New Trails, New Faces and New Opportunities

The WMMBA crew took a break from budget discussions, event planning and committee formation to spend a golden hour at Manhattan Park.  

We talked with Josh M. from TrailSense about his progress, vision and ideas for the project.  We learned about his efforts to improve sustainability,  the benefits of compacting newly constructed trails and both immediate and long term maintenance needs.  We are working to keep folks off the trail during construction so we can keep momentum going.  

The excitement level was high when talking with Trail Coordinator Brian Miller about all of his plans for engaging youth volunteers including intern/project apprentice Cormac who was on site giving input and asking questions.  

Brian Miller is a long time WMMBA volunteer and will be one of the many faces supporting our trails.

On the topic of new faces,

Board President Matt Schmuker has been graced with an opportunity for an International relocation with his family.  This Winter he will be moving to Ireland.  

During his tenure with WMMBA he was a major driving force behind website renovations, trail signage improvements, special events and was critical in helping WMMBA engage with the trail riding community.  

We are excited for his opportunity and grateful for all of his efforts.

This month Dan Frayer will be transitioning into the role of president of WMMBA.  Dan has been on the Michigan mountain bike scene since 1998 with experiences in youth programming, event promotion and community outreach.  

Dan is a Special Education teacher in Kentwood and looking forward to supporting trail coordinators and volunteers.  

Please join us on Thursday, November 30th at 6pm.  The WMMBA crew and Dan will be on site  at Switchback for a live Q and A.  We can talk about trails, bikes and all things WMMBA related.  

He will be sharing updates on current projects, plans for the annual meeting and new volunteer opportunities including:

Trail Coordinator at Merrell (1 of 2 available positions)

Trail Coordinator at The Grand Rapids Bike Park 

Trail Adopter openings at the Ionia Recreation Area, Merrell and CSGA.

Special Events/Community Outreach Committee Members

In other news, Ball Perkins is under construction!  

20+ volunteers put rakes in the dirt and cleared the corridor on Saturday, November 11th.  We made great progress on the green loop and look forward to scheduling future volunteer opportunities.  Stay tuned to our social media for updates.

Thank you to all of our WMMBA members, volunteers and community partners for your continued engagement and support. We can’t build and care for all of our trails without you.

WMMBA