Free ride

By Mark Morical
The Bulletin
October 19. 2007

Post Canyon near Hood River offers a variety of unique trail features for mountain bikers

HOOD RIVER - Scott Cyphers launched his mountain bike off the steep, wooden ramp, flying high into the air and rotating backward into the mist.

He came down smoothly on the dirt landing, letting out a triumphant shout as onlookers' jaws - including mine - dropped to the ground.

It was like something out of the X Games. But instead of cheering in Los Angeles with thousands of fans, we were deep in the woods west of Hood River, just a handful of mountain bikers on a system of trails known as Post Canyon.

Whatever your riding style, Post Canyon has the trail for it, whether you're the hard-core back-flipping type like Cyphers, or just looking to ride some smooth and flowing cross-country trails.

One thing Post Canyon has no shortage of is wood. Wooden structures of many types have been built throughout these trails, which include 80 miles of singletrack and 3,000 feet of elevation loss - or gain, if you really want to ride uphill.

Most of the wood features were built to accommodate the downhill or free-ride mountain biker. There are huge ramps and landings (influenced by the motorcycle sport of freestyle motocross) like the one off which Cyphers launched, bridges that drop off suddenly, curvy structures, seesaws, and anything else imaginable that is built from wood and ridable on a bike.

"Anything you could think of, it's up here," Cyphers said.

Most of the structures (known as "technical trail features") are elevated, and riders can expect pretty bad wipeouts if they fall.

I cruised along a more intermediate section called "8 Track," choosing to ride around most of the man-made features, though they all looked intriguing. When I finally did fly off a five-foot drop, I paid the price, flipping over my front wheel and landing face first in the mud, my bike landing on top of me.

"When you work your way up and remain in your comfort zone, you're fine," said Jake Felt, an employee at Mountain View Cycles in Hood River who has built many of the features in Post Canyon. "You don't want to push it too far too quick. You want to get good at crashing. Once you're comfortable crashing, you know you can throw the bike and be OK. It gives you peace of mind."

Felt said he and other free-ride enthusiasts have been building technical trail features in Post Canyon for the last seven years, with permission from the Hood River County Forestry Department. He said the area will likely one day be adopted by the state as a designated mountain-biking area.

Despite the lack of formal recognition, Post Canyon is hardly unfamiliar to mountain bikers. Riders come from all over to take on the unique trails.

"There's a lot of out-of-towners," Felt said. "People from Canada, New England, Germany. People from all over the world have heard of the free-riding here."

And this time of year might be the best time to ride Post Canyon, he said. The trails dry up in the summer, leaving marbles of minerals that Felt described as "ball bearings on hard pack." In the winter, it's too wet and muddy.

"Right now it's perfect, before it gets really wet," Felt said. "Sometimes it stays good now through January. It's a pretty temperate climate here."

Our Post Canyon adventure began with an auto shuttle to the top of the trail system. Felt and Cyphers, who both live in nearby The Dalles, wasted little time hitting the trail after we parked the cars.

Felt, 32, flew off a five-foot wood ramp, soaring 10 feet through the air onto a wooden downhill ramp, then launched off a 10-foot rock drop, whipping his bike out to the side in midair.

Cyphers, 18, and Adam Johnson, 25, of Hood River, followed suit.

I skipped the scary stuff and cruised downhill amid the evergreen trees and the spectacular red and gold colors of fall. Through a gap in the trees I could see the picturesque orchards of Hood River Valley below.

We rode down to a section free-riders call simply "the jump line," which includes four jumps with wooden ramps as high as seven feet, and massive dirt landings. This was where Cyphers landed his back flip four times.

"I try not to think about it too much, and just go for it," Cyphers said. "I've been biking my whole life. Once you get it down once, you got it.

"I'll call my dad and tell him I'm still alive," he added, reaching for his cell phone after his final flip.

All the riders performed a variety of tricks, launching off the high ramps and sailing more than 20 feet into the air before coming down safely onto the downhill landings.

"You start on the little stuff and just build up," Johnson said.

"Once you get comfortable hitting a gap, something like this," he said, pointing to a huge ramp, "is just more speed - more speed and more guts."

From the jump line, we cruised downhill through a section of smooth trails known as Seven Streams. Along the way we encountered more technical wood features. They never seemed to end, sometimes popping up out of nowhere.

"The mental factor is hard sometimes, but most stuff has a ride around," Johnson said. "Some of (the trail features) are kind of surprising. You come around a corner, and, well, here's a drop."

Rain soon began to fall, but the thick canopy above kept us mostly dry. The lower portions of Post Canyon do not include as many technical features, just exciting, rolling singletrack on wet, tacky dirt. The trails are situated along streams and across several small bridges.

Before long, we had reached the trailhead at the bottom of Post Canyon, having ridden just a small portion of the extensive network of trails.

"There's a dozen free-ride trails, and miles and miles of downhill singletrack," Felt said. "It was exciting trail even before we built the free-ride stuff. It's 3,000 vertical feet we get to drop, and a good mix of big-mountain-type stuff."

They're the kind of trails that attract mountain bikers from Central Oregon, who can't find Post Canyon-type riding on the High Desert.

But free-ride areas are currently in the works west of Bend, including an area called The Lair, which will feature a variety of dirt jump runs. The Central Oregon Trail Alliance (COTA) is heading up the project, and Kent Howes, president of COTA, said the organization is looking to appeal to the Post Canyon-type rider.

"It's similar in terms of the style of riding, but it's different in that we'll stay away from wooden structures," Howes said of the planned local free-ride area. "They're hard to build and even harder to maintain."

COTA members face stricter rules because they must build their trails on Deschutes National Forest land, rather than county land, like Post Canyon. But Howes is not complaining.

"Considering what we're getting on National Forest Service land, it's a huge advance from what has been there before," Howes said.

And if it's not enough, Central Oregon riders can make the trip to Post Canyon to work on their back flips - or just enjoy the distinctive trails that attract bikers from around the world.

IF YOU GO

To get to Post Canyon from downtown Hood River, go west on Oak Street until it merges with West Cascade Street andcontinue on West Cascade about two miles to Country Club Road. Take a left at Country Club Road, and after 1 1/2 miles, take a right on Post Canyon Road. Drive until the road becomes gravel and park at the trailhead.
Post Canyon's trails include 80 miles of singletrack and 3,000 feet of elevation gain or loss. Man-made wooden technical trail features have been built throughout the trail system, but most features can be ridden around if they are too advanced.
To get to Post Canyon from downtown Hood River, go west on Oak Street until it merges with West Cascade Street and continue on West Cascade about two miles to Country Club Road. Take a left at Country Club Road, and after 1 1/2 miles, take a right on Post Canyon Road. Drive until the road becomes gravel and park at the trailhead.
Post Canyon's trails include 80 miles of singletrack and 3,000 feet of elevation gain or loss. Man-made wooden technical trail features have been built throughout the trail system, but most features can be ridden around if they are too advanced.

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	Free ride By Mark Morical The Bulletin October 19. 2007 Post Canyon near Hood River offers a variety of unique trail features for mountain bikers HOOD RIVER - Scott Cyphers launched his mountain bike off the steep, wooden ramp, flying high into the air and rotating backward into the mist. He came down smoothly on the dirt landing, letting out a triumphant shout as onlookers' jaws - including mine - dropped to the ground. It was like something out of the X Games. But instead of cheering in Los Angeles with thousands of fans, we were deep in the woods west of Hood River, just a handful of mountain bikers on a system of trails known as Post Canyon. Whatever your riding style, Post Canyon has the trail for it, whether you're the hard-core back-flipping type like Cyphers, or just looking to ride some smooth and flowing cross-country trails. One thing Post Canyon has no shortage of is wood. Wooden structures of many types have been built throughout these trails, which include 80 miles of singletrack and 3,000 feet of elevation loss - or gain, if you really want to ride uphill. Most of the wood features were built to accommodate the downhill or free-ride mountain biker. There are huge ramps and landings (influenced by the motorcycle sport of freestyle motocross) like the one off which Cyphers launched, bridges that drop off suddenly, curvy structures, seesaws, and anything else imaginable that is built from wood and ridable on a bike. "Anything you could think of, it's up here," Cyphers said. Most of the structures (known as "technical trail features") are elevated, and riders can expect pretty bad wipeouts if they fall. I cruised along a more intermediate section called "8 Track," choosing to ride around most of the man-made features, though they all looked intriguing. When I finally did fly off a five-foot drop, I paid the price, flipping over my front wheel and landing face first in the mud, my bike landing on top of me. "When you work your way up and remain in your comfort zone, you're fine," said Jake Felt, an employee at Mountain View Cycles in Hood River who has built many of the features in Post Canyon. "You don't want to push it too far too quick. You want to get good at crashing. Once you're comfortable crashing, you know you can throw the bike and be OK. It gives you peace of mind." Felt said he and other free-ride enthusiasts have been building technical trail features in Post Canyon for the last seven years, with permission from the Hood River County Forestry Department. He said the area will likely one day be adopted by the state as a designated mountain-biking area. Despite the lack of formal recognition, Post Canyon is hardly unfamiliar to mountain bikers. Riders come from all over to take on the unique trails. "There's a lot of out-of-towners," Felt said. "People from Canada, New England, Germany. People from all over the world have heard of the free-riding here." And this time of year might be the best time to ride Post Canyon, he said. The trails dry up in the summer, leaving marbles of minerals that Felt described as "ball bearings on hard pack." In the winter, it's too wet and muddy. "Right now it's perfect, before it gets really wet," Felt said. "Sometimes it stays good now through January. It's a pretty temperate climate here." Our Post Canyon adventure began with an auto shuttle to the top of the trail system. Felt and Cyphers, who both live in nearby The Dalles, wasted little time hitting the trail after we parked the cars. Felt, 32, flew off a five-foot wood ramp, soaring 10 feet through the air onto a wooden downhill ramp, then launched off a 10-foot rock drop, whipping his bike out to the side in midair. Cyphers, 18, and Adam Johnson, 25, of Hood River, followed suit. I skipped the scary stuff and cruised downhill amid the evergreen trees and the spectacular red and gold colors of fall. Through a gap in the trees I could see the picturesque orchards of Hood River Valley below. We rode down to a section free-riders call simply "the jump line," which includes four jumps with wooden ramps as high as seven feet, and massive dirt landings. This was where Cyphers landed his back flip four times. "I try not to think about it too much, and just go for it," Cyphers said. "I've been biking my whole life. Once you get it down once, you got it. "I'll call my dad and tell him I'm still alive," he added, reaching for his cell phone after his final flip. All the riders performed a variety of tricks, launching off the high ramps and sailing more than 20 feet into the air before coming down safely onto the downhill landings. "You start on the little stuff and just build up," Johnson said. "Once you get comfortable hitting a gap, something like this," he said, pointing to a huge ramp, "is just more speed - more speed and more guts." From the jump line, we cruised downhill through a section of smooth trails known as Seven Streams. Along the way we encountered more technical wood features. They never seemed to end, sometimes popping up out of nowhere. "The mental factor is hard sometimes, but most stuff has a ride around," Johnson said. "Some of (the trail features) are kind of surprising. You come around a corner, and, well, here's a drop." Rain soon began to fall, but the thick canopy above kept us mostly dry. The lower portions of Post Canyon do not include as many technical features, just exciting, rolling singletrack on wet, tacky dirt. The trails are situated along streams and across several small bridges. Before long, we had reached the trailhead at the bottom of Post Canyon, having ridden just a small portion of the extensive network of trails. "There's a dozen free-ride trails, and miles and miles of downhill singletrack," Felt said. "It was exciting trail even before we built the free-ride stuff. It's 3,000 vertical feet we get to drop, and a good mix of big-mountain-type stuff." They're the kind of trails that attract mountain bikers from Central Oregon, who can't find Post Canyon-type riding on the High Desert. But free-ride areas are currently in the works west of Bend, including an area called The Lair, which will feature a variety of dirt jump runs. The Central Oregon Trail Alliance (COTA) is heading up the project, and Kent Howes, president of COTA, said the organization is looking to appeal to the Post Canyon-type rider. "It's similar in terms of the style of riding, but it's different in that we'll stay away from wooden structures," Howes said of the planned local free-ride area. "They're hard to build and even harder to maintain." COTA members face stricter rules because they must build their trails on Deschutes National Forest land, rather than county land, like Post Canyon. But Howes is not complaining. "Considering what we're getting on National Forest Service land, it's a huge advance from what has been there before," Howes said. And if it's not enough, Central Oregon riders can make the trip to Post Canyon to work on their back flips - or just enjoy the distinctive trails that attract bikers from around the world. IF YOU GO To get to Post Canyon from downtown Hood River, go west on Oak Street until it merges with West Cascade Street andcontinue on West Cascade about two miles to Country Club Road. Take a left at Country Club Road, and after 1 1/2 miles, take a right on Post Canyon Road. Drive until the road becomes gravel and park at the trailhead. Post Canyon's trails include 80 miles of singletrack and 3,000 feet of elevation gain or loss. Man-made wooden technical trail features have been built throughout the trail system, but most features can be ridden around if they are too advanced. To get to Post Canyon from downtown Hood River, go west on Oak Street until it merges with West Cascade Street and continue on West Cascade about two miles to Country Club Road. Take a left at Country Club Road, and after 1 1/2 miles, take a right on Post Canyon Road. Drive until the road becomes gravel and park at the trailhead. Post Canyon's trails include 80 miles of singletrack and 3,000 feet of elevation gain or loss. Man-made wooden technical trail features have been built throughout the trail system, but most features can be ridden around if they are too advanced.


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