Let me take you back to the very first mountain bike feature we ever built on this channel.
You guys named it the Drama Drop, since my dog, Drama, presided over the construction.
And quickly, that iconic drop came to represent Berm Creek, even becoming the centerpiece
of this teeshirt.
On video, the drop didn’t look too bad at all, so unsuspecting mountain bikers arrived
ready to send it right away—only to face the Drama Drop in 3D.
In real life the drop had a very blind approach, a skinny platform, and a non landing. It was
brutal, and honestly it wasn’t all that fun. The drop became more of a tool for torture
testing products and clapping suspension than it did a sessionable feature. But it was that,
which made it so useful.
One year after moving to Berm Peak, we’re kind of missing a feature like the Drama Drop
and so today we’ll scout this hillside and find a suitable place to build a new one.
Building a new Drama Drop isn’t just a matter of building a drop. To be a Drama Drop 2.0
it needs to share something in common with the original.
Firstly, the original drop was built on a slope, which eliminated the need for a purpose
built landing. Of course that made it kind of brutal since—well, there was no purpose
built landing.
Second, the original was built with dimensional lumber, and supported by 6x6 posts. There
are other ways to build a drop, but we’re gonna stick to the original design so it looks
the same.
Third, a Drama drop needs a narrow and sketchy approach. There needs to be a mental roadblock
that tricks you into thinking you suck at mountain biking. Sketchy approach? We’ve
got that covered for sure.
Finally, there needs to be a way to opt out of the drop and keep your tires on the ground.
On the original I built this skinny down ramp, which in practice, scared more people than
the actual drop. So our new drop will need a bypass line that makes no sense.
This slope at the top of Moonshangle Thickets is perfect, and we can very easily connect
it to Knob Deep. The slope is also real steep here and the landing is chock full of gnarly
roots. So we’ll clear the debris, do some pruning, and make this look like a trail before
we start building anything.
Step one is figuring out where the main support post will be, and step two is digging a hole
for it.
On the original drop I used a bag of concrete to hold the post in place, but this time we’ll
use braces on the side. First we need get
it plumb.
The side braces are made from 2x6’s cut at 45 degree angles. This will allow them
to sit flat against the post. We’re also drilling pocket holes to keep them located.
I’ve never done this so we’ll see how it holds up.
Although the braces will stick into the ground, they get their strength from these stakes.
The drop will be framed with two 12 foot 2x8’s, so we can use one to locate the second post.
I actually find it more difficult to follow plans for a structure like this because the
terrain dictates everything. So we’ll tack everything together with puny little screws
and adjust the frame until we’re satisfied.
Once we’re happy with the structure, we can make it permanent with 5” timberloks.
To
match the original drop, we’re using normal deck planks from the store—nothing fancy.
Now to make this look like a drop.
With the drop complete, all we need to build is the bypass. I had saved the original 4x4
post from that roll in. And so, we’ll reuse it for our new bypass.
To make it more difficult than the original, we’ll tuck it under the drop so that one
must precisely dive into it, or face certain doom. As for the slats, we’ll make them
the same exact width as the original.
Just like during the construction of the old drop, Drama dropped in occasionally to check
in on the progress—or maybe just to get some attention. He’s an old man now, and
his eyesight isn’t what it used to be. But he’s happy, and his new little brother is
keeping him young. Sooner or later, we’ll need to build a feature named after Oscar
too. But today, the Drama Drop 2.0 reigns supreme.
The sketchy approach, and familiar narrow slats
make this new drop feel a lot like the old one. But the steeper landing makes it feel
a little smoother. But one thing’s for sure; the new roll in
is sketchy.
The new roll in is—tough to explain. Go too fast and you’ll nearly miss it altogether.
Under shoot it and get hung up on the platform. It’s here for anyone who wants to try it,
but for everyone else there’s the drop.
Berm Peak feels a lot more complete today. With our new channel being so focused on bike
upgrades and torture tests, this drop will be getting a lot of use. To see those videos,
subscribe to our new channel “Berm Peak Express”, and if you want to see us build
a feature for Oscar, subscribe to this channel so our next video will pop up in your feed.
I hope you enjoyed being part of today’s build, and I can’t wait to show you all
the things we use this drop to test. Thanks for riding with me today and I’ll see you
next time.