Whether it’s commuting to work on a fixie or bombing the trails at Belle Isle, we all know Richmonder’s love their bikes.
Whether it’s commuting to work on a fixie or bombing the trails at Belle Isle, we all know Richmonder’s love their bikes. So it’s no surprise that Richmond is one of the finalists for the Bell Bicycling grant project.
Winners receive $100,000 from Bell to go towards building new bike trails, facilities, and improving local parks. But, we haven’t won anything just yet.
The winners of the Bell grant are determined by votes. Anyone can vote and the Richmond Regional Ride Center is still competing against parks in Georgia, Tennessee and New York.
Richmond Regional Ride Center is involved with the management of mountain bike trails in Pocahontas State Park and Richmond’s James River Park System (Belle Isle). The ride center has big plans for Richmond bike trials in the event that they win the Bell grant money. They plan on improving the existing trails as well as more than doubling the total miles of trails.
“This project will seek to rehabilitate 15 miles of existing mountain bike trail and construct an additional 20 miles of trail,” according to a statment on the Bell grant’s website. The project includes approximately 15 miles of stacked-loop singletrack, and an additional 5 miles of flow trail.
Improving existing trails is part of the plan as well. New trails will include two loops suitable for riders of all ages, and bicycles pulling child-trailers.
These trails could open up more of what the parks have to offer. It could decrease congestion in the parks and allow people to reach different natural vistas.
There are even plans for improving the biking aspects of Belle Isle.
James River Park Manager Nathan Burrell says in their Bell promotional video, “If you care about trails, not just for Cycling, but if you care about trails for running for hiking, for nature appreciation; we need you to be going to the bell website and we need you to say Richmond is the place that deserves this Bell grant.”
Bell holds their votes by region and winners from the West Coast and Central regions have already been announced. However voting for east coast contestants has just recently gone live. The east coast winner will be announced on May 19th.
Lets hope Richmond can muster enough votes.
To vote and for more information about the project, visit the Bell website here.
