Bike
MTB
The Best Bike Park in Canada: Coast Gravity Park
If you visit one bike park in 2016, make it Coast Gravity Park — it's open year-round.
Jump After Jump After Jump: Matty Miles
© Dylan Dunkerton
"Coast Gravity Park is a true rider's bike park — built by riders, for the riders, without any fluff," says Red Bull Joyride three-time champion Brandon Semenuk.
With an endorsement from a living legend like Semenuk, we needed to find out why this remote, private bike park off Canada's west coast, and accesssible only by ferry or float plane, is held in such high regard by the many international pro riders who visit each year.
In our new "Best Bike Parks" series, we visit Coast Gravity Park to see if it really is the best bike park terrain and experience in all of Canada — yes, the same country that is home to the legendary Whistler Bike Park. But unlike Whistler, CGP never closes — you can access trails carved through pristine low-elevation, ocean-front forest all year-round (like Matty Miles above).
Coast Gravity Park Tuck No Hander: Paul Genovese
© Dylan Dunkerton
Less riders; more airtime
Coast Gravity Park limits the amount of riders on their 12 trails each day, so you're guaranteed to enjoy the experience rather than standing in lineups and dodging riders of varied skill levels typically found at public bike parks.
Scenic Coast Gravity Park: Sechelt Inlet
© Dylan Dunkerton
It's beautiful
Getting to Coast Gravity Park requires an incredibly beautiful ferry ride from West Vancouver — or a float plane, if you're so inclined. Once you get there, the views don't stop, including the emerald green vistas of the park itself.
2 min
POV: Semenuk Rips Jump Line at Coast Gravity Park
Follow Brandon down a high-speed trail of tall berms with tricky rollers, hips, and gaps.
Watch: POV ride behind Brandon Semenuk on CGP's Red Dragon jump trail in the video above.
Coast Gravity Park Founders
© Dylan Dunkerton
The right heritage
Coast Gravity Park Perfect Berms: Coastal Cruise
© Dylan Dunkerton
Perfect berms
Coast Gravity Park is full of them; around every corner, another corner sculpted to perfection, full of poetry and classic, coastal hero dirt. This is what heaven looks like to the average bike park rider.
Coast Gravity Park Aggy Backflip
© Dylan Dunkerton
(Famous) people watching
It's not rare to catch a glimpse of the world's best freeriders and racers at CGP. Whistler, Squamish, the North Shore and Vancouver Island are all within easy striking distance, ensuring Canada's best mountain bikers are frequenting Coast Gravity Park regularly. Here, Kamloops wild child Graham Agassiz throws his trademark corked flip while Ontario's golden boy Brett Rheeder watches.
Uniquely Coastal
© Dylan Dunkerton
It's different
No chairlifts, no corporate vibe and few rules, Coast Gravity Park rides a fine balance between quality and rootsy authenticity. The trails are world class but the transportation is still down to earth, literally. Visit CGP for the very fact that no one else is doing it like these guys, and no one ever could.
Waiting in Style: Evan "Intern" Young
© Dylan Dunkerton
The best base area ever
Coast Gravity Park boasts a base area that doubles as a slopestyle training facility. Beat your buddies down the trail? No problem. Just take the time to work on your sweet flatties until you can do them like Evan "Intern" Young.
When The Intern Graduates
© Dylan Dunkerton
The man behind the shovel
Evan "Inty" Young first rose to prominence after seving under Brandon Semenuk's reign in the "Life Behind Bars" video series. He's since graduated and become an integral fixture of the trail crew at CGP. Remember, who builds your trails is more important than who rides them.
Coast Gravity Park Brendan Howey Whip in Trees
© Dylan Dunkerton
Shhh, I'm hunting whips
Sechelt, B.C., is a far cry from the craziness of most resort towns. From the quiet seaside town to the solitude of CGP's trails, a trip here is a low-key affair. Brendan Howey finds some silence in the trees.
Machine Built. Hand Crafted.
© Dylan Dunkerton
Machine built. Handcrafted.
The passionate trail crew at CGP takes huge pride in their work and doesn't mind putting in a night shift or two if it means better riding for you. Plus, less tires on the trails means less ruts. Giddy up.
Bottom line: The trails at Coast Gravity Park are perfect. The locale is goregous. The vibe is low key. The right people built it. And it's open year-round — welcome to heaven.
