The Contagious Bike Club is celebrating the soft opening of its brand new bike park at Mt. McIntyre Friday, and the public is invited to attend.

The as yet unnamed dirt jump park is being introduced to the public starting at 6 p.m. Friday until dark, although it has been open for awhile already.

One of the key people involved with getting the park opened in Whitehorse, Devon McDiarmid says the event this Friday is about bringing people out and informing the public the park is open for business.

"We want to show off this new park and show how lucky we are to have it,” he said.

The event will feature live music and local riders demonstrating what the bike park is all about in its beautiful setting at Mount McIntyre.

"It's a great view,” said McDiarmid. "One of the longest parts of the process was finding a suitable location for the park.” The site was cleared years ago when a reservoir was put in, making the building process easier.

Kate White, who has been involved with the park since the beginning of the summer, says the event is for everyone.

"We're just trying to get a lot of people out,” she said.

There will be disc golf for those not ready to take on the course.

For those who want to participate, White says the event is free of charge.

"It's one of the only free things. It's like the skateboard park, it's totally free,” said White.

White says the event will feature the end to Contagious Bike Club's helmet campaign that has been running all summer. She hopes that Friday's event will be full of bikes, people with their helmets and enthusiasm.

The park caters to all ages, but according to White the most prominent demographic so far has been boys ages 12 to 18.

"It's a wicked opportunity for youth, as far as staying out of trouble,” she said.

McDiarmid wants to stress that the park is for all skill levels.

"We've built this for all levels of riders,” he said.

The park is phase one in a two phase plan. Next spring construction will begin on the second half of the park that will feature teeter totters, a drop zone, skinnies, a rock garden, a wall ride and more.

McDiarmid says the park is a long time coming.

"The idea's been around for years and years,” he said.

The idea has been picked up by many, but it was McDiarmid, his partner in the bike park Mike Stevely and the Cycling Association of the Yukon that were finally able to get the park past the planning stages. The park broke ground this summer.

McDiarmid says he has seen young biking enthusiasts grow up and move away before the park finally became a reality.

"There's a huge need for this park,” he said. "There's been some jumps built in the bush that aren't up to any safety standards.”

The park will provide riders with a safe location to practise their mountain biking skills, and McDiarmid says if an injury should occur, the park is easily accessible by emergency crews.

The park was built with help from many different sources. The City of Whitehorse Parks and Rec provided the land, fencing, signage and two trail workers plus their equipment.

"They've been very supportive,” said McDiarmid.

Many local businesses contributed to the project as well. The major funding was provided by Lotteries Yukon.

So far the park is unnamed, but this Friday McDiarmid says the bike club will launch a name the park contest. The winner will be awarded a prize.

"People can start thinking of ideas for what to call this park,” he said. Ideas will be collected at Friday's event.

McDiarmid reminds bikers that the season is not yet over, and the bike park is waiting to be ridden.