Bikepacking Roots – Learn More!
Update June 11, 2020: Lizzy became the VP of the board during the BPR board retreat November 2019. She’s recently finished the brand guidelines and marketing plan for the organization, working hard with its ED, Kurt Refsnider, and the entire board.
Woohoo!!! Lizzy recently joined the Bikepacking Roots Board of Directors as their marketing lead. Lizzy will be working closely with Executive Director Kurt Refsnider and various board members to develop a marketing and public relations plan for the organization.
Mission: Bikepacking Roots is dedicated to the support and advancement of bikepacking and the conservation of the landscapes through which we ride.
The Organization’s Goals are to:
- Create high-quality, enjoyable, accessible bikepacking routes and route networks in geographic regions throughout North America.
These routes, some with a trail emphasis and some with a dirt road
emphasis, will include options for multiple distances (100-2000+ miles),
will be well mapped, and relevant trip-planning information will be
readily available for no cost in digital formats that can be easily printed. - Provide and promote visibility and access for the bikepacking community.
Bikepackers needs to gain greater recognition from land management
agencies as a legitimate user group, particularly in the context of
access and policy decisions. Local land managers and municipalities will
be informed of these routes and their potential to attract new users
and tourism income. - Foster
strong connections between bikepackers and landscapes to promote
landscape conservation and encourage responsible backcountry ethics.
As bikepacking routes traverse large swaths of landscape, bikepackers
benefit from large-landscape conservation efforts, and more needs to be
done to encourage such a conservation ethos, especially in the mountain
bike community where many individuals seem to equate “conservation” with
“Wilderness,” places where bikes are banned. Bikepacking Roots will aid
in bikepackers’ connections to landscape through broadening their
understanding of the natural history of a region, becoming informed of
conservation challenges in the region, and sharing how the individual
bikepacker can help.
For more detailed organizational information, check out their 2017 annual report and preliminary 2018 annual report, as well as their Bylaws and 2016 Strategic and Business Plan.
