Cam McCaul takes a look at the course for the first Marzocchi Proving Grounds taking place on September 8th. The contest has three entry spots for the Red Bull Rampage up for grabs and those who missed out on selection will be fighting for the final places.
It was probably necessary to access all that dirt to build the huge jumps out of. Excavator trail and especially jump building is the dark side of our sport that turns it from being a low impact activity to a ecologically devastating one. One more reason to appreciate hand built singletrack.
We want big jumps = We want to kill trees and move the dirt.
@Laymo: I live in the moutain for years and there is always a spot without trees...... what s the point of cutting so many trees for a single competiton? It doesn t make sense, at least for me.... I really like all the riders involved into to this but fo real f*ck this event.For the laste 2 weeks most of the people talk about fire in brazil (which is a real tragedy) and you ve just cut 500 trees for making bike jumps?????
My guess is they over cleared this area to make it more festival and video production friendly. There has to be a balance between being good stewards of the earth and utilizing what we have in a responsible manner. Wether or not that is the case here, I don’t know but Oregon seems to do pretty well/getting better with it’s regulations. True conservation strikes a balance.
@OldschoolAK: what s the point? i ve never been to oregon but i m pretty sure that there is already lots of place like that..... and why always ask for more when you have everything you need arround you... I may sound like a douche but i m a huge fan of biking and really like moste of this riders but what they do really disgust me #f*ckprovinggrounds
The juniper is considered an invasive species in central Oregon by ecologists and hydrologist. Common knowledge if you manage land there. I personally would rather have some trees than no trees - from an esthetic point of view though....
@src248: I was the botanist and invasive species coordinator for the Prineville District BLM for several years and recently started working for the Oregon Department of Agriculture in Salem...... lol - are you suggesting you know more about the area trees than I do?? That Oregon Dirt Park site is surrounded by BLM land btw
If the “environmentalist” here want to sound concerned- they should be asking: *** I wonder if Kyle Jameson is going to do the responsible thing and re-seed the site with naive grasses and flowers- and not let the whole site be overrun ( and lets be honest here, it already is infested with) Medusa Rye Grass, you know, that super invasive grass that will eventually dominate the whole of state of Oregon east of the Cascades to the point where nothing else exists?? #ignoranceisbliss
500 trees sounds like a lot... but really it's maybe one hectare of area depending on the site. My hope is that at the least they would replant trees around the features and lines so this project doesn't contribute to deforestation.
Nope, U r not alone on this, Cutting trees for a stupid moto jumps that u gonna ride on DH bike is beyond moron. then how the fuck this could be named Proving Grounds Rampage Qualifier, zero sense... but hey whothe fuck am I, this is pro stuff.
Good waste of money!
@OldschoolAK: yes, we need to keep things in perspective; clearing 500 trees sounds like a lot, but we're not talking 500 old-growth cedars from a sensitive pristine habitat. I don't know much specifically about central Oregon (except it turns into dessert PDQ) but in BC there's a big difference between clearing 500 trees near Prince George vs 500 tree in Clayquot Sound...
And for those comparing it to burning millions of acres in the amazon give me a break. They're not burning anything, nowhere near the scale, it's on private property and I'd argue the event will bring lots of focus on mountain biking, outdoors and building & preserving trails and jumps.
@SirWonky: stop trying to bring a balanced, expertise-based knowledgeable viewpoint to the table. Leonard Caprio told me next to fighting against warm chinook winds in Calgary that are obviously caused by the oil sands protesting this build will be his #1 priority once he finishes his next movie and can charter a private jet to central oregon.
I think this is a very bad look for Mtb! Guys just bro-ing out about some sick jumps and casually mentioning they cut down a small forest to make a moonscape for a single event. Yeah forests get logged for wood and paper and need to be managed for forest health and can be managed properly, but lets be honest these guys don't seem to give a rip about that. I wont be watching this event and it is a check against red bull in my eyes.
If they want proving grounds they should organise it as a raw event in Utah.. like in the olds days of rampage!
Just minimal trail building, just raw big mountain descent..
Like in the days of Cedric Gracia! That is big mountain bike proving grounds..
Marzocchi proving grounds is nothing like big mountain.. is just like another fest series!
@TimnberG: i would like them to have the proving ground on Jordii Lunn or Brendog line.
Seriously what is the point of this event if they are just building more fest series jumps. They should’ve just made fest series into the qualifying event. That way you won’t have to cut down a bunch of trees either. You kind of like the dew tour for bmx (if they still have that). Dew tour was essentially a qualifier for x games.
Ok guys, at the risk back lash..
The junipers are invasive and tax the water table allowing noxious weeds to grow. I realize, there were pines cut as well in this area but in all reality, 500 trees simply couldn't exist within the small area that is being used. If you have been out that way you'll know what I'm talking about.
People who act like they really care about the Ecosystem - should be way more concerned about is the super aggressive-highly invasive Medusa rye grass - under the trees. Since it is a true “ecosystem transformer” - so 100 years from now it will be the only plant around and biodiversity will be non existent........... oh well, we’ll all be dead anyway
There’s no risk of backlash buddy, just would’ve been nice to hear that in the video rather than a shot of felled trees, everyone’s quite sensitive to trees and the ocean, it would literally of taken 5 - 10 seconds to incorporate your text into the vid
i read all this before watching the video, then i watched it and didnt notice any old growth or hardwoods and immediately calmed down. If it is just the pines that seem to be in the background then they are renewable and even with out humans, clearing patches of them was part of the cycle.
So to summarize the comments - we're not happy that they cut down a ton of trees, however the trees they cut down are an invasive species, so it's not tooo bad. Can I suggest they buy 500 cedar (or whatever is native and appropriate) saplings and plant them in a place they can grow and thrive? It's a good look for mountain biking to attempt to offset some of our environmental impact.
Can I also suggest future competitions are held at one of the old rampage sites? Just seems to make more sense for the comparative riding, and cause less damage.
I should also say that in and of itself, I think this event will be rad and the builders / planners are doing good work that I'm looking forward to seeing ridden. I'm just not seeing the rampage connection.
Rampage in last editions is going away from man made features, limiting number of builders etc... in general going back to its origin, trying not to become another slopestyle course with huge man-made features.
Smart builders would try to pick terrain with natural features big enough to test riders and try to minimize impact on the surroundings.
And here we look at 500 trees and huge area cleared just to do course to qualify for Rampage.... Not even simmilar to Rampage, just to some slopestyle course. Hell, they could just use Redbull joyride or other slopestyle courses for qualifiying.
I understand that they need large area for the crowd and all the other stuf... but they could choose terrain much more wisely, i.e. some abandoned quary etc., where they wouldn't have to cut few hundred trees just for a weekend or two of partying. After events will be finished and crowds gone, there will be just large area of dirt left and decades needed for trees to grow back.
I belive that ecological view must also be considered these days, especially with media exposed events, otherwise you are sending message "we just don't care for anything but our fun". Builders - if you look around, you will notice MTB is not the only thing happening in the world.....
I can't believe they cut all those trees for this event! This is just ridiculous..
Mountain bike should be for enjoying the nature not for destroying it..
How many trees ????? pardon ??? did i hear this right ? Guys, just F..K OFF !!!!! I'm a mtb rider since i'm 9 and im 29 now, I've never cut any tree to build any jump or berm or whatever !!! you guys are such pieces of crap ! F..k off
I could accept the clear cutting off this was in anyway beneficial to the public but it's literally just a qualifying course for a once a year event that doesn't take place anywhere near here. Shameful
I am so stoked to go watch this! Those guys work really hard to put together a great show for us and I have tons of respect for all involved. Thanks Kyle Jamison and crew!
Would everybody put a cork in it and give these guys some time to pull this together. I’m sure the event will be awesome and will give the trolls some more content to blow their hot air on too.
Reading these comments just makes me realize what a pain in the ass everyone is becoming...Nobody can do anything cool anymore without 300 morons complaining.
Gotta break a few eggs too make an omelet.... I’m sure they will replant after this comp is done. I’m excited to see the finished track and watch the young bloods duke it out for a position for the big event!
I don't understand all the hate on this one. Don't know Kyle J but everything I've seen is he's a great dude as well as a helluva rider......and he's helping to give us a super cool bike park here in Boise. This Proving Grounds thing seems like a great attempt by the Rampage folks to give lesser known dudes a legit chance at making it to the big show, which I'm all for. I'm as "green" as anyone (I have 20 solar panels on the roof of my house I paid good money for) but I'm OK with the 500 Junipers.
My only regret is I can't attend the event because it falls on the week of my Whistler trip this year......yes, please shed a few tears for me :-)
I'm about as liberal and "green" as they come, but the kneejerk reaction of my fellow nature lovers never ceases to amaze me. Gotta love it when people with no real understanding of ecosystems and land management get outraged without actually investigating what's happening.
I was like that at one time, too, though. I'd see a clear cut and freak out about how awful it was that the poor trees had been cut down. Then you find out how GOOD for biodiversity a clear cut can be.
@Davidt89: Others have already explained it. They're removing Juniper trees, which are non-native and invasive. Assuming that they reseed the area and replant with native flora, then it's a win for the ecosystem of the area.
We want big jumps = We want to kill trees and move the dirt.
Yeah pretty crazy how the world is burning up fast and most people simply don't care, I've got no answers for that.
#f*ckprovinggrounds
I personally would rather have some trees than no trees - from an esthetic point of view though....
today.oregonstate.edu/news/cutting-and-leaving-western-juniper-may-lead-increase-invasive-grasses
www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/junocc/all.html
If the “environmentalist” here want to sound concerned- they should be asking: *** I wonder if Kyle Jameson is going to do the responsible thing and re-seed the site with naive grasses and flowers- and not let the whole site be overrun ( and lets be honest here, it already is infested with) Medusa Rye Grass, you know, that super invasive grass that will eventually dominate the whole of state of Oregon east of the Cascades to the point where nothing else exists?? #ignoranceisbliss
And for those comparing it to burning millions of acres in the amazon give me a break. They're not burning anything, nowhere near the scale, it's on private property and I'd argue the event will bring lots of focus on mountain biking, outdoors and building & preserving trails and jumps.
you noobz keep getting more hilarious with each passing story.
They probably cleared the trees by spraying the hillside with RB ...
Seriously what is the point of this event if they are just building more fest series jumps. They should’ve just made fest series into the qualifying event. That way you won’t have to cut down a bunch of trees either. You kind of like the dew tour for bmx (if they still have that). Dew tour was essentially a qualifier for x games.
Can I also suggest future competitions are held at one of the old rampage sites? Just seems to make more sense for the comparative riding, and cause less damage.
Smart builders would try to pick terrain with natural features big enough to test riders and try to minimize impact on the surroundings.
And here we look at 500 trees and huge area cleared just to do course to qualify for Rampage.... Not even simmilar to Rampage, just to some slopestyle course. Hell, they could just use Redbull joyride or other slopestyle courses for qualifiying.
I understand that they need large area for the crowd and all the other stuf... but they could choose terrain much more wisely, i.e. some abandoned quary etc., where they wouldn't have to cut few hundred trees just for a weekend or two of partying. After events will be finished and crowds gone, there will be just large area of dirt left and decades needed for trees to grow back.
I belive that ecological view must also be considered these days, especially with media exposed events, otherwise you are sending message "we just don't care for anything but our fun". Builders - if you look around, you will notice MTB is not the only thing happening in the world.....
My only regret is I can't attend the event because it falls on the week of my Whistler trip this year......yes, please shed a few tears for me :-)
Looking forward to seeing you hit that sh$t
I was like that at one time, too, though. I'd see a clear cut and freak out about how awful it was that the poor trees had been cut down. Then you find out how GOOD for biodiversity a clear cut can be.