It probably wasn't what their teachers had in mind for the first mountain bike course designed by four students from Capilano College's mountain bike operations (MBO) program.
But the 500-metre track built for the biker-cross-on-snow event provided plenty of high-flying highlights at the Dakota Ridge Snowfest last Sunday, as mountain bikers struggled to maintain control as their bikes rocketed down the treacherous course, culminating in spectacular jump. "The course is quick, short, and super mellow," said Brad Hall, one of the designers. "It was a lot of work, but it worked out."
Hall along with Gavin Brown, Kyle Norbraten, and Kyle Jameson, were recruited by Off the Edge bike shop owner Gary Jackson, who'd volunteered to run the snow races at Snowfest. The students not only did the physical work of preparing the course by hand and machine, but also had to learn the ropes of event management.
Using the Sunshine Coast Regional District's Piston-Bulley grooming machine, Hall scooped out the course, and built mounds and elevated turns. All four students, who range in age from 19 to 21, did the fine details of the course by hand using snow shovels and skis.
That was the fun part, but there was also the risk management aspect, which Hall called "stressful," but instructor Caroline Depatie, who teaches the event management class in the mountain bike operations program, said the students did well in navigating the legal trappings surrounding the event.
"They did a fantastic job, and the people that tried the course really liked it," she said. "These guys took the initiative to research the event and get involved."
Hall, who's now landed a full-time job as a bike mechanic at Off the Edge in Sechelt, said he's pondering developing a dual mountain bike course this summer.
"I love it out here," said Hall, who came to Sechelt from Calgary to take the program. "The Coast has converted me."
