The Philadelphia Mountain Biking Association - Mtb trails in Chester County

Below is an email from one of the leaders of a bike club in Chester County regarding a new trail system opening up in that area. There are also apparently trail-building opportunities out there for any one interested. This was forwarded to me by a friend who lives out there - I have no personal knowledge of that area.

Jon

>Hello WCCC Riders,
>Below is an e-mail from Dave Baxter concerning the recent developments
>on the SONOCO property along Rte 322 in East Bradford Twp.
>This news for club MTB riders is a great victory! It means we have an
>excellent MTB trail system right in our back yard. Please read the
>text below for more information.
>Thanks Dave!
>
>Mike Van Ryn
>WCCC Ride Leader
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Dave Baxter [mailto:dave@baxterproperties.com]
>Sent: Thursday, June 07, 2007 6:24 PM
>To: Friends of the Baxters
>Subject: SONOCO UPDATE
>Importance: High
>
>WE WON! I just received word that the East Bradford Board of
>Supervisors decided today to retain ownership of the 238 acre Sonoco
>site, and hire NLT in a consulting capacity only. This is an
>incredible victory for the MTB community, as the township will have
>extensive trails designated for MTB, hikers and a short equestrian
>loop. MTB will be prohibited only on the equestrian loop, and
>encouraged everywhere else. The township retaining ownership,
>which was not legally an option a year ago, is now permitted by law,
>and will ultimately allow us the most security in keeping our trails
>legal to MTB. In contrast, if a land trust took ownership, they
>could do so with the caveat that MTB is allowed, but the possibly of
>them pulling the plug down the road existed.
>
>The trails are NOT officially opened yet, but as of today, the
>township's goal is to have some of the sections opened to the public
>on East Bradford Day in September. Of course, I will continue to
>push to have them opened sooner. There is a plan that was
>presented to and approved by the township that will utilize most of the
>existing trails, while cutting several switch backs in some of the
>steep trails to control erosion and rerouting and closing off a
>few other areas. The township has granted permission to a law
>enforcement agency to use the site for practice drills, and there will
>be a strong township presence in the coming months while the trails are
>mapped out and built, so please be patient and continue to
>avoid the trails for just a little longer.
>
>Hopefully E. Bradford will set a precedence for other municipalities to
>follow in their open space planning by not only allowing but
>promoting mountain biking!
>
>Lastly, as many of you may already know, IMBA (International Mountain
>Biking Association) is holding a trail building workshop on June 23-
>24th at French Creek. I encourage you all to check out the IMBA
>invitation below, and consider registering for all or part of the
>event. IMBA played a HUGE roll in getting this approved, so any
>support would go a long way. If you have not already done so, please
>take a few minutes to join IMBA - it's only a few bucks, and they have
>more power with a stronger membership.
>
>Dave Baxter