Lachlan Roe-Bose grew up an avid mountain biker in St. John’s where he and his friends settled for worn-in ATV paths within Pippy Park to satisfy their appetite for riding. 

Fast forward 20 years later and Roe-Bose serves as the President of the Avalon Mountain Bike Association (AMBA), a not-for-profit organization heading the development of the 2025 Canada Games Mountain Biking venue in that very same park.

“Back when I started, we were racing quad tracks and it was all cross country. We then went through a period in the early 2000s where one of the local shop owners started building downhill trails in the East White Hills area, then we started volunteering to build trails on our own”. 

“The trail trends changed as the bike trends changed so there’s always been a race scene here and there’s always been infrastructure development here, it’s just never been formalized.”

Originally founded in 2012 before experiencing a revamp in 2018 when Roe-Bose came on board as President, the AMBA primarily focuses on formalizing the development, renovation and maintenance of mountain biking infrastructure across the Avalon Peninsula.

That development includes both a cross-country Olympic (XCO) racing trail and a skills park in the heart of the city where Games athletes will compete next summer. Roe-Bose and the AMBA’s Board of Directors aim to make Pippy Park challenging for elite riders while also accessible for beginners who are new to the sport.

“It’s something the community can go enjoy, it’s somewhere they can go and progress and something that just encourages more people to get into the sport and go ‘hey what’s that, that looks cool I wouldn’t mind trying that out’”.

“The infrastructure will support beginner and intermediate riders so that they come in and go ‘okay I can figure this out’ and then they are able to progress and get hooked like I did.”

Balancing full-time careers, the 12 members of the AMBA dedicate their spare time to volunteering in the local mountain biking community and improving the trail for the 2025 Games. Fueled by passion rather than financial reward, it's the opportunity to leave a lasting impression that keeps Roe-Bose and AMBA motivated.

“We’re really hoping it’s going to leave a good legacy piece. The trail work we’re doing is going to be very sustainable, it's going to hold up to erosion very well, it’s going to take a beating and there’s going to be something here for years to come.”

The renovations at Pippy Park are scheduled to finish this fall to give the course a chance to settle over the winter before the track's first race in a test event next June.

Roe-Bose is eager to hear participants' feedback to evaluate the work he and his crew have done. However, what excites him most about the Games next August is the same passion that first drew him to mountain biking: his love for the sport.

“It’s going to be pretty cool. I’m really looking forward to hearing the feedback from the actual riders on the course. I want to hear what they liked, what they didn’t like and I want to get the perspective of coaches as well.”

“But mostly I’m just excited to come up and check out the action.”

Pippy Park is one of the 25 capital projects currently in the works across St. John’s and the surrounding communities for the 2025 Canada Games.