G
G
Guest
like everything in life good dirt jumps are only made if you put the time and effort into making them, this takes time, commitment and motivation
ok lets get started
location.
there are two main places to build dirt jumps. in a field or in a forest. they both have there pros and cons, like a field s good because there are no trees in the way and easy to get too. but they dry out and crumble or the wind stops you from riding and they get found by the wrong people. digging in the woods is good because jumps are hard to find and are protected form wind, sun and diggers ect but is bad because they have to turn and sometimes are always wet.
you want the jumps to be on a slight downhill and the run up to be steep (although the jumps can be on flat but you need to be very good at pumping)
the most important thing to concider in the location is the run up. a good run up is down hill and straght and about 80 foot long. another thing to concider are how many jumps you want to build. a medium sized 6 pack should take up about 80 feet of space. dont forget the run out!!! you can build a berm at the end. try to get planning permission from the counsil and if its private land written permission is a must. but if you are going to do the stupid thing...DONT cut down trees! and dont drop litter and try to hide them.
Equipment
to start building your track you will need some equipment
a spade (prefebly long handled)
a small spade (for fine work)
a shovel for shifting
a wheel barrow
a rake
a pick
a watrering can
a broom
of course not all above is needed , but they help out
getting started
once you've found you place and got permission!!! try and get motavation. search google for images this will give you a better idea of what you want in the end. round up a group of mates to help. work will get done twice as fast.
check the mud in the area. if it is sand then your jumps aint going to last long...sand crumbles when its dry and sould be keept wet. what you are looking for is clay. goes rock hard and super smooth. although it is hard to dig....dont put stones in the jumps and DONT USE LOGS!!!! these ruin the shape of any jump. all good jumps are 100% dirt.
clear out the run up and the area where you are digging of weeds and overgrowth, (not trees) do this by choping the bottom of the weed then swiping it with a spade. this will make digging alot easyer. then get sticks and mark out where you want to put the jumps this will help getting a better idea of what you want to get.
The work begins
the first steep is to pile the mud up...
the best time to dig is in the rain. this helps the jumps to pile up and will make life alot easyer. dont go and dig a random hole! you get the mud from the bowls in between the jumps. the best jumps start with a set up jump, this has a small take off and no bowl infront of it, they have a fast kick. the best way to pile up mud is to do it in levels, these are the base (a foot of the ground) the middle and the lip. at each stage stamp down the mud on top, and stamp down the sides. the shape you want to get is a square base and a sloping sides, a sloping top and a rectanguler top. this will help them get stong and give a level base to build onto. the best way to dig out the ground is with blocks of mud and slap them on the pile. these go hard faster.
the landings are steep and have a bowl that goes deeper than ground leval. these help to get you into the flow of the jumps and help with speed. the bowl should have a constant curve. no flat bits and should be as smooth as it possably can. bumps take away momentum. the deepest part of the bowl shoulod be in the middle.
shaping
this is where you need patiants(sp?) this is an art you know! firstly stamp down the jump with your feet, this helps to get a basic shape and compresses the dirt, it is better to shape when the dirt is really wet. remember! the shape your trying to get is a triangle with a flat top. the more the sides slope, the stronger the jump will be. To shape the most important part, the transition, first stamp down the mud then fill a wheelbarrow with mud and roll up and down the tranny (and only the tranny!), this helps to give it a perfect constant curve and it also packs in the mud more. after that you will notice the tranny will have small bumps so to finish it off and properly compress it, get a flat sided spade and hit it down, if mud sticks to the spade then it isnt wet enough underneath (leave untill it rains) rember the shape you wanty is a constant curve and a steep lip (but no too steep for obvious reasons) after youve done the tranny hit the sides with the spade untill it is hard. for the landing do the same but the landing should be the same steepness but not as much of a curve in the transiton.
Drainage
this is possably the most imprortant part of your trails. good drainage will alow you to ride when its been wet. dig drainge at the side of the bowls, this can be judged when it rains and you know where puddles form and you can see the direction where the water flows. dig a small hole about a foot deep half a foot wide and a foot long, this should be enough depending on the earth you are useing.
Tabletops!
i have added this because a user asked. this is where a wheelbarrow and alot of friends comes in handy!
these are good because you can add / takeaway as much of the lip / landing as you want without moving the jump itself.
a good size to start with is a bowl infront of the first (for the mud) of arould 2 foot deep and 4 foot wide, and 6-7 foot long. the table should only come about two foot out of the ground. (so in theory, the jump is 4 foot heigh) the length should be about 5 foot. a steep landing is good on tables too.
use these measurements for the next one but add about a foot accrordingly to the gradiant of the ground you are working on.
start by filling a wheelbarrow with mud and making a massive pile where you want the jump to be, it doesnt matter if the pile isnt even.
every now and again, rake the pile even and stamp it down. then pile more on.
when the height you want is achived, start pileing the mud infront and behind for the landing and take off. stamp this down and keep adding! (the more you add, the longer the jump)
do exactly what i said in the shaping section to create the tranny and landing. these are very easy too build but take a long time. the more you add the better, also, using your feet for the packing down is better because it applys more pressure.
Maintanance
too wet to ride eh??! well dont be miserable. grap a waterproof coat and do some patching up on your trails. these tips will prolong the life of your jumps.
if it is wet..
*start by picking up any litter (for obviouas reasons).
*rake up sticks and leaves from the run up, bowls and run out.
*make sure the drainage is effective.
*fix the lips of your jumps by slapping on some uber wet mud and shaping it.
*fill in any cracks
ok lets get started
location.
there are two main places to build dirt jumps. in a field or in a forest. they both have there pros and cons, like a field s good because there are no trees in the way and easy to get too. but they dry out and crumble or the wind stops you from riding and they get found by the wrong people. digging in the woods is good because jumps are hard to find and are protected form wind, sun and diggers ect but is bad because they have to turn and sometimes are always wet.
you want the jumps to be on a slight downhill and the run up to be steep (although the jumps can be on flat but you need to be very good at pumping)
the most important thing to concider in the location is the run up. a good run up is down hill and straght and about 80 foot long. another thing to concider are how many jumps you want to build. a medium sized 6 pack should take up about 80 feet of space. dont forget the run out!!! you can build a berm at the end. try to get planning permission from the counsil and if its private land written permission is a must. but if you are going to do the stupid thing...DONT cut down trees! and dont drop litter and try to hide them.
Equipment
to start building your track you will need some equipment
a spade (prefebly long handled)
a small spade (for fine work)
a shovel for shifting
a wheel barrow
a rake
a pick
a watrering can
a broom
of course not all above is needed , but they help out
getting started
once you've found you place and got permission!!! try and get motavation. search google for images this will give you a better idea of what you want in the end. round up a group of mates to help. work will get done twice as fast.
check the mud in the area. if it is sand then your jumps aint going to last long...sand crumbles when its dry and sould be keept wet. what you are looking for is clay. goes rock hard and super smooth. although it is hard to dig....dont put stones in the jumps and DONT USE LOGS!!!! these ruin the shape of any jump. all good jumps are 100% dirt.
clear out the run up and the area where you are digging of weeds and overgrowth, (not trees) do this by choping the bottom of the weed then swiping it with a spade. this will make digging alot easyer. then get sticks and mark out where you want to put the jumps this will help getting a better idea of what you want to get.
The work begins
the first steep is to pile the mud up...
the best time to dig is in the rain. this helps the jumps to pile up and will make life alot easyer. dont go and dig a random hole! you get the mud from the bowls in between the jumps. the best jumps start with a set up jump, this has a small take off and no bowl infront of it, they have a fast kick. the best way to pile up mud is to do it in levels, these are the base (a foot of the ground) the middle and the lip. at each stage stamp down the mud on top, and stamp down the sides. the shape you want to get is a square base and a sloping sides, a sloping top and a rectanguler top. this will help them get stong and give a level base to build onto. the best way to dig out the ground is with blocks of mud and slap them on the pile. these go hard faster.
the landings are steep and have a bowl that goes deeper than ground leval. these help to get you into the flow of the jumps and help with speed. the bowl should have a constant curve. no flat bits and should be as smooth as it possably can. bumps take away momentum. the deepest part of the bowl shoulod be in the middle.
shaping
this is where you need patiants(sp?) this is an art you know! firstly stamp down the jump with your feet, this helps to get a basic shape and compresses the dirt, it is better to shape when the dirt is really wet. remember! the shape your trying to get is a triangle with a flat top. the more the sides slope, the stronger the jump will be. To shape the most important part, the transition, first stamp down the mud then fill a wheelbarrow with mud and roll up and down the tranny (and only the tranny!), this helps to give it a perfect constant curve and it also packs in the mud more. after that you will notice the tranny will have small bumps so to finish it off and properly compress it, get a flat sided spade and hit it down, if mud sticks to the spade then it isnt wet enough underneath (leave untill it rains) rember the shape you wanty is a constant curve and a steep lip (but no too steep for obvious reasons) after youve done the tranny hit the sides with the spade untill it is hard. for the landing do the same but the landing should be the same steepness but not as much of a curve in the transiton.
Drainage
this is possably the most imprortant part of your trails. good drainage will alow you to ride when its been wet. dig drainge at the side of the bowls, this can be judged when it rains and you know where puddles form and you can see the direction where the water flows. dig a small hole about a foot deep half a foot wide and a foot long, this should be enough depending on the earth you are useing.
Tabletops!
i have added this because a user asked. this is where a wheelbarrow and alot of friends comes in handy!
these are good because you can add / takeaway as much of the lip / landing as you want without moving the jump itself.
a good size to start with is a bowl infront of the first (for the mud) of arould 2 foot deep and 4 foot wide, and 6-7 foot long. the table should only come about two foot out of the ground. (so in theory, the jump is 4 foot heigh) the length should be about 5 foot. a steep landing is good on tables too.
use these measurements for the next one but add about a foot accrordingly to the gradiant of the ground you are working on.
start by filling a wheelbarrow with mud and making a massive pile where you want the jump to be, it doesnt matter if the pile isnt even.
every now and again, rake the pile even and stamp it down. then pile more on.
when the height you want is achived, start pileing the mud infront and behind for the landing and take off. stamp this down and keep adding! (the more you add, the longer the jump)
do exactly what i said in the shaping section to create the tranny and landing. these are very easy too build but take a long time. the more you add the better, also, using your feet for the packing down is better because it applys more pressure.
Maintanance
too wet to ride eh??! well dont be miserable. grap a waterproof coat and do some patching up on your trails. these tips will prolong the life of your jumps.
if it is wet..
*start by picking up any litter (for obviouas reasons).
*rake up sticks and leaves from the run up, bowls and run out.
*make sure the drainage is effective.
*fix the lips of your jumps by slapping on some uber wet mud and shaping it.
*fill in any cracks