Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship is launching a new fundraising campaign asking Lost and Found riders and volunteers to rally their friends, family and social networks to support the Connected Communities Project. We want this to be more than just a bike race or a hard ride. We want you to be a part of something bigger. By raising donations to build the The Lost Sierra Route, you will help a region recover from devastating wildfires and economic hardship through the creation of this 600+ mile multiuse trail. The Route will connect 15 mountain communities to promote economic prosperity through recreation - a $887 billion industry - and create new jobs in the Lost Sierra region.

As we bring Northern California’s premier gravel ride back to life after a two-year absence, we are shifting focus from the standard entry fee format of past editions and introducing a fundraiser model of entry. Riders familiar with the big marquee fundraiser rides – the AIDS Ride, the Texas MS 150, the Tour De Cure – will recognize the format, but it is something a little less familiar to a lot of regular bike racers. Parlaying your chance to enter the Lost and Found into a more immersive conversation – with your friends, your families, your social media footprints – is a way to help us raise awareness of the Lost Sierra Route, as well as shine a light the plight of the communities up here, and at the same time showcase the spectacular natural beauty of this area and get people inspired to come visit. 

Getting started is easy to do, and it's fun and rewarding. With your help supporting SBTS’s work, together we can create new trails that bring enthusiasm, tourism dollars and local business prosperity to the entire region. And we are sweetening the pot for this: the top individual fundraiser will receive a Shimano Limited GRX groupset; that’s drivetrain brakes and cranks, and there are only 5000 of these available worldwide. Plus additional prices for 2nd and 3rd Place top fundraisers and best team fundraisers. 

• Top Individual Fundraiser - Full Shimano Limited GRX group (only 5,000 available globally) to include drivetrain, brakes and cranks
• Second Best Individual Fundraiser - WTB CZR Carbon Wheelset
• Third Best Individual Fundraiser - Kuat Bike Rack

We are taking the fundraiser route with entries for the Lost and Found this year because we want this to be more than just a bike race or a hard ride. We want you to be a part of something bigger. In this case, we are asking you – riders and volunteers both – to drum up support for your entry into the Lost and Found as a way to facilitate the construction of the Lost Sierra Route; a 600+ mile recreational trail plan that will link together 15 mountain communities here in the Lost Sierra that have been devastated by decades of economic hardship and, most recently, back-to-back massive wildfires.
 
This video right here helps explain why we are doing this…
 
Parlaying your chance to enter the Lost and Found into a more immersive conversation – with your friends, your families, your social media footprints – is a way to help us raise awareness of the Lost Sierra Route, as well as shine a light the plight of the communities up here, and at the same time showcase the spectacular natural beauty of this area and get people inspired to come visit. We are doing this because we want this conversation to get huge.
 
At the basic nuts and bolts level, we want you to raise a minimum $150 entry sum. This is about what it used to cost to enter the Lost and Found. But what we really want to do is pull in $500,000, so that we can get to work building the Lost Sierra Route. That’s a pile of cash, and that’s why we need your help.