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Post by Angela on Jan 7, 2016 12:47:08 GMT -5
FATS is officially CLOSED. Due to excessive rainfall at the end of December the US Forest Service enacted an official closure of FATS. You can check our homepage, the USFS Call Before You Haul Hotline (803-561-4025), our Twitter Feed @fatsupdate, or our Facebook page for updates. Please respect the official closure and thank you for your support.  |
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Post by Angela on Jan 12, 2016 12:57:54 GMT -5
FATS is officially OPEN! There might still be some damp/mucky areas please ride in the center of the trail through these areas. Thank you
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Post by Angela on Jan 17, 2016 9:29:20 GMT -5
Please do not ride FATS after rain. Recommended time in summer conditions is minimum of 24 hours after rain. In winter, wait time is substantially longer.
Root system is not drawing water from the soil at the same rate and there is much less sun to dry trail. Wait time after rain under our currently very wet conditions is a minimum of 72 hours.
We had heavy rain at FATS on Friday and again this morning. The tread is much too wet for riding today.
On Saturday there were many riders on FATS despite very wet conditions. We ask that you as trail users please respect the trails and choose some of the great gravel routes when we're stuck in a rain pattern.
Thanks for your support
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Post by Angela on Jan 24, 2016 0:22:17 GMT -5
Please do not ride the trails at FATS this weekend. We had over an inch and a half of rain and some light snow coupled with cold and freezing temperatures. The trails will need a few days to dry out. Thank you.
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Post by Angela on Jan 29, 2016 19:59:28 GMT -5
Scout recon on Thursday indicated trails are still much wetter than expected. Will probably be another couple of days before things dry out enough to ride.
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Post by horsethief on Jan 31, 2016 17:28:00 GMT -5
Still wet as of Saturday morning 1/30. We went a 1/4 mile and turned around. These trails take an incredibly long time to dry out this time of year. Another few days and they should be fine.
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Post by Angela on Jan 31, 2016 22:51:53 GMT -5
Thanks so much for turning around once you realized the trails were too wet!
They do take longer during the winter months to dry but we have never seen conditions like this with the rainfall we have had. Only 3 inches of rain for the entire month of January and most of that was spread fairly lightly through the month. The only heavier rain we have had was over a week ago and that was around an inch and a half. Normally with the month like it has been and that rain on the 22nd the trails should have been good to ride after 3 or 4 days at the most. I really think the flooding in the area must be keeping the underground water at a much higher level than usual and is feeding the seeps.
We did recommend that riders let FATS dry out a couple more days but I think that with the beautiful weather over the weekend they didn't resist. I did have a few reports of riders heading out and then turning back as you did. Thanks so much for all of you who do that to protect these trails!
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Post by Angela on Jan 31, 2016 22:53:39 GMT -5
We have had many reports of the trails at FATS still being far wetter than they should be. We have not had significant rain to feed these mucky spots and running water (could be related to the flooding we had at the end of the year and into this year) so do not know how long it will take to dry out. Please do not ride the trails at FATS it will damage the trail. Thank you! Stay tuned for updates.
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Post by brent on Feb 2, 2016 11:34:20 GMT -5
How's about you work on the website a bit. When I visit the sorbacsra.org site it say that FATS is Open; however when I look at the forum you say not to ride FATS. It would be quite a help to just put a GO/NOGO indicator on the main page like some other sorba sites in other areas have done. I appreciate this forum, but it's a pain when I look at the site and see that FATS is Open then get out on the trails and wonder why it's labeled as open.
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Post by dsquaredmsquared on Feb 2, 2016 15:54:04 GMT -5
How's about you work on the website a bit. When I visit the sorbacsra.org site it say that FATS is Open; however when I look at the forum you say not to ride FATS. It would be quite a help to just put a GO/NOGO indicator on the main page like some other sorba sites in other areas have done. I appreciate this forum, but it's a pain when I look at the site and see that FATS is Open then get out on the trails and wonder why it's labeled as open. We apologize for the inconvenience. Hopefully you are not local because local riders should know when it rained last and whether the trails are really dry enough to ride. Out of town folks usually PM us for trail conditions. Nonetheless, the US Forest Service is the land manager at FATS, the decider at FATS, and only recognizes OPEN or CLOSED. With the USFS, open does not necessarily mean dry. SORBAcsra discouraging you from riding FATS tells you that, while FATS is officially open, it's wet out there but not wet enough for the USFS to officially close the trail. Since SORBAcsra is an all volunteer 501(c)3 non-profit organization, why don't you help us with the website? Alternatively, it would be great if you would volunteer at one of our trail work parties. We seem to have a ton of people that like to ride FATS, a fair number of folks that complain about FATS (or SORBAcsra), but too few people willing to volunteer and help SORBAcsra maintain FATS. Thanks for your suggestion and have a nice day  |
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Post by mhanna on Feb 2, 2016 16:05:10 GMT -5
Brent, please understand something, all the folks who are members of SORBA that build and maintain the website and Facebook pages are all volunteers who have day jobs and VERY generously donate their time doing all these things for absolutely nothing. Your "how about you work on the website" comment just didn't set well with me and I'm not one of the folks who has given untold hours over the years just to keep all the various things up and running. You obviously have no idea how much time these folks spend behind the scenes developing, building and maintaining the CSRA SORBA group and all the local trails. If it weren't for them we'd have very few place to enjoy our sport in this area.
FATS itself was built and is maintained off the blood, sweat and tears of local CSRA SORBA volunteers who don't get a red cent for their time. Many of them pour there own money into the trails in many different ways. Without them there would be no FATS to enjoy. Let's not offend them with comments that can seem demeaning.
The USFS is the only one who can officially close the trails. They try to do that only in the worst of conditions. There are many times that the trails are officially open but shouldn't really be ridden. It's just not feasible for them to do that. We depend on the local trail users to understand the reasons why it's not good for the trails to be used on certain days, in certain conditions and make good judgments for the sake of the trails. The comments that are made about staying off the trails after rains and in certain wet conditions are to aid you in making that good judgment.
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Post by brent on Feb 2, 2016 17:38:23 GMT -5
First off to all of the sorba volunteers I want to express my deepest thanks for the time, talent and treasure that you have donated in an effort to maintain our many miles of trails. I too have volunteered, I spent quite a few hours out on the trails after the ice storm.
I was by no means trying to offend anyone with my comments; I was about to head to lunch and was in a rush.
Anyhow I was hoping that my post would be taken more as a suggestion rather than a complaint or that I was trying to belittle any of the efforts that any of the sorba volunteers have put forth.
I would be more than happy to offer some assistance with some modifications to the website.
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Post by Angela on Feb 3, 2016 23:22:12 GMT -5
Rain started around noontime today and is much lighter now but not totally out of the area. A local gauge indicates we have picked up about an inch and a half of rain so far. Trails will be too wet to ride for a few days. Please do not ride wet trails!
Thank you!
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Post by Angela on Feb 4, 2016 22:04:00 GMT -5
FATS is officially CLOSED.
Due to wet trails and an additional 1.5+ inches of rain Wednesday, February 3rd, the US Forest Service has enacted an official closure of FATS.
You can check our forum, the USFS Call Before You Haul Hotline (803-561-4025), our Twitter Feed @fatsupdate, or our Facebook page for updates.
Please respect the official closure and thank you for your support.
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Post by Angela on Feb 13, 2016 9:32:45 GMT -5
FATS will be open today at noontime. There are some trees down along the trails and also wet/mucky spots (these seeping areas will probably be visible on the trails for several more weeks)!
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Post by Angela on Feb 16, 2016 7:19:31 GMT -5
The front that pushed through the area last night dropped just under an inch of rain (could be heavier in some areas). FATS will be too wet to ride for a few days. Please do not ride wet trails. Stay tuned for updates on trail conditions here, on Twitter or on SORBA CSRA Facebook page. Thank you!
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Post by bobsimmons on Feb 18, 2016 19:45:30 GMT -5
Well its been a few days since the rain. Thinking the sun has been out and the wind blowing so figured lets give it a try. Well my 2 cents says its still to wet to ride. We rode Skinney and deep step And it was pretty sloppy. Im sure it will get hit hard with the weather looking good for the weekend but feel it would be best to find some where else to ride. Again just my 2 cents worth.
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Post by Angela on Feb 20, 2016 7:47:52 GMT -5
Thanks for the report Bob! Another scout checked a couple of the trails yesterday and they are still pretty sloppy. Please ride other trails in the area and give FATS a chance to dry out. Thank you!
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Post by horsethief on Feb 21, 2016 14:54:42 GMT -5
Rode Big Rock and Tower this morning. Wish I didn't. Surprisingly wet even though it has been open for a week. Moisture takes sooo long to dissipate this time of year.
Now more rain coming early this week....
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Post by Angela on Feb 24, 2016 6:54:33 GMT -5
Storm pushing through the area with over an inch of rain already and more rain to come. Strong winds over the next couple of days as well with gusts of 40 to 50 mph - expect we'll have trees down on various trails.
Please do not ride wet trails! It will take a few days to start drying out.
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