The Santa Monica Mountains Trails Council recognized Ron Webster with a Lifetime Achievement Award at their 2019 Annual Dinner Meeting, held in Agoura Hills on Thursday, October 24th.
Ron himself, however, was unable to attend the dinner. Therefore, SMMTC President Ruth Gerson (pictured right) along with SMMTC trail crew leader Jerry Mitcham joined Ron on Sunday, November 10th for a celebratory breakfast at his favorite local spot, La Dijonaise Café in Culver City. They presented him with a certificate (you can read the text below) and an engraved clock.
The Santa Monica Mountains Trails Council celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2019.
Conservationist, Leader, Visionary – Ron Webster has devoted his life to the establishment, protection and maintenance of the trail system in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Ron’s interest in trails began over forty (40) years ago in the early 1970’s. Ron and his wife, Mary Ann, worked tirelessly with others to help establish State Parks and the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SMMNRA). Then, Ron directed his full attention to developing the trail system. Under his leadership and inspiration, the Sierra Club trail crew, the Santa Monica Mountains Trails Council trail crew, and many other organizations have contributed hundreds of thousands of volunteer service hours to the trail system in the Santa Monica Mountains and nearby jurisdictions.
Ron has an incredible list of trail building accomplishments. Most importantly, he defined the alignment, and then designed and supervised the construction of over 30 miles of the 67-mile Backbone Trail, which was designated a National Recreation Trail upon its completion. Ron collaborated with National Parks, State Parks and other land use agencies throughout his trail building years; and, consequently, he is a vast storehouse of knowledge, skills and techniques related to trails. Long ago, Ron became the “go to guy” on virtually any question regarding trails in the Santa Monica Mountains; and, fortunately, he has transferred much of this information to other trail building crews. The Santa Monica Mountains Trails Council trail crew often joins Ron and his Sierra Club trail crew on work projects. In addition, the Trails Council trail crew frequently seeks Ron’s advice on trail projects.
Ron has a unique ability to define just the right alignment for a trail. He always finds the route that gives the trail user the maximum exposure to natural resources while also protecting those resources. Ron’s mantra is that a trail should “lay lightly on the land.” He avoids using heavy machinery to build a trail, favoring hand tools and manual labor in all trail construction.
Ron Webster’s commitment to his vision of a trail system in the Santa Monica Mountains is extraordinary. Not only has he worked continuously to accomplish this goal, he has inspired and led thousands of others to assist in expanding this vision. In the past 40 years that Ron has advocated for trails as well as designing and building them, he is probably the most important individual contributing to the development of the hundreds of miles of trails in the largest urban park in the nation. He is a true Trail Champion.
Ruth Gerson, President
Santa Monica Mountains Trails Council
October 2019