How to Support IMBA's Mountain Biking and Trail Mission

Updated

You can support IMBA (International Mountain Bicycling Association) in four main ways: join or renew as a member, donate, become or partner with a Local Member Organization, or subscribe to trail and advocacy news. Which option fits you depends on whether you're an individual rider, a local trail group, or a land manager—each path supports IMBA's stated work of creating, enhancing, and protecting great places to ride mountain bikes, with a focus on trails close to home.

Choose Your Support Path

Path Best for What it supports
Join / Renew Individual riders IMBA's overall mission and member network
Donate Anyone wanting to give directly Trail advocacy, education, and stewardship work
Local Member Organization Grassroots trail groups Local trail creation and stewardship
Email sign-up People who want updates Trail and advocacy news in your inbox

The IMBA homepage presents "Join," "Renew," and "Donate" together under a "Support Mountain Biking" heading, so these are the primary individual giving routes.

Join, Renew, or Donate

  1. Go to imba.com.
  2. Find the "Support Mountain Biking" section, which lists Join, Renew, and Donate.
  3. Select the option that matches your situation—new member, existing member renewing, or a one-time or ongoing gift.

Expected result: you complete a membership or donation action that IMBA describes as supporting its mission to create, enhance, and protect trail places. The site does not publish membership tiers or prices on the pages reviewed here, so check the linked pages for current terms before committing.

Become or Find a Local Member Organization

IMBA Local is described as "a grassroots network of local trail organizations that helps create and sustain thriving trail communities." If you run a local trail group, this is the path for growing your impact; if you're a rider, it's how you find the group near you.

  • To join the network: use the "Become a Local Member Org" option on the site.
  • To find your group: use "Find Your IMBA Local Member Org."
  • To see community progress: IMBA tracks communities through statuses—Engaged, Committed, Created, and Featured—and offers a search for designations and communities.

These statuses reflect IMBA's stated measures of partner progress: communities engaged in trail development through education and advocacy, communities committed through planning and funding, and communities that have created a vision for trails close to home.

Partner on Trail Projects (Land Managers and Communities)

If you're a land manager or community leader rather than an individual rider, the relevant route is IMBA Trail Solutions, which the site describes as working with IMBA professionals to "assess, plan, design, and build your trail vision." IMBA frames this partnership as adding "decades of international experience in trail advocacy, education, solutions and stewardship." Start with the "Let's Talk Trails" contact route.

Stay Informed

The site offers an email sign-up for "trail and mountain bike advocacy news," collecting an email address and a 5-digit ZIP/postal code. This is the lowest-commitment way to stay connected and hear about advocacy and trail opportunities near you.

Common Questions

Is supporting IMBA only about money? No. Becoming a Local Member Organization, volunteering through your local group, and staying informed through the newsletter are all presented as ways to move trail visions forward.

Where do I start if I just want to ride? Use "Find Your IMBA Local Member Org"—the site states that "great rides start with IMBA Local."

What if I need trail-building guidance? IMBA's Resource Hub offers free, easy-to-access information for trail champions, and its Programs & Workshops cover education, professional trail programs, advocacy tools, and trail fundraisers.