Local cyclist funds children’s cycling education at Valmont City Park
$50,000 grant from Dalbey Foundation buoys Boulder bike park plans
Boulder, CO - Teaching kids to ride a bike will soon get a little easier in Boulder, thanks to a $50,000 grant from the Dalbey Foundation. The grant will be used to add educational features to the bike park slated for construction at Valmont City Park later this year.
Fundraising efforts for the park have been led by volunteer and local cycling enthusiast Bobby Noyes, owner of Rocky Mounts. The Valmont Bike Park Committee, a volunteer-led committee of local advocacy organization Boulder Mountainbike Alliance, secured the grant. ”Reaching out to Russ and inviting him to share in the development of this project seemed like such a natural fit,” says Noyes. “He’s passionate about the sport and finding ways to encourage kids to take up cycling.”
Founded in 2005 by local entrepreneur and former competitive cyclist, Russ Dalbey, the Dalbey Foundation is the charitable arm of Dalbey Education, Dalbey’s business headquartered in Westminster, CO.
According to Dalbey Foundation spokesperson Susannah Christy, “The opportunity to invest in Valmont Bike Park was a natural fit for the Dalbey family. The project promotes everything they care about - families and children, education, health and fitness - in this case, promoting health and fitness through cycling. We are so excited to be part of this project and the opportunity to collaborate with the city of Boulder.”
”This donation benefits Valmont Bike Park by enhancing facilities to help children and families learn how to ride safely and experience the rush of singletrack biking, dirt jumping, and cyclocross racing. The Boulder Mountainbike Alliance is energized by the community’s outpouring of volunteerism and financial support for the Bike Park,” said Christopher “Botsy” Phillips, President of the Boulder Mountainbike Alliance.
So far over 400 members of the community have donated $115,000 in a model of cooperation between the City of Boulder and its citizens. The bike park is one of several features planned for the 200-acre Valmont City Park, located at the intersection of Valmont and Airport Roads.
Valmont City Park is a phased Parks and Recreation Department development project for this year. Phase one of the park includes the development of a multi-discipline cycling park with a vast array of trail networks and cycling elements as well as an 18-hole disc golf course.
About Valmont City Park
To learn more about Valmont City Park, contact Paul Bousquet, Marketing and Communications Manager for Boulder’s Parks and Recreation Department at 303-413-7239 or visit www.bouldercolorado.gov. To donate to or volunteer for Boulder MountainBike Alliance, please visit www.valmontbikepark.com or contact Mike Eubank at mikeeeubank@comcast.net.
