The trail section shown in red is the proposed route for the new Missing Link trail.

Medicine Wheel Trails Advocates has announced that it has received permission to build a the new 5-mile long "Missing Link Trail," connecting Barr Trail with Jones Park and Cheyenne Cañon. Work is scheduled to begin this year and could possibly be finished by the fall of 2012.

Total cost of the construction is not known - yet - but Medicine Wheel has a goal of raising $100,000 to help finish the job quickly. To help pay for the project, the group will show movie "Ride the Divide,"  the award-winning feature-length documentary about the world’s toughest mountain bike race on Thursday, Feb. 10 at the Stargazers Theatre. The film, which chronicles the story of several mountain bikers who attempt the 2,711-mile race named the Tour Divide along the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains, first appeared at Stargazers last September to a large and appreciative crowd.

“This trail crosses land that has been closed to the public for over 100 years,” said Jim Schwerin, president of Medicine Wheel, which is raising funds and awareness to reopen this section of the South Slope to the public.

The trail will meander through 9,000 acres of the Pikes Peak south-slope land owned by Colorado Springs Utilities. The Missing Link will connect Barr Trail with Lake Moraine, Jones Park, and Cheyenne Canon.

"Ride The Divide" will be shown at 7 p.m. at the Stargazers Theatre located off Pikes Peak Avenue. Advance tickets are $10 and available by calling Stargazers at 476-2200, at the box office most evenings and online at www.stargazerstheatre.com. Tickets are also available Mountain Chalet, the presenting sponsor of the event, located on North Tejon; and online at www.IMAthlete.com/Events/RideTheDividemovie. Tickets will also be available at the door the night of the show for $15.

The Missing Link Trail would be “an exciting new trail that adds so much to the outdoor possibilities in the Pikes Peak region,” Schwerin said, noting that mountain bikers, trail runners and hikers would all benefit from the trail. “We are grateful to the city and CSU for providing this incredible opportunity.”

A portion of the proceeds from Ride The Divide will go directly to benefit the Missing Link Trail. The film, which won the best adventure film award when it debuted last spring at the Vail Film Festival, has continued to receive critical acclaim since its screening last September at Stargazers.

Since then, it has become the newest cycling classic and made its television premiere on the Documentary Channel. But the Adventure Cycling Association said the film should be seen on the big screen: “The cinematography is stunning!” Added UpaDowna, “Ride The Divide is one of the most inspiring real cycling movies … in a long time.” Epic Riding summed the movie up as follows: “In a word? Fantastic. In more words? Moving, funny, inspiring.”

Ride The Divide embraces the inspiring stories of three of the racers who experience the immense mountain beauty and small-town culture as they attempt to pedal from Banff, Canada, to a small, dusty crossing on the Mexican border. There’s Mike, a 40-year-old family man who uses this challenge to chart a new course in life; Matthew, a leader in extreme endurance racing who’s competing for his fifth time; and Mary, the first female rider to race this route. As they set out, they will attempt to accomplish what very few have been able to. Over the course of a few weeks, they’ll attempt to climb over 200,000 vertical feet along the backbone of the Rocky Mountains.

They’ll experience mental breakdowns, treacherous snow, hellacious blisters, and total fatigue. Above all, they’ll race with no support – at times in total isolation. The tests of endurance and the accomplished moments throughout Ride the Divide prompt us to reflect on our inner desires to live life to the fullest.

Outside magazine proclaimed that “(t)he toughest bike race in the world is not in France,” after publishing a story on the Tour Divide race, which is the subject of the film.

For information on the film go to www.ridethedividemovie.com, while information on Medicine Wheel’s Missing Link Trail project can be found at www.medwheel.org.