June 25, 2021
Trail Advocate of the Year (M)
You know that one person who just goes above and beyond what is expected of them? That person who encourages others to get involved, puts in extra hours, never complains, and just loves giving back to their trails?
Every year we love to highlight “Trail Advocate Of The Year” for men and women. This is a special award where the nominee must be nominated by someone from their club, crew or just an admirer of their work. The winners will receive a VIP Pro Deal on a Specialized Bike, Evoc Trail Builder Backpack and Suit & Trail Boss Packable Trail Tool.
It is our pleasure to announce this years ‘Male Trail Advocate of the Year’, Ludovic Lechner, founder of the Mountain Bikers Foundation chapter “MBF Massif des Vosges”.
As president of his local club (65 members) and founder of the Mountain Bikers Foundation chapter “MBF Massif des Vosges”, Ludovic has been heavily involved in the development of sustainable mountain biking for years. Over the last 12 years alone, he has organized (or co-organized) an average of 4 to 5 trail maintenance operations a year (including one organized this year for TCoYT 2021 with his club as well as one co-organized in conjunction with other local clubs).
He is an active figure in making sure that club members participate in these types of events in order to educate them on the importance of maintaining trail access, sustainable mountain biking, and the need to respect other trail users.
By attending meetings with local councils, municipalities, and other trail users’ clubs and associations, he never stops his advocacy for shared trails and for the sustainable development of more trails close to home in his community.
He is also committed to expanding diversity and inclusion in the region, such as making sure that the female members of his club are given a space and a voice to help them implement projects including integration sessions and women-only rides on top of the regular club sessions where everyone is welcome.Ludovic is one of the most respected members of the MBF community here in France. He was spontaneously nominated and unanimously voted on to become a MBF board member last year showing how much he is respected amongst his trail advocacy colleagues. His biggest achievement lies in the fact that he has helped develop sustainable mountain biking in the Vosges region over the last 12 years and has created strong partnerships with municipalities and councils in order to grow the sport of mountain biking for people of all ages, backgrounds and sexes. Historically speaking, the region of Vosges has not been easy to grow our sport but Ludovic has never let this bring him down and continues to be relentless in his fight for sharing trails amongst all users. Despite having a full time job, he continues to dedicate his time to his club of 65 members (and growing) as well as his trail development efforts and as an important member on the MBF board to grow mountain biking all over France.
