January 27, 2004

Foundation Approves Grant For Alternative Energy Project To Light Tracks At Bogus Basin Nordic Center
Boise State Engineering Students Design Lighting System As Senior Project

 

An innovative proposal to install solar panels or use another alternative energy source to light a 5-kilometer loop trail at the Bogus Basin Nordic Center for night skiing has received initial funding from a private foundation. The Edwards Mother Earth Foundation (EMEF) recently awarded $37,000 to the Bogus Basin Lifetime Sports Education Foundation (BBLSEF) for the first phase of the project, which involves constructing a new 1.2-kilometer trail section to complete the loop trail and designing the lighting system. If the project proceeds as planned, the lighted trail will be operational starting winter 2005-06, giving Nordic skiers and snowshoers a venue for evening workouts at Bogus Basin. Additional support is being sought from community groups, corporations and individuals to complete the project.   “We are very excited about this lighting project and its potential to expand Nordic skiing opportunities,” said John Studebaker, president of BBLSEF’s Nordic Group, which procured the renewable EMEF grant and is overseeing the project. “There has been growing interest in night skiing at the Bogus Basin Nordic Center. By using an alternative energy source to power the lights, we will also serve as a demonstration project that we hope will help raise awareness about the environmental benefits of renewable energy systems,” Studebaker said. Construction will begin this summer on a 1.2-kilometer section of trail that will extend the Red Tail Trail to connect with the Sapper’s Return Trail, according to Bogus Basin Nordic Center Director Travis Jones. The 5-kilometer lighted trail will follow Red Tail from the Bogus Basin Nordic Center and return on Sapper’s, and will include a variety of terrain. A key component of the project is educational. Displays explaining the project and its use of  alternative energy are planned  at the Frontier Point Lodge at Bogus Basin. Outreach efforts to community groups, schools and civic organizations, including field trips and other presentations, are also included in the project proposal. Boise State University’s College of Engineering is a partner in the project.  Two Boise State engineering students are currently researching alternative energy options, including solar, wind, and fuel cell technologies, and will design the lighting system as their senior project.  Other organizations, including Spatial Dynamics, a Boise-based mapping company, and Bogus Basin Mountain Resort, are supporting the project. Boise State engineering students Jeremy Taylor and Nic McGhie, both seniors, will spend this semester researching and designing the lighting system under the supervision of Carl Hoerger, a Nordic Group board member and former university engineering professor who is now a project manager at Hewlett Packard.  The students will evaluate renewable energy options, including using a centralized bank of solar collectors on a wired system to connect the lights, installing solar panels on each lighting pole, or employing wind or fuel cell technologies, Hoerger said. Taylor, who is interested in pursuing a career designing alternative energy or energy management systems, said the Bogus project should provide him with some valuable hands-on experience. “I am looking forward to building the prototype to see if the ideas Nic and I have thought of will actually work,” he said. The EMEF grant, along with the support of Boise State and other partners, are crucial to the project’s success, said Kay Hummel, a Nordic Group member who spearheaded the grant submission. “We invite other companies, individuals and organizations to work with us to complete the lighting project,” said Hummel. “This is truly a community wide effort that will provide many benefits for the Treasure Valley.” For more information on the project or to find out how to become involved, contact Hummel at kayhum@velocitus.net The Edwards Mother Earth Foundation, based in Washington state, was founded in 1997. Its mission is to enhance sustainable quality of life by supporting organizations that strengthen the interconnectedness of the human community with each other and the environment. During 2003, EMEF funded 32 organizations with a total of $1,132,000 in grants. Media contact                    Janelle Brown                      Boise State communications and marketing    jbrown2@boisestate.edu   208 426-1790         Contact Kay Hummel BBLSEF Nordic Group kayhum@velocitus.net 208-343-1459 Carl Hoerger BBLSEF Nordic Group carl.hoerger@hp.com 208 343-5012