Dig stoke, who else likes to play in the dirt???

[Andeh]

Nice work guys, I've been on the hedge trimmer doing the same thing here. It's such a minor thing, but so much better to ride afterwards. Agreed on it being murder on back. I've been battery limited because Amazon was fucking me on delivering the 6ah batteries I ordered, but the replacements finally got here.

[evdog]

Nice work guys, I've been on the hedge trimmer doing the same thing here. It's such a minor thing, but so much better to ride afterwards. Agreed on it being murder on back. I've been battery limited because Amazon was fucking me on delivering the 6ah batteries I ordered, but the replacements finally got here.

My back gets sore sometimes. Other times not as bad. On steeper side hills I focus on clearing brush above the trail since it is brush encroaching from above that can push riders off the bench. Leaving more brush on the lower side helps keep them on it. And it's easier to trim brush above.


Andeh, keep us updated on how the Amazon batteries work out. I've been interested to try some but have heard mixed reviews on them. I have a pair of 4Ah Ryobi "high performance" batteries that work pretty well. The non "high performance" 2ah batteries are worthless, last a fraction of what the 4ah batteries last.

[Andeh]

Oh, I ordered genuine Makita LXT ones, but apparently the reason they were crazy cheap is they were some shady front company. Didn't even ship the batteries for 2 weeks, even though they issued a tracking number. As soon as I went on chat to complain, miraculously the package appeared in tracking the next day. In the mean time I ordered another pair that cost $30 more but had Prime and they showed up on time. TLDR: don't buy from sellers on Amazon selling way below retail who don't do "Fulfilled by Amazon."

[jackstraw]

I went with the Milwaukee hedge trimmer attachment that connects to their weed whacker. Its pretty freaking heavy, but the shoulder strap helps a lot. I also have the chainsaw attachment, but have never used that on trail.

[LeeLau]

Blocked braids

[jackstraw]

^that looks like some fun lines

And that braid...is that a B-line to the right of the little rock roll down? Makes no sense. Either way braids drive me crazy. And if you "have to" make one, don't rake/clean it and leave a roll over stick/log at the entrance/exit so it doesn't look like a trail...ya beaters!!

[LeeLau]

^that looks like some fun lines

And that braid...is that a B-line to the right of the little rock roll down? Makes no sense. Either way braids drive me crazy. And if you "have to" make one, don't rake/clean it and leave a roll over stick/log at the entrance/exit so it doesn't look like a trail...ya beaters!!

We think it might be trail runners to be fair. Although now this is a Tourism Whistler signature trail it attracts checklist riders who walk or braid in ridearounds.

[jm2e]

Our newest trail has several “braids” that I built on purpose.
In a few spots, I wanted ride arounds because we ride in pretty sketch winter conditions and sometimes I want a safer way down. And a couple buddies wives ride inconsistently enough that they’re more likely to come out if they have a fun alternate line on the harder sections.
A few spots I wasn’t sure about what would flow the best, so I raked it two different ways, and I’m super glad I did because the better line showed itself right away. Here in the SE, the unridden line gets swallowed up by the forest in no time, so those braids will disappear on their own.
On a really fun flowy lower section, I purposefully built braids because it’s fucking fun. It’s basically a figure 8. It’s cool following mrsjm2e and then dancing down an alternate line for a few seconds before rejoining.
It’s our trail that we built and no one else knows it’s there. When they do find it, I’ll be pretty bummed if someone tries to restrict how I can ride. Alternately, if someone finds another fun way to get down this thing, more power to them as long as they build it right and don’t fuck up my existing lines.


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[jackstraw]

Well, if the OG builder builds it, is it a braid? I'd say no, it's just an alt line. Typically the braids that annoy me are "go arounds" with no flow or fun aspect to them. Just a way to avoid something difficult up or down.

[LeeLau]

The rock faces I posted were on Out There which is now 11 years old. The builder still works on it lots. He put in ride and walk arounds when it was originally put in but skill level of riders trying the trail has decreased (due to it being a checklist trail) so the 2 lines (one hard, one easy) has now become more in the nature of 3 to 5 lines.

Ultimately our braid blockers will probably be removed and the efforts won't be useful anymore but it never hurts to try

[Abies]

Don’t get to do much rock work so this was fun. Needed to build up the tread to avoid a wet area and keep a moderate grade since this is a green beginner loop.


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[MegaStoke]

This combo, M18 Hedge Trimmer in an Evoc Trail Builder pack, carries surprisingly well, to the point that I can still rip while carrying it. Although I do occasionally run the bar into overhead branches and crash…

[Andeh]

Yeah, I stash my trimmer in my Dakine Builder bag like that. I found it helps a lot to turn it sideways as you did, to allow for maximum helmet clearance off the saw blade (with guard on). It's fine to ride mellow stuff, but there's definitely a few steeper trails I hate riding with it because it sketches me out being unable to look up enough due to my helmet hitting the saw blade.

[toast2266]

^^^ I find it helps to stuff a jacket or sweatshirt into the pack. You can kind of position the jacket at the top of the pack so that it angles the top of the saw / blade away from your head.

Still gotta be careful about leaning in on corners though. I've hooked the tip of my chainsaw bar on trees and basically got ripped off the back of the bike. Unfun at the moment, kind of hilarious in retrospect.

[LeeLau]

^^^ I find it helps to stuff a jacket or sweatshirt into the pack. You can kind of position the jacket at the top of the pack so that it angles the top of the saw / blade away from your head.

Still gotta be careful about leaning in on corners though. I've hooked the tip of my chainsaw bar on trees and basically got ripped off the back of the bike. Unfun at the moment, kind of hilarious in retrospect.

I'm a bit paranoid so take the bar off the saw and carry it separately now attached to the pack.

[toast2266]

I'm a bit paranoid so take the bar off the saw and carry it separately now attached to the pack.

I do that occasionally, but a lot of the time I'm riding with a saw is for spring cleaning, when I'm just riding down a trail and cutting trees that came down over the winter. So it's riding for 30 seconds, cut a tree. Ride another 30 seconds, cut another tree. Doesn't really pencil out to pull the bar every time, and usually it's not an issue. But sometimes there aren't any trees for a bit and I start actually having fun on the bike and I kinda forget I have a 2" long snag sticking out above my head.

[jackstraw]

I've crashed in the past and luckily no injuries occurred, but ever since I'm super conservative riding with shit sticking out above my head or to the side. It really is one of the worst feelings to snag something and get thrown in a different direction other than the plan! Been doing it for years with the handlebars, but that's kind of expected and unwanted.

[MegaStoke]

Yeah, I stash my trimmer in my Dakine Builder bag like that. I found it helps a lot to turn it sideways as you did, to allow for maximum helmet clearance off the saw blade (with guard on). It's fine to ride mellow stuff, but there's definitely a few steeper trails I hate riding with it because it sketches me out being unable to look up enough due to my helmet hitting the saw blade.

I’ve got mine mounted diagonally enough that it doesn’t interfere with my helmet at all. It definitely sucked until I figured out the correct setup though.

Same goes for the M18 string trimmer which breaks apart mid shaft. As long as you position things so they don’t interfere with your head, it’s almost zero nuisance to ride with until you forget it’s there and run into overhead shit.

[jm2e]

I did that last weekend. More portable than I thought it would be.
Caught it on one branch and almost ejected though!


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[LeeLau]

I do that occasionally, but a lot of the time I'm riding with a saw is for spring cleaning, when I'm just riding down a trail and cutting trees that came down over the winter. So it's riding for 30 seconds, cut a tree. Ride another 30 seconds, cut another tree. Doesn't really pencil out to pull the bar every time, and usually it's not an issue. But sometimes there aren't any trees for a bit and I start actually having fun on the bike and I kinda forget I have a 2" long snag sticking out above my head.

Not calling you or anyone out but a local Whistler builder on Kill Me Thrill Me died falling and its rumoured he fell with a chainsaw on pack. Since my sawing is limited to biking to problem spots where I bike then get off and hike around to clear stuff taking the bar off works for me.

Definitely understand what a PITA it would be for more frequent blowdowns

[toast2266]

Not calling you or anyone out but a local Whistler builder on Kill Me Thrill Me died falling and its rumoured he fell with a chainsaw on pack. Since my sawing is limited to biking to problem spots where I bike then get off and hike around to clear stuff taking the bar off works for me.

Definitely understand what a PITA it would be for more frequent blowdowns

Damn. That's unfortunate. Biking around with the saw definitely doesn't feel like the safest thing in the world.


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[jm2e]

Not calling you or anyone out but a local Whistler builder on Kill Me Thrill Me died falling and its rumoured he fell with a chainsaw on pack. Since my sawing is limited to biking to problem spots where I bike then get off and hike around to clear stuff taking the bar off works for me.

Definitely understand what a PITA it would be for more frequent blowdowns

Sad, but hard to imagine the saw being directly responsible unless it was running while he rode!
Anything odd shaped will change your ride and adjustments should be made according to what is reasonable.
Random horrible accidents are typically horrible, and random.

[Andeh]

Yup, when riding with tool bag, I ride super slow and cautious. COG is way off, suspension is hosed from the extra 20-30 lbs of weight, brakes don't work as well, and I'm tired. Hell, even when I do work with stashed tools, I ride really carefully afterwards. I had a tumble once after digging down a ~10' slope because I was exhausted, it was muddy as hell, and was not at all in proper riding head space even though I didn't have a tool bag on.

[kootenayskier]

I’m riding around clearing trees with a saw on my pack most days at the moment, and cut out 100s of trees every Spring. My Stihl MS201 (lightweight, compact, and powerful) with a 16” bar on my Evoc Trail Builder pack sits low and stable (Dakine sits and carries higher), and doesn’t protrude above my helmet.

[t.odd]

The rock faces I posted were on Out There which is now 11 years old. The builder still works on it lots. He put in ride and walk arounds when it was originally put in but skill level of riders trying the trail has decreased (due to it being a checklist trail) so the 2 lines (one hard, one easy) has now become more in the nature of 3 to 5 lines.

Ultimately our braid blockers will probably be removed and the efforts won't be useful anymore but it never hurts to try

squamish trails are all braided to fuck and I hate it. so messy, wide, annoying.