Bringing the Trail to Town

Diamond View Skills Bike Park Brings Together Bike Enthusiasts of All Levels

Story and photos by Craig Reed

High banked curves that lead into jumps. Short straights embedded with rock obstacles with declines and inclines, adding to the challenge.

Those are some of the features of the recently completed Diamond View Skills Bike Park just off Commercial Street in Oakridge.

“There are a lot of features in the park that you would encounter on trails in the Oakridge area,” Jason Nehmer says. “Whether beginner, intermediate, or expert, people can develop their skills at the park.”

The Oakridge logo promotes the community as the Mountain Biking Capital of the Northwest. With close access to about 300 miles of trails in the Cascade Mountains, Oakridge is considered a gold-level mountain biking destination. The trails draw thousands of mountain bikers annually.

Until now, there was no skills park to help riders prep themselves for the forested trails.

Jason and Tom Lyons, avid mountain bike riders, led the effort to eliminate that deficiency. The Oakridge residents have ridden in other mountain bike areas with skills parks. It was easy for them to see Oakridge needed a park to enhance the riding experience. A park in the city would also benefit the community, giving visiting bikers a reason to stop in town rather than just driving through and stopping at a trailhead.

“All the features there help build the skills needed to ride and enjoy the trails in the area,” Tom says.

Jason, a member of the city’s Parks and Community Services Committee, brought up the idea in 2023. With support from the city, a search for a location got underway.

A site in the Oakridge industrial park was considered, but when the ground was tested, it was not solid enough for a track. The search eventually ended at Diamond View Park, where a decade-old dirt track had been abandoned and was overgrown with weeds.

Tom created the initial design and then expanded on it to give the park 3 levels to accommodate the different skills of riders. Work began in late April and wrapped up in August.

“It’s a world-class skills park,” Jason says. Money to pay for the work was raised from several sources: the city of Oakridge, Travel Lane County, several Lane County businesses, rural grants, Oakridge Trails Alliance, and Disciples of Dirt of Eugene.

“The park fills a huge need in the community and enhances the mountain bike destination,” Tom says. “It’ll bring tourism into town.”

Tom and Jason work at Willamette Mountain Mercantile in Oakridge, a business that focuses on mountain biking and outdoor equipment, and is known as the area’s premier bike shop. The employees are frequently asked by bikers about jumps in the area since the forest trails are “classic, smooth flowing flat tracks,” Tom says.

“We now have jumps in Oakridge,” he says.

Tom explains that building the park took some extra time.

“By building it right the first time, we don’t have to rebuild it and don’t have to tweak it later,” he says.

He says the materials used and the finishing process allow the park to drain and dry out quickly when it rains or snows. The cap material on the track surface will prevent weed growth.

“It’s above and beyond what we thought it would be,” Jason says, adding that Tom deserves credit for the design and leading the work effort. “It’s taken a while, but it’s a super park that will not only benefit the community but will allow us to host bike events.”

Part of the park was completed in time to host a Mountain Bike Oregon Junior Skills Clinic in June. The clinic attracted 20 young riders and their coaches.

“The kids loved it,” Tom says. “We’re already planning to host a clinic next year.”

The park is open to the public daily. The process to establish a nonprofit club is now underway. Tom says that the club will host clinics and fundraisers, and help with park maintenance and expansion.

“To do this project in Oakridge, we’ve relied on community and small-town relationships and support,” Tom says. “I want to thank everyone who has supported the vision and the project.”