The fourth annual Graves-Gilbert Clinic Low Hollow Trail Fest, a fundraiser for the Southwest Kentucky Mountain Bike Association, will be June 25 at Weldon Peete Park.

“This is our way of raising money to build and maintain a trail,” said association Chairman Chip Winger. “We’re expecting 300 people this year. We had 160 last year and 120 the year before.”

Registration and check in starts at 7 a.m., followed by the running races at 8 a.m. and the mountain bike races at 10 a.m. For a complete list of races and their fees, visit active.com/bowling-green-ky/cycling/mountain-biking-races/4th-annual-low-hollow-trail-fest-2016. Registration fees will go up $10 the day of the event.

All proceeds will go toward building a Dual Slalom Mountain Bike Course at the park, Winger said.

“We just signed an agreement with Warren County Parks and Recreation and the (Warren County) Judge-Executive (Mike Buchanon) to build a Dual Slalom Mountain Bike Course,” he said. “We got a green light to build. We just need the money. We’re a total volunteer organization.”

The festival will have family-friendly activities, said race director Brad Burridge.

“We want to encourage other folks to come out and participate. We’re gonna have a stage set up. We’re trying to get food vendors,” he said. “If there are some bands that want to play I think we’ll be able to accommodate them. In the future we’re thinking of adding water events like kayaking.

“We’re trying to put on an event that appeals to the family and public,” he said. “We’re wide open to public suggestions. We want the event to get better and better.”

The SW KyMBA started in 2010. The organization has built several trails, including the Low Hollow Trail at Weldon Peete Park, Brier Creek Trail at Nolin Lake State Park and a trail at Ben Hawes Park in Owensboro. The group is also the official steward of the Big Hollow Trail at Mammoth Cave National Park.

“We have 3,500 labor hours since our conception of building and upkeeping trail,” Winger said. “We have 62 members spread out from Owensboro to Bowling Green. We’re always looking for more.”

In 2010, Weldon Peete Park was “a nasty place to go,” Winger said.

“We picked up 10 to 12 truckloads – tires, shoes, you name it,” he said. “There was all kinds of stuff up there.”

Now the trail is clean and the organization is looking toward its next project.

“We’re working with the (Army) Corps of Engineers at Barren River Lake and Barren County to build a trail there. We’re waiting for the written formal agreement from the corps of engineers in Louisville,” Winger said. “The city (of Bowling Green) is also working with us to do a bicycle skills and pump track on the landfill side of Mitch McConnell Park. We’re looking forward to connecting the parks by greenways.”

Winger said he read that Mountain Biking is the fastest growing sport in America. He believes it’s something to promote in Kentucky since the state usually scores low when it comes to physical activity.

“It’s fun and exhilarating. You can easily burn 200 to 300 calories,” he said. “It helps clear your head and relieve stress. It’s about the big three – cardio, stress relief and exhilaration.”

— SW KyMBA is still looking for other sponsors for the Graves-Gilbert Clinic Low Hollow Trail Fest. To sponsor or for more information, email swkymba@msn.com.

— Follow features reporter Alyssa Harvey on Twitter @bgdnfeatures or visit bgdailynews.com.