A mountain biker tackles a rocky, technical section in the Radlands trail network in Redmond.

While Bend is considered a mountain biking mecca in the Northwest, its neighboring town just 17 miles to the north has its own cycling culture.

Redmond has no shortage of riding locales, including several areas within the city limits.

Here are a few options for riding in Redmond during the winter:

Homestead Park Bike Pump TrackThe Homestead Park Bike Pump Track is often packed with young riders who cruise over the asphalt rollers, some of them getting airborne, and then whip around on the wood wall rides at the end of the park.

Based on the sheer number of bikers here, it is obvious that the track, which opened in fall 2018, fills a need for Redmond-area BMX and mountain bike enthusiasts. While areas for traditional cross-country mountain biking have long been available in Redmond, those looking for more free-ride-style opportunities had been left with crumbling dirt jumps or illegally riding in the Redmond Skatepark.

The city of Redmond responded, and the project got rolling quickly.

Young Redmond riders even helped Velosolutions, a Swiss company that builds bike parks and tracks in countries around the world, with construction. Other companies donated materials for the half-acre pump track, which includes banked turns and jumps. Riders use their legs to “pump” their way over the features.

The land on which the pump track was built — just south of St. Charles Redmond, flanked by an irrigation canal to the west and U.S. Highway 97 to the east — was formerly a dirt jump area. For the new park, dirt jumps and rollers were built up and then asphalt was laid over them. Bordering the asphalt track is artificial turf, allowing for a soft landing in case of a tumble.

The pump track is ridable for bikers of all ages and skill levels. Most types of bikes work well there, too, including BMX bikes, dirt jumpers and mountain bikes. But the main clientele consists of kids on BMX bikes — likely many of the same kids who used to sneak their bikes into the Redmond Skatepark.

Dry Canyon

Those who live in Redmond know the Dry Canyon Park well. A mix of High Desert geological features with modern recreational amenities, the park stretches 3.7 miles through the center of Redmond.

Within the park are a variety of paved and dirt trails, some singletrack and some wider, allowing for out-and-back rides with little elevation gain.

Mountain bikes, road bikes and gravel bikes are all good options for riding the paved trails and dirt sections of Dry Canyon.

The majority of the Dry Canyon is set aside as a nature preserve, and the steep canyon walls reflect the volcanic past of the area.

Radlands

Minutes from downtown Redmond, but seemingly in the middle of the desert, the Radlands offer mountain bikers easy access to some intriguing and challenging trails.

The trail network is known for its rocky and technically difficult terrain and is close to home for mountain bikers who live in Redmond. It is also well worth the trip a few times each fall and winter for those who live in Bend or elsewhere in Central Oregon.

Consisting of about 6 miles of looped singletrack trails in northeast Redmond, the Radlands provide a sort of urban mountain biking, but the trails never really lose their wildness. Lava rock is incorporated creatively into much of the singletrack, designed by volunteers with the Central Oregon Trail Alliance.

The Radlands trailhead is located at the High Desert Sports Complex off NE Negus Way in Redmond. The section of the trail complex south of Negus Way should be avoided, as there have been reports of loose and aggressive dogs in the area, according to bendtrails.org.