# Help making new backyard trail



## Josh-L (May 5, 2011)

Got a spot in our backyard that I want to make a trail for my 9 year old. The spot where the house sits is elevated about 25 or 30 feet I would say. Probably around a 30 degree slant down. The orange section is the drop and it's roughly 40 feet long. The red section is fairly flat and is roughly 40 wide by 75 feet long. Was thinking a small pump track-ish trail or maybe have some wooden features. I included a blank aerial if anyone wants to draw some ideas out for me! The picture doesn't really capture the drop but I'm standing on the higher part.


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## clockwork (Dec 9, 2006)

I would say pump track on the fairly flat then have a line or lines that tie into it and maybe exit that pumps you back up.


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## Cotharyus (Jun 21, 2012)

Pump track for sure. I'd skip the wood features for now, it's easier to do progression with dirt. Start with a straight pump track, and you can reshape things until it's easily rollable or jumpable. There are a lot of designs out there to work with, my only advice is do something more interesting than an oval.


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## chazpat (Sep 23, 2006)

There are some threads on here about building backyard pump tracks. It's a serious task, having truckfulls of clay brought in. You can't just dig down or you'll end up with mud pits, you need to build up. I would lean toward just making a trail using the existing terrain unless you're really serious and willing to put in the time and money. With the existing terrain, you could add a few simple wood features later as your son progresses. Any of those wood areas yours?

My wife wants me to make a path in our front yard, cutting through the woods on one side. It's pretty flat so I'll build in some log overs and winding through the trees and then return on the driveway and later add some trail in the back as well. It will be more of a test track than something long enough to really ride.


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## Josh-L (May 5, 2011)

chazpat said:


> There are some threads on here about building backyard pump tracks. It's a serious task, having truckfulls of clay brought in. You can't just dig down or you'll end up with mud pits, you need to build up. I would lean toward just making a trail using the existing terrain unless you're really serious and willing to put in the time and money. With the existing terrain, you could add a few simple wood features later as your son progresses. Any of those wood areas yours?
> 
> My wife wants me to make a path in our front yard, cutting through the woods on one side. It's pretty flat so I'll build in some log overs and winding through the trees and then return on the driveway and later add some trail in the back as well. It will be more of a test track than something long enough to really ride.


Hmmm... yeah not gonna bring in any clay. This is central Oklahoma too so it's pretty sandy. I hadn't considered that.

Yes the woods are ours too but we hunt on the back part and the deer trails start just inside that tree line. The dumb deer literally walk up the hill and down the driveway lol.


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## Josh-L (May 5, 2011)

Found this plan and it looks like it will fit perfectly! Just gotta figure out the sand issue I hadn't thought about.


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## slapheadmofo (Jun 9, 2006)

I love pumptracks, built a couple in my yard when my son was small and currently build and maintain a pretty decent one for my town. But...

Pump tracks require a surprising amount of work to build and keep up with, particularly first time when you're likely to have to rebuild almost everything 3-5 times before it actually starts to work.

Back yard pumptracks rarely get used enough to ever get well-packed or even to keep from the weeds from taking over. 

If you're building out of sand, you'll never get really good results as things will just fall apart. Clay is probably great in a dry climate, but in my area, it just ends up holding too much moisture; we pay quite a bit for very clean screened loam and pack the hell out of it. (If I personally were to do another small track in the yard similar to your diagram, I'd probably figure on buying around 40 yards of good dirt, minimum, which would run somewhere in the $12-1400 dollar range delivered around here.) 

But if you're just looking for a little something for the kid to roll around on and you like digging and screwing around with dirt in general, I'm sure you can come up with something that'll be fun for a while until it gets outgrown. :thumbsup:


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## life behind bars (May 24, 2014)

Josh-L said:


> View attachment 1210352
> Just gotta figure out the sand issue I hadn't thought about.


Any solution will not be cheap. Adding organics or bentonite are just two possible routes.


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## ki5ka (Dec 17, 2006)

Make sure you take progress pics as you go!


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## clockwork (Dec 9, 2006)

Here this will be some good spent money that will save you alot of trial and error . http://www.llbmtb.com/product/welcome-to-pump-track-nation/


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## ray.vermette (Jul 16, 2008)

Josh-L said:


> Hmmm... yeah not gonna bring in any clay. This is central Oklahoma too so it's pretty sandy.


Yeah generally you want to stay away from clay-heavy soils when building general-purpose mountain bike trails, but for a pump track, you want soil with a higher percentage of clay. Clay will help the trail surface compact and hold its shape, which is key if you are building rollers, tabletops, and berms. Clay also retains moisture, so you'll also need to carefully consider drainage so the pump track does not become a mud pit, as others already pointed out.

Good luck with your build!


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## phalkon30 (Jan 17, 2009)

A couple treated 2x10's are fun to see if you can ride a skinny (build some handling skills), and can be converted easily to jumps with logs that your kid can drag around and make into their own fun. Find some discarded oak pallets you can pull apart and make into bigger bridges, lots of factories and grocery stores throw that kind of thing away (or give it away to a dealer)


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