How much dirt is in a cubic yard? I’m not really sure, but, apparently, about 1,000 of them is enough to build a bike park. 

The first trucks carrying the raw material for what will be, eventually, the McKay Community Bike Park arrived this morning, bringing loads of dirt from a College of the Redwoods construction project over to the project site off of Northridge Road. It’ll take a few months before anything’s ready to ride — the contractor, nonprofit bike park builders Sensus R.A.D, will begin work in August — but when it’s done, the four-acre park will feature a dirt pump track, some skill-building obstacles, and several trails ridged with fat jumps built over old redwood stumps, logs, and wooden tracks with options for every skill level.

The park has long been in the works, Redwood Coast Mountain Bike Association board members Sean Tetrault and Gina Bauer told the Outpost this morning. The organization has been fundraising for years, making money by snagging grants, hosting races and taking donations. RCMBA signed an agreement with the county to build the project in the late 2010s. Building a brand-new park isn’t cheap. Though the dirt’s free, moving it cost $34,000, and Bauer said they still need another $80,000 to finish the entire park. (The county set aside a total of nine acres for the park. This chunk of the project will use about half of that. RCMBA plans on eventually using all of it.) 

They’re both thrilled to see the park taking shape, excited about bringing people together outside. Growing up in Eureka, there weren’t all that many places to “play in the woods,” Tetrault said, outside of little Sequoia Park. Today, there are many more, and developing the park adds immeasurably to their quality. “There’s a community health component, it’s a mental health component, it’s an economic component,” he said. “It all plays together. It’s a part of being a cohesive, healthy community.”

“It’s gonna be a huge relief that it’s all come together,” Tetrault continued, “and I’m gonna be — I’ll be proud to be a part of it.”

Both Tetrault and Bauer said they welcomed anyone who wanted to volunteer with RCMBA.

“We want to contribute to the community,” Bauer said. “We want to help get kids outside and nurture this connection to cycling that, hopefully, will last a lifetime.”