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Dirt Rag Articles
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The past three versions of our Ride Guide had an interstate as their central theme (I-80, I-40 and I-70 if you're counting). This time, we wanted to come up with a different physical characteristic to tie together the trails we featured, and incorporate a car-free way to get to them. We've known about some killer trails in New York, Seattle and even our own home base of Pittsburgh for a while—surely other cities have some singletrack (and pump tracks, and jumps, and who knows what else) hidden in the urban jungle? As it turns out, yes, they do.
Fortunately the value of city trails is becoming obvious to more people than just us mountain bikers. The League of American Bicyclists now considers the availability of urban trails when they award their Bicycle Friendly Community designations (see the Access feature of issue #140 for more on that). City planners recognize mountain biking, and other opportunities to appreciate natural areas, can increase the quality of life for their citizens as well as property values.
The story of city singletrack is often one of repurposing forgotten chunks of real estate, of rebuilding illegal, unsustainable trails, and of delicate negotiations with bureaucracies and other stakeholders. It's a big job. That's where advocacy groups step in—each city featured here has dedicated, passionate people who give their time and sweat to make city trail riding possible. No doubt there is such a group where you live, too, so look it up and join in.
 I-5 Colonnade Park: Seattle, WA
Informant: Jon Kennedy – Communications Director, EMBA
Photo by: Cory Lee www.coryleephotography.com
Background: I-5 Colonnade is the first ever urban mountain bike skills park. It's part of a City of Seattle park, but was funded and constructed by the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance (EMBA, formerly Backcountry Bicycle Trails Club).
Approximately how many miles of trails are in the park?
Approximately a mile total, but the focus is on features, not mileage. There are about 100+ features of all skill levels in the park.
What type(s) of trails are there?
The park features a variety of trails from beginner to technical cross country to freeride. There's a novice area—the Tqalu Trail; an intermediate and advanced area—Limestone Loop; a dirt jumping and freeride section with tables, hips, skinnies, drops; pump track; trials area and more.
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
The entire park is novel and unique in its own way. The freeride area generally gets the most use as there are features built for a variety of skill levels. Once you master the three-foot table, perhaps move on to the 10 or 20 footer? There is also an amazing wall ride constructed of salvaged wood from an old church floor.
What local group does trail maintenance there?
The Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance advocated for, built, funded, and maintains the park. Over 14,000 volunteer hours went into the construction of the park, as well as $250,000, plus matching funds, bringing the total to around a half million dollars.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
Yes! The park is located between the Eastlake and Capitol Hill neighborhoods underneath I-5 on Lakeview Blvd. East. Bus transportation runs by there all day! (www.metro.kingcounty.gov)
Websites: www.evergreenmtb.org
 Mission Trails Regional Park: San Diego, CA
Informants: Bob Martin, Kim Wiley – liaison for SDMBA
Photo by: Kim Wiley
Background: Mission Trails is eight miles northeast of downtown San Diego. It is bordered by the communities of Tierrasanta, Santee, San Carlos and by Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
How big is the park?
5,800 acres. Out of the 40 miles of park trails, 24 miles are available to mountain bikers.
What type(s) of trails are there?
The majority of trails are converted dirt service roads, but there is a variety of singletrack ranging from flowing to unsustainable fall line and technical rocky trails. You will need to ride dirt service roads in order to reach most singletrack trails.
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
Not to be missed for expert riders is the 1,176 feet of elevation gain in 4.4 miles on Mesa and Big Rock Trails to Cowles Mountain Summit, then continue down 1.7 miles to Pyles Peak. This out-and-back trail will test your traction, endurance and trials ability to ascend its never-ending railroad tie steps, rocky outcrops and extremely steep service road. Enjoy the Big Rock Trail downhill with insloped turns, railroad tie steps and rocky drops, but please watch your speed and use a Bear Bell. The trail was closed to bikes last year and is only conditionally open to bikes.
Beginners will enjoy the butter-smooth double tracks of Grasslands Loop (1.4 miles) or Shepherd Pond lollipop loop (1.1 miles).
Intermediate-level mountain bikers will enjoy the cobbled double-track Rim Trail, working their lungs to reach the sweet swoopy singletrack of Suycott Wash. Don't become too complacent because there is a tricky rock garden at its end. Try to keep your front wheel down as you climb out on the South Fortuna Mountain Trail to complete the 10-mile loop.
What local group does trail maintenance there?
Trail maintenance, advocacy, mountain bicycle patrol and group rides are performed by San Diego Mountain Bike Association (SDMBA). Check out their killer website.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
MTS bus route 115 stops at the corner of Jackson Dr. and Golfcrest Dr. about 0.3 mile to the east gate, but further to the singletrack. Route 115 also stops at Grossmont College near the Mesa Road (dirt service road) connection to Mesa Road Trailhead. (www.sdcommute.com)
Websites: www.mtrp.org, www.sdmba.com
 South Mountain Park: Phoenix, AZ
Informants: Stan Klonowski – MBAA trails representative, Steve Loehr – Ranger
Photo by: Stan Klonowski
Background: At over 17,000 acres, South Mountain Park is the largest city park in the country. Containing over 51 miles of trails for all possible ability levels, there are limitless ride options on any given day.
What type(s) of trails are there?
The riding can best be described as rocky and hardpacked. After months without rain the trails can be dusty and loose. The easier trails are less rocky, while some of the steeper, more difficult trails will throw everything from steep climbs and loose fast sections to a narrow catwalk with city and desert views.
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
South Mountain offers numerous options. There are few loops, but trails can be connected with the few park roads to construct anything from an easy 40-minute ride to an all-day epic, complete with singletrack, rocky climbs and long descents. Do not let your love of the ever-challenging terrain detract from the opportunity to look down a mine shaft, or view petroglyphs, rattlesnakes or javelina.
What local group does trail maintenance there?
Many user groups help maintain the trails at South Mountain. The Mountain Bike Association of Arizona (MBAA), the Boy Scouts and the City of Phoenix Park Steward program all spend time, repairing and rerouting trails, removing invasive plant species and cleaning up trash left behind by abuse in the years before the land became a park.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
All buses in Phoenix have bike racks on the front and the new commuter train allows bikes, so getting to the trails by public transit, while not easy, is possible. (www.valleymetro.org)
Phoenix also has a large network of multi-use canal paths that can be used to travel about the city to get to the trails. It is also possible to utilize some of these paths to connect South Mountain to other parks in the Phoenix park system and create a 70+ mile ride with more than half on the dirt.
Websites: www.mbaa.net, phoenix.gov/PARKS/hikesoth.html
Also recommended: Try out Phoenix Mountain Preserve or Papago Park.
 Emma Long Metropolitan Park a.k.a. City Park: Austin, TX
Informants: Alan Sansome – BikeMojo.com, John Fruehe – AustinBike.com, Paul Norrod
Photo by: John Fruehe
Background: The City Park trail was originally built in the 1970s by motorcyclers and became a mountain biking trail in the '90s as the sport grew.
How big is the park?
The trail itself is only six miles long, but it is a loop, so people will usually do two laps or so. Two laps at City Park equals 20+ miles of XC riding.
What type(s) of trails are there?
Rocky and ledgy would be the best way to describe it. There are sections of nice flowy singletrack, but when you talk City Park, you talk ledges.
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
Alan—There are several named sections, such as the Triple Bitches, the Devil's Staircase and the Cheesecake Challenge.
John—It's one of the most technical trails in Texas, and has earned a reputation for chewing up and spitting out riders as well as bikes. I snapped a Gary Fisher Sugar 3+ twice, and I am sure that the ledges at City Park were responsible.
I remember riding it in the late '90s on a Trek hardtail with little or no travel. Since that time it has become more rutted, so my 4" of travel is barely enough. Unfortunately motorcyclists are getting lazy and making tons of cheater lines. It is very hard to police since it is a very remote location.
What local group does trail maintenance there?
Typically it is the crowd from Bikemojo that will show up and do work.
About every six months, there is a skills clinic at City Park, typically sponsored by Hammerhead Bikes.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
Currently it's not possible, but there's a new light rail system opening in Austin soon that will allow bikes on board. (www.capmetro.org)
Websites: www.austinbike.com/mtb/citypark, www.bikemojo.com
Also recommended: The Barton Creek Greenbelt, 9th Street BMX Trail (both found on Austinbike.com)
 Sylvan Island: Moline, IL
Informants: Rebecca Bernard and Jeff Leach – FORC
Photo by: Mike Frasier, aka 'Rage', FORC Prez.
Background: This island in the Mississippi River, in the Quad Cities urban area, was once home to a steel mill.
How big is the park?
Sylvan Island is roughly one mile in diameter within which we have worked to most effectively utilize the space, winding the trails through the island. Our last race at Sylvan measured 4.05-mile laps.
What type(s) of trails are there?
Remnants of the steel mill can still be seen, such as concrete loading docks and building foundations, railroad tracks, rebar, and rock piles and ridges. This, coupled with years of desertion, allowed natural vegetation to take over, creating an urban forest. We built our singletrack using the best of both worlds on Sylvan Island to offer numerous technical features throughout the island. Despite the limited space and winding nature of the trails, there is a good flow to the trails, which are interspersed with technical features such as drops, rollercoasters over rock and concrete, challenging tree roots and other urban obstacles. The riding surface ranges from dirt, to sand, to rock, to concrete. Despite no distinguishable elevation change, the island is a blast to ride!
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
The concrete loading docks and walls present all sorts of opportunities for fun (and sometimes injury). There is also a rocky formation on the east end of the island that will occupy riders for hours, given a number of technical climbs and descents over loose rock and steep terrain. Sylvan is such a unique place that it is hard to describe.
What local group does trail maintenance there?
Friends of Off-Road Cycling (FORC) built and maintains the trails. My husband John is the trail steward for Sylvan Island. We're out there often cutting up downed trees, etc.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
Yes. Our local metro system has buses equipped with bike racks on the front of the bus. Sylvan Island is 3/4 of a mile from the main bus terminal in downtown Moline, IL. You can also take a water taxi across the river (that also takes bikes) that drops you off about a mile or two from the island. There is also a paved bike path, the Great River Trail, that spans 62.5 miles from the Quad Cities to Savanna, Illinois and goes right by Sylvan.
Websites: www.qcforc.org
 The Don Valley: Toronto, On, Canada
Informant: Jason Murray – IMBA Ontario representative
Photo by: Jeff Monk, www.dropmachine.com
Background: The area is collectively known as the Don Valley. It's the watershed of the Don River system.
How big is the park?
I've heard that there are up to 200km of trails if you know where to look and are willing to go far enough north.
What type(s) of trails are there?
The terrain has a very steep side slope that provides a great feeling of exposure. In some places it is more than a feeling, if you fell the wrong way you'd fall all the way down the ravine side and into the river. Flowy is the best way to describe them. Not a lot of exposed rock on most of the trails. There is a good mix of loops and out-and-backs.
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
The Ridge (or Crothers Woods) is the main trail that most people start their ride on. It's an out-and-back, but where it ends it dumps you out into a City of Toronto Park right in the middle of about three other loops, and those loops have loops that extend off of them. The big deal about this trail is that it is the one that the City has been doing official trail builds on since 2004, getting it into excellent shape by removing all the eroded fall line sections. We just put in a very advanced line this past fall with lots of rock (including a rock wall) and log work. IMBA has been a major part of that, as have I, and it is this effort that has resulted in the establishing of TORBA (Toronto Off-Road Bicycle Association).
Party Atmosphere (PA) and Catalyst are two advanced trails that have lots of exposure, killer steep grunt climbs and even some interesting bridge crossings. It was all built by the local underground builders before the City took an interest. There are many more.
What local group does trail maintenance there?
Right now, the City organizes trail maintenance and construction only for The Ridge. The City is working with a number of local groups for trail maintenance: TORBA, the all-women FlyGurlz, and the LapDogs, a team affiliated with a local bike shop. All the other trails are maintained by the local underground building community.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
Yes. Toronto's bus system is run by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). Most TTC lines have bike racks on their buses. (www3.ttc.ca)
Websites: www.torontooffroad.org
 Oleta River State Park: Miami, FL
Informant: Tony Suarez
Photo by: John Voss
Background: The Oleta River State Park is the largest urban park in Florida. It's located in the North Miami Beach area on Biscayne Bay.
How big is the park?
Oleta currently has approximately 15 miles of trail and is still growing.
What type(s) of trails are there?
The terrain is sweet twisty singletrack and varies from smooth novice sections to more challenging rocky and rooty intermediate and expert sections. It is ridden in a series of sections in one continuous loop with plenty of chances to exit to the main fire road.
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
My favorite section is the Gilligan's Island trail, which is approximately three miles long through a fern forest, with a lot of manmade obstacles such as logs and bridges. I also like that certain sections skirt the turquoise waters of Biscayne Bay with moored sailboats and kayakers, so it's singletrack South Florida style.
What local group does trail maintenance there?
The park rangers organize volunteers for trail maintenance and work days are the fourth Sunday of every month at 9:30 a.m. When I began working trail maintenance at Oleta about 12 years ago, there were about three miles of trails. Chris Marshall from Broken Spoke Bike Shop and Jon Robinson, Oleta's prior Head Ranger, were the ones I worked with and are responsible for breaking ground on most of the trails.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
Public buses run right in front of the park entrance. (www.miamidade.gov/transit)
Websites: www.oraa.info, www.floridastateparks.org/oletariver/
 Wissahickon Valley Park: Philadelphia, PA
Informant: Tom Coyle – PMBA Board Member and Crew Leader
Photo by: Tom Coyle
Background: In the 1600's Wissahickon Valley was one of the first industrial areas of North America. The creek was dammed in many places to power more than 25 mills that lined its banks. Only remnants of the mills remain—it's common to come across centuries-old walls and structures on the trails. The park is 1800 acres and was set aside by the Farimount Park Commission in 1868 in order to preserve the purity of the city's drinking water, of which the Wissahickon Creek is a main source.
Approximately how many miles of trails are in the park?
There are about 56 miles of trails within Wissahickon Valley.
What type(s) of trails are there?
Some of everything! There are so many loop options and out-and-back and figure-8 possibilities. The shape of the park, and the proximity of the bridges and fire road connectors between trails, makes the combinations endless. Trails range form fast and flowy with wall rides, to rocky and steep unsustainable trails that change with each storm surge from the street runoff.
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
The terrain is constantly steep up-and-down. We have some particular spots that stand out, like the Daisy Bowl with all our jumps, and the Coil trail (across the street from my house), a mountain bike-specific trail with berms and log rides. There is a trail called Twisty Turny and a hill called the Monster—no explanation needed there. In one section of the park there is a statue of a Lenape Indian (the original inhabitants of the region), and behind it is one of the most technical downhills in the park—lots of drops and ledges and sketchy lines. This entire section was built with the help of PMBA volunteers, working closely under the guidance of IMBA's Trail Solutions to make it totally sustainable.
What local group does trail maintenance there?
The driving force behind caring for the park is a group called Friends of the Wissahickon (FOW); they've been around for over 80 years and are a very close partner of ours. When our group (the Philadelphia Mountain Biking Association) formed in 2006, FOW embraced us with open arms, and they were amazed at how hard and efficient we were at doing trail work, not to mention our sheer numbers. PMBA does a public work day once a month where anywhere from 30 to 60 volunteers will show up. Some of us are out there working on the trails two to three times a week.
We are in the middle of huge project called the Sustainable Trails Initiative (STI): PMBA, FOW and IMBA's Trail Solutions are working together to fix all the unsustainable trails in the park that are ravaged by stormwater runoff. This project is estimated to take 10 years and cost many millions of dollars and thousands of volunteer hours (mountain bikers give the majority of these hours by a very large margin). We are in the process of trying to make a Mountain Bike Park part of this plan. Almost all of our member donations go into these efforts.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
Yes! Bus or train, and there are bike lanes in the city to ride your bike to the park from many places. There are paved paths leading all the way from City Hall right to the trail heads of Wissahickon. (www.septa.com)
Websites: www.fairmountpark.org/WissahickonValleyPark.asp, www.phillymtb.org
Also Recommended: Pennypack Park
 Highbridge Park: New York City, NY
Informant: Jamie Bogner – NYCMTB
Photo by: David Tufino / NYCMTB
Background: The project was started by a few hard-charging mountain bike advocates: Matt LeBow, NYC's original IMBA rep, had been agitating for trails in NYC since 2001 or so, Dawson Smith joined him in '02-'03, and Mike Vitti, the other NY IMBA rep and CLIMB president, joined the coalition in '03-'04. Dawson and I started NYCMTB in 2005 to manage the trail construction process after NYC Parks gave us the green light to move forward with trails.
How big is the park?
There are about 2.5 miles of singletrack trails in the park. Highbridge is still, in many ways, a work in progress and we have plans for constructing additional trails with the goal being a loop of singletrack and existing park pathways 5-6 miles long.
What type(s) of trails are there?
There are some incredibly technical and rocky sections, and some fun and flowy sections. The park straddles a narrow cliff band from 155th St. up to Dyckman St./200th St., so we have built trails that reflect the natural terrain. The result tends to surprise people—the trails are, in general, very technical. We tend to ride and race loops that also include climbs up an old paved park path, and a stint along the bike lane on Dyckman.
Any distinguishing features or especially cool sections?
The area of the park where the trails are built was the site of the revolutionary war battle of Fort Washington. Hessian soldiers landed along the banks of the Harlem River and overran the Americans defending the hill. Then from the 1890s to the early 1900s, what's now the park was home to a sprawling Coney Island-style amusement park, with three roller coasters. We've built trails in and around old embankments originally constructed for the amusement park, and our "Rough Rider" trail was named for one of the old roller coasters. The end of the Rough Rider trail passes through a boulder field of Manhattan schist rock that was excavated during the construction of the #1 subway line. And we've built technical features off of remnant structures in the park, like a 3' drop on the "Wonderwall" trail built off a 1920's rock wall originally built for a sewer project.
The dirt jump park is probably the most successful element of the entire project. It gets 20 times as much use as the XC trails, and we have a small army of volunteers who've worked hard to build and maintain the jump park. Having a dirt jump park and a legitimate freeride trail with 150 feet of vert in a public park is pretty cool. Having it in Manhattan is honestly just incredible—who would have ever thought?
Given the average land value on the island of Manhattan, we've estimated the 20-30 acres of park land where the trails are located would fetch a price over a billion dollars, if it could be sold (which thankfully it cannot)!
What local group does trail maintenance there?
NYCMTB built and maintains the trails. NYCMTB also maintains the Wolfe's Pond trails, and CLIMB built and maintains the trails at Cunningham Park in Queens. NYCMTB is currently working on a trail project in the Bronx, and is studying locations in Brooklyn for future trails.
Construction of the trails was done by volunteers from many local groups: NYCMTB, The NYC Parks Green Apple Corps, Brooklyn Bike Riders, CLIMB, JORBA, WMBA, etc. It was a community effort.
Can a rider take public transportation (with a mountain bike) to get there?
Yes. You can take the #1 train to Dyckman St., walk out the door of the subway station, and see the lower trailhead across the street to your right. It couldn't be more convenient. It's also easily accessed from the Harlem River Greenway bike path.
Websites: www.nycmtb.com
Also recommended: Wolfe's Pond Park, Cunningham Park
| Exclusive Dirt Rag Web-Only Extras For Urban Ride Guide | | But wait—there's more! We divulge some great riding spots that were not included in the above print version in our companion story. |
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| Comment from Karl Rosengarth on 2009-07-14 |
| Yes, #123. |
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| Comment from Neanderthal on 2009-07-13 |
| Can you provide the issue # for the I-80 guide? I'm a lifetime subscriber and can't recall seeing the guide. |
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