Burn Pile is a trail that has always been under-utilized, mostly because of the poor design and build quality. Frontside, on the other hand, was never designed to handle the volume of traffic it currently sees–much less what it will experience in the future. In an effort to direct descending mountain bikers off of Frontside and onto Burn Pile, a major overhaul of Burn Pile was conceived.
All photos by Tim Ryan
If you take a look at the Burn Pile redesign you’ll notice several improvements such as berms, rollers, and other features, which are designed to provide a rewarding experience to users of varying skills while maintaining the sustainability of the trail. The other thing you’ll notice is that the trail is wider than other trails in the system, particularly Frontside. The obvious reason is due to the fact that we’re using a machine to carve out this new style of trail rather than by hand, which is nearly impossible to do effectively in soils like we have on Tenderfoot mountain. However, the best reason for using a machine is that the additional width creates a significantly more user-friendly trail for beginner/novice riders in comparison to a trail like Frontside, which being narrower, makes it feel more technical and exposed, thus more challenging to less skilled riders, especially on a crowded day.
The redesign of Burnpile is the culmination of Salida Mountain Trails, citizens of Salida and the City of Salida coming together in an effort to improve the trail experience near town.
Stay tuned for more updates.
-Tim Ryan
