Tech Yeah!

Proposed tech trail route

Earlier this year, Missoula County greenlit our proposal for a hand-built, expert-level mtb trail at Marshall Mountain Park. The yet to be named trail will drop roughly 700 feet over 0.75 miles, starting near the second half of Bjorn Again and ending just north of the Dual Slalom. 

Stemming from Marshall Mountain’s Conceptual Trails Plan (p. 23-25), this project aims to raise Missoula’s ceiling on technical skill progression by expanding the upper range of advanced trail options.

So, what is a tech trail?

At its core, a tech trail challenges a rider’s technical ability to navigate tough terrain. Tough terrain can include natural elements like roots, rocks, tight corners, steep pitch, and water crossings to name a few. It can also include built features like jumps, drops, and bridges that demand calculated maneuvers. According to definitions published by the National Ski Area Association (NSAA) for use in managing bike park facilities, “technical trails may also incorporate freeride trail features and designs. Trails may be built by hand and/or machine, and look largely natural.” 

Isn’t that the same as a freeride trail?

There’s definitely overlap but today’s freeride trails are usually built using excavators, tend to be wide with more sculpted flow and include built features like double jumps, wall rides, and drops. Bjorn Again, also at Marshall, has a mix of freeride elements (jumps/berms) and tech (roots, off-camber sections, and pinned logs). This project will follow that blended model, but will fall closer to the techy end of the spectrum.

What’s the significance of a trail like this to Missoula?

It’s been a while (2017 to be exact) since we’ve been able to add a trail of this flavor to Missoula’s public trail network. Like many of you, the MMBC board and staff are eager to have more challenging, bike-specific trails out our backdoor. At the same time, the public lands surrounding Missoula haven’t been made available for this particular type of trail development until very recently with the City-County acquisition of Marshall Mountain Park in 2024.

Aside from the Missoula Mountain Bike Coalition, many individuals, organizations, and government agencies played a role in bringing Marshall into Missoula’s open space resources. Now is really a breakthrough moment for area mountain biking and we can’t understate the value of having ambitious and progressive land managers at Missoula County as partners going forward.

Trail Design

Another exciting part: this trail is being built in-house with support from community volunteers. The end goal is to create a highly challenging trail that provides a new riding experience within the local trail system. We’re using onsite resources: timber, stumps, roots, and pitch grade, to create a natural feeling user experience.

Some of the key design characteristics about this trail include:

• Fall line sections with pinned logs for soil retention

• Fast catch berms on corners

• Corridor alignment directly through tree stump/root fields

• Off-camber tread sections instead of benched

• Narrow trail tread and overall tighter trail corridor

• Constructed drops and jumps with ride-around options

Progress as of 7/24/25

Ranger Silas showing off his chainsaw skills

We hiked around with Radius Trail Solutions in the spring to find the ideal alignment, then broke ground in mid-June. With strong volunteer turnout so far, the corridor has been cleared and sections of tread are being constructed.

Due to the steep terrain and drainage, we’ve temporarily traded in the shovels and Pulaskis for chainsaws, hammers, and drills–cutting, stripping, and pinning timber into berm supports, bridges, and drops. Retaining walls are being installed to support the catch berms below fall line sections. Ranger Silas has lent expertise in bridge construction design and several of the support sills are in place.

We’re tracking for an October opening barring any major hiccups.  

Looking Ahead

The Marshall draft trails plan includes an additional ~eight trails. Some will be similarly hand-built while others, like Hello Kitty Phase II, will be machine built by trail contractors. With steadily increasing community support, and collaboration with Missoula County, we’re excited to continue bringing this vision to life. 

Want to help build it? Support MMBC, become a member, volunteer, or donate to keep progress moving forward!