Lakewood, CO – In the wake of Congressional passage of The Ski Area Recreational Opportunity Enhancement Act last week, the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) announced on Wednesday that it has partnered with the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) with the shared aim of increasing visitation and improving summer mountain biking experiences at U.S. ski areas. NSAA and IMBA signed a formal Memorandum of Understanding just as news headlines nationwide announced that Congress had passed the summer activities bill. NSAA and IMBA’s interests often align in Washington D.C., in fact IMBA supported and assisted NSAA with advocacy on the summer activities bill.
“Formalizing our partnership with IMBA is a logical progression, and we look forward to strengthening our symbiotic relationship further and leveraging the resources of both of our organizations toward the end benefit of our valued members,” says NSAA President Michael Berry.
As part of the agreement, IMBA will make available to ski resorts mountain biking expertise and resources including trail consulting, signage, and guides on risk management for mountain bike operations. IMBA will also help participating ski areas market their mountain bike programs through its Destinations program, a web-based mountain bike travel planning resource. Site visitors are able to locate mountain bike opportunities at ski areas, bike parks, bike-friendly accommodations, tour operators and bike shops through the IMBA Destinations online directory and locator map.
A number of ski areas have already joined IMBA. For example, Kirkwood Mountain Resort in California, a long-standing IMBA member, helped pilot the IMBA Sustainable Trails program in 2010, which enables a rider to make an optional $2 donation to IMBA’s Sustainable Trails Fund at the time of his or her lift ticket purchase.
“Even though Kirkwood builds and maintains all our own trails, without IMBA advocacy work and pioneering sustainable trail technology, we would have far fewer riders interested in our resort,” says Ricky Newberry, Kirkwood Mountain Bike Park Manager. “We are excited to continue to grow our support for IMBA and the sport, while leveraging the new Destinations program.”
IMBA has worked extensively with other ski areas including Colorado’s Arapahoe Basin, Vail Mountain, and Winter Park Resort, Utah’s Park City Mountain Resort, Idaho’s Sun Valley Resort, and Seven Springs Mountain Resort in Pennsylvania.