can't let it just sit there and dissapear. it will return to it's glory. we even have some hands to help out. got to rebuild 5 or 6 bridges over flowing water, clear some alders back. can anyone say private trail. yeah thats right. i'm stoked.
dear diary
visiting my moms in dartmouth yesterday aug 16. , brutally hot out. banook lake\ birch cove is down around the bend. i get to the top of the hill by the beach and was forced to go else wheres by a cop, because of canoeing championships. decided to go to lake charles. bike to shubie's beach, the beach was packed and i didn't feel my bike would be safe. so i kept going. ended up doing the lakecharles extension to the end and cruised the waverly rd to a good swim spot. i put in 20 kms to tread water for about ten minutes. does this happen to anyone else?
Groups:
Saturday, August 29 2009 at 8:02am
#3
Wednesday, September 2 2009 at 9:56am
#4
i we decided to skip the work on whopper. hopefully the work on an old friend begins this weekend. couldn't find my trail kit in lakota so i have to buy some new tools tonight. oh i can't wait.
Thursday, September 3 2009 at 9:50am
#5
we lopped back about 100 meters of alders, and it freed up at least 400 meters of trail. it has begun.
Thursday, September 3 2009 at 11:51am
#6
ok how did a thread about swimming end up being about some private trail bliss. not that i am complaining but the transission was a bit harsh no? care to throw out a hint where this old/new glory happens to reside. would there be any birch on this trail?
Thursday, September 3 2009 at 4:57pm
#7
we'll fill you in when at least the bridges are put back in. alot of people have ridden it before but it fell into disrepair. we were going to let people know about it after we got it up and running. the use of the land might be an issue in the future so we're trying to do it proper with new wood etc... and trying to keep the dumb stuff at a min. wanna help? its holy land.
ian
Thursday, September 10 2009 at 9:39am
#8
things seem to be falling into place, i think the up keep of whopper will be in good hands, holy land is progressing quicker than expected, things might be up and running solid by next spring. sugarloaf will see my tires again. i'm grinning ear to ear. plus i think i'm going for a ride this evening. as bob bustin would say "very good"
Friday, September 11 2009 at 10:10am
#9
hmmmm.... skip work this afternoon, and go to the job that doesn't pay, and ride whats been accomplished...... hmmmmm, i think i'll be playing hooky this afternoon.
Monday, September 14 2009 at 9:49am
#10
man what a weekend. rollarcoaster in whopper will be up and running again. hopefully be back to work on holyland by the weekend, oh yeah the next weekend after that seeing how we're going to sugarloaf. at holyland, we got to the first bridge rebuild spot and we're almost to the camp shelter spot, soon i won't have to carry my tools in and out. noticed possible loop ideas here and there also, but that will have to wait til we get the main trail done. as usual the trail seems to be fast and flowy, and we still have to pull rocks and roots out of a couple of sections. it's coming together i think.
Wednesday, September 16 2009 at 9:46am
#11
i wish i was the everready bunny, i want to work on trail and ride, but i got to have something in the tank for this weekend at sugarloaf. oh well, i got to at least go for a quick rip to keep the skills sharp for the weekend. i wonder if my light has a full charge, might get out thurs. evening
Tuesday, September 22 2009 at 8:58am
#12
man,after a weekend away from reality, i'm starting to get some get up and go, and the tank is slowly refilling. got to get out and ride or work. i wonder if they finished the last bit of work in whopper dropper (what a terrible name). hopefully. if they did, might go for a ride then, or get back to the place without many softwood trees and continue my efforts. speaking of which, i think the next session might include cleaning up the camp spot. finally a place for my tools. also gotta start collecting some fresh wood for the first water crossing.
Tuesday, September 22 2009 at 9:01am
#13
dude. i've got wood
just a matter of where to drop it for hikes in.
Wednesday, September 23 2009 at 12:32pm
#14
guess i'll try and get the posse up for something like that this weekend. oh wait, you're going to 'bike wonder land' this weekend. you bastard. we'll be in touch.
had to edit this post, and add some more.
we're getting more wood , yee haw!! . now we have to set up a wood drop\ hike session. wish there was a road way or parking lot close to the trail to make it easier. oh well the effort will be well worth it. got to like when things fall into place without really trying. usually things fail if you try to hard, not this time though.
Friday, September 25 2009 at 10:05am
#15
even though the help is well appreciated, i wish it was more consistant. oh well, guess i'll try to lead by example. going in this evening to plopper, and try to knock off some work, by myself if i have to. wait mike is off this evening, there'll be at least 2 of us. hopefully tommorow, we can hook up the wood and start hiking it in to holy land. man it's been a almost 2 weeks since we've worked in there, almost going through trail work withdraw, out there that is.
Monday, September 28 2009 at 9:40am
#16
man i'm stoked, we finished what needed to be done in whopper, went for a ride in holyland the next day (super fun) and noticed that someone else is helping out, thank you, thank you. the campsite has been cleaned (all the plastic has dissapeared, maybe been burnt), one thing off the check list of stuff to be conquered. next weekend we get back to work out there. can't wait.
Monday, September 28 2009 at 10:57am
#17
Ian, keep me posted on H.L. ventures/adventures. This is the trail building season as I see this mad rain out there :)
Monday, September 28 2009 at 11:19am
#18
trust me i will, there adam. was it you that helped out? the campsite was garbageless, the ground was raked up nice, and there was even a cooler left there. there was a bunch of rocks removed from the trail that we didn't do ourselves. seeing how darkness comes on early now, we'll do rides through out the week and weekends will be set aside for the trail. we'll be in touch.
Thursday, October 1 2009 at 2:03pm
#19
ahhhh, she asked, and it feels good to answer, " we have wood ". kinda like chucking a 2x4 down a trail. (lol) we'll probably hike it in this coming weekend. got to figure out an easy way, and a good time for everyone. should be enough to conquer at least a couple of the bridge projects. looked at some of the out of the way stuff in there and it's way better than i remember it.
Thursday, October 1 2009 at 3:02pm
#20
we need some kind of one wheeled canvas wheelbarrow or something. maybe something we can tow behind ourselves and take turns / lifting etc.
I've still got a bunch of cut wood. Way too heavy for a few trips manually though.
Anyone willing to loan me their dirtbike for a few hours? ;)
Friday, October 2 2009 at 11:12am
#21
will be hitting you up next adam. get them in easy to carry bundles (example 9 four foot lengths taped together is perfect to carry), and we'll relieve you of your wood.
Monday, October 5 2009 at 10:00am
#22
jeez, i've never thought some alms would've created the suffering that it did. usually if you order wood the distributer drops it off in your driveway. thank you ian bezanson, 15 lengths of 12 foot 2x4s is a bitch to carry. but we managed to get all of it into the trail. i think we'll have enough wood to conquer four, maybe five of the seven bridges to be rebuilt. we still have to march it in a fair ways still but we're absolutly stoked. i wonder when this rain will stop so we can get er done. at least it will be a good change from killing alders. woot woot.
Friday, October 30 2009 at 10:04am
#23
what is wrong with the biking scene in halifax? why do the younger kids quit when they get old enough to drive? why do people hassle those that want better, especially when better is achievable? how can people be satisfied with nothing? why do people back their peers, when they know that their peers could be possibly wrong? what's wrong with change? why does hypocrosity run rampent in peoples actions and words? if dreaming is so difficult, why are dreams reality elsewheres? any answers out there? ahhh a little rant on how i feel about biking in the hrm. i hate the scene, but i still love the bike.
Friday, October 30 2009 at 11:52am
#24
not that i am going to be able to answer all your questions in one shot but i would say that in the hrm the scene such as it is tends to be dominated by the bike shops and the race crowd. also you see the same folks sitting on the bns boards with the same train of thought. it's not like they are trying to subvert the way things are run but more that no one new has stepped forward with a new vision. adam would be a great example of just that as he has worked with the city to construct a bunch of dirt parks while stepping outside the bns umbrella. and while talk of some designated land has been brought up for biking the fact remains that we continue to build on land without any long or for that matter short term goals.
Friday, October 30 2009 at 1:42pm
#25
well our present effort is on protected land, and their pdf files mentioned us (mtbr's) being able to use existing trail that happens to be on said land. so we'll continue our efforts until 1 we finish, or 2 told to do otherwise. thank you for responding with common sense, it seems to be lacking elsewhere.
Friday, October 30 2009 at 3:32pm
#26
It's a shame that only 11 people see this diary! You're level of commitment is extraordinary Ian. Many thanks!
I guess I'd be considered a racer. You guys have seen my blog and my pending proposal. Is that not a step in the right direction?
The racer / rider fued is tired. Everyone on both sides need to get over it. Both groups contribute in their own way, and individuals in both groups contribute significantly more and some not at all. Neither group is perfect and neither group always considers what is best for the other. Not working together is childish. Hillsborough is one of the best riding destinations in the Maritimes and it's been ruined on account of partisan attitudes and immature behavior.
We're likely to add a trail advocacy position to the MTB Committee at BNS in 2010. With this position, the right person could make incredible change in local biking.
Friday, October 30 2009 at 3:33pm
#27
It's way harder to double a 16 year old wannabee Britney Spears rockstar around on a bike than to cruise the Quinpoolz in yer ma'z ride.
Think about it, then go sell all your bikes ;)
Tuesday, November 3 2009 at 1:29pm
#28
level of commitment? i came from a skateboarding background. noone was willing to do anything for us so we got used to being creative and doing it for ourselves. i took the same approach with biking, got to have a place or two to use my bike. plus it isn't only me thats been doing good stuff, there's countless people that helped with anything that we've worked on, some that don't even bike. unfortunatly i don't have the skill set for a trail advocacy position, i'm more of a hands on type of person. but there should be one, and there's already doors opened for such a position (especially in the hrm), randy has posted several threads with someone from the hrm wanting a mtber to act as a between man for trail concerns. fire up ecmtb and hunt them down, and pass it on to someone who's capable of stuff like that.
Monday, November 9 2009 at 10:50am
#29
man what a weekend. on saturday, we've had our most productive day yet. three bridges (2 ones that are 12 ft long, 1 that was 8 ft long) , got frivolous and replaced one of the original drops (dumbed down to old man size) and a little rock work. then sunday, decided to leave the tools at home and play the part of the grasshopper (instead of the ant) and get our ride on. sessioned the new drop, the booter in the valley, we even went to the end so we can blast the whole trail proper like (we never get to the end on work sessions for some odd reason) still tonnes of work left though, but we might be able to achieve our goals before old man winter puts a halt to things. one downer though, specialized feller seems to show up on the shittiest days to ride. next time i might have to be a nasty idiot, no more smiling nice guy.
Thursday, November 12 2009 at 12:15pm
#30
what a day, more hands came to help buff up the trail. on rememberance day we conquered a new bridge, changed a rock pile into a bigger smoother rock pile on a hill, and conquered a couple of black holes. awsome day. also later in the day, some docters, we met on the trail, are going to hook us up with some bridge building sponkeredship (free wood dropped near the trail). they seem to like the trail alot. plus they might be good allies if land issue problems arise. i can't believe how well everything seems to be turning out, we took on a huge project and it seems to be moving along smoother than one could expect.
Monday, November 23 2009 at 8:37am
#31
hats of to all the good work being done in the holy land boys. you got something nice going on there just keep quietly working away and it will be yours to enjoy for years to come.
Monday, November 23 2009 at 10:36am
#32
:)
maybe when the trail gets up and running, we'll get in contact with the local trails association for that area and get some proper permission. with the hrm pdf files concerning the area they mentioned cyclists being able to use the area if we use existing trails, plus we're not in the heart of the protected area. (fingers crossed)
Monday, November 23 2009 at 11:25pm
#33
1st post and I must say this is a side of Ian i didn't know... all mature and poetic.
Tuesday, November 24 2009 at 11:05am
#34
:)
don't let the dopey exterior fool you eric. all these years i thought my mom's was saying artistic.
Tuesday, November 24 2009 at 11:46am
#35
Good reading isn't it Eric? Hope my blog post directed you here!
Monday, December 14 2009 at 11:25am
#36
old man winter seems to be in the christmas mood this year, the past three rides have been amazingly awsome. even out in whopper once you get past the glacier fields. sucks that everything froze up and can't get much trail work done but it feels good to go out and ride without 30-40 pounds of tools in the bag. been climbing hills like a mother lover ( i don't like climbing), no tools smacking me in the back of the head while i'm descending. got to love playing the role of the grasshopper during hero season. plus the "REAL" powers to be are heading up a provincial trails association, finally. it seems that bns feels that they've been left in the cold though, but if they suck up the pride and team up, the positives will be overwhelmingly good for all that ride a bike. "verygood"
when i climb main st in hfx it takes me about the same time as iron maiden's revelations. weird.