Udall spoke at the Golden Peak base area as the Teva Mountain Games mountain biking competition were being held, illustrating an example of the type of outdoor recreational activity his bill would allow. Current law permits ski areas leasing Forest Service lands to allow alpine and Nordic skiing only. Udall is fighting to get his bill to a Senate vote in time for Colorado ski areas to implement changes for their summer recreational users.
Tourism in Colorados ski areas is a critical driver to our states economic engine, especially in the many rural and mountain communities that rely on responsibly using our abundant natural resources, Udall said. This bill will stabilize jobs and stimulate mountain communities by enabling the Forest Service to allow ski areas to offer appropriate activities such as snowboarding during winter and mountain biking and concerts during their off-seasons.
Udall hopes his bill will further promote his Kids to Parks initiative to get kids moving and inspire them to protect the nations wildernesses. The two initiatives go hand in hand to display Colorados amazing outdoor hotspots, he added.
Among supporters of the bill is the International Mountain Bicycling Association, whose spokesman Mark Eller said that more than 100 U.S. ski resorts turn into destinations for mountain biking in the summer. One such destination is the Vail Mountain ski area, which is on both public and private lands.
We appreciate Senator Udalls tremendous leadership on this bill, said John Garnsey, co-president of Vail Resorts. This jobs-promoting bill, which the U.S. Forest Service also supports, will be huge lift to resort communities and Colorados entire tourism economy.
This bill will help pave the way for cities and counties to market their area for trails tourism and mountain biking and to help keep revenue flowing during summer months, said IMBAs Eller. Mountain biking is a sustainable, family-friend activity that gets people out of their cars and exercising on our public lands.
In May, Udall pushed his bill through a hearing of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committees Public Lands Subcommittee, the first step toward getting it passed out of committee and onto the Senate calendar. More information about the bills introduction earlier this year is available HERE.
