To ensure that there are more legal MTB trails in the world and also in Germany, the major bike manufacturers have intervened and supported such mountain bike projects with more or less money. Specialised, Santa Cruz and Rose are just a few of them, but the much smaller Franconian company YT Industries has also got involved. Since the end of 2020, the American bike manufacturer Trek has been awarding funding for the realisation of legal MTB trails through volunteer work. A new round of applications is now starting - and once again, clubs and other initiatives from Germany, Austria and Switzerland are invited to apply. to apply by 15 June 2023to get a slice of the funding cake for new trails.
Requirementsthefor the promotion of local trail building
According to Trek, the advertised trail project should be able to erase a blank spot on the trail map. In other words, to legally develop or expand a destination or region in terms of mountain biking. Another aspect is a voluntary background. You can only register as a local association or initiative. You also need to have enough volunteers at the start for the trail building itself. Last but not least, it is important that the project has a certain chance of success. Ideally, the municipality or district office should have already signed off on the authorisation. This way, Trek can ensure that the support will pay off.
Trek's services for MTB trail building
In addition to financial support from Trek, the trail builders have also received tools through the Trail Advocacy Programme in the past and were recently invited to a webinar with the trail building and tourism professionals from Allegra Tourism. This webinar content will also be made available to the new clubs from this year's application round.
Previous projects of the Trek Trail Advocacy Programme
Since 2021, a total of 11 trail projects have been supported by the Trek Trail Advocacy Programme. Of these, 8 were German and 4 Swiss projects. One of the first realisations was a Trial construction in Saarbrücken. This means that the city currently has the second largest network of legal trails. The other projects are spread across Germany, for example in Aschau, Bielefeld and Beromünster.
Further information on applying for the Trek Trail Advocacy Programme can be found at: https://blog.trekbikes.com/de/2023/05/10/trek-trail-advocacy-programm-2023/
