Western: Cannonsburg Ski Area

[RickPlite]

Join us for another work day at the Ski Area, Sunday April 29th. We plan to open another 1/2 mile section of new trail! Meet at 9am and we'll work until 12 or 1PM, take a lunch break (provided) and then hit the trail for some riding. Bring work boots, gloves and a change of clothes for biking afterwards. If you have some branch loppers and a rake, please bring those as well.

[Mario]

Rode last night - even with all of the rain during the day - didnt see anything close to a puddle and the sand was minimal. this is a much better place to ride after rain than the SGA.... it's a much better choice even when it is dry.... had fun playing around on the last snow bump on the double...

[RickPlite]

5-2-07 The new 1/2 section is arrowed and open for business! This section will be a work in progress. A few sandy sections may need armoring, the marsh drainage spots will have to be watched and adapted to water flow and the tight trees and corners will need to be trimmed back a bit. Start riding it but keep in mind, it is a diamond in the rough! The creek views and trickling water are a nice change of pace out here.

[bixy21]

I lost my ipod on 5/8/2007 in the parking lot some time between 5:00 pm and 6:00pm. If anyone found it, please contact me as soon as possible @ 616.915.7243.

Thank you!
Andy

PS. the is looking great and the I love the additions. Thanks for all the hard work!

[cramer]

I lost my ipod on 5/8/2007 in the parking lot some time between 5:00 pm and 6:00pm. If anyone found it, please contact me as soon as possible @ 616.915.7243.

Thank you!
Andy

PS. the is looking great and the I love the additions. Thanks for all the hard work!

I'm going out there with my search and rescue team (twin 2 year old kids) in a couple of hours and we're going to look for your iPod. PM me if you can be more specific as to where in the parking lot we will most likely find it.

FYI - it's raining lightly out here right now


Update: - no luck.

Cramer

[trout_smith]

A couple of us rode tonight. Trail is in cherry condition . The rain in the AM really made it nice. No mud whatsoever. The new section is going to be fun. Of course it is really slow right now, until it gets ridden in better.

Great trail, if you like climbing, climbing, and more climbing. (I do, at least after I'm done).

Saw a couple out there asking about the iPod and I told them I had heard about it here, but hadn't seen anything.

Ride this trail! It is unique among all of the trails in the area. Great variety and some challenge for intermediate riders.

Let's leave the furniture out there. It makes for character

[RickPlite]

We accomplished a few repairs and the new log pile on Lower Meadery this past workday. The tight switchback on the lower side trail (Lower Meadery) is still there and we are adding a berm to it, but you now have the option to take the log pile if you go straight. The log pile should get even taller when we have time! The Creek Trail is setting in and becoming faster.

On another note, Wolverine is having an adventure race at the Ski Area on Tuesday, May 22nd during the afternoon and early eve. Try to avoid the trails during there outing.

Thanks!
Rick

[Orejas]

Rode the Ski Area tonight for the 2nd time (first this year). Lemme tell ya...wow. I don't consider myself a beginner (far from expert, though), but that trail is tough! It's not the most physically demanding there is, even though there is a fair amount of climbing. What it is is TECHNICAL. It seriously tested my bike handling skills more so than any other trail I've been on. It is tight, twisty, seriously off camber, and pretty *beep* scary (at least to me) in some spots. Being clipped in on a couple of occasions had my heart rate bumpin', and not because I was gassed. However, that was really for only about the first 1/2 maybe 2/3 of the trail, the rest was pretty wide open, fast, and less technical. For me, that was when it got really fun. Granted, it's still new, so I'm sure once it gets worn in, it will be a bit less demanding, but...HOLY COW. If you've never been there and decide to go, take my advice and think "Safety First".

BTW, I took my first digger of the year. Did a pretty good elno, er, endo ending in a face plant with some good scrapes and cuts. That was within the first mile, so I guess you could say it took some of the wind out of my sails. Part of the game, though, right?

[Macaroon2003]

I must say with pride that last weekend was the first time I "cleaned" this trail.I was able to get over my mental block on the new big log pile on the first quarter. Ever since I broke a collarbone I get a little antsy on those things. The other obstacle was purely physical, the very long steep climb after the sand-pit-log-hop combo was difficult for me. I could only make it 3/4 of the way up before I stalled. But, the day before I watched two guys climb the hill (as I was pushing the bike up), and then the next day, I just imitated how they did it, and made it to the top!

Thanks to the MMBA & the good folks at Cannonsburg for this gem of a trail!

--Mac

[KCK]

today the trail was wet and slippery. some things that were annoying that I felt could use improvement were: the overgrowth (besides from the heavy wet leaves), those little stumps in the middle of the trail that like to toss you and give you flats, a couple small diameter trees on the insides of corners that are going to break someone's collarbone. hopefully some of this maintenance could be done before the 8 hour race, otherwise flat narrow bars and a machete will be required. Great trail markers and improvements have been made though, good job.

[RickPlite]

we dont have time for a scheduled trail day at the ski area before the 8 hour race, if you would like to help trim the trail with myself and a few others some weeknight or weekday, private message me and we'll get it done.
Rick

[cramer]

today the trail was wet and slippery. some things that were annoying that I felt could use improvement were: the overgrowth (besides from the heavy wet leaves), those little stumps in the middle of the trail that like to toss you and give you flats, a couple small diameter trees on the insides of corners that are going to break someone's collarbone. hopefully some of this maintenance could be done before the 8 hour race, otherwise flat narrow bars and a machete will be required. Great trail markers and improvements have been made though, good job.

We did some informal trail work out there last night. Trimmed back the brush, removed some of those little stumps in the middle of the trail, etc. This shoudl make things safer and more enjoyable for the race. There's still a lot of work to be done out there though so stay tuned for trail work day announcements. We have some minor re-routes planned that I think will have a major positive effect in terms of both improving flow and preventing erosion. I think the trail is really coming together nicely this year though and we're seeing a lot more riders out there as a result.

Cramer

[mntn-biker]

This trail is gonna become my favorite local trail I think....

Last fall I rode the new trail and was kinda disappointed but that was because it wasn't broken in. I just rode it today and that same section is very fun now. I especially like the HUGE log pile so much that I had to turn around and do it again The newest section just after the log pile is fun but much more technical. Maybe as it breaks in it will flow a little better but I like the armoring and the itty bitty rock garden in this section. Gives it an interesting twist. The new section just past the house is pretty nice too. Sure beats just taking the old 1 track up to the 2 track. There is a fast downhill in this section that will make you pee your pants it's so fun but beware of the hairpin turn at the bottom

[cramer]

There is a fast downhill in this section that will make you pee your pants it's so fun but beware of the hairpin turn at the bottom

We're planning to do a couple more short re-routes to fix some things on Monday, June 11 at 5:30. That hairpin is one of the things we want to fix as it kinda springs up out of nowhere and makes for an abrupt end to that fun downhill. You can see some braking bumps developing already as a result. This isn't a formal trail work day but we would appreciate any help in getting this done. For a week night trail work project like this, we'll work for a couple of hours, then go for a ride to keep it fun... maybe even ride over to my place for some home brews after that. PM me if you're interested in coming out.

Cramer

[cramer]

We completed four re-routes and removed quite a few of those little stumps last night. The re-routes are really going to improve the flow and solve some problems where abrupt sharp turns were causing people to skid and miss corners. I think when these new sections get packed down this trail is going to really be something special. If you haven't ridden it in a while, you should come out and see the results of all the hard work that's been put into this trail lately.

I noticed a rider that had skipped the new creek section last night. If you rode this section when it was new and still under construction and decided you don't like that type of trail, you owe it to yourself to check it out again. It's been packed down, cleaned up and opened up so that it flows much better now. It's still not 100% complete, but it's much better and more fun to ride now IMO.

Big thanks to Rick Plite, Steve from Ada Bike and to the riders that stopped to help us move some big logs and finish up that last re-route.

Cramer