Photo by Kaz Yamamura
Panorama in partnership with SE Racing and the Dunbar Summer Series is excited to be hosting the Canadian National DH Championships the B.C. Cup. Panorama will be the venue for the National Champs for the next three years.
For those of you that have been racing at Panorama over the past few seasons, you have witnessed our commitment to providing the best track possible. We are currently in the official planning stages of this year's course—walking it, contemplating it (over a couple of beers), dreaming about it, distilling it down to best solutions. However, we are humble enough to know that we may not have all the answers—and that’s where you come in.
If you were the track designer/builder what would add, take away, or improve upon? Here’s how you can make this year's Canadian National Champs course the best ever: 1. Watch the videos below. (A Walk with the Trail Crew, 2016 Race Recap)
2. Note the time stamp of the area of concern
3. Formulate your idea
4. Put it in the comments section at the bottom of this blog.
5. If we choose your idea
you will win:
Two Nights/ Two Days of Riding for Two People6. Deadline for submissions is Friday, June 23rd.
For all contest rules and regulations,
click here.
As an example, last year we installed a new drop at the top of the course, this was followed by another high-speed road gap. Current plans are to scrap the road gap and replace it with a whoop section before entering the trees. Whoops can be built in many different ways but the ultimate goal is to slow the rider down while simultaneously increasing the degree of challenge. The goal is to create the perception of speed rather than actual speed. Have a look time stamp at 27 seconds of the Track Walk video and let us know your thoughts.
Below are some areas we are still scratching our heads about:1. Fort Drop @39 seconds
Instead of using the road to access to Old Man, riders would be directed into a new loam section in the trees before entering Old Man… or would they?
2. The Plunge @45 seconds
What if you did not go into Old Man but instead continued on to The Plunge? Should we bring it back?
3. Dollar SignThe Dollar sign is usually crash central. It is the start of a rough ski run crossing down to The Steps into The Rock Garden. What if these sections were not included in the race course? It would represent a massive change, a big gamble, and a ton of work. This is probably the most talked about decision for the trail crew.
Photo by Kaz Yamamura
4. The Sender @1:25
At the bottom of the course riders send a wood drop at a higher speed then the feature is intended for. This leads to a big berm to a long flat section lining them up for our proline jump. Thoughts on these features? Ditch the wood drop? Could the jump be bigger, yet safer?
5. The Finish @1:33
How should we wow the crowds in the final seconds before the line? A rhythm section, a large scrub roller, more whoops? Get out your pens and paper and show us what you would like to see. (@1:23)
We would like to thank you in advance for the feedback provided. Feel free to write us about other trails in the park as well. To keep up to date of what is currently happening the Bike Park, Follow @owenpeters_panobikepark on Instagram and share your photos through #panobikepark. To have your photos picked up by the official Panorama Instagram use #PureCanada.
Your trail building tools:
MENTIONS:
@PanoramaMountainVillage
I would love to see more vert available though. The terrain at Panorama is wild. Adding more turns would separate racer times as well. For example, taping off the second straight line option on the dollar sign. This would lower the exit speed and the amount of crashes on that section. The chicane into the rock garden is a good model for this.
The cliffs are a bit of a classic, but it would be great to avoid up hills in dh races. Maybe starting higher and avoid dropping off the ridgeline from the dollar sign to the rock garden like @tinfoil said.
I love how some people love whoops but hate braking bumps. Whoops are for motos haha!
Right off the bat let’s have a nice, big wooden start ramp. A covered start ramp that gets momentum going right away makes every course feel way more legit. Proper start ramps should be gripped and have supports for leaning on while clipped in- not metal barriers with sand bags.
Regarding the whoops idea- I never felt there was an issue with the two drops at the top; the speed is fast but is controlled shortly after the road gap in the short wooden section. However, if whoops are already confirmed then I would recommend making them not too stutter-y and way more spaced out and rolling than most I see. Years ago the Pano race course had whoops near the bottom and these are the design I would recommend. Keep in mind if the goal of the whoops is to slow people down then they need to be long enough to not be jumpable, as is the case at almost all race courses that have whoops (Port Angeles, Silver Star).
Let’s get drainage for the piece of open ski run the course crosses on the way towards the uphill to Cliffs of Insanity that is muddy. Either drainage to divert water or put down short section of wood boardwalk over this. This part of the course is already slow when you come out of the woods and then pedalling through mud just feels so garbage.
That being said, any part of the course that is a wooden ramp should have grip put on it. The grip should be roofing shingles, not metal lathe as I believe this is a Cycling Canada requirement in case of crashes on the bridge.
The rock garden section is awesome, no need to change this piece besides maybe stabilizing any loose boulders so it’s predictable.
The uphill to Cliffs of insanity should be made to roll as fast as possible. This would involve building berms prior to the uphill (I’m thinking about that blown out left hander here), chopping out the roots, and laying down soil. This is also my advice for the uphill section after the Cliffs of Insanity. Uphill pedalling sections should roll fast; nobody likes uphills but these at least take us to good parts of the course.
Regarding the highlighted sections;
1. Fort Drop. This is fine and should stay in the course. What happens after it- either remaining on fireroad or new section in woods- is fine as long as no signicant loss of flow or pedalling is added.
2. The Plunge. Not worth putting this back in there- it shortens the course way more than the Old Man corners, which are also more fun. I would however prefer to see the Old Man corners bermed instead of left flat to maintain the speed, especially the last left hander that leads to where the Plunge reconnects. Flat corners are great, but these ones are too tight and slow to remain flat. Also, take out the lefthand berm at the bottom of Plunge so riders don’t have to pedal over that hump.
3. Dollar Sign. The fact that this is known as crash central should be enough reason for change. I’m all for steep tracks, but if it’s routed straight down any crashes here are potentially very serious ones. The slightly better alternative of taping it so riders have to go slower to do the two corners will just send them through a tired, eroded section of trail. Yes it’s a classic but it’s had its day and a completely new re-route should be done.
4. The Sender. This seemed good to me, no need to change it. Sends you pretty far at race pace but nothing’s wrong with that. Could always add those corners in forest before it back in to slow riders down. Just make sure riders aren’t corner on wood like they were then.
5. The Finish. Finish line should have a big jump, hell maybe a couple. This is what spectators want to see. Most of the weekend tourists are not going to hike up the 200m to where the whip-off jumps are. Those jumps can also stay, but I think there should be one right at the end. Flat sweeping corners prior to it can be built to control the speed from being too high. Build the Finish coral large enough to allow adequate stopping time.
Thanks for being open to ideas.
Cheers
2) Plunge looks good, armour the hell out of that and design some cross drainage
3) Dollar Sign -nobody wants to crash without being able to assess their risk, if they're crashing for crashing sakes rather than calculated risk/gamble on a line...then get rid of it.
4) Sender -bigger wood drop with a proper transition
5) Big money finishes (more jumps) or pump section to see who's got any left in the tank
@1:35 dont start your saw with the brake off, start it on the ground, brake on, use safety/vibration dampening gloves, engage brake before walking to limb the other side
Haha I couldn't help it!
I would love to see that. Heck maybe I'd even come race that.
While we are a nostalgic bunch, and heading back to the same track year after year brings back good memories, we need to consider the industry we are in and the amount of progression we have witnessed. Damn we have like a million "standards" for bottom brackets and wheel spacing now - whats up with that? If our technical components are embracing change and progression, then so should our race tracks. Lets embrace the change, and all meet in July at Pano to bed in some new steep loamy ruts on what will sure to be an amazing weekend of racing!
The changes last year to the top section were mint.
Personally I love the technical aspect of everything leading up to Dollar Signs, except for last year having to hump over that huge berm in the pedal leading up to it! Please keep the rock garden!! It's tech, there's plenty of lines and it's one of my favourite sections, especially when it's greasy like it was last year.
All I would change is the bottom section, while cliffs of insanity are a great feature, maybe another option to get to the wooden sender? Last year I definitely sent that sender well past the wood! It's another awesome feature I think as well, especially to have where more people who don't want to hike all the way up can see. Personal opinion on the jump after the sender.. It was pretty much impossible for most of the women to clear that I noticed..no matter how much I tried and pedaled my heart out into it I just could never get further than 3/4 on that table. And landing flat sucks up so much speed, while it's fun to have a huge junp at the bottom, maybe shorter and steeper? Allow the boys to still send it and makes it easier for ladies to clear and not lose alot of time on? And maybe some whoops tossed in between that table, the wooden gap and the finish!
Super pumped to come cheer everyone on!
2) In $ segment, build a berm at the tree the guy hits @:47 on rider right (left turn) helping the rider turn left ~ 45 deg and transfer ~ 12' across the course to a berm on rider left (right turn) to correct rider back to course. Leave a shorter straight through path for riders that opt to hold their own line through the middle.
2. Old man section needs to get rid of the wood drop at start and open lines on insides with creative taping to give you more line choice. I like old man more than the plunge.
3. Ditch the plunge. But if you choose to use it . Make a new line off the road into plunge. Go past old entrance and turn on off of the road and open up a new raw line that has to go around reed and roots giving you more line choice and connecting with bottom berm.
4. Dollar sign has been played out and should be called mono rail. Use top corner off dollar sign and go with a raw line that goes riders right of dollar sign. Clear and tape leaving trees for different line selection and cross to old timer ski run. Exit woods from dollar sign onto old timer higher than the race run comes out currently. Cross OT quadzilla and enter old rock garden from higher up. Create new lines in rock garden to challenge riders and make more line choice.
5. Sender. Get rid of most wood. In the senders place I would put a step down booted. Not too lippy as to buck riders but far enough back as to hit the landing higher up the old senders landing zone so you set up for the "pro line" better. Have a go around beside made of rocks to slow down other riders to encourage hitting the step down (think step down like Fort bill before the finish line).
6. The finish. Finish jumps could be tweaked but I would have some grassy open corners flagged afterwards that the racers can rut up and get a foot out for the finish line.
7. Also I would like to add: at 1:02 I would ditch the wood on that tree section and put in a natural step down to the blown out berm under the lift or cut in a new line in the trees or onto the ski run. Has to technical and raw for different line choice.
8. Cliffs of insanity: old lines need to make a come back.
I am stoked for Owen and the boys in the bike park keep up the great work and I hope to see a less mono rail and more line choice.
Keep killing it guys!!
If ive learned anything from racing in the states it would have to be theyre tracks are slightly more mellow . Keep it that way and make it sketchy! Haha
My second point isn't included in the two videos above, but would be to re-route down lower quadzilla instead of crossing the slope. The pedaly loop around certainly adds to the burn from fitness perspective but does not present much of a technical challenge. The other option could be to add more technicality to the loop around with a rock garden on the way back across.
Cheers!
Needs an open ski trail section. Tape it wide and let "the line" form over the weekend.
finish jump: flaming hoop with 80's metal blasting on the PA
1. Keep the Fort Drop and the road section (drop seems awesome) @ 39
2. Switch from old man to the plunge, more speed = more awesome ( other comments mentioned old man was slow corners)
3. @1:05 hard to tell how to the trail runs but is there a possibility of widening the section to the right side ( looking from the top ) to create and inside and outside line into the next, what looks to be a right corner? If you cleaned up the chute style section then you could drop right into it off the wooden feature and keep good speed into a natural style berm where the 2 guys are sitting @1:21. Then create a shorter but rooty off camber through the trees to the right ( from the top ) that comes out near where the red quad is parked @1:21. Racers would have the choice between a short but off camber root turn or the longer but rocky chute right turn.
*not sure if that makes much sense especially since I've only seen it on video.
4. @the sender. Could you pull the whole drop back further into the trees so that fast riders can boost off the end and land way down in the landing while still keeping it an easy feature for day to day operations? Make the end of the drop closer to where the tree is vs 3 meters past the tree.
5. @1:33 Have you seen the Moto style woops they have at Queenstown in NZ? If riders are going fast enough a section of "rumble strips" could be kind of cool there. Some riders could risk sending the first one to gap the section while others would let their suspension take the punishment of 6,7, or 8 quick bumps.
Hope to be out at Panorama 1 day this summer .
cheers
We have a winner.
The thoughtful response from former BC DH Champ, Dean Tennant, was so inline, so synchronous with the direction that the crew wanted to take with the course that we knew we had a winner. Thanks to everyone that responded. Tons of great food for thought that will help fuel future course development. Nice to see such solid support from the racing community.
While we will not be able to implement all of Dean’s ideas this season, the following have been green lighted:
1) UCI standard start railing and ramp
2) Whoops after the first wood ramp
3) Plunge vs Old Man. We will prep both with improved lines and berms but it will probably come down to taping to decide which route is in the final track.
4) Uphill to the Cliffs – we have been doing a lot of tramping through the forest and head scratching on this one. We would like to bring the old Cliffs back but getting there while at the same time reducing the amount of pedaling is proving more difficult than a Rubik’s Cube. We will just rip the stickers off and make it look like we did it. Guaranteed it will be better.
5) Flat turns into the finish.
There will be other surprises that we will leave to be discovered during the track walk.
Thanks again, Mr. Tennant. I hope you enjoy living it up in style at the base of Panorama. 2 nights, 2 days of riding, for 2 people. Who’s going to be the lucky sidekick?
Thanks again,
Panorama Bike Park Crew