EMBA Spring 2026 Newsletter - AGM Recap, Bike Park Progress, and Gearing Up for Trail Season
- EMBA
- 27 minutes ago
- 6 min read
As we move into spring, momentum is building across EMBA. Between our Annual General Meeting, continued progress on the Edmonton Bike Park, and preparations for another strong trail season, 2026 is shaping up to be an exciting year for our trail community.
This newsletter highlights key updates from the AGM, progress on the Bike Park, and how members and volunteers can get involved as we head into peak riding season.
Annual General Meeting Recap
Thank you to everyone who attended the 2026 EMBA Annual General Meeting on March 14. The AGM is an important opportunity to connect with members, reflect on the past year, and look ahead at where we are going as an organization.
One of the highlights from this year’s AGM was welcoming new board members. Growing the board strengthens our ability to deliver on key initiatives, including trail maintenance, advocacy, infrastructure development, and improving the long-term sustainability of Edmonton’s natural surface trail network.
We also shared updates from the Adopt-a-Trail program, the Winter Grooming Pilot Project, and the Bike Park project, along with discussion around preparing for the upcoming trail season.
As EMBA continues to evolve, we would like to encourage more members and volunteers to step forward to support trail stewardship and development, not just alone within the mountain bike community, but all trail users.
Edmonton Bike Park Updates
Progress continues on the Edmonton Bike Park, and we are excited to see the project moving steadily forward toward completion.
The park is designed specifically as a mountain bike skills park, focused on helping riders build confidence and develop skills that transfer to trails throughout Edmonton’s river valley and beyond. The facility will provide progression opportunities for riders of all levels, from those new to mountain biking to experienced riders looking to refine technical skills.
This project represents many years of planning, collaboration, fundraising, design, and advocacy by volunteers and partners who believe Edmonton should have high-quality riding infrastructure that supports skill development and trail progression.
The Bike Park represents an important step toward a more complete trail ecosystem in Edmonton — supporting rider progression, reducing pressure on natural trails, and helping new riders build confidence before heading into the river valley.
1) Bike Park Volunteer Season Timeline
Volunteer opportunities will ramp up as site conditions improve and construction sequencing allows us to prepare safe and productive work areas.
Volunteer Days
We expect to run volunteer days on:
Thursdays + Saturdays!
Focusing volunteer efforts on consistent weekly days allows us to:
properly prepare work areas in advance
ensure volunteers have meaningful and productive tasks
improve safety and efficiency on site
coordinate tools, materials, and supervision
allow paid crews to focus on specialized construction work on non-volunteer days
create better overall volunteer experiences
April
Volunteer demand in April is expected to be limited as our team works around variable spring weather and ground conditions. During this period, much of the work will focus on staging materials, preparing work zones, and completing technical construction tasks that are best handled by paid crews.
May – July
Volunteer demand will be highest through May, June, and July as we move into peak build activity.
Additional weekdays will primarily be used for paid work, site preparation, staging, and organizing tasks so volunteer days can be as effective as possible.
As we move through the main build window, volunteer contributions will play an important role in helping bring the project across the finish line.
We encourage anyone interested in helping to watch for volunteer day announcements in the coming weeks.
2) Grand Opening Date Announced
We are excited to announce our planned Grand Opening date of July 25, 2026.
This milestone represents nearly a decade of work by volunteers, partners, designers, builders, and supporters who have helped move this project forward.
We look forward to welcoming riders of all abilities and celebrating a major step forward for mountain biking in Edmonton.
More details about the grand opening event will be shared as planning progresses.
Winter Trail Grooming Pilot Project
This winter, EMBA piloted a winter trail grooming program using a Snowdog grooming unit to improve trail accessibility and riding conditions in select areas.
The pilot helped us better understand how winter grooming can support safe, sustainable trail use while maintaining low environmental impact in sensitive natural areas.
Thank you to the volunteers who contributed time toward packing and maintaining groomed corridors throughout the winter, and to everyone who provided comments on the winter grooming feedback form.
The results of this pilot will help inform future decisions about winter trail management and potential expansion of grooming efforts.
Shoulder Season Trail Reminder
As we transition from winter fat biking to summer riding, many trails go through a fragile shoulder season period where freeze/thaw cycles and spring moisture leave trail surfaces soft and highly vulnerable to damage.
When trails are muddy, riding through them can quickly create deep ruts. Once rutted, trails can take many hours of volunteer effort to repair and often require repeated maintenance to fully restore.
This is one of the most important times of year to help protect the trails we all enjoy.
If trails are muddy:
choose paved pathways or gravel routes
explore urban rides through downtown or river valley adjacent neighbourhoods
connect together multi-use paths
check out local skills areas or pump tracks
go for a walk or hike
try something new (yes, even axe throwing, or bowling)
give trails time to dry and recover
Avoiding muddy trails helps preserve the work volunteers have invested over many years and allows maintenance crews to focus on improvements instead of repairs.
We strongly encourage everyone to stay off fragile singletrack when conditions are wet and muddy.
A little patience in spring helps ensure great riding all season long.
Preparing for the 2026 Trail Season
As snow begins to melt and trails begin to dry, attention shifts toward preparing for another strong season of trail maintenance and stewardship.
EMBA continues to work with volunteers, trail leads, and partners to identify priority maintenance needs and coordinate trail work throughout the river valley.
The Adopt-a-Trail program remains one of the most important ways our trail network is maintained. Volunteer leads play a key role in ensuring trails remain safe, sustainable, and enjoyable for all users.
We are also continuing to improve coordination tools and workflows to better support volunteers and streamline communication around trail work.
As construction continues and trail season ramps up, this is one of the best opportunities yet to get involved and leave a lasting mark on Edmonton’s trail network. If you are interested in becoming involved as a trail lead or volunteer, we would love to hear from you.
Stewardship Reminder – Unauthorized Trail Building
We need to be very clear about something important.
Unauthorized trail building or modifications put existing trails, future trail opportunities, and projects like the Edmonton Mountain Bike Skills Park at risk.
EMBA has worked for many years to build trust with the City and other partners so that natural surface trails can be maintained, improved, and expanded responsibly. That trust is critical to everything we do.
Unauthorized trail construction can:
undermine agreements with land managers
create environmental concerns
increase liability risks
delay or jeopardize current projects
reduce confidence in the riding community as responsible partners
negatively impact future trail approvals
It also risks our position in the upcoming City of Edmonton River Valley Trail Strategy planning process, which is now funded and expected to include key stakeholder groups like EMBA early in the process.
Having a strong voice at the table is critical to ensuring natural surface trails and singletrack are considered appropriately as part of Edmonton’s broader trail network.
Rogue trail work makes that advocacy more difficult and puts future trail opportunities at risk. We all want more and better trails. The best way to achieve that is by working together through approved processes and coordinated volunteer efforts.
If you want to help build or improve trails, please connect with EMBA and participate in organized trail days.
Protecting what we have today helps ensure we can build more tomorrow.
Thank You to Our Community
EMBA exists because of the dedication of volunteers, members, donors, and partners who believe in improving access to natural surface trails in Edmonton.
Whether you support EMBA through membership, trail work, advocacy, or community engagement, your contribution helps strengthen the trail network for everyone.
We look forward to another great season of riding, building, and connecting with the trail community.
Connect for More
Visit the Edmonton Bike Park Website and Follow the progress of Edmonton’s first mountain bike skills park.
Follow the #EdmBikeParkBuild Progress and volunteer opportunities on Instagram or Facebook.
Get Involved and Support EMBA and the Bike Park
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