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A Message from CORBA's President Dear CORBA Supporters, Recently the Board of Directors held it’s annual election of officers. I am honored to have been chosen to represent CORBA’s Board of Directors as President. First I must congratulate outgoing
President Jeff Klinger for an outstanding tenure of more than six
years. His tireless work on behalf of mountain bikers and open space
enthusiasts has resulted in many positive gains for the outdoors
community. Jeff also served as Treasurer, I would also like to welcome our newest board member, Steve Messer. While he is new to the board, Steve is no stranger to the mountain biking community. He has worked for years with CORBA’s trail work crew, and he recently headed up the letter writing campaign that generated more than 900 letters in support of including mountain biking in the Los Angeles Bicycle Master Plan. As the new decade dawns, CORBA is needed more than ever. There are still people and organizations that want to ban mountain bikes from the trails. This position is short-sighted and selfish, as it is widely known that the more people who are allowed access to open space, the more likely that open space will remain open to the public. We must always be vigilant to make sure those who would ban bikes do not unfairly and inaccurately depict mountain biking to elected officials and land managers. CORBA recognizes that there is an increasing demand by mountain bikers for technical terrain, including human made features, where they can challenge their riding ability. CORBA has been working with local land managers to identify areas where these kinds of trails can exist, as well as working with several agencies to implement bike parks with skills features and pump tracks. We are very excited about these projects and hope to announce more within the coming year. Many people ask, “what is CORBA?” CORBA is made up of mountain bikers and outdoor enthusiasts who want to enjoy our pubic open space in a safe and responsible manner. In the coming months we will be soliciting your participation in several new committees we have created to better serve the mountain bike and outdoor community in Los Angeles and surrounding areas. I am very excited about CORBA as we move forward. I hope you will join me in helping to preserve, maintain, and gain access to our cherished open space trails. Sincerely, Things CORBA did for mountain biking in 2009
Revenue: Almost two thirds of our revenue comes from fundraising at the Fat Tire Fest. Next, generating almost a third of our income is charitable contributions and dues from our individual members - we thank you for your ongoing support! Expenditures: 2009 expenditures matched revenues almost exactly. The list below gives examples of our expenses:
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
(Click on the links above to get more details!) April 23-25 - Santa Monica Mountains Trails Days This is a weekend event with CORBA, SMMTC and other trail user groups with camping at Danielson Ranch in Point Mugu State Park. You can come in Friday night and stay until Sunday or leave Saturday after trail maintenance. Some people just come in for Saturday. There will be a barbecue and raffle on Saturday evening. Informational flyer and registration form coming soon. Details.
January 9, 2010 - The Middle Sam Merrill Trail with Lunch CORBA's intrepid trail crew took part in a joint trail maintenance day on
one of the most beloved trails in the Angeles front country. Seventy people came
out to give back to the trails, a measure of just how popular this trail
is.
The Sam Merrill Trail from Inspiration Point to Echo Mountain has been closed since the Station Fire last year. The first half-mile of the trail was the burn area, but the remainder of the trail was in need of water diversion and erosion control work. Even though it was closed, there was a need to ensure that what remains was prepared for the coming rains, with the hope of getting this trail opened again as soon as possible after the rainy season passes.
Much was accomplished. The mountain biking contingent did brush and tread work all the way up to the burn zone. The Bear Canyon Hiking club and others worked in the burn areas up near the top of the trail, recovering as much of the trail as they could. CORBA supplied lunch for all of the volunteers. It was a great day and everyone came away from the work day feeling good about what they'd done to help preserve this trail, even though it is expected to remain closed until at least spring. Why do Trailwork? If you've ever wondered this, take a look at this article in the Summer 2008 issue of Terra Times to learn more about why it's important. Visit the CORBA Trail Crew page for more information and links to photos of past events. MBU recruiting for 2010; Orientation is Saturday, February 6th from Joseph Lang Calling all mountain bikers age 18 and over! The Mountain Bike Patrol Unit (MBU) is currently recruiting for its 2010 New Recruit Training Class. If you enjoy mountain biking and are interested in giving back to the community by volunteering some time to assist our understaffed Park Rangers in patrolling their parks, then the MBU may be just what you are looking for ... the MBU support and are sponsored by the National Park Service (NPS), the California State Park Service and the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA).
All of our Patrols require at least two patrollers which are self scheduled on our website. We ask each of our volunteers for 100 patrol hours annually (roughly two 4 hour patrols per month). Would you like to learn more? We invite you to come to King Gillette Ranch Auditorium at 9:00 am on Saturday, February 6, 2010 for an indoor orientation meeting where we will share with you more details about this wonderful program and what patrolling with the MBU is all about. We encourage you to bring your bike and helmet because we plan on going for a bit of a fun ride after the presentation (weather permitting). For more details, visit the MBU training web page. To see the MBU in action, view our gallery of MBU photos. LA Bike Plan Report Update - Support from CORBA Members and Friends Is Incredible! Sadly, several Los Angeles City statutes make it illegal to ride on a trail in any City Park. After more than 18 months of development, Los Angeles' Draft
Bicycle Plan did nothing to change that. It took recommendations off the table
that had been included in the plan's last revision in 1996. It called for
studies to assess our needs for trail access, but provided little in the way of
concrete guidance on the issue.
The plan has been the subject of intense scrutiny from all facets of cycling, including its off-road components. When the draft document was released in late September, the City held five public workshops, and allowed just six weeks to digest and comment upon this 563 page document. Bowing to pressure from the cycling community at large, the City extended it's comment period until January 8, 2010. CORBA representatives attended all of the public workshops. The extended
comment period gave us the opportunity to review the plan in detail, and compile
our official response. We then called upon the mountain biking community at
large, and you responded.
CORBA put together a grass-roots advocacy campaign, with a petition and an email and letter-writing drive. Between December 19, 2009 and January 7, 2010, 929 letters and signatures from mountain bikers were gathered. On January 8 we delivered those letters to the City of L.A. Planning Department. Key City officials, Rec and Parks personnel and Members of L.A. City Council also received copies of all the letters and petitions via email. We got the City's attention. This was the biggest response CORBA has ever received to an advocacy campaign. Mountain bikers stood up for themselves, demanding a change to the decades old ban on bicycles in City Parks. We need more options for outdoor recreation and exercise, especially for kids. Currently, the City is revising the draft plan, taking into consideration all of the comments received. A second draft is expected to be released within the next two months, and will be followed by another comment period before being submitted to the City Council for adoption. We'll keep you informed and updated on the progress. CORBA is looking forward to working with the City to make its parks more inclusive of all user groups, including off-road cyclists. Thank you for standing up for yourselves! News from Palos Verdes from Troy Braswell, CORBA Palos Verdes A large portion of the Portuguese Bend Reserve remains closed because of last year’s fire. There is still no word on when it will reopen. Rangers continue to patrol the area, issuing tickets or warnings to anyone who enters the closed area or uses any unauthorized trail. Several mountain bikers have been ticketed along with hikers and dog walkers. At this point, enforcement appears to be evenly distributed.Recent rains have not only hampered riding but also damaged numerous trails. Fortunately, we have a trail crew-training program directed by Kurt Loheit with excellent mountain biker representation. Last week’s work included filling in BSRs (bike sucking ruts) and preparing trails for the next series of storms. On the political scene, we’re waiting for the city council, with two new members, to address trail issues. The city recently established a goal of re-examining the trails network plan. Cyclists should get an opportunity to ask for more trail access. However, success will depend to a large degree on good trail behavior. Volunteering for trail work will help as well. New on the CORBA Website For a list of upcoming recreational rides, please visit the CORBA Calendar. Free Mountain Biking Skills Clinic Saturday February 6th is the next skills clinic. The 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! CORBA holds a recreational bike ride for beginners the second Saturday of every month, a week after the Skills Clinic. This is the perfect opportunity for the clinic attendees to practice their new skills! But you don't need to attend the Skills Clinic before you come on this ride; everyone is welcome. This is a great ride for first-timers to the CORBA recreational rides. The ride leader will go over the basics of riding a mountain bike along the route. Check the Calendar for details.
We have set up an account with Twitter to help keep people informed of the lastest developments in our trail advocacy, recreational rides and trailwork days. Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/CORBAmtb. 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
(Click on the links above to get more details!) You are subscribed to the CORBA News e mail list. To unsubscribe, send an e mail to corbanews-unsubscribe@corbamtb.com Please do not reply to this email as the corbanews mailbox is
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and I would like to
congratulate Danusia Bennett-Taber for being elected to the position.
Jeff continues to serve on the board and is dedicated to CORBA and
mountain biking recreation.
CORBA had approximately 50 mountain bikers come out for the trailwork day,
including about 15 student racers from the
Here's
what it's all about. The MBU assists in providing park visitors
with a quality outdoor experience and preserving natural resources
while patrolling over 60 thousand acres of public parkland in the
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. Beginning in Feburary
2010, training will include visitor contact skills, State &
National Park radio use, park rules & regulations, first aid
& CPR and field training exercises. Patrol areas include the
following National Park Service locations: Cheeseboro/Palo
Comado, Zuma/Trancas Canyons, Rancho Sierra Vista and Circle X Ranch;
State Park locations: Malibu Creek, Will Rogers, Point Mugu and
Topanga. In addition, we patrol MRCA areas near metropolitan Los
Angeles along with participating in various other events such as
the LA and Malibu Marathons, Wheels to the Sea and the Ventura County
Fair. The MBU also help support CORBA's Youth Adventure Program
which offers disadvantaged youth the opportunity to enjoy the mountain
biking experience in our beautiful parks.
CORBA free skills clinic is held on the first Saturday of
every month at Malibu Creek State Park.
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