Legacy Bike Park is a relatively new bike park (just about a year old), located in beautiful Lakeside, Montana. This park is a unique, creative, and constantly evolving riding destination. There is truly something special about LBP, which is apparent upon arrival. Everyone is there to ride mountain bikes: this is not a typical bike park at a ski resort, offering other attractions and catering to multiple audiences seeking potentially non-MTB experiences. Legacy is built by riders, for riders, period. Here are a few reasons to visit this must-ride gem:

Brake bumps- Legacy doesn’t have these. Yep, that sounds crazy, I know. A downhill bike park without brake bumps? Thanks to its young age, skilled trail builders, and weather patterns, LBP has nothing but smooth trails. Will this change after extended periods of heavy use and dry weather? Possibly, but I doubt it. LBP caps its daily numbers to preserve trail quality. The park also regularly receives consistent season-long precipitation, which helps keep their hero dirt tacky and buffed out. Further, the trails are all laid out intentionally to enhance natural trail-speed riding rhythms and mitigate excessive braking.

Loam- As previously mentioned, LBP is not even a year old (at the time of writing this feature). Their technical singletrack trails are all still loamy. This will change with use and time, but it is currently a loam-filled fiesta out there. Finding find fresh loam in a public downhill bike park is definitely something to write home about.

Forty- looking for large jumps? Yep, Legacy has plenty of those. Forty is the flagship jump trail, composed of forty consecutive jumps laid out top to bottom. These jumps range in size, from about 20-50 feet long. This isn’t a standard, cookie cutter jump trail. Expect massive step ups, step downs, shark fins, doubles, drifters, hips, drops, and much more. Look before you leap.

Trail diversity- just about every trail at LBP can be enjoyed by a wide range of mountain bike abilities. The green trails are full of rollers and side hits, Bluetiful can be interpreted as a full-on gap/huck track, and most of the large jump lines have smaller sides to work your way up. Families shredding together is a very common sight.

Legacy also has some big plans for the future, including linking up some pretty epic XC/enduro trails on the west side of Flathead Lake. Stay tuned to their site and social media channels for updates. The inaugural Legacy Liftoff is also coming up at the end of September (9/23-24), which is yet another reason to get up there. Get ready for endless fun on amazing trails with like-minded friends.

The future of Legacy is very bright. They are currently building multiple pump tracks, dirt jump zones, skills zones, an airbag/mulch jump setup, more trails, more camping, more amenities, and a whole lot more that I don’t yet know about. Their season runs from May-as long as possible, so there is plenty of time to visit. The Flathead Lake area offers an abundance of year-round recreation, dining, lodging, and other attractions. For more info, visit www.legacybikepark.com.