2012 was a beauty year, full of dirt, shovels, machines and most importantly awesome people on bicycles. With projects all over BC and Alberta, the
Hoots crew was on the move, building bike parks, trails and riding communities.
Product testing in Tofino!
Product testing in Strathcona County, sans bikes!
There is always time for good ol' fashioned air guitar when you're DIRT farming in Alberta!
Check out what we were up to in 2012 and where all the new parks are at…
Sunshine Coast, BCIn April, the
Sunshine Coast Trail Society asked the Hoots crew to help develop the Chapman Creek Trail that would eventually become part of the Sun Coaster Trail, used in the
BC Bike Race.
The boys built solid bridges and super sweet singletrack! The Hoots crew is super proud to have been part of this project and is stoked on the hard work the Sunshine Coast Trail Society is doing.
The final bridge, shown in this BC Bike Race
video, was installed by the District of Sechelt and allows riders to keep their tires on dirt instead of riding the highway! So awesome!
Sprockids – Gibsons, BCMaintenance at the
Sprockids Park with the students from the
Mountain Bike Operations Program and the Hoots crew. The park was gussy’d up for the Sprockids Fun Day event where the park was dedicated to one of my mentors, Doug Detwiller, developer of the Sprockids program to celebrate 20 years of the Bike Park!
Tofino, BC The initial idea for this bike park was sparked over 6 years ago by Tofino local, Alex Cutler who championed the idea and brought the community together to make it happen. Patience and perseverance paid off – the park is SOOO FUN and the
New York Times featured the park in the travel section last October. Yah Tofino!
Pumptrack laps for all ages! The Tofino Bike Park has the first modular pump track from
Bikeparkitect installed in North America – popular with bikes and skateboards – a true success for a community that receives over 3 meters of annual rainfall. For all ages and skills, this bike park highlights natural elements including logged cedar from within the community and rock blown up from a rock wall adjacent to the park. This park was a true community effort, from Municipal Staff to local contractors to extraordinary community volunteers including the kids! A big shout out to
SOBO for all the great food throughout the build and the
Affinity Guesthouse for their comfy beds and amazing hot tub!
HOOTS Hot laps!
Ucluelet, BCPhase 1 revitalization of the existing BMX track and some shady jumps that desperately needed some shovel love.
We flattened the shady jumps made of rock and rubble, screened the material and created an intermediate and advanced BMX style line, with tight trannies and steep landings. While on site we did a quick clean up of the useable existing BMX track and brought it back to life from all the Broom weed.
Ukee Bikes is a strong supporter of the park and its future - we look forward to getting back there!
Devon, ABDevon, AB recently re-branded themselves as
Biketown, AB and brought Hoots in to design a multi-phase, multi-year bike park/training facility development plan. Construction started in October 2011, with
Rabbit Hill donating the wooden bike skills features while Hoots developed beginner features to the skills area and prepped land for dirt jumps and a pump track.
In July 2012, the Hoots crew built the dirt jumps and a pump track. The construction of the park is in large part because of fundraising efforts by local kids, see what they accomplished
here! They were successful at winning the
TSN Kraft Celebration Tour!
The local Biketown kids, showing us how it's done.
Local riders came out to lend a hand shaping the jumps. Sweet shirts!
The pump track in Devon rails - so stoked for what the future holds for Biketown:Strathcona County, AB Our travels took us to the Prairies of Alberta this past summer – lucky for us we were able to get our hands on a whole bunch of dirt. We transformed a flat field into a super rad park that has it all, jumps of every size, flow, pump tracks, skills area, and a trials area. This bike park was made possible because a core group of guys who had a vision for their community. We are proud to have worked with Strathcona County and the Strathcona Bike Association on this project. Big thanks to the local bike shop,
Mud Sweat & Gears for their continued support!
Local trials rider, Darren Hantelmann, makes it look easy.
Local kids didn't waste time trying out the dirt jumps!
The pumptrack is a favorite for everyone.
Chilliwack, BC Mother Nature wasn’t exactly cooperative for this project, from March monsoons to Fraser River floods in June, we had our challenges to get this bike park built. In the end, we are stoked with the community support and the finished product (that is above water)!
With a multi-purpose trail that winds around the park, alongside the Fraser River, this park truly does offer something for everyone, parents included!
The pump track has so many transfer lines it's crazy.
We used cedars from the site itself to build the wood features, giving the park a super sweet rustic feeling.
With a crew of solid riders in the area, we worked with Norco rider
Sam Dueck to come up with an advanced jump line with wooden ramps and a trick jump with a sand landing for those hoping to dial in their skills.
Hinton, AB Still on our list of all time favourite parks, it is always so awesome to have the opportunity to go back and butter up the
Hinton Bike Park with maintenance.
This year we worked on Slope Wars, the slopestyle course that the
Coastal Crew originally helped build in 2009. Ben and Jon made it look like new again and have it running smooth.
The
Hinton Mountain Bike Association Youth Committee getting down to business to make sure biking sticks around in Hinton Instead of complaining on the internet and talking turkey about the park, these young guns have organized themselves and have requested what they would like the park to look like for the future! – how rad!
Happy Creek Bike Park Maintenance (also in Hinton)It’s true, this community of under 10,000 has two bike parks! That should be inspiration to every community that is still looking to get their first one built! Built in a great little location, catering to a large number of youth, this mini park has a great set of smaller jumps and a tight little pump track.
We went in to give it a facelift, revitalizing the jumps and dialing the pump track by adding a new cross over line.
While in
Hinton, the Hoots crew took some time to do some re-routes on XC - Jack’s Trail and buff up parts of Happy Creek Trail. Be sure to check ‘em out if you’re in the area!
Aldergrove, BC The Hoots crew at the Aldergrove Bike Park putting in some shovel time to butter up the jumps and re-establish some drainage. Stayed tuned for some more touch ups to the park in 2013!
The year was full of construction projects and we managed to squeak in some great design projects as well. 2013 is quickly shaping up to be nothing short of amazing. Hoots Ltd. will continue to build riding communities and facilitate getting more people on bikes.
Our project line up for 2013 includes Devon, AB (a.k.a. Biketown, AB); Petawawa, ON; Fruitvale, BC;
Toronto, ON; Parksville, BC with more on the way…
Ride ON!
Jay Hoots
Please come in Europe and bring your joy of living !
Keep on going J.HOOTS, people and kids needs places to ride or to get into riding.
:'(
I've been lucky enough to have been in his company on more than one occasion, none more so than at are Mtn Sweden. The guy can ride a bike for sure and inspires everyone around him. We last met at Whistler Crankworx 2012 where he was with a handful of kids that he was showing the MTB ropes to. Can't say enough nice things about this guy..
Just take a look at my profile
forums.mtbr.com/eastern-canada/nashville-tract-trail-project-796985.html
top grade lumber
marine grade plywood with anti-slip surfaces
ecological resins and paints for insect and weatherproofing
rust proof torx-head screws with vandalism resistant features
zink anodized bolts and hardware
www.bikeparkitect.com/?page_id=39
forums.mtbr.com/eastern-canada/nashville-tract-trail-project-796985.html
www.pinkbike.com/video/274772
Its coming.