STIHL Tour des Trees 2012 Fundraising Event in Oregon

The STIHL Tour des Trees is a cycling fundraising event that will take place in Oregon on Aug. 5 to Aug. 11, 2012. Participants cycle more than 500-miles visiting historical trees and planting new ones for future generations. Participants in this year’s event will cycle and plant trees along the Columbia River Gorge, vineyards, the high desert and Mt. Hood.

This event is America’s largest fundraiser for tree research and benefits the Tree Research and Education Endowment (TREE) Fund whose mission is to support sustainable communities and environmental stewardship by supporting research, scholarships and education programs essential to the discovery and dissemination of new knowledge in the fields of arboriculture and urban forestry.

The TREE Fund has supported research that has led to important developments in:
• Understanding air pollution reduction and carbon sequestration by trees
• Determining the costs and benefits of urban trees
• Improving conditions for tree growth in difficult sites
• Strategies to manage diseases and pests that affect urban trees

For more information about TREE Fund click here.

Riders for the full week-long Tour commit to raising $3,500 for the TREE Fund. The 2012 Tour marks the 20th Anniversary of the first Tour des Trees, in which 13 cyclists pedaled nearly 1,000 miles from Seattle to Oakland in a week to raise money for tree research. The Tour will feature a one-day Ride for Research on Aug. 11 in Portland, and conclude with a Finale Celebration at the International Society of Arboriculture’s annual International Tree Climbing Championship. Local and recreational cyclists are invited to join the Tour for the day and celebrate its legacy during this ride through one of America’s best cycling cities.

Last year’s STIHL Tour des Trees raised a record-breaking half million dollars and planted 45 new trees during its week-long trek from Virginia Beach to Washington, D.C. To date, the Tour has raised more than $5 million to support tree research and education and funded a variety of projects including improved strategies for pest and disease control, new techniques for increasing the post-planting survival rate of street trees, and development of safer equipment and practices for tree care professionals.

Click here to go to the Tour des Trees site or click here to see photos and videos from previous Tours.