Canadian Club: United Riders of Crowsnest
Building a comm unity by building trails.
In just three years, the United Riders of Crowsnest has become one of the most popular cycling clubs in Alberta. Its membership reached 100 riders this past summer and it continues to grow. An even bigger achievement is that they’ve cut 10 km of new trail around Crowsnest Pass, Alta., and there’s plenty more to come.
The small town sits on the road between Calgary and Fernie, B.C. For years, locals have watched tourists travel past on the way to the big-time ski resorts, where money has fuelled the kind of trail building most local clubs only dream of creating. The town of Crowsnest Pass thinned out after the local economy started to fall apart. Younger families left for bigger cities, such as Edmonton and Calgary, and older people moved into the mountain town to retire.
The United Riders of Crowsnest formed in 2009. By 2010, the club was working closely with Community Futures, a government-funded program to help develop stronger communities. Drawing out tourists and younger active families became the goal, and building a mountain-bike trail system was the solution.
Community Futures hired International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA) Canada’s Trail Solutions-IMBA’s consulting program-to help design a master plan for a trail network. Locals and club members gave Daniel Scott of IMBA Canada a tour of the terrain around Crowsnest Pass. When the master plan was finished, it included a design for 140 km of trail.
“Word is getting out,” Scott says. “This place is growing.”
Club member Dave Whitten-father of Olympic track cyclist Tara Whitten-worked with Scott part-time during the development of the plan. He was later hired by Community Futures to supervise students as they broke ground and started building the trails. So far, 10 km of trail have been cut, and a bike park has been designed and built under the direction of trail builder and Norco Factory Team rider Jay Hoots.
The club has continued to lead smaller building sessions and handle trail maintenance, but the Community Futures money has dried up. The town is looking for other ways to fund the trail building.
“When you play by the rules of trail building, you have to be patient,” says Jim Lucas, who helps with the club’s work to find more funding. “The big thing is to raise funds to hire professional builders. That means we need to raise $25,000 to $100,000. This master plan won’t get built solely on volunteer hours.”
Nevertheless, the club has an active core of 25 people and the volunteer crews include locals who aren’t members, and who might not even ride bikes.
“A local excavation contractor has offered time and a machine to help build,” says Whitten, who represented Canada as a cross-country rider at the masters world championships in 2005. “The contractor figures it’s good for the kids and the town.
” Local and provincial governments see the value of the work, but regulations are stalling some of the efforts by the club. For example, a local shop donated a dirt-jump bike for a raffle, but Alberta gaming laws are holding up the draw.
The plan to draw in new families is working, however. Current club president Darcy Neniska moved to Crowsnest Pass with his wife after the pair discovered the local trails. They see their move as an opportunity to balance work and life while becoming part of a community.
“Every weekend it seems like more people are stopping,” Neniska says about the cars heading toward Fernie. “Nearly every dollar we get from membership fees goes to new trails.”
There’s also plenty of programming to go along with the trails. On Tuesdays, the club offers women’s rides. Wednesdays during the last month of the school year have seen youth rides; and the big club ride happens every Thursday. Weekend clinics and new cycling programs are filling up the calendar, and bringing the community together.
Club Name: United Riders of Crowsnest
City: Crowsnest Pass, Alberta
Established: 2009
Members: 100
Web: uroc.ca
