copperhead buller ? verdict?
- Thread starter mmatrix
- Start date
rearviewmirror
Likes Dirt
Please explain to us why your opinion is important.
because this is a forum....
and no where did i say that my opinion was important, just asking the question?
I feel i am adding to the discussion.
...and i have rode it
Last edited:
cleeshoy
Eats Squid
Rode Copperhead yesterday (Sat 14/1). Honestly I was kinda disappointed. Found the surface to be rather "skatey" - felt like I didn't have a huge amount of confidence around corners (this could be more due to my lack of skill also!).
The lower half of the run was better then the top half, however definately prefer Stonefly
The lower half of the run was better then the top half, however definately prefer Stonefly
Agree CH surface is loose but its for track longevity + it still rides pretty good. Imagine if stonefly had chairlift access it would be shot to bits as it stands i was surprised how good a condition its still in after riding it 1 year apart its still awesome.
Slant 6 rear tyre on mach 5.7 hire bike was diabolical on CH, zero grip bloody scary. Ist time i've ever thought lack of rear tyre grip could cause a massive stack. Mountain kings on my bike faired much better.
Big thanks to team Buller for giving us GREAT trails to ride but please can u get hold of some land around sydney somewhere and do the same, Thanks.
Slant 6 rear tyre on mach 5.7 hire bike was diabolical on CH, zero grip bloody scary. Ist time i've ever thought lack of rear tyre grip could cause a massive stack. Mountain kings on my bike faired much better.
Big thanks to team Buller for giving us GREAT trails to ride but please can u get hold of some land around sydney somewhere and do the same, Thanks.
i liked it.
Thanks for all the feed back on Copperhead.
Rode it on the weekend with a good crew.
I enjoyed riding it. After reading some of the comments I think maybe the trail has been misunderstood.
It was designed as a downhill trail that could riden on any bike and was not designed as a XC trail. From the comments I think riders were expecting more of a XC trail rather than a Downhill trail.
As a side note Buller is def worth a weekend XC ride. Loved StoneFly, Silk Lane climb, corn hill etc.
Thanks for all the feed back on Copperhead.
Rode it on the weekend with a good crew.
I enjoyed riding it. After reading some of the comments I think maybe the trail has been misunderstood.
It was designed as a downhill trail that could riden on any bike and was not designed as a XC trail. From the comments I think riders were expecting more of a XC trail rather than a Downhill trail.
As a side note Buller is def worth a weekend XC ride. Loved StoneFly, Silk Lane climb, corn hill etc.
Moggio
Likes Bikes and Dirt
I rode Copperhead last week on a XC hardtail and my main problem was the amount of braking required to take off speed vs the inabilty to be caught by the berms. The berms require appropriate tyres and skill to handle the speed the trail forces you to have because it is quite consistantly steepish. So massive braking was required equating to not much fun.
It is a trail that could be beneficial to session various sections, which is interesting because besides the one rock section, it is all smooth, and technical rocky sections is what one usually needs to session. I wish I had more time to do this rather than trying to sample as much of Buller as possible.
Essentially, I think it isn't quite the trail it is being promoted as (certainly not an easily rideable intermeadiate XC trail level) and will probably require quite few tweaks and definately some serious bedding in of the surface. Still is it a trail that will appeal to DHers? Seems very much an advanced XC or AM type trail... which seeing Buller is trying to maximise numbers, seems a narrow demographic to appeal to?
Same thing with Stonefly... truly great descent, but the climb is out of reach as rideable except for those super fit riders who are a reasonably small percentage of all people with mountain bikes.
It is a trail that could be beneficial to session various sections, which is interesting because besides the one rock section, it is all smooth, and technical rocky sections is what one usually needs to session. I wish I had more time to do this rather than trying to sample as much of Buller as possible.
Essentially, I think it isn't quite the trail it is being promoted as (certainly not an easily rideable intermeadiate XC trail level) and will probably require quite few tweaks and definately some serious bedding in of the surface. Still is it a trail that will appeal to DHers? Seems very much an advanced XC or AM type trail... which seeing Buller is trying to maximise numbers, seems a narrow demographic to appeal to?
Same thing with Stonefly... truly great descent, but the climb is out of reach as rideable except for those super fit riders who are a reasonably small percentage of all people with mountain bikes.
tubeless ust and goop
quite rocky with sidewall tears and pinch flats in some areas, Klingsporn was probably the worst on tyres but a great descent which will keep you on your toes.
we had 12 flats on one day riding stonefly area and then klingsporn . the guys that were running ust tyres tubeless with goop had no flats, however the guys on hard tails running their race tyres such as crossmark exception and other lighter race tyres had the problems.
quite rocky with sidewall tears and pinch flats in some areas, Klingsporn was probably the worst on tyres but a great descent which will keep you on your toes.
throwback
Likes Bikes
yep spot on.for buller you want a tubeless setup with either full UST or tubeless ready tyres with reinforced sidewalls such as schwalbe snakeskin. pinchflats and tears from the rocks is what will get you if you run lightweight race tyres with tubes. any medium tread will work well. go for 2.2 or above for a bit more cushioning
bikeyoulongtime
Likes Dirt
hehe, I had pinch flat epics running not-necessarily-lightweight race tyres (karma 2.2 R, nevegal 2.35 F) but agreed, its rocky, plenty of pinch flats to be had and I'm 99.5% convinced to get a stans kit next time I change tyres.
back to copperhead, had many reservations following this thread, but thoroughly enjoyed it! only did one lap which left me wishing I had time to go a few more rounds.
It looks easy to overcook it, but its not too hard to find an optimal speed which means no need for heavy braking.
to sum up, fun!!
I still can't beleive people still run tubes but thats probably for another thread. I run UST mountain kings on my reign which is the Buller weapon of choice, grips awesome perfect for buller.
Anyone on lightweight cross country tyres are gunna strike problems in most places except hardpack stuff. I've had good success with schwable snakeskin and double defence tubeless ready tyres the sidewalls are holding up well in and around sydney conditions and i run them on 2 bikes, no flats, no burps and no complaints yet.
Anyone on lightweight cross country tyres are gunna strike problems in most places except hardpack stuff. I've had good success with schwable snakeskin and double defence tubeless ready tyres the sidewalls are holding up well in and around sydney conditions and i run them on 2 bikes, no flats, no burps and no complaints yet.
Copperhead was great! Especially since there has now been a decent amount of rain at Buller and the track was very grippy (and that was on my 29er with racing ralphs!). Stonefly is amazing! Sure, it's a tough climb, but worth it. And, not just for the trail down, which is super flowy and a real hoot, but because the climb is stunning, the views spectacular and all round a superb place to be. I tip my gentlemens cap to Glen Jacobs and his team who made this happen...
Also, a special thanks for the owner of the cafe at Mirimbah, who was an all round super nice guy. I had a fall earlier, which needed stiches, the staff gave my a warm bucket of water, towels and disinfectant to clean myself up with. Their food was great too! Slow cooked lamb focaccia with aioli and relish! Sure distracted me from my 'incident'.
One thing I would recommend: If you do ride Buller, make sure you have private hospital cover! The closest ED medical facility in Mansfield is privately run i.e. medicare will only cover about half of what you will be billed for. I had a local anaesthetic, sutures and a tetanus shot which would have been $500+ in out of pocket expenses if I was not an HCF member.
Also, a special thanks for the owner of the cafe at Mirimbah, who was an all round super nice guy. I had a fall earlier, which needed stiches, the staff gave my a warm bucket of water, towels and disinfectant to clean myself up with. Their food was great too! Slow cooked lamb focaccia with aioli and relish! Sure distracted me from my 'incident'.
One thing I would recommend: If you do ride Buller, make sure you have private hospital cover! The closest ED medical facility in Mansfield is privately run i.e. medicare will only cover about half of what you will be billed for. I had a local anaesthetic, sutures and a tetanus shot which would have been $500+ in out of pocket expenses if I was not an HCF member.
John U
MTB Precision
Please explain. Mansfield has a public hospital with a casualty dept. Been there to spend 20 minutes getting gravel scrubbed out of my hip. Cost me nothing. It was a few years ago. What has changed?
All 4 trails featured look pretty good but Gang Gangs looks the best. Looks can be deceiving though...Cant wait to get there and try them all out!
I walked into the hospital, was seen by a nurse and was straight away advised that the hospital is a privately run facility and that there would be a gap between what I was charged and what medicare would refund which was approx half to 75% of the cost. Infact they gave me a list of common procedures which listed the cost and the medicare gap I would have to pay. Since I have private cover this didn't bother me as I knew the difference would be paid by HCF, so I stayed there. I was advised that the closest fully funded public facility was about 50 mins away at Wangaratta. Needless to say, I have received a bill from the hospital for a few hundred $$
John U
MTB Precision
That's fuckin crazy. Been in there as an inpatient, too, over the years. Have never paid a cent. All of those visits must have been in the good old days of public funded healthcare.
VTSS350
Likes Bikes and Dirt
I have ridden it and loved it!!!
I think most people that complain about it either need to work on there bike setup or learn some skills!
There are 4-5 corners that can be gapped, rollers that can be double and a whole lot of fun had.
People need to stop blaming the trail and start working on there riding!