This award is about people. Who is getting bums on saddles? Who is creating the opportunity for new people to discover mountain bikes? We want to hear about the project, the trail building squad, campaign or other initiative that’s helping build the MTB community.
Chris Maloney
Chris Maloney is a man with many hats: he’s the Keeper of the Peak, the creator of the Trail Pot, current Chair of Peak District MTB. He’s long been an advocate for the trails in the Peak District, and his Trail Pot vision for creating a centralised industry and rider funded, er, fund, to help support trail advocates and projects all over the country. He hopes that it might help light sparks, or fires, all over the UK and help make life a bit easier for the people like him who give up their time and energy to help all of us have better places to ride. There can be few fans of mountain biking who have voluntarily spent quite so much of their free time in meetings. He does it so you don’t have to (but you still could, you know).
Burlish Bike Park
Burlish Bike Park is in fact an old BMX spot given a new lease of life under the stewardship of Hannah Escott. Already a cycle trainer, she was given the chance to take the unofficial old site and turn it into something new. One huge mountain of planning rules and a pile of fund raising later, and she and the team at Burlish have delivered an incredible new asset for the community. It’s vastly surpassed its goals for attracting riders, and they’ve made it a welcoming space for all. It’s located near on of the most deprived areas in the country, so the team at Burlish have designed everything to be as accessible as possible. The membership fee structure encourages whole families to come along, the cafe welcomes people with their own picnics, and even the local teacher and police force have noted that they’re seeing the benefits of all the bike riding that’s taking place in this new community. Just the sort of thing the world needs more of.
Dean Trail Volunteers
Already recognised by the King himself, the Dean Trail Volunteers keep the Forest Of Dean’s incredibly busy trails in tip top shape, as well as adding to its network. Working in close partnership with Forestry England, they’re often cited as a shining example of how mountain bikers and land managers could work together. They’ve already bagged this award before – will they get it again this year? With so many of you visiting their trails, perhaps you’ll give them your vote – or sign up to help them out on a dig day?
UK MTB Trail Alliance
This is a new kid on the advocacy block in the UK. Founded by Robin Grant, it had been meeting regularly and sharing information long before it went public. Representing trail stewards of all flavours – from cheeky woodland builders through to fee-paying bike parks – this alliance aims to help fill the void in the UK scene by providing a voice specifically on mountain biking trail and access issues. They’ve helped raise awareness on a whole range of issues – from the forced closure of FlyUp 417 to the cuts at trail centres across Wales. They’re also got a highly active Trail Hub, where trail stewards can ask questions and share experiences and knowledge about things like planning applications, Biodiversity Net Gain, funding opportunities, and insurance. It’s not all shovels in the ground, and the UK MTB Trail Alliance is helping bring the community together.
Woburn Bike Trails
Woburn Bike Trails is the crew who keeps the eight miles of woodland MTB trails in Aspley Woods near Woburn up and running. The sandy soils usually make for good riding all year round, though they’ve had some recent storms and floods to contend with. Out in all weathers and pretty much every week of the year, they keep these trails cleared and running – ensuring the land managers continue to grant access to the many riders who travel to the area.
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Voting Instructions
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