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8 9 OPENING LINES RAILS-TO-TRAILS CONSERVANCY’S “OPENINGDAY FOR TRAILS” CELEBRATES CONNECTIONS TRAILSMAKE NATIONWIDE O n Saturday, April 7, 2018, outdoor en- thusiasts and trail lovers nationwide will kick off the spring trail season as part of Rails-to-Trails Conservancy’s (RTC) sixth annual Opening Day for Trails. Opening Day, RTC’s annual celebration of trails nationwide, serves as the unofficial launch of the spring trail season. Event organizers and vol- unteers from across the country have arranged hiking, biking, running, and other outdoor activi- ties to celebrate trails and the benefits they bring to their communities, including more than 100 bike rides organized by Performance Bicycle. RTC is organizing featured events to draw attention to its TrailNation projects—trail network building projects that serve as models for connecting trails nationwide. “Trails give us so much—they bring communi- ties together, creating outdoor space for us to be active and connecting people to the places they want to go,” said Brandi Horton, RTC’s Vice Presi- dent of Communications.“Opening Day for Trails is an opportunity for us to celebrate and explore all that trails have to offer.This year,we expect more than 25,000 people to join us for one of the year’s biggest celebrations of trails.” Opening Day’s free, family-friendly events are in- tended to inspire trail use, connecting trail enthusi- asts and newcomers with trails in their communities. OpeningDay2018 coincides with the 50th anni- versary of the National Trails SystemAct, federal legislation that established the country’s National Scenic Trails and National Recreation Trails.The act made possiblemany of the country’s railbanked rail-trails as a result of the 1983 Railbanking Amendment to the National Trails System Act.