The more than 15 miles of mountain biking trails in Sugar Land are being maintained by volunteers with a local group.
As a local branch of the International Mountain Biking Association, the Fort Bend Mountain Bike Association was founded in 2019. After illegal paths began to appear around the area, locals and the city came to an agreement to establish official ones.
The city’s mountain biking trails are constructed and maintained by the all-volunteer organization. It consists of 36 committed “trail captains” who are tasked with maintaining specific sections of the routes.
While the city periodically assists with more extensive trail cleaning, the nonprofit handles most of the work. The group devoted 900 volunteer hours to repair the trails following Hurricane Beryl, which is no minor feat.
The bike routes are constructed and maintained by the group at an annual cost of between $40,000 and $45,000.In addition to several companies that contribute, it has about 400 members who pay dues and help fund the trails. The annual cost of an individual membership is $50.
“This is all funded through our efforts,” stated Dave Burdette, who serves as the board of directors’ chair. “We raise all the money to pay for insurance, gas, tools, anything we need to build these trails.”
Burdette started out as a volunteer with the organization. He used to train for ultramarathons by running on the trails.
Burdette took part in triathlons as well. After two of his training partners were struck by inattentive cars on the road, he started riding on the mountain bike paths.
“I decided that I didn’t want to ride on the road anymore, that it was getting too unsafe, but I loved the bike and I loved being in the woods and the trails,” he stated. “So, I switched to riding my bike on the trails and just absolutely fell in love with our trails.”
The association’s contract with the city to continue creating and maintaining trails on city property was recently extended.
“These trails are some of the most popular trails in the area, if not the most popular,” Burdette stated. “The reason they’re so popular is there’s something for everybody.”
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