# Slippery bridges



## ricks_smbc (Feb 28, 2006)

Besides chicken wire, which doesn't last too long, has anyone come up with anything else for slippery bridges? I was thinking some kind of plastic mesh or fencing?


----------



## cglasford (Sep 26, 2011)

Chicken wire is dangerous, IMHO... it hurts like hell to crash on too!

I've seen grip tap, like adheasive sand paper used at some bike parks on their wood features... I've also seen people use a spray/paint that has some grit in it to add grip. 
3M 4 in. x 5 yds. Step and Ladder Tread Tape-7636NA at The Home Depot

ANViL 5-gal. Black Gator-Grip Acrylic Textured Solid Color Interior/Exterior Floor Coating-209660 at The Home Depot


----------



## -Todd- (Jun 13, 2011)

Loctite Bigfoot... Google it


----------



## aero901 (Apr 11, 2012)

Aluminum oxide grit + Polyurethane or similar coating. Apply the poly and sprinkle on the grit when still wet. Maybe add a second coat after the first dries to further adhere the grit particles.

We use primarily rough cut oak for our bridge decking and it isn't nearly as slippery as some of the other decking materials I have seen. When designing bridges it is good practice to allow riders to make any turns to get aligned to the bridge before getting on the decking. I've seen a number of people hit the deck trying to turn on wet bridges.


----------



## Tres Bottelas (May 27, 2014)

Cross-cuts. Simple and effective, IME.


----------



## ricks_smbc (Feb 28, 2006)

For the new bridges and boardwalks I am using rough cut and that works well. It's the old bridges that are slippery. I have a couple that were built at an angle to the trail. I looked up the loktite and found reports. I did come across another similar product which is basically an epoxy mix. I spoke with a specialist who happens to be a mt biker and he was pretty interested in the application. He said it dries with the texture of tree bark. I think I'll give that a try.


----------



## leeboh (Aug 5, 2011)

Rough cut pressure treated lumber. Cross cut hatches with chain saw or circular saw.


----------



## Trail Ninja (Sep 25, 2008)

My preferences in order of preference.
1. Hand split boards from old growth red cedar rounds. No maintenance required until the boards wear out.
2. Pressure treated dimension lumber cross-hatched with a chainsaw. The grooves hopefully will hold enough dirt to keep your boards gritty.
3. Metal stucco lath. Stucco lath lasts a few years, chicken wire lasts a few minutes.
4. Grit in deck coatings. It wears out fast but if you've got the budget, you can keep re-applying it and have a well preserved surface with a fair amount of grip.

DO NOT put metal down where dogs will be!


----------



## ricks_smbc (Feb 28, 2006)

When you say cross hatched, do you mean cutting grooves into the surface at an angle with the chain saw? Maybe 1/2"?


----------



## woodway (Dec 27, 2005)

Rough split Western Red Cedar if you can get it.


----------



## Trail Ninja (Sep 25, 2008)

ricks_smbc said:


> When you say cross hatched, do you mean cutting grooves into the surface at an angle with the chain saw? Maybe 1/2"?


Yup. 1/2" deep. The grooves will give you grip and eventually they will fill with grit & dirt off tires and still give you good grip.


----------



## Trail Ninja (Sep 25, 2008)

woodway said:


> Rough split Western Red Cedar if you can get it.


You know we're considered spoiled that way, right? It's just laying on the ground.


----------



## BikesOnSnow (Jan 23, 2004)

I have ridden on other people's cross hatched PT boards and it didn't seem to make a difference. 

I roughed up the entire PT decking surface of a bridge that I built with a chain saw and that worked quite well, though it ended the life of my well used chain. I've been wondering if there is some way to plane a board and re-create the rough cut finish??

Old mtb tires, with the beads cut off and screwed onto the boards works well too, but it's time consuming to install securely.


----------



## Kronk (Jan 4, 2004)

I know one of our bridges had decking specifically rough cut and with a tooth or two of the blade bent to make a grooved surface.


----------



## mtbty (Jun 15, 2012)

cost money but last the longest, Fiberglass decking

Pultruded Fiberglass Grating T-Bar - 5' x 20' x 2" - T-5020 -Gray - National Grating


----------



## ricks_smbc (Feb 28, 2006)

On the east coast, so western red cedar is not an option. What does work well is rough cut hemlock. Problem is with old bridges. They aren't thick enough to do any cross hatching and the old pt wood is pretty slippery. I am going to try the epoxy mix and I'll see how that works. The only other option besides replacing the bridge is a partial new surface on top.


----------



## roxnroots (Aug 12, 2010)

Split eastern red cedar rounds work great too if you have 'em. It's all we use on a trail here in SE Pennsylvania.


----------

