nice!!!

Calabazas isnt that bad, just gotta step up the skills

 

I'm hoping it's designed correctly, unlike Calabazas.

I've heard this complaint before and I'm wondering why you think it isn't designed correctly? I I rode there for the first time last weekend and thought it was pretty fun. Granted, I totally suck at jumps but some of the flow sections are fun and a pretty good workout to boot.

 

That location would make for great lunchtime riding for those of us who work nearby (e.g. Google, NASA Ames, Microsoft)!

 

I found Cali fun, but I also found that some of the jumps are a bit too close together (the part that leads you from the beginner and intermediate area). I think I like the jumps at belmont area.

 

It would be great to have another place to ride. It is super windy in the locations that they have marked on the map if I am remembering correctly. A pump track would be really good to have there for every level rider.

And I sure hope it isn't built by the same people who built the new Calabazas. Maybe they can get they guys from Bikeskills who built the pumptrack at Sea Otter last year. They actually ride and know what works instead of Calabazas. Calabazas is okay in my opinion but it could be way better. The front, middle and back all need to be changed for better flow.

 

There is a woman that lives in Woodside, Elaine Minton, who recently had a pump track built by a semi-pro named Steve______? Should contact her and get Steve's name. He knows what he is doing.

 

I second getting bike skill or Chris Ducan to contribute to the pump track design.:thumbsup:

 

Yeah, that's him. When I spoke with him it was a little unclear exactly WHERE he was planning to be. His friend, Lisa Myklak, seemed to indicate he was Cali bound. Anyway...he's a great guy.

 

Because it was designed by a skater not a biker. It wasn't designed by the BMX group either. Several expert/pro riders told the city how unsafe it is, and they didn't care.

It's not really unsafe, they're just not that great. If they hired bike riders to build it, it would have been cheaper and more fun to ride.

This is just my speculation: based on other threads on Calabazas, I believe that the company which built the new Calabazas has constructed skate-parks for various municipalities so [speculation starts here] it's likely they were awarded the contract based not on their bike-park skills but rather their experience jumping through the hoops to win government contracts: filling-out a pile of paperwork, getting qualified, having product liability insurance, etc. Anyone who has ever dealt with government contracting knows what a pain it can be. Would Bikeskills or Chris Ducan or Steve Wentz, etc. want to bother with this gov't nonsense?

Please, correct me if I'm wrong.

///Charlie

 

This afternoon I rode out to the Potential Bike Park Sites on this map:

The site to the right on the map-the Crittenden Overflow Basin-is the recommended location. First picture: the Stevens Creek Trail is on the right, a Google parking lot on the far side of the basin, and the pump station is the brown & green structure:

An access road to the back entrance of Shoreline Amphitheater parking runs through the Crittenden Overflow Basin:

The other site (left) is a narrow strip of land between this road and the Shoreline Amphitheater parking lot


Click thumbnail to see larger picture.

The embankments make the narrow strip of land even narrower:

I hope this is of interest,
///Charlie

 

Calabazas is a shame,i feel with a little bit of rider input things could have been much better.I sure miss the old Cali.
I hope the shorline park becomes reality,we need places to ride.It would be awesome too if the bike/skills parks start catching on like skateparks.Having one in every neighorhood would give kids of all ages something fun to do.
Thanks for the pics Skyline35.those locations would work for some pump tracks.

 

any updates on the park???

 

On Passion there's post about a really cool looking park being built in Boise ID. We need something like this around here:

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?p=4999790&page=2

 

Right now it is in red tape with PG&E; they are concerned with easements, heights and access. If you notice the power lines in <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com

,</st1ersonName> heights and access. If you notice <st1ersonName w:st=" /><st1ersonName w:st="on">the</st1ersonName> pics above, <st1ersonName w:st="on">the</st1ersonName> park wouldbe really close to PG&E power lines. I will find out more tomorrow.

 

sounds cool the grade would be good for an pump track and or jumps

 

A sad update...

Some follow-up on that old article about plans for a municipal jump park in Mountain View...

https://www.mv-voice.com/news/show_story.php?id=1888

The city has already budgeted $60,000 for an official BMX park that would likely have broader appeal to both novice and highly skilled BMX and mountain bike riders. The city has even selected a site for the park: a long slice of land which sits between a levy at Shoreline Park and Google's Crittenden Lane Campus under a set of PG&E power poles.

The City Council, however, has not moved the project forward for several years. Martello said the project, which was originally envisioned to cost only $60,000 -- to simply dump dirt and have volunteers build a track -- is likely to be significantly more expensive if the jumps have to be designed and certified for safety.

Oh, and those "Creek Trails" jumps next to the Stevens Creek Trail were bulldozed last week.

In the name of safety and to protect itself from lawsuits, the city took a bulldozer last week to the result of years of work by local youths: The informal BMX park known as "Creek Trails," located in plain sight of the Stevens Creek Trail at Central Avenue.

The dirt bicycle track had been there for at least 20 years, its large jumps and berms built and rebuilt by daring bicyclists, usually teens, with the intention of getting airborne on their bikes...

///Charlie

Believe it or not, that story was the headline...sorry it is so small but it says "Ad hoc BMX park bulldozed by city":

 

Oh, and those "Creek Trails" jumps next to the Stevens Creek Trail were bulldozed last week.

That really sucks. I pedaled past there just last week on my way home from work and it was still there.

I guess BMXers aren't welcome in Mountain View. :madmax:

 

Thats really too bad.

Those jumps are no where near "big"

 

They also bulldozed a section of pump over by whisman/dana too.

 

Whadda buncha crap that they bulldozed some jumps on public land. I guess the kids can go back to playing X-box. 'Course they couldn't even wait until a replacement was built. Ooops, we don't have any money, there is no replacement...

Does anyone else find it amusing that the proposed site is next to the "Pump Station"?

 

Oh, and those "Creek Trails" jumps next to the Stevens Creek Trail were bulldozed last week.

Motherfu.ckers! :madmax:

I was going there all the time. Asswipes. Was going to by a BMX bike as wel, partially because of that spot.

Either horses or bulldozers. How much longer we all will keep sucking up for access instead of demanding it?

How much a bulldozer did cost them for a day? Could not they find a better use for our money? Rethorical quetions, I know. Bunch of idiots.

Wrote an email to city manager. Useless, I know, but keeping silence is even more useless.

 

...but keeping silence is even more uselessbut keeping silence is even more useless.

Amen. I have to remind myself of that all the time. If nobody speaks up, nothing will change.

 

These have been bulldozed plenty of times ...they always seem to make it back; 4-5 times since I was a kid. They will come back as they always have. As for access these jumps are along a trail that continues to get bigger year by year.It might not be mtb access but neither were the jumps; they were BMX.
Dont get me wrong I am still pissed, but more so at all the sue happy people who look a local governments as "deep pockets" for lawsuits. I
As for the bulldozer: the city owns one or two and they paid cash, and it took about two hours.

This was posted by the attorney on the MV Voice forums

"Posted by Michael Martello, City Attorney, a resident of the Sylvan Park neighborhood, on Aug 24, 2009 at 5:25 pm
Boy, this is one of the times I hate being an adult. I am an old skateboarder and surfer at heart and have owned more bikes than I care to admit. Nevertheless, it was I who asked that our recreation folks level the impromptu bike jumps. The comments in this blog to date are a great reflection on Mountain View as they evidence a community of thought and opinion on this subject. As one who has watched kids enjoying themselves at a birthday pary at San Jose's Calabassas facility, I know how much fun they can have. As one concerned for safety, what some kids are able to do on the jumps is sometimes frightening. As your city attorney, and charged with an important role in ensuring proper risk management, the call is simple. Make no mistake, we act first out of concern for safety and secondly out of concern for liability exposure. On both counts, we had but one decision to make.

I would be happy to talk to or meet with anyone who would like to on this subject. my office number is (650) 903-6303"

 

That sucks they bulldozed em.

Sucks they estimate costs and use calabazas as reference. :madman:

Using the calabazas gone awry, change-order and over-budget project isn't a good indication of what it should cost.

How do all these cities manage to have skate park but not bike parks?

Cement is harder than dirt and both have potential for injuries....

 

How do all these cities manage to have skate park but not bike parks?

Cement is harder than dirt and both have potential for injuries....

Correct. But cement can be built to spec and engineered to a certain standard to avoid extra risks&#8230; The problem (problem that has solutions though) is that dirt can erode and deteriorate which can lead to potential risk. This is a problem if you (the cities) install and maintain the parks. One could argue that the jumps were not maintained at the correct angle/height/hardness to prevent injury. Some would say do not do maintenance or leave the maintenance to others, this again could lead to other liabilities, such as improper maintenance, user conflict, and lack of maintenance. Some would say have a disclaimer that you use at your own risk, but this would support the fact that the jumps are built and maintained with some sort of standard in mind i.e.
You go to Kirkwood to snowboard you sign a disclaimer if you get hurt on the mountain you knew the inherit danger of snowboarding. You can't sue if you go bono. But you should expect that the lifts are maintained at certain standard. If they fail and you break your neck and can prove that the lifts were not maintained to spec than believe me YOU CAN SUE!
Disclaimer: I work for Mountain View and I am pissed about the jumps (as a citizen)