Steve Stout

Steve Stout

“On joining TRF in 2018 it was easy to see that Steve was invigorating the club at meetings and out on the lanes. The ideas for conservation of our road network within Cumbria has been far reaching, with the ‘Lengthsmen’s scheme’, the work put into collaboration with CCC to repair lanes and also the contacts fostered with LDNPA to smooth many of these repair projects throughout the National Park.

A passionate and committed chairman who has done wonders for the perception of TRF within the community. Thank you Steve for your legacy, but you are a hard act to follow”

— Andrew Broomby

“If there’s one thing sure to turn a good team into a great team, it’s having the right person at the helm. When North West Cumbria based Steve Stout agreed to take over Chairmanship of the CTRF – the Cumbria group of the Trail Riders Fellowship (a national body dedicated to the conservation of the English & Welsh green roads network) few would have predicted just what an impact his appointment would have. Advance to the present and we find several of Cumbria’s unsurfaced roads, previously neglected following storm damage that dated back a decade and more, now restored to pristine condition. That damage was, in some cases, so severe that even walkers were put at risk to say nothing for equestrian users, cyclists and others on two and four wheels alike. This transformation, carried out not merely for the benefit of trail riders but for all comers, had been made possible primarily by the dedication, determination, enthusiasm and boundless energy of the CTRF’s new Chairman. Where most would have faltered at the seemingly endless bureaucratic hurdles, the demand for funds of daunting magnitude, the sheer logistics involved in organising labour, plant and materials (both those donated freely and those purchased with money acquired through fund raising efforts), Steve ploughed on through the mire, shrugging off interminable obstacles yet carrying out every task without want of praise, personal recognition or payment. The contributions did not end there. He has instigated several initiatives within the CTRF offering training in safety, run-leading, navigation, encouragement and assistance for new riders. Few are the folk who have encountered the sunny disposition of Mr. Stout and failed to emerge the richer for the experience. Both Club and County are indisputably the better for his unstinting efforts!”

— Nigel Summers

Finding out that the TRF had honoured Steve Stout with a Lifetime Membership award put a massive smile on my face. I can’t think of anyone who deserves it more. I’ve worked with Steve on various projects over the years, mostly all in the Cumbria region and his commitment to what the TRF stands for has really shone through. He manages to strike that fine balance between on the ground activism that requires you to just turn up and roll your sleeves up, through to ‘playing the game’ at a boardroom level which takes a keen understanding of strategy and the bigger picture. It’s not always easy to do either of those things so the fact that Steve does both is a bit special. Now that that TET takes in some of Cumbria’s finest green roads, such as The Old Coach Road, a great deal of trail and adventure riders will enjoy the fruits of Steve’s hard work without ever realising it, and I think Steve will be OK with that. Chances are he’ll probably be waving them on with a big smile, shovel in hand, repairing a drainage ditch on a Sunny Sunday afternoon. Wonderful. Well done Steve!

— Greg Villalobos