MUKILTEO — A new dirt bike park lets riders have mounds of fun.
A ribbon-cutting was held Saturday at the Mukilteo Bike Park on city property at 76th Street SW and 44th Avenue W, across the path from the community garden.
The pump track and jump lines are for single-speed bikes.
“In the bicycling genre, these bikes tend to be BMX bikes and what is called the dirt jump-bike,” said Tony Trofimczuk, director of the city’s Recreation and Cultural Services. “This isn’t the place to take your 10-speed or your 21-speed or racing bike.”
A pair of bikers ride around the perimeter of the new Mukilteo Bike Park on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in Mukilteo, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
The park is for all ages. Adults, teens, tweens, tykes on Strider balance bikes. No scooters, skateboards, e-bikes or remote control cars.
“The little ones, the 3-, 4-, 5-year-olds, are going to be learning some fundamental biking skills that will transfer away from this park onto the sidewalks and streets,” Trofimczuk said.
A sign with an illustration shows people how to “pump” on the new Mukilteo Bike Park on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in Mukilteo, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
The pump track is about 6,000 square feet, with a series of turns and berms.
“You use your upper body to pump to create that forward motion,” he said.
The track has three jump lines, green, blue, and black, ranging from 50 to 100 yards and based on difficulty.
“These are for people working on their aerial acrobatic skills, to be able to do reverse flips, forward flips and lots of different aerial tricks,” Trofimczuk said.
Bike helmets are required. Use of protective equipment on other body parts is strongly recommended.
The idea for the park started years ago with a group of volunteers who raised over $16,000. In 2022, the City Council approved $20,000 of ARPA funds for the project. Birch Equipment Rental & Sales gave the city a break in fees and contractors donated 300 cubic yards of dirt. Volunteers spent over 2,000 hours constructing the course.
Matt Zambon, a volunteer with Japanese Gulch trail builders, works on the new Mukilteo Bike Park on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in Mukilteo, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Marysville opened a $270,000 asphalt pump track in November. It was proposed in 2020 by Landon Oliphant, who was 7 when he asked the parks board to build a track. That pump track is at Jennings Nature Park.
Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @reporterbrown.
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