Trail Ninjas Unleashed: The 2025 Work Blitz You Didn’t See Coming

The season’s barely started, and a stealth army of riders and runners has already left its mark all over Edmonton’s single‑track.

⏱️ Quick Ninja Stats

(Jan 1 → May 27, 2025)

• Silent strike missions

  25 dig days

• Trail ninjas deployed

  48 volunteers

• Time on target

  33.6 hrs of on‑site work

• Total shadow‑hours

  76.6 volunteer hrs

• Trails liberated

  17 distinct lines

⚔️ Ninja Tactics – The Rapid‑Response Pilot

Our new Pre‑Approved Trail‑Work Program lets certified AAT Leads move like shadows—cutting deadfall, trimming sight‑lines, and knicking puddles within hours of a problem.

• 18 of 25 operations so far have used this cloak‑and‑dagger clearance.

• Hazards on Higher Edukation, Organ Donor, GO Trail, and more? Gone before dawn.

• If results keep rolling, we’ll expand the squad in 2026—imagine instant‑response coverage valley‑wide.

🛡️ EMP Blast Bridge: The Long‑Overdue Boss Fight

Ten‑plus winters left the old bridge on EMP Blast creaking like a movie trap door. Enter the elite squad:

May 9 Recon & Approval

EMBA, Do North trail‑runners, and City staff huddled on‑site. Plan approved on the spot—no bureaucratic katana required.

May 27 One‑Day Assault Volunteers ripped out rotten joists, dropped fresh pressure‑treated beams, bolted on grippy decking, and reshaped 80 % of the soupy climb—all before sunset.

Allies & Loot

• Materials: bankrolled by Do North.

• Permits: fast‑tracked by the City.

• Labour: your fellow trail ninjas.

Why it’s huge: The City now sees great single‑track as a stealthy solution to active‑transport goals, environmental protection, and tourism. Expect more ninja‑speed approvals ahead.

📍 Trails the Ninjas Have Already Tuned‑Up in 2025

• Upper Corkscrew

• Lower Corkscrew

• Higher Edukation

• Organ Donor

• Hustler

• Kessel Run

• GO Trail

• The Farmer’s Daughter

• Kinnaird Killer

• Dawson Park 2

• Risky Business

• Sideline

• Dawson Park

• E.M.P. Blast

• Mustang

• Moonraker

• Gold Digger

If you’ve ridden, run, or walked any of these lately and thought, “Wow, that’s flowing nice,” now you know why.

🚀 Join the Clan

1. Become a member: edmmtnbike.ca/support

2. Volunteer: slots drop frequently at edmmtnbike.ca/events

3. Donate: chainsaw chains, bridge planks, and gravel aren’t free.

4. Ride/Run & Report: Spot a hazard? Snap a pic + Trailforks Location → trails@edmmtnbike.ca.

🙌 Arigato, Trail Ninjas

From January frostbite saw missions to the EMP Blast bridge boss fight, YOU keep Edmonton’s dirt world‑class. The 2025 campaign has barely begun! Let’s stay stealthy and keep those trails sharp!

—EMBA Trails Team