reporting equestrians on unauthorized trails when the trails and our presence on them are unauthorized already. not sure what to do about that. I do know that horses are allowed in very, very few parks, and Circle C Metro is not one of the ones that allows horses. I called 311 to report horses in CC one time and the person I called clearly didn't know and didn't care.

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33 minutes ago, mack_turtle said:

it's perilous to suggest reporting equestrians on unauthorized trails when the trails and our presence on them are unauthorized already. not sure what to do about that. I do know that horses are allowed in very, very few parks, and Circle C Metro is not one of the ones that allows horses. I called 311 to report horses in CC one time and the person I called clearly didn't know and didn't care.

I personally wasn't suggesting anyone be reported, because of the tenuous status you describe, just that it was not something that I was really expecting but will probably be watching for going forward. And it is good motivation to get out there and clean up a few sight lines. Maybe I'll leave those scrapers that cxagent mentioned, though 

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  • 3 weeks later...

So many hikers and new mountain bikers are finding the trails behind the veloway where the VCT ends. It's madness out there but in a good way.

Pro tip: Inside Passage and Love Roller Coaster have a fraction of the traffic that Bunny Gravel and Rattlesnake have and have become my go to trails for moving through the area. E Spank is a good bypass too but I'm seeing a lot of people going both ways on that trail lately. For good reason it's a dope trail but be careful for people coming downhill. Speaking of both ways: This weekend some guy was stopped at the top of E Spank for a snake then started chatting and eventually hiked up his shorts to show me his thigh. Allegedly to show me some injury but... I only stuck around for another 10-15 minutes before getting out of there.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'll vent here please.

The campaign to educate the public as to trail etiquette is always difficult. But this increase in newbies on the trails is making it just about impossible. 

Three examples:

-We were exiting the paved Veloway. An older couple were trying to start riding the wrong way. The wife said, "It looks like everyone is going one direction." (and there were a LOT of people riding by) The man says, "But there's a white line in the middle. That means we ride this way (wrong way)." I was able to convince them which way to go. So an example of the correct thing to do so much in their face and yet they chose differently. Amazing.

-I took a picture of a big rut at the end of Bambi, about 40 feet from Davis Lane. The rutting continued south. Why would anyone continue onward after doing that at the entrance to a trail? But the newbie point is, after taking the picture I heard...

-... a family of four coming off the new Bambi finish, and turning uphill. I ran from the rut place to shout, "It's really muddy up there. You won't like it." The father's response? "Thank you" as they all rode on. I shouted at their backs, "You'll harm the trail" but they were gone. SOOO frustrating.

Rant over. Thank you

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Rant on Tip. I finally gave up. People will do whatever they want to do regardless of being shown the rules (a large sign posted there), told the rules/suggestion, etc. I look forward to the day when even a few of these people give back to what they take for granted. Maybe participate in a work day. Or write an email / letter to the City supporting trails. There are many many ways they could give back. 

 

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