Case Study: Crystal Lake Bike Skills Park

Author: Gord Hiebert

Background:

When you think about Grande Prairie, or any prairie for that matter, you generally do not think about downhill mountain biking but Grande Prairie is becoming well-known for its trail networks and bike parks.  From downhill to cross country Grande Prairie has a host of options for riders new and experienced. With one of the youngest per capita demographics in Canada, at an average age of 35, this city is full of activity-seeking young families.

In the spring of 2021, Cabin was contracted to design a new bike park for the City of Grande Prairie to add to its already impressive recreational amenities. The location was chosen in an existing flat piece of park next to Crystal Lake, a popular subdivision with naturalized trails around it. This decision would make biking more accessible for users of all ages as it is closer to the North end of the city and adjacent to several schools.

Presented with a blank canvas, the first task was to get to know the local riding community and see what types of features they were interested in. As our team was still dealing with the challenges of a global pandemic, a series of public outreach methods were planned including an online survey and virtual town halls. Thanks to the participation of local riders and groups the word was spread far and wide to get us some great feedback on the type of bike park user groups were looking forward to.  Equipped with a plethora of ideas, our team set to work coming up with some conceptual design ideas to present to a select group of local riding groups, businesses and city staff.

The Design:

An initial layout and feedback from user groups allowed the design to proceed quickly. It appeared that riders wanted more challenging obstacles and jump lines as well as a skills area where younger or less experienced riders could improve their skills. Thanks to several bike instructors, we were able to identify the types of obstacles local riders could encounter on the trail and we could mimic those situations in our tech lines.

There was also a unanimous consensus to use only natural materials for the construction of tech lines and features for longevity and ease of maintenance. This valuable feedback from users allowed our team to come up with a design that would satisfy the majority of requests from public consultation.

The final elements included:

• Jump Line
• Beginner & Intermediate Pump Track
• Tech Lines/Skills Area

The Build:

The flat nature of the site meant that the majority of the material would have to be imported and implementing an effective drainage management system would be essential to keep the park ridable in all weather conditions. Because of the limited budget, the City of Grande Prairie stepped up and provided all the fill material for the site as well as a city staff member and a wheel loader to assist in material movement.

With the site prepped, our crews mobilized from the Okanagan to Grande Prairie in the fall of 2021 to begin construction on this epic project. Our crews would work until the snow flew then return in the spring of 2022 to complete construction.

Jump Lines:

The flat nature of the site meant large starting ramps would be needed to allow riders enough speed and momentum to tackle the jump lines. To provide progression, a series of starting ramp heights and features including rock rundowns and boulder drops were constructed to add options for entering the jump lines. The beginner and intermediate jump line provide riders with a series of rollers, table tops and small gap jumps to improve their riding abilities.

The advanced line called for something a little special. Our team wanted to create something unique, so we designed and constructed a large wooden wall ride and whale tale for riders to finish up their jump line.  The positioning and construction allow riders to seamlessly transition from the jump line to wooden features. As riders progress in experience they can attempt more challenging features and advance their skills.

The advanced line called for something a little special. Our team wanted to create something unique, so we designed and constructed a large wooden wall ride and whale tale for riders to finish up their jump line.  The positioning and construction allow riders to seamlessly transition from the jump line to wooden features. As riders progress in experience they can attempt more challenging features and advance their skills.

Beginner and Intermediate Pump Tracks:

To accommodate less experienced and new riders, two smaller pump tracks were purposed. These features create a family-friendly space for parents and children to enjoy gaining mountain biking skills. The layout allows riders to gain confidence on rollers and berms which they can propel themselves around the circuit continuously in an open and accessible area.

Competition Pump Track:

This location is near schools and residential areas so we knew there would be groups gathering from early afternoon to late evening throughout the summer months. We wanted to create a feature that would allow riders to push themselves in a safe manner while creating some friendly rivalry. The competition pump track provides this environment. The mirrored design allows riders to start simultaneously and race around the track. This mini-race circuit will challenge riders to perfect their pump track techniques if they want to be crowned champion!

The competition track also opens this park up for races in the future and has the option to be paved for a faster, more aggressive course.

Tech Lines & Skills Area:

The tech line area provides riders options to practice their balance and transitions on low-consequence features that are accessible to all levels of riders. A combination of wooden ramps, rocks and suspension bridges allows riders challenging terrain to hone their technical skills. The suspension bridges are obstacles unique to this bike park that our riders and carpenters worked on designs for to create additional balance-building features.

In addition to the tech lines, there are a series of drop-ins where riders can practice drops from roll-overs to significant drops into a network of berms and rollers. The versatility of this area allows multiple combinations of routes riders can session.

Environmental Considerations:

Our recreation and environmental crews are no strangers to sensitive environments. All of our equipment is riparian-ready and filled with bio-hydraulic oil and our team is familiar with creating and following Environmental Management Plans, including Spill Response Plans. Our team recognized that this location was adjacent to a riparian area full of wildlife and there was significant site disturbance in the construction of this park.

Aside from our drainage plan for the bike park features we wanted to create a space to encourage natural infiltration of water. We designed a swale the length of the bike park along an existing nature trail for water to seep into. We also created a planting plan of native wild edibles for native fauna to be able to thrive in. As always, we do our best to leave the areas where we work better than how we found them.

Conclusion:

The diversity of our team, dedication to the project by the City of Grand Prairie and the feedback from local user groups made this project a great success. The City of Grande Prairie was great to work with and provided valuable information, feedback and resources throughout the design/build process. Our team was also blown away by the support and feedback from local user groups and community members. They were collaborative and supportive of the project and gave great recommendations as to the features they and their users were looking for. Finally, this project utilized members from several of our divisions including:

• Recreation Planning
• GIS Analysis & Remote Sensing
• Recreation
• Environmental