Hcor.net | Forums | Plattekill

General Lee · Bomber

one of the things i always loved about plattekill is that the races ended early and by 12:00 i could ride the other trails and relax. even the last racer to finish would be down by 3:00 or so. i can think of a few other places that have start times at close to 4 or 5 o'clock. kind of a drag for anyone who then has to pack up and drive 4 hrs home.

i like plattekill and i've been racing there since 1996. i do not, however, subscribe to the "shut up and ride," "we know it's a good course when no one can walk down it" attitude that still seems to pervade the scene there. frankly, i think it's turning people off to the place. and with little going for it in terms of amenities can Plattekill really afford the take-it-or-leave-it attitude anymore?

Laz told me there is no one to cut race courses or volunteer, but why would I or anyone else want to help someone who thought nothing of cursing us out when we voiced our displeasure with the lack of effort put into making the course this weekend.

If this were a new mountain or series i'd be more sympathetic but it's not. Plattekill has been in the game for over 10 years and has produced some of the best race courses i've ridden. there are still so many good trails up there, and we rode many of them on saturday, so why not use them? Some sections of that mountain are almost "legendary" in some circles yet they aren't utilized.

downhill racing seems to be on an upswing as of late with more riders and races than than i can recall in the past 5 years or so. it's unfortunate the place that pretty much started it all, and for a long time defined what east coast downhilling was/is, is now considered by many to be a 2nd class event.

racers are skipping plattekill to go elsewhere, that alone sends a pretty clear message.

oldschool · Toy

Well......everyone has their points and as I said earlier there is no right or wrong, we all have our opinions.

I hope that things work out and that we all continue to ride, race and enjoy Plattekill as we have in the past.

fyi; In 2005 excluding race #1 which is always the most popular the average number of Expert riders per event was 75. Same applies for 2006 with out race #1 the average number of Exprt riders per event is 50.

Philly758 · All-City

sark · Bomber

I have to agree with Dave and Lee. The course needed to be modified. They seemed more than willing to help and guide lazlo (who we all know he needs a little guidence). I was very unimpressed by Lazlo. His attitude and foul language were unacceptable and astonishing. It's no surprise he is developing a reputation............ Also, the wine and cheese bit was extremely unclassy. He publicly insults his customers. It's no wonder that pkill has poor turnouts at races and on free riding weekends. Blizzard you disappointed me. I wish steve would start makin the courses again.

sharkdh · Burner

Looked like your regular Plattekill course to me.

Yeah there were some stumps and nar & some parts weren't super well-marked and a bit confusing at first but once the race course broke in around noon there really was nothing 2 complain about. Business as usual.

As for the complainers seriously it might be best for you 2 not come back to Plattekill.
We're trying to enjoy the mountain and ride here!
No more barking on the lift lines & in the pits, on the computer and in the Pkill bathroom. Hell, I'd leap off 'The Tooth' and mid-air hear people complaining about something.

All your chat doesnt belong at Plattekill.
Go take it to the molehill.

Glad the rainstorms on Saturday cleared most of the complainers out.
and lets be honest isnt that what all the bitching was really about? Wink

tbiker615 · All-City

You people gotta stop letting Lazlo get to you all. The last two courses were extremely difficult. Both of those two courses, they had sport riders prepared to race them, and then had to change them off to the beginner course. I to have to go home to my wife and kids. I felt completely unsafe on that course and was very thankful that the sport riders were moved to a different course. I havent moved up to expert, because of these types of courses. I talked to Joe, who has been building the courses this year, to try to give him some help for future building. How much he's digusted, I dont know. He said he uses a leave blower to blow the fresh cut section. There's no way in hell, he has done that in the last two courses. I personally spent 3 hours raking the expert pro course in June. It was packed beyond belief with leaves and cuttings.

Case in point, your a pussy if you dont come back in August. Plattekill is hands down the best pure downhilling mountain around. You all gotta stop stop deserting it because of petty bullshit.

DHteamrider28 · Bomber

aww man....i'm sadly gonna say that now i'm kinda happy that i didnt get to go to plattekill this past weekend (eventhough i wanted to go really badly)...but from what i'm reading it sounds pretty horrific. I always loved freeriding plattekill last year, and the races were awesome too. I would never have expected it to come down to something like this. Eventhough i wasnt there, i'm getting the feeling that lazlo lost it a bit there, but that was probably from stress or something, i dont know. I'm noone to have a say in this arguement, and i know that, but i'm in such disbelief right now, that i feel confused and mad. i agree with pretty much everyone here about racing, and the competition as oppose to excessively having to worry about your safety. but...wow...thats all i have to say. I mean i would never have expected it to come to this. i definitely agree with the fact that everyone is allowed to have an opinion....i mean Plattekill was such an awesome place last year, from what i can remember, and now it seems like there has to be a lot of work done to improve the atmosphere there, as well as the trails. Well i'm going to plattekill #4 to check it out (it'll be my first platty race this year), and i hope none of what happened during the past weekend repeats itself. I mean i dont want plattekill to lose riders, since i really love it up there and its the place that started it all for me, but i wouldn't be surprised with unprofessional behavior like that. Anyway, i hope all of you will still go up to plattekill for #4, and not be discouraged by this past weekend. I sure as hell hope nothing like this will happen. Well hope to see you guys up there next time.

pterodactyl · Burner

It's funny that some of you are offended by Lazlos cursing.

Lazlo was not elected to run Plattekill...he owns it. Petitions are not for business owners. I think I probably would have told you to "get the f**k out of here" if I were presented with a petition from a whiny 20something year old kid.

It is not my concern if people choose not to ride there. I don't own it. It is definitely my concern if I pay to race and someone complains enough to change things. That is a slippery slope. It can set a presidence that the minority will change things for the majority. Soon we'll all be racing beginner courses because of complaining of a lesser skilled rider. Don't determine for me whether or not I can safely ride the course. I don't need you to make that decision for me.
I don't understand where safe and DH go together...They make BODY ARMOR specifically for the sport. Golf is safe, tennis is safe, bowling is safe. DH is not safe. Riding thru the woods on a bicycle as fast as you can is not safe. Why would you think that DH is supposed to be safe? What constitutes a safe course? People have gotten worse injuries on easier courses...last November.

If you have an issue, present it to Lazlo. If you don't like his answer, that is your problem. You have a choice to race or not. Since there have not been any possible solutions offered, consider this:
1. Arrive on Sat. morning or Friday afternoon.
2. Walk the course before registering
3. If you like the course, register and race. If you don't like the course, you have 2 options - freeride or go home.

Afterall the logo from Plattekill is "Shut up and Ride", not "Criticize our courses, make a petition and complain about things here"

nh dude · Bomber

you suck
step your game up!!!
the liftie necks made the course like they used to in the old days
last year and 04 courses were just a gift from steve and other volunteers.
it wasn't flowy had some odd pedal sections and and fucked up end but c'mon it was definatley old school platt

boogenman · Kingpin

Yeah listen to the shark or fear a shark attack

transcend · Clip on ties rule

TeddyC33 · All-City

Allright IMO- the thing about the last 2 plattekill courses is that as individual sections that you and your friends stop and check out and ride it fine.
I dont ever remember falling in practice.

The thing is as super long 4 minute courses the courses become a nag for all those fat or out of shape ppl and most ppl in general.

The first race of this year was amazing, the first race of LAST year was amazing. Plattekill should put in more less technical courses with more fireroad or non-tech sections. This way people can have fun in the fireroads AND recoup and think about the next upcoming rock section.

IMO it should be the kind of course where practically Noone crashes and you can really judge the pure skill of a rider. (first race of this year/first race of last year)

pterodactyl · Burner

I will bite the shit out of you fuckers.

Also, if you are or know or are the kids that were screaming at 1am Sat. night, this is directed to them/ you:

I am generally a hate filled person with no interest in being friendly to anyone. I have spent 34 years suppressing a deep seeded anger. Losing sleep because of some kids who just got their first pubic hairs makes me want to kill someone.

If you do that again, it is likely that I will do 1 of 4 things:
Option 1: punch you repeatedly in the face
Option 2: set you on fire
Option 3: fling human fecal matter at you
Option 4: park my vehicle on your head while you are sleeping

Have a nice day.

boogenman · Kingpin

DH racing isn’t about ripping fast speeds down a mountain, it is all about who can navigate a downhill course the fastest, if that requires riding slower than normal to clear a section then that is what it takes. The 2005 pro race at Mt. Snow was unsafe because of a combination of the rain and the yard sale, deal with it. Slow down, or even better learn to ride your bike under control at a slower speed.
On my second run I cleaned the entire chute section at a good pace, my friend who is a new expert rider also cleaned it right behind me, we both cleaned it after the rain as well. You need a combination of skill, speed and balls ro be great at DH if you want to ride fast buy a road bike and chill with the other meat spinners at road races.
Bottom line is that any rider that bitched about anything other than stumps should consider dropping down a class so they can become a better rider. Any pro that bitched must have lost the golden horseshoe that they had when they got a pro license. Any top 100 pro would rip that course with snow on it. Rain sure can create conflict but there are ways to overcome and adapt, ride slower, wear protection(rubbers) and use tires for conditions(if you are expert you are elite and $$$ for tires and other shit is needed to be good.)