Twenty Ten is in the books, and because of the hard work put in by the park organizers and volunteers last year, we get to look forward to some great park riding in 2011 and beyond.  The Eagle Bike Park, located just outside of Boise, ID, continues to expand on it's wide-range of riding options as riders of all types continue to flock to the convenient locale to get their ride on.  The park has something for almost every type of dirt rider. And thanks to several additions to the park in 2010 - we now get more riding options, will attract new riders, and the park's organizers have taken several leaps toward maintaining long-term sustainability so we can continue to enjoy this great place for years to come.  The key additions to the park include: the Stormin Mormon freeride line, an ABA Build BMX track and facility, expaned dirt-jump lines, and the formation of BAMBA - Boise Area Mountain Bike Association, which is a chapter of IMBA.  These changes amount to a great 2011 riding season that will be chock-full of fun events and gatherings that include trail days, various bike races, and great times with friends.  We hope you can make it out.


Image taken on one of the upper turns of Stormin Mormon before the trail was complete.

Meet BAMBA (Boise Area Mountain Bike Association), Idaho's newest advocacy group that is responsible for keeping the park alive for years to come.  There are many hidden facets to running a bike park, and the park has seen it's share of ups and downs in terms of how it needs to be managed and who is going to manage it.  After dealing with several issues that include land-use agreements and insurance requirements, the parks managers have turned to IMBA (International Mountain Bike Association), which has extensive experience in dealing with these types of issues, to assist them in handling these requirements.  BAMBA is the park's new non-profit advocacy group that will coordinate future development and maintenance with city and county officials.  The new group is founded by several of the individuals involved with the development of the park and the immediate goal of the BAMBA is to maintain, develop and protect the Eagle Bike Park.  If you live in the Boise area, or plan on frequenting the park, please consider joining this great group.  It doesn't cost much and the benefits are vast.  You can get more information or join on-line right here...


Almost finished...  Then new Eagle Foothills BMX facility.

In addition to the advocacy group, there is another new group joining the park this year - Welcome the Eagle Foothills BMX, a new non-profit facility located at the Eagle Bike Park that includes an ABA built BMX track and a separate track built for the "Hot Wheels", riders typically three or younger.  I didn't know kids could ride much younger than three, but apparently they're coming out pedaling these days...  The ABA track construction was started in October and enlisted the help of local BMX Pro, Matt Baisley, and BMX guru Sean Boyle, to lead the track design.  When the track is complete it will have a concrete start hill, paved corners, and will be grassed in and irrigated.  The park is a non-profit organization and track improvements are funded by donations and funds raised from race events.  Track maintenance is provided by volunteers.  The track is scheduled to be race ready this spring, with the finishing touches to follow.  The race schedule is already up.  If you’re interested in helping out or racing, please go to www.EF-BMX.com, email: efbmx@cableone.net, facebook: Eagle Foothills BMX, or call 208-396-3988.  There is no lack of contact information.



The greatest trail addition of 2010 gave us the new freeride trail, Stormin Mormon, started in 2009 and completed in 2010 with the help of a Bikes Belong grant we were very thankful for.  Not just a great name, but a really fun freeride trail built for intermediate-advanced riders.  It includes several well construcgted ladder drops that cross existing trails, bermed-turns, and various jumps.  There are no rocks so it can be ridden on anything from a long travel bike to a hardtail dirt-jumper.  This trail is best suited toward lighter bikes. 


Construction of expert dirt jumps.  I poached this pic from the web, please forgive me...

Thanks to massive amounts of time an energy of a few key dirt-jumpers, the entire jump section was rebuilt to better accommodate all levels or riders.   The beginner set was buffed-up to make it a little safer and easier to learn, while the intermediate set was better shaped to allow riders to comfortably advance into getting more air and trying tricks.  The expert riders continued to build horrifically large jumps that scare the bejesus out of
most who pass them. 


Sunset view from the top of Stormon Mormon.  Cant wait for warm weather!

All in all 2011 is shaping up to be a great year for the Eagle Bike Park -  Proper management is starting to fall into place, new riding groups are a welcome addition, the trails are better than ever, and there is a schedule of races and gatherings for just about every type of dirt racer out there.  You can find the schedule of races and gatherings by clicking here...  I hope you can get out to the Eagle Bike Park this summer and join us for some great riding, and thanks for reading!

Anybody got an empty warehouse laying around?  If not, this is something we should work toward converting the skills area at the Eagle Bike Park into.  That area is seriously lacking, but it has great potential.  Check out this video and see how great Ray's Indoor Mountain Bike Park is.  It's not right that Ohio has better riding than Idaho.

Better late than never, DH racing has finally arrived at the Idaho Velopark.  Saturday, December 5th, was the inaugural down hill race on the newly created "intermediate" dh course.  The race was put on by Volunteer Director, Brad Nelson, and Event Director, Cynthia Gibson.  The race was considered a "practice event", used primarily to get a good idea for course times and overall race organization.  The race went off without a hitch as everyone who attended was treated with ample practice time, an on-time start, and an overall great atmosphere despite of the crisp winter weather. 


The race was a "best-of" two run format.  At the end of the first round, Team Joyride's, Bobby Unser Jr III, took the hot seat with a lap time in the 1:34 range.  Ian Fitzpatrick trailed by four seconds and I was a two seconds off Ian's time, in third position. 


I was first in line for the second lap, and only managed to improve my time by about a second.  The flat, pedally track quickly put me in the pain cave, which is sad considering its short length.   It was a good wake-up call for me, however!    Young Unser was the next rider down, and his time as a fraction slower, but his first run time was fast enough to keep him in the hot-seat.  Fitzpatrick managed to shave a couple seconds off his first run  but not enough to give him the lead.  The remaining riders were not able to break the top three, placing Unser, Fitzpatrick, and Vega on the podium in that order. 


If this race is a sign of things to come, then we can look forward to an extremely fun 2010 race season at the park.  In less than two years, the park coordinators, designers, and volunteers have built a truly World-Class venue, in an urban environment, making participation and spectating easy and fun.  Huge thanks to Cynthia Gibson, formerly of the Knobby Tire Series.  Cynthia will hopefully be the park's new Event Coordinator.  If so, be prepared for a great time next season!

The Results:

1	DH Race on Saturday, Dec 5
2	Place	Name	Time
3	1	Bobby Unser	1:34.25
4	2	Ian Fitzpatrick	1:36.06
5	3	Phil Vega	1:39.40
6	4	Doug Riipinen	1:40.84
7	5	Ian Butler	1:43.24
8	6	Sean Barnes	1:44.22
9	7	Max Dolar	1:44.93
10	8	Brent Moshmann	1:47.59
11	9	Jackson Negri	1:51.17
12	10	Austin Nelson	1:51.65

Here are a few more images taken by Semi-Pro Photog, Toby Biery.  Enjoy!


Austen Nelson in a speed tuck. 


Anyone got a clever nickname for this momentum robbing flat section?  It doesn't look like it's gonna give
Max any problems. 


 Ian 1.



Ian 2

Joyride just received the first batch of Bike Park Beans, the box smells delicious!  Unfortunately things fell through with our first local vendor causing the delay, but there are some great benefits from working with our new vendor, Kinetic Coffee.  You'll be glad to know that Bike Park Beans are now Certified Organic beans that are roasted in small batches and immediately packaged and shipped for freshness.  We will always order in small quantities ensuring maximum freshness.  Second - after a few concerns about the price, we have decided to lower the price of a 12oz bag to $9.99, from $11.49.   We realize times are tough, hopefully this will help.   For those who previously purchased bags at the higher price, you will receive a discount with your next in-store purchase at Joyride.  Just let us know.

Bike Park Beans can be purchased in store, or on-line at - https://joyride.worldsecuresystems.com/_product_58873/Joyride_Bike_Park_Beans_Coffee.  50% of the proceeds are donated to the Idaho Velodrome And Cycling Park.


The first bag of "Bike Park Beans".

 

Some of you may be aware of our idea to raise money for the Idaho Velodrome And Cycling Park by selling coffee, some of you may not.  Either way, we hope you will support this fundraiser so we can see our cycling community flourish.  There isn't another bike park like ours anywhere, so we must not take it for granted.  It's up to us to make sure the park continues to thrive. 

Please click below to place your orders and find out more:

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