mark wood - workshop instructor

A seasoned professional in trail planning, design & building, Mark has worked with all level of professionals throughout the province of British Columbia and beyond, including governing Land Managers, seasonal work crews, bike park construction teams, Universities, First Nations and many diverse stewardship groups including preservation societies, OHV, hiking & MTB groups.

In 2012, Mark co-authored A Community Driven Model for Sustainability, creating long term solutions based upon the Social, Economic and Environmental needs of communities, leading to cost effective strategies to build healthy communities through trails.

Starting in 2009 Mark organized efforts on Vancouver's North Shore to lead efforts to restore over 70kms of severely degraded trail through the creation of the highly successful Trail Adoption Plan (TAP) and the original North Shore Trail Builder Academy. During what may be the largest trail restoration project ever undertaken, he managed, trained and led teams of professional and volunteer builders on a number of critical rehabilitation and new construction projects. As the lead builder on multiple projects, Mark was responsible for the construction of the Fromme Climbing Trail (No Quarter), Forever After and Lower Expresso along with numerous trail realignments and the ‘re-imagining’ of severely degraded trails.

In 2015, Mark worked with Forest Management students at British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) to develop best practices for site restoration and ecological revitalization. He continues this work to create effective resource management strategies including evolving assessment protocols and asset management systems.

Mark is a certified professional in Danger Tree Assessment and Chainsaw Safety. A trail builder in his own right, Mark has built and designed climbing trails, multi use trails, advanced TTFs, XC to DH trails for MTB. He continues to work with all levels of government to create Master Plans for new trail development and Improvement Plans to upgrade existing trails. This trail planning experience has fueled his growth leading to highly specialized work in risk management, creating Safety Plans for bike parks, beginning in 2020 with the highly progressive Jordie Lunn Bike Park. Most recently, Mark worked with the City of Salmon Arm and the Shuswap Trail Association to design a MTB Skills Park.

Continually refining the principles of sustainability through a holistic approach, his work continues to advance management strategies in outdoor recreation. Creator of the Sustainability Equation concept, his work is focused on long term sustainability using a balanced approach to create innovative, progressive and memorable trails.