Fresh off our two year stint on the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew, we decided one day of retirement was good enough. We postponed our move into an actual dwelling (see the progression – bicycle, car, structure with walls and a door…) and instead hopped a plane to West Virginia.
No matter what we did all weekend, we always seemed to have a lot of fun. As one of the key ingredients to building great trail communities, RAT is already wise beyond their years. Our visit was nicely wrapped inside the inaugural, and certain to be legendary, RAT-fest. Festivities included bike demos, live music and auction, kid’s clinic, and group rides. This is just the kind of fun thatt RAT can use to bring new people into the fold, build relationships, and create future leaders.
With only two visits to go we achieved another milestone in our Trail Care Crew travels – the highest visit. At 10,200 feet, Leadville Colorado is in the heart of the Rockies and home to the Cloud City Wheelers.
It’s been a rule of thumb to expect the unexpected on the Trail Care Crew. We usually roll into a new town with new faces and new trails every weekend. It’s actually become the rule, not the exception. This past weekend was a little bit different. We started the last month of our TCC tour in very familiar territory: our home state of Colorado.
After a Trail Care Crew in 2010, a group of dedicated fat tire enthusiasts set out to make an already successful trails community even better. It’s no surprise that TCC Lommele ( go Steve and Morgan!) did their little things well and inspired the formation of the Santa Fe Fat Tire Society. Since last July SFFTS has been following their vision and working towards putting Santa Fe on the mountain bike map.
Chris is short for Christmas. Tom, his best friend, found him wandering around Christmas Eve day and took him in for the night. Thirteen years later he’s spent his lifetime hiking in the woods. Chris was our constant companion during our visit with TRACKS, the local trails organization in the Pinetop-Lakeside area.
Over the course of the last two years we’ve seen and ridden a lot of different trails. For the most part, they serve a majority of the mountain bike population, but not every single rider. It’s our view that beginners and expert riders tend to be the most underserved in our sport. Collectively, we need to think seriously about two ideas; lowering the barrier of entry for new or less skilled riders and plan for the folks who continue to reach the highest levels of the stratosphere.
During the rest of our time in Prescott we focused on Trails and Rides/Social. We rolled into town early to attend Pint Nite, PMBA’s 2nd annual fundraiser (remember, they formed last spring…). It was great to kick back and hang with a very energized and friendly mountain bike community. It was all about being together and celebrating trails. This fall they are hosting The WonderSchlutt, a festival full of riding Prescott’s outstanding trails.
We rolled into the Tahoe Area on the heels of a very successful MTB Trails Conference that took place last October. It was an event that brought together the mountain bike community, the US Forest Service, and many other interested and dedicated parties. One significant outcome was the resurgence of TAMBA, the Tahoe Area Mountain Bike Association. We were happy to spend our final weekend in California helping everyone keep the momentum going.
One of our greatest assets as a Trail Care Crew is our ability to work with all groups. Although we do represent a mountain bike organization, we’re proud of the fact that we have interacted with a wide range of different trail users over the years. This weekend was no different; we had the pleasure of working with hikers and equestrians in addition to mountain bikers. It was a great opportunity to get away from the ‘us vs. them’ debate and get down to the subject that really matters: trails.
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Tag: trailbuilding