Jonkershoek Closure

[stringbean]

i tihnk the point of this thread is to garner mob(ster) mentality to strong-arm scott to dole out $$$ so spesh isn't the only one with an expense listing when it comes to trail maintenance. Its not like spesh is not known for gestapo tactics when it comes to brand embellishment...

 

Imagine if we as a mob could force EVERY bike manufacturer in SA to contribute to trail building and maintanance?Wouldn't that be ideal instead of leaving it to individuals like Table mnt,Tokai etc etc.

[Capricorn]

Imagine if we as a mob could force EVERY bike manufacturer in SA to contribute to trail building and maintanance?Wouldn't that be ideal instead of leaving it to individuals like Table mnt,Tokai etc etc.

 

it would be awesome if they did it out fellowship with riders. but ya, that expense listing.. oi. special mob sauce might just work...

[stringbean]

Great airtime here for Scott. Perhaps that was the intention of this thread....

Oscar Pistorius is also getting a lot of airtime at the moment...

[MoreTrails]

It's not that bad. Actually quite nicely done. Understated even.

 

Subtle like a paving stone .....

[stringbean]

The hub loves polls and lists.How about someone contacting ALL the local bike distributers in SA and asking them all(Giant,Spez,Cannondale,Silverback,Scott,Momsen etc etc) how much they each contributed to trail building and maintanace in SA.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Subtle like a paving stone .....

 

To the face.

[Hairy]

Oscar Pistorius is also getting a lot of airtime at the moment...

Oscar who?

[trailmansam]

This is not about one brand being a better brand than the other. It is not about who is allowed to brand and who not.

 

Fact is that unless you have picked up a spade to do trail maintenance or if you have paid someone to do it then you have not made any contribution towards the maintenance of the trails.

 

The gate fees are permit fees and is totally divorced from the trails itself and their maintenance.

 

Cape Pine is very clear about the trails and mountain biking. They are not interested in the administration and /or its maintenance. They will close them permanently at the drop of a hat. The loss in permit fees as result thereof is of no consequence to them.

 

What is at issue is the following.

• After the fires the trails where in bad shape. Many where closed due to this and purely for the safety of the riders.
  
• Individuals are spending their own (key word) money and time to fund the building and maintenance of the trails that you ride in Jonkers.
  
• This same group is saying that we don't want others to benefit with unfair branding at our expense. So, we stopped the maintenance.
  
• Because of the lack of current maintenance the trails are in bad shape - not all, but some.
  
• For rider safety some trails will be closed
  
• Cape Pine will close the trails FOR EVER if riders get injured and they try to recover medical expenses from Cape Pine because of no maintenance on the trails.
  
• The closure is a pre-emptive move prevent injury and permanent closure
  

All we ask for is no branding at our expense. Come forward with constructive ideas. Get everyone to work together for a better system that will be to the benefit of all - riders, contractors, coffee shops, importers and Cape Pine.

[(Deon)]

understood, passion runs deep ..but what has the landowner got to say? They have their own take on the activity.

[Matchstix]

Scott might need all the marketing they can find. A lot people are selling their scott's and the rest are breaking.

[Headshot]

Sam you are still not making sense...Its a petty turf war that only harms both brands involved and MTB

Many of the trails had Spaz branding on the signs...

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

This is not about one brand being a better brand than the other. It is not about who is allowed to brand and who not.

 

Fact is that unless you have picked up a spade to do trail maintenance or if you have paid someone to do it then you have not made any contribution towards the maintenance of the trails.

 

The gate fees are permit fees and is totally divorced from the trails itself and their maintenance.

 

Cape Pine is very clear about the trails and mountain biking. They are not interested in the administration and /or its maintenance. They will close them permanently at the drop of a hat. The loss in permit fees as result thereof is of no consequence to them.

 

What is at issue is the following.

• After the fires the trails where in bad shape. Many where closed due to this and purely for the safety of the riders.
  
• Individuals are spending their own (key word) money and time to fund the building and maintenance of the trails that you ride in Jonkers.
  
• This same group is saying that we don't want others to benefit with unfair branding at our expense. So, we stopped the maintenance.
  
• Because of the lack of current maintenance the trails are in bad shape - not all, but some.
  
• For rider safety some trails will be closed
  
• Cape Pine will close the trails FOR EVER if riders get injured and they try to recover medical expenses from Cape Pine because of no maintenance on the trails.
  
• The closure is a pre-emptive move prevent injury and permanent closure
  

All we ask for is no branding at our expense. Come forward with constructive ideas. Get everyone to work together for a better system that will be to the benefit of all - riders, contractors, coffee shops, importers and Cape Pine.

 

 

So because Scott sponsored the coffee shop, and put up signs that clearly make no claim to have anything to do with the trails, at all, and Spaz, a competing bike brand, is involved with the trail maintenance doesn't like this, you guys are pulling out? And causing the trails to go into a state of disrepair?

 

Yes, the sign on the gate house could do with a re-design, and IS as subtle as a paving stone. But it does not refer to teh trails in any way, shape or form.

 

The fact that Bobby Behan is at the centre of all of this (Spaz global marketing guy) speaks volumes - I'd assert that there is TONS of sponsor regret at not having taken the chance to do what Scott are doing with the coffee shop...

[Headshot]

Claims against Cape Pine are also highly unlikely from a legal standpoint so IMO the rationale for closure is illfounded

[capediver]

Quick one...does the café and its owners contribute to maintenance?

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

understood, passion runs deep ..but what has the landowner got to say? They have their own take on the activity.

 

I'm just being devil's advocate here. Yes, passion runs deep, but why the knee jerk reaction to close the trails? That only hurts the riders, and Spaz's brand identity together with all teh other funders is tarnished at the same time, making them look like a bunch of spoiled brats who close trails (denying access) rather than out-branding or out-thinking the coffee shop branding - which has NOTHING to do with the trails...

[LanceB]

Trailmansam

 

"Because of the lack of current maintenance the trails are in bad shape - not all, but some."

 

The new line through the Slangpad section with the three jumps, which was closed and then reopened, very recently? Is this the last maintenance to have been done, or an indication that there is a discrepancy in the timeline or uniformity of the maintenance embargo? This is not a factious question.

 

"Individuals are spending their own (key word) money and time to fund the building and maintenance of the trails that you ride in Jonkers."

 

Institute a private trail fund account, which I do think does exist. I'll deposit. Many others too, I suspect. It will give those without the time and geographic proximity to Jonkershoek for spadework (like myself), and happen to use it often over weekends, a stake in the maintenance.

 

"Cape Pine will close the trails FOR EVER if riders get injured and they try to recover medical expenses from Cape Pine because of no maintenance on the trails."

 

They are not quite Sappi's Karkloof operation. Noted. One does not wish to go beyond the tipping-point. As a test case: has there been a closure at a very popular, high-use mountain bike venue in South Africa due to an injury claim compensation being instituted?

Edited May 23, 2014 by LanceB