Crown Mountain Bike Park
Transforming idle acres into a biking destination
By Nate Grinzinger
Photos: Crown Mountain Park
With 124 acres of open space that hosts 400,000 total visits, 67,000 athlete visits, and 120,000 dog visits a year, Crown Mountain Park (CMP) in Colorado is a treasured community asset. Located in the heart of the Roaring Fork Valley, CMP serves a broad area on the state’s western slope, including the communities of Aspen, Carbondale, Glenwood Springs, Basalt, New Castle, Rifle, and Edwards. This area has a population of more than 135,000, with hundreds of thousands of visitors annually.
The western side of CMP was largely underutilized, comprised of several abandoned Forest Service buildings, a small, fenced-in dog zone, and a weedy open space that served as a parking lot for some walking trails. A few years ago, a BMX race track took shape in this idle space, and a small, local bike culture was formed, driven by volunteer parents. These families began by holding local races, though they still had to travel elsewhere for competitions. With an already rich, regional biking culture, a bigger biking opportunity was looming at Crown Mountain Park.
In 2018, the Crown Mountain Park and Recreation District (CMPRD) board and staff members proposed a plan to create the most diverse and progressive bike park in the region. The goal was to transform this area into a biking-centric destination and bike-training ground for all ages and abilities.
CMP staff members worked vigorously on the design and planning process, visiting 24 parks for research and design ideas, and asking operators and managers what they felt they did right and what they did wrong. We learned a ton through this process because the bike industry is very inclusive and willing to help in any way it can. When we brought the bike park concept to the CMPRD board, it was completely supportive. We then reached out to the community to explain the vision and solicit support. Local companies came in strong, providing in-kind services and sponsorships that supported the project financially.
Despite numerous hurdles that generally accompany fundraising, construction, and resource availability, and the difficulties introduced by a global pandemic, in June 2020 the CMPRD officially cut the ribbon on the new Crown Mountain Bike Park (in a COVID-19-aware, socially distant fashion). This 3-acre, multi-faceted, truly distinctive biking mecca was an immediate draw for a range of riders. In a few short months, the bike park has been recognized as one of the most diverse in the state, and is expected to draw an estimated 130,000 visits annually.
Moving The Needle
Crown Mountain Bike Park’s overarching theme is design that trains the rider. The design is based on progressions that guide a rider of any ability to his/her next level. Unique skill zones include:
Beginner to expert dirt jumps
An all-asphalt pump track
An area designated to single-track mountain biking
A mulch jump
A kid’s strider track
A BMX race track
A free-ride zone with beginner to pro-level jumps, wall rides, bridges, and drop progressions
An “enchanted forest” with popular features like “skinny’s,” or wood platforms elevated one to six feet off the ground that tempt riders’ balance and accuracy.
The bike park’s diversity is further highlighted with a local favorite—the Bag Jump.
The dirt jumps, crafted by Bike Park Manager Andrew Mann and Eric Bress of EB Track Designs, excel in their progressions, providing riders with five lines of varying difficulty. The first line offers rolling terrain for beginner riders to experience the sensation of their body ready to take flight without leaving the ground. The second line is a series of table tops, where riders can start to get air with minimal consequence. The third line features dirt and wood jumps that progressively grow larger with bigger gaps further in the line. And the fourth and fifth lines present the biggest jumps for the most advanced riders.
In another zone, we created a free-ride section built by BME designs of nearby Glenwood Springs. Starting from an elevated deck, this zone rolls into a variety of green, blue, black, and expert features. This section was built like a cross-country course with a slopestyle and free-ride personality. We created gravity and flow with large dirt hills. In the free-ride zone, there are a kid’s green challenge course, skinny’s in the enchanted forest, large wall rides, small to large jumps, six drops, and technical rock and wood sections. The increasingly popular Back Bowl, referred to as “a mini proving grounds” by pro rider Reed Boggs, is a Red Bull Rampage qualifier for pro bikers.
One of the most popular zones is the asphalt Pump Track, a fully-paved riding surface that features a variety of rolling jumps, turns, and transitions. The hard surface is conducive for all ages and all things on wheels—bikes, scooters, skateboards, etc., and the design allows it to be ridden in hundreds of different ways.
Perhaps most unique are the jump progression duo—the Mulch Jump and Landing Air Bag. The Mulch Jump has both five-foot and six-foot wooden ramps that allow riders to practice their skills with a soft mulch landing. The adjacent Landing Air Bag incorporates a state-of-the-art sloped landing, providing a safe way for riders to practice flipping, doing 360s, and more. We have yet to find this combination in any public park in the country.
The bike park was built with the goal of increasing a rider’s skills as quickly as possible, using thoughtfully designed progressions Every feature is a progression puzzle piece to link a rider into a new section. We imagined the kid who doesn’t have a parent or coach as a trainer, and then built a bike park to naturally teach the fundamentals.
And it’s working. Within three months, the local bike park team had 12 kids competing in states/nationals, an 8-year-old doing a 360, two 12-year-olds doing backflips, and a 12-year-old doing a 720, completing two spins before landing.
The design team also made sure the park was inviting for parents and spectators by incorporating native landscaping and shade structures, not common to most facilities. Developing the bike park also meant disturbing some landscape on the park’s south end. The project team is restoring the area to its more natural state through a native restoration and ecosystem rejuvenation plan, aiding the native flora and fauna to return and thrive. Local ecology experts were tapped to lead this effort.
A True Community Project
The projected cost for the build was $1.2 million. To make the project financially feasible, park staff members spent significant efforts identifying and securing outside funding. Their efforts netted a sizable contribution from Eagle County ($30,000), and several local businesses stepped up with $50,000 in contributions and sponsorships. Most notably, in March, CMP was awarded a $168,000 grant from Great Outdoors Colorado, which recognized the project’s innovative design and broad community value. We were also able to secure more than $200,000 in in-kind services, and save more than $600,000 by completing much of the work internally, including landscaping, drainage, pump track construction, and the building of shade structures. In all, CMPRD’s budget impact for the project was $155,000, only 14 percent of the total cost.
Observing enthusiastic interest from local youth during construction of the various park elements, the development team engaged these kids to participate in building jumps, testing progress, and consulting on design elements. This created a sense of ownership and pride in the process, and provided a unique educational opportunity for local youth.
To educate the community about the new project, CMPRD completed a public-communications campaign that included press releases, newsletters, email announcements, and a broad use of social media.
If You Build It, They Will Come
As the Crown Mountain Bike Park formally opened, youths and adults from across the valley, the region, and the state poured in. That previously idle section in the park has become one of the most popular areas with locals and visitors. Moreover, with most of the park’s traditional activities cancelled by the pandemic, including all team sports and the park’s signature summer events, the bike park’s debut has been particularly treasured as a safe, fun, and inherently socially distant recreation option.
In the last two decades, the region’s population of under 35 years grew by 40 percent, half of which is under 16 years old. The park is serving this growing demographic and families, while fostering an active, outdoor lifestyle.
In January, the Roaring Fork Valley was awarded a GOLD-LEVEL Ride Center designation by the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA), recognizing the pinnacle of mountain-biking communities. It is the first area in Colorado to earn the designation and only the seventh worldwide. With this IMBA honor and now home to a world-class bike facility, Roaring Fork Valley is one of the best places to bike in the country.
“We are so proud of the finished product. And we’re equally as proud of the team effort by the staff, our board, business partners, and volunteers to make this vision a reality,” says CMPRD board president Tim Power Smith. “From defining the vision, to mapping the road, to checking off milestones, this engaged and generous group had the passion and fortitude to see the journey to the end. And because of that, our community now has an asset that will pay dividends for generations.”
Nate Grinzinger is the Bike Park Director and Park & Recreation Manager for Crown Mountain Park and Recreation District in Colorado. Reach him at crownmountain@sopris.net.