Video: Serious Progress - Week 2 Build Update from DarkFEST

Jan 27, 2020
by Eric Palmer  


The boys have been busy this week and have made some serious progress! Smooth buckets for the digger to shape lips meant they could attack the whole line.

90 footer dialed in
90 footer dialed in

DarkFEST touch on the smooth plate
DarkFEST touch on the smooth plate

While the dump trucks kept loading the last landing, the guys tag teamed to help keep the pile in shape and get to the top of the line to manicure the jumps. It's always amazing to see how fast these guys can work, especially the resurfacing side. The first big hit got all the grass taken off the landing and a fresh reshape on the lip and is looking polished, perfect and ready to go! Clemens got to the step-up lip and had that done in no time. The twisty wizard also got a fresh cut and is looking even more twisty than before. The hip lip was the least damaged, but still needed some TLC and it got just that.

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Making good use of the farm s dirty greywater
Making good use of the farm's dirty greywater

The 90footer landing leading into the twisty wizard
The 90-footer landing leading into the twisty wizard

Hip is looking fresh again
Hip is looking fresh again!

Hip landing and step up run in looking dialed
Hip landing and step up run in looking dialed!

The signature step up is fresh again
The signature step up is fresh again!

After the guys had created a new mountain for a landing on the new last jump, Nico was in charge of shaping and spreading the dirt around. It is massive and no small feat, but he's got his head down and it's already looking amazing! Clemens is on Rocket Launcher duty. Shaping the lip and trying to get it as close to what they had last year. With the help of a new toy to measure the angle and distances they are keeping it at the 60 degrees like it was before, which looks way steeper than it sounds. Making sure there are no kinks in the lips is a job that requires eyes at least two angles, so Sam has been working closely with Clemens to make sure there are no bumps. Hitting an uneven lip at the speeds they are going to, you don't want any surprises, so they are meticulous and make sure it's just right.

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Nico on his newly constructed mountain
Nico on his newly constructed mountain

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Putting that pressure down and lifting the tracks
Putting that pressure down and lifting the tracks

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Make it perfect
Make it perfect

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Getting that angle right
Getting that angle right

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Smacking lips
Smacking lips

Ironing out the kinks
Ironing out the kinks

Look at that run in and lip C Dog is a beast no spades required
Look at that run in and lip! C Dog is a beast, no spades required!!!

The line is pretty much complete all the way up until the last jump, so some more dialling in at the bottom and they're all set! Work will all be focused on the last jump next week and we were lucky enough to have a bit of rainfall right at the end of the week, so it has settled the dust and the dirt should be perfect to work with.

Austrian Accuracy
Austrian Accuracy

Last Landing getting some drainage
Last Landing getting some drainage

Last Jump
Last Jump

Last Lip getting shaped
Last Lip getting shaped

Testing is not far off and the boys had a quick few hits on the step up and it's looking good. Not long till we see some top to bottom runs and can't wait to see these beasts in action again!

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Some playtime on the Hellsend Jumps
Some playtime on the Hellsend Jumps

Thanks again to Kenda and Bobcat for their partnership and help and to Monster Energy for fuelling the dream as always!

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Making the most of the dust
Making the most of the dust


Author Info:
ericpalmer avatar

Member since Feb 6, 2008
58 articles

45 Comments
  • 26 0
 There is no scale for how huge those jumps are.
  • 2 2
 ridiculously BIG...
haven't seen any moto hitting this line last year?????
  • 4 0
 @audric: MX would chew up the lips and landings... Pretty clear in the vid and pics that the jumps need to be mint to be 'safe'.
  • 3 0
 @cbro7092: what about the jumps in Belgium...?Santa cruz? they were doing trains all together...don't you remember? and i do completly understand what you are sayin...
  • 1 0
 Scary, every year. Thank god for math.
  • 25 0
 Now we know how they built The Pyramids.
  • 6 0
 wait, nico vink is 7000 y.o.???
  • 20 1
 I need to get me one of those fancy robot shovels.
  • 9 0
 So the measuring of the angle with the tool made me wonder:

How much do these builders rely on actual numerical physics when they're building at this level? Is it more of a working knowledge thing of learning it over time and figuring out the general principles, or do they actually sit down with pen and paper and run equations of mass, velocity, speed, angle, etc...?
  • 4 0
 would love to read the answer from the crew!!
  • 1 1
 If they have a precise degree for the take off, they're running equations. Its been going on for years in other sports as well.
  • 5 1
 They do it more by experience.. You can't use exact equations, there are too many variables of what your body can do on the run in and lip that can change your trajectory completely. On a car you can do some maths, because it is stable, but if you squash or pull of the lip on a bike you could go a few meters long or a few short.
  • 2 0
 @ericpalmer: Thanks! Looking for some possible motivation for my shredder son to learn his Maths. Wink
  • 1 0
 Hilarios
  • 3 1
 @ericpalmer: "You can't use exact equations..."

Actually you can and its been going on for years.
  • 1 0
 @scott-townes: Yeah, but your speed is not always exactly the same, or how you push off the lip and wind also can change everything like mad. Maths will help you get close, but what you can do on the run in and lip can change that all quite a bit, so exact is not exact with this.
  • 8 0
 They are talking about the wind, but they have scheduled this event at the same time, in the same location as one of the biggest kiteboarding events in the world. The reason the kite event is there at this time of year, is it is windy af. The event is like 20 miles away on the coast. Dark dark fest would be legit tho.
  • 9 0
 Chinese builders: we re gonna build an hospital in 10 days
Nico Vink: Hold my beer
  • 8 0
 "wine farm..." - Sam Reynolds

There you have it, no longer called a vineyard haha
  • 7 0
 I would need a helicopter evacuation just to get down off those jumps!
  • 5 0
 Sam Reynolds seems like a proper stand up guy. Awesome contest can’t wait to watch it
  • 3 0
 Aaaah! OK - now i'm begining to understand!
MOUNTAINbikers build Mountains - right?
  • 3 0
 Sorry Dude, but you haven't digged enough Razz

We can still read "DARK FEST" on the bucket ! Wink
  • 3 0
 Progression is great but it seems like it's getting insane. Just don't wanna see anyone get really hurt (or die).
  • 3 0
 i hear this event caused high amounts of depression in mtbers last year
  • 2 0
 Those berms! That backdrop! The drone follow cam! Nico throwing that signature style on a TR! STIMULATION OVERLOAD!!!
  • 2 0
 2:32 hehe.
  • 4 2
 But, the oil!
  • 1 0
 Holes are so deep, lets drill out some oil
  • 1 0
 Hats off
  • 1 0
 Can't wait!!!!
  • 1 0
 Jesus H. Christ!
  • 1 0
 What.the.hell
  • 4 7
 Hopped in here from the MOAB story to let everyone know that they're using way too much oil for this nonsense.
  • 3 3
 worry about your own enduro shit, this is a different sport than you do. Big jumps need big machines. Do you have kids? you made a bigger environmental impact by bringing them into the world.
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