David Brickley Honored by Rails to Trails Conservancy

The Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) commemorated its 25th anniversary by recognizing individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the rail-trail movement during the past quarter century.

Among the honorees of the inaugural Doppelt Family Rail-Trail Champions Award was longtime Virginia trail advocate David Brickley, who as both a legislator and leader in conservation and recreation planning has made an enormous contribution to the trails movement in Virginia and surrounding states.

Brickley is president of the September 11th National Memorial Trail Alliance, which is promoting the development of a 1,130-mile trail and greenway connecting the three memorial sites of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States: the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pa., the Pentagon Memorial and New York City’s National September 11 Memorial.

Under Brickley’s leadership as the director of the Virginia Department of Conservation and Rec­reation from 1998 to 2002, Virginia was awarded the national gold medal award for the “Best Managed State Park System in America.”

Brickley previously was an elected member of the Virginia House of Delegates from 1976 through 1998, and the legislative sponsor, co-founder and chairman of the Virginia Railway Express, Virginia’s commuter rail system. He also served as an officer and trustee of the East Coast Greenway Alliance, and as the Virginia State Committee Chair.

“The rail-trail movement has been extremely fortunate to have many senior elected officials and parks staff as strong supporters of our mission,” says RTC President Keith Laughlin. “David Brickley heads that list. His work on behalf of trails and greenways in Virginia during the past 30 years is a tremendous gift to his state and visitors from across the country.”

Additionally, Brickley personally purchased a 16-mile out-of-service railroad corridor in King George County, Va., to protect it from being lost to development. As president of the Dahlgren Rail­road Heritage Trail Alliance, his goal is to work with other volunteers to make this rail-trail project a part of the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail.

Congratulations.  And thanks for all your hard work, David!

Ray LaHood says Rail-Trails Have “Done More For Health Care Than Anything We’ve Done in America”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Continuing a growing shift in public health strategy toward active transportation as a crucial aspect of preventative health care, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood said last week that encouraging more biking and walking is one of the most important things we can do in the nation’s battle against obesity and related illness.

Speaking at Rails-to-Trails Conservancy’s (RTC) 25th anniversary reception in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, October 1, Sec. LaHood said the rail-trail program “has done more for health care than anything we’ve ever done in America. Rail-trails have contributed so much to people’s good health over the last 25 years—also preventing heart disease, and providing the kinds of opportunities people have looked for, for a long, long time.” [continue reading…]

Backcountry.com, “the largest online specialty retailer of premium outdoor gear,” will bring a $20M investment and 200 new jobs to Christiansburg.

The company operates 10 specialty ecommerce websites:  Backcountry.com, SteepandCheap.com, Dogfunk.com, WhiskeyMilitia.com, CompetitiveCyclist.com, RealCyclist.com, Bonktown.com, HuckNroll.com, Chainlove.com, and DepartmentofGoods.com.  Combined, they sell more than 1,000 brands.

CEO Jill Layfield said about the move:  “When deciding on a location, Virginia just made sense. It’s not only a strategically viable location operationally, it’s a beautiful place where outdoor sports are part of the lifestyle, and that’s important to us.”

Undoubtedly, amenities such as the New River Trail, the Huckleberry Trail, proximity to the Appalachian Trail and New River, and the region’s world-class biking and hiking made a difference in the company’s decision.

Read the press release at the Governor’s website, and more at Roanoke.com.

VBF has been awarded a Department of Motor Vehicles Highway Safety Grant – the purpose of the grant is to provide bicycling traffic skills education on college and university campuses in Northern Virginia, Richmond, and the Virginia Beach / Norfolk region. On October 24th VBF partners with Virginia Commonwealth University for the first of these courses. College and University campuses are prime targets for cyclist education, thousands of students, leave home to live on or near campus with a bike to get to and from classes and other locations. The problem, many of these new college students haven’t ridden a bike in urban areas, are fearful of traffic, and as a result ride unpredictably in their efforts to “staying out of the way.” VBF will conduct courses will be based on the classroom portion of the League of American Bicyclists Traffic Safety courses. The University of Georgia has recently conducted similar classes – BikeAthens. To register for the VCU course go to www.vabike.camp8.org/events