How Does RTF Allocate Funds?
Supporting Young Riders
We are especially committed to supporting young riders by giving them the resources needed so they can discover the adventure and joy of riding on trails and roads. We have funded trail fees for participants in Little Bellas programs, and scholarships for Catamount Family Center mountain bike programs. We've also supported individual young riders with race expenses, travel costs, and equipment, and RTF has supported the UVM Cycling Team.
Maintaining Opportunities for Riding and Racing
We honor Richard’s community spirit and love of cycling by strengthening opportunities for riding and racing for everyone.
The Annual Richard's Ride provides riding opportunities for all abilities, and the Annual Kids' Criterium allows kids to experience riding on the same circuit as elite racers. The Green Mountain Bicycle Club members have volunteered their time to help with all aspects of these events.
We have supported Catamount Outdoor Family Center’s land purchase, and the acquisition of a SnowDog to groom the winter biking trails. RTF is the title sponsor of the Green Mountain Stage Race’s Burlington Criterium, the premier stage race in the Eastern US.
Education and Advocacy
In addition to encouraging our young people to get involved with cycling, we want to keep them safe when they are out on the roads. We fundraise to support educational and advocacy programs to advance the cause of safe roads for all who use them. We work closely with Local Motion, a Vermont organization that promotes save roads for all users.
Education
We are proud to be a lead sponsor of Local Motion’s “Streets for Everyone” program. The program advocates for building local campaigns for safer streets and roads. Additionally, Local Motion (LM) conducts a program called “Bike Smart” through which they transport bicycles to elementary schools throughout Vermont to teach children safe riding practices and for some children, to introduce them for the first time to the joy and freedom experienced when riding a bike. The Bike Smart program impacts more than 2000 students each year.
We created a sign that will be prominently displayed on the LM Bike Smart trailer with a strong message to drivers who will see it on the road. Your donations helped to fund the creation of this sign which will remind drivers to yield to cyclists. The trailer has and will continue to travel 1,000’s of miles per year, resulting in an unknown number of impressions. This can save a life!
Advocacy
RTF directly supports Local Motion who works with the Vermont Highway Safety Alliance and VTrans to prevent tragedies such as Richard’s and make our roads safe for everyone. Our common goal is to develop legislation that will protect vulnerable users of the road through changes in driving laws, increased enforcement and infrastructure enhancements.
The Green Mountain Bicycle Club includes bike safety information from RTF in the GMBC newsletters. The GMBC also includes the RTF logo on their jerseys. RTF and GMBC work together and share resources to make our roads safer for everyone.
