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January Gala Ride at Rockville Hills Saturday Jan 11, 2020 9:30 AM to 11:30 AM Meet at 2149 Rockville Rd · Fairfield, CA 38.248528, -122.132222 The Bicycle Trails Council of the East Bay (http://www.btceb.org) invites you to our monthly Gala Ride at Rockville Hills Regional Park in Fairfield.
As you already know, the December Gala ride was cancelled. I was unable to find ride leaders who knew the trails at Deer Park in Marin. Perhaps I will try again in a few months.
The January 11th Gala ride will be at Rockville. We always have a large turn out for this ride. BTCEB will pay for your trail pass. Also, PLEASE RSVP ON MEETUP SO WE CAN CONTACT YOU IF THE RIDE IS CANCELLED.We offer ride groups for ALL SKILL LEVELS, from novice to intermediate to advanced. All rides are ‘no-drop’ rides (we won’t leave you behind or let you get lost) and are fully supported. A novice rider should be able to ride 8-10 miles on hilly fire roads for 2.5 hrs.
Parking is very tight, so try to carpool. And be ready to park in residential neighborhood spaces or along Rockville Road near the park entrance.We start gathering at 9:30am and hit the trails promptly at 9:45am. Join us for refreshments and snacks after the ride. Safety glasses are suggested. A well-tuned mountain bike is a must! And If you are familiar with the trails, please help as a ride leader or sweep.
I look forward to seeing you all at Rockville.
Mike Udkow President, BTCEB
Ride Like A Girl - China Camp Saturday January 4, 2020 9:15 AM to 12:30 PM 799 North San Pedro Road, San Rafael, CA 38.006612, -122.484627 The Bicycle Trails Council of the East Bay hosts a MTB ride for women only on (usually) the first Saturday of the month. The intent of the ride is to have fun! and to meet other women who love to MTB.
This month let's try CHINA CAMP again.
(There's a $3 trail pass fee at China Camp. Cash or credit card. We will stop by the trail pass kiosk to buy the passes on our way biking before we hit the uphill.)
It is almost all single-track - yay! And there are switchbacks to keep us on our toes! We'll begin with about 2 miles of uphill where there are a few rocks and an area or two where the trail is pretty narrow. For the basic route, the rest of the ride is mostly downhill and flowy with pretty much no technical features. For those who want a little more challenge, a group of us can climb up to the "Nike site" (a nice challenging climb up a semi-paved fire road), then descend down a fun rocky trail to hook up with the trail which the rest of the group will also ride.
For both routes, it will be helpful to be in relatively good aerobic condition and familiar with riding on narrow single track. The routes should be great for advanced beginners and above. The ride should take about 2.5 hours, be about 10 miles and 1200' of climbing. If you have any questions about whether the ride would be suitable for you, please comment on the Meetup.
Also be sure to RSVP so that you can be notified of any ride changes especially now that the rainy season has begun. BTCEB General Membership & Board Meeting Wednesday January 8, 2020 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM Z Cafe 2735 Broadway · Oakland, CA Come join us for our bi-monthly Board and General Membership meeting. BTCEB is a very active organization with lots of interesting things happening. We meet at a nice restaurant with great food and beer at a central location with lots of parking. Come just to listen or to present your ideas or concerns.
If you want an advanced copy of the agenda email info@btceb.org Please RSVP to reserve a seat.
BTCEB via Facebook
Finally, if you want to hear about other last-minute news, such as demo rides, and volunteering opportunities, "like" and follow BTCEB's Facebook Notification Page, and also request to join BTCEB's Facebook Discussion Group.
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REPORTS
Meet Our Newest Board Members by Mike Udkow
After serving as our treasurer for 8 years, Lauren Haughey is stepping down. We are fortunate that ALAN ENRICI has offered to take on the responsibility. He has extensive business and accounting experience.
Alan wishing his brakes worked descending at Crockett Hills.
Jon with fondo memories of the Marin Headlands. Also stepping down after 5 yrs of service is Jim Arth, our membership coordinator. Jim has spent countless hrs working with Member Planet to get the bugs out of their system. He had the expert tech support from JON RUNNING, who has volunteered to take over the position of membership Coordinator.
Thank you Lauren and Jim for all you have done for the club!
Tentative Gala Ride Dates and Locations by Mike Udkow Here are the expected ride dates and locations for the club gala rides for 2020:
- Jan 11 - Rockville Hills
- Feb 8 - No Gala. Pop Up Rides (considering Deer Park)
- Mar 14 - China Camp
- Apr 4 - Fernandez Ranch (JMPT)
- May 9 - Crockett Hills EBRP
- Jun 13 - Wildcat/Tilden EBRP
- Jul 12 (Sunday) - China Camp
- Aug 8 - Joaquin Miller Park (Oakland)
- Sep 26 - Fernandez Ranch (JMLT)
- Oct 11 - Crockett Hills EBRP
- Nov 14 - Rockville
- Dec 12 - Deer Park
As always look for them to appear on the BTCEB Meetup Events page and here in The Buzz as the dates approach and the ride details firm up.
Update: EBRPD Ward 1 Director Vacancy Candidate Interviews Date Set
EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT NOTICE OF SPECIAL BOARD MEETING Interviews of Candidates and Appointment To Fill Vacancy on the Board of Directors (Ward 1)
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT, pursuant to California Government Code §1780, the Board of Directors of the East Bay Regional Park District will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, January 7, 2020 at 1:00 pm to interview the following candidates and make an appointment to fill the vacancy on the Board of Directors representing Ward 1: The order of the interviews has been determined by lot. The interviews will take place at the East Bay Regional Park District Administrative Headquarters at 2950 Peralta Oaks Court, Oakland, California 94605.
The public is invited to attend and provide oral and/or written comments. Written comments must be received at or prior to the meeting time and date. For more information, please www.ebparks.org or contact the Clerk of Board Yolande Barial Knight at ybarial@ebparks.org.
As a 501(c)(3) organization the BTCEB can not endorse election candidates. You can talk to members to get their opinions. We continue to encourage you to participate in the process by learning about the candidates, contacting the selection committee regarding your preferred applicants, or attending the January 7th board meeting and making a public comment regarding the appointment. Please read each of the candidate applications for the appointment.
The Ward 1 director will have influence over decisions that effect all of the wards so this is an issue even if you don't reside or vote in Ward 1. While this is not an election the person appointed will likely have an advantage going into the 2020 election for this seat. Obviously this is a chance for the biking community to help influence the composition of the board of directors thereby improving mountain biking recreation opportunities throughout the EBRPD.
Please contact the board of directors to voice your support for one or more of the candidate appointees. The selection committee members along with the remaining members of the full board are as follows:
Selection committee: Ayn Wieskamp, Ward 5, Livermore, awieskamp@ebparks.org Beverly Lane, Ward 6, Danville, blane@ebparks.org Dennis Waespi, Ward 3 Castro Valley, dwaespi@ebparks.org
Other directors: Dee Rosario, Ward 2, Oakland, drosario@ebparks.org Ellen Corbett, Ward 4, San Leandro, ecorbett@ebparks.org Colin Coffey, Ward 7, Hercules, ccoffey@ebparks.org
BTCEB Membership Drive by Mike Udkow While membership on our Meetup site continues to grow to over 3,800 followers, membership in the BTCEB, your mountain biking organization, has been lagging.
To grow, to survive, and to represent the mountain biking community, we need your support. Your membership dues support our Gala rides and our RLaG program, pays for our insurance, helps to support NorCal High School MTBing and supports trail work at China Camp, Rockville, Fernandez and Crockett. We are hard at work developing the JMP Pump Track. Our Board of Directors meets bi-monthly to discuss all topics relevant to local mountain biking.
Membership levels start at $30, with a $15 student/hardship level. Lifetime membership is $500.
Aside from the dues, we truly need and value your membership.
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From the Dusty Trail . . .
Boggs is Coming Back!!! by Scott Bartlebaugh
Photo Credit: Debbie BloomquistA phoenix is rising from the ashes at Boggs State Demonstration Forest near Cobb. The great folks at REMBA (Redwood Empire Mountain Bike Alliance) and the Friends of Boggs have worked tirelessly with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and are driving the construction of 25 miles of singletrack planned over the next 5 years. 2019 has been an incredible start bringing back upwards of 7 miles of singletrack. The singletrack of Boggs had been a home for the Bike Monkey 8 hour race and NICA races before the September 2015 Valley fire. After the Valley fire the Bike Monkey 8 Hour race moved to the Wente Scout Reservation. Bike Monkey, the 8 Hour Race, and Wente are stories of their own for another time. Kevin Smallman, the trail building driving force behind Wente among other projects, is heading up the trail design and construction effort at Boggs. Much of the new trail system will retain the past character of Boggs but there will also be some new technical challenges along with some new sweet berms. The future of Boggs is looking good and with a NorCal future of more wildfires it's nice to see that trails can come back and good things can also come out of the fires. If you're not familiar with or have never been to Boggs then check it out. You'll be glad you did. Raise the pines!
If Puddles Sink, What's the Answer??? by John Roberts How do you keep puddles from ruining a trail, and a ride? The two pictures below show the difference:
You could say one drains, the other does not. Both pictures were taken back in mid-December at Joaquin Miller Park's Sequoia Bayview Trail (SBT). The photos illustrate two post-rain conditions. The southern portion of the SBT is like riding in the wet Pacific Northwest in the winter, and then near the Horse Arena it is like magically transporting yourself on a ride in southern Arizona. Following the heavy rains we enjoyed in December, the Horse Arena area of the SBT had no standing water at all, whereas other parts of the SBT had many pools of water. Water standing on the trail is problematic because it permeates the trail tread, softens it, and as a result, the water holes get deeper, and deeper, and last longer after each rain.
Trails are also more fun to ride when they are free of puddles. In fact, many BTCEB members including myself volunteer because we do not want to ride a mess resembling a sponge of mud and water, and we specifically want to give back. The answer to puddles is trail work, specifically when it ensures proper and sustainable drainage.
Let me rewind things a little. In Spring of 2019, as the wet season was ending, BTCEB volunteers provided drainage work on the SBT portion where it goes around the Horse Arena. In particular, Buzz Editor Jamuel and his young family participated on that special day, removing duff (dead organic plant matter) that was on the trail, and that acts like a sponge and keeps trails wet. They also dredged many preexisting waterbars, and ensured water would flow off the trail, and not run on it.
Then, all summer the wet dirt had a chance to fully dry and all that trail work got baked-in and seasoned. And that brings us back to this latest heavy rainfall. It showed the fruit of Spring's labor with some Arizona-like riding. Enjoy the trails, and the next time you see puddles, think of joining our next volunteer work day! Trail work, it is the answer.
More Trails For California Mountain Bikers? by Nicole Formosa, Bike Magazine
California mountain bikers stand to gain more representation in statewide land-access talks with the formation of a new nonprofit called the California Mountain Biking Coalition (CAMTB). The Coalition will serve as an umbrella organization to local and regional trail nonprofits and is looking to hire a part-time lobbyist in the near future who can advocate in Sacramento on behalf of mountain bikers.
The group was formed by six advocates from prominent nonprofits after some two years of discussion, which started during a happy hour at a brewery, as these things often do. Its impetus was a change at IMBA that eliminated a regional director position, which covered California and represented mountain bikers’ interests in Sacramento. With that position gone, “there was a void,” said Susie Murphy, executive director of the San Diego Mountain Biking Association, and CAMTB steering committee member.
Read the full article over at Bike Magazine.
------ Reminder: As a BTCEB member, you can receive a 10 percent or higher discount for parts at many of the bike shops in the East Bay. You just have to ask. Thank you to the many bike shop sponsors for your support!
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| ABOUT BTCEB
BTCEB is a one-stop shop. We defend access rights. We lead volunteers to build sustainable trails and repair historic trails. We host social rides. We teach underprivileged kids to ride. We fund youth mountain bike race teams. The list goes on because as riders we can do more together than individually. If you have not already, please consider joining us as a member. Many bike shops in the East Bay grant a 10% discount on bike parts to BTCEB Membership Card holders. It is just another benefit of joining BTCEB. Thank you to all the East Bay bike shops that support our efforts both on and off the trails!
CONTACT US
Do you have a good ride story, trailwork report, or other bike trail news? Tell us about it. Please send a paragraph with 150 words or less with a pic (under 10MB please) and/or link telling us about trailwork, rides, events, or any good mountain bike effort to bring our community together, etc. Please send via email to our editor Jamuel Starkey (with pictures if possible) at: buzz@btceb.org
BTCEB BOARD MEMBERS
Mike Udkow, President information@btceb.org
Jon Running, Membership Coordinator membership@btceb.org
Yvette Skinner, Vice President Dan McAvoy, Secretary Alan Enrici, Treasurer Henry Mitchell, Trails Coordinator Dave Wolden, Director of Youth Programs (YMBA)Amy Arcus, Director of Women's Programs Tom Gandesbery, Member-at-Large Tom Holub, IT Chair |
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