Compound Interest

After spending a few weeks in Whistler riding my new Specialized Demo 8, I was highly anticipating a return to one of my riding zones on Vancouver Island. This particular spot was built for a mid travel freeride bike in mind, but I find the Demo 8 feels just as agile as most shorter travel bikes, so I couldn’t wait to shred it here! Not much digging was needed when Rupert Walker and I arrived, allowing us to get straight to it and start shooting photos. Unfortunately our photo session was cut shorter than expected, but the cloudy skies and cool weather helped us have a productive Thursday morning.

  This blind hip step-down is still scary every time, the steep run in and large lip make it a very technical hit.  Miscalculating your speed could lead to major consequence.

  After a few hits I was feeling comfortable boosting this thing again. When first building in this zone I had the vision of Kamloops style booters through a forest of cedar and ferns, I think it was well accomplished here.

  Speed gaps are one of my favorite things to build, this one leads into a step-up hip jump. It’s fast, flowy, and easily the most fun line I have ever built. The trail feels like it disappears under you and you’re suddenly floating before setting up for the next jump.

  Moto-whipping the hip step-up. Following this jump is a series of fast loamy turns, it was a treat to find they had remained untouched since my last ride there 4 months ago.

  Hiking back to the very top for another run.

After a hectic winter of digging in this zone, the feeling of visiting just to ride is very rewarding and gets me recharged for the trail building season that’s creeping up on us. I hope these photos inspire more people to go out there, pick up a shovel, and create their own fun. Big thanks to Rupert Walker for coming out with me and supplying the images.

You may recognize Mark’s man sized jumps from his Sweat Equity edit earlier this year. He’s looking quite comfortable on the new Demo… stoked to have you on board, Mark!