Letter from CCMR, republished with permission:
It has been a busy and successful first year for the CCMR. We got organized, formed the non-profit corporation, appointed the Board of Directors, wrote a mission statement, adopted bylaws, opened bank and PayPal accounts, conducted our first general membership meetings, etc. We also created a Facebook page and an Internet website. Additionally, we created, ordered, and received a club logo, stickers, and t-shirts.
To date, we have 22 Individual Memberships, 18 Family Memberships, and eight Business Memberships. Thanks to all our members! We encourage you to direct potential new members and businesses to join online at www.CentralColoradoMountainRid
As a club, we are just starting our work with the Forest Service and others in the area but have accomplished a lot this year. For example: we adopted the Rainbow Trail from Silver Creek to Mears Junction; the Rainbow Trail from Hayden Pass to Oak Creek; and the Continental Divide Trail from Old Monarch Pass to Monarch Pass Hwy 50. We will work with the Forest Service next year to get signage with our logo on these trails. Of particular significance is the Rainbow Trail near Hayden. This portion of the trail was in the Hayden Creek burn area and is presently closed. We’ll work with the Forest Service to reopen it. This should also be good for public relations. [Motorized trail club does good.] We also provided a consolidated response to the Forest Service’s “Proposed Travel Management Plan” in September justifying trails in the area.
We had lots of volunteer activity. This year we supported the Forest Service with a work day on the Rainbow Trail and Columbine Trail. We also participated in a couple of surveys on the RBT in the Hayden fire area. Additionally, we supported the following events: The Shady Burro two-day Enduro, Vapor Trail, Banana Belt bike event, and the Monarch Crest Enduro. We also participated in the BLM/FS meeting on expanding trails in the Four Mile OHV area.
We have big plans for 2017. Our major goal is to continue work with the BLM, FS, and other clubs and organizations in the area resulting in a more cooperative effort on how our lands are managed in Central Colorado.
Other goals for 2017:
- Our biggest push will be work on the flooded section of the Rainbow Trail near Hayden Creek that we adopted. The first ‘big’ work day will be June 3rd. But we will have other smaller group work sessions before that.
- We also want to enhance the entrance/exit to HWY 50 from the other adopted trail, the CDT from HWY 50 to Old Monarch.
- We want to add signage to the Monarch Crest Trail.
- We are working on a method for CCMR members to track volunteer hours while riding and doing trail maintenance.
- We will work with the FS to obtain chainsaw certifications for interested CCMR members. This way we can legitimately count saw work on trails.
- We will strive to be the major point of contact for the Forest Service, BLM, and other organizations for motorized land use in the area. And we will help manage volunteers for such.
- We will explore ways to get positive press in our local papers and other media as we volunteer and meet our accomplishments.
We have accomplished a lot during our short existence, but we are just getting started. Part of our continued success will depend on growing our volunteers and membership, so please encourage friends and businesses to learn about CCMR and to join online at www.CentralColoradoMountainRid
The CCMR Board of Directors thank all our individual and business members for your support this year and we look forward to continued success in 2017.
Chad Hixon – BOD & President
Bob Daniel – BOD & Vice President
Tim Sundgren – BOD & Treasurer
Melissa Mommer – BOD & Secretary
Earl Walker- BOD
Courtney Brown – BOD
Paul Smith – BOD