SANS Parks Tokai MTB price increase

[Alouette3]

I just filled in the log and put in the old card number. Thankfully remembered that.

Silvermine they only really check on weekends.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Will be renewing mine next month...

[Pappa Bear]

does that mean that at some stage it will be tokai's turn to see some of the entrance money being pumped back into the trails?

 

LOL!

[Hairy]

Really?  How do you get in then?  I get stopped every time that I go in at the gate in Tokai (if I'm there before 5pm) and also quite often along the road in Silvermine if I've ridden in up Ou Wapad.

 

 

 

 

Agreed, whenever I go before about 5pm I get asked for my card.

Maybe you guys just look dodgy

[kandui]

I disagree completely with the argument that revenue from activity permits and day permits can't cover annual trail maintenance. Effectively, there is around 7km of single track in the whole of Table Mountain National Park. I exclude Red Hill as I have not heard of anyone using it and San Parks don't maintain it anyway.

Let's include the single track at Rhodes Memorial and call it 8km of single track.

 

Assume 500 mountain bikers have bought a Level 3 Activity Permit. Remember, Level 3 includes horse riders too, so let's go in with a low number and exclude day permit revenues.

 

Keep in mind that the Activity Permits were created as a measure to mitigate against the activity taking place. In other words, the user pays and his money is used to fix the damage the user is causing to the trail, cliff face, etc.

 

500 x R430 = R215000.

That's effectively R26875/km of single track for a year.

 

Let's give San Parks an "admin fee" of R100/ permit. This leaves us with R165000 to maintain trails for a year.

That is pretty much the same amount that Ace of Spades needs to maintain Jonkershoek for 1 year.

Plus, they do keep building more trail at the same time.

I would hesitate a guess and say Jonkershoek has more than 8km of single track, so there is no basis for arguing that permit fees can't cover maintenance and new builds. It's a worn out argument.

 

Here's a theory. San Parks keep the day permit revenue and "we" get the Activity Permit fees.

Cyclists and the other Level 3 user groups get together and form a budget committee. Each user group gets 1 vote per 1000 users with a minimum of 1 rep on the committee. You allocate the funds on a rotational basis. If mtb has a project , it has to sit out and give the horse riders or paragliders a project , before mtb gets another turn.

#justsaying

[(Deon)]

I'd support that..

[Freex]

Yes Kandui

 

The solution is to have our own revenue to build and maintain single tracks but we need agreement on these future tracks tomorrow. 

 

It took the small paragliding community a long time to arrange established launch sites on Signal Hill Lions Head and elsewhere. Why is it taking so long to establish TM as a premier MTB (and MTB tourist) venue. The Eco tourism on bikes possibilities are endless.

[kandui]

I have no idea why this process is taking so long. The irony of it is that the outcome does not guarantee that new trails may be built.

What is happening right now is that an existing management document is being revised and brought up to current standard. That's all. When the document is signed, it becomes the new standard. It doesn't automatically guarantee more trails.

The more relevant question to ask is when will the rationalisation process in Tokai be completed? I don't think we ever got an answer on that one? Or did I miss something? Deon?

[Pappa Bear]

Start a Tokai MTB club and organize a discount for members......

 

Sanparks is not dealing with an entity that is currently representing paying members, rather an entity that do "free work" on their site

[kandui]

You won't get a discount for Tokai Mtb members.

PPA has tried to negotiate an Activity Permit discount , also offering to sell the permit on San Parks' behalf. We wanted to then give back the "discount" amount in the form of project funding ( in effect no loss for San Parks) , but those negotiations went nowhere. It took almost 2 years to eventually find out that nobody within TMNP had the authority to negotiate a discount. The decision would have to come from Pretoria.

[kandui]

Pappa Bear. I forgot to mention that Tokai Mtb have a signed contract with San Parks allowing them to do maintenance. So clearly San Parks accepts them as an entity, irrespective of whether they have paying members or not.

[Pappa Bear]

Pappa Bear. I forgot to mention that Tokai Mtb have a signed contract with San Parks allowing them to do maintenance. So clearly San Parks accepts them as an entity, irrespective of whether they have paying members or not.

 

Purely from a business perspective.....  There is a group doing work for free at Tokai, thereby increasing the number of "feet" (or in this case the wheels) through Tokai.  SANParks get all the benefit (money)!!!!  Free improvements, More customers, Hiked prices.

 

Tokai MTB is representing MTB trail builders in Tokai not the MTB users in Tokai.

 

Obviously Tokai MTB is doing it on a volunteer bases for the benefit of the MTB community - they have done great work and everybody really appreciates it and is grateful - especially SANParks.

 

Don't confuse Vaseline around the ass, with honey around the mouth!

[Pappa Bear]

Rant over , just don't like the good work of others being exploited.

[Shebeen]

That is true, but the other SANP controlled parks with MTB access/facilities don't charge nearly the same amount.

 

Harkerville being an example, their yearly pass (IIRC I paid R195 for mine) gets you access to other parks in the George/Knysna area too.

think dr Evil was just bleating about price hikes on these cards the other day. must be across the board increases

[kandui]

That would be something for TokaiMtb to take up with San Parks. They have been working there for 4 years plus.

[(Deon)]

Just keep in mind that the root of the issue is that the fees taken to allow your bike in the park is to offset the damage it causes (same with dogs etc). This thread has been laced with so many operational distractions that are small in comparison to the real issue faced.

 

The problem (as we know) is that Parks do not use the money for the damage, or even provide biodegradable poo bags and bins for the horses. You'd find also that very little is being done for the rest of the activity permit holders either, but since mtb is the only one that really needs constant intervention, mainly due to the volume of people riding such a limited network of trails, it's the one that is perceived to be the highest impact and therefore looked at with disdain - not only from the Parks point of view but also from the other users. Ok, so behaviour also has an affect but that's something we can fix as individuals.

 

The solution is clear. Rewind the many years worth of damage of a poorly run activity in Tokai in preparation for the rationalisation. Get a network of trails for the most widely subscribed user activity of all-time. Maintain the full set of trails with official agreements and management docs in place. Get funding from TMNP. This last point being a problem, at least from Pretoria's perspective.

 

Our battle is fought on several fronts:

• Getting TMNP to recognise the need for more trails - done. (Process to update required operational/management documents started in 2011)
• Funds - a solution is available but done mainly through private investment. TMNP do have a responsibility as they are specifically charging to offset the damage caused by bringing bikes into the reserve. If they didn't contribute, it would be the equivalent of buying an advertised ice-cream for R8 and not getting it - simple (Years to change the current status if we are lucky.)
• The other activities have to concede that MTB is as important to us as their activity is to them and with it, they need to respect our plight to gain a network of trails that can sustain the amount of riders currently subscribed to the sport. Cape Town residents have a need for recreation, Arné Purves writes about it here in this large PDF, he is a natural resource specialist in the CoCT conservation dept. To deny the largest usergroup to the trails we need, would be a sin but getting their approval will probably be where we need to apply most of our energy. The legacy of non-mechanical transportation runs deep.

Rob, the rationalisation runs parallel to the EMP in this last phase before public participation. We must just let the consultant know that the Terms of Reference to start the study has been signed - think it was in the last 2 weeks.

 

Sp