The photos from the August 3rd Skills Clinic at Malibu Creek State Park have just been posted on this website. Thre were 29 riders today on a lovely day for riding. You can see them in the August 2013 photo gallery.
August Skills Clinic photos published
August 3rd, 2013August eTerraTimes Newsletter Published August 1
August 1st, 2013The August edition of CORBA’s monthly newsletter, the eTerraTimes, was published today, August 1. If you don’t get it by email, you can view it online.
As always, the eTerraTimes has all the latest news for mountain bikers in the Santa Monica Mountains and surrounding areas.
I’d Like to Thank…
July 30th, 2013By Mark Langton
When I learned that CORBA would be inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame, my first reaction was, “where do we begin to start thanking people?” If you go back to the inception of CORBA, it all started with a 1987 Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy (SMMC) meeting where one of the agenda items was to consider adopting California State Parks’ policy of single track trails being closed to bicycles. So I guess you could say that CORBA owes a debt of gratitude to the SMMC for considering closing trails to bikes.
There were quite a few mountain bikers at that SMMC meeting, myself included. We sat patiently while the committee members discussed the pros and cons of allowing this “new” recreation on their public trails. They decided to adopt the State Parks policy, but they would continue dialogue with “the bike group” to see if bicycles could be integrated into the trail system. The cyclists in the audience looked around and silently acknowledged that “I guess we’re the bike group.” A legal pad was passed around and the list of people collected at that meeting became the impetus for CORBA. (Since then SMMC has adopted an inclusive policy toward mountain bikes.)
Twenty-six years later, we are still having to address issues of whether or not bicycles can coexist on public open space trails, mostly on State Parks’ trails. It’s like when snowboarding became popular at ski resorts. There was a lot of animosity leveled at snowboarders by skiers. A partial solution was to create separate areas where snowboarders could do their thing and skiers knew to stay away from those areas. But with public open space trails, we don’t necessarily have that luxury. If we want to share the trails, we have to behave accordingly and expect that there may be hikers, equestrians, and other (less experienced) cyclists on those trails.
The sport of mountain biking is evolving much like the sport of skiing has evolved to include snowboard riders. Separate areas are being developed to accommodate “gravity” mountain biking, and CORBA is working with land managers in our region to develop mountain bike parks that allow for more aggressive riding, including jumps, drops, and technical features. We will be announcing some very exciting news within the next few months regarding these new areas!
If you want something to last, you have to be willing to commit to the long haul. I’m not sure if that’s what the founders of CORBA set out to do, but thanks to them and everyone who got involved from then until now, we have a lasting legacy and solid foundation that will serve the next generation of mountain bikers in the greater Los Angeles and Eastern Ventura Counties.
And when we accept the award on behalf of CORBA for being inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame, you can be sure that everyone on that stage will be feeling the pride of all of those who have supported CORBA over the last 26 years.
Niner Bikes’ Generous Donation To CORBA
July 30th, 2013CORBA recently received a generous donation of framekits from Niner Bikes.
Some of these sweet Niner frames will be put into CORBA’s Youth Adventures fleet, where at-risk youth are given the opportunity to experience the joy of cycling on trails in our State Parks. Others will be raffled off to reward volunteers who come out for CORBA’s trailwork days, or to raise funds to support our programs. The generous donation will also benefit our neighboring IMBA Chapters, including the Santa Barbara Mountain Bike Trail Volunteers, Mount Wilson Bicycling Association, SHARE Mountain Bike Club and the San Diego Mountain Bike Association.
Niner has a strong history of supporting mountain biking advocacy. They truly understand that more trail opportunities helps grow the sport, and everyone benefits. As an Above and Beyond IMBA Corporate Member their custom IMBA-themed bikes have generated many thousands of dollars for IMBA at the national level. For many years they have also been there to support CORBA’s efforts at the local level.
They also understand mountain bikes themselves, making some of the sweetest mountain bikes available. Niner were among the original proponents of 29 inch wheels, and have helped advance the state-of-the-art in off-road bicycle design.
We thank Niner for their generous and ongoing support, which will ultimately benefit trails and mountain bikers throughout Southern California.
GirlzGoneRiding News for August
July 30th, 2013From Wendy Engelberg
On Sunday we had 16 awesome GGR girlz participating in the Wenches with Wrenches workshop at Newbury Park Bike Shop. http://www.npbikeshop.com/. These clinics are limited to typically only 15 GGR members,
Dorothy Twitchell, the events director of NPBS greeted us with our own clinic space, a valet for our bikes and breakfast goodies!
Shane, the GM held the clinic while Dorothy and Ben were there to help in any way they could. The clinic’s focus was to simulate things that can happen on the trail and repair them enough so we don’t have to walk our bikes out of the trail.
The clinic started out with a pre ride check list that was very thorough and led us to MANY other things. We discussed the most important things to put in our packs, how to repair a broken chain, re thread the chain, what to do when a spoke brakes, rim is bent, suspension set up and more.
For those who wanted more, there was a separate clinic for pulling out and changing your brake pads and even repairing flats.
GGR would like to sincerely thank Newbury Park Bike Shop for spending your Sunday with us, holding an outstanding, very, very useful workshop and really getting involved in our local women’s cycling community. Other bike shops………step up! YOUR TURN!
GGR girlz Wendy, Lisa, Karine, Dianna, Mila and Jennifer went for a ride in Sycamore Canyon after the clinic. This was the 1st time I have ridden there since the fires. This was also a few of the girlz longest rides ever at a respective 18 miles which is a big ride for these newbies! Well done ladies! You rocked it!
Until next time girlz…..GGR girl Wendy
CORBA To Be Inducted Into Mountain Bike Hall of Fame
July 27th, 2013
Thanks to all who voted for CORBA to be inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame! The ceremony will take place September 18, 2013 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas as part of the Interbike trade show.
In the 26 years CORBA has been advocating for shared use open space trails, we have literally hundreds of people to thank for our successes and achievements. Normally a Hall of Fame induction indicates a retirement. But CORBA is still going strong and continues to represent the interests of those who want to ride their bikes in the dirt!
Mammoth Mountain Kamakaze Games Supports CORBA
July 20th, 2013
Mammoth’s Kamikaze helped establish Mammoth Lakes as a bike Mecca in the mid-80s, about the same time that mountain bikes were being banned from local trails throughout California. It was a time when advocacy was beginning, CORBA was formed, and lift-accessed downhill bike racing in the US had its start. In the world-famous Kamakaze, pros raced the same course as amateurs and success was measured by how much fun you had.
It’s back! Kamikaze Bike Games goes down September 4-8 and includes downhill, cross-country, and enduro races as well as an off-road Gran Fondo and kids race.
This year, there will be much more happening than those early days, including some road cycling events. There’s an award winning century, Gran Fondo or one of the shorter courses to choose from. There will be great food, entertainment, epic riding, and an expo. It promises to bring back the glory of big mountain racing and should be the bike bash of the year!
Mammoth Mountain has generously donated some entries into the race and some Mammoth Bike Park day passes for us to reward our volunteers. We’re excited to see the Kamakaze return, bigger and better than ever, and are grateful for their support of CORBA.
July Skills Clinic photos published
July 10th, 2013The photos from the July 6th Skills Clinic at Malibu Creek State Park have just been posted on this website. Mark was on his own this month because both Ezra (Mark’s regular assistant and MBU volunteer) and Steve (normally reliable photographer) were out of town, so in addition to his normal teaching duties, Mark took photos when he could. It looks like there was quite a large class, about 30-35 participants, based on the first photo. You can see them all in the July 2013 photo gallery.
July eTerraTimes Newsletter Published July 2
July 2nd, 2013The July edition of CORBA’s monthly newsletter, the eTerraTimes, was published today, July 2. If you don’t get it by email, you can view it online.
As always, the eTerraTimes has all the latest news for mountain bikers in the Santa Monica Mountains and surrounding areas.
Long Time Trail Advocate Linda Palmer Has Died
July 1st, 2013Linda Palmer, a long time advocate for preservation and construction of trails in the Santa Monica Mountains, has died. Linda was a past president of the Santa Monica Mountains Trails Council and served for many years on the Advisory Committee of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. If you ride or hike a trail in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, you owe a debt of gratitude to Linda. We send our condolences to her family and friends.
