My plans to travel to Arizona and Utah for a mountain bike film were looking slim. COVID is becoming more of a concern and restrictions are starting to kick in. Like all of us, I am left a bit lost as to how my year will pan out. International travel is a passion of mine, and the last 5 years have been jam packed full of it.
But, this time at home has allowed me to reflect and really enjoy all corners of my home turf here on Vancouver Island. Being stuck in the Pacific Northwest ain’t so bad… and I figured the best way to be productive while in our current state of lockdown was to start creating a brand new mountain bike trail.
I grew up inspired by footage of epic looking mountain bike jumps around the globe. We didn’t have much to ride within close proximity for a young kid such as myself, but I grew up on the Saanich Peninsula, just a stone’s throw away from the American San Juan islands. The Peninsula is semi-rural and has tons of forest to explore. I would get out there with a shovel, a couple friends, and we would try to re-create all that badass stuff we saw our hero's riding.
This became instilled in me to the point where I became addicted to the process. That feeling of putting in hours of hard labor to build a jump that’s the biggest thing you’ve ever hit, and then hitting it for the first time (having no clue if it will work) is one of the most insane rushes you can feel. The level of stoke is sky high when it works out, and when it doesn't work out.....
......it’s a good opportunity to learn how to crash!! Ha ha ha!
I’ve been doing this for the last 15 years now and the feeling is the same every single time.
When the pandemic first hit.... my local trail network had shut down, but the great thing about trail building is builders have their own “underground” community. There is a zone 40 mins away from my house..... off the grid, you can’t find it on any maps, and each trail has “no dig = no ride” engraved into its sign.
The crew that started this hidden zone gave me the go ahead to start my own trail out there.
Calling the forest lush would be an understatement. The place is as "straight up" as PNW as it gets. Head high ferns and moss covered trees are everywhere and set the stage. And the dirt.... is a gold mine! Hardly any rocks or roots and the most perfect shaping clay to cater to wherever you imagination goes.
In April I started scouting around here and marked out my potential line. I started a video series called Isolation, and I have been documenting the trail building progress every single week on YouTube.
I ended up naming the trail “Sharknado” because almost every jump resembles the shape of a shark fin… and it’s fast and gnarly!
After 10 months of creating, Sharknado is finally finished, Here’s the finale below:
Whether or not you ride a mountain bike, I hope this inspires you to get out there and take control of your own fun. Wishing it was a more rad scene where you live?
Get out there and create something sick!!
#KAVUDAYS
Mark Matthews
KAVU Marky Mark
FB
IG
Brett Kroeker
© 2026 KAVU
.jpeg?auto=webp)
.jpeg?auto=webp)
.jpeg?auto=webp)
.jpeg?auto=webp)
.jpeg?auto=webp)
.jpeg?auto=webp)
.jpeg?auto=webp)
.jpeg?auto=webp)
/1x.jpeg?auto=webp)
/1x.jpeg?auto=webp)
/1x.jpeg?auto=webp)
/1x.jpeg?auto=webp)
/1x.jpeg?auto=webp)
/1x.jpeg?auto=webp)