About
Construction on a new mountain bike pump track and skills trail in Cresta Open Space is now complete. The park is designed to help beginner and intermediate mountain bikers improve their confidence and skills.
Cresta Open Space is located on Cresta Road, near Cheyenne Mountain High School. It is a small park connected to Stratton Open Space by trail that goes through a tunnel under Cresta Road.
The pump track and skills trail are beneficial park amenities for developing handling skills, balance, and endurance while having fun! They can accommodate beginner riders to advanced mountain bikers. The skills trail provides option lines with varying degrees of difficulty allowing new riders to progress their skills and well-seasoned riders to add some fun, technical moves into their trail ride. Riding a pump track is purposefully intuitive with most users getting the hang of it after a few laps.
The Pump Track and Skills Trail will be a natural gravel surface trail open only to bicycles.
For those that wish to drive to the pump track, there is street parking on Vista Drive, adjacent to the detention pond. Parking will not be allowed at Skyway Elementary School, The Little Dipper Pool, or on private property.
Project Elements
A Pump Track consists of looped trails with consistently spaced undulations (small hills and valleys) called “rollers” and banked corners called “berms.” It is designed to allow the rider to “pump” up and down the rollers in such a way that neither peddling nor braking are required to propel the user through the trail.
“Pumping” is pushing down on the backside of a roller and pulling up on the handlebars on the frontside of the roller while applying opposing forces on the pedals, creating propulsion of the bike. It's a thrilling experience similar to the drops and climbs in a roller-coaster, but on a bike-sized level.
A Skills Trail is a natural surface trail with obstacles that require a change in course and balance The skill required to accommodate those obstacles are learned and often called technical trail features.
Technical Trail Features are made from natural materials, such as rocks, logs, roots, gravel, and changes in elevation. The length of the trail along with the frequent and varying difficulty of the features accelerates development of bike handling skills, allowing increased exposure to a broader range of trails. The proposed skills trail will replicate experiences and challenges riders regularly encounter in our city's trail system.
The project partners have agreed to long-term maintenance of the pump track and skills trail. The partners will provide opportunities for users to join in maintenance and clean-up activities. To participate or learn more about trail work opportunities, email info@medwheel.org.
Why Cresta?
The Cresta Pump Track is a recommendation of the 2018 North Cheyenne Cañon Park Master and Management Plan. In addition to recommending additional downhill mountain biking and bike-only trails throughout North Cheyenne Cañon Park, Stratton Open Space and Cresta Open Space, the plan recommends a youth-focused trail network due in part to its size, slope, and proximity to the Ivywild and Skyway communities and Skyway Elementary school.
The purpose, design and intent of the pump track is to serve the local neighborhood where users will be able to and are encouraged to ride their bikes to the Cresta Pump Track. The safe regional trail connections include Bear Creek Regional Park, Stratton Meadows Open Space, and neighborhood streets through the Skyway and Ivywild neighborhoods.
Partners and Funding
The project is made possible by donations from the generous supporters of the Medicine Wheel Trail Advocates, Kids on Bikes and the Cheyenne Mountain Cycling Club. Through their leadership, the partners have secured several grants and donations from the local community.
If you are interested in donating, connect with one of the project partners or visit the fundraising website: https://www.classy.org/fundraiser/3168554
Donations of $1,000 or more will be gratefully commemorated with a plaque at the facility.
Kids on Bikes’ mission is to inspire and empower all kids to lead healthy, active, and happy lives through bicycling. This mission is achieved by providing access to bikes, opportunities to ride, and bicycling education.
Cheyenne Mountain Cycling Club aims to create lifelong ambassadors of the sport of mountain biking and to connect students to the joys, skills, and broader community of cycling.
Medicine Wheel Trail Advocates is the local mountain bike trail advocacy and construction organization whose mission is to build, share, and protect inspiring trail experiences. With a vision to create a world-class network of mountain bike trails in the Pikes Peak Region, Medicine Wheel Trail Advocates has helped develop many miles of trails in parks, open spaces, and the surrounding national forest.