BELLA VISTA -- Friends of Arkansas Singletrack -- or FAST -- has been organizing volunteers to keep Bella Vista trails groomed and their weeds trimmed back.
The FAST trail adoption program has 126 volunteers, who have each chosen a chunk of trail to look after -- clearing debris, repairing erosion, trimming weeds and raking the trail surface, among other tasks.
Not all volunteers are FAST members.
Charles Williams, who helps organize the program, said the volunteers help to supplement the city and Property Onwers Association's limited trail maintenance budget, which is largely spent clearing trees and doesn't have much left for day-to-day maintenance.
The majority of the volunteers are residents, though some do live out of town, and last year volunteers logged nearly 800 hours -- though Williams said he suspects people may not be recording all of their work.
Volunteers pick a trail section to adopt, meaning they're each responsible for a specific part of the trail system.
Williams said he personally chose the Back 40's signature trail, The Ledges, because it's a very unique section and he wants to be sure it remains as presentable as possible -- and he likes to ensure he's got nice trails to ride.
"I just don't like to ride trails when they're overgrown," he said.
Keeping the trails in good shape also helps the community, he said. It's not uncommon for a mountain biker to travel and check out the trails, then immediately start looking for a job and a place to stay here, he said.
The trail advocacy group has some equipment, including weedeaters, that volunteers can check out to use on the trails, he said.
"It's hard work, I mean, you're out there swinging a weedeater," Williams said.
Workers need to learn about the basics of work but also about how trails are built and the way soil and rock are layered to reduce erosion -- an overzealous volunteer could leave a trail beautiful right until the next rain washes it out, he said.
Chainsaws aren't used by volunteers for liability reasons, though so far there have been no injuries among volunteers aside from minor nicks and bruises, he added.
There's a lot of trail to cover and a lot of work to do on each stretch, especially in the lead-up to a race or other trail event, and the group could always use more volunteers, he said.
Anyone interested in volunteering can contact FAST via its website fasttrails.org, or on the program's Facebook group at FAST Group-TAP (Trail Adoption Program).
One volunteer, Barton Fogleman, said he moved here a few years ago when he retired from his job as a wheat breeder. He previously lived in northeastern Arkansas and Indiana, he said.
"I guess it goes back when I retired a couple years ago. One of the reasons we liked Bella Vista so much is because of all the wooded areas," he said.
The common property leaves a lot of wooded space and trails give residents excellent access, he said.
Fogleman recalled picking up trash -- often very old items, like tires and kids' swimming pools tossed down ravines by homeowners over the years -- as he started hiking, with plans to cover the entire Back 40 over time.
During one of these hikes, he met a FAST member who talked with him about the trail adoption program, which he believed would be a good way to help out, he said.
Fogleman said he's been maintaining the SBAT trail, though it's hard to keep up and he wouldn't mind sharing the work.
The trails have been a great asset for the community and given him a lot of space to hike and sometimes bike, he said.
"It feels like you're just out in the middle of the wilderness... I just want to keep it in good shape and make it accessible," he said.
The work is enjoyable because it's peaceful and he spends a lot of time by himself, though he also occasionally meets other trail users, including locals and other people from all over, he said.
They've all been pleasant company, he added.
Fogleman also said he'd like to encourage everyone to check out the trails because he believes they are underused despite being an excellent amenity.
"There's some really neat stuff out there," he said.
NW News on 06/03/2020