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BTCEB's November Buzz . . .
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It's Official! Oakland Pump Track is Open!
by Morgan Fletcher 
It is with great excitement that we can finally and officially open the Oakland Pump Track! What started as a mid-ride conversation four years ago has finally come to fruition, and Oakland has a place for everyone, from first-time to experienced riders to come together, enhance their skills, and have some fun.
This project could not have been completed without hundreds of hours of volunteer time, the support of City of Oakland staff, donations of dirt and equipment from Silverado Contractors and Herc Rentals, and over $16,000 in donations from the mountain bike community. Every penny of that money was spent on permits, insurance, tools, and equipment needed to make this track a reality. Thank you all so much for all the effort and patience as we learned the ins and outs of getting a public pump track built, not to mention fires, pandemic, and everything else 2020 had to throw at us. With all that behind us, we hope that everyone enjoys the track!
The Rules
1. Have fun!
2. Treat others with respect
3. Max of 4 riders on the track at once
4. Do not ride on top of berms
5. NO RIDING IN THE WET!
6. Do not add to or modify the track
Next Steps
The track has been built! But it's going to need some love and care to keep it fun. Dirt tracks degrade over time and we will continue to have volunteer days to keep things in shape. We've already started our Phase II fundraising effort on GoFundMe for a permanent water tank, water purchase, water meter rental, hosing, compaction tools, and items we need to keep the track riding well and allow our volunteer teams to maintain the track we built. We hope to complete this work by December 2020. If you are able please consider donating to help us complete this work and more. Check out our very own Jerott King, BTCEB President giving an old school throw down on the new track. YouTube video courtesy Poh Teng aka mrpercussive.
BTCEB and Oakland Composite Partner to
Get More Oakland Girls Mountain Biking
by Katie Binder
 In the 3 years I have been involved with Oakland Composite High School MTB Team and Oakland Devo Middle School MTB club, the number of kids mountain biking with our team has tripled. However, only 9% of our riders and coaches are girls! This season we are going to change that! We’re confident that if they’re introduced to mountain biking and our teams, many girls will LOVE it!
We want to make it possible for any girl to try it out regardless of whether they already have a bike. And girls that want to commit to riding with us for their first season can do so without having to first invest in a bike. So last Spring, Oakland Composite & BTCEB partnered together with Specialized Outride Foundation to raise money to purchase a fleet of bikes. With 43 donors, Oakland Composite raised $5,600 and then Outride matched with $5,550 to surpass our goal of $11,000. We are stoked that we can now loan bikes to more girls interested in joining our team!
This weekend, on Nov. 8th, Oakland Composite’s female coaches will be hosting a clinic and fun ride for high school girls. We’ll teach mountain bike skills and go have some fun on the trails! If you know a high school girl who may be interested, have them sign up at here.
Our mountain bike teams get kids outdoors, away from their screens, and engaged with each other in nature. We teach them self-reliance and life lessons in the guise of mountain bike skills. The girls on our teams bring a different passion, work ethic and sense of fun to the mix and it makes everything we do twice as good! Also, we get to see first hand the positive impact it has in their lives.
Help us find girls to share the fun of mountain biking!
Thank you for your support.
Katie Binder, Oakland Composite Team Director
Justin Binder, Head Coach Oakland Composite
Tentative Gala Ride Dates and Locations
by Mike Udkow
Here are the expected ride dates and locations for the club gala rides for 2020:
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.
BTCEB Membership Drive
by Mike Udkow While membership on our Meetup site continues to grow to over 4,000 followers, membership in the BTCEB, your mountain biking organization, has been lagging comparatively.
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.
Please join or renew today at www.btceb.orgSee you on the trails! BTCEB via on Social Media
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From the Dusty Trail . . .
Gravel rides, BARTable By Bike
by Tom Holub
For those who want to avoid contributing to pollution on all those Spare the Air (and Work from Home) days, I’ve been writing articles for the BARTable blog about fun bike rides which are accessible by BART. Some of them may be interesting to the gravel crowd; they’re a mix of road and dirt, mostly not technical, with public transit on both sides, and beer and other interesting things along the way.
Richmond Bridge and the Iron Triangle The short route features Point Pinole, one of the nicest parks for people just starting to ride dirt, or just looking for a cool spot on a hot day. The long route includes some gravel on the west end of the Richmond Bridge, and connects with the 10-mile China Camp dirt loop if you’re up for a serious epic.
Bay Trail, Berkeley to Richmond
This starts out along the newly-completed Bay Trail paved path near Golden Gate Fields, then visits the Dirt World pump track in Richmond, before heading east into Wildcat Canyon to loop back on dirt.
E-Bike Rebates from 511 Contra Costa
by E.C.O.
Residents of Contra Costa County can now receive cash rebates on a first-come, first-served basis for new electric bikes (e-bikes) through a pilot program launched by 511 Contra Costa. A limited number of $150 rebates ($300 for low income residents) are available for residents of each Contra Costa city to assist in the purchase of e-bikes, e-bike conversion kits, and electric mopeds (with a maximum speed less than 30 mph). To learn more, visit 511CC.org/rebate.
East Bay Dirt Classic Wraps
by C510  And that’s a wrap! The 2020 edition of the East Bay Dirt Classic has come to a close. Not with a whimper, but with a bang!
Final day of the 2020 EBDC
There were some incredible rides out there this weekend and some shaking up of the leaderboard on the QOM side. While Kristen V. maintained her relatively safe lead atop the women’s leaderboard, Meredith Stowe Christie came out on Sunday and threw down to notch into 3rd only to have another young gun, Ariana Milelli, come back and shave minutes off her first time to notch into second at 1 hour 2 minutes 4 seconds, pushing Gabriella Sterne into 3rd.
On the KOM side, things remained relatively static, though Dan English came back out and gave it another go, turning in another scorching time of 48 min 25 seconds. An incredible effort yet again, but Fun Ghi’s lead was a bridge too far. Rounding out the top 3 is Jason Tang. Only 17 seconds came between Dan and Jason after 5 tough segments.
Prizes will be given out to the top three in both the KOM and QOM categories. We will reach out to each of you individually. One of the downsides of having so many fast youngins out there (aside from being reminded of the vigor of youth) is we have nowhere to send all of the incredible beer provided by our generous sponsors. The complete leaderboard can be found on our website.
The start of the course on Goldenrod
It was a novel approach this year, born of necessity during unconventional times. We have had the opportunity to speak to some who raced this year and so far the comments have all been positive. One universal comment, however, has been the disappointment at missing the post-race barbecue. Rest assured we have every intention of reviving the after-party next year if conditions permit.
Please feel free to reach out with comments about the event, the format or if you registered, donated and rode, but don’t see your name on the leaderboard.
Finally, with all of your help and the generous support of many others who donated to our fundraiser this year, we raised over $30,000 to support the Alameda County Community Food Bank. This year in particular these funds will help provide critical support to those residents of Alameda county facing food insecurity.
We loved seeing the spirit of friendly competition as we saw some of you riding past on your way to completing the course. And we enjoyed following the battles atop the leaderboard as the days of the open window elapsed.
The final push up Volmer Peak
So thank you. All of you. Until next year, stay healthy and safe and keep the rubber side down.
Sincerely,
Your friends at C510 Columbia Sportswear Offer for Club Members
 It's that time of year again. Bicycle Trails Council of the East Bay (BTCEB) has exclusive access to the Columbia Sportswear Employee Store from now through November 15th!
WHAT THE EMPLOYEE STORE HAS TO OFFER:
Exclusive EMPLOYEE discount, meaning items are marked with our employee price (40 – 50% below regular retail pricing)
All of the latest product from the Columbia Sportswear Company family (Columbia, Mountain Hardwear, SOREL, and prAna)
WHAT TO BRING TO ACCESS THE STORE:
-- The attached invite (printed or shown on mobile phone)
-- Work /organization ID (membership card, email from organization, etc.)
-- Personal photo ID
This invite is valid for you 4 guests (you must be present)
This invite grants store access only (offer not valid online)
Find store location and hours here or on the invite.
Reach out to email Columbia Sportswear for help with additional questions or concerns.
COVID RESPONSE:
We want you to know that the safety of our employees and shoppers is our number one priority. You can find more information on our store and the safety precautions we are taking due to Covid here.
Please reach out to BTCEB Membership if you don't have your BTCEB Membership Card and we can provide an email copy that will work for access to this event. Ride Bikes. Eat Pastries. Support Outride!
by Skye DeLano  SF Bakery Ride and Outride are partnering to support small businesses and increase access to cycling for local youth.
The Ultimate Bakery Ride is a single route, 9 bakery cycling challenge designed by SF Bakery Ride. This isn’t just a regular scenic bike ride around the city. In fact, this may be the most carb-fueled, fun, and fulfilling bike ride in the world!
For every rider who completes the challenge between November 1st-29th, SF Bakery Ride has pledged to contribute $20 to Outride in support of its SF youth cycling programs (up to $1,000). Over the next month, our goal is to raise $5,000 - enough to provide 10 more Riding for Focus seats!
Since 2014, our Riding for Focus program has been implemented in nearly 200 middle schools in North America, improving the cognitive, emotional, and physical well-being for 50,000 students. And this is just the beginning! Applications for 2021 Riding for Focus program will open in December so we can get even more kids on bikes.
While it's free to register, we encourage you to make an optional donation when you sign up. Or, wait until after the event and donate dollars based on miles rode, feet climbed, or pastries consumed! Click on the link below to sign up!
JMLT Almond Ranch Dedication
by John Muir Land Trust
Photo courtesy John Muir Land Trust
In case you missed the National Park Expansion & Almond Ranch Dedication show we made sure to record the webcast and it's now available to watch anytime.
The show highlights the expansion of the John Muir National Historic Site with testimonials from Governor Gavin Newsom, Senator Dianne Feinstein, Michael Muir, John Muir’s great grandson, and others. We’ll also take you on a virtual tour of West Hills Farm and Almond Ranch, the two stunning landscapes that complete the expansion.
We hope you enjoy the show. ------
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 Jerott King, Presidentinfo@btceb.orgJon Running, Membership Directormembership@btceb.orgYvette Skinner, Vice President
Tom Holub, Secretary
Alan Enrici, Treasurer
Austin McInerny, Advocacy Directoradvocacy@btceb.orgBen Brunetti, Trails Directortrails@btceb.orgJosh Church, Education and Promotion Director
Jamuel Starkey, Communications DirectorTom Gandesbery, Director-at-Large
Scott Bartlebaugh, Director-at-Large |
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