Bell to Provide $100,000 to Three Trail Projects, You Choose Which! 3

You know what's awesome? When bike companies help create bike trails. That's exactly what Bell Helmets is doing with their Bell Built Grant program. Three areas will receive some big bucks toward making new downhill trails, flow flow trails, and pumptracks to life, and you get to help decide which spots will benefit from the program. See anything in your area? Get the scoop in the following press release, and don't forget to vote!

Voting begins today for mountain bikers and general public to help select winners

SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif. (March 7, 2013) – Bell Helmets and The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) today introduce the 12 finalists for the 2013 Bell Built Grants and ask for the public to help vote for the three winners. More than 100 exceptional applications were received from IMBA chapters and clubs as well as land management agencies across the country. Check out this video for an idea of what to expect from the finished goods:

Bell Helmets is providing $100,000 in grants to fund three, mountain bike trail projects that will create places to ride for a broad spectrum of mountain bikers - one each in the categories of bike park/pump track, flow trail and downhill/gravity trail. Out of the 12 finalists, the public will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite project in each category on Bell’s Facebook page that officially went live today. To incentivize the public to vote, there will be weekly sweepstakes giveaways for swag and a grand prize of an all-expenses paid Western Spirit trip for two. The final grant recipients will be chosen based on a combination of public vote and input from Bell and IMBA staff and announced at the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, Calif., on April 19.

"Bell Built is about building more places to ride and growing the rider communities around those trails. The thoughtful proposals from our finalists demonstrate leaders in each community speaking for their local riding communities," said Azul Couzens, Bell Helmets Director of Marketing. “This program was created to give each of these leaders a forum to tell their story to a larger MTB community and to help us involve that larger MTB community in deciding which final three projects to award the grants to.”

The 12 finalists are:

Pump tracks/bike parks

• Bear River Bike Park: Routt County Riders, Steamboat Springs, CO
• Elm Creek Bike Park: Minnesota Off-Road Cyclists, Maple Grove, MN
• Rock Hill Skill Park: Rock Hill Bicycle Club, Rock Hill, SC
• Wolfe's Pond Park: New York City Mountain Bike Association, Staten Island, NY

Flow trails

• Burke Bike Park/Jay Peak Resort: Kingdom Trail Association, Burke, VT
• Coldwater Mountain: Northeast Alabama Bicycle Association, Anniston, AL
• Corral Trail: Tahoe Area Mountain Biking Association, South Lake Tahoe, CA
• Hobbs Hollow Flow Trail: Hoosier Mountain Biking Association, Brown County, IN

Downhill trails

• Overflow Trail: Copper Harbor Trails Club, Copper Harbor, MI
• Sandy Ridge Trail System: NW Trails Alliance, Bureau of Land Management, Brightwood, OR
• The BELLtway Trail/Launch Bike Park: Philadelphia Mountain Bike Association, Philadelphia, PA
• Zapata Falls Rec. Area: Bureau of Land Management, San Luis Valley, CO

VOTE HERE!

IMBA Trail Solutions will design and build the trail projects in 2013-2014 with help from local volunteers. Stay tuned to the Bell Bike Helmets Facebook page for updates, the opportunity to weigh in and a chance to win great prizes.

About Bell

From humble beginnings in the garage of a Southern California speed shop in the 1950’s to the heads of champions in auto, motorcycle and bicycle competitions all over the world, Bell is synonymous with protection and progression. Part of Easton-Bell Sports and based in Scotts Valley, Calif., Bell is the world leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of bicycle and motorcycle helmets and accessories. Bell is online at www.bellhelmets.com.

About IMBA

The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) is a 501(c)3 non-profit educational association whose mission is to create, enhance and preserve great mountain biking experiences. Since 1988, IMBA has been bringing out the best in mountain biking by encouraging low-impact riding, volunteer trailwork participation and cooperation among different trail user groups. IMBA's worldwide network includes 35,000 individual members, more than 750 bicycle clubs, over 200 corporate partners and about 600 retailer shops. Learn more by visiting imba.com or facebook.com/IMBAonFB.