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manly dam mantainence


turkey's picture

By turkey - Posted on 24 November 2007

hi, who is wasting their time putting in berms and concreting in rocks at the dam???

If you want a 4x track then go to home bush,

If you want concrete, go to centenial park,

Leave the place alone, and stop ruining it,

you guys have created more than one dam up there.

cheers

Turkey

Harry's picture

Firstly I think you've chosen a pretty appropriate name, second if it's a gee up then I'm hooked but I guess it deserves some comment. The maintenance days are planned by the custodians (NPWS Manly Warringah Council Rangers look after the track - Ed.) of the area and the reason is to prevent too much or further damage taking place, usually in the form of erosion from widening of existing tracks - the alternative to trial maintenance I suppose would be letting the trial deteriorate to a point where all MTB activity becomes banned on the trail and with that the negative connotations for mountain biking in general. We all would like to ride virgin trails and as they are but if you consider the locality of Manly Dam and with that the traffic it has to cope with, it would not be long before lines become so wide and erosion so bad that it would not be the pleasure it is to ride now. Improvements / repairs are done on a consultative basis by the people that give up time to do the work. I suggest you come along to a trail day to see what happens and then you would be able to have a say on the way things are done and who knows maybe even add something positive.

GAZZA's picture

nice one harry

Andrew's picture

This has got to be a joke.Puzzled
The Dam is looking better than ever.
It's an inner city heavily used loop, it needs regular maintenance or it will fall apart.
You want a un-maintained track that will last for ever, good luck finding one.

Thank you to all that have done a trail maintenance days. (I will do one soon)

Andrew

Matt's picture

Ditto everything Harry said.

On behalf of everyone who puts in the hard yards to maintain the Dam, including me, if you're serious Turkey then no two ways about it you're a prick.

One stupid comment like that can set us back to the dark ages, even if you're not serious then it's bloody irresponsible. The rangers read this site and if you wanted to put them off side then you're going about it the right way. If you want to keep riding the dam at all then I suggest you shut your trap. For an example of how quickly a trail can become unrideable if not maintained you should try taking a trip down the neglected St Helena's and see how far you get.

If you think what we've done is 4X then perhaps you'd better learn to ride before commenting.

This stuff is built/maintained by knowledgeable and experienced bikers in conjunction with the rangers and your comment ain't worth shit if you haven't got 20 years of experience and track building to back it up.

Looking forward to meeting you on a ride one day...
Matt.

Bernd's picture

onya , Harry + Matt and , and , and,
Thanks Guys (Stuart++++ so many other's)for putting so much work into the "Dam", I must go and help on the next working beeeee.
What a ... I have no words for Mr. T
Bernd

Little-Ditty's picture

Mate, stick to road riding.

turkey's picture

hi all

well, rude bunch, or maybe just a few...

I am just trying to make a point about maintainence of the dam. Yeh totally the dam has to be maintained, all i say is that

there are better ways of managing it. Building a berm where it is not necessary is not trail maintainence. Maybe its time

for your social committee, to enlist proffessional help from people who build trails.

Mate, I love the dam, I love riding.

There is nothing wrong with St Helenas, if you cant ride it, walk it.

have a nice day

Alex's picture

well personally i never ride the dam, but anyone who thinks there is such a thing as an "unecessary berm" needs their head read! there is no such thing as too many berms, i wish the whole world was a berm..manly dam has berms now?? im getting my ass over there pronto!! ;)-incidentally anyone seen ourimbah DH lately? theyve put some lovely things in there now like a big bridge to rock to bridge gap jump that i evidently need a bit more practise to not headbutt... hey gazz you selling your pressure suit? im in pain haha (assuming it doesnt smell lol)
and turkey, im with the others that if you want to have input, be active about it instead of having a whinge to people who are passionate about riding and maintaining the area..chances are your ideas (if you have any) will be listened to, and considered..if they dont suck...which they might if you dont like berms Eye-wink
..my 2 cents anyway

Matt's picture

How is making sure people take a sustainable line not trail maintenance? Professionals who build trails charge big dollars and like to build 4X, which seems to offend you...

The rangers who guide the Dam maintenance are professionals. If you think we have some sort of social committee with a secret conspiracy to subvert the Dam (or any sort of committee for that matter) then you need to pay more attention and figure out how this all works before you comment. It's the rangers who maintain the Dam, have the final say in everything and do a damn good job.

The point I was emphasising with St Helena's that seems to have gone over your head is that it's been neglected by NPWS and in a very short time has turned into a trail on which you have to walk or use a machete in significant sections. Do the same to the Dam and it will quickly fall into disrepair.

And as far as being rude then yes, I don't mind being rude to people whose first post on a community website is quite as thoughtless and without reasoned argument as your (lack of) effort. If you don't like it then do something positive instead of bagging people who volunteer with the aim of letting people like you keep riding a trail you don't deserve.

Matt.
(Who has no problem in putting his name on his profile, unlike some...)

hawkeye's picture

Turkey old son, you're either very young and naive or a richard cranium with no social skills. The fact you are surprised about people feeling dirty about your comments, I'm going to take as a sign you are the former and that there was no deliberate malice, just a singular lack of social intelligence on this occasion.

With the amount of traffic MD gets, for there to be any hope of it remaining open these sorts of preservation and preventive maintenance works are vital, especially when there are a minority of idiotic riders who still insist on ignoring the trail closures when it is wet.

I rode some trails up the mid north coast a few weeks ago and saw the kind of damage that can be done when maintenance is neglected and trails are ridden when they are muddy. If that kind of caper happened here the rangers would have no choice but to lock us out.

As the others have said, when you've put your body behind a shovel on an organised trail maintenance day then you might have a right to carp like this (not that it is an approach that ever really works. You catch far more ants with honey than with vinegar). Otherwise, be more polite and respectful to those who sacrifice their riding time so we can continue to enjoy this great resource, or STFU.

JasonB's picture

G'day Turkey welcome to the freindly Nobmob site.
I agree with Turkey there was no need for the berm, if anything i think you are going to upset the Allambie resident who live there, I think the cement of area's for rain run off is a good idea.
I am a bit of a lurker on this site, I grew up 5 houses down from Manly Vale Public School and have been riding the dam trails with some locals for along time(even built some trails you all ride today), I can remember the good old days when you could ride all the trails and have noticed that it has become a very popular place on the weekends and even night, and as a resident of Manly Vale and the Dam area I have no problem with that.
I think the biggest problem is the riders who ride when the tracks are wet and the noise the early bird riders are making at the parking area's .

For the record I know Turkey and know he has worked with Glen Jacobs building some awesome trails and hope that one day he help on a trail mantainence day.

Thats My Two Cents

JasonB

Stuart M's picture

reason why "Turkey" should put his sweat where his mouth is and show up at the next trail day, or is his mouth already full gobbling something else that also tastes salty.

It is hard to soar like an eagle when you're busy scratching the shit out of the ground with Turkeys.

Now for the people that matter.
To anyone that has worked on a trail day I say thanks very much for your hard efforts. The result may not always be perfect to some but certainly is greatly appreciated by the majority.

To guys like Rob and Jason. Thank you both so much for taking the time and effort that you continue to put into these days and keeping MD open for those of us that actually enjoy riding there. Keep 'em coming please, I will back

Last but by no means least. To Nicole and any of the other Rangers, either from the dam itself or from the local authorities, please do not listen to the gobbledy gook from this Turkey. The fact that we have the opportunity to help maintain these trails is greatly appreciated by many. What is even more greatly appreciated though is the work you put into these areas on our behalf. It is nice to know there is a voice that speaks at an official level on our behalf, one that is prepared to continue to find funds so that trails can be maintained for mountain bikers to use and not just closed to all but foot traffic. One that appreciates the views and input of those that actually show up to help in an effort to find a happy medium between what we want / like and what needs to be done to help control the erosion caused both by water but also the uneducated masses that continue to ride around things they cannot ride over.

Uneducated masses? Turkey you have single handedly proven that despite the new world order we have under Devon 07, no amount of an education revolution will help some.

Little-Ditty's picture

Turkey,

My final advice to you would be to ride with this group from Nobmob before arriving at a decision about how 'rude' we are collectively. I do not consider myself rude. Certainly I am generous and kind to the group, am happy to help riders when needed, provide any (lopsided) advice when asked, and generally have a good laugh with our riding buddies. I see the same traits in just about all the other riders that come along on our rides. But this thread is the probable result of posting something as divisive as you have.

Could it be that you are misquoted or misunderstood? It is definitely easier to explain things when you are not limited to a forum post. So, maybe we can see you there on Saturday at Red Hill? We would be delighted to talk about Manly Dam, trail maintenance, sustainable trail construction, Ruddslides, philosophy, anything you like. Smiling Possibly you will be one of the group too? You could also learn more about NPWS and what they do for the trails. It could be a wealth of information for you.

Cheers,
Liam.

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