Cycling enthusiasts a new place to test their off-road skills in a few days with the opening of the new Sunnyside Bike Park.

The park — sandwiched between the Gardiner Expressway and Lakeshore Boulevard — was designed for the city by Jay Hoots, a professional rider who has helped design and build 50 parks across North America. He's considered the best in the business.

“This entire park offers opportunity for training -- learning how to ride a bike in different situations,” Hoots told CBC News.

Riders are kept a safe distance from the nearby traffic, but drivers are meant to see what’s going on in the park, so that “they’ll see how fun it is to be on a bike,” said Hoots.

“The overall design intent … is actually to try to have people embrace nature, come back to nature, to have a park built out of dirt, rock and wood,” he said.

Much of the wood used to build the park came from trees that came down during the ice storm, and the soil was repurposed from a nearby condo development.

It is hoped the park will draw riders and keep them from building impromptu trails in other, public spaces. The park is due to open in a few days.