Quarry Ville

2012 Digging

2011-11-08T10:41:00.001-08:00

Well, the summer sort of faded without a bang. Rain, busyness, and sundry other pieces left the back end of 2011 trail season here pretty dull. Frankly, building and maintaining trails is just a lot of work and takes a lot of time. Anyone who has had a hand in doing this thing we call trails knows it. I have begun going back to begin the process of preparing for next year. Talk of a new, bigger, main straight line and some revision to older, smaller stuff has begun to yield some fruit. Whether any of this actually takes shape is yet to be seen.

First Fruits

2011-05-02T04:36:00.000-07:00

Well the first runs have officially been had for the season. A couple guys took a few runs through the old mains and Surf's Up Saturday and Sunday in spite of some remaining dampness. Much work remains to be done but thus far things are looking to turn out pretty swell.

Matt H. doing his thing.

THIS JUST IN...

2011-04-13T17:37:00.000-07:00

Trails are hoppin.

Steve

2011-03-21T05:33:00.000-07:00

I should also post this more recent pic of the third berm in Surfs Up. Steve has been stacking on this thing like crazy.

Kane Lane

2011-03-21T05:21:00.000-07:00

Long overdue photo update. A bunch of people have been getting out consistently over the past few weeks and things are starting to pop up. Much of this initial work has been going into some smaller set-up stuff that leads into the old main line and also is opening up a couple doors for new lines. Notable additions include Steve/Rick/Jon's triple berm setup in the beginning of what is being called Surfs Up and the Kane Lane, named after the inspiration of Rick. It provides a straight lip into the old main line.

What follows are a few pics from the past week.

Vincent Perraud

2011-03-17T08:30:00.001-07:00

Great slide show of an Austin winter by Vincent Perraud here:
http://www.thediggest.com/blog/exclusif/summer-in-austin-by-vincent-perraud/

Shooting Film in a Digital Age

2011-03-11T06:03:00.000-08:00

The Quarryville Library recently had a photo contest which reportedly received an unexpectedly low amount of entries. Due to timing issues I was unable to submit my Lancaster County related image, however, above is the image that I was going to enter. I shot this picture of a field about 3 miles south of Green Tree on 896 using a $40 camera with a plastic lens on film. To find out more about the Holga (the previously named camera), see the lomography site (http://microsites.lomography.com/holga/) and wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holga).

Spring Cleaning

2011-03-06T13:23:00.000-08:00

The spring digging has officially begun on the east coast and we have been no exception. A bit of work has gone down over the past week which has resulted in the start of a new line and the consequential rerouting of another line. Steve has definitely been putting in the most work. I will hopefully get a few pics up here soon...

2010

2010-11-18T07:01:00.000-08:00

Well the 2010 trail season is wrapping up with Fall digging beginning and only a few more (if any) sessions left before the ground freezes. While not being as productive as it maybe could have been, our first year at this new spot saw the creation of a good solid 10 pack, the start of a branch-off line, and some other bumps scattered throughout the woods.

Location wise, the spot has existed without too much of a hitch but it is yet to been seen how the winter affects that. If we do last the winter into next spring, good things should be a-coming. With the work that is currently going in at Pitney (night digging?!) it may not be too bold to say that 2011 will be a good year for trails in Lancaster County. We will definitely be looking to have more people out next season so look for a jam or two to happen next summer. We are also going to look to get a contest going at the Quarryville skatepark in the Spring of next year to try to raise some funds for some additional ramps. More on that if SECA is cooperative...

End of Season?

2010-11-11T15:51:00.001-08:00

Tooth to Over Pedal Grind!

2010-10-30T16:21:00.001-07:00

United Nathan Grip Promo from Channel 4Down on Vimeo.

Fifth

2010-10-24T12:45:00.000-07:00

A few pics from yesterdays riding. Despite continued dampness from the rain a couple weeks ago the trails are in the best shape they have been in all year. All five in the main line are rolling with a berm on the way. Come on out this Sunday for a little jam; nothing big or special, we are just going to be out enjoying one of the last sessions before winter sets in.

Five Jump Jam

2010-10-19T05:22:00.000-07:00

Finally, after much delay and a few rebuilds due to the rain, we have completed downside number five and have a complete ten pack. The fifth double has not been hit yet as it is still 'curing' but I suspect that it may have a few takers this weekend. In light of this, we are rescheduling the jam that we had planned to have to Sunday October 31.

2010-10-01T19:30:00.000-07:00

Saturday

2010-09-29T07:20:00.001-07:00

While we were hoping to have a little jam this Saturday (Oct. 2nd), it looks like the recent rain will have made everything too soggy. Either way, I think a couple of us will be heading out to dig and if possible do some riding. The fifth downside should be stacked and squared up by Thursday. We may actually have a rideable 10 pack by the end of the season. Pics to follow.

Rain

2010-09-16T08:15:00.000-07:00

Looks like we are in for a bit of rain tonight; as of 11:16 am, WGAL's radar is showing a large storm system ranging from Canada to Tennessee that is heading east across the U.S. (and most importantly, PA) If this provides any significant amount of rain we should be able to finish the fifth downside and get the trails groomed for the rest of the season. I know many other PA trails are in need of moisture as well.

iPhone Edit

2010-09-14T08:31:00.000-07:00

Lowery fired out this iPhone edit the other day and posted it on YouTube. This would be the first semi-official video to come out of the trails.

Photos on Orchid

2010-09-13T05:02:00.000-07:00

Derek from Orchid Footwear picked up one of my photos from the most recent Catty Jam and posted it on his news feed. Stoked! Check it here: http://www.orchidfootwear.com/news/?p=4745

Fall Jam

2010-09-11T16:21:00.000-07:00

Trails have been rolling the past month as much riding has gone down. The fifth downside is still incomplete and will probably remain so until we get some much needed rain.

We are planning to host a small jam in October which is tentatively dated for Saturday the second. We will probably have the grill fired up by 11:30 and then riding however long you desire. Stayed tuned for more info and details. Until then, check my Flickr on the right and below for some recent pics from the Catty Jam.

Fourth

2010-08-29T11:00:00.001-07:00

Blap.

2010-08-26T13:25:00.000-07:00

Apples

2010-08-13T05:14:00.000-07:00

A bit has been happening at the trails over the past few weeks: much riding and a little digging. We finally got all four jumps grooved in with the fourth downside being finished about two weeks ago. Subsequently, sessions have been going down here and there with Alex 'apple eating' Steckler even throwing down some tuck no-handers over the fourth.

While the fourth has finally been finished, it was much to easy to clear and so last night, with the opportunity provided by yesterday's rain, Matt stacked the downside up another foot and I redid the lip making it a bit steeper. With the new revision, it has taken on the shape of a Pitney Woods jump, i.e. steeper and deeper. It will definitely set-up the fifth jump to be a bit more serious. Pics are on the way of this reformation. We are planning to put in some heavy work this weekend on the fifth double and will hopefully have something significant for a small Fall jam. Below is a recent sequence of Matt working his way through the section.

Finally

2010-07-31T15:51:00.000-07:00

Well today was the official humble inauguration of the trails as we did a bit of riding and shooting. Matt got through the first six pack and Rick Kane and I made it through the first two (due to no brakes and wet foot respectively). Below are some pics from the action. A week or two should see the downside of our fourth jump packed and ready to roll and then on to the fifth jump. Who knows, maybe we will have a decent rideable set before fall sets in...

3rd Set: hip right

Rick - 2nd set

Matt - 2nd set

8 PACK!

2010-07-28T18:32:00.000-07:00

As lame as it may seem, after half the summer is gone, we finally have a 8 pack built at our spot. The summer has been brutal for Josh and myself as far as getting out to dig and with steve's disappearance a lot hasn't got done. This saturday depending on weather between now and then i think the plan is to try to sink some tires into the jumps, but if it rains maybe we'll get some more dirt stacked. Some pictures of riding hope to be up in the near future.

-Mrk

Delay

2010-06-29T04:23:00.001-07:00

After a couple month hiatus from digging, Matt and I are heading back to the trails this week to hopefully clean/groom/finish the eight pack that is all but done. I will get some more info up when some of that is accomplished and will hopefully have something to show for what we have done so far.

Went to the G-town Jam this past weekend and then to Pitney the day after; got a few good shots which you can check out on Flickr or Facebook. Below are some of the recent ones from Pitney.

Digging

2010-04-24T13:46:00.000-07:00

Photo dump of recent progress. Matt and I were out for about 2 hours today and got another downside shaped up. Things were really dry so we are going to need some solid rain if we are going to get much further.

Ramp

2010-04-24T08:21:00.000-07:00

I came across this YouTube video that I have surprisingly not seen before. Mark Webb and another previously unknown-to-me rider perform some mini tricks that do not seem possible. It seems I continue to be a mini-ramp rider at heart even though that is not my area of expertise or an area which I ride often.

Photo Blog

2010-04-21T19:17:00.000-07:00

I am always looking for good photographic inspiration so when I came across this trails photoblog from the England I was stoked. These guys have put in some serious work and have come up with some nice images to boot. http://lostintheshadows.net/ Updates on Quarryville digging coming soon. Things will begin to roll here soon if we can get some rain...

Another View

2010-03-28T18:13:00.001-07:00

Crazy Carl

2010-03-28T14:03:00.000-07:00

2010-03-27T18:20:00.001-07:00

Here are some more official pictures of recent digging. I suppose it it sort of a humble beginning but some work is getting done and things are coming along. Steve has put in a bunch of work the past couple days so here is some of that fruit...

First roller and jump

First jump into left and right lines

After the first jump: left line and right line

Roller after second jump in the left line splitting into either the berm or thread the needle.

Berm

Thread the needle

Work

2010-03-27T10:05:00.000-07:00

Unofficial cell phone snap of recent progress. Shot standing on downside of first jump.

Digging

2010-03-21T17:07:00.000-07:00

Start of the new spot. hoorah

No Ray's

2010-03-19T11:24:00.001-07:00

Well the Ray's trip fell through for this weekend. Shane wrecked pretty bad the other day and would not have been able to go. So that he is able, we are going to try to reschedule within the next couple weeks and try to make it out. A bummer, to say the least, but I have a ton of stuff to do anyway and it has been so nice that there are plenty of other opportunities to ride locally this weekend.

I have gotten my new flash trigger set-up out a couple times and have some decent flicks to show for it. Below are some recent one from the park. I can't wait to get them out in the woods.

Rays II

2010-03-16T18:45:00.000-07:00

Second trip to rays coming up this weekend... the roster is a mess to say the least but looks like things are finally starting to sort out with 2 vehicles and 6 people and 2 rooms. word.

Some digging has been going on this past week and weekend. Two things are for certain and one is we desperately need to pick up some shovels, we have one working shovel at the moment, and secondly i need to get motivated like i was last year.

2010 Dirt Season

2010-03-02T12:55:00.000-08:00

This can be found in all of the usual places but it is really good so I thought I would put it up here. I have never been to Catty but this edit makes me really want to go experience the place: it looks other-worldly. Maybe we can get a crew to make a trip this spring/summer. I am not sure how much time I will have to spend on the bicycle this summer due to getting married but I am hoping to stay somewhat consistent and be able to ride enough to progress a bit. We will see. Either way, I think everyone is ready for warm weather and digging season to commence...until then, watch some Catty footage.

Catty Woods Fall Extra Footage from Spinteck Limited on Vimeo.

Matt R. K. on YouTube

2010-02-21T09:34:00.000-08:00

Stumbled across this edit randomly and am assuming it was put up by Matt's gf...

Quarryville Dirt Updates

2010-02-13T14:30:00.001-08:00

We had mentioned a while ago about the possibility of doing some trails right next to the Quarryville skatepark; things are slowly coming together with that and it looks like it is going to be going forward. There was supposed be to a meeting this past Tuesday where we were going to go present the idea to the SECA Board (the committee that runs the park) but due to the snow that was canceled for a later date. That evening, Mike, the guy that I have been communicating with about the park, emailed me back and asked if I could fill him in on what it would take to produce a trails section so that he could pass the info on and maybe get things started from behind the scenes. It seems that the plan is to get some dirt dropped as soon as it begins to warm up. If that is the case, we will be looking for as much help as possible to get some stuff rideable asap.

I will post any updates as soon as I get them.

Absurd

2010-02-01T12:10:00.000-08:00

It is rare that I will watch a web video twice but this one was more than worth a second watch. It has been good to see a few mini-ramp edits hitting the web lately and this one features Drew Bezanson doing some absurd sub-box variations.

Vampire Weekend

2010-01-30T16:29:00.000-08:00

Don't know if any of you have ever heard Vampire Weekend but they have their new album in its entirety streaming on their website. Their first album had a couple appearances in the BMX world in a couple vids (one of the Catty Wodds DVD's I think and also some UK flick). I am pretty stoked on a couple of their new songs (Holiday; Cousins) but some of them couple have been left off. Hit it up below or on their site if you are looking for some good new tunes.

Bricktown

2010-01-28T18:55:00.000-08:00

We hit up Bricktown tonight for the first time. I was only able to stay for 30 minutes because I had a night class but Matt and Steve stayed for a while. I had a good time but the stories about it are true: the place is an existential contradiction. The building is quite spacious and yet the decks get crowded pretty quick, with only a couple people; the ramps seem to be very structurally sound and well built but the transition on every quarter is unnatural. In spite of this, the upstairs is supposed to be better. I think we are going to head back up next Thursday and hopefully get some more time to ride in.

updates

2010-01-22T15:07:00.000-08:00

.... still not a lot of new updates due to the winter season. I rode everyday this week since the weather has been tolerable but i've found myself to be jacked up and in need of a day off my bike. i had a close call at jacks barn trying an ice pick stall on the quarter but missed the peg and somehow managed to fall off the side of the quarter and slide down the beam... ( i hate ice picks... and pegs in general for that matter!)

Apparently the new hot spot is the columbia park, i havent made my way there yet since i've heard mixed reviews but we'll see what happens this week.

Also one final note, some digging/ clearing/ chopping has gone down at the " to be continued" trail spot (thats not what were calling the new spot but it makes sence for the time being.) i again havent made my way there yet but definatly plan on it here soon.

- shaboopy

Jack's

2010-01-10T15:28:00.000-08:00

Matt, Steve and I have hit up Jack's barn set-up the past two days. It is a decent set-up with two quarters. Steve has toothpicks on lock on the one steep quarter so I shot a few pics. Check Flickr for some more...

"They make us wear helmets and stuff but..."

2010-01-04T03:54:00.000-08:00

Lancaster Newspapers has an article this morning about a new skatepark in Columbia. From what I can tell, bikes are not currently allowed but the article made it seem as if they were in consideration. There are pictures and a short video online and it looks legit, especially that mini. Let hit us this place letting them know that people are interested in supporting them from BMX.

Skate-It

2009-12-31T06:25:00.000-08:00

Matt, Carl and I hit up Skate-It in Manheim last night. The park was small and filled up with skaters real fast around 5:30 (which rendered it almost unrideable) but we had a good time. The mini was slippery but had a good pop and the park stuff had some interesting things to play around on. We are probably going to head back up next week. Below are a couple shots of Carl that we shot...check Flickr for more.

New Ride

2009-12-30T17:37:00.000-08:00

Federal Notorious frame.

So not a lot of new things are going on due to the winter weather so i figured i'd show off my new frame. I had to say goodbye to my united frame just because i wanted to get a 21.25 top tube since i'm a taller dude, should work out for me.

Rode the new manheim park tonight... small but fun before the crowd shows up.

Winter Motivation

2009-12-29T11:32:00.000-08:00

A few clips to get you motivated for spring...Steve, start getting ideas.

Busy Barend from OrganicBmx on Vimeo.

Dialed 603 Fall 2009 from Johnny Herrick on Vimeo.

Abe Rowland, Welcome To Jefferson State from Marcus O'Brien on Vimeo.

Even More Spring

2009-12-29T10:47:00.000-08:00

I have so much free time I don't know what to do with myself...not working as much as I thought over Christmas break. So, here are so more pics from earlyish 2009, I think in May. This session produces some of my favorite pictures of the year; the time of day produced lighting and colors that are mint. My radio trigger also decided to work that day which provides a bit of fill light from the left. Matt with some more footjams, whip and lookback. Also one of the few pictures of the year of yours truly: photo by Matt. Skate It on Wednesday for those who might see this and are interested: Matt, Steve, Carl and I are heading up.

More Spring

2009-12-24T08:49:00.000-08:00

In May Matt, Steve, Alex and I headed down to FDR for an early morning session. I had not been down in a long time so it was good to ride there again with some of the new terrain; surprisingly, for how close it is (relatively speaking), we don't get down there much at all. I have always found it difficult to ride FDR fluidly and so I spent some time shooting (which it is quite hard to do with the light contrasts, especially early morning. For more on that see here) and chilling.

Steve's always finding something unique. Tireslide/chink. Damn bikers.

Alex Steckler: Table hip

Early morning rush hour.

Matt is building a sweet collection of masks. As far as I know, he only has two but any collection that includes a Darth Vader mask is sweet in my book. Spiderman comes out for the ride home.

Wow

2009-12-18T11:48:00.000-08:00

It seems trail building these days is just as much about the aesthetic of the jumps as it is about rideability. That's fine by me...check some French trails below.

Swamped from http://digfourvictory.blogspot.com/

East Coast Recreation

2009-12-16T07:01:00.001-08:00

This will only have relevance to a negligible amount of the world's population, however, after watching that old video footage the other day, I figured I would post this piece of Lancaster Co. BMX history for those to whom it means anything. East Coast Recreation was, as far as I know, the only indoor skatepark that Lancaster has ever had that allowed bikes (for that matter, the only other indoor parks period was More and the current one in Manheim. Any others?). It only lasted a couple years and then classically was shut down amid a swirl of conflicting rumors. It was formational for me in the sense that it opened just as I started to get serious about riding. It received some attention from the wider BMX scene as it has an appearance on FBM's Albert Street and was frequented by the Little Devil crew numerous times.

The only contest that I have ever entered was held there and a while ago I found a flier from the contest that I had kept. Check it below. I don't know any of the dudes on it except for Jeremy Smith in the top right hand corner.

May 2009

2009-12-16T02:55:00.000-08:00

With my switch over to digital a while back I had to get used to the whole process of digital archiving. It is interesting to have a ton of pictures in one location that are dated so that you can see the progression of how things went. This batch occurs right after the heaviest part of the digging season for us this year at the end of May. We spent April and the better part of May putting a ton of work into the creation of Matt and Steve's line. This is one of the first sessions of the year that went down (I think).

This was the fourth jump in Matt's line. Blackie came and put it instantly to work. One hander.

I love the lighting created by the off camera flash. Matt reaping the fruit of his labors.

I have to laugh when I see this. I was not expecting Matt to get this high and thus framed the photo accordingly. Headless turndown.

Digging

2009-12-12T18:25:00.000-08:00

Matt, Steve and I began some digging today at a spot just down the woods from Smith. It seems to be a decent spot, has good soil, and be fairly secure. The lay of the land is ok with a few things that may be fun to work with but the trees are a lot denser and much will need to be cut down to get any bigger stuff going. We got some brush cleared and a couple rollers started today in spite of the frost. Obviously not too much more will go down this year unless weather warms up a bit but we will keep this updated.

2009 in Review: Footjam

2009-12-12T06:40:00.000-08:00

I have always been attracted to the media side of BMX. Last night Steve, Matt and I got together to watch footage from about ten years ago that I captured with a video camera I had bought when I was fourteen. It was a good time reminiscing on some of the earlier years of BMX (high seats, small bars, heavy bikes, no attitudes). It had a buch of footage from the old Lancaster park (East Coast Rec) along with Quarryville/Lancaster street and the early years of the Smith trails (if Fashion looks at this post, it even had some footage of you from Minersville that, I guess, Dave Adams had taken). To say all that, taking pictures of BMX continues to interest me (sometimes more than actually riding) and this year has provided plenty of good ones. Over the next couple weeks (as I have time) I am going to post some of the highlights from the year for interests sake while riding weather diminishes and also as a way to pull them all into one location.

I will start small as I need to get crackin on studying for finals so here is one or two from the beginning of the season.

I think that it was just this year that Matt started getting foot jams and this shot was shortly there after. I warmed the colors up a bit and like how the picture captures the action: finger on the brake, eyes on the reentry, leaned in, locked in, and loaded.

It seems to me that from looking at the trees, the image of Carl is the earlier one. Carl is always full of picture producing moves and this one is no exception. The composition could be a bit better but I am into the angle, the super steep angle of the bike and the onlookers in the background.

2009-12-08T17:34:00.000-08:00

i don't know about everyone else but i'm ready for another rays trip... or something

All the same?

2009-12-02T15:46:00.000-08:00

This post is the product of a couple days of thought about two things, in particular, which have led to broader applications about the state of BMX. The more that I peruse the BMX media/literature which saturates the internet, the less and less diversity, or freestyle (if you will), I see characterizing much of today's riding. The edit below is an example of what I mean. The style of riding in it is representative of 90% of the other web edits that hit the web this summer: barspins, nose wheelie variations, tuck no handers, barspins, 360 to flat, barspins, foot jam variations, and more barspins. I am by no means implying that the riding is in anyway sub-par, but where are the classic BMX disciplines: mini-ramp, vert, big street or the flat-inspired park that characterized much of the late 90's/early 2000's (such as this). In essence, why is everyone doing the same thing on their bicycles. (Catty Woods reached similar conclusions about the lack of trails riders in a recent post.) This, of course, is only a generalization (generalization only being helpful some of the time) and there are plenty of dudes out there being original and not worrying about what is the trick of the moment. Nor am I implying that there is necessarily one form of riding whic is in some way superior. Judgments regarding preference in art are subjective and will vary from person to person.

In addition to concerns of style, one only has to look at a Dan's Competition catalog to see that the bike of choice is big bars/little seat/one brake (or none)/small sprocket (this description fits 95% of the complete bikes in Dan's.

This homogenization of style can be, I believe, largely attributed to the internet and the efficiency of disseminating what is going on at any moment in the world. I could waste a lot of time laying out the pros and cons of the internet (of which, there are much of both) but I will not. I need to get some school work done. There is much more that could be discussed about this (though I am not sure who would want to join the conversation and if we would reach any significant conclusions).

Anyway, watch the aforementioned video below. It is good, as I said, but it is simply representative of most of what is being produced today.

Hoang Tran Subrosa Villicus Edit from Subrosa Brand on Vimeo.

Before the Cold

2009-11-21T12:15:00.001-08:00

Got out to the park for awhile today and shot some pics with Steve. It was nice to be out and enjoy a nice day before it gets super cold. I has been some time since I have had time to spend a solid couple hours at the park.

Some plans are formulating in regards to a new spot. When the idea for a skatepark in Quarryville was first being tossed around, there was talk of a dirt area being done in conjunction with the park. Over the past week I have been in contact with the big boss of SECA to see if plans were still in the works for that, and if not, to see if we could get something going. Steve and I talked to him today and he was very supportive with the idea as long as we could come up with a team to head up the project. While there are certainly some drawbacks to a spot that is open and available to the general public (especially when held in contrast to a spot secluded in the woods), there are some positives as well, things that an isolated woodsy spot can not (generally) provide (water access, no ticks, availability of machinery, three blocks from the house, no worries of being plowed, etc). We will see how things move forward. Probably going to head up to 717 tomorrow to get some digging on.

conclusion to rays trip

2009-11-18T16:01:00.000-08:00

so last weekends trip to rays was super awesome. I can't wait to go back. Shane was rocking all the wallrides and the rhythm room, stauff dog was digging the roller line, and i was tight with the foam pit. I'd say we all made it home without any major injuries besides stauffers shoe ripping and all of us being sore as crap. i managed to learn backflips for about ten minuts until i put a hurting on my neck and shoulders, super dissappointed i didnt get to take it to resi and home. so all and all it was a "raw" weekend. Clara's Places' sausage gave us all killer stank ass. beware. myself and everyone had a real great time just being around each other and away from here. i'm down for another trip out to that place real soon and i hear green mountain has a woodward trip this winter? i may be down for that. no word yet on what were doing for trails. deeve started digging in an unoffical spot but im not sure if myself and stauffer are a go for that place. we'll give a shout when we know for sure whats up.

World Travel

2009-11-17T17:47:00.000-08:00

I suppose some people do it these days with the ease of world exploration via the internet, but I have not heard of people seeking out extraordinary spots (on the internet) and then getting them done. I was messing around with Google earth (an amazing program) and found this hotspot. Anyone want to travel to Nepal?

I should throw out a post about the conclusion of our Ray's trip (which was quite good) but that will have to wait for later (unless Matt wants to tune one in(the phrase of the trip)). I have some reading to do.

Oh. At the advice of 717, I also just ordered Pa Wood's 10 year DVD. The trailer looks real good so I am stoked to see that.

Ray's

2009-11-14T12:02:00.001-08:00

The past two days of Ray's has put a hurting on us. The place is way to big to ride in three days. So much stuff. Matt fired out a couple back flips into the foam and Shane is rocking the rhythm room. Check back for more pics later (and Flickr).

Closure

2009-11-09T16:56:00.000-08:00

Things came to a bit of a closure tonight with the Smith trails. Matt and I did some research and finally tracked down the overseer of the school district property. It turns out that for the two years that we have been digging back their, no one had even noticed us. The other day, a faculty member was concerned to see some people walking back into the woods and reported it to the janitorial staff. Later they checked it out and shut it down due to liability issues. Thankfully, the overseer was super nice and understanding of our plight. He gave my name and number to the school's business manager and said they would give me a call if things changed. I suppose to our credit, he was quite impressed by the amount of work that was put in back there but there was not much they could do.

Ideas are being thrown around as to what is in order next with differing opinions. If nothing works out by next spring, we will donate our shovels to 717 and move thither. Matt has a collection of memorial pictures on his Facebook but I will get some up here this week. It was a good two years.

See you at Ray's.

What it is

2009-11-07T16:44:00.000-08:00

so it's been a full day now since our sudden shut down and i've done a bunch of thinking. first off i don't know if i've ever felt this type of heartbreak before. As lame or gay as it may sound it's like a piece of me has been taken. myself and josh spent a good majority of time at the smith trails and was almost a type of home, im sure anyone who has ever had trails can relate to that. so moving forward... josh imforms me that steve and him may have found a new location already but i'm not willing to start anything up before there is a sence of security in the spot. We also plan on talking to the school or whoever we can about our shut down just to see what the reasons are and so they can see what type of people we are. kinda ironic situation, last week as i was walking up to the trails i found a wallet, full with cash,i.d,cards, etc. that i turned into the school and from the little glimps of what i got from the "guy in the truck" i think it may be a match. so anyways i'm sure our plan is to keep on keeping on. we have considered just migrating to the 717 crew but we just want something in out back yard if you will. I'm hoping to make it out to 717 tomorrow after i get done work to get back into the trail spirit...

Charm

2009-11-07T13:50:00.000-08:00

Saw this video on Ride Bmx Online of the Haro Team at Charm City in Baltimore. I will in no way make this blog a dumping site of all the latest and greatest from the internet, but it has been a while since we have been down there so I thought it was interesting. Apparently the park was not that good judging by the amount and diversity of the clips.

Haro Bikes Visits Groove Merchants BMX Shop from Haro Bikes on Vimeo.

2009-11-06T14:40:00.001-08:00

Posted

2009-11-06T13:50:00.000-08:00

One of the glaring realities of the trail business is the fact that they are often located (due to the younger and poorer nature of the participants) on land that is not owned by the riders. Thus the possibility of rejection by the proper owners looms dark over the creative spirit of trail building/riding. This horrible reality struck us today as we went back to find the trails posted and all of our shovels out at the trail head. Not sure what the plan is from here but Steve and I are probably going to do some hiking around tomorrow. No pun intended, but we will keep the blog posted.

new old school

2009-11-06T08:33:00.001-08:00

so last night in my internet browsing i came across another new old school frame but this one is actually old school. S&M has a re re make of the Holmes but this one has an american bb and 1'' headtube and the smaller seat post... and better yet its 400+ bucks. last time i checked it was 2009 so shouldnt the companies be making frames that are 2009 standards. i thought we got away from all the stuff from the old school for a reason. Would anyone actually buy that thing and use it as a daily rider??

Possible Trail Riding

2009-11-05T15:58:00.000-08:00

So i think it's about time that the Mrk broke this blog thing in. The Weather For this weekend is looking real good from what i saw earlier, but unfortunately for me i will be working all day saturday. I talked to josh and it looks like were going to try to have a little session on sunday (after 2:30 because i work.) I'm pretty sure we'll go back and touch things up as much as possible tomorrow to have everything riding but i don't think a lot needs done since things look good under the tarps. In other news has anyone else seen the subrosa pandora dtt frame? it's all old school looking with a dual top tube. wtf? One week to Ray's... stoked.

Manheim Skatepark

2009-11-05T05:00:00.000-08:00

I saw this article in the paper the other day. Apparently there is a park getting fired up in Manheim. No mention of bikes; however, rumor has it that bikes are allowed minus pegs. Anyone know anything about this? Speaking of skateparks in Lancaster County, I would be all for attempting to try, once again, to get bikes into Lancaster County park. A couple years ago the old county commissioners were ousted; the new ones may feel differently about allowing bikes in.

Socrates said that the unexamined life is not worth living.

2009-11-04T16:11:00.000-08:00

While not really related to bikes in any direct fashion, this article reflects some of my initial reservations about blogging. While it may not parallel your worldview, if you like to read and critique your own life (as I do too much), hit it up. It will be worthwhile.

New Dirt

2009-11-03T17:38:00.000-08:00

Did some digging today. Steve was back in proper form. Dude is a shovel/axe animal.

Delay

2009-11-03T09:54:00.000-08:00

It seems this blogging thing could get fairly addicting; the only problems are 1) whether anyone is looking and 2) if anyone cares. Oh well.

Just wanted to let peeps know about the Ray's Weekend coming up. Green Mountain is taking a crew out and Shane, Matt and I are going to head out as well (a day earlier than they are). It is promising to be a good trip. It would be good to get a good Lanc. County representation there.

Secondly, I was delighted to find the symbiotic relationship of Flickr and Blogger on here. Using Flickr as a photo hosting site seems much more efficient than uploading everything to the blog face. The way to do it may be to upload a few highlights to a post and then redirect traffic to Flickr. We'll see how that works.

Speaking of highlights, I have to post the picture of a ridiculous berm that I saw a month or two ago. Apparently it is over in the U.K. and is of mind boggling size. The U.K. trail scene seems to have blown up this year.

I am trying to get Matt set up as another author so hopefully you will see him on here soon as well. Cheers.

Updating

2009-11-02T17:34:00.000-08:00

Since this is getting fired up here late in the season, I should post some pics for any newcomers that are interested to see how things look. A lot of digging was done early this year resulting in the lines on the left side of the woods. New digging is happening now in preparation for next year so maybe I will get some shots of that up soon. Word has it that Steve has some epic berms brewing.

Quarry Ville

2009-11-01T16:28:00.000-08:00

Do I even want to start a blog? I am not sure. However, the trail scene is poppin and blogs seems to be a boon to the creation of a bit of community. Matt and I have been the main two diggers this year at Smith and we are ready for some friends. So anyway. Here it is.

Quarry Ville seemed appropriate at face value. See Merriam-Websters:

quarrying n

ca. 1828 : the business, occupation, or act of extracting useful material (as building stone) from quarries

-ville \ˌvil, esp Southern vəl\ n suffix

[-ville, suffix occurring in names of towns, fr. F, fr. OF, fr. ville village] : place, category, or quality of a specified nature 〈dullsville〉

^While^{you can read into definitions according to your desired use, Quarryville seems an appropriate designation for a set of trails: a community (or village) seeking to extract (sometimes rare) material out of the earth for the establishment of a bicycle riding, jumping, berming community. Community begins and ends the process of this phenomena we call trails. Maybe the 717 Family is on to something.}