A Virtual Ride

Here's a video sampling of the Smithville Lake trails, thanks to Tim King!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

With all the rain we are getting as of late, I'm sure you all are just as frustrated with the lack of "trail time" as I am. But it is important that we stay off of the singletrack trails until they are dry enough to ride without leaving ruts and mudholes.

If you are new to mountain biking or trail running the lure of a "mud run" (or ride) might seem like a chance for a different trail adventure or challenge to be conquered, but the damage done to the trails by riding or running in wet conditions can lead to serious erosion problems and lots of man-hours to repair.

One way to keep abreast of trail closures due to weather is to follow KC Trail Status on twitter.com.

To get connected, go to http://twitter.com and follow KcTrailsStatus – its direct URL is http://twitter.com/KcTrailsStatus. As with any Twitter account, you can subscribe to an RSS feed, elect to receive SMS messages, etc.

New Walkway on Happy Jack

The South concrete cylinders crossing on Happy Jack has been suffering from "wash outs" for the last several years. Each time the repair last until the next big rain, but we lose a few cylinders each time. Today (5/30/2010) several of the "faithful" created a more permanent fix...an elevated walkway! What a fantastic addition to the trail system.
Also, over the last week at least a dozen different individuals have been "Earning their Dirt" by trimming and mowing various sections of the trail system. If you enjoy the Smithville Lake singletrack trails and would like to lend a hand in maintaining them, which is ALL done by volunteers, drop us an email.
Thanks to everyone for all your recent efforts!

Closed for Managed Turkey Hunt May 8 & 9 2010

The entire trail system including asphalt will be closed for "Special Hunts for Persons with Disabilities" May 8 & 9

More information: http://mdc.mo.gov/hunt/turkey/sprturk/managed.htm

Bone Bender MTB Race a Success!

On April 18th, MultiSports Marketing held the 2nd Annual Bone Bender MTB race on the Smithville Lake MTB trails.
The trails were in near perfect condition thanks to the tireless efforts of the ERTA trail volunteers that make up the "core" group for the Smithville Lake trails. Several dedicated volunteers spent 1/2 Friday and all day on Saturday prepping the course for Sunday's event.
Mother Nature cooperated and Sunday started off in the upper 30s, but the sunshine and calm winds helped make for a near perfect day for MTB racing...and the Midwest racers responded in kind.
Nearly 270 racers converged on Sailboat Cove to compete in one of several classes ranging from solo or team 3-hour or 6-hour categories to singlespeed or clydesdales (racers over 200 lbs).
Here's a Youtube video taken on one of the first stretches of singletrack on lap one... a bit of a traffic jam!



Great BIG props to all of the volunteers that came together to make this race a success on race day, from course marshalls to the Midwest MTB Patrol to the fine folks from Earth Riders MTB Club who spent the day behind the grill to feed the hunger masses! Thank you one and all!
A special THANK YOU to MultiSport and Chris Locke for making this event happen! All proceeds from the race go the ERTA who helps to build and maintain nearly 100 miles of singletrack in the KC region.
(Photos courtesy of Eclectic Arts Images)

KC Trail Conditions Are Just A Tweet Away

So, you’re stuck in rush hour traffic, hoping to get out on your favorite trails before dark, and you’re wondering what the trail conditions are like?

Well, wonder no more – Earth Riders MTB Club has hooked up a Twitter feed to the trail conditions information they provide on their forums (http://forums.earthriders.com) for all the metro area trails.

Now, when the trail status is updated on the forums, KcTrailsStatus will tweet the conditions, for example:


#SMP CLOSED: Not Rideable (ptooi)


To get connected, go to http://twitter.com and follow KcTrailsStatus – its direct URL is http://twitter.com/KcTrailsStatus. As with any Twitter account, you can subscribe to an RSS feed, elect to receive SMS messages, etc.

Workday Canceled 3/13/10

DUE TO THE WEATHER AND WET SOIL CONDITIONS, THE PLANNED WORKDAY FOR SMITHVILLE TRAILS WILL BE CANCELED. DON'T FORGET THE NEXT ONE 4/17!!