Transition Bikes

VIDEO: Skye Schillhammer / PHOTOS: OLIVER PARISH / LOCATION: BELLINGHAM, WA Blue Steel is a new jump trail on Galbraith Mountain in Bellingham, WA. It's fully public and open to ride anytime by anyone who feels they have the skills. It was quite the journey to create this line and we couldn't have done it without all the pieces falling into place perfectly. With the hard work of Nico Vink, Transition employees and many others, we present you with this beautifully crafted jump line, for all the world to enjoy.
Check out how this line came to be in the Blue Steel Documentary Video.
Nico's favorite trail building tool.
Nico spent long days in the excavator.
Not a bad view from the top.
We began construction on this line in December of 2019, with Nico spending seven days straight working in the excavator along side Lars Sternberg, Skye Schillhammer, Kyle Young and the rest of Transition Bikes. We managed to finish the initial dirt work just before one of the wettest and longest winters we can remember. Over the next few months the anticipation to ride the line grew, as we watched heavy rain and snow keep the line unrideable.
As we moved into spring, the line required almost two months of handwork to fix the winter damage, as well as more machine work to rebuild landings that had crumbled.
The sign was designed by Darrin Seeds, and welded together by Kyle Young and Kelend Hawks. The water catch system was built by Gunnar Oliphant and Kelend Hawks, which will provide the much needed water to keep them prime all year long.
By April, we had tires on the line, and what a great feeling that was! We had just endured months of riding by them and dreaming of riding off these massive piles of dirt. Finally hitting them was one of the best feelings.
Many test laps were required to fine tune the line to perfection.



The last jump on the line feels considerably bigger than the rest, giving you a taste of the big air in Fest series events.


Hannah B and Skye Blasting off.
Nico absolutely nailed it with the build, and we planned to host a massive Party in the Woods with Nico and our other freeride athletes all attending, but as we all know, the world changed drastically this spring and all plans have been on hold. In response to the global pandemic, we didn't find it responsible to open this line right away. The risks of injury, and the crowds this line will draw were not safe during that time. But the wait is now over, and we couldn't be more stoked to drop the chain and open the line! Just please shred responsibly.