MORE
March 6th, 2005, 11:14 PM
<img align=center src="http://www.more-mtb.org/galleries/gal_imgs//1/5/_jf00067.jpg">
By Mark Wigfield
IMBA Trail Solutions, MORE volunteers and park officials completed the first phase of a massive relocation and improvement of trails at Annandale’s popular Wakefield Mountain Bike Park during the last weekend of February and the first weekend of March. Despite abysmally wet and cold conditions including a snowstorm that shut down two workdays scheduled for the week, a crew that included 100 volunteers over several days cut 3,000 feet of trail, installed a contoured wooden boardwalk and built 200 feet of gravel turnpike. All told, 4,000 feet of trail work was completed. In the end, the system will have a permanent mountain bike race loop that will weather well, require little maintenance and minimize conflicts between bikers, hikers and walkers.
This would be an extraordinary enough accomplishment even without knowing what was at stake. So-called "historical references" to culturally significant pre-mountain bike activity were discovered on the portion of the system known as the race course hill. A spider web of criss-crossing and overlapping trails, some constructed on the fall line, had to be untangled. Other trails routinely washed out despite repeated restoration by MORE trail crews. These factors alone might have been enough to kill mountain biking at an ordinary park. But thanks to the efforts of MORE member and Wakefield Park Volunteer Larry Cautilli, the extremely supportive park manager Bill Hellwig, volunteer coordinator Tom Kennedy, Northern Virginia Park Authority officials and staff, IMBA’s Rich Edwards, volunteers from MORE, the Potomac Velo club, EX2 Adventures and other park users, the venue was not only saved, but was improved for the long haul. Trail was rerouted around sensitive areas and new links were built to replace and improve on what was removed.
Wakefield is not Durango. But it’s a fun and vital park for metro area mountain bikers. Many newbies clear their first log or tumble through their first endo at Wakefield. For others, it’s the park in their back yard where they can ride for a couple of hours without having to drive to the Shenandoah or Gambrill. It’s home to Potomac Velo’s popular summer race series as well as major regional races that attract riders from up and down the Eastern Seaboard. All area mountain bikers owe thanks to everyone who rallied to save Wakefield.
And they can show it by helping out with the remaining work at the park. In the next few weeks, volunteers will install two new boardwalks and clear temporary trail for the race course loop. Phase 2 of the reconstruction project is slated for April, when bermed turns will be installed on the powerline trail, and switchbacks and banked climbing turns will be built in the woods. This will complete work on the race course for the summer race series.
A third phase, not yet scheduled, will establish a sustainable and drier second lower loop. Watch for future announcements. But until then, volunteer – and enjoy the new Wakefield trails! Watch the MORE web site for announcements of the next Wakefield work days.
By Mark Wigfield
IMBA Trail Solutions, MORE volunteers and park officials completed the first phase of a massive relocation and improvement of trails at Annandale’s popular Wakefield Mountain Bike Park during the last weekend of February and the first weekend of March. Despite abysmally wet and cold conditions including a snowstorm that shut down two workdays scheduled for the week, a crew that included 100 volunteers over several days cut 3,000 feet of trail, installed a contoured wooden boardwalk and built 200 feet of gravel turnpike. All told, 4,000 feet of trail work was completed. In the end, the system will have a permanent mountain bike race loop that will weather well, require little maintenance and minimize conflicts between bikers, hikers and walkers.
This would be an extraordinary enough accomplishment even without knowing what was at stake. So-called "historical references" to culturally significant pre-mountain bike activity were discovered on the portion of the system known as the race course hill. A spider web of criss-crossing and overlapping trails, some constructed on the fall line, had to be untangled. Other trails routinely washed out despite repeated restoration by MORE trail crews. These factors alone might have been enough to kill mountain biking at an ordinary park. But thanks to the efforts of MORE member and Wakefield Park Volunteer Larry Cautilli, the extremely supportive park manager Bill Hellwig, volunteer coordinator Tom Kennedy, Northern Virginia Park Authority officials and staff, IMBA’s Rich Edwards, volunteers from MORE, the Potomac Velo club, EX2 Adventures and other park users, the venue was not only saved, but was improved for the long haul. Trail was rerouted around sensitive areas and new links were built to replace and improve on what was removed.
Wakefield is not Durango. But it’s a fun and vital park for metro area mountain bikers. Many newbies clear their first log or tumble through their first endo at Wakefield. For others, it’s the park in their back yard where they can ride for a couple of hours without having to drive to the Shenandoah or Gambrill. It’s home to Potomac Velo’s popular summer race series as well as major regional races that attract riders from up and down the Eastern Seaboard. All area mountain bikers owe thanks to everyone who rallied to save Wakefield.
And they can show it by helping out with the remaining work at the park. In the next few weeks, volunteers will install two new boardwalks and clear temporary trail for the race course loop. Phase 2 of the reconstruction project is slated for April, when bermed turns will be installed on the powerline trail, and switchbacks and banked climbing turns will be built in the woods. This will complete work on the race course for the summer race series.
A third phase, not yet scheduled, will establish a sustainable and drier second lower loop. Watch for future announcements. But until then, volunteer – and enjoy the new Wakefield trails! Watch the MORE web site for announcements of the next Wakefield work days.