North Bay could be home to northern Ontario’s first mapped adaptive mountain biking trail network. A recently completed two-day assessment of the Laurentian Escarpment Trails explored expanding the range of people who can enjoy the trails by welcoming adaptive mountain bikers as another user group, while preserving the natural terrain and character of the existing trail system. Local para-cyclist Kevin McKenna switched to adaptive mountain biking when introduced to the sport. “One of the goals would be to make riding more accessible,” McKenna said. A partnership between Discovery Routes Trails Organization and the North Bay Mountain Bike Association led to an assessment of the trail network. That assessment was led by Jen Gadoua of Kitchener, an adaptive mountain bike instructor and advocate who hosted Ontario’s first adaptive mountain bike camp in 2025. The team also included Sudbury’s Jake Thomas, a legend in the adaptive mountain biking community. Thomas is also the director of the feature-length documentary ‘Adaptation.’ McKenna, accompanied by a support rider, with volunteers from the mountain bike association joining the assessment to experience the trails alongside the riders and gain firsthand insight into their suitability and potential improvements. They found a few areas that could be a tipping risk for three-wheeled bikes. “Some of the bikes are up to almost 40 inches wide,” McKenna said. “There are a lot of bridges that were built over the years that were just a little narrow, and they didn’t take the adaptive bikes into consideration.” Overall, however, the riders found the trails well suited to adaptive mountain biking, with relatively few barriers requiring attention. The Laurentian Escarpment Trails will remain a multi-use trail network, continuing to welcome hikers, mountain bikers and other trail users. Jennifer McCourt, Discovery Routes Trails Organization executive director, said the preliminary findings are encouraging. “They don’t want to dumb down the trails, is what they say,” McCourt said. “They want to have that same experience, the thrill of riding as other riders do.” A full report will be completed in about a week. The information will help volunteers with the mountain bike association identify and complete minor trail improvements. “It’ll open the door to dollars, I hope, so we can actually do the work,” said Brent Bull, the North Bay Mountain Bike Association Ski Hill liaison. With few mapped adaptive mountain bike trails currently identified in the province, McCourt said North Bay has the chance to take a leading role. It could lead to future adaptive mountain biking camps here and the chance to host adaptive mountain bike races and competitions. “There’s also the possibility or the potential to have adaptive categories in the mountain bike races here,” McCourt added. For adaptive mountain bike riders like McKenna, it’s more than just trail tweaks. It would allow them to ride in areas they otherwise couldn’t access. “The whole point was to open up those trails for bigger opportunities,” he said with a small smile.
