Comox Valley (BC), Canada – Snow. It’s a joy in winter and a bane in summer on the slopes of Mount Washington. Mountain bikers have been waiting patiently, and waiting some more for the mountain’s bike park to open for summer operations. Finally, some good news has arrived.
After receiving the most snowfall in the B.C. ski resort’s history last winter, Mount Washington is finally winning the battle for dirt. The resort opened bike park trails this past Friday to commence the summer riding season.
“We’ve cleared a lot of snow off the trails over the last couple of months,” says James Clarke, Slopes Supervisor. “We’re seeing more dirt on the ground every day as the snow recedes with the recent warmer weather, which is great news.”
To put the snow depths into perspective, it was only a month ago when crews were digging down through 15 feet of snow to hit the top of the Big Brother trail. Mount Washington opened the brand new Green Line trail and Big Brother from top to bottom on opening day on Friday.
The addition of the new Green Line is the highlight of the mountain’s trail development for this summer. Mount Washington is well-known for its burly, demanding upper intermediate and expert trails. Green Line offers beginners the chance to ride an easy top to bottom trail that is truly forgiving. It’s the perfect venue for learning to ride downhill on a mountain bike.
“We’ve put a lot of time and effort into our Learn to Ride programs and beginner trail development for this summer,” explains Mike Manara, the mountain’s Bike Park Manager. “We’ve added Family and Kids Camp Learn to Ride lessons to an already extensive list of lesson package options.”
Mount Washington has also made mountain biking a more economical venture. New for this summer is a very affordable two-hour bike rental which can be combined with the addition of a bike park lift ticket.
“You can head up to the park and ride for two hours with a top of the line Rocky Mountain rental bike for less than $65,” adds Manara.
Riders who frequent the Mount Washington Bike Park should definitely consider another new ticket option, the Dirt Pak. You can pre-purchase three bike park lift tickets at a discounted rate from Thrifty Foods, select participating Vancouver Island bike shops, or online at the mountain’s website.
The event calendar is packed this summer with highlights including the return of Darren Berrecloth’s Bearclaw Invitational on August 5-6, the BC Cup Provincial Championships on August 13-14, and Darcy Turenne’s See Jane Jump Women’s Mountain Bike Festival on August 20-21.