This is the site of a future Nascar training facility—said someone 12 years ago.
That almost happened, in fact this area was cleared and excavated in preparation, and
then abandoned.
Scores of would be stock car drivers were robbed of the chance to drive Toyota Camrys
in an oval.
The symphony of 140 decibel exhaust pipes will never be heard by the children of Canton.
The treetops of the Blue Ridge cried in unison, but life went on.
And in April of 2021, we began building the next best thing here; a free community park.
Thanks to a group of strangers, and sponsors from all over the world, the town of Canton
will soon hear the laughter, of children, and the whirring of bicycles.
Berm Park is officially under construction, and our contractor, Elevated Trail Design
is wasting no time.
They have a month of rare, dry weather before the summer rainstorms inevitably return.
It’s always a treat to get to work locally and create a riding destination that kids
and our friends will get to enjoy
Peter’s goal as the designer of Berm Park is to build fun and sustainable trails.
But since he’s re-excavating a previously disturbed area, he also has the opportunity
to control the flow of water.
That may seem to some, like a luxury—a way to keep the trail dry so it runs better.
But actually, the future of this land and the stream below it depend on it, and that
was one of the key goals of the conservancy when they purchased this land and gifted it
to the town.
The trails are graded to break up the flow of water.
Rocks slow the water down to keep it from gaining momentum, then catchments catch the
sediment, and drain pipes direct the overflow to vegetated areas, where it can seep into
the ground.
Areas to the side of the riding surface are covered in this revegetation matting, which
traps seeds and provides an environment for plant growth.
Plants have roots, and roots hold the soil together.
Despite ETD’s impressive erosion control plan, we didn’t name this catchment park,
or drain park.
It’s Berm Park, and you had best believe we’re building berms—really sweet ones.
The three berms being built here are named the Hook, Line, and Sync’r, after a series
of hardtails made by Diamondback bikes.
They sponsored this trail, and it’s called “On the Fly”.
Like their bicycles, Diamondback’s contribution will result in a trail with mass appeal.
Any intermediate rider can enjoy this trail with their tires on the ground—or not.
Especially on beginner and intermedia trails, we’re building progressive features that
you can ride at your own speed, and at your own comfort level.
There’s always a way to be somewhere in between rolling it, and sending it.
This is in stark contrast to the stuff we build on Berm Peak, which is committing and
not progressive at all.
This is why I’ve been relegated to a desk job at Berm Park.
We’re leaving it to the professionals.
A lot of people have asked if they can do volunteer work at Berm Park, and in fact we
will need volunteers for certain things.
But to build the actual trails, it wouldn’t be much help.
Peter’s machines have tilt couplers which allow the bucket to move just like your wrist.
It takes thousands of hours to truly master this, but the result is, two workers can do
the job of a hundred.
It’s mesmerizing, and once the machine is through, all that’s needed is one finisher
to get the tread ready for bikes.
As On the Fly takes shape, Peter and his crew continually sight down the trail, re-check
their work, and make adjustments.
As it rains, they get to correct problem areas in realtime, so there are no surprises when
Berm Park opens.
Part of that rechecking and adjusting process is testing the trail with their own bicycles.
How else could they know it’s built right?
This step up is pretty hard to clear right now because it needs time to harden.
But Peter and his crew can still tell what adjustments it needs.
As for this weird plunge that we’re kind of hopping over, it’s actually a landing
for a future progressive bridge.
These timbers are black locust, the same stuff we use for planks on Berm Peak.
It’s one of the most durable rot resistant hardwoods in the world, and there’s a whole
lot of it laying around here.
It’s perfect for building features because of its rot resistance, but you’ve gotta
admit it looks cool too.
The bridge extends from the downslope level with the ground, and then dips down to grade
with the trail.
Depending on your abilities you can use as much or as little of that down ramp as you
need, making it a great way to build your skills as a rider.
Progressively.
While On the Fly and this bridge were being built, the crew was also preparing a return
trail.
This is a mellow, rolling path that takes riders back up the hill for another lap.
It’s designed to be easy to climb, because all the runs at Berm Park are short.
The whole point is to keep doing laps.
But no matter what trail you ride, this will take you to the top, making it the most trafficked
trail in the whole park.
As we build longer runs down the hill, Elevated Trail Design will add more to the climbing
trail, but for now it starts at the bottom of the now completed Intermediate trail so
we can run laps on it, for—testing purposes.
Obviously I want to say good things about the park that I’m behind, but I think we
can let this footage speak for itself.
On the Fly is going to be a really popular trail and best of all, it only takes a minute
to get back to the top.
Short runs, short climbs, lots of party laps.
Berm Park is still a long way from being finished, but we’re still on track for a grand opening
in the Fall.
It’ll be free, you don’t need to make reservations, and riding it will be as easy
as grabbing any mountain bike, and rolling up!
If you have questions about Berm Park I urge you to watch the previous video where I explain
everything.
Thanks to Diamondback Bicycles for contributing to this amazing community asset, and thanks
to all of you for making this project possible in the first place.
As Berm Park is constructed you’ll find out who the other contributors are.
For now, please stay out of this active construction site and stay tuned for some really amazing
stuff to come.
We’re only getting started.
Thanks for riding with us today, and we’ll see you next time.