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In this issue...
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Many-time
US and World Champion Leigh Donovan will be visiting
Cycle World on August 12 for CORBA's fundraiser.
See
story...
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 Get this eNewsletter
as a PDF
document!
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Proper Trail Etiquette
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A Message from CORBA’s President
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Bluff Trail, Andrew Molera State Park.
Photo by Mark
Langton
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By Mark Langton
At the risk of sounding like a broken record (a cliché
becoming less and less relevant), CORBA is not a group of people
sitting in a meeting room. CORBA is our membership, and whether
you’re an actual member of CORBA or not, you are a member of the
entire mountain bike community. Whether you ride on fire roads only,
or enjoy the challenge of singletrack, each and every one of us
has the individual responsibility of representing our sport. So
when you’re out there, remember that your actions speak for the
entire sport of mountain biking.
This concept really hit home last week while I was riding at
Andrew Molera State Park in Big Sur. The two main trails (Ridge
Trail and Bluff Trail) are connected by a singletrack trail that
is closed to bikes. I didn’t know this and thought I’d be able to
ride from the Bluff Trail to the Ridge Trail. When I got to the
intersection with the connector trail, I saw the “no bikes” sign
and thought, “what the hell, no one will know.” Then I remembered
that even though this isn’t my local riding area, my actions would
reflect on the other locals who use the park on a regular basis.
So despite passing up a great loop, I went back the way I came—and
had a great time. Funny thing about trails; they’re totally different
in the opposite direction!
Be safe out on the trails, wherever your adventures take you
this summer!
CORBA Fundraiser at the New Cycle World
in Chatsworth to be August 12th!
Look at what we have for you at the CORBA Fundraiser at Cycle World! Included
with your $10 admission on August 12th, Friday night at 7:00 pm:
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 Leigh Donovan, Champion Racer and model- Silent Auction
- Pizza
- Stone India Pale Ale
- Skills and Bike Fit Demos
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Here are some of the items you will be able to bid on in the silent auction
(all proceeds go to CORBA):
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- Thule T2 Bike Rack
- Lezyne Bike Pump
- Women’s MTB shoes
- Men’s MTB shoes
- RockGardN Gear
- Lights!
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In addition, Cycle World will donate 10% of the price of purchases from 7 – 8
pm to CORBA! And, Mountain Bike Action magazine will be there to cover the
festivities!
Date: Friday, August 12. Doors open at
7pm.
Cost: $10 donation at the door:
100% of proceeds go directly to CORBA.
Location:
The new Cycle World Chatsworth
21112 Devonshire Street
Chatsworth, CA
91311
818-349-6902
View the location and get directions with this Google Map.
 Save the Date! Take a Kid Mountain Biking
will be Oct 1, 2011
The annual IMBA Take a Kid Mountain Biking day, always the first
Saturday in October, will be October 1st this year. For details
and photos of previous years' events, please view our Take
a Kid Mountain Biking web page.
Fall Fat Tire Fun(d)raiser to be Nov 13th! Save the date! November 13, 2011 will be the
date for CORBA’s annual fun(d) and awareness raising event. This year we
will be returning to Malibu Creek State Park with a slightly different
format than in years past. We’re still working out the details, but you can be
sure that there will be great rides and some great prizes given away. We will be
toning down the festival atmosphere and concentrating on what we love to do
most—ride! We’re also hoping to have a full complement of some of the hottest
bikes available for testing by some of the industry’s best manufacturers. All
proceeds will go to our programs that help keep the trails open to shared use,
and hopefully open up more of the many miles of trails that are currently closed
to bicycles.
 Upcoming
and Recent Trailwork
For many years, most trailwork has been done by volunteers because of budget
cutbacks at our parks systems. So come out and help CORBA and
other volunteers keep our trails in top riding shape! You can learn
more about what to expect and what you'll need to bring with you
on our Trailwork
web page. Keep in mind that CORBA now provides prizes and lunch
after the event for volunteers who register
in advance! And by registering in advance, you'll help us prepare
by knowing how many volunteers to expect. If you come out to two
or more trailwork days in a year, we'll give you a cool long-sleeved
CORBA trail crew shirt - be sure to ask for yours!
At publication time, we don't have any trailwork scheduled. But
keep an eye on our trailwork
calendar to see when new events are coming up!
To see all trailwork dates, including those of other groups,
visit the CORBA
trailwork calendar.
General
News
Beware the Poodle Dog Bush!
 This pretty but toxic native bush is wreaking havoc on many trail users in the
recently opened Station
Fire area. Poodle Dog Bush, also known as Common Turricula, or Purple Flower Poodle
Bush, is a beautiful purple flowered native bush. Its seeds
will lie dormant in chaparral areas for many years waiting for fire
or other major disturbance of the soil.People often stop on the Angeles Crest Highway or along trails to pick the
pretty purple flowers. It is unfamiliar to most people, and quite attractive.
The stems grow
from the base of the plant and it can grow to eight feet tall.
What people don’t realize is that the bush is covered with tiny hairs similar
to stinging nettle except, there is
no immediate pain or sensation like nettle gives. Poodle Dog hairs will latch on
to bare skin or clothing and release a toxin to which most people will have a
severe reaction. The swelling, rash and itching appear
twelve hours to two days after contacting the bush, and the rash can last for
two weeks or more and require medical attention. Severe cases can result in
large blisters.
Read more on our blog
article about the poodle dog bush...
Mandeville Fire Road Maintenance begins July 25
CORBA has received notification that on July 26, 2011 the LAFD Wildland Fuel
Management Unit is projecting to begin maintenance on West Mandeville, Upper
East and Lower East Mandeville Fire Breaks and Fire Roads in the Santa Monica
Mountains, in that order. They will start bringing equipment in on Monday July
25, 2011.
A call to the LAFD confirmed that the fire roads and trails in the area will
not be closed during the maintenance, but riders and hikers are urged to use
caution in the area and follow the instructions of the workers in the area.
There will be signs posted alerting trail users of the work ahead.
The maintenance work is expected to continue for about two weeks, and should
be complete by mid-August.
Charleton Flats/Chilao: Trail Conditions two years after the Station fire –
ride report
By Louisa Bonnie – With some trepidation we headed up to the San Gabriels to ride
our favorite trail Charleton Flats to Mt. Hilliard. This was our first time
seeing the trail after two years of waiting for the area to recover from the
devastating Station Fire. We wondered if we would find any remnants of the
trails that had given us so many of our favorite challenges, weekend warrior
tales and weary pleasure savored for days afterwards. Our questions were soon
answered with both good news and bad. 
First the bad news. From the Charleton Flats picnic area parking lot, the
single track heading up towards Vetter Mtn. was mostly rideable but there is
some eroded soft spots, a few trees down across the trail and tall purple
flowers blooming in profusion everywhere whacked us in the face as we navigated
along the faint trace of the trail. We lost the trail somewhere near the road
crossing and pedaled up the main road the rest of the way to the summit. Just
before reaching the summit, I saw that the Vetter single track is signed
“Closed” and to please respect the closure. It is closed from top to bottom. As
if it wasn’t badly eroded enough before, I could well imagine it might be
completely demolished now. The Lookout burned completely to the ground. The
Lookout volunteer who was there explained money is being raised to rebuild it
with the help of volunteers.
Read the rest of this
story on our blog...
New on the CORBA Website
Recreational
Rides
For a list of upcoming recreational rides, please visit the CORBA
Calendar.
- Both the CORBA Kids Club Ride and Beginners Ride
are cancelled for August. Even ride leaders
go on vacation occasionally!
CORBA’s Recreational Rides calendar provides a full
monthly schedule of mountain bike rides for all skill levels. Mountain bike
rides are organized by CORBA member clubs and led by experienced and
knowledgeable guides. Recreational rides are a fun and social way to experience
a variety of trails in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, and beyond.
Free Mountain Biking
Skills Clinic
 Saturday August
6th is the next skills clinic.
The CORBA free skills clinic is held on the first Saturday of
every month at Malibu Creek State Park.
Mountain biking is a lot like tennis or skiing. Just a few minor
adjustments in technique can make a huge difference in your
control and proficiency. If you want to get better faster,
you need to know the fundamentals of mountain biking technique.
Whether you're just getting into mountain biking or have been
riding for years, you'll learn some valuable tips from our Introduction
to Mountain Biking skills class that is offered each month.
Check out our Skills Clinic
web page for all the information. After the clinic, see photos
of your new skills on the CORBA web site that you can share
with your family and friends!
 Follow
CORBA on Twitter and Facebook
We have set up accounts with Twitter and Facebook to help keep people informed
of the latest developments in our trail advocacy, recreational rides and trailwork days. Follow
us on Twitter at twitter.com/CORBAmtb
and Facebook at facebook.com/CORBAMTB.
Get Our Blog Articles Delivered to Your
Desktop
Have you ever wished you could get our blog articles without having
to check
the CORBA website every day to see if there’s anything new? Well, you
can! Even though our blog software won’t send articles by email, you can
still get them delivered to the inbox of most email readers like
Microsoft
Outlook. You use the “RSS feed” functionality for this. In fact, you can
read
our articles in any software that receives RSS feeds, such as Internet
Explorer
and other web browsers. This
blog
article on RSS feeds shows you how.
Support
CORBA
Join or Renew your membership today on our membership
web page. Join Our Team! Do you have any ideas about mountain biking recreation in the
L.A. region? Would you like to apply your skills and manage projects
that contribute to the sport and lifestyle that you love? Is there
an advocate in you? We are recruiting motivated individuals who
work well with others. Send an email to info@corbamtb.com
or come
to a monthly Members Meeting to find out more about what we do and how you
can help. Check the calendar
for the next meeting.
Other simple ways to
support CORBA
- REI:
Use the link at left and REI will donate 5%
of the purchase price to CORBA
- Ralphs grocery stores: Use your Ralphs card and help CORBA
- Holmes Body Shop: Get that dent fixed and help CORBA
(Click on the links above to get more details!)
CORBA
News eMail List
Please do not reply to this email as the corbanews mailbox is
not monitored by people. To contact CORBA, email to info@corbamtb.com
or visit our 'Contact Us' page
for other addresses.
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