Given the huge piles of dirt and heavy machinery in the upper field, it’s no secret that we’ve been revamping our pump track.

We secured a grant from the Northern Forest Center through their Bike the Borderlands initiative, and have been working with local trail builder, Kory Buck of Dirt Shapes, to build the new track. The Northern Forest Center supports innovation and stewardship on a broad level throughout the northeast. They started Bike the Borderlands in 2017 to help promote mountain biking destinations throughout the region, including the Craftsbury Outdoor Center. We’re incredibly thankful for their support in building a pump track to enhance the local mountain biking experience.

“The idea behind the project is to create a pump track with a bit more coherent flow and progression,” says Ollie Burruss, the Outdoor Center’s bike programming lead. “Riders can work on skills in the pump track/skills park environment and then apply those out on the trail.” Whether it’s body position for specific types of terrain, cornering techniques, or learning how to actively maintain and generate speed by pumping, “tons of things can be worked on in short pump track loops in a relatively safe environment,” Burruss shares. Getting immediate feedback from trying something new on this sort of track can help a completely new or even an advanced rider improve dramatically. 

Currently still under construction is the new skills park which will include progression table top jumps to help bikers safely build their skills. “Jumping is a part of modern MTB riding,” says Burruss, “with flow trails and jump trails popping up all over the place. Learning how to properly jump the bike (or scrub jumps so that you don’t get air) is important. It’s way better to learn on professionally constructed jumps than out in the woods in a higher consequence environment.” The skills park is on track to reopen sometime next week while the pump track is open for business as of yesterday.

The pump track has long been a hit for locals and visitors alike, and especially for our weekly summer bike club kids. The new one will be an even better place to try new things, improve your skills, and have some fun. We hope to welcome you soon!