The Legion Lake Multi-Use Trail was officially opened to the public following a ribbon-cutting ceremony held on the evening of Thursday, Aug. 8, under the direction of the Perryville Area Chamber of Commerce.
Chad Sutterer, with the help of Executive Director of Heritage Tourism Trish Erzfeld, spearheaded the creation of the multi-use trail at Legion Lake in Perryville.
This project includes 4.5 miles of multi-use trails, 3/4 miles of flow trails with a start hub, a 15,000-square-foot pump track, and a 7,500-square-foot skills area. The project, which started construction in December of last year, was made possible through a grant from the Missouri Recreational Trails Program. The project was constructed by Trelcrue, Inc.
Approximately 60 people attended the trail's soft opening, including Perry County Presiding Commissioner Mike Sauer, District 2 Commissioner Keith Hoehn, Erzfeld and Sutterer.
“I want to thank these guys that were all involved in putting this together,” Erzfeld said. “Without them, this would not have happened. So, this is not kudos to us. This is kudos to them. This would not have happened without them. You guys have done a wonderful job getting all this ready. I am just shocked to see this many people here for ribbon cutting. Thank you all for coming and enjoy these trails. That's what they're here for.”
Sutterer spoke about the amount of time and people it took to get the project underway.
“This has been a long project — from when we first approached the commission like four years ago or maybe more,” he said. “And it started as it was going to be like just a little place to build a trail in Perryville or Perry County. And then, I don't know, Trish got involved, and then Matt got involved, and a trail builder got involved, and then Grant, and then here we are. It blew up, and this is how we were able to get this — a whole team of people — and it’s been awesome. So, I appreciate everybody's help that's ever helped on this project. It's been super cool. We've had tons of support from the county, from the commission, and from all the people who have helped.”
Addressing the crowd, Matt Smith, team director of the SEMO Mudcats, said, “I'm going to make a sales pitch real quick because I'm a salesman. These kids up here are in the 6th to 12th grade. They're part of a national organization called NICA, the National Interscholastic Cycling Association. We have 31 leagues or more in the United States that have these kids racing around and riding around the country. This state has over 30 teams that race all over the country, and we have 21 of the greatest athletes ever in southeast Missouri. Four of them are from Perryville, so that’s amazing.
“So, we're so blessed to have this trail and be a part of it, and maybe someday we might have a race here. That's one of our ultimate goals is to get a race here. And this year we have 600 kids registered in the state of Missouri. Could you imagine 600 of these kids hitting this trail? Wouldn't that be amazing? They're off these, and they're on those two wheels, and that's our ultimate goal — to have fun, include everybody, have good community, and respect. We're excited to be out here, and we're just thankful. This is going to be a treasure that's going to last for years.”
Smith mentioned another “small treasure” that was present at the ribbon cutting — Trish Erzfeld.
“I just can't say enough about Trish,” he said. “She has been through things that you can't imagine to build this trail. And the commissioners were right there with her going, ‘Yes, yes, yes, yes.’ So, I want to thank the commissioners for saying ‘Yes.’ And thanks to Trish for putting up with my ideas and Chad's ideas for the last two years. We appreciate it.
“When you're using this trail, just help us pick up trash. If you see a tree down or anything, call the sheriff. Chad is now the sheriff of the trail, so he's going to be taking care of that. If you have any questions about riding the trails with you guys who brought your bike, which way to go, which way to start — come see Chad and me, and we'll talk to you about it.”
According to Erzfeld, there is much more planned for the recreational area in the future.
“We have so much more coming to the park,” she said. “We've installed new picnic tables and new benches. There is an inner and outer loop of the 4.5 miles of trail around the lake and the perimeter of the 57-acre park. We also have three down-directional FLOW trails. I describe these as being kind of like sliding boards that are all downhill. You ride them down them and then come back up the hill and do it all over again. We have one for beginners, intermediate and advanced, and then we also have three skills trails with obstacles on them like bridges, rock formations and rock gardens.
“That way, people can start homing in on their biking skills, become more familiar with obstacles and build their confidence so they can improve and then graduate from beginner to immediate to advanced riders. We also have our 12,000-square-foot dirt pump track. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned pro, the pump track is a great way to build bike skills as well. It’s especially well-suited for mountain bikers who are developing their bike handling — jumping corners and just maintaining that momentum. Kids love pump tracks because they can go around and around and around.”
In addition to all that, there are plans to construct three restrooms, a 20x30-foot pavilion and a large kiosk at the trailhead to provide visitors with additional information about the park.
