{"id":1997210,"date":"2026-06-18T10:06:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T07:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1997210"},"modified":"2026-06-18T10:06:00","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T07:06:00","slug":"an-all-new-bike-park-with-gravity-style-trails-is-coming-to-montrose-co","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1997210","title":{"rendered":"An all-new bike park with gravity-style trails is coming to Montrose, CO"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photos courtesy COPMOBA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s no secret that the mountain bike scene in Montrose, Colorado, is on the rise. In 2024, I covered the recently opened Electric Hills trail system<\/a>, located a few miles outside of town. But one key element that Montrose was missing was high-quality, in-town trails.<\/p>\n

A new trail development is set to fix that problem.<\/p>\n

Currently known as the \u201cBaldridge Park Bike Park,\u201d the project will bring purpose-built, gravity-oriented mountain bike trails to the heart of Montrose \u2014 specifically to Baldridge Regional Park, on the banks of the Uncompahgre River. For Nick Jacobson, COPMOBA<\/a> treasurer and the lead on this project, that in-town location is the whole point.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe have a lot of fantastic riding in Montrose, [but] almost all of it, [\u2026] requires putting your bike on the tailgate, putting it on the rack, and driving 15 to 20 minutes,\u201d said Jacobson. The new trails will be built on the east-facing slope of the Hogback, the mesa that runs along the western side of Montrose\u2019s flagship community park. Because it sits \u201csmack dab in the center of the biggest park in town, [it\u2019s] walkable or rideable from I would say the majority of the population base in Montrose, which is one of the reasons that we\u2019re really excited about it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

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A <\/strong>diverse trail system on a compact footprint<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The planned bike park will include four or five gravity trails, but those few trails are designed to cover a remarkable difficulty spread. The bike park will occupy roughly 15 to 20 acres of what Jacobson described as \u201ca dry, sparsely vegetated hillside,\u201d taking advantage of about 100 feet of elevation from the top of the mesa down to the floodplain along the river.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Most importantly, the trails will be built to a high standard. \u201cWe\u2019re talking relatively wide trails, professionally built,\u201d Jacobson said, adding that they \u201cwill be entirely adaptive friendly.\u201d There are currently some social singletrack trails in this area, but they\u2019re often overgrown and eroded. The planned trail construction will be totally different.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe easiest trail is going to be up on the very top,\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cIt will be a skills loop. So, you know, totally flat \u2014 wooden features and small dirt features.\u201d From a start hub at the top of the mesa, riders will filter into trails that drop down the hillside: a green trail aimed at newer riders, a blue trail with tabletops, and a black trail meant to draw riders from beyond Montrose. \u201cThe intent there is to build something that is interesting for folks to travel to Montrose to hit,\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cSo we\u2019re thinking some larger wooden features, potentially a wall ride, some bigger drops, that sort of thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A fifth trail is designed to bridge a gap that anyone who\u2019s ridden Montrose\u2019s outlying systems will recognize. Jacobson described it as \u201ca tech-style trail \u2014 not full-on tech, but kind of in that blue zone,\u201d built specifically to help riders level up before tackling the harder trails in the nearby trail systems. \u201cIt would be nice to have a place for folks to build up their skills,\u201d he said, pointing to Electric Hills, which, as he put it, \u201cis not the most beginner-friendly trail system on the planet.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Beyond the descending lines, the plan also calls for a purpose-built climbing trail, connector trails, a start-zone feature at the top of the mesa for a little extra speed, and shade structures and viewing areas for parents and spectators \u201cenjoying a beautiful view over town.\u201d<\/p>\n

Design, funding, and timeline<\/strong><\/h2>\n

COPMOBA partnered with Dirt Tek Trails for the roughly five-month design process. That process was intentionally collaborative. The city of Montrose was involved in nearly every meeting, alongside the Montrose Recreation District, members of the local disc golf community, and other stakeholders. The goal, Jacobson said, was to \u201cmaximize the impact of this bike park for the community, but also minimize and mitigate the impact to other user groups in the park.\u201d<\/p>\n

The effort also dovetails with the city\u2019s own long-term vision. Roughly three years ago, Montrose kicked off a formal master planning process for Baldridge Regional Park, and soft-surface trails emerged as a top community priority. \u201cThis is, I would say, a direct response to the city\u2019s planning process,\u201d Jacobson said.<\/p>\n

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The project is estimated to cost between $300,000 and $350,000. Funding is still in its early stages: the city has signaled interest in contributing, with the balance expected to come from grants and community fundraising. \u201cWe\u2019ve not formally launched that fundraising effort yet,\u201d Jacobson said, noting COPMOBA is waiting until the grant process is further along.<\/p>\n

That funding picture will ultimately dictate the timeline. \u201cWe would love to get it in the ground next year,\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got one good summer season of fundraising and grant writing, so we\u2019re working fast and furious to see if we can have it all ready to go in 2027.\u201d He was realistic about the uncertainty, adding, \u201cI think that remains to be seen whether or not that\u2019s quite feasible, but that\u2019s what we\u2019re working towards.\u201d<\/p>\n

Know about a new trail project we should cover?<\/strong> Whether you\u2019re breaking ground on the next must-ride trail network or putting the finishing touches on a neighborhood flow trail, we want to hear about it. Drop us a line at [email\u00a0protected]<\/a> with the details, and your project could be featured!<\/p>\n

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Photos courtesy COPMOBA It\u2019s no secret that the mountain bike scene in Montrose, Colorado, is on the rise. In 2024, I covered the recently opened Electric Hills trail system, located a few miles outside of town. But one key element that Montrose was missing was high-quality, in-town trails. A new trail development is set to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,274],"class_list":["post-1997210","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-singletracks-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1997210","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1997210"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1997210\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1997210"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1997210"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1997210"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}