Mining for usable rocks is a skill that comes from practice.

I found that out on the morning of Oct. 28, an overcast Sunday on the trails of Hartland-Mount Work.

My initial job was to scale mossy hills adjacent to The Plunge, a stretch of intermediate single track in the mountain biking park, and dig out whatever free standing rocks I could move.

About two dozen of the South Island Mountain Bike SocietyB次元官网网址檚 250 members came out to work on the trails that morning. ItB次元官网网址檚 four hours of hard labour, honoured with a complimentary sandwich and the knowledge the park has been preserved for future users.

B次元官网网址淎 lot of these trails were originally adopted from hikers and motorbikes and they often follow a fall line,B次元官网网址� said SIMBS trail director Chris Oman. B次元官网网址淲e target a number of areas at the beginning of the year and do as much as we can.B次元官网网址�

The professional forester knows a thing or two about sustainable trails, and assesses the trailB次元官网网址檚 drainage as we stroll 100 metres along The Plunge. The enemy of trails isnB次元官网网址檛 riders, I learn B次元官网网址� itB次元官网网址檚 water.

B次元官网网址淭he wetter trails erode and end up needing the most attention,B次元官网网址� Oman said. B次元官网网址淭he better a trail can drain, the better it will hold up over time.B次元官网网址�

Upwards of 100,000 visits are expected for 2012, he says. Most of those are in the summer when conditions are dry, but riders come year round, and the impact is noticeable.

With a pickaxe I loosen the sponge-like tree debris sitting atop a vulnerable section of the trail. The debris, which is new this autumn, is clumped three inches thick and dry, despite sitting below a pile of mud.

Oman rakes it out, ensuring the vulnerable areas of the trail are B次元官网网址渙utsloped.B次元官网网址�

Maintenance is crucial to the sustainability of HartlandB次元官网网址檚 trails and Oman has led the construction and reconstruction of Hartland for six years. HeB次元官网网址檚 been a part of work crews for 10.

B次元官网网址淭here are about 50 trails at Hartland and almost 20 per cent are sustainably built,B次元官网网址� said SIMBS president Scott Mitchell.

MitchellB次元官网网址檚 been the president for five years, about the same time Oman took over trail maintenance, and the two have benefitted from the guidance of the International Mountain Biking Association.

Not only did IMBA make groundbreaking inroads by establishing insurance policies for mountain biking clubs such as SIMBS, it led a global campaign of sustainable trail building. SIMBS abides by IMBA guidelines.

Representatives travel North America and have been to Hartland to work with SIMBS to teach sustatinable trail building. ThereB次元官网网址檚 even a mountain bike operations program offered by Capilano CollegeB次元官网网址檚 Sechelt campus, with a focus entirely on trail building.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 important to recognize that this is all a new school of thought, and is only about six years old,B次元官网网址� Mitchell said.

Before Mitchell came aboard, the previous SIMBS leadership fought the rogue trail building and its general acceptance by the society.

SIMBS didnB次元官网网址檛 hold the trail maintenance permits it does now, nor was it the guardian of the Hartland-Mount Work trail system, as well as the sport of mountain biking on the south Island.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e definitely in a better state than in the past,B次元官网网址� Mitchell said. B次元官网网址淭he previous president was working to get trail maintenance and SIMBS going. It was very challenging and negative.B次元官网网址�

Rogue building at Hartland is limited these days, whether itB次元官网网址檚 jumps or other riding structures, and SIMBS has strengthened its relationship with the Capital Regional District.

SIMBS is a proponent for seven riding sites from North Saanich to Cowichan, but Hartland is the preeminent destination, for now.

SIMBS also anticipates a new trail system at SookeB次元官网网址檚 Harbourview Road, part of the massive Sea to Sea green belt, which was acquired by the CRD.

Harbourview is not officially open as a park yet and CRD has not permitted SIMBS or the Sooke Bike Club to perform any trail maintenance. But itB次元官网网址檚 all in the works, with SIMBS and SBC advocating for trail usage.

B次元官网网址淧eople are riding and thereB次元官网网址檚 been guerilla building, which is how a lot of trails start, whether itB次元官网网址檚 motorbikes or mountain bikes. WeB次元官网网址檝e participated in a lot of meetings and want to partner with CRD. Hopefully everybody gets what they want,B次元官网网址� Mitchell said.

Just as Hartland has a bike wash station, washroom and secured storage shed for tools, so does Habourview Road.

MitchellB次元官网网址檚 view of the future is similar to Squamish, which put city money into building the Full Nelson trail, open in 2012, which is world class and has become a tourist destination. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 an amazing example of a trail that brings people to the city.B次元官网网址�

During my morning at Hartland, it took me about an hour to figure out which rocks were best to remove, and where to find them.

Most freestanding lumps on the floor of the rainforest landscape are actually loose rocks, covered with moss. I gently peel back the carpeted cover, remove the rock, and let the moss lay back down, unbroken. The rocks I place beside an eroding section of the trail. William Steele, a local bike mechanic, has filled a gap one metre deep and two metres long.

B次元官网网址淭he thing about a lot of this work is once you cover it with dirt, you canB次元官网网址檛 tell what we did,B次元官网网址� Steele says.

A minute later a cyclist is the first to bomb down the section we rebuilt and she has no idea.

B次元官网网址淭hat means weB次元官网网址檝e done our job.B次元官网网址�

sports@vicnews.com