Last year we received a $500 grant from Clif Bar to purchase a Stihl Yard Boss. I’d seen Glenn using it at workdays at Lost Valley, Creve Coeur and Greensfelder, but those were all on relatively small sections. Here, we took it out to the Dogwood trail, and used it to remove a large berm that was causing water to be channeled straight down the trail.
Last year, after one of our members came down with erlichiosis from an encounter with some ticks on the Ozark Trail, I decided to find out some more information about ticks and the consequences of their bites. Luckily for us, we have a tick expert right here in Missouri, who also happens to be a mountain biker- Dr. Greg Cummins, who is a member
Ok, so it’s not a Figure 9, and it’s not exactly an epic– yet. Give us some more time on that part. Nevertheless, you can now get in a ride right in your own backyard that until recently, would have had you driving a fairly long way. There’s less than a week until the Greensfelder Challenge Race on May 8th, when we’ll finally get to showcase the hard work that’s gone into reroutes, maintenance, and brand new trail on the Dogwood, DeClue, and Eagle Valley trails.
We spent this past Saturday finishing off the addition of a brand new 3/4 mile section of the DeClue trail (thanks Americorps!), armoring some muddy problem spots, and deberming a long stretch of trail. Most of this was done in preparation for the Greensfelder Challenge Race on May 8th. All of the proceeds from this race will go to GORC.
What: Help build new trail and do maintenance at Greensfelder Park in preparation for the May 8th Federation of Dirt Greensfelder Challenge. We will be adding 0.7 of a mile of singletrack to the Declue Trail and armoring several drainages.
I don’t know what’s nerdier, using a hand saw to cut out deadfall, or writing an article about it. Anyway, most people probably never give much thought to how those trees laying across the trail magically disappear. There are several ways: trail users remove smaller ones that can be moved by one or more people, or cut with a pack saw;
Lisa and I rode the Middle Fork Saturday in an effort to purge some early season non-riding weaknesses such as … non-riding. Being that Ouachita is two weeks away or something it seemed wise to at least see if we could competently ride half of it by running the ‘Middle Fork-xc loop’ implemented by the Team Seagal troops.
What: We’re having the 1st of four workdays this spring at Matson Hill Park, and everyone is invited. Mountain biker, hikers, and trail runners are all welcome, so don’t be bashful about showing up. This is the continuation of a multi-year project, and we hope to TRIPLE OR QUADRUPLE the current trail mileage at Matson by the time we’re finished.
On Saturday, March 13th we will be working on one of our favorite but most neglected trails. The Cedar Bluff Trail at Castlewood is in dire need of our helping hands. An 1800+ foot re-route has been planned to begin restoring this trail to its former greatness. Please, come be a part of this great event that will help keep Cedar Bluff Trail useable for years to come.
What: We are doing some much needed maintenance work at SIUE. The trails received very little TLC last year, so let’s get them spruced up for Spring ’10. We will be doing a short re-route around the mudpit on Trail 1, as well. Why: SIUE is a super popular trail system that gets a lot of use, and is all dirt, so it needs quite a bit of work to keep it truly sustainable.