Bernard: Diamond in the rough

Aspen is lucky enough to have a few “diamonds in the rough,” like the Marolt Open Space. Did you know that the city of Aspen’s Parks and Open Space department and the Roaring Fork Mountain Bike Association plan to build a mountain bike skills trail system in the southeast corner of the park?

Aspen has considered installing bike parks in the Marolt Open Space since the 1990s. This idea has been floated, analyzed, and rejected for decades. Yet, once again the city is considering a skills course and pump track in one of the most wild sections of Marolt Open Space.

To me, there are no pluses. This proposed bike park is primarily for beginners and intermediate riders, so most people either drive or be driven to the trail — creating more traffic.

No parking is planned, so it will create conflicts with the limited parking available for visitors to the Holden Marolt Museum and residents of the Marolt seasonal housing, not to mention the dog walkers, gardeners, and paragliders who land there. 

The Roaring Fork Mountain Bike Association has offered to fund some of the construction costs, but once the track is built, the city — you and me — will be responsible for 100% cost of upkeep.  

A large amount of the native foliage and important wildlife habitat will be destroyed for this bike park. What’s going to keep the newly-minted mountain bikers to test their newfound skills in other areas of the park, turning Marolt Open Space into a dirt pile like the bike park at Crown Mountain Park?

The most important piece of this to me is that this area is such a peaceful place. Marolt Open Space is our diamond in the rough with beautiful, natural vegetation. It is a place where animals and people feel safe. 

City council should take a year to find a better place to build a bike park.

Susan Bernard

Aspen