A rough boulder causeway creates sustainable challenge.

Join IMBA for this two-day Advanced Trailbuilding School. Much more than a trailbuilding primer, this course presents cutting-edge design and building techniques including trail alignment and construction for fun and sustainability, design strategies for highly challenging trails, advanced user-conflict resolution methods, and success stories from around the world.

This two-day workshop indoor-outdoor workshop on Feb. 14-15 is much more advanced than a standard IMBA Trailbuilding Schools. Even if you've attended IMBA events in the past, you'll enjoy this unique high-level workshop tailored specifically for the experienced attendees of the Western Trailbuilders Association Conference.

The advanced workshop is preceded by “Building Better Trails with IMBA,” an optional introductory segment late in the afternoon of Feb. 13 which presents basic natural surface trailbuilding techniques. This intro segment is also a concurrent session in the WTBA Conference.

Workshop details
This unique trailbuilding workshop showcases techniques used in Wales, Scotland and British Columbia. In the United Kingdom, ancient trailbuilding stone craft utilizes rock to ensure sustainability and challenge. In British Columbia, Canadian mountain bikers are using wooden features to fortify their trails.

Roadside rock challenge for mountain bicyclists.		A narrow wooden stunt boardwalk around an ancient tree in British Columbia provides fun without impacting the tree.

Friday’s classroom presentation will showcase success stories from these places, and how they tackled difficult trail problems. Saturday’s outdoor field session will critique recently constructed rock structures. The goal is to teach students how to mimic local natural features to increase trail longevity, interest and thrill.

Many of the following techniques will be shown:
Bringing the trail through rock for technical challenge
Placing rock along a trail or a road to add fun diversions
Armoring steep, eroded trail sections with stone pitching
Using a boulder causeway to bridge soft or sandy areas

Other techniques that will be discussed:
Chokes for traffic calming
Corrals to keep users on trail
Rock slabs for short fall-line sections
Ledges and drop-offs
Wooden features like skinnies, logrides, logpiles, a-frames, teeter-totters and ladder-bridges

Schedule

Thursday, February 13 – Building Better Trails with IMBA [optional] (at the Atlantis)
Late afternoon, approx. 2:30 – 5 PM		Since 1997 the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew program has been advancing the science and techniques of sustainable trailbuilding. Join IMBA's Joey Klein, Rich Edwards, Aaryn Kay and Scott Linnenburger for a dynamic, fun-filled and informative program. This session will explore fundamental trail design concepts that can be applied to paths used by hikers, equestrians, cyclists and others. The Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew has led more than 1,000 trailwork sessions, working in all 50 states and nearly a dozen other countries. This always-popular session is highly recommended for those participating in the Friday/Saturday IMBA Advanced Trailbuilding School who haven’t previously attended an IMBA presentation.
Friday, February 14 – Advanced Trailbuilding School Workshop, Classroom Day (at the Peppermill)
8 AM – 5 PM		The highlight of this all-day classroom session is an elaborate, dynamic multi-media show that presents IMBA’s advanced trail design and construction techniques. Lunch and snacks provided. Topics will include: Success Stories – The world’s best trail systems and why they work. Creative Design – Unique trails for the experienced visitor. Solutions – How to overcome user-conflict and safety concerns. Grade Reversals – The trailbuilder’s essential design tool. Armoring – Ancient techniques to harden singletrack trails with rock. Flow – Creating the important trail rhythm visitors love. Freeriding – Adding challenge to sustainable trail design and construction. Partnerships – Bringing users, agencies, and trailbuilders together successfully. The Future – What’s ahead for trails?
Saturday, February 15 – Advanced Trailbuilding School Workshop, Field Day
8 AM – 5 PM		This all-day field session will take participants to Reno-area trails to examine real world situations, discuss successes and failures, and apply lessons learned through sample trail design and construction exercises. Lunch and snacks provided. Topics will include: Grade Essentials – Using clinometers and trail grade specifics. Re-routes – Salvaging poor design and historic trails. Showcasing the Environment – Highlighting nature and natural terrain. Trail Assessment – Reading the signs water and visitors leave behind. Layout Practice – We’ll test our design skills in tricky terrain. Construction Tips – How to make your cutting-edge design a reality.

Weather and ground conditions for field trips are usually cool, dry, and snow-free. Summarized weather data for February 16 in Reno for years 1994-2002.

They developed their skills during three years as leaders of the professional Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew. Together they’ve assessed, designed, constructed and maintained trails in more than 40 U.S. states, Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, Australia, Mexico, Wales, Scotland and England. They’ve served as lead instructors at more than 100 IMBA Trailbuilding Schools—teaching both trail professionals and volunteer leaders the latest techniques of sustainable trail construction.

Joey and Rich currently lead IMBA's newest resource for land managers and trail stewards, the IMBA Trail Consulting Program. This project builds on the time-tested success of IMBA's Trail Care Crew by providing in-depth professional trail design, construction and maintenance services in a flexible, fee-based format.

Joey and Rich also contributed to "Building Better Trails," a highly regarded trail development manual published by the International Mountain Bicycling Association.

To learn more, visit:

IMBA Homepage: www.imba.com

Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew: www.imba.com/tcc/index.html

IMBA Trail Consulting Program: www.imba.com/about/trail_consulting.html

Info on constructing technical trails: www.imba.com/resources/trail_building/index.html