BOISE, Idaho — Two years ago the first Boise Mountain Bike Festival was held at Bogus Basin Mountain Resort, last year the event had to be canceled because of the pandemic so bikers were excited to see this festival return.
In those two years driven by the pandemic and people searching for a way to get some fresh air, there has been tremendous growth in the local mountain biking scene.
"Mountain biking has really exploded in the last couple of years with COVID and outdoor recreation," said Braydon Bringhurst a professional mountain biker from Boise. "Mountain biking is super dangerous you get really hurt mountain biking it is not like you are sliding on snow you are grinding and twisting over rocks and tree branches and stuff."
So this festival brought in coaches to teach clinics to provide mountain bikers with more knowledge so they can avoid that painful crash when they hit the trails.
“We want people to be safe," said Bringhurst. "We want people to know the fundamentals of mountain biking how to be in the right body position, how to break and how to corner."
But this festival also raises money for local organizations like non-profit Bogus Basin, SWIMBA the Southwestern Idaho Mountain Bike Association, the Boise Bicycle Project, the Grow Cycling Foundation, Dirt Dolls and Crank Queens.
“We are a group of women that just love to ride together," said Erica Davis a member of the Crank Queens. "A couple of years ago we formally organized into this group and we ride a couple of times a week year-round."
The Crank Queens have hosted their own clinics and helped perform trail maintenance with SWIMBA as this community works together to further the sport and it seems everyone you talk to likes to ride for a different reason.
"I personally love to race, I’ve been doing a lot of racing this year and that has been a lot of fun to see more women race," said Davis. "It is not a sport that traditionally had a large representation of women in it so it is great to encourage more women to get involved in that aspect of it."
The Boise Mountain Bike Festival was sponsored by Vital MTB and Boise Trails, but Bringhurst spearheaded the organization of the festival and for Braydon it is his way to give back to the biking community that raised him.
"I've been coming to Bogus since I was 12-years-old and I just love this town so much," said Bringhurst. "I feel really fortunate to ride a mountain bike for a living."
