A "world-class" facility is what mountain bikers want for the Stromlo Forest Park.
It is a vision shared by the ACT government and biking enthusiasts want to make sure this promise is fulfilled.
Mountain bikers will get the opportunity to share these thoughts, with the government opening consultation on the future of the park's tracks and trails.
This consultation has coincided with a funding boost for the park. There will be nearly $2 million spent on a new trail from Stromlo to the Cotter and the University of Canberra has also contributed $1 million to the park for sponsorship rights.
ACT Special Minister of State Chris Steel said the government wanted Stromlo to be a "premier biking and recreational facility" across Australia and the world. He said the government was seeking feedback on how the trails could remain "exciting and challenging into the future".
"There are a number of competing venues interstates and we want to make sure that our venue here in Canberra is really attracting that tourism and making sure we do attract the major events as well," he said.
"When Stromlo was open it was certainly the best in Australia and we want to make sure it maintains that status."
Canberra Off-Road Cyclists president Matt Battye said opening up the western side of the Stromlo was important to mountain bikers but he also wanted the park to remain accessible to everyone.
"Stromlo is a multi-use, multi-venue and multi-level kind of facility. You see kids learning to ride here and you'll see world champions," he said.
"A park that is functional for everybody all at the same time so we can run national and international level events here while kids are still learning to ride their bikes."
"Opening up the western side of Stromlo is probably the most important thing from a mountain biking perspective because the nature of that terrain and even just spreading the roads, makes an enormous differences to the functionality of the park."
The government will spend $1.8 million on a new flow trail from Stromlo to the Cotter, with funding allocated in the upcoming territory budget.
"It'll be a unique opportunity for mountain bikers across the ACT and, indeed, visitors from across Australia to try some new trails in the ACT," ACT Planning Minister Mick Gentleman said.
"So it's a great an exciting opportunity for those mountain bikers and, of course, it adds to the mountain bike experience we have in the ACT and links the iconic opportunities of Stromlo Forest Park and, of course, the Cotter."
But Dynamic Motivation chief executive Mic Longhurst, who provides shuttle services and coaching at the park, wants to ensure the new trail is only the start to improvements and new trails at the park so it can become "world class" again.
"It would be really great to make sure that there's funding for whatever comes out of the study is strong as well. They've committed there's money from car parking and the sponsorship deal but I suspect that's probably not enough to make it back to make the park world class," he said.
"We want the Stromlo park to be world class and it's great to have an iconic trail out to the Cotter but we need this park to be here as well."
The park will now be known as the University of Canberra Stromlo Nature Park following the $1 million deal with the university.
"The opportunity for Stromlo park for us is to bring to bear our teaching and research on the development of this area to understand the impacts to allow us to build new capacities and capabilities," University of Canberra vice-chancellor Paddy Nixon said.
