2024: What A Year!
Remember when it felt like building high quality mountain bike trails in Colorado Springs was nearly impossible?
It was not long ago that many local riders felt this sentiment about trail development in Colorado Springs. As a result, COSMBA was launched with a mission to produce real results for riders in the form of new trails that met two criteria that we felt was lacking in our city’s trail system.
High quality construction and…
Bike-specific progression.
Two years in and there are few left who doubt the determination of COSMBA’s ability to accomplish those goals. Once again we proved that we have the resources, know-how, and influence to get things done.
Before COSMBA, it was believed that the only way to accomplish the goal of building quality trails in Colorado Springs was to raise massive amounts of money and hire professional trail builders to build it for us. The problem with this concept is that it removed riders from the process. Frustration, confusion, and apathy was felt by many of the most engaged riders in our city who had time to donate but limited ability to give financially. In 2024, COSMBA once again proved that given the change, riders are not only happy to help, but they actually carry with them some of the most critical trail building skills around.
This year, our Dig Days averaged to 8 people per day and went as high as 55. There is massive desire to pitch in towards building more public trails.
And talking in terms of overall impact in 2024, COSMBA returned $2.41 in community value through new trails and trail maintenance for every dollar donated.
Here are some highlights from 2024:
Completed trail construction on Colorado Springs’ most notorious trail - Captain Morgan’s.
Captain Morgan’s was Colorado Springs’ most notorious illegal trail… until this year. Known for it’s steep lines, big shark fin drop, intimidating rock garden, and precarious root turn, this trail was finally allowed to become a sanctioned trail thanks to city parks staff who understood the community’s desire for such a trail. In the fall of 2022, COSMBA formed a committee to take a close look at what would be needed to fix erosion issues to make the trail safe for increased public use. Those areas were identified and in the Spring of 2024, we scheduled 10 days to systematically address those areas.
We also worked closely with Colorado Springs Park staff and local trailbuilder, Trailcraft, on all three trail projects in North Cheyenne Canyon - Upper Ladders, Penrose, and Captain Morgans. COSMBA raised funds for these projects but also provided technical and rider support throughout the process. Along the way, we build great bonds with Tucker, Elias, and Colton from Trailcraft. After a full summer of work, we are proud to say that everything went according to plan. This was largely thanks to our construction foreman, Scott Marcum, who truly carried the load to see this through to completion.
As we wrapped up work in September, we took a moment to celebrate the accomplishment with a group ride hosted by our good friends at Bicycle Experience. Big thanks to those guys who sponsor COSMBA and run such a great local shop.
Captain Morgan’s wasn’t the only new trail we worked on. We also had a hand in finishing 3700 feet of a trail in Bear Creek Open Space which is used by El Paso County as a trail for physically disabled individuals. This regional trail features gradual grades, good site lines, and amazing views.
COSMBA’s strategic focus on sustainability and minimal impact resulted in broad support for the final result.
Supported an effort to re-envision the C-line bike park in Red Rocks Open Space
Thanks to the leadership of Eli Cross, over 300 hours of volunteerism and fresh new features were invested in this lost gem in Red Rock Open Space. Eli took massive ownership of a property that had been left to rot. In fact, the first work days was entirely spent cutting back weeds, trees, and trash that inhabited the jumps and features of the park.
Today, C-line has nicely groomed kickers, new drops, a new step up wall, and lots more character. We are already looking ahead towards big ideas to make C-line a great place to ride again in 2025. Watch for a new shark fin, a hip jump, and the possibility of a new line at the top of the park. If jumps are your thing, don’t despair, things are happening in the scene. Reach out if you’d like to be part of making that happen.
Who doesn’t love jumps.
Hosted 7 MTB centric community events
The fastest growing segment of COSMBA is women mountain bikers. This is thanks to the amazing work happening at WMBA (Women’s Mountain Bike Association) who is providing new and exciting ways to engage in a sport that historically has been dominated by men. WMBA has been tremendously successful at creating the type of culture and environment that champions ALL voices and creates opportunities for inclusion and good vibes.
This year COSMBA planned a women’s retreat in partnership with a few local businesses to raise funds for our work in Ute Valley Park. The retreat was a great success thanks to Singletrack Skills, Epic Adventures Bike Shop, Kineofit, Brian Chapel Photography, and the Salt Cave. These businesses donated their services and provided an opportunity for women to connect through a bike ride in Ute Valley Park followed by yoga, massages, lunch, and a bike repair clinic.
We also planned a movie night hosted by Sram’s Colorado Springs office. Riders packed the house for a series of 7 films all to do with different perspectives on mountain biking around the globe. We had so much fun.
Oh, and we can’t forget about our support of Criterium’s bike clinics throughout the summer. COSMBA provided support to these clinics with bike rides, marketing, and speakers. Criterium Bicycles has supported COSMBA from the very beginning and we’re thrilled to call those guys our friends.
COSMBA is more than just building trails. We are built on the idea that there is something special about building MTB culture and fostering community around our shared hobby. Let’s face it, many of us ride our bikes when we need to relieve stress or get away. But the benefit of having friends to ride with and cool events to attend is better than just about anything.
Our commitment to trail stewardship is stronger than ever.
In 2024, volunteers dedicated 513 hours to trail stewardship activities, ensuring a sustainable and safe network of MTB preferred trails.
We also increased our number of certified trail crew leads to 13!
It’s one thing to build new trails, but it’s another thing altogether to understand the work that goes into making sure those trails stay in top shape. This requires dedicated volunteers to give a Saturday or two and do backbreaking work to get it done. Our stewardship work provided sorely needed repair work in all major open spaces where there are mountain bike trails in the city.
We also worked with APEX presented by Rockshox to prepare Palmer Park for the three day race in June. We collaborated with the Guardians of Palmer Park to create a new and lasting event called Picks and Pedals. This event rallied over 50 volunteers to come out and make sure the race trails in were top shape. Volunteers were treated to a free lunch, live music, and lots of giveaways.
COSMBA’s commitment to trial stewardship is also catching attention with Parks staff. Traditionally, representatives for mountain bikers often show up to public meetings and act antagonistically towards open space and trail development. COSMBA aims to allow our volunteer work to speak for us. When Parks staff see that mountain bikers are giving back in significant ways, it demonstrates our desire to work with public officials rather than against them. This solidarity, friendship, and fidelity opens doors to the types of conversations that have allowed us to be successful over the past few years.
A special thanks to Routes Outfitters, Criterium Bicycles, Roman Villa, Jersey Mikes, Champion Windows of Colorado Springs, and GAP for supporting our combined Stewardship efforts in 2024.
Speaking of advocacy…
COSMBA advocated for new open spaces in Blodgett Open Space as well as Fisher’s Canyon in southwest Colorado Springs. COSMBA mobilized riders to speak in public meetings, provide expert opinion, and give feedback on trail plans with the new open spaces. And when things got heated with neighborhoods, we worked with other organizations in town like CONO, TOSC, and others towards mediation efforts to preserve trail access against those who would take it away.
In the end, our advocacy work led to a few critical results for Blodgett Open Space.
1. Preservation of Fenceline trail and creating new connections to tie Fenceline into upcoming trails.
2. Three mountain bike specific trails that will be built close by each other and provide a unique riding experience geared around all skill levels. These trails will be known as the Blodgett Bike Park and cater to the experiences that riders hope for in high quality bike specific riding.
3. Bike specific trail features that will provide varied terrain and new challenges for riders. These features will highlight our creativity around trail construction as well as new and unique trail experiences.
4. Adaptive Management - Having a master plan that can change is crucial to managing land in a way that understands local context and changing needs. An adaptive management plan will allow landmanagers to flex to the needs of future generations as conditions in Blodgett Open Space changes.
COSMBA worked closely with city leadership towards passage of an ordinance legalizing e-bikes on trails. Although the final vote is still ahead of us, we are proud of the fact that we chose to support access for e-bikes while other advocates chose to side against riders and electric bicycles. COSMBA assisted in building a wide coalition of partners who agree that it’s time to address the e-bike issue. We worked with TOSC, SRAM, PPORA, Criterium Bicycles, Bicycle Experience, Innovations in Aging, and countless individuals to bring forth a solution that allows e-bikes to go anywhere an analog bicycle can go within our parks and open spaces. This holistic approach affirms that e-bikes are just another form of bike and does not perpetuate misconceptions that e-bikes are motorcycles.
In February, our coalition will go in front of city council to advocate for passage of this ordinance that will support a big part of the future of mountain biking.
Consider a Year-End Donation
As we head into 2025, we're brimming with excitement for new trail projects and even more opportunities to connect with fellow riders, however, we can't do it without your support. I ask you to consider making a tax-deductible donation to COSMBA before the end of 2024. Your contribution, no matter the size, will go directly towards fulfilling our mission of making Colorado Springs a world-class MTB destination.
To learn more about COSMBA's work and donate online, please visit our website: https://cosmba.org/donate
