July 2005
Backcountry Snowsports Alliance Awarded $20,500 For Vail Pass Project
July 15, 2005 (Boulder, Colo.) – The National Forest Foundation has awarded a $20,500 grant to the Backcountry Snowsports Alliance (BSA) to help fund a collaborative citizen monitoring and education project at the Vail Pass Winter Recreation Site. The collaborative project, which will be implemented by the motorized and non-motorized communities, is designed to address unmanaged recreation on the 55,000-acre Vail Pass Winter Recreation Area located from Camp Hale (US Highway 24) to Vail Pass (Highway 70). The project will examine both motorized and non-motorized use and educate recreationists using the area through citizen-based monitoring of the designated areas.
“We are thrilled with the grant we’ve been awarded from the National Forest Foundation,” commented BSA President Tom Gordon. “This grant will enable us to manage a volunteer-based program on Vail Pass that will improve the winter recreation experience for all winter sports enthusiasts. We are committed to implementing this program in collaboration with the motorized community to create a great winter recreation experience for everyone.”
The objectives of this project are to enhance the user experience at the Vail Pass Winter Recreation Area, mitigate conflicts, and improve public safety. Enhanced experiences will be measured by comment forms and surveys taken at the trailhead. Integral parts of the project include signage to signify where recreationists should be, grooming to encourage motorized users to stay on designated trails in designated areas, and snowmobiles to allow volunteers to get to some of the more distant locations in the recreation area.
This plan will benefit many recreation groups, including snowshoers, cross country skiers, snowboarders, cat skiers, snowmobilers, and towed skiers/snowboarders (or hybrid users as they are commonly known). Conflicts will be mitigated due to increased education of the uses of the area. Public safety will improve because local emergency agencies will have improved accuracy in finding people in need of assistance in the backcountry.
Founded in 1992, the Backcountry Snowsports Alliance represents the interests of human-powered winter backcountry users, including skiers, snowshoers, and snowboarders, by advocating for the creation, preservation and management of non-motorized areas on public lands. We work to preserve backcountry areas for human-powered use, promote winter backcountry safety and ethics, and cooperatively resolve conflicts among backcountry users.
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