greg_sa Posted April 21, 2017 Share At Meerendal, Dorstberg is a decent climb... Without it, the climbs are minimal. I normally ride a full loop in about an hour, about 15km I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OemD Posted April 21, 2017 Share At Meerendal, Dorstberg is a decent climb... Without it, the climbs are minimal. I normally ride a full loop in about an hour, about 15km I think.Some of the previous comments refered to Meerendal as "Meer-en-Dull" and when comparing it to WelvanPas, 1 person said the gravel road to WvP is more technical then the Meerendal trails. I went last Saturday..My observations:The name should be Meer-as-dull...No Challenge what so ever... The restaurant and facilities ...GREAT!!! Trail markings - Need improvement Overall trails very well suited to beginners (and we need that) not for ppl looking for a challenge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Stewart Posted April 21, 2017 Share Sheez, so much hate. rant onIf anyone thinks Meerendal is boring...no-one is forcing you to ride there. You do that completely of your own volition. So perhaps, rather don't ride there and then come spew your distaste here (or elsewhere for that matter) as that is, well, distasteful as well.rant over. On Monday I was pedaling up Dorstberg, and watched 3 proper and spectacular tumbles occur by riders bombing down the ST. The first guy bought the farm on the "jump" at the bit that crosses the road going up the hill, the second plowed a rock as he was indecisive about Craig's Conundrum, and the third poor sod decided to do a OTB from a stationary start at the drop-off at the very same Craig's Conundrum. All this happened with 5 minutes from one another.I must say I did not find that bit boring at all...but hey, that's just me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dev null Posted April 21, 2017 Share Some of the previous comments refered to Meerendal as "Meer-en-Dull" and when comparing it to WelvanPas, 1 person said the gravel road to WvP is more technical then the Meerendal trails. I went last Saturday..My observations:The name should be Meer-as-dull...No Challenge what so ever... The restaurant and facilities ...GREAT!!! Trail markings - Need improvement Overall trails very well suited to beginners (and we need that) not for ppl looking for a challenge. So, if I regularly ride Welvanpas White, Helderberg Red, G-Spot and Coetzenburg without falling (my tumble at Coetzenburg was technically not a fall ), then Meerendal will be a snore-fest? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ride Rate Review Posted April 21, 2017 Share Some of the previous comments refered to Meerendal as "Meer-en-Dull" and when comparing it to WelvanPas, 1 person said the gravel road to WvP is more technical then the Meerendal trails. I went last Saturday..My observations:The name should be Meer-as-dull...No Challenge what so ever... The restaurant and facilities ...GREAT!!! Trail markings - Need improvement Overall trails very well suited to beginners (and we need that) not for ppl looking for a challenge. There has to be a trail in the Tygerberg network where visitors and newcomers can start getting accustomed to off road & single track conditions. If you want a little fun there then i suggest smashing a few loops of Meerendal on a road bike. Sheez, so much hate. rant onIf anyone thinks Meerendal is boring...no-one is forcing you to ride there. You do that completely of your own volition. So perhaps, rather don't ride there and then come spew your distaste here (or elsewhere for that matter) as that is, well, distasteful as well. rant over. On Monday I was pedaling up Dorstberg, and watched 3 proper and spectacular tumbles occur by riders bombing down the ST. The first guy bought the farm on the "jump" at the bit that crosses the road going up the hill, the second plowed a rock as he was indecisive about Craig's Conundrum, and the third poor sod decided to do a OTB from a stationary start at the drop-off at the very same Craig's Conundrum. All this happened with 5 minutes from one another. I must say I did not find that bit boring at all...but hey, that's just me.I am on the trails a lot and see all sorts of things, falls, k.o's, hell i even scraped a dude off a berm and helped him contact a loved one as he was pretty post toastied. What i do see the most is 85% of people are so nervous on their bike that it looks like they are about to being strung and given 1000 lashes, on the slightest descents, I rack that up poor bike choices. If they had a more comfortable bike that was more relaxed, things may have been different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OemD Posted April 21, 2017 Share There has to be a trail in the Tygerberg network where visitors and newcomers can start getting accustomed to off road & single track conditions. Isn't that what I'm saying?We need trails like Meerendal...ABSOLUTELY!!MEERENDAL IS PERFECT FOR BEGINNERS or more advance riders who just want a nice ride. SO in conclustion: MEERENDAL HAS ITS PLACE IN THE MTB'ing WORLD.I will visit again. My 10 yr old son needs the practice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OemD Posted April 21, 2017 Share So, if I regularly ride Welvanpas White, Helderberg Red, G-Spot and Coetzenburg without falling (my tumble at Coetzenburg was technically not a fall ), then Meerendal will be a snore-fest? Can only comment on WvP (white), haven't had the pleasure of the other trails you mentioned yet. WvP (White) and the black route is very technical (or advance technical). Meerendal is for beginners. So if you are comfortable on the WvP White,then Meerendal as a route is not for you. Just a side note: I know the WvP (Black and Yellow) is closed at the moment. I have set this challenge for myself for 2017. Complete WvP White and Black in 1 ride. Estimate time 7-8hours of pain (hopefully around Sept- Oct)....Lets GO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dev null Posted April 21, 2017 Share Can only comment on WvP (white), haven't had the pleasure of the other trails you mentioned yet. WvP (White) and the black route is very technical (or advance technical). Meerendal is for beginners. So if you are comfortable on the WvP White,then Meerendal as a route is not for you. Just a side note: I know the WvP (Black and Yellow) is closed at the moment. I have set this challenge for myself for 2017. Complete WvP White and Black in 1 ride. Estimate time 7-8hours of pain (hopefully around Sept- Oct)....Lets GO White is just under 1000m of climbing and black just over. White is about 29km and black about 27km. Budget about 2h30 per ride if you are an average mid-packer. Make sure you have some Rennies in your back pocket. Can't wait for the black/yellow to open. Come and do Eden/G-Spot. It is free, and I guarantee you that you will be back often. Park at the Spez Concept Store, and have a coffee there afterwards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thermophage Posted April 21, 2017 Share Can only comment on WvP (white), haven't had the pleasure of the other trails you mentioned yet. WvP (White) and the black route is very technical (or advance technical). Meerendal is for beginners. So if you are comfortable on the WvP White,then Meerendal as a route is not for you. Just a side note: I know the WvP (Black and Yellow) is closed at the moment. I have set this challenge for myself for 2017. Complete WvP White and Black in 1 ride. Estimate time 7-8hours of pain (hopefully around Sept- Oct)....Lets GOSorry gai, but if WVP Black is your idea of advanced technical...eish...Thats why Merendull should be only be for real beginners. A 10 year old kid is gonna progress way faster than a 40 year old on a super unforgiving Spez Eepic. Take your kid d somewhere else occasionally too.As Wayne says..the number of people I i see on Tygerberg trails looking absolutely terrified on any descent...even gravel roads is in itself scary.2 reasons...first is *** bike choice for your level of skill. I.e. don't buy a marathon n bike as a beginner! and secondly don't listen to half the people on the trails with regards to their opinion on the level of tech difficulty. \if someone tells you it's gonna be hard or scary then it will bee hard and scary and you will continue to look terrified.We need more technical trails here. We have severely little and this BS about people saying "if it's not tech enough ride faster"...tech doesn't mean fast and fast doesn't necessarily make it more tech either...just outright dangerous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'Dale Posted April 21, 2017 Share I often do Dorsberg laps and it really warms me up hey ????Any trail is rough and tough depending how fast and looong you go Granted, technically, it is fantastic for the beginner and the 7 year olds on their Avalanche bikes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mamil Posted April 21, 2017 Share I wouldn't say WVP is advanced technical but I don't think it is an easy route. So much hate for Meernendal though - I like it there - a nice climb to the top of Dorstberg - a nice fast descent to the bottom again with lots of swooping berms and a few bumps on the upper bit - another loop to the fun Xmas down segment on the far side - a little sprint round the vineyard and that's a fast 20k while the S.O and offspring do a little trail jog followed by a coffee and a burger with more calories than I just burned - nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Or start at either Meerenedal or Conties and put the two together for a 30something cross country ride with a good 800m or so of ascent. When I was even more of a beginner than I currently am the Dorstberg descent would have been properly scary. I reckon it would be irresponsible to take a real beginner up there. I once saw a youngster taking his girl down that hill - she was clueless - and could so easily have been hurt. I chatted to them and discovered it was her first ride ever. I thought him an idiot but didn't say so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dicky DQ Posted April 21, 2017 Share There has to be a trail in the Tygerberg network where visitors and newcomers can start getting accustomed to off road & single track conditions. If you want a little fun there then i suggest smashing a few loops of Meerendal on a road bike. I am on the trails a lot and see all sorts of things, falls, k.o's, hell i even scraped a dude off a berm and helped him contact a loved one as he was pretty post toastied. What i do see the most is 85% of people are so nervous on their bike that it looks like they are about to being strung and given 1000 lashes, on the slightest descents, I rack that up poor bike choices. If they had a more comfortable bike that was more relaxed, things may have been different.And this is why they are dumbing down all the trails. One of these days you will be able to do it all on a CX bike. Everyone wants to cater for the masses. This is not necessarily bad, just don't expect others to think that it is a rad ride. But there still needs to be proper Xc MTB trails for those that are semi capable and double blacks for the DH gonad carriers. There needs to be a balance and people need to understand that they should learn to progress from dumb and dal type routes to proper routes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dicky DQ Posted April 21, 2017 Share I wouldn't say WVP is advanced technical but I don't think it is an easy route. So much hate for Meernendal though - I like it there - a nice climb to the top of Dorstberg - a nice fast descent to the bottom again with lots of swooping berms and a few bumps on the upper bit - another loop to the fun Xmas down segment on the far side - a little sprint round the vineyard and that's a fast 20k while the S.O and offspring do a little trail jog followed by a coffee and a burger with more calories than I just burned - nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Or start at either Meerenedal or Conties and put the two together for a 30something cross country ride with a good 800m or so of ascent. When I was even more of a beginner than I currently am the Dorstberg descent would have been properly scary. I reckon it would be irresponsible to take a real beginner up there. I once saw a youngster taking his girl down that hill - she was clueless - and could so easily have been hurt. I chatted to them and discovered it was her first ride ever. I thought him an idiot but didn't say so.Not a question of hate, just noting that it is not technical, so trying to get the dudes that think it is to get with the skills program. There HAS to be routes like this for the beginners! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GLuvsMtb Posted April 25, 2017 Share People miss the rant about Meerendal entirely. What people are asking for is a bit of variety on Meerendal, i.e. Have the beginner loops, but put some well marked advanced sections in as well that the beginner need to totally by-pass, not just make their own trail past an obstacle. What most advanced riders would like to do when they take beginners out for a ride is to be able to do 1 or 2 of the more technical sections and catch up again with the beginners / do a second lap at the same trail after the beginners have had a ride. Here is where Meerendal falls short. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wannabe Posted April 25, 2017 Share If they make Meerendal more technical, would it not then put it out of reach of 90% of the Epic riders? They will then have to look somewhere else to do the Epic prologue. Hat, coat, door..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thermophage Posted April 25, 2017 Share If they make Meerendal more technical, would it not then put it out of reach of 90% of the Epic riders? They will then have to look somewhere else to do the Epic prologue. Hat, coat, door.....Damn...that's also true...what would they do!! :| Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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