Pump Track Dirt?

[Dymalla]

Hey all.
Sorry if this has been covered before but I did a quick search about a week back and couldnt really find anything.

I'm just wondering if anyone knows what type of dirt I should be looking for to build a pump track? Obviously I'm gonna need something that'll compact down pretty well and not get eroded away in no time.

I'm able to actually buy some dirt from a landscaping place so if anyone has any experience with that then that would be a lot of help.

Cheers.

 

[stringbean]

something with clay in it generaly goes alright as it compacts hand hardens so well.

 

[Adamski]

G'day Dymalla,

I've built a pumptrack in my backyard, here's my Trail Log Backyard Track

The soil in Gembrook is fortunately pretty much IDEAL for pumptracks. You want a well draining friable clay soil. Too much clay content means that it will pack really well but will hold water like a pool. I have dug drainage for all of the dips in my track that hold water and it is generally rideable after a light rain. When dry it cracks a bit but due to less clay it doesn't crack heavily...just wet it with a hose before riding gets it back to prime. When completely dry it rolls like concrete.

Hope that helps. The less sand the better. Stick to clay loams if you can. If you can get hold of a fair bit of sandy soil you can still make it work by top coating the sandy rollers and berms with a good thick coat of clay soil.

Happy digging

 

[Viv92]

I got clay loam. It's easy to work and packs in real hard. I've found it gets a bit blown out in the turns though. Maybe you want something more clay-ey than what I got.

 

[Dymalla]

Went to the dirt place today and looked at soils and stuff.

We reckon we'll use Deco or "Natural Soil"
The Deco seems to pack pretty well but the Natural Soil looks like you could get it almost compacted enough to get a blue groove going.

Or I could just hang up a big sheet with a wheelbarrow underneath it and it'd collect all the dust going around now in Brissy

 

[welliot]

i dont no much about dirt but it shouldnt really matter what dirt but if you water it down and if it gets direct sunlight it would be perfect

 

[Adamski]

i dont no much about dirt but it shouldnt really matter what dirt but if you water it down and if it gets direct sunlight it would be perfect

The first 13 words of this sentence explain why the second part of the sentence is so off mark. I can see you're new to the forums mate. Investigate some soil properties and I think you'll find that, for example, there is a HUGE difference between using a volcanic Vertosol to build jumps rather than a Sodosol with a dispersive clay in the B horizon.

Victorian Resources Online: Soils Glossary

Have a squiz dude. Interesting read.

 

[D/\M0]

The first 13 words of this sentence explain why the second part of the sentence is so off mark. I can see you're new to the forums mate. Investigate some soil properties and I think you'll find that, for example, there is a HUGE difference between using a volcanic Vertosol to build jumps rather than a Sodosol with a dispersive clay in the B horizon.

Victorian Resources Online: Soils Glossary

Have a squiz dude. Interesting read.

Owned by someone who's done some reading (or more likely study on the sudject)!
I've yet to clear all the overgrown weeds down the back of my place but I'm hoping so badly that the soil underneath is decent for building and isn't dispersive. It'll be difficult to get fresh loads soil delivered, quite a tight spot.
I've got a great pump track mapped out. Christmas holiday here we come! I love uni breaks.
I'll keep a thread running as I go with updates, watch this space in early December!

 

[mitch58]

I would say some type of clay as it hardens very well and is reasonably smooth.