EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) – A ribbon cutting ceremony was held Saturday morning at Lowes Creek County Park, dedicating a new bike path.
Thanks to a partnership between the 906 Adventure Team, the Community for Outdoor Recreation, Biking and Adventure, or CORBA, and Eau Claire County Parks and Forests, the Eau Claire region now has a new place to put some dirt.
“It’s truly a community effort with everyone involved,” said Nathan McCorkle, the area’s adventure team leader. “We had an army of volunteers on site cleaning up the clearing, clearing the land, putting up fencing, and the trail was built in just a few days.”
With banks, bumps and A-frames galore, McCorkle emphasizes the area as a course for all skill levels.
“The features are all geared toward beginners,” McCorkle says. “They’re low-impact, almost all of them have a space where you can get around the bike if you’re not comfortable. So it’s just a way to get comfortable on the bike.”
For those worried about not having a mountain bike, McCorkle said, “You can come here with a city bike, you can really use any bike. You don't have to have a mountain bike.”
McCorkle says the rave reviews are already coming in, including from her two children, Connor and Katelyn.
“I’ve already seen, working here, more people using the park than I ever have before,” Nathan said. “I think one of the coolest things we’ve seen so far is the amount of laughter and ‘woo-hoo!’ and everything we’ve seen come out of this space since it was built.”
“It’s cool,” Connor confirmed.
“Yeah, I think it's pretty cool to see people riding bikes and then discovering mountain biking and trails and stuff,” Katelyn added.
The beginner course is the first phase of a larger project at Lowes Park, with the second phase adding another larger, more challenging course to Lowes later. After today's event, McCorkle is focused on the next step.
“We’ve had tremendous support so far throughout the design phase, and certainly tremendous support from volunteers and local businesses to get this project off the ground, so we’re looking to the future to continue to fundraise for this project and hopefully build it as quickly as possible,” McCorkle said.
You can find more information on how to donate to the current project or general information about the project itself. here.
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