LOCALadk Magazine
Issue link: https://localadkmagazine.uberflip.com/i/1545871
Follow the river to an enchanted place. 7,000 sq. ft. of gallery-quality rustic furniture, designer accents, mountain resort wear, accessories, trinkets & pure joy! 292 Main St., North Creek, NY Abode interior service: Let us do the work to pull it all together, a little or a lot! 518.251.4461 See website for summer hours! HudsonRiverTradingCo.com LOCALadk 36 Luke said, "the terrain around the trail is telling us what's coming next." That's something I always notice when I ride trails Luke built. They're always in- teresting and have a lot of variety, but they don't have jarring surprises. I think that's important to the unspoken trust factor between builder and rider. We don't want boringly homogenous trails, but we also don't want a kitchen sink of unpredictable features out of character with each other. Luke adds, "I aim for consistency in the variety, letting the flow be informed by the terrain. It's very easy to put a rock in the wrong place and very hard to put it in just the right place. A jump only gets built because I found or built the right landing." As a highly skilled rider himself, Luke undoubtedly enjoys riding certain types of trails. As a professional trail builder, however, he is in rare company as some- one who truly puts himself in the shoes of all the future riders (or runners, walk- ers, or skiers) who will use the trails he builds. This kind of empathy is a super- power. His skills and experience as a builder have evolved to the point where he can intentionally create a variety of user experiences on the same trail. Speaking of his offseason work teach- ing people to snowboard, Luke says he's "a facilitator as much as an instructor." I would extend that notion to his trail building. Luke doesn't just make paths through the forest. He crafts trails to facilitate meaningful experiences for ev- eryone who uses them. As one of those lucky people, allow me to say, "Thank you, Luke!" t Peduzzi showing off the beginnings of "Trail 7" to a local rider. Photo credit: Eric Adsit