Ohio grant helps to expand trails

By Zach Tuggle
Mount Vernon News
July 13, 2006

LOUDONVILLE - Through grant money received by the Department of Natural Resources' Division of Forestry, the number of trails designed specifically for mountain bikers at Mohican State Park will soon be expanded. The Division of Forestry is working in conjunction with the Mohican Trails Partnership to spend the grant money in a beneficial manner. In turn, the partnership has donated nearly 7,600 hours of volunteer labor to the project.

The partnership consists of several groups: The Mohican/Malabar Bike Club, the Ohio Division of Forestry, Mohican State Park, the Ohio Horseman's Council, Cowboys For Chirst and The Mohican Hiking Club.

The Division of Forestry received the $80,000 grant from the National Recreational Trail Fund, which is funded by the Federal Highway Administration. The Division of Forestry must spend money out of pocket to fund the trail-building projects. The grant will repay the Division of Forestry only what it spends, up to the $80,000.

"The grant went to the Division of Forestry," said Tim Humphrey, forest manager for Mohican State Forest. "It doesn't include any of Mohican State Park's property. It is just for improvements to the bridal, snowmobile and mountain biking systems at Mohican."

According to Humphrey, the total valued cost of the grant money and the value of the volunteered labor already exceeds the $193,000 mark.

Mountain biking, once thought of as an extreme and somewhat radical sport, has evolved enormously over the past decade, thanks largely in part to biking enthusiasts such as Ryan O'Dell. O'Dell, a member of and a spokesman for the Mohican/Malabar Bike Club, has been working to develop several of the bike trails at the park. Eight miles of bike trails are currently available to cyclists, with the likely addition of eight more within the month after a few requirements for the trail are met.

"Forestry will walk through the trail as a group and identify any issues," said O'Dell of what needs to be done before the eight new miles of trail will open. "The signage will then be put up and we'll be officially open to the public."

By the end of the year, O'Dell hopes to have a total of nearly 30 miles of bike trails available to mountain bikers. Once this 30-mile loop is finished, it will possibly be the largest continual mountain bike trail in Ohio.

The park has several miles of multiuse trails. Originally built as access roads for logging and oil wells, they accommodate bikers, hikers, walkers and joggers, and are also used as equestrian trails. However, according to O'Dell, the best mountain bike trails are ones that are designed specifically for mountain biking. Other trails do not have a "flow" to them, meaning they are not built to follow the contour of the land in a way that makes them exciting for the cyclist. All of the new bike trails have been built according to guidlines set by the International Mountain Bike Association, as well as standards set by the Division of Forestry.

O'Dell said the addition of bike-specific trails provides a mutual benefit, allowing horsemen to experience the trails with less likelihood of the horses being spooked by the faster-moving bicycles. Cyclists will enjoy their experience more on trails designed specifically for bike traffic. However, the new mountain bike trails and the horse trails are available to hikers and runers as well.

"We are traversing the same section of forest," said O'Dell of the mountain bike and horse trails. "We're keeping the mountain bike trail far enough from the horses so it doesn't spook them. We limited the trail crossings to avoid conflict."

In addition to expansion of the mountain bike trails, grant money has been used to expand equestrian use of the park. Volunteers for the Ohio Horsemen's Council have added a new day use area off of Ohio 97, across from the existing horsecamp, for equestrians who plan to ride for only one day. This new area was built to help reduce the horse traffic in the overnight horsecamp area, and includes a new outhouse-like restroom and a dock from which handicapped riders can mount horses.

For maps, Mohican/Malabar Bike Club membership applications and more information, visit Y-Not Cycling and Fitness in Mount Vernon. Maps and a kiosk are also available for trail users at the park's main entrance on Ohio 3.

Help | Site Map | Copyright



	Ohio grant helps to expand trails By Zach Tuggle Mount Vernon News July 13, 2006 LOUDONVILLE - Through grant money received by the Department of Natural Resources' Division of Forestry, the number of trails designed specifically for mountain bikers at Mohican State Park will soon be expanded. The Division of Forestry is working in conjunction with the Mohican Trails Partnership to spend the grant money in a beneficial manner. In turn, the partnership has donated nearly 7,600 hours of volunteer labor to the project. The partnership consists of several groups: The Mohican/Malabar Bike Club, the Ohio Division of Forestry, Mohican State Park, the Ohio Horseman's Council, Cowboys For Chirst and The Mohican Hiking Club. The Division of Forestry received the $80,000 grant from the National Recreational Trail Fund, which is funded by the Federal Highway Administration. The Division of Forestry must spend money out of pocket to fund the trail-building projects. The grant will repay the Division of Forestry only what it spends, up to the $80,000. "The grant went to the Division of Forestry," said Tim Humphrey, forest manager for Mohican State Forest. "It doesn't include any of Mohican State Park's property. It is just for improvements to the bridal, snowmobile and mountain biking systems at Mohican." According to Humphrey, the total valued cost of the grant money and the value of the volunteered labor already exceeds the $193,000 mark. Mountain biking, once thought of as an extreme and somewhat radical sport, has evolved enormously over the past decade, thanks largely in part to biking enthusiasts such as Ryan O'Dell. O'Dell, a member of and a spokesman for the Mohican/Malabar Bike Club, has been working to develop several of the bike trails at the park. Eight miles of bike trails are currently available to cyclists, with the likely addition of eight more within the month after a few requirements for the trail are met. "Forestry will walk through the trail as a group and identify any issues," said O'Dell of what needs to be done before the eight new miles of trail will open. "The signage will then be put up and we'll be officially open to the public." By the end of the year, O'Dell hopes to have a total of nearly 30 miles of bike trails available to mountain bikers. Once this 30-mile loop is finished, it will possibly be the largest continual mountain bike trail in Ohio. The park has several miles of multiuse trails. Originally built as access roads for logging and oil wells, they accommodate bikers, hikers, walkers and joggers, and are also used as equestrian trails. However, according to O'Dell, the best mountain bike trails are ones that are designed specifically for mountain biking. Other trails do not have a "flow" to them, meaning they are not built to follow the contour of the land in a way that makes them exciting for the cyclist. All of the new bike trails have been built according to guidlines set by the International Mountain Bike Association, as well as standards set by the Division of Forestry. O'Dell said the addition of bike-specific trails provides a mutual benefit, allowing horsemen to experience the trails with less likelihood of the horses being spooked by the faster-moving bicycles. Cyclists will enjoy their experience more on trails designed specifically for bike traffic. However, the new mountain bike trails and the horse trails are available to hikers and runers as well. "We are traversing the same section of forest," said O'Dell of the mountain bike and horse trails. "We're keeping the mountain bike trail far enough from the horses so it doesn't spook them. We limited the trail crossings to avoid conflict." In addition to expansion of the mountain bike trails, grant money has been used to expand equestrian use of the park. Volunteers for the Ohio Horsemen's Council have added a new day use area off of Ohio 97, across from the existing horsecamp, for equestrians who plan to ride for only one day. This new area was built to help reduce the horse traffic in the overnight horsecamp area, and includes a new outhouse-like restroom and a dock from which handicapped riders can mount horses. For maps, Mohican/Malabar Bike Club membership applications and more information, visit Y-Not Cycling and Fitness in Mount Vernon. Maps and a kiosk are also available for trail users at the park's main entrance on Ohio 3.


Help \| Site Map \| Copyright