If anyone isn’t aware yet: mountain bike destinations make a lot of money. Build a solid trail network or two or three of them around a community, and if the word gets out then mountain bikers will likely come from all over to ride the trails, stop for a beer and dinner afterwards, and maybe even stay the night to do it again the next day.
This is happening all over the world, in communities large and small, populated and rural. This has been happening for quite a while in the Sierra Nevadas and most mountain bikers have at least heard of Downieville and the Downieville Classic, which is a historic mountain bike race that helps fund the trails in the area.
The Downieville Classic is put on by the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship (SBTS). The regional trail advocacy group was founded in 2003 and has since built 93 miles of trail and maintained over a thousand miles of trail in the Sierras.
Unfortunately, many of the towns in the Sierras are struggling to stay above water as mining and timber economies have gone by the wayside and left residents without jobs, and towns without a purpose.
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