Dirt Transplant! Giving my backyard slopestyle course a makeover

We focused on the Rhodorooter trail, which has been converted into a mini loopstyle

course

. It's packed with features from the roll to the rock garden bottom. While we've spent a lot of time perfecting jumps and wooden rollers, the

dirt

is... well, I don't really like working with

dirt

. We always try to meet deadlines here and it takes a while for dirt to harden after packing it up, especially when it's wet. Therefore, I consider dirt to be a burden and never fully commit to using it for our benefit. That has slowed down this line, so today we are turning the page and embracing the earth.

This is premium sifted hero soil, and we will use 6 tons to give the delopestyle field a soil

transplant

. This new golden land is a mixture of clay and sand. That's why it compacts incredibly well, hardens quickly and, thanks to the sand, tolerates a surprising amount of water. Despite being absolutely perfect, it is very cheap. Starting with the berm before the gathered deck, I'm using the cultivator to cut away the old tread and remove any organic matter. Loam and topsoil are fine on singletrack, but on berms and jumps it just turns to mush. The main goal of this soil

transplant

is manageability.

We know this trail can be much better, but we are losing too much speed in certain places. With the incorporation of this roller behind the berm, we will be able to gain speed without having to pedal at all. We're also reworking the ground edge that comes before the pucker pad to give you a little more boost. Kevin has been working for a professional trail construction company this summer and has learned quite a bit. Between the two of us we should be able to make this line more manageable than ever. But for Kevin, following this line will actually be the first time.

Since we built the whale tail this spring, Kevin has stayed away from this entire line. He is drawn by the apparition and has PTSD from Kevin's jump, which was his idea in the first place. But that's beside the point. When this project is finished, Kevin will put it all together. Towards the landing of the Kevin jump. By adding dirt and extending the landing to the right, we can turn it into a berm landing. So you land on a curve and continue along the wooden shoulder. That should help us keep the speed up and be really fun.

With the land transplant in full progress, all we have left is the landing of the whale tale and the berm before the Kevin jump. We will make adjustments to both. During this construction, we had multiple storms every day and although the soil became heavy and difficult to work at times, we were able to get by thanks to its high sand content. This allows it to drain and dry very quickly, and for building in a temperate rainforest, that is essential. On the other hand, my friend Eric lives in the desert, so he needs to constantly hose down his jumps to keep them from drying out and falling apart.

So if he has the luxury of choosing his land, it is best to do so based on the local climate. While we give things a chance to dry out, there are two features here that Kevin hasn't toured yet. In the short time it took Kevin to ride Drama Drop and Elmer Fudd, a storm began to approach. So even if our land wasn't quite ready, it may have been our last chance to try it. While the clay hadn't fully hardened yet, it was easily the best feeling I've ever had on this

course

. I've never been more confident in any of these features, and I've never gotten past the puckered pad without hitting the pedal.

Ironically, Kevin's main obstacle has always been the roll-in. But there is no other way to get speed for jumps, so Kevin had to accept the pucker board. Just as it started to rain, Kevin crossed the line. It turns out that that dirt wasn't even washed away by the rain. Just an hour later we were enjoying our work.