by Matt Konkle
Managing Editor
Every year, the Black Hills Jeep Club hosts an educational outreach event in South Dakota’s Black Hills National Forest that helps with off-road training, provides OHV stickers and shares the Tread Lightly! ethic to attendees.
This go around, the club decided to apply for a Quadratec 50-for-50 Trail Stewardship grant in the hopes of creating a cleanup day around the outreach event.
With grant in hand, 10 club volunteers recently ventured out and spent a day removing 1,500 pounds of trash from popular trails in the forest, while also improving seven trail miles in the process.
“Thank you to the Black Hills Jeep Club for bringing the Tread Lightly! ethos through education and stewardship to one event in this unique and beautiful forest,” said Evan Robins, National Stewardship Programs Manager for Tread Lightly!. “We’re proud to support these efforts alongside Quadratec.”
This South Dakota Black Hills National Forest cleanup event was the 25th of 50 trail and public land restoration events Quadratec will help sponsor in each state by April 2024.
So far through its supported projects, the 50-for-50 Stewardship Grant has accumulated 5,650 volunteer hours with a total value of $168,633, pulled away 95,785 pounds of trash and improved 704 miles of trail.
Quadratec’s ’50-for-50’ stewardship grant fund helps project managers pay for equipment, fees, volunteer support, food, fuel, signage and other miscellaneous costs.
Quadratec has been a supporting partner of Tread Lightly! for more than 20 years, and a longtime fundraiser for Tread Lightly!’s stewardship programs. The company has also promoted Tread Lightly! and other trail restoration efforts through its Quadratec Cares ‘Energize the Environment’ program.
Clubs and individuals are required to be active, supporting members of Tread Lightly! to be eligible to apply for ’50-for-50’ grant funding. To learn more about the Quadratec ’50-for-50 program, visit Quadratec's 50 for 50 Trails Stewardship Grant Initiative.
Recommended Reading:
Quadratec, Tread Lightly! ’50-For-50’ Public Land Cleanup — Maggie Valley, North Carolina
Quadratec's 50 State, 50 Trail Stewardship Initiative Reaches Halfway Mark
