On April 22nd, our Director, Michael Scales, will once again participate in the grueling Rockstar 270 Mountain Bike Challenge, riding his singlespeed bike to raise funds for the Alleghany Highlands Trail Club. The event, which starts in Harrisonburg, VA, covers 266 miles of rugged backcountry trails and dirt roads to Roanoke, VA, gaining over 36,000 feet in elevation. Michael's primary goal is to finish the race (having completed it twice in four attempts so far) and his secondary goal is to beat his personal best time of 60 hours.

The Alleghany Highlands Trail Club is dedicated to maintaining multi-use trails in the George Washington National Forest, Douthat State Park, and The Nature Conservancy property in Alleghany and Bath counties. By ensuring the trails remain accessible and enjoyable, our work supports a variety of recreational activities for mountain bikers, hikers, equestrians, and hunters. In turn, this drives ecotourism dollars to local Virginia communities, including Clifton Forge, Covington, and Hot Springs.