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Spider Mountain


Schrute

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I finally made my first trip to Spider Mtn on Saturday and ran into a few familiar faces out there.  The threat of rain in the morning never really materialized, which is too bad because the trails could have used a bit of water to alleviate the dusty conditions.  I can't imagine what it's going to be like out there in August if they don't start watering and maintaining some sections of the trail.  I was initially hesitant to fork over $50 given the small # of trails, but I have to say I had a really good time.  Still, after a dozen or so runs, it was hard to string together any combination of trails that elicited any excitement.  The black and double black trails are definitely challenging and steep - there were a couple of sections I decided to walk given my lack of recent time in the saddle.  Green trail is super-flowy with really nice berms and it was way more fun than I thought it would be.  Blue trail was getting a bit torn up in places but was still fun from top to bottom, especially since you can mix and match sections of the green and blue trails to add some variety.  The short jump line off the green trail is fantastic and I kept wishing there was more of that kind of trail.  Speaking of which... it looks like they are working on another line off the top of the hill and from what I could see it looks to be a jump trail with several medium-sized tables visible from the clearing.

All in all, the day was really fun.  I couldn't see myself going on a monthly basis until they add more trail (especially at $50 a pop), but if they continue to add more and maintain what they've got, I might even splurge on an annual pass when they become available.

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We also hit Spider this weekend.

1) the novelty of riding up a lift, overlooking Lake Buchanan and being hit with a cool Texas spring breeze cannot be overstated.

2) I think you should have ample opportunity to mount your bike to the lift in order to minimize the chance of scratching your bike but...

3) I had trouble with the loose corners and went down at least 3 or 4 times. Might have been too much air in front tire, bad technique, or some combination thereof but some of us went down zero times so who knows. I had knee and elbow pads so I was able to keep riding.

4) You don't need a long travel bike for this. Just go.

5) If you are following 3 or 4 or 5 people, you will live in a dust cloud. Glasses are a minimum and goggles are completely reasonable even if you thing they sound goofy.

6) there are water jugs at the top and bottom of the lift so no need to carry water on the trails. Maybe a multitool if you crash and need to straighten bars, brakes, seatpost, lumbar discs, etc...

7) go once and see it for yourself then judge what you think they need in order to get your business again for yourself. I certainly found it worth $50 for an afternoon of fun with friends. 

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8 hours ago, Anita Handle said:

We also hit Spider this weekend.

1) the novelty of riding up a lift, overlooking Lake Buchanan and being hit with a cool Texas spring breeze cannot be overstated.

2) I think you should have ample opportunity to mount your bike to the lift in order to minimize the chance of scratching your bike but...

3) I had trouble with the loose corners and went down at least 3 or 4 times. Might have been too much air in front tire, bad technique, or some combination thereof but some of us went down zero times so who knows. I had knee and elbow pads so I was able to keep riding.

4) You don't need a long travel bike for this. Just go.

5) If you are following 3 or 4 or 5 people, you will live in a dust cloud. Glasses are a minimum and goggles are completely reasonable even if you thing they sound goofy.

6) there are water jugs at the top and bottom of the lift so no need to carry water on the trails. Maybe a multitool if you crash and need to straighten bars, brakes, seatpost, lumbar discs, etc...

7) go once and see it for yourself then judge what you think they need in order to get your business again for yourself. I certainly found it worth $50 for an afternoon of fun with friends. 

exactly 🙂

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I was with Anita and ran into olddbrider.  Had fun, but echo all of their statements.  I went down when front washed out on the loose conditions and the knee pads quickly paid for themselves.  Was a fun day in Burnet (always followed by a great burger and beer at Bill's Burgers in town).  Fun time and I hope to go back once more is built in to have more options.

 

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I wonder if this rain will give them to opportunity to clean up some of those loose corners and blown out berms?  Having 5 trails means they have less to focus on so they should make sure those 5 trails are perfect.  

I'll be giving them my $50 soon but I'd prefer to not donate any money to the Burnet emergency clinic.

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3 hours ago, Tree Magnet said:

I wonder if this rain will give them to opportunity to clean up some of those loose corners and blown out berms?  Having 5 trails means they have less to focus on so they should make sure those 5 trails are perfect.  

I'll be giving them my $50 soon but I'd prefer to not donate any money to the Burnet emergency clinic.

Tree Kendall Magnet, It's never going to be "perfect". You've got to be prepare to ride the conditions as they are, just like any trail. That said, there are corners where the berm is packed tight and almost has that polished look and you can rail them. Pack some beer in a cooler, a folding chair, bring some buds, wear some pads and goggles and you'll have a good time.

 

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haha my homeboy Wesley puts up ride-by cameras at spider mountain. always nice to see some familiar faces, and hear some familiar voices. 😛 🚠⛰️🚵‍♀️

on Blue Trail - 

 

 

Jump on Black Sabbath (cant recall spider rename - single black)

 

 

 

Rock Garden on Rotor Smoke - (can't recall the spider rename - Double black)

 

pretty fun concept!

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Your gambling out there without a full face. Taking a spill in a turn is one thing when you're already going slow, but clipping a tree with your bars at the speeds we were hitting could make for a real ugly wreck. There are no emergency rooms that I know of anywhere in that area and that greatly increases the chances for a helicopter ride.

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10 minutes ago, JRA said:

Your gambling out there without a full face. Taking a spill in a turn is one thing when you're already going slow, but clipping a tree with your bars at the speeds we were hitting could make for a real ugly wreck. There are no emergency rooms that I know of anywhere in that area and that greatly increases the chances for a helicopter ride.

Seton Highland Lakes Hospital is just south of Burnet on 281. Definitely not a trauma center, but they would at least be able to treat / triage and get you transported to Austin for anything serious. Definitely agree though that a full-face is warranted, especially for any of us who will be venturing outside of our comfort zone. I picked up a Fox Proframe which seems light and comfy, although I haven't actually used it yet. Bought it in White knowing that I'll want something that reflects the sun if I'm riding out there this summer. 

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I rented one of their full face and put it to good use on the first blind run down Vipers Den as can been seen at 7:40 in this vid:



If I don’t buy one before the next trip I rent again, no doubt.

They are nice helmets too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
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5 minutes ago, Ganderson said:

I rented one of their full face and put it to good use on the first blind run down Vipers Den as can been seen at 7:40 in this vid:

 


If I don’t buy one before the next trip I rent again, no doubt.

They are nice helmets too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

I can't believe your walked away from that!

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4 minutes ago, Ganderson said:

I rented one of their full face and put it to good use on the first blind run down Vipers Den as can been seen at 7:40 in this vid:

 


If I don’t buy one before the next trip I rent again, no doubt.

They are nice helmets too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

We should have taken a pic of it, it got gouged up pretty good... wonder if they retired it already?

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4 hours ago, Browndog said:

I bought a full face and crashed into a tree breaking the visor on my first day wearing it. As I was going down I was thinking, “I’m glad I bought this helmet.” Crash at 3:30.

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

 

 

 
 



Shoot... That right wrist and arm... Wow... Close.

Edited by RidingAgain
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6 hours ago, Seths Pool said:

Rock Garden on Rotor Smoke - (can't recall the spider rename - Double black)

 

pretty fun concept!

Self call out @ 0:41 #nottooproud 

The group I was with at 1:08.  Also #notooproud

Chuck is not in the video but rode down it ahead of me.  I saw him clear the last ledge as I was riding to the first ledge about to dismount.

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  • 1 month later...

I didn't see this mentioned anywhere, but I thought folks might be interested.  Spider now has info about their season pass on the website.  Several options to choose from ranging from the $299 Summer Pass (May through early Sep.) to the $599 Power Pass which includes year round riding at Spider as well as a number of other bike parks.  They'll even let you pay it out over the next few months with no interest!  Looks like prices go up to the full price after Friday, 4/26.

 

https://www.spidermountain.com/season-passes

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