Northern Farm - Needs some upkeep?

[Paul Ruinaard]

Hey guys,

Without answering on behalf of the farm let me shed some light on this thread and hopefully address your issues as Northern Farm is about the recreation through conservation.

 

Northern Farm is owned by Joburg water and is leased by NFRUG (all volunteers). The MTB academy is its own entity that is a benefactor of the farm as a community upliftment project. Unlike other trails around, this is a non-profit organization.

 

So that's the boring stuff out the way... well, kinda. Where does the money go? And why aren't the trails being maintained to their potential?

 

Where does the money go? The farm is very fortunate to have a very good security record (yes there was an incident 16 months ago), but security comes at a huge cost of having 16 - 20 staff out on the perimeters all weekend. That literally chews up a massive portion of any surpluss. The rest is spent on improvements, albeit slow without a cash injection and the small team behind maintaining everything we all enjoy. I know for a fact that the farm volunteers are trying really hard to bring in partnerships to inject the much needed boost into the farm.

 

So how about that trail maintenance? Not many people know it, but if you add up all the trails out there you will be in surpluss of 100km of trails. This is maintained by a team of 4 who do not manage to get to all the trails after every storm. So if a tree falls in a forest and nobody is there to hear it... please tell them if you come across low hanging trees or broken trees (and be nice, they all there to help you). I assure you, Bongani will get to it asap. There is no need to meantion the challenges that exist around the current weather, but it will be dealt with.

 

Trails are fun, they exhilarate and they do need upkeep or serious design. The farm is a nature reserve too, so the team cannot go out there and build berms or anything invasive.

 

I hope I have cleared this up as a volunteer at the farm. We do appreciate everything you tell us, but we need to work with people to make this better. There are big plans afoot for 2017 and we hope you appreciate them when they are complete.

 

If you really want to help out at the farm, we could always use hard working volunteers ready to make a difference.

 

Thanks guys, keep those wheels turning.

Thanks for the reply - it went awfully quiet. THat does answer some of my questions.

 

However to trail design and build - like the comments on this there are some areas where an approach to enhancing the MTB experience would be a bonus for all involved.

 

You dont exist in a vacuum and as I said its my local trail - I was there this weekend and there has been some mowing.

 

But other trails are starting to become much more MTB focused and the lack of maintenance starts to stand out.

 

FWIW - the Jukskei section (drop off of the road below Lanseria) is now very difficult and has many exposed roots plus a tree has now fallen across the section just to the left of the entry ramp/white logs drop off.

 

Its also pretty dangerous in there with all the low hanging branches - big risk of cracking your head on a branch....

 

And to the design - how about funding a trail course with Meurant Botha or the likes for the builders. I wonder how many of them ride as the flow is pretty strange - all tightening apexes and tricky slow stuff. 

 

Dont get me wrong - some are beautiful but others are way to tricky for the average rider who would be there on a nature/conservation cruise. Wet roots etc, which will flip you quickly.

 

Can i suggest a poll - maybe see what the riding populace thinks ?

[mazambaan]

  Interesting to see from afar how MTB has involved. When I started you rode what was in front of you (no trail, cattle, goat or human path usually), if you could, and kept a sharp lookout. Even Sani & B&B - the challenge was whether you could ride sections at all; how fast was secondary (to me anyway).

 

Now groomed, safe, smoothed and fast trails are expected norm (except for manufactured rock gardens?). 

[coppi]

Mtbers are a fussy lot......and they say roadies are arrogant?

 

 

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[FlandersZA]

You're talking about the Left turn when you ride down from the barns at the start and then the right turn at the bottom of the next descent (which has always been an awful loose/muddy corner) - both would be ace!

 

Yup, that's the spot. I'm talking at least 6-8ft high. 

[Pieterlab1]

Had a lekker 60km ride yesterday at Northern Farm!

I wouldn't change much.

Most definitely my "Happy Place"!

[SteveS]

  Interesting to see from afar how MTB has involved. When I started you rode what was in front of you (no trail, cattle, goat or human path usually), if you could, and kept a sharp lookout. Even Sani & B&B - the challenge was whether you could ride sections at all; how fast was secondary (to me anyway).

 

Now groomed, safe, smoothed and fast trails are expected norm (except for manufactured rock gardens?). 

I assume you did not pay to ride those goat paths. When you pay R50 for one ride, certain expectations are created. No one said anything about the park being all smooth and groomed. There are loads of sections at Northerns that test your skill level even when the park is in tip top condition, that is not the point being made. It is comparing how the park has looked previously and what has been done in recent times. The stretch mentioned next to the sprinklers is a good example. That section has been badly eroded for at least a year. It is fine if you ride their often and now about what holes are hiding underneath the long uncut grass. But anyone riding there for the first time would have no clue. If they are not planning on maintaining that section, either close it or at least put up some warning boards.

 

As an example I would like to compare Northerns to the Spruit. I rode the Spruit last Tuesday and there were at least 3 sections that had become completely unrideable after the rain on the weekend. When I rode it again two days later the fairies had come along and fixed all those sections.

 

Don't get me wrong I love Northen Farms and ride there most weekends, I am just hoping that notice will be taken of this thread and more effort is put into the park.

[Paul Ruinaard]

I assume you did not pay to ride those goat paths. When you pay R50 for one ride, certain expectations are created. No one said anything about the park being all smooth and groomed. There are loads of sections at Northerns that test your skill level even when the park is in tip top condition, that is not the point being made. It is comparing how the park has looked previously and what has been done in recent times. The stretch mentioned next to the sprinklers is a good example. That section has been badly eroded for at least a year. It is fine if you ride their often and now about what holes are hiding underneath the long uncut grass. But anyone riding there for the first time would have no clue. If they are not planning on maintaining that section, either close it or at least put up some warning boards.

 

As an example I would like to compare Northerns to the Spruit. I rode the Spruit last Tuesday and there were at least 3 sections that had become completely unrideable after the rain on the weekend. When I rode it again two days later the fairies had come along and fixed all those sections.

 

Don't get me wrong I love Northen Farms and ride there most weekends, I am just hoping that notice will be taken of this thread and more effort is put into the park.

Absolutely bang on.Northern Farm could be awesome.

 

Spruit is also volunteers and does not cost R 50 per ride.

 

Northern Farm should offer the Spruits trail builders and repairers a job. Or send their own on a ride down the Spruit.

 

In all honesty it can be integrated into a wildlife/conservation theme. They dig the place up with tractors regularly and grade the roads often - so i dont get it why they cant add some more digging to the corners on the roads like suggested

 

I mean you have the earthmoving equipment on site.

[BigDL]

Interesting to see from afar how MTB has involved. When I started you rode what was in front of you (no trail, cattle, goat or human path usually), if you could, and kept a sharp lookout. Even Sani & B&B - the challenge was whether you could ride sections at all; how fast was secondary (to me anyway).

 

Now groomed, safe, smoothed and fast trails are expected norm (except for manufactured rock gardens?).

100% China.

 

 

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[Formallyknownas]

 

 

 

My absolute wet dream for NF would be to have a huge berm at the bottom of the first cow hump descent at the start and then another at the bottom of the next descent. I'd love to be able to carry speed through that section. Make it happen! You guys can grow mushrooms out the back of those!

 

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Dude, that would be the most fun section other than the river ST at the farm. Can you imagin the speed you could carry if they built a 5ft berm.

Creepers.

[The Flying German]

 

 

 

My absolute wet dream for NF would be to have a huge berm at the bottom of the first cow hump descent at the start and then another at the bottom of the next descent. I'd love to be able to carry speed through that section. Make it happen! You guys can grow mushrooms out the back of those!

 

****************************************

Dude, that would be the most fun section other than the river ST at the farm. Can you imagin the speed you could carry if they built a 5ft berm.

Creepers.

This has been my dream since i started riding at NF , Would be absolutely amazing

[Honkdonk]

Mmmm Berms!

Any of you seen the size of the berms at the Garden Route trail park? There are some monsters on the Mountain Mania section. Some of those on those sections you mention above would be awesome. There are lots of places where some earth moving machines and a few spades could really set it apart!

[Pieterlab1]

Massive work done this week on maintenance at the farm! I could not believe it. I'm sure it took most of the week. Kudos to all involved!

[Bonus]

Massive work done this week on maintenance at the farm! I could not believe it. I'm sure it took most of the week. Kudos to all involved!

 

Good to hear. We used to ride there most weekends.

[Reden]

Massive work done this week on maintenance at the farm! I could not believe it. I'm sure it took most of the week. Kudos to all involved!

And there is a new section quite early on the Black route.

[ScaredShiftless]

Hi Hubbers

I normally ride at bike parks in and around Pretoria and have never ridden at NF. I would love some info on the routes and some general stuff please. Is is safe to ride there alone? Is the Black Route a good option if I normally do the Buffel route at Buffelsdrift? Is it on the same technical level as the Buffel or more like Wolwespruit(  )? Is there a nice coffee shop for a breakfast afterwards?

Your advice would be appreciated!

Have a good riding weekend!

[dave303e]

breakfast afterwards is available.

less technical than buffelsdrift but a lot of fun still