What makes a good trail?

sspomer
Posts
4235
Joined
6/26/2009
Location
Boise, ID US
Edited Date/Time 8/17/2014 5:47am
What elements on a trail stoke you out? Ideally, every trail would have those dream pieces of singletrack, loam, tech, gnar and flow, but if you have some favorite trails, what makes you love them the most?

I get really stoked on flowy, buff singletrack that's sprinkled w/ tech sections to keep you on your toes! The destination also factors in when I think of trails I like. For me, nothing beats the wide open desert on a crisp early spring or late fall day.


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Nicholast
Posts
62
Joined
3/14/2012
Location
Colorado Springs, CO US
6/17/2014 9:10am
ininerider wrote:
Any trail that allows bikes!
Well, that's tough to top. Other than that, anything that requires me to be active on the bike. I'm not a fan of getting into a climbing or attack position and staying there. I want to be moving the bike around, pumping, jumping, throwing my weight around, and generally goofing off. Also, my favorite trails require no braking or pedaling. They require some of each obviously, and adding more of each increases fun, but do not require a lot of either. Generally, trails that have a lot of character naturally require you to move the bike around and be active.
ezduzit
Posts
5
Joined
3/25/2013
Location
Irvine, CA US
6/17/2014 9:17am
Trails where you start at the top and end at the bottom, preferably with jumps and berms!
6/17/2014 10:38am
Location is important for sure!
My favorite trail of all time (up until now at least) is in the vosges region in france, starting of a peak of a mountain being virtually unrideable for the first hour, riding a few balls out absolutely insane tech sections and carrying many more, up and down, following a ridge. When you think you are sure going to die because of exhaustion you take a right and drop into a beautiful steep clearing with a foot wide singletrack going through very small and dense herbs that are smelling really good, hundreds of meteres of perfect small maandering turns. Then youre dropping into the forrest where things get a lot faster and looser hitting a lot of nasty flat turns and hitting some rocky gnar inbetween but all rideable at ridiculous speed and this keeps on going for about 10 min unti you cross a small river going into a waterfall at full speed. After that theres a bit of pedalling to do only to hit the most insane loose exposed rooty hairpin shit i´ve seen in my life and you have to digest another hour after, when youre already taking a swim in the lake down in the valley.
It´s all natural, because of the suffering to get there i guess there are not too many people who know, or would do it again and it is 100% the reason why Jerome Clementz and Nico Lau are the fucking madest guys on trailbikes around!
6/17/2014 11:48am Edited Date/Time 6/17/2014 12:28pm
I prefer trails that are rough enough to keep the spandex away.

After that, it just depends on my mood. Sometimes a flow trail is what I need, and other days I want a jerky challenge.
steve45
Posts
22
Joined
8/29/2013
Location
Dundee GB
6/17/2014 2:09pm
Variety, without a doubt! a good trail has a bit of everything, in good measure.
Rocky, open, flatout, tight, rooty, berms, jumps, drops, gaps, natural, manmade.
it needs to be full of features, but of all things it needs to flow well.
Shrockie
Posts
20
Joined
6/25/2013
Location
Berkeley, CA US
6/17/2014 5:43pm
Something fun for a 6" bike on the way down, with variety. Fast with good Flow, berms, jumps, hips, drops, some Tech, some steeps.. Smile inducing with a shot of adrenaline. I'm personally not a fan of skinnies, neither is my derailleur.
Wfo922
Posts
2
Joined
9/10/2013
Location
Stayton, OR US
6/17/2014 5:52pm
Any trail that challenges me. A good single track climb through a gigantic forest on a massive slope. Working your ass off after many switch backs making it to a peak with a killer view. Grab a bite and drink to refresh. Time to hit pay dirt! Rocks and roots with endless combinations, turns with a grove or a bench cut to help set up. Some natural features that when hit at speed kind've give you a scare that makes the adrenaline flow.
kidwoo
Posts
234
Joined
8/3/2009
Location
Grass Hut, FM US
6/17/2014 8:02pm
sspomer wrote:
What elements on a trail stoke you out? Ideally, every trail would have those dream pieces of singletrack, loam, tech, gnar and flow, but if you...
What elements on a trail stoke you out? Ideally, every trail would have those dream pieces of singletrack, loam, tech, gnar and flow, but if you have some favorite trails, what makes you love them the most?

I get really stoked on flowy, buff singletrack that's sprinkled w/ tech sections to keep you on your toes! The destination also factors in when I think of trails I like. For me, nothing beats the wide open desert on a crisp early spring or late fall day.


Mostly just keeping IMBA the fuck away from it.

Those cases tend to work out better for all of the above.
Dreggsy
Posts
2
Joined
12/2/2013
Location
AU
6/18/2014 6:07pm
Any trail where you cannot switch off, i like trails where you have to really think about your lines the first time you ride, then when it comes to the 20th time you ride it, you amaze your friends.

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