A CHARITY campaign to build mountain bike trails at Tirpentwys, near Pontypool, has raised almost £10,000 and looks to continue the legacy of a local mountain biker who died in a fall.

The GoFundMe campaign organised by Tirpentwys Trails C.I.C, a community group dedicated to building and maintaining mountain bike trails at Tirpentwys, was set up to  continue the legacy of their founder, Ryan Bullimore, through sustainable trail development and community engagement.

Ryan Bullimore tragically lost his life in 2018 at he age of 23 when he came off his bike and knocked his head. 

Since that day the group Tirpentwys Trails have been looking to continue Ryan's legacy and live for the outdoors.

In the GoFundMe page the group said: "We are a dedicated group of trail builders from South Wales, committed to building and maintaining mountain bike trails at Tirpentwys. Our mission is to continue the work and legacy of our founder and fellow builder, Ryan Bullimore. #RideforRyan"

At the time of writing the team has already raised £9,266 of their £20,000 target to cover costs like ecology surveys, planning application fees, and contributions towards consultancy and accounting.

Further funding is required to complete additional surveys on badgers, birds, and lizards, as well as an arboriculture survey for ancient woodland. They also aim to improve car parking and toilet facilities as part of their next phase of development.

The group said: "This funding has enabled us to cover essential costs, including two initial ecology surveys, the planning application fee to the council for change of land use, a contribution towards the expenses of our fantastic planning consultant, Alex Lawrence, and the fees for our CIC accountant to handle our tax returns.

"As part of our planning application process, we have now been instructed to conduct additional ecology surveys focused on badgers, birds, and lizards, as well as an arboriculture survey to assess any potential damage to the ancient woodland. Due to these new requirements, we are revising our fundraising target upwards to help us carry out these additional surveys.

"Furthermore, the additional funds will also be crucial in allowing us to move forward with phase two of our project, which includes much-needed improvements to car park facilities and toilet amenities."