Pumped at Fundy: Bikers' pump track nears completion at park
Pump track is a key feature of a big redevelopment at Fundy National Park
A new mountain bike "pump track" that weaves, winds, dips and swells around trees at Fundy National Park is nearing completion.
The pump track is a key feature of a redevelopment of the Chignecto South area, which the park hasn't put to much use in recent years.
"I'm surprised with the result because it's so beautiful," said Yannick Vincent, the founder of Quebec company BMXpert and designer of the pump track.
Fundy is investing in the Chignecto recreation area redevelopment project, which is building 30 kilometres of mountain bike trails from old roads and campground sites to create the trails.
Vincent is the brains behind the track's concept.
A pump track is one continuous loop, where cyclists ride around different banks and turns with minimal pedalling. Instead, riders gain and keep momentum with body movements.
"You always have speed without pedalling … you can do 100 laps without a single stroke of pedalling just by pumping," Vincent said.
Vincent said pump tracks like this can cost close to $100,000 each.
The expertise
Vincent is also a BMX coach with Centre National de Cyclisme de Bromont, both the Quebec team and the national team BMX teams.
Vincent said the pump track was built with locally sourced granite dust, which is more environmentally friendly for the woods.
Vincect's company has built more than two dozen pump tracks already around Ontario and Quebec.
A biking hub
Andrew Fry, a Parks Canada's visitor experience manager, said the park is looking to create a destination for mountain bikers and ways to attract more biking enthusiasts to the trails.
"It's an effort by us to reimagine how to re engage with young families in the parks," Fry said.
The pump track is a key feature in the development.
"It's a way for us to allow different people to connect with Fundy National Park and the natural environment in a way that's relevant to them."
But the public will have to wait a few more weeks before getting a chance to spin around the track. The soil on the shoulders needs to be seeded to stabilize it for riders.
