I'm building a pump track in my yard. The area that I have available is very small, so I'm building the smallest track possible. I'm curious about berm diameter though. I'm not blessed with tons of dirt, so I have to be conservative. I've heard that a 12 ft diameter is about perfect, but I don't think mine are quite that big. Any input? Also, how about roller spacing?
Pump track berms
- Thread starter ZHendo
- Start date
A 10'-12' radius is fast, but 6'-8' is super fun. I've experimented with a 4' turn, it was "uber" tight, but it does give you a ton of pump. But I went back to the bigger turn, much more fun.
I have most of my roller's about 7' from "peak" to "peak", some are closer, some are further apart. 7' seems to be just about perfect. The height of the rollers are about 14".
I got a lot of tips from Leelikesbikes.com, it was well worth the $10 bucks to get the plans he offers.
Hope this helps, and have fun!!
Cheers,
Brian
I have most of my roller's about 7' from "peak" to "peak", some are closer, some are further apart. 7' seems to be just about perfect. The height of the rollers are about 14".
I got a lot of tips from Leelikesbikes.com, it was well worth the $10 bucks to get the plans he offers.
Hope this helps, and have fun!!
Cheers,
Brian
Thanks for the info. On the berms, I meant 12' diameter, not radius. Sounds like I might have to expand the turn a lot, mine actually looks like it is less than 12' diameter, maybe even 10'. I'll try to see if I can work with the dirt, but I spent a ton of time packing it, so there is a chance it will be too hard to move.
My berm i'm building on my pump track is about 3' from inside to top with a 4' diameter (from end to end right?). It sucks, but I've only ridden it on my bullit, so it might work on a hardtail.
My bad, I read your post again and you did say diameter. Well since the radius is half the diameter then your 12' diameter would be a nice & fun 6' radius. But if they are 10' diameters, your starting to get into the tight (and almost as fun) range of turns. There is nothing wrong with the tighter turns, just a little harder to ride at first, but once you get use to them, you may find that they really rip!!
I know exactly how you feel about moving them, it's a pain in the ass. I had to move mine and it was packed, watered, and baked (from the sun of course). It was worth it in the end though. I did find that by watering (to point of causing puddles) the finished turn for a couple days, it was a lot easier to dig up and rework it.
I know exactly how you feel about moving them, it's a pain in the ass. I had to move mine and it was packed, watered, and baked (from the sun of course). It was worth it in the end though. I did find that by watering (to point of causing puddles) the finished turn for a couple days, it was a lot easier to dig up and rework it.
thanks for the help, i just had my mom's boyfriend bring over a wheelbarrow, so i should be able to make better progress now. i typed up a sheet with info i found to help me perfect everything, and i'm taking the tape measure out right now so i can go get to work. i haven't let the berm set completely like you did, but it is almost there, so hopefully i can tear it up before it gets too hard.
Have you seen this?
http://leelikesbikes.com/Stories/010405/
http://leelikesbikes.com/Stories/010405/
Just felt like posting some pics.
I'm not sure on the radii of the berms, but I can go out and measure tonight. The big berm has a massive radius though, and it is faaastttt. The other ones, when pumped hard, give you tons of speed. So fun to ride this, and tiring. I'm still trying to figure out what to do for a middle transfer type thing to make it more interesting.
Thoughts?
I'm not sure on the radii of the berms, but I can go out and measure tonight. The big berm has a massive radius though, and it is faaastttt. The other ones, when pumped hard, give you tons of speed. So fun to ride this, and tiring. I'm still trying to figure out what to do for a middle transfer type thing to make it more interesting.
Thoughts?
awesome track. mine is tiny, but i'll be pretty happy with it i think. the radius on my berms is about 6 feet, tight, but considering that the track is only 24 feet long, it should be ok. i've been working all weekend, and i've made lots of progress. the dirt is clay and very hard to dig, but once you pack it, it turns into cement. seems to me like i'll be having plenty of trial and error with this track as i am struggling with the rollers and making them a reasonable height and length. i think they need to be a little smaller judging by the track pictured above, but i'm not complaining because that means less digging into the ground.