Pump Track

About a year ago, word reached my ear that there was a plan afoot. People were mobilizing to build a skills park at Rockburn Branch Park in HoCo. I dragged my kids to a few meetings, opened my big unhelpful mouth and committed to helping out.

After much hard work by some local riders, there now exists a completed phase one of the project: pump track.

I had ridden a pump track a few years back in the neighborhood of Asheville at the house of a local pro. It was difficult and fun. Skip forward a few years and there is RSP opening day, Oct 9. Needless to say, we attended.

Now I'm a big fan of learning. I love learning new stuff any time I can. I'm a geek. And I like bikes. I know that a lot of the fastest riders out there train on pump tracks and/or have them in their back yard. And riding a pump track is cool. Mr. Mark Weir has done a lot to promote pump tracks and they are popping up all over the US for almost a decade now. Riding pump track for multiple laps is quite a workout. I haven't tried to set a record or anything but my current record is 15 laps. I usually string together 3-5. It ain't easy.

I slapped the flat pedals on the old stump fsr and dropped the seat all the way down. Susan gave it a shot and seemed to really enjoy it as well. Needless to say, the kids were all over it. After a few weeks of pumptrackular fun, I realized the need for a purpose-built machine. Enter the dj bike.

One skill that is crucial to going fast on pump track is the manual. I can manual on the trail over various obstacles but a flat-ground manual is not something I have practiced. It was something I was driven to learn on pump track.

Now apparently my drive to learn has caught the attention of, well, everyone around me. Jokes have started about how much time I spend at pump track. Apparently, there will be a yurt for me soon. Everyone I know is completely hilarious...

The kids go with me a lot and they spend half the time riding and half playing on the huge dirt pile for phase two of RSP. It's a great place to learn and watch people rip it and to help others learn. Everyone is patient with each other and the plethora of kids who can ride endless laps.

If you have the time, you should check out Rockburn Skills Park. And if you have some cash money, please donate to help get the rest built. And if you have time in the spring, make arrangements to get out there and help us build the rest of the area. There will be much radness.

See you at pump track... Yes, you'll see me there.