The North Shore Times posted an article a couple weeks about some teenagers in Ku-ring-gai outside Sydney who are petitioning the town council to authorize mountain bike trails in a local park. The teens became frustrated when the tracks and stunts they built were being torn down by the council. So far they’ve collected over 100 signatures on their online petition and they hope to present a proposal to the town council soon.
This is a really good illustration of the right way to get new mountain bike trails approved and constructed. First, the teens have a passion for the sport and they’re willing to put in the work to organize and build trails. They also understand (now) that to get trails built they need to work with local government to get official authorization and support. Once they are able to demonstrate the community’s desire for mountain bike trails through the online petition, the town council should be very open to their proposal.
Judging from this article I’d say these kids are likely to follow through with their plan and once it’s approved I’m sure they’ll be enthusiastic about organizing others to help them build the trails. An IMBA case study in the making? We’ll see …
