“Bicycle Sundays in Depew Park” could soon turn into “Bicycle Everyday” under a proposal from the Putnam-Westchester Mountain Biking Association (PWMBA) to permit mountain biking in Depew Park.
On Tuesday, Sept. 8, PWMBA, a non-profit advocacy group promoting recreational use of mountain bikes on trails, outlined its vision to the Peekskill Common Council for mountain biking at the 176-acre park.
John Ford, PWMBA vice president and Peekskill resident, said a lot of kids in the city cannot afford nice bikes but could be supported by a program called the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA), which introduces 5- to 12-year-olds to mountain biking and holds races that typically attract 200 to 400 kids and family members.
“Jason Cairo, the director of NICA for 25 years, is champing at the bit to have a venue in the lower Hudson Valley,” Ford said. “[With] the NICA program, the youth volunteer in return, and they just become part of the community, so it would be great to have that in Peekskill.”…