By Shannon Lukens.

 

Routt County Riders has announced the group has received a $50,000 grant from Yampa Valley Medical Center Foundation.

It’s part of the Community Health Benefit Fund which will help improve bike safety outreach and education in the local community. Routt County Riders will use it to support their school safety programs and distribute more bike helmets.

Press Release from Routt County Riders and Yampa Valley Medical Center Foundation; Feb. 13, 2025.

Press Release: Routt County Riders is receiving a $50,000 grant from the Yampa Valley Medical Center Foundation’s Community Health Benefit Fund to improve bike safety outreach and education in the local community. The grant will allow for production of improved multimedia bike safety visual resources while also supporting continued growth of school safety programs and an increased distribution of bike helmets.

Steamboat Springs, CO, Feb. 11, 2025.

Routt County Riders (RCR), a cycling-focused nonprofit organization based in Steamboat Springs, will collaborate with various local and statewide partners to administer a $50,000 Impact Grant from the Yampa Valley Medical Center Foundation’s Community Health Benefit Fund (CHBF).

“Cycling – whether on pavement, gravel, dirt or snow – is an integral part of so many people’s lives in Steamboat Springs,” says Karen Schneider, Executive Director of the Yampa Valley Medical Center Foundation. “It offers community, exercise, transportation and so much more. We’ve seen the work and commitment put forth by RCR to heighten safety for all bikers, and we want to see that continue. Safety is paramount when you’re on a bike, but also when you’re interacting with those on a bike, be it from a vehicle, on a bike yourself or as a pedestrian. By expanding education efforts and programming, installing additional safety signage and increasing helmet distribution, we know RCR can make a difference.”

Bike safety has been identified as an ongoing issue in the public view, with locals voicing concerns about cyclist and driver interactions, a marked increase in youth utilizing e-bikes, a general lack of demonstrated safe riding behaviors, and a need for better education resources to standardize outreach within a more distinct local context. In July of 2024, the Steamboat Pilot posted results from an informal poll asking respondents whether or not they felt comfortable navigating local roads by bike – 70% of respondents said that they do not feel safe doing so.

RCR has recently highlighted the provision of continued bike safety education within their 3-year Strategic Plan. “Our desire to extend these public safety education initiatives has reached a point of really great synergy with the Community Health Benefit Fund,” says Laraine Martin, Executive Director of RCR. “We are looking forward to building upon our existing programs to reach more individuals who desire safer cycling opportunities in the Yampa Valley.”

Over the past three years, RCR has managed the Street Smarts bike safety program for Hayden, Sleeping Giant and Steamboat Springs Middle Schools.

“This grant will help to expand and improve these programs,” says Martin, “and fund the creation and dissemination of highly visible public assets that will help to deliver key messages to commuters, cyclists, and all road users.”

For more information on general messaging for safe road usage by cyclists in the State of Colorado, we recommend this landing page from Bicycle Colorado. Those seeking more information about the RCR-CHBF partnership and bike safety grant, please contact laraine@routtcountyriders.org .