As many of you may be aware, a lot of time and effort has been put into building the existing 1.7km course which some of you rode on during the 9 July 2006 KR Jamboree Ride! Just click on the photo below and let the photos do the talking! The albums document intensive work done to the Kent Ridge Park trail over a period of 1 month by the trailbuilders.

Here's what some of the bikers who rode at the KR Jamboree are saying about the KR Jamboree Ride and the new Kent Ridge Mountain bike Trail (based on 27 + survey forms collectedm and then only when the answers are clearly marked out).....

RATING OF KR TRAIL
On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 = the least, 10 - the most), numbers under each factor indicates number of riders who have ranked

COMPARISON TO OTHER BIKE TRAILS
Numbers indicates number of riders who have given feedback on comparison to other trails.

Papa Smurf, Nik
About the Ride and Trail : To all participants of the KR Jamboree today: Thanks! Really great to see such a large turnout! As a result of today's ride, we were able to achieve a few objectives:

1. Got great feedback from all u guys on areas of improvement

2. With 50 riders going through the trail, we have also identified potential erosion hotspots

3. With the number of endos we now know where the danger zones are and where to station medics for better access during racedays

4. Got a core group of supporters signing up to kick start a trail building & maintenance group (yes you guys are gonna be called trail smurfs)

5. With all of you hiking the trail the first lap, we managed to bed down some of the gravelly parts (you think the hike was just to look see? )

CREDITS (TRAILWORK):

The following persons were instrumental in the creation of this trail :-

* Alvin Francis Lok, NParks Manager, Kent Ridge Park
* Liyana Zolpakar, NParks
* Max Mager, SACA General Manager
* Lim HuiMin, SACA Coach

with the assistance of :-
* Chew Eng Seng, SACA Mountainbike Cyclist
* Ang Kee Ming, SACA Road Cyclist
* Justin Cheong, SACA Road Cyclist
* Yap Chiwei, Wheelsareturning
* Lee Chuen Ling, SACA MTB Subcommittee
* Renhao, SACA MTB Subcommittee
* All the banglas who toiled daily under the supervision of NParks and SACA

CREDITS (JAMBOREE):

* Pling - registration/CP5 ic
* Ling - bike test/CP 1 ic
* Rebecca - bike test ic
* HuiMin - medic/CP2 ic
* RenHao - CP3 ic
* Chi - CP4 ic
* Jaymes - safety/CP6
* Samuel - Hike/Ride leader
* Chew - Hike/Ride leader
* Mann - Hike/Ride leader
* Max - PR
* Jolie - Crowd control
* Boey - Crowd control

The Kent Ridge Mountain Bike trail is now unofficially open!

Aaron Goh
About the Trail : Great work guys and gals!

Alex Lee
About the Ride : Very well organised but there could be more volunteers to take care of the rider's safety on the dangerous parts of the trail.
About the Trail : Riders should be allowed to descend on Vigilante Drive because it is very hard to maintain traction on the gravel trail.
What the Trailbuilders say : There should be more volunteers during race day. And the gravel will be compacted and made ridable.

Athena Han
About the Trail : It's an excellent, excellent trail. Just [ask] for a [gunk] endorphin-adrenalin rush. Find some other loop apart from that IRRITATING FINAL climb.
[Sorry Athena, can't read your handwriting]

Azizi Bin Amat
About the Ride : [Enjoyed?] Enjoy.
About the Trail : More cordoning at cliff edge..
What the Trailbuilders say : Danger spots will be identified and natural and other barriers will be used for preventive measures.

Benjamin Lee, NParks
About the Ride : Well organised, professional!
About the Trail : For the narrow loops / switchbacks, either do some planting or put up a light fence to prevent short-cuts. The trail may not hold up during the wet season. An announcement over the website not to use the trail during the monsoon season may be helpful.
What the Trailbuilders say : We will take into account your suggestions. Bikers are advised not to ride the trail during heavy rain downpour as it may help to accelerate erosion.

Budiman, NParks
About the Ride/ Trail: It's too tight @ certain corner section. Wet weather not rideable. Last section - the metalled road - too steep.
What the Trailbuilders say : We are looking into possible detours to suit different levels of riders. For wet weather and steep climb comment, pls see our replies above to Alex and Ben.

Desmond Lian
About the Ride : I enjoyed myself very much. Thx u guys for the great effort. Very gd job!

Doc
About the Trail : Omit the extreme caution. [as in, take that part out altogether coz it's too @#(*&@#(*&@#]...the trail "sicko" factor needs to be moderated.
What the Trailbuilders say : Hi Doc, we hope you meant that in jest? Ok, on a more serious note, there is a real need for a technical trail in Singapore so the local elite riders can improve their techniques and performance....and the regular mountain biker can use this trail as a platform to improve their biking skills too!

Don
About the Trail : More warning signs. Safety barriers.
What the Trailbuilders say : More permanent warning signage will be placed in the trail. Pls see response to Azizi above on safety barriers!

Chew Eng Seng
About the Ride : [Enjoyed it?] Yes very much.
About the Trail : Longer too short.

ChinYen
About the Ride : Good work. Well done.
About the Trail : Remove sharp stumps or make them blunt. Trail might be vulnerable when raining.
What the Trailbuilders say : Sharp stumps located will either be marked, removed or covered. In any case, the trail is partially complete and the plan is to add new sections in the near future. As for rain, pls see our response to Ben.

Dennis Koh
About the Ride/Trail : 1st third of tracks with short wooden stakes to mark trail edge, a little too tights at descending corners! Get a further feedback e.g. email survey for riders on 3-4 time on trail later.
What the Trailbuilders say : The area is narrow, but we will check on the feasibility of expanding the area. Also, good idea to obtain feedback after riders have had more time to get used to the trail. If any bikers would like to give their feedback, pls send them to mtb@cycling.org.sg.

Edwin Cheong
About the Ride/Trail : Ride / Trail is good, gives a variety of conditions.

Frankie Koh
About the Ride: Job well done!

James Yang
About the Trail : Staircase downhill too steep.
What the Trailbuilders say : The staircase downhill is a temporary route to be used during race day. That section will be replaced with a separate route after race day.

Jeremy
About the Trail : Fantastic! Woody stumps by the side can be potential danger.
What the Trailbuilders say : We will need to identify the woody stumps. If its in the first 1/3 of the trail, pls see reply above to Dennis Koh.

Jet Ng
About the Trail : Overtaking lanes and everything will be fine.
What the Trailbuilders say : It is not easy to expand a single track especially if the area is small, but we will see what can be done.

Jethro Kang
About the Trail : Add berms to the switchbacks, ramps for the drop off and steep parts.
What the Trailbuilders say : Berms are under construction. Ramps will make the trail more interesting. We do have a wooden ramp up a slope, which hopefully is a first creative start! But first things first, we need to deal with the basics of trailbuilding e.g. combating erosion etc.

Jimmison Lim
About the Trail : Very interesting trail. Barriers covering the possible areas where there is a sharp turn and if you don't make the turn, can go down a cliff.
What the Trailbuilders say : Pls see response to Azizi above.

Juliana
About the Ride/Trail : It was good! Well-planned. Kudos to all the builders and leaders.

Kevin Chua
About the Ride : Great organisation of ride especially test. Not used to riding under pressure. :)
About the Trail : Love it!!

Kong Kin-On
About the Ride: Great fun! Thanks!
About the Trail : Toughtest for me but I'm sure there are others tougher!

Lee
About the Ride/Trail : Fun however not used to tight switchbacks.

Low Weng Cheong
About the Ride/Trail : The flow is nice but its too short in length. Would like it to be more technical. Maybe some Northshore like obstacles or some diversion off the main trail.
What the Trailbuilders say : Pls see response to Jethro. New sections may be added to the existing trail. If you know how to build the Northshore stuff or would like to help, we need you!!!

Matthias
About the Ride: Enjoyed it a lot.
About the Trail: Nice trail. Nice scenery. Scary downhills.

Mervin Hoon
About the Ride: The organisers ought to be paid for the great job they've done.

Paul Hughes
About the Trail : Awesome stuff. Well done!

Rod Monterio
About the Ride : Well organised. Very enjoyable.

Sam
About the Ride : [Enjoyed it?] Enjoyed.
About the Trail : Gd.

Seow
About the Ride : The trail was well put together, look forward to riding it.
About the Trail : It was very good.

Teck Wee
About the Ride : Interesting ride, good for drops & climbs, however too much of gravel may be dangerous for rider negotiating turns at high speed.
About the Trail : Probably can compact the gravel roads on last climb (killing!) :)
What the Trailbuilders say : Pls see our reply to Alex on improving the gravel path.

Victor Chan
About the Trail : V. Good.

Yap Yao Jun
About the Trail : Ground too soft, no traction. Good planning. Drops are very steep, uphills are fun! :)
What the Trailbuilders say : Pls see our reply to Edmund.

Anonymous
About the Ride : Enjoyable, if I had the necessary technical skills!
About the Trail : Finally, our own Kiara!
About the Trail : More bridges, obstacles, alternate routes with jumps and berms!
What the Trailbuilders say : Pls see some of our replies above!

WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR FEEDBACK ON THE RIDE AND THE TRAIL. WE DID NOT POST ALL COMMENTS AS SOME OF THE COMMENTS ON TRAIL IMPROVEMENT WERE REPETITIVE, AND FOR SOME OTHERS, WE COULDN'T READ YOUR HANDWRITING!

IN ANY CASE, WE WILL TRY TO TAKE IN AS MANY OF YOUR COMMENTS AS POSSIBLE, GIVEN THE TIME AND RESOURCES AVAILABLE UP TO RACE DAY. FOR LONGER TERM PLANS FOR THE TRAIL, IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE PART OF THE TRAIL BUILDING AND MAINTENANCE GROUP (TRAIL SMURFS) AND HAVE NOT PUT YOUR NAME DOWN IN THE FEEDBACK FORM, PLS SEND YOUR REQUEST TO mtb@cycling.org.sg.

RIDE SAFE!