11/22/2008

It's the Shore Baby (September 2000)
A by no means perfect or complete overview on the North Shore

Part 1 : : Part 2

Current conditions

This leads me back to the motivation for this article - to clear up the misconceptions about the North Shore and trail destruction in particular. Several of the American magazines have covered the so called "chainsaw massacre" on Cypress and this has lead many to believe that all of the trails on the North Shore have been razed to an unrideable state. Not so. There have been trails taken down in other places (The swollen Uvula on Grouse, lower Team Pangor and, more recently Aftertaste on Seymour etc.) but the vast majority of the carnage occurred and continues to occur in West Van on Cypress.

= Cam McRae = Elliott Cannon

It came about like this. A teen fell while riding a trail on Cypress and needed medical attention (he managed to burst his spleen). The fire dept. came in to fetch him and they noticed the structures characteristic of a North Shore trail. These well meaning public servants informed the city council who were given a tour of a few trails. As you can imagine they were outraged (it's what politicians do best) and their knee jerk reaction, without consultation, was to have the trails destroyed with chain saws. If you talk to Kevin Pike (head of West Van Parks) he will give you a number of reasons why the trails were destroyed, including environmental, safety and even historical (apparently timbers are sometimes taken from old skid roads to build stunts) but when pressed he will admit that liability is the primary issue. The district was afraid that a little rich kid was going to fall and hurt himself and that his parents (possibly lawyers themselves) would sue for millions. The climate has become increasingly combative and West Van now tears down even the tiniest plank on a mountain bike trail. The irony here is that they sometimes make it more dangerous by doing so.

West Van was home to some of the best trails on the shore including The Reaper and Pre-Reaper, the 5th horseman and Wild Cherry to name but a few. These trails are still there and some are still rideable (reaper and pre-reap were so stunt dependant that they are no longer any fun). People continue to ride them and the condition of the trails is worsening on a steady basis. Another irony is that the district will not allow the NSMBA to hold trail maintenance days on Cypress so that erosion is taking a heavy toll and in many places multiple lines are opening up. So much for their concerns about the environment. Despite this Cypress is a very fun place to ride with some great steeps, rock slabs and plenty o' speed.

Further East in North Vancouver an agreement has been reached to allow existing trails to remain but no new trails are to be built until the drainage, erosion and maintenance concerns are addressed on the existing ones. It sounds good in theory but it has been difficult to police. Several trails have popped up (mostly built by teens) and the district has responded with chain saws, most recently on a trail called Aftertaste which was the subject of a 2 page spread in a local paper. The more experienced builders make their structures incredibly sturdy (Dangerous Dan builds his strong enough to hold a motorcycle) and they build mostly with hand tools. The Digger even lovingly replants ferns and bypasses sensitive areas. These builders also construct their trails entirely from logs and peckerpoles they find on the ground and they are steadfast about not falling live trees. Some of the new breed of builders are reckless with saws, knocking down standing trees both live and dead rather than spending the time to find what they need on the ground. At it's best building the structures that make the shore the shore are an art form, and riding on something that is creatively built with fine craftsmanship adds to the experience immensely. Some of the more recent trails have been well built but most of them are garbage. The best work lately has been done by experienced builders adding stunts to existing trails.

If you rode a trail a day on the North Shore you could easily keep yourself busy for a couple of months. The North Shore has been called one of the best riding areas in the world but many are scared off by the technical difficulty. There are trails here to please experienced riders of all levels. I wouldn't send my Mum (no offence Mum or to any other mothers out there!) up there but an athletic person with little experience could handle the easier trails. If you are thinking about coming for a visit there are two companies who'd love to give you a tour. Both offer experienced guides and/or pro riders like Dangerous Dan and Kim Steed to show you the light. Velo City will take you up on the Grouse Mountain Skyride and then down the Grouse fire road - which is fun for the whole family - or on the burlier trails. North Shore Mtb tours are a little purer. They will climb with you or offer shuttles where there is car access. North Shore Mtb specializes in the more advanced trails but will organize a custom tour just for you. The other option is to go to some of the local bike shops and ask for directions.

Lately things have begun looking up around here. There is the prospect of a mountain bike park on the horizon and work has begun on a new, sanctioned trail on Seymour to replace CBC. Some of the builders of Aftertaste, a trail that gained notoriety in the newspaper, have been recruited to help out in with the new trail and Dangerous Dan has been banging some nails as well. Sweet trails are also popping up in other suburbs of Vancouver which have more undeveloped terrain.

So while there has been plenty of bad news things are improving. Officials in West Van still have their heads planted firmly up their asses, but in North Van the powers that be are starting to see the positive impact mountain biking is having on their community. So don't worry folks there is plenty left to ride and it looks as though things will only get better.