Making connections: Corporate volunteers to help bike trail project

By Zak Brown
Daily Camera
November 7, 2007

Twenty percent of a highly anticipated open space project is expected to be completed in just one day this week, thanks to cooperation between three companies that have an investment in the outdoors.

A combination of employees from Timberland, Go Lite and SmartWool will be working Friday on the trail connector from Heil Valley Ranch to Hall Ranch. Boulder County Parks and Open Space is expecting nearly 100 volunteers at the site, making it the largest company volunteer project the county has had. That large group is expected to develop one mile of the five-mile trail, which is tentatively scheduled to be finished next fall.

"It's a five-mile trail, and they are going to construct over a mile on this day," said Matt Bruce, the education and outreach technician for county open space. "So we're looking to take over a year to complete the entire project, and they're going to a do a fifth of it in a day."

The Boulder County Commissioners approved a plan to build the connector in January 2006. It has been a highly anticipated trail, especially among mountain bikers, who would be able to go between two of the most popular mountain bike spots in the county. Heil Valley is located just north of Lefthand Canyon and Hall Ranch is one mile west of Lyons.

This week's project was partially facilitated by the International Mountain Bike Association and the Boulder Mountainbike Association. Timberland, an outdoor recreation gear and apparel company, is having a conference at Broomfield's Omni Interlocken Resort this week and was looking for a volunteer project for interested employees.

The company contacted Boulder-based IMBA, which suggested the Heil Valley-Hall Ranch connector, to be named the Picture Rock Trail. The BMA then further helped bring the project together on the local level.

"It's huge. It's definitely one of the top three significant trail improvements in the last three years, or maybe even the last decade," said Scott Gordon, membership and marketing manager. "The significance of it is that it connects two of the most popular riding areas in the county."

Two local companies will also be working on the project in addition to New Hampshire-based Timberland. Go Lite is based in Boulder, and SmartWool has a product development team in Boulder. Go Lite makes lightweight outdoor equipment and apparel, such as packs, tents and jackets. SmartWool uses its own wool to make socks, apparel and generally anything that keeps people warm.

All three companies have iniatives to help the environment, which is why they combined on this project. For Go Lite, it was also an opportunity to help the local environment their employees use on a regular basis.

"Half our office is going to be out there, so it's pretty cool because it's definitely our backyard," said Colin True, the field marketing manager at Go Lite. "We thought we know the trails and ride over there all the time, so we wanted to represent and get over there."

When completed, the trail will create one of the largest trail systems in the area for mountain bikers. The Bitterbrush Trail (3.7 miles) and the Nelson Loop (2.2 miles) are open to mountain bikers at Hall Ranch. At Heil Valley Ranch, the Wapiti Trail (2.5 miles) and the Ponderosa Loop Trail (2.6 miles) are open to mountain bikers. The newly constructed Wild Turkey Trail, which was completed in the fall at Heil Valley, is 2.9 miles.

Add the five-mile connector, and there will be 18.9 miles of trails accessible from either open space parcel. A return trip on the connector bumps the mileage up to 23.9.

"It's neat to see the Boulder area starting to embrace mountain biking as a legitimate use of lands. Mountain biking is a low-impact activity, and it's part of the mix," Gordon said. "Because of that, the city and county can tap into a volunteer base that is hugely valuable, not only because of the number of hours, but also because they are resources for good, sustainable trail design."

Gordon helped design the Wild Turkey Trail, and IMBA's Pete Webber is helping to design the Heil-Hall connector. The BMA has already helped break ground on the connector, and the cooperation between government agencies, non-profits and companies could be a good sign for further trail development. Ultimately, IMBA and BMA would like to see connectors from Boulder to Heil Valley, Boulder to Walker Ranch and Boulder to Eldorado Canyon.

"No one organization can do a project of (the connector's) size by themselves," Gordon said. "That's why it's so good to see government agencies, a national non-profit, a local non-profit and private, large company working together. It's a model that has been succesful in other parts of the country, and it's good to see it happening in Boulder."