Colorado getting in on the micro-donation act with LuvTrails

FORT COLLINS, CO – Northern Colorado mountain bikers are getting in on the micro-donation act with the latest partnership agreement between LuvTrails/Trail Care and Colorado Mountain Bike Association (COMBA).

Combined with existing agreements with Boulder Mountainbike Alliance (BMA) and Overland Mountain Bike Association (OMBA), Northern Colorado is fast becoming the center of the new trend to use geolocation to make it easy for trail users to make small donations to the volunteer organizations who look after the trails they ride.

LuvTrails with its mobile app and Trail Care with the capability to connect Strava rides to geofenced trails (or #geotrails) have recently merged their unique mobile and web-based technology platforms to revolutionize the way trail users contribute to the building and maintenance of trails.

By geolocating a trail user and matching the trails in the database LuvTrails inform the user who is the volunteer group responsible for the trails and with one tap make a micro-donation directly to that group.

A micro-donation could be anything from a preselected donation of as little as 1c per mile on a geotrail to a one-time pledge of $20 on the app.

LuvTrails CEO Arrie Rossouw said the LuvTrails vision is to change the current habit of a bigger donation once a year (to a nonprofit head office) to a new culture of giving where trail users – mountain bikers, hikers, runners, equestrians – pledge smaller amounts frequently and directly to the responsible trail groups and wherever they ride.

“Typically trail groups that partner with us are targeting the thousands of visitors from out of town or state that enjoy the trails over a weekend but are not in a position to do volunteer work on the trails or become active paid members. Now everybody can donate to the trails they love to ride,” he said.

To add fun to the new “culture of giving” LuvTrails are also partnering with national brands and local retail partners, like bike shops, breweries, coffee shops, and restaurants, to “reward” donors for their contributions.

“We are tapping into existing alliances of volunteer groups and sponsors to create a trail-friendly ecosystem of users, supporters, and visitors to build and maintain sustainable trails for public use,” said Rossouw.

Gary Moore, executive director of COMBA, adds “Colorado has a trail maintenance backlog in the tens of millions of dollars across the state and needs new sources of funding to keep up with the high volume of trail visitors.”

More than 70% of Colorado residents get outdoors regularly and it is still one of the top destinations for travelers in the US. New strategies are needed to maintain Colorado’s beauty and provide the type of quality experience people have come to expect.

“Making it easy and convenient to support the groups that make these experiences possible is a great step in the right direction” Moore continues. “Trail users are already using phones with other apps to find the trails and plan their trips, LuvTrails completes the experience by providing a convenient means to develop a habit of supporting the trails you love.”

LuvTrails expect to add at least five more Colorado trail organizations to its platform during the winter months ready for the inflow of mountain bike visitors in spring.

For more information visit www.luvtrails.com and www.comba.org.