IMBA Trail Care Crew Visit

Hello All, 

As some of you may know, Vernon Trails has been selected by the International Mountain Bicycling Association to receive a visit from their Trail Care Crew. Clubs all over the country apply for a visit and we were approved. This is a great honor and opportunity for our community. We have been building some phenomenal “shared use” trails here in Vernon County for the past 5 years and now we get to learn the latest techniques from the pros. In addition, the IMBA crew will be giving a great presentation on the Economic Benefits of mountain biking and shared use trails. I invite you all to join in this unique opportunity. Below is a schedule for the four day visit, you are welcome to attend part or all of this. Please RSVP for which sessions you will be attending. You can respond via email at bluedogcycles@yahoo.com or call Bluedog Cycles at (608) 637-6993 or Vernon Trails at (608) 637-2072. Please pass this along to any interested parties.

Sincerely,

Pete Taylor

Volunteer Board President

Vernon Trails, Inc

IMBA VISIT SCHEDULE

Thursday: IMBA arrives in the afternoon and possibly gets out for a ride to check out the local trails and get a feel for the local vibe.

Friday: Economic Development of Natural Surface Trails Presentation. This meeting is open to the community. I have been/will be inviting City officials, County officials, Tourism Committee, Viroqua Partners, and local business owners to this meeting.

The Economic presentation's agenda is as follows:

• Introduction to IMBA
• Value of Singletrack Trails
• Economics of Singletrack Trails
• Success Stories
• Q and A / Discussion

Please pass along the invitation to anyone you think should attend. The meeting is going to be held at 9:00am at WWTC in Viroqua, Room 115. After the meeting the trail crew will head out for Trail Layout, then we possibly ride and/or socialize in evening.

Saturday: Trail Building School from 9:00 am to Noon.  Lunch is provided by the club.

Field session from 1:00 to 4:00 or 5:00 (4 hours of trail building is usually plenty for most folks).

Sunday: Group Ride. This is usually the time to get the riding on and put the trail talk on the shelf.

Here is the presentation agenda for Saturday's Trail Building School:

Introductions

Powerpoint Presentation: IMBA Trailbuilding School

Who is IMBA?

Trailbuilding Theory

Historical Perspective

Modern Perspective
Sustainability
The Contour Trail

Essential Elements of Sustainable Trails
Water Based Erosion
User Based Erosion

Designing Successful Trails - System Planning

Understanding User Groups
Control Points
Stacked Loop Systems
Effective Signage
Understanding Flow

Trail Construction Basics

Corridor Clearing
Full Bench Construction
TTFs
Advanced Trail Construction - rock work, turns, & drainage crossings

Maintenance Basics

De-berming
Drainage
Reroutes and reclamation