Just Start Showing Up

Paula Burton, Trail Blazing Trail Builder

Back in July, I posted my episode with Nicole Freedman, the executive Director of NEMBA, and she was the one who introduced me to Paula Burton, a long-time mountain biker, NEMBA CT chapter founder, and instructor for NEMBA Trail School.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to meet Paula in person at the trail school I attended back in June, but we did connect over Zoom for an article I was writing for the NEMBA Single Tracks newsletter.

We hadn’t been talking for long before I realized that Paula was just the kind of guest I love, love, LOVE to have on this podcast - a real person doing really integral work that is constantly improving the outdoor experience for newbies and weekend warriors like me!

Paula’s been riding since before mountain biking was really a “thing”, and she’s got tons of stories to share that serve to highlight how far we’ve come in outdoor representation in the last 30+ years…. but also how not everything has changed quite so much.

Enjoy this special Friday Funday Feature!

NEMBA (New England Mountain Bike Association) - https://nemba.org/

IMBA (International Mountain Biking Association) - https://www.imba.com/

And a few more fun links:

• Thunder Mountain Bike Park (Charlemont, MA)

• Appalachian Mountain Club

• Connecticut Greenways Council

• George Waldo State Park (Southbury, CT)

• What is a pump track?

• Rockhouse Hill (Oxford, CT)

• What is a Class 1 Ebike?

• Bluff Point State Park (Groton, CT)

• Highland Mountain Bike Park (Northfield, NH)

• Pittsfield State Forest (Pittsfield, MA)

Building your Biking Bucket List? Paula’s recs:

• Baja California (Mexico)

• Bear Ears National Monument (UT)

• Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument (UT)

• Moab (UT)

• Grand Junction (CO)

• Fruita (CO)