October 27, 2004
We've received our permit from the City of Austin to rebuild Sunday's trails!!!!. Greg Tait has led the effort to design and document the new track with Jason, Redd, and several others. We were given a few dirt suppliers and the riders went out and found some that has a lot of clay in it and should work well for the jumps. The land has been cleared and is being prepped for the construction work. Once we know the date we will be getting the dirt, we will call a work day for those who would like to help. If the price of the dirt to do the full track is beyond PARDs budget for the project, we will probably hold a fundraiser (options are being discussed now). If you check out the design link above you;ll see that these jumps will be as extensive as the 9th St jumps.
There are a few concerns moving forward that we all need to be aware of. One main issue is parking. S 6th Street is a small dead end street with much less parking than 9th St. Instead of making no parking zones immediately, we have decided to wait and see if it becomes a problem first. There are several other areas nearby that can be used for parking, so please keep this in mind. Another concern is shade. The new jumps are not in the old jump location through the trees for a few reasons. Our approach will be to put in the jumps, then plant some fast growth trees that will eventually give the riders the canopy they need (like 9th street). The last issue is water. I would eventually like to get a fountain for drinking and a spigot for spraying the jumps with in dry weather, but that will have to wait for now. Initially riders will have to bring in their own drinks, and we are looking at options for getting water to the jumps (esp for our initial work day).
I would like to thank PARD for their ongoing efforts to make these new jumps possible. There has been a lot of work put forth by many PARD employees to expedite this happening. I would also like to thank the bikers for their efforts to meet with PARD and BCNA to design and build a new sanctioned track. Lastly I would like to thank all the BCNA members who have shown support through this process.
February 11, 2004
On Wednesday , PARD, Austin City and Bouldin Creek Neighborhood representatives met to discuss rebuilding Sunday's trails. There are neighborhood discussions and environmental impact studies currently going on. In about two weeks, there will be another meeting and we hope that some of the original builders will attend, including Jason. BCNA will contact the surrounding neighbors to the site to discuss concerns. Hopefully a positive vote from the neighborhood will happen soon, and the approval process for legal BMX trails will occur soon after. Even though this event started out on the wrong foot, we're hoping the outcome will be positive for everyone involved. I think PARD is working hard on this to send the message out that they are willing to work with a variety of demands on our public spaces.
PARD's initial reaction in this case was for public safety. There were large holes that were dug that they would have been held accountable for if someone were to be injured by falling in them. While many of us feel the reaction was too swift and harsh...they were doing their job. Also they could have been held accountable for injuries from bikers. As users of our parks we need to be sensitive to their process and concerns as much as they need to accommodate for our needs. Over ten years ago the current PARD director was one of the key players in figuring out how the city could legally approve the use of Duncan Park for BMX use without the city being held liable for injuries sustained there. They worked it out, and I think everyone is aware of the success of the project. There is obviously more demands for similar trails than there were ten years ago, but we need to be sure to build them legally so that PARD and the City will not be held liable for injuries intrinsic in the sport. It's also best for our greenbelts if designs are done with environmental concerns being addressed. There are experts in Austin that can be consulted with for erosion concerns, tree health, etc, who would also be brought into the picture if a formal approval process is used when building trails. The design considerations are not that limiting, but they could make a big difference in the longevity of the park, the trees, and the trails. If trails are built correctly and with the right materials, it also means much less maintenance by the users... which means more jump time. If Sunday's trails are approved, the city will bring in the dirt to be used for the jumps. I'm going to see if we can find some dirt of similar grade as was used for the original jumps, which shapes and compacts well (heavy clay content).
Hopefully, soon we'll see Sunday's trails back in action!!
Images of Jason Sunday's Trails in the Bouldin Creek Greenbelt before and after PARD leveled them on the weekend of January 30, 2004. The before pictures were made by a BMX rider who rode them while visiting from South Africa....
Some Photos, taken by Dave Leep, of BMXers using the jumps at Sunday's Trails can be found a the bottom of the page...also found in the Gallery section of My Bars Are Tweaked (Austin Gallery 8-11).
City demolishes BMX track on park land - Austin American Statesman article about the incident (have to be a member to log in) - from the Metro section 02/04/04
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web site by Chuck Furlong