Sanford Maine ATV Club

Case Study

Client

Sanford Maine ATV Club

Sector

Recreational

Location

Sanford, ME, US

Before

The Sanford Maine ATV Club maintains miles of ATV riding trails in southern Maine. The Club is a great group of people who donate much of their own time and resources to improving public and private trail systems. A 600 ft-long swampy section of the trail was ultimately impassable due to the deep ruts and uneven surfaces caused by poor subsurface conditions and a lack of ground stabilization methods. To make matters worse, the massive ruts within the peat moss filled with water, causing larger and deep puddles that were impeding trail accessibility. Many riders were also widening the trail by attempting to go around the rutted middle section of the trail. This ultimately created an even larger swamp section with increasingly difficult conditions for most riders. Additionally, a recently built $78,000 snowmobile bridge was also inaccessible because of this impassible trail section.

Preparation

Members of the club had seen the benefits of a ground stabilization grid before and were looking for a similar paver grid system that was easy to install and would keep their ATVs from sinking into the peat moss. The grid also needed to be durable in order to withstand repeated use in harsh conditions. Since improving the trail’s subsurface conditions was not an option, the ground reinforcement system alone would need to provide the vertical support necessary. Due to existing conditions, there was no prep needed for this Ecoraster install – just a mud management grid, as a solution to the dangerous terrain.

Installation

The Ecoraster E50 permeable paver grid was placed on top of the swampy trail section – 6 panels wide. As Ecoraster grids are delivered in sheets, it was very quick and easy to lay large sections down at a time. The locking mechanism of Ecoraster E50 firmly holds the panels together, while maintaining malleability under the ATV tires. Ecoraster E50 paver panels are light, easy to transport, and straightforward to install.

 

After

Once Ecoraster E50 was installed, the trail was immediately useable and the snowmobile bridge accessible. Over time it is expected that the plastic paver grid will sink into the ground, but only to a certain point where the paver grid will still provide vertical support, ground stabilization, and stormwater management – even if it is underground or submerged in water. The Club considered other paving companies in Maine with similar solutions but found that the E50 paver grid’s locking panels were superior, and the cost of Ecoraster was much lower. They also really appreciated the information and support that Ecoraster Distributor, ACF, provided throughout the process.

Project Gallery

Explore the photos below that highlight how Ecoraster products were installed, as well as the results we were able to achieve for the park.

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