This petition is to show  support for adding some freeride mountain bike trails to the current North Chollas Community Park General Development Plan (GDP), which currently does not include any bike trails despite the park’s website listing biking as one of the activities available to the public. 

Chollas Community Park is a unique, mixed use community park encompassing about 90 acres located at 6350 College Grove Dr, San Diego, CA 92115 (https://www.sandiego.gov/park-and-recreation/centers/recctr/chollas that currently offers many outdoor activities to an underserved part of San Diego. An undeveloped section of the park is slated for improvements under the new GDP, yet despite being a popular area for bikers for many years, the new park plan includes no legal, sanctioned bike trails. Bicyclists have been using unsanctioned trails to ride through the park, but the use of unsanctioned bike trails can negatively affect the local flora and fauna, and interfere with people walking the trails. Having legal, sanctioned bike trails that are clearly marked for direction and purpose will mitigate the use and creation of illegal, unsanctioned trails, which will help preserve the natural habitats. If sanctioned trails are not provided, bikers will likely continue to ride unsanctioned trails as has been the case in many other areas that lack legal trails. And mountain biking is not going away, on the contrary, it is just getting more popular. 

The fact that bike riders have been coming to Chollas Park for years shows the need for sanctioned, legal trails for community members and visitors alike. People come to San Diego for its many outdoor activities, yet we are sadly lacking in sanctioned mountain bike trails here. The massive popularity of mountain biking is undeniable in San Diego, and it supports many local businesses. Some of the biggest names in mountain biking are right here, yet few places for people to legally ride trails.  

Chollas Lake Park has an ideal topography for some world-class freeride trails. Freeride trails typically include a variety of features such as berms and jumps of varying skill levels while following the natural topography. These trails flow through and around natural features, preserving the natural beauty of an area while providing unlimited enjoyment for riders, and they are relatively unobtrusive as they blend with the environment. If Chollas Lake Park would provide freeride mountain bike trails, many schools and organizations could also use it for the many bike clubs that exist here, providing a safe and fun area for kids to be in nature and practice riding skills.  Riding bikes on the local streets is dangerous, and with the massive popularity of mountain biking in San Diego, there is a need for more sanctioned trails that will provide a place for people to enjoy the thrill of bike riding through nature.

Here is a link to a Google Slide presentation: 

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1OBJ2anzUG1RjP4dA6zCpNkKl2HJNFkFDLFgPCF2FVgk/edit?usp=sharing