Located roughly 20 minutes south of Edmonton, the town of Devon, AB, may not be the first destination that comes to mind when you think about cycling.
However, their recent city re-branding "Bike Town," is very quickly changing that.
The new initiative, launched in October of 2010, sets Devon apart from local towns and municipalities by advocating for cycling and active transportation, and engaging and supporting members of the community.
Though the town has only 6,500 residents, their cycling infrastructure rivals much larger cities. In addition to a large network of paved pathways and natural surface doubletrack trails, Devon has a brand-new community bike park, complete with skills park, progressive dirt jump lines, and large pump track (with plans to build flow trails and other gravity-assisted features in the coming years).
Funded partially by the city, the bike park was championed by kids from Riverview Middle School’s Mountain Bike Club, who penned – and won – a $25,000 grant from the Kraft Celebration Tour last summer.
The context for our visit to Bike Town was to be the catalyst for the development of a singletrack network alongside the Town’s extensive elevation along the riverside. Our Trail Building Schools taught both town and municipal staff along with local advocates and members of the Devon Bicycle Association the foundations of trail design, construction, and maintenance.
As a result of the support from city staff and Council, and the motivation of the tight-knit bike club, Devon is becoming a fantastic cycling destination, and a great place to live and raise an active family. The successes in Devon showcase the potential for partnerships within communities to provide awesome trails experiences.
Thanks very much to Janet Guthrie, with the city of Devon, and Kevin Haugjord, president of the bike club, for hosting a great visit! If you stop by Devon, make sure to stop in at Grounded, a great little coffee and cake shop which supports the cycling movement in town!
Photos from the Visit:
Don’t look too closely at the photos, our camera was malfunctioning!