Mountain Biker's Update From 2008 National Bike Summit

For Immediate Release 3-7-08
Contact: IMBA Communications Director Mark Eller

More than 500 cyclists, including a record number of mountain bike advocates, attended the National Bike Summit in Washington, DC, this week. IMBA is proud to enter its second year as a leading sponsor of the summit, which is hosted by the League of American Bicyclists. Delegates from around the country converged on Capitol Hill to attend informative conference sessions and flex their political muscle. Mountain bikers focused on improving protections for public lands, asking for better recreational trail opportunities and improving congressional funding for federal land-managing agencies.

Mary Bomar, National Park Service (NPS) Director, opened the event Tuesday night with a speech highlighting the many world-class bicycling opportunities on NPS lands, both on- and off-road. Support for the NPS Centennial Initiative emerged as a major theme for mountain bike advocates.

The initiative proposes robust funding increases of $100 million annually to revitalize national parks in time for the agency’s 100th anniversary in 2016. IMBA signed a formal partnership agreement with the NPS in 2005 to identify and expand appropriate mountain biking opportunities. IMBA has issued an Action Alert urging mountain bikers to support the Centennial Initiative by writing letters to editors of local and regional news outlets.

Bike advocates at the summit also promoted the importance of trail-based recreation to local economies. Longtime corporate supporter Shimano partnered with IMBA to distribute a new study, The Economics and Benefits of Mountain Biking, to Washington decision makers. 

IMBA supporters unable to attend the National Bike Summit can still immerse themselves in the mountain bike movement with the IMBA World Summit, held in Park City, Utah, June 18-21.

IMBA's efforts to promote mountain biking in Washington, DC, are fueled by the Legal Fund.