Staten Islanders will put their wheels in motion at the first-ever Mountain Bike Festival at Wolfes Pond Park, featuring rides, giveaways and more.
Organized by the New York City Mountain Bike Association, the free event, to be held on June 27, aims to combine the thrill of mountain biking with environmental stewardship.
It will not only highlight the health and recreational benefits of the sport but also emphasize the importance of keeping local green spaces clean, healthy and litter-free for the benefit of all community members and park users, organizers said.
“The last 20 years, we have been advocating for better trails and healthier trails in cooperation with the NYC Parks Department , and now it’s a moment for us to give back to the community by holding the very first mountain biking festival at Wolfe’s Pond Park,” Dominic Lucente, director of the New York City Mountain Bike Association’s Staten Island chapter, said. Lucente is no stranger to environmental stewardship.
Every first Saturday of the month, the local chapter of the group — the Staten Island Trail Riders — works with NYC Parks staff to upkeep Wolfe’s Pond Park, which is located in the borough’s South Shore. Volunteers clear the park of litter and debris, and pull invasive plants and weeds that can take over the natural environment.
“We clean up any garbage,” Lucente said. “We clean up the corridor of invasive species of weeds, vines and trees. We also cultivate sapling restoration. We try to remove anything that might be killing the saplings so that we can have new growth.
”Bike members provide volunteers with information on minimizing risks while working in natural areas. This covers outdoor hazards, including the year-round threat of poison ivy rashes, strategies for tick prevention, and vigilance regarding dangerous litter such as discarded needles and broken glass. Highlights of the day-long mountain biking festival include rides for bikers of all levels, as well as competitions with prizes, including gift cards from local businesses.
Two 13-mile rides, one each for advanced and intermediate level riders, will take place, as well as a shorter ride for newbies to the sport, and a women’s ride. The event will also have an adaptive bike available for anyone with disabilities who might want to try mountain biking.
There will also be several exciting competitions for advanced bikers to participate in, including the Track Stand Challenge and an Agility Obstacle Course that puts riders’ technical skills to the ultimate test. A “Last Man Standing” race will continue as long as riders maintain forward riding without touching the ground. The last rider at the finish line is the winner.
There will be plenty of non-bike activities to enjoy, too, Lucente said, so even those who do not ride will likely have a fun time. These include an array of food trucks, giveaways for kids and tables aimed at connecting people to the environment.
“We want them to fall in love with nature,” Lucente said. “We want them to come out and be a part of what we are trying to do, which is ultimately to take care of the trails. ” So far, 14 local businesses and groups from Staten Island are signed up to participate with tables at the event, including 103 Tactical, the Juice House and Protectors of Pine Oak Woods.
The National Interscholastic Cycling Association will also be on-site to introduce kids to mountain biking. Lucente said introducing kids to biking is an effective why to get them to protect nature and green spaces.
“If we don’t take care of the trails, the trails will go away,” he said. “And if we don’t foster the younger generations to come out of their bedrooms and away from their computers, tablets and games, and go into the woods and fall in love with it as we did, the community won’t have these green spaces any more. ”. While the event is free to attend, there are fees to register for the rides.
Wolfe’s Pond Park is located at 420 Cornelia Ave. The festival runs 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on June 27. Barbara Russo-Lennon is the transit reporter at amNewYork.
She covers news about NYC’s public transportation system, roads, waterways and other topics related to transit in the Big Apple.while crossing the street in the Bronx: cops ICE at hospital: Masked agents drag man from medical center in Brooklyn, New Yorkers and cops injured in pepper spray chaosThe Knicks superfan who has attended nearly every game since 2001The line that conceived the cathedral: ‘Gothic by Design’ at The MetICE at hospital: Masked agents drag man from medical center in Brooklyn, New Yorkers and cops injured in pepper spray chaos
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