The City of Glendale is looking to get more eyes and ears on its trails through the new Trail Safety Patrol program. The program will be similar to the volunteer patrols conducted by the Mountain Bike Unit (MBU) in the Santa Monica Mountains and elsewhere, except they are looking to enlist volunteers from both the hiking and mountain biking communities. News about the program emerged recently through a story on the L.A. Times blog.
Mountain bike patrol applicants will be required to attend CORBA’s free skills clinic, while hikers must be able to hike Brand Motorway in under 2.5 hours. Applicants must be at least 18 years old, in good physical health with a letter from a physician indicating you are capable of participating in the program. A background check and registration as an official City of Glendale volunteer will also be required.
A more complete description of the roles and responsibilities of the Trail Safety Patrol program can be found on the City of Glendale’s website at: http://www.ci.glendale.ca.us/government/council_packets/Reports_062612/CC_8b_062612.pdf
We encourage anyone who is already riding the Verdugo mountains on a regular basis to consider joining the program. You’ll be helping keep the trails safer for everyone, and will be good will ambassadors of the mountain biking community as a whole.
The Trail Safety program is being developed by the City’s Community Services and Parks department. Volunteer training is expected to get underway in August. If you’d like to be notified when the program is ready to accept applications, please email Marc Stirdivant at mstirdivant@ci.glendale.ca.us and the City’s Volunteer Coordinator, Iris Hidalgo, at ihidalgo@ci.glendale.ca.us. Include your name, address, phone number, summary of your experience as a hiker or mountain bikers, and why you’d like to be a member of the patrol. Volunteer patrollers will be expected to spend a minimum of four hours per month on patrol. If you’re already riding the Verdugo mountains regularly, it will be easy to meet the requirements.
