Trail Awareness | CeMeNemba

2011 Year in Review

by Brian | Feb 1, 2012 | Mountain Biking, Trail Awareness, Trail Building

December is a great time to look back and take stock of what the past twelve months have brought to bear. Typically, at this time of year, we are inundated with end of the year reviews about the most popular movies or books, who has died, top news stories and the like. So it’s probably not a big surprise that here, for your perusal, is a look at what CeMeNEMBA was able to do over the course of 2011.

The trail development at both the Quarry Road and Pine Ridge recreation areas in Waterville has progressed in a major way since the fall of 2010. In 2011, trails designed to bring the two networks closer were built thanks to an agreement with Colby College (and others). Nearly 75% complete, these trails will eventually provide a continuous track that runs from one side of town to the other. Some of the work involved bringing in an excavator to correct water issues on the Pine Ridge Loop as well the building of two bridges – one for biking and hiking, the other for both snowmobiles and non-motorized use.

On the Quarry Road trails, a one mile loop was built in the field that allows for some quick jaunts and fun-filled runs. This helps round off the QR experience with a wide range of trails for beginners to experts. These trails saw year round riding and a Winter Festival that accommodated almost 700 people. The number of Fat Bikes showing up at off-season rides has grown and because of that and other good work being done through CeMeNEMBA, there has been a good deal of excellent press coverage. The first Family Mountain Biking Festival was held on the eve of the summer’s big hurricane and despite the impending weather, we still had a healthy number show up to ride and enjoy post-ride festivities that included live music and a hearty cook-out.

Routine maintenance and drainage work was done on both trails and because of the CeMeNEMBA volunteers and dedicated board, these trails will serve our membership well in 2012. Please make sure you renew your membership for 2012 to help CeMeNEMBA continue to provide some of Maine ’s best riding. And while you are at it, invite a friend to join as well.

Then go for a ride….

For those of you that need a tax write-off or another tax deduction (it’s not too late) feel free to write a check to CeMeNEMBA and send it to 40 Nickerson Lane Rome , 04963…………. NEMBA is a non-profit organization.

Thanks for everyone’s support in the past year.

Brian

Pine Ridge Improvement Project

by Brian | Jul 8, 2011 | Mountain Biking, Trail Awareness, Trail Building

CeMeNEMBA, in cooperation with Waterville’s Parks and Recreation Department, Kennebec Messalonskee Trails and Inland Hospital recently completed a trail improvement project in the city-owned Pine Ridge Recreation Area located on 150 wooded acres in the heart of Waterville. This most recent project was made possible with support from Inland Hospital, Live Healthy and Greater Waterville PATCH, the local Healthy Maine Partnership, as well as in-kind donations from CeMeNEMBA members and other trail groups including the local snowmobile club.
Since the trails opened to the public in the summer of 2010, the recreation area has become a destination for people of all ages, interests and abilities from local communities and beyond. This project involved excavation work and bridge building which helped improve an additional two miles of trail to the popular network. The trail improvement and water removal project required the services of a hired contractor and excavator to repair areas that were substantially damaged by natural elements and inappropriate usage. The excavator improved the surface of the trail, installed culverts, and created rock barriers to keep out unauthorized motorized users. Volunteers from CeMeNEMBA, other trail groups, and the community helped build bridges, water bars, and “bog boards”.
Matt Skehan, Director of Waterville’s Parks & Recreation Department noted his appreciation for the recently completed work: “In today’s economy we sometimes find it difficult to simply maintain what we have, let alone make (major) improvements to existing facilities and structures. Without help from groups like CeMeNEMBA, KMTrails, and Inland, many of our parks and trails would not get the attention they deserve. We’re lucky to be in a community where folks care enough about their surroundings that they’re willing to volunteer their own time to make things better for all of us.”