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This Roller Coaster isn't difficult but it is fun.
Being a mountain biker living on the North Shore is amazing; everywhere you look it's golden. We've got enough trails to ride a different one every day for a month and still have some left over - all under an hour from our door. Whistler is an hour and a half away and there is an abundance of epic riding all over our fair province. What could make it any better? How about lift access right where we live. There are actually three ski hills on the Shore and after 13 years laying the groundwork Cypress Mountain has started turning the lifts for freeriders.
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You can imagine that we are a tough crowd. On top of world class trails outside our door that we can ride free any time we want - the granddaddy of bike parks is just up Howe Sound - and Whistler's getting better all the time. Cypress knows they have big shoes to fill and to that end they hired Todd "Digger" Fiander. Digger's responsible for 30 trails on the Shore and he's the undisputed king of the builders. His trails are fun, environmentally peerless and engineered like the pyramid of Giza. He's been working seven days a week trying to get Cypress ready for the local crowd. Digger's been slaving so hard he's lost twenty pounds. He's even thinking of starting his own Jenny Craig-type program and charging big bucks to allow people to help him build trails. |
 This line is steep and tight and built to survive WW III. An example of Digger's excellent workmanship. Rider ~ Cristina Piccone |
Digger's results are impressive but mother nature hasn't been cooperating. It looked like the building season was going to start nice and early and then winter arrived in March and April. May wasn't bad but June was the third gloomiest on record. This slowed progress and has kept the ground from drying out.
I decided that riding opening day was too good an opportunity to turn down so I recruited some riders to pose for photos and loaded up the car. We left some vehicles at the bottom and took one up to the top so we could ice the cake at the end of the day. Joffrey Koeman got us sorted with tickets and waivers and then took us for a tour of the lone open trail.
The ride up the Eagle chair (the southernmost on the mountain) to the top of Black Mountain takes between four and six minutes depending on where the throttle is set and the bike loading system is just as slick as Whistler's - in fact it's identical.
Trevor Hansen enjoying the flow.
The line starts out fast, relatively wide and very smooth. There are some berms and ladder bridges as well as some really fun g-outs. There are three spots where you rip down a short incline and then pull a high speed right hander before the trail rises again. You can easily go fast enough so you don't need to tough the pedals on the way up. There are a few straight sections with some fun little hits (I'm told these are temporary versions) as well as some tight berms. Things slow down after you reach a sort of mtb interchange. There is an overpass you roll over and then under and at this point you can choose between two lines that enter denser forest. Here the lines get tighter and more technical but for the most part speed remains your friend. One section that had me giggling had us hopping off a ladder bridge and then immediately entering a turn railing uphill just enough to get you light in the saddle before you are tossed into butter smooth right - left- right combo.
If you are looking for rocky gnarl don't ride The Cypress lift.
When we emerged from the woods it got muddy. There is a section of perhaps 250 metres of trail that is still sloppy - but knowing Todd's skill you can expect it to be weather-proof by the time things are in full swing. The last section of trail reminds me of the bottom of Sun Peaks where you can open the throttle as wide as your cajones will allow.
Layne from On Top is also Layne from Cypress - and he was ripping on Saturday.
Cypress has invested in the same bike carriers that Whistler uses and they work flawlessly.
Trevor 'T-Bone' Hansen calls this move the DJ. Photo ~ Joffrey J. Koeman.
Which brings us to another great aspect of riding Cypress; the end of the day shuttle. There are great trails on Cypress - most of which are far more challenging than those accessed by the lifts. For me a great day would be to climb to the top on the SX, ride the lifts for few hours, grab some lunch at the cafeteria (we ate salmon burgers which were great) and then take one more lap before linking trails like Coiler, Sex Boy and Family Guy together at the end of the day.
Another bonus of being up in Cypress Bowl is the spectacular setting. Looking back on the way up the lift gives you a great view of Howe Sound and there is no shortage of wildlife as you can see.
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The folks at Cypress have been taking a beating on our bulletin board. It seems like they are reluctant to play ball this year. They want nothing to do with the BroCard, their pricing is out of line with the product (thus far at least) and they don't seem inclined to listen to feedback. It seems that for this year at least, because there will only be a few trails to ride, Cypress doesn't want hordes of riders up there. It seems cynical but the pricing ($32 for 4 hours and an additional $8 for another 4 hours on the same day) seems to be aimed at keeping riders away. 'Adult' also begins at 13 years old at Cypress which is a puzzle as well. Whistler has youth pricing for the 13-17 set which is 20% off the adult fare. |
 We saw a mother with three tiny cubs as well as this yearling who was foraging right under the lift. |
It seems ludicrous that a first year bike park wouldn't want to work with the community and that their pricing wouldn't reflect the product being offered but that's pretty clearly the case here. A full day ticket will set you back $40 while a full price ticket at Whistler is $41. The Cypress bike card costs $49 and it includes your first day but after that it only saves you 20% or $6.40 for a 4 hour session bringing the price down to $25.50 for 4 hours or $32 for the full day. Whistler's Edge card also includes your first day but it sets you back $38 which is less than a day pass (or $31 with your BroCard) and after that it saves you $10 a ride. The Whistler Edge card is only offered to residents of B.C. and Washington State unless you own a BroCard. (BroCard holders the world over can purchase Edge Cards).
The view of Howe sound and Anvil Island doesn't suck.
Our group did another lap after lunch and then finished the day by riding trails all the way to the bottom. If you have never ridden the trails on Cypress be aware that they are among the steepest and most challenging on the Shore. Experienced Seymour and Fromme riders are often humbled by their first days on Cypress.
Cypress isn't offering season passes this year and I think that's sensible with the number of variables (season length and number of trails completed) but the overall pricing structure is bound to alienate some of their potential customer base. Still we are a fickle bunch and if the park lives up to expectations riders are bound to hit the trails on weekends and after work in droves. I for one am stoked to have what could develop into a world class bike park just up the road in West Vancouver.
The park will be closed July 4th-6th for trail work and then things should be wide open for the rest of the summer.
Check out cypressmountain.com for more details.
Important Note:
Cypress is pleased to announce that the 4 Hour time restrictions are now removed.
With the new sections that should be ready (weather permitting) for this coming
Thursday, capacity can now allow for a longer stay in the Bike Park. All Tickets
will be valid all day long! Cypress is also offering 25% off until further notice
so the ticket price will be $24.
