Frequently Asked Questions
- Why can't I add a new trail/lbs/etc or post trail reviews directly? All the other sites let me, why won't you?
- When I click on a trail's name nothing happens. What's up with that?
- I want to ride at Lost Maples State Park, but I don't see it listed. Why not?
- What happened to Kelly Creek Ranch?
- What happened to 700 Acres?
- I heard of a certain trail, but I don't see it listed here. Am I hearing things?
- What's a bandit trail?
- What happens with my hard-earned money I so graciously donated to MountainBikeTx.com? Or, why should I donate to this site in the first place?
- What's the possibility of listing the bike brands the bike shops sell?
- Why is a Fezzari Nebo Peak in over half the trail photos?
- We want to add mountain bike trails to our property/park. Can MountainBikeTx.com help?
- Can I post upcoming rides to the Calendar?
Have a question not covered here? Contact Us and we will not only answer your question, we'll add it to this page in case others have the same question.
1. Why can't I add a new trail/lbs/etc. or post trail reviews directly? All the other sites let me, why won't you?
One of the things we noticed while searching the internet for mountain bike trails is that many of the sites that allow users to post directly (that is, in real time) are full of posts that are either useless (e.g., outdated or contain no useful comments), could have been written better by a 1st grader, or just contain straight up bad information. We decided against allowing users to contribute to this site in real time so as to avoid having to constantly moderate and edit what was being posted. We do allow our users to contribute content, reviews and new trails included. As a matter-of-fact, we highly encourage, beg, and pray for it. For more information on contributing, click here.
2. When I click on a trail's name nothing happens. What's up with that?
That's a good question! Although you shouldn't have this problem, if you have JavaScript disabled you just might since we use JavaScript to display any popup style pages, such as the individual trail pages and any third-party websites. For instructions on how to enable JavaScript check out Google's appropriately named help page, Enabling JavaScript.
3. I want to ride at Lost Maples State Park, but I don't see it listed. Why not?
For some reason, Lost Maples seems to be a favorite place to search for on MountainBikeTx.com. I'm not sure if there is a website out there that uses 'Lost Maples' and 'mountain biking' in the same sentence, but they shouldn't. The reality is that Lost Maples State Park does not offer a single opportunity for mountain biking. If you have ever been there, you understand why. Even hiking the climb to the top can be tough. Although, bombing down the other side would be sweet!
4. What happened to Kelly Creek Ranch?
We were informed by Hill Country Bicycle Works that Kelly Creek Ranch is no longer accessible to mountain bikes. Evidently, the land has been split by the three brothers who owned it and two of them have sold their part of the property. As for the third brother that still has the property, he has no interest in mountain biking. What's next, $4.00 for gas!?
5. What happened to 700 Acres?
700 Acres was removed from the active trail listings on MountainBikeTx.com due to the fact that over the years, what was once nearly 700 acres (hence, the name) has been developed upon so that it is maybe 70 acres these days. Although the development and maintenance of these trails has been considered and discussed, very little has been done about it. It seems that 700 Acres will be allowed to become nothing more than a fond memory for those who once rode upon its thorny trails.
6. I heard of a certain trail, but I don't see it listed here. Am I hearing things?
That's one possibility, however, there is probably a less psychiatric-related reason why that trail you heard of isn't listed here. Here are a few possibilities:
• The place no longer exists or allows mountain biking,
• It's known by a different name. Although we try to cover the more common
names in our trail directory,
you may know it as something else. Tell us, and maybe we'll list it as such,
too.
• It's what is known as a bandit trail and we DO NOT
list bandit trails. (see next question)
Either way, let us know about it and we can probably
get you a more definitive answer.
7. What's a bandit trail?
A bandit trail is a trail that is either,
A) a section of trail created without permission by local users which branches
from a legitimate trail (also known as a rogue trail), or
B) a trail that was created without permission from the respective owner
of the property or is not endorsed by the owner (also known as an illegal
trail).
Note: the terms 'bandit', 'rogue', and 'illegal' are
often used interchangeably.
For example Ken's Trail, God's Marbles or Slinky, all bandit trail sections found at a particular Austin park listed on this site (the park, not the bandit trails).
8. What happens with my hard-earned money I so graciously donated to MountainBikeTx.com? Or, why should I donate to this site in the first place?
Before we touch a penny of it, 75% is set aside and goes towards the Texas Together program. MountainBikeTx.com, although not legally recognized as such at this time, was established with the intention of being a not-for-profit entity. As such, any donations received (from advertisers and sponsors, as well) will be used to offset the cost of maintaining and developing the website and further promoting it (such as flyers given to bike shops and at many events). This includes: hosting fees, domain registration fees, and software upgrades necessary to enhancing the site. In addition, any funds received go towards supporting the Contribution Incentives Program and supporting local associations and charities through Texas Together.
9. What's the possibility of listing the bike brands the bike shops sell?
Not very good. The reason we chose not to list the bike brands each LBS sells is that it would be a nightmare trying to keep up with them in order to ensure they haven't dropped a company or started selling a new brand. If shop X was listed as selling Trek bikes and you found out in your search for the latest Trek Fuel EX 9 that they don't sell Trek any longer, you might be mad at us. Then we would feel bad.
10. Why is a Fezzari Nebo Peak in over half the trail photos?
The Nebo Peak is in many of the photos simply because many of the photos were taken by me and it's my bike. As for the purpose of a bike being in a photo, it is generally to serve as a reference. By placing a bike in the photo it tends to make it easier to tell how wide a trail is, the direction of travel, how high or steep a hill is, etc. If you would rather see your bike in the photos, send us your photos!
11. We want to add mountain bike trails to our property/park. Can MountainBikeTx.com help?
Yes and no. Here at MountainBikeTx.com we are not trail designers, nor do we claim to be. We do know what we enjoy riding and like to think we know what makes for a great trail, but are not proficient enough nor have the resources to truly "design" a trail or trail system for you. That's the bad news. The good news is that we have numerous contacts throughout the Texas mountain bike community and will gladly share with you not only our opinions and suggestions, but will also work to get you connected with someone in your area (or somewhat nearby) who is considered a trail design expert. If you approach us for assistance, rest assured that we will do our best to ensure you are taken care of and will remain in the picture as long as you want or need us to.
12. Can I post upcoming rides to the Calendar? Note: The calendar is disabled indefinitely
This is another one of those yes and no questions. Although we do not provide a category option for upcoming rides, rides may be posted to the calendar. The catch, however, is that we do not allow weekly rides or everyday rides to be posted. If we did, could you imagine how crowded the calendar would get? For these types of rides, please use the MountainBikeTx.com Forum (currently unavailable). If it's a unique ride, on the other hand, then it may be ok to list. An example might be an open-invite trip to Raccoon Mountain in TN, or something similarly unique. If you aren't sure, post it to the calendar and if it's more suited for the forum, we'll let you know.