My new favorite place. Desert Trails
Bike Park. Pump track, skills area, three flow/jump lines – even a
toddler pump track. This is what cities need – kids on bikes.
Opening weekend the park was packed. Not a single parking space
available. Several weeks later, it's Wednesday afternoon around 4PM.
Only a few cars are in the parking lot. A dad is teaching his son how
to ride a bike, a few guys are practicing on the expert line. My
heart sank a little. “Please don't let this place die”, I thought
to myself.
I rode a few warm up laps on the
beginner trail before heading up to the intermediate line. A few more
cars pull into the park. My husband, who just finished running a few
laps of the multi-use trail that runs around the park, gets some
video of me practicing. I'm on the intermediate start hill, watching
a typical breathtaking Arizona sunset when I notice.
Moms are shouting “pedal, pedal!”
to their toddlers in the skills area; a dad, “hit the brakes –
harder!”. The pump track is bustling with 6-10 year olds falling and
getting back up. A child no older than 5 is bragging to a group of
adults about a crazy crash he had last week. Pre-teens are riding in
from the surrounding neighborhoods. It's Wednesday afternoon around
5:45PM and the parking lot is jammed. This is what cities need –
kids on bikes.
