2011 Trail Work Training

Have you ever seen a road runner repave a street?  Or drive the street cleaner?  Or volunteer as a flagger while work is being done on a road?  One of many things that separates trail running from road running is the fact that runners and race directors are citizen stewards of the trails we use.  As a community we are contributing more and more hours of labor each year.

Logging Out Blowdown

When asked recently by an RD who was having troubles getting the FS to issue him a permit for a race, I suggested that he become an asset to the trails community.  I suggested he acquire some skills that he can use to organize and lead groups of volunteers on projects in his local forest.  He liked that idea.  But how does one do that?

Building a Bridge

One way to acquire those skills is to take some classes and learn the newer ways we’re building and restoring trails.  We have two upcoming opportunites in Oregon to take classes from CPR, to Chainsaw Certification to Tread and Drainage – all for free (see the list of classes).

Tread Work

The first long weekend of classes is May 14-16, 2011 in Westfir Oregon (register here).  The second long weekend is June 3-5, 2011 in Allingham, Oregon (register here).  These training weekends are being offered through a combination of volunteers and employees from Deschutes and Willamette National Forests, The High Cascade Forest Volunteers, and the Pacific Crest Trail Association, along with several other groups – at no cost to us.  Register now as the classes fill up.

Oh, and a Conduct the Juices t-shirt to the first person to tell me what Curt’s favorite trail work tool is?  He’s holding it in the photo above.

24 Comments

  1. The one with the brown handle that the person with an orange shirt is wearing is a rhino and the other tool with the yellow handle is a McLeod. Does Curt name his tools like you name your friends????

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