the connector between lower Pneuma and middle Pneuma has been flagged. This will separate Pneuma and Hot Laps. Send me a message if you want to help with the trail work.

Post edited 5:46 pm – August 19, 2010 by Crosscheck

pwew, removing the duff has been tough going. The first 4 inches of organic matter is very matted and full of intertwined roots. Most of the time is spent cutting this layer into pieces so that it can be raked away. As such, progress has been slow. To account for this, I've split the reroute into two sections; part 1 and part 2. There is a ravine half way up that makes for a logical break between the two sections. We'll finish part 1 and open it to bike traffic before starting part 2.

75% of the tread for part 1 is ready to be opened. That leaves about 100m of tread to be cut. My rule of thumb is one person can cut 10m of tread an hour, so there is about 10 more man-hours before part 1 can be opened. The trail will be raw so we need lots of bike traffic on it in order to see where to fine tune it.

I have a couple of ideas I want to try that may increase productivity. As always, your assistance is welcomed

Part two is well underway, with the first 250m of tread ready for riding. The trail corridor is almost cleared all the way to Sulphur Springs, about another 150m to go. I really need to get a decent gps track of the reroute so that I can stop guessing at the distances

The CMBA and the Potlickers MTB club came out last Saturday and we concentrated on cutting good quality bench for the approach to Sulphur Springs. The last 20 feet needs to be cut and the connection to Sulphur Springs will be made.

What we didn't get to was fixing the entrance by Elbow Valley. The cows have turned the trail into a rough trench. The ravine bypass, where part 1 and 2 meet, also needs to be buffed up.  Stay tuned for more updates…

the ravine bypass has a nice little bench cut on it. Jon has started work on a TTF over the ravine. We'll probably keep both lines, one rated as green, and the other blue/black. Take your pick.

also started to repair the cow damage just past EV. The first 100m of this connector is too bumpy, so its getting smooooothed out. (get it, cow damage, smoooothed out – haha)

Next up will be the climbing turns. There are 5 turns of note, and they need to be contoured in order to give them some nice flow.

so, the trail is open and being used, as I see tire tracks in the soft dirt. Work will continue until the weather turns. Final buffing will take place sometime next year. Wanna help? send me a message. Cheers.

I'm baaack! The connector is in good shape with regular traffic going both up and dowm. I've started work on fine tunning the big switchback after the ravine to give it more downhill flow. There are a couple of more areas that I want to adjust for flow, but after that there really isn't much left to do except enjoy the ride

The TTF over the ravine remains incomplete, so beware.

all right, the bridge over the ravine is now open. Next decision is do we close the ravine detour as it runs right beside Hotlaps, or leave that option open for those that don't like heights?

the connector celebrated it's first birthday Oct 4 and it's an established section of trail now. I'm done posting in this thread and will start a new one that covers Lower Pneuma, from the start at Hwy66 until is crosses Sulphur Springs. Happy Trails.