I’m 55 years old and 181 lbs , just getting back into cycling and I took my Kona Hoss Deluxe MTB to this park yesterday. Spent like 30 min on some of those insane courses of which my ass had No business being on! 😜 so I headed out on a green trail that I was told did a 3.5 mile loop around the Vortex and 11 miles later I found my way back to the park😝. Had so much fun ! Getting into shape is now a priority for me as I really want to effectively ride this Red course you are doing in this video. Being it was my first time ever to this park and I’ve never road anything like this , I was constantly surprised on what popped up on the other side of a hill or burm! Was like Oh F#%@#!!! Gonna make this my 2nd home!! I highly recommend checking this place out! Oh and download a trail map if you plan to ride the amazing scenic green trails so you don’t get lost like I did 🤪✌️🇺🇸 Great Video , excellent riding as well !! 😁
Love these trails! Vortex basically taught me to ride and as a woman its intimidating in the reds. But a lot of awesome people are regulars to the trail that encourage woman and new riders to try the harder trails. They convinced me I needed to be the first Woman to ride "Papa Bear" the man made wood drop-in rollers in Vortex. Feel pretty proud of that even today 😊 Glad you made this video!
Happy to hear you've gotten so much encouragement through your learning process! Papa bear is super intimidating the first few times you're gonna ride it for sure.
I appreciate you editing "reality" into this video instead of making yourself look like a superhero. Realistic videos are much better and give newbies like me a proper gauge to compare ourselves. I totally get how the up/down nature of the trail gasses you out more. Markham Park and Oleta Park are a much more technical challenge than Amelia Park but Amelia is the one that always exhausts me because there are just so many small climbs one right after the other with no let up that you just end up exhausted quickly. Great video! Subscribed!
Thanks man! Fully agree with you. I actually got into this because I saw other non-alien-level riders making great stuff, reality is a key part of great videos, I've always tried to convey that as much as possible while keeping the videos fun. Amelia is a lung buster for sure!
Exactly! I love that Seth doesn't edit out his wipe outs. That's really part of the fun! When I first started, I was afraid of falling. As I've gotten better, kept pushing and converted to clipless, I'm falling all over the place and not batting an eye thanks to channels like yours and Seth's. If he can fall, then I can fall. Due to that I am seeing huge improvements every week and feeling awesome when I conquer a trail section that used to kick my butt the month before. Keep'em coming and would love to see you do a full one at Oleta! No crazy features like here but rooty and techie AF! :)
Exactly! Glad you're progressing, always an awesome feeling to conquer new stuff. I'm definitely taking on Oleta to try to film some of the root / rock challenge soon. Since Oleta is rather close for me, I'll probably do a more trail by trail format like I've been doing with VK.
Trail by trail would be even better. Beata Wronska has a few trail by trail videos from Oleta that have helped me out. I've been sessioning the Gator Bank trail and almost have it down. Wandered into Giligan's Island last week and now I know I gotta work on my log jumping skills! lol
Check out how I did Stairway to heaven at VK. I think that's the format I'll follow for Oleta. Beatas stuff is pretty cool, but since the videos are so long its hard to just find the spots one would usually struggle with. Giligans is hard work, it took a bit of time to get that one down in a complete lap.
Saw you on single tracks dude! So awesome. I rode Chuck Lennon Park in North Florida today. Wild turkey trail kicked my ass big time. I'll post the vid next week. Cheers
Yeah man, thanks, that was an unexpected and pleasant surprise! Had never heard of it, looking forward to the video, always great to find out about new spots. Cheers!
Great footage of an epic place to ride. Went there twice this week while vacationing in Fla. I like the mix of tech trails and sweeper trails. Once my legs felt shot, we started doing the less tech trails like dogbone, which has some really fun wood features tucked in between good stretches of flat sweeping corners. This place is a must see for any mt biker in the area. So glad I went. Keep the vids coming.
Thanks Mike! Exactly as you say, the variety is super fun! Glad to hear you enjoyed Santos while you were here, this is one of my favorite spots in the state. If you ever come back you should try Alafia.
It's on the list. I want to return to the Fort Pierce area again and ride under the highway and on the rolling hills covered with rubber mats and carpet. Haven't been there in 10 years but I think it's still there.
Hey Adan, great to see you around here! Definitely try to get a trip in to Ocala when you can, its so much fun it makes no sense. You'll also get so much better so fast with the features they have. I like to camp at the Santos trailhead sometimes and get two days of riding it, just make sure not to do it in summer, the heat gets bad lol
I never really progressed much more than this video haha, jumping has such high consequences that I'd rather just stay on the bike to ride more than send one big jump.
Nice video, I really enjoyed that trail when I visited but I didn't do that big wooden waterfall thing, I did the middle one only and again, the video doesn't show how steep that is! Oddly enough I found vortex red was actually easier riding than John Brown or Sinkhole but Vortex had more mind over matter things to overcome. Once you do the they're easy it seems. I'm another one that fears skinnies yet I have very good balance and can ride a 2x4 if it's ground level, go figure. Thanks for posting, it's making me yearn to get back to FL next winter.
Thanks man! I fully agree with you, vortex is about mental commitment more that anything else, that wooden waterfall, the first time I did it a couple of trips ago I must have rolled up to it 20 times before committing, once I did it, it was like, that was it? why was I afraid hahaha.
6:16 I legit thought Stefano had focused the camera on the sign so we could read it till I remembered the gimbal is just slow around tight corners lol.
Great video, just curious...what kind of gimbal are you using? I noticed it didn't want to follow you around the turns. Is that a setting you can play with? Thanks!
Thanks! Glad you liked. Its a Feiyu Tech WG. The delay on the pan axis is one of its quirks, its a nice overall gimbal for the price, but its not perfect. The pan axis is at the fastest setting, some days it behaves, others not so much, I calibrate it every so often but the lag seems to be a random thing.
Thanks man, appreciate the feedback. I've looked everywhere for info on that and unfortunately, the issue is just that UA-cam doesn't give us enough bitrate so the video has a hard time dealing with changing light and leafs. Take a look at this comparison on what it looks like when exported vs uploaded to youtube. imgur.com/a/DUbB1
burnoutmaster494 Ive been riding for about 3 years but I've been doing it seriously for a year and a bit, before that I was riding sporadically. No bmx experience, I used to do Enduro motorcycling years ago. Bmx or dirt jumping would be awesome, it teaches so much!
I’m a recent subscriber. Came across your channel when I was researching buying my Jeffsy. Do you live in the central Florida area? I will be down there probably next month and would love to Meetup if that’s something you would be interested in.
come check out grapefruit trail sometime. though I would not ride it fully blind. It's in Palm bay Florida. if you do go let me know maybe we can collaborate on a video.
I definitely will go to GFT soon, it looks like a really awesome place from every video I've seen. Its short enough that I can probably do a bunch of laps, so riding it blind wont be an issue. I'm always open to a collab, I'll let you know when I figure out so time to go.
that would be awesome, I can do pretty decent table tops, but doubles are a mental blockage for me still. If I can follow someone in to set speed it would be great. I always ride flats :)
I always peg my heart out atleast 5 Times every time I go there, summer riding in Florida is rough stuff. just got back from iron mountain trail in damascus va and it was freaking epic! check me out, I ride everywhere I can and love your informative videos
Indeed it is! Had no idea about that trail, looks great! Saw you were carrying a bunch of stuff on the bike, did you bike pack up on the trails? I've been wanting to do that but haven't gotten the chance yet.
What a beautiful trail. Great riding!
I’m 55 years old and 181 lbs , just getting back into cycling and I took my Kona Hoss Deluxe MTB to this park yesterday. Spent like 30 min on some of those insane courses of which my ass had No business being on! 😜 so I headed out on a green trail that I was told did a 3.5 mile loop around the Vortex and 11 miles later I found my way back to the park😝. Had so much fun ! Getting into shape is now a priority for me as I really want to effectively ride this Red course you are doing in this video. Being it was my first time ever to this park and I’ve never road anything like this , I was constantly surprised on what popped up on the other side of a hill or burm! Was like Oh F#%@#!!! Gonna make this my 2nd home!!
I highly recommend checking this place out! Oh and download a trail map if you plan to ride the amazing scenic green trails so you don’t get lost like I did 🤪✌️🇺🇸
Great Video , excellent riding as well !! 😁
Happy to hear you're having fun and getting back into it. Enjoy the journey.
Awesome video! This channel feels like the next big mountain biking channel!
Wow, thanks man! Appreciate the awesome compliment.
Love these trails! Vortex basically taught me to ride and as a woman its intimidating in the reds. But a lot of awesome people are regulars to the trail that encourage woman and new riders to try the harder trails. They convinced me I needed to be the first Woman to ride "Papa Bear" the man made wood drop-in rollers in Vortex. Feel pretty proud of that even today 😊 Glad you made this video!
Happy to hear you've gotten so much encouragement through your learning process! Papa bear is super intimidating the first few times you're gonna ride it for sure.
Great ride! Love the camera angle....I found myself leaning into the curves with you. Can't wait to ride it
Great riding. Nicely made video.
Thanks John!
I practice so much on those same jumps. nice work!
Those jumps are awesome, haven't been there in a while but I want to head back soon, last time I was there with the Jeffsy it was too wet for jumps.
Great video and great camera location/vantage point. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Mike!
Awesome video, I am going to be out their this weekend and this video really helped. You have a new subscriber.
Awesome! Thank you!
I appreciate you editing "reality" into this video instead of making yourself look like a superhero. Realistic videos are much better and give newbies like me a proper gauge to compare ourselves. I totally get how the up/down nature of the trail gasses you out more. Markham Park and Oleta Park are a much more technical challenge than Amelia Park but Amelia is the one that always exhausts me because there are just so many small climbs one right after the other with no let up that you just end up exhausted quickly. Great video! Subscribed!
Thanks man! Fully agree with you. I actually got into this because I saw other non-alien-level riders making great stuff, reality is a key part of great videos, I've always tried to convey that as much as possible while keeping the videos fun. Amelia is a lung buster for sure!
Exactly! I love that Seth doesn't edit out his wipe outs. That's really part of the fun! When I first started, I was afraid of falling. As I've gotten better, kept pushing and converted to clipless, I'm falling all over the place and not batting an eye thanks to channels like yours and Seth's. If he can fall, then I can fall. Due to that I am seeing huge improvements every week and feeling awesome when I conquer a trail section that used to kick my butt the month before. Keep'em coming and would love to see you do a full one at Oleta! No crazy features like here but rooty and techie AF! :)
Exactly! Glad you're progressing, always an awesome feeling to conquer new stuff. I'm definitely taking on Oleta to try to film some of the root / rock challenge soon. Since Oleta is rather close for me, I'll probably do a more trail by trail format like I've been doing with VK.
Trail by trail would be even better. Beata Wronska has a few trail by trail videos from Oleta that have helped me out. I've been sessioning the Gator Bank trail and almost have it down. Wandered into Giligan's Island last week and now I know I gotta work on my log jumping skills! lol
Check out how I did Stairway to heaven at VK. I think that's the format I'll follow for Oleta. Beatas stuff is pretty cool, but since the videos are so long its hard to just find the spots one would usually struggle with. Giligans is hard work, it took a bit of time to get that one down in a complete lap.
That trail looks awesome!
It's a great spot with a lot of variety!
that shout out to Sethsbikehacks gave me a laugh at 4:23. That thought was going through my head as soon i recognized the section from his video.
hahaha! That turn right after the crest really comes out of nowhere, if you pump into the uphill it i'm sure bailing is the only option
This looks super fun, mate!
Its a very unique place with lots of awesome building, always a lot of fun to go there.
This guy makes this tail look easy....ive ridden this probably 15 times and never this smooth
Just a matter of practice, there's always more room for improvement!
Thanks for that ! Im planning a trip now !
James Dooling go for it. You'll really enjoy Santos / vortex
Saw you on single tracks dude! So awesome. I rode Chuck Lennon Park in North Florida today. Wild turkey trail kicked my ass big time. I'll post the vid next week. Cheers
Yeah man, thanks, that was an unexpected and pleasant surprise! Had never heard of it, looking forward to the video, always great to find out about new spots. Cheers!
Great footage of an epic place to ride. Went there twice this week while vacationing in Fla. I like the mix of tech trails and sweeper trails. Once my legs felt shot, we started doing the less tech trails like dogbone, which has some really fun wood features tucked in between good stretches of flat sweeping corners. This place is a must see for any mt biker in the area. So glad I went. Keep the vids coming.
Thanks Mike! Exactly as you say, the variety is super fun! Glad to hear you enjoyed Santos while you were here, this is one of my favorite spots in the state. If you ever come back you should try Alafia.
It's on the list. I want to return to the Fort Pierce area again and ride under the highway and on the rolling hills covered with rubber mats and carpet. Haven't been there in 10 years but I think it's still there.
Long live the VORTEX free ride area of Santos!! Aayyyeeee!! haha
No better place for freeride in FL. Sometimes I can spend hours just hitting the jumps and drops and never get out to the trails. lol
Exactly what happened to me last time i was there! Spent about 15 min on the trails. haha
Cool stuff!
Hey man its adan from he marina.. I need this place in my life lol.
Hey Adan, great to see you around here! Definitely try to get a trip in to Ocala when you can, its so much fun it makes no sense. You'll also get so much better so fast with the features they have.
I like to camp at the Santos trailhead sometimes and get two days of riding it, just make sure not to do it in summer, the heat gets bad lol
You are a better jumper than me!
I never really progressed much more than this video haha, jumping has such high consequences that I'd rather just stay on the bike to ride more than send one big jump.
BlindstuffMTB I am working on skills that don't have such big consequences. Wheelies, Stoppies, Cutties, Track Stand and Bunny Hopping.
That is soooo fun i remember hitin that shit up when i was ten, it has only ben 2 years but i want to go there again
Santos / Vortex is always a great time, one of my favorite spots in FL!
Nice video, I really enjoyed that trail when I visited but I didn't do that big wooden waterfall thing, I did the middle one only and again, the video doesn't show how steep that is! Oddly enough I found vortex red was actually easier riding than John Brown or Sinkhole but Vortex had more mind over matter things to overcome. Once you do the they're easy it seems. I'm another one that fears skinnies yet I have very good balance and can ride a 2x4 if it's ground level, go figure. Thanks for posting, it's making me yearn to get back to FL next winter.
Thanks man! I fully agree with you, vortex is about mental commitment more that anything else, that wooden waterfall, the first time I did it a couple of trips ago I must have rolled up to it 20 times before committing, once I did it, it was like, that was it? why was I afraid hahaha.
6:16 I legit thought Stefano had focused the camera on the sign so we could read it till I remembered the gimbal is just slow around tight corners lol.
nice work
Thanks Tommy!
Great video, just curious...what kind of gimbal are you using? I noticed it didn't want to follow you around the turns. Is that a setting you can play with? Thanks!
Thanks! Glad you liked.
Its a Feiyu Tech WG. The delay on the pan axis is one of its quirks, its a nice overall gimbal for the price, but its not perfect. The pan axis is at the fastest setting, some days it behaves, others not so much, I calibrate it every so often but the lag seems to be a random thing.
You should consider changing your editing program tho, because the vídeo gets pixelated very often, great vídeo man!
Thanks man, appreciate the feedback. I've looked everywhere for info on that and unfortunately, the issue is just that UA-cam doesn't give us enough bitrate so the video has a hard time dealing with changing light and leafs. Take a look at this comparison on what it looks like when exported vs uploaded to youtube. imgur.com/a/DUbB1
Mauricio Valenzuela i
I was born and raised in Ocala, FL and have never heard of this place. Where in Ocala is this place at?
vcjjj08 look for the vortex trailhead on Google maps. It's on se 25th ave and 95th st
The main trailhead is at Santos campground. It's a state park and is an awesome place to camp.
when did you start mountain biking? also did you have a BMX background or went straight into MTB?
burnoutmaster494 Ive been riding for about 3 years but I've been doing it seriously for a year and a bit, before that I was riding sporadically. No bmx experience, I used to do Enduro motorcycling years ago. Bmx or dirt jumping would be awesome, it teaches so much!
i rode that trail on my bmx with no brakes it was scary af
ChillBMX hahaha dude, that's insane, props on actually surviving it with no brakes
Sweet video.. what camera and are wearing a gimbal
Thanks! Hero4 + Feiyu Tech WG (it has its quirks as you can see, but its a good unit for the price)
I’m a recent subscriber. Came across your channel when I was researching buying my Jeffsy. Do you live in the central Florida area? I will be down there probably next month and would love to Meetup if that’s something you would be interested in.
BlindstuffMTB just did! Thanks!
come check out grapefruit trail sometime. though I would not ride it fully blind. It's in Palm bay Florida. if you do go let me know maybe we can collaborate on a video.
I definitely will go to GFT soon, it looks like a really awesome place from every video I've seen. Its short enough that I can probably do a bunch of laps, so riding it blind wont be an issue. I'm always open to a collab, I'll let you know when I figure out so time to go.
while you are there we can work on your jumping skills. bring flats and flat shoes hahah
that would be awesome, I can do pretty decent table tops, but doubles are a mental blockage for me still. If I can follow someone in to set speed it would be great. I always ride flats :)
BlindstuffMTB good man yeah we have great progression out there can get you mostly over that mental block of some doubles
cool vid i ride there often. why's the bike so noisy ?
Thnx! My headset was basically shot when I filmed this unfortunately.
I was wondering lol. thx for the reply.
Big fan, love your videos and authenticity. May I ask what bike you are on and the travel, front and rear? Thanks and keep up the great work!
Thanks Mark! Appreciate the kind words.
2014 Giant Trance 1, 140mm F&R.
BlindstuffMTB I was going to ask the same thing...that's my local trail. and I'm working my way up to become better . One year in September
Marvin, after months of research and anguish, I'm goin Santa Cruz 5010.
Great choice, test rode one at Virginia Key and really liked it!
Only way to get better is practice practice practice, you have an awesome local trail to hit all the time.
my local hangout
Lucky you, superb place.
same trail kicked my but today....help...lol
I always peg my heart out atleast 5 Times every time I go there, summer riding in Florida is rough stuff. just got back from iron mountain trail in damascus va and it was freaking epic! check me out, I ride everywhere I can and love your informative videos
Indeed it is! Had no idea about that trail, looks great! Saw you were carrying a bunch of stuff on the bike, did you bike pack up on the trails? I've been wanting to do that but haven't gotten the chance yet.
Just start climbing more....then the ups and downs get easier ☺