Skoolz Out! Skoolz Out! Who Says College Can't be Fun

Check out the whole trail from top to bottom.
The students of Capilano College's Mountain Bike Operations Certificate program pose during the initial design of the new Skoolz Out trail.
The new trail is located in the famed Sprockids Park in Gibsons, BC. It is designed for a broad range of skill levels.
One of the features on the new trail is a rock garden, which acts as a great teaching tool for both trail construction and riding instruction.
The final feature on the Skoolz Out trail is an 8 foot high wall. Here, Tim, one of the students, show how it's ridden.

At the end of April, when most college students were cramming for exams, the students of Capilano College's Mountain Bike Operations Certificate Program were busy finishing their new trail. Appropriately named "Skoolz Out", the trail was the final project required to graduate from the program's Trail and Park Design courses.

With a mandate from the local Sprockids program, the new trail was designed and constructed to be a learning trail. The main flow is open and flowing, with 7 optional Technical Trail Features (TTFs) to the sides. Each of the TTF's was created as a progression so that riders of all levels could enjoy them. The completed trail was unveiled during an event planned by the students, entitled "Trail Unveil", where over 150 riders and mountain bike industry members came out to ride the final product.

Capilano College is the first college to offer a Mountain Bike Operations Certificate program. In addition to Trail and Park Design, the students took courses in Risk Management, Tourism, Event Planning, Communications, First Aid, and Mountain Bike Guiding. IMBA Canada teamed up with the college to lend support and teach the Trail and Park Design courses.

Recent graduates from the program are now working across Canada. Some are building trails in places like Rossland, BC and Calgary, AB; two have landed jobs working for Norco Performance Bikes; and yet others are working as guides in Whistler or patrollers at Silver Star.

The first year of the program was a great success, with registrations already rolling in for the upcoming school year. This is just another example of how Canadian mountain bikers and IMBA Canada are making Canada the most amazing place to ride a bike.