I first pitched the idea of a pump track in Ashland back in 2017. At the time, mountain biking was on the rise, but what has occurred over the last eight years both nationally and locally should be highlighted:

• Our local sixth-through-12th-grade team has 40 riders, our biggest team in eight seasons of existence. We’re also an official Ashland High School club sport.
• Ashland DEVO (local youth mountain bike nonprofit) just recorded its highest-ever sign-up day with 122 riders from kindergarten to 12th grade, including 15 girls in our rapidly growing kindergarten-through-third-grade all-girls program.
• Ashland DEVO youth volunteered 279 hours in 2024-25, 266 in 2023-24, and 286 in 2022-23 — much of that time on Ashland Parks & Recreation land and city trails. 
• Statewide, eight pump tracks have been built in Oregon since 2017, not including one in Klamath Falls slated to be completed by 2027. Another six have been built north in Washington, along with one in Crescent City, and one in Redding.
• Worldwide, Velosolutions built 124 pump tracks in 2024, a record for the company.

I have had the opportunity to be involved with this project on every step, and every detail including sitting on several citizen committees. The amount of time and painstakingly detailed work performed by APR staff, commissioners and citizens cannot be overstated. From public open houses to letters to the editor, to surveys and speaking up at meetings, the Ashland Parks and Recreation Commission has carefully and adequately vetted this project in a way that makes me proud to be a part of it. 

I speak for many, many citizens and families — most of whom don’t have the time to attend meetings and write letters — when I say the community is excited and ready to welcome this new amenity in Ashland! 

Casey Botts

Ashland

Casey Botts is executive director of Ashland DEVO, which supports youth mountain biking.