Archive for November, 2010

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Get Our Blog Articles Delivered to Your Desktop

Saturday, November 27th, 2010

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!  This article shows you how.

Even though our blog software won’t send articles to you 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.

According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RSS), “…RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works — such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video—in a standardized format. An RSS document (which is called a “feed”, “web feed” or “channel”) includes full or summarized text, plus other data such as publishing dates and authorship. Web feeds benefit readers who want to subscribe to timely updates from favored websites or to aggregate feeds from many sites into one place. RSS feeds can be read using software called an “RSS reader”, “feed reader”, or “aggregator”, which can be web-based, desktop-based, or mobile-device-based. The user subscribes to a feed by entering into the reader the feed’s “URI” or by clicking an RSS icon in a web browser that initiates the subscription process. The RSS reader checks the user’s subscribed feeds regularly for new work, downloads any updates that it finds, and provides a user interface to monitor and read the feeds. RSS allows users to avoid manually inspecting all of the websites they are interested in, and instead subscribe to websites such that all new content is pushed onto their browsers when it becomes available…” The Wikipedia article goes on to describe RSS in great detail. 

What follows are directions on how to set up Microsoft Outlook and a couple of web browsers as RSS readers. Other similar software should have a similar method for setting it up to read RSS feeds. 

Microsoft Outlook 2007 (This will subcribe you to new articles only. To also get comments that are posted to these articles, follow this process but use “http://corbamtb.com/news/comments/feed/” for the source of the feed in step 3):  

1. From the “Tools” menu, select “Account Settings…”
2. In the dialog box, select the “RSS Feeds” tab. Click on the “New…” icon just below the tabs.
3. Enter “http://corbamtb.com/news/feed/” (without the quotation marks) in the dialog box that pops up, then click on the “Add” button.
4. In the new dialog box that appears, click on the “Change Folder” button. If you want the feed articles to appear in your inbox, select the “Inbox” folder, then click the “OK” button. Change any other values as you like. You can change them later, too. Then click on the “OK” button to close the dialog box.
5. Click the “Close” button. Recent articles will be downloaded to your inbox.

The File tab is circled in red

Microsoft Outlook 2010: 

1. From the “File” tab, click on the “Account Settings” icon, then select “Account Settings…”
2. Follow steps 2 to 5 as explained above for Outlook 2007. 

Interet Explorer 8: 

1. Browse to a blog article page, for example http://corbamtb.com/news/
2. Click on the down-arrow next to the orange RSS Feeds icon (immediately to the right of the Home icon) then select “CORBA News >> Feed” (or select “CORBA News >> Comments” to subscribe to the comments)

3. Click on “Subscribe to this feed” at the bottom of the yellow box near the top of the page that comes up. If you like, make changes in the dialog box that pops up, then click the “Subscribe” button. 

To read the RSS feeds, Click on the “Favorites” button, then the “Feeds” tab. 

Internet Explorer 7: 

1. Browse to the blog home page http://corbamtb.com/news/
2. Near the bottom of the navigation column on the right side, click on “Entries RSS” (or “Comments RSS” to subscribe to the comments).
3. Click on “Subscribe to this feed” at the bottom of the yellow box near the top of the page.  If you like, make changes in the dialog box that pops up, then click the “Subscribe” button. 

To read the RSS feeds, Click on the “Favorites” button, then the “Feeds” tab.
 

Mozilla Firefox (v3.6): 

1. Browse to the blog home page http://corbamtb.com/news/
2. Click on the orange RSS Feed icon at the right of the URL address field, then click on the feed you which you want to subscribe from the list that appears.

3. Click on the “Subscribe Now” button near the top of the page that comes up. If you like, change the values in the dialog box that pops up, then select the “Subscribe” button. 

If you used the default value for the folder of “Bookmarks Toolbar” in the last dialog box, you read the blog articles by selecting the appropriate one from the folder of the appropriate name on the bookmarks toolbar.

Posted in CORBA News | No Comments »

CORBA’s Kurt Loheit Receives National Award

Sunday, November 21st, 2010

Kurt Loheit

CORBA and IMBA founding member and Mountain Bike Hall Of Fame Inductee Kurt Loheit was recently the recipient of American Trails’  Lifetime Service Award as part of the 20th American Trails National Symposium.

From the American Trails website:

The National Trails Awards is one way American Trails recognizes the exemplary people across the landscape of America who are working to create a national system of trails to meet the recreation, health, and travel needs of all Americans.

Lifetime Service Award: Kurt Loheit

This award recognizes an individual demonstrating long-standing, significant, and exemplary service to trail planning, implementation, and recreation.

Kurt Loheit has more than 20 years of experience as a passionate outdoorsman, who has been instrumental in organizing and leading trail programs with the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy and numerous other organizations across the nation, including the California Trails and Greenways Conference, founding the Los Angeles Chapter of Concerned Off Road Bicyclists Association, and being the Resources Director of the International Mountain Bicyclist Association. Kurt has been a leader of the hiking and mountain bike community’s efforts to contribute to the design, construction, and maintenance of sustainable trail systems. He has supervised trail projects and trail building schools around the country, he’s written about trail building issues in a number of mountain biking and land management publications, and he’s presented many times at national, state, and local trails conferences. In 2004 he was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame.

As one of CORBA’s “elders,” Loheit continues to provide guidance on trail related topics, from maintenance projects to advocacy concerns on both a local and national level. A resident of Rancho Palos Verdes, he has been instrumental in the ongoing transformation of the open space trails into cooperative shared use. Says CORBA Palos Verdes member Troy Braswell, “When cyclists in Rancho Palos Verdes were on the verge of being completely shut out, Kurt stepped forward to put us on the right course. He guided us from a disorganized bunch of ignorant bikers to a band of pretty effective CORBA PV warriors.

“The foundation for everything we have gained was paid for with his years of advocacy experience and countless hours of volunteer work. His position as a nationally recognized trails expert and committed volunteer has given him a highly respected voice in Rancho Palos Verdes. When the city or land conservancy has a question about trails, they go to Kurt. When we need direction through the political battlefield of advocacy, we go to Kurt.”

Loheit had this to say about the honor: “It really isn’t so much what I have done, its more about what others have done along with me. Everyone has a part to share in this award.”

We congratulate Kurt on this lifetime service award, and express our sincerest gratitude for his ongoing contributions to CORBA, mountain biking and trail user communities around the nation.

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Posted in Advocacy, CORBA News, Default, National, Santa Monica Mountains, Trail Access | No Comments »

Rogers Road Trail Update

Monday, November 15th, 2010

On November 10, CORBA Board members Mark Langton, Jeff Klinger, Hans Keifer, Danusia Bennet-Taber, and Steve Messer, along with Jim Hasenauer of IMBA and Bryan Gordon of the Canyonback Alliance, walked/rode the upper section of Rogers Road Trail with Topanga Sector Superintendent Lynette Brody and Maintenance Supervisor Dale Skinner.  This tour was arranged by CORBA with these State Park employees in response to intense public input regarding recent work performed on the “re-route” (singletrack) section of trail (west where it meets Temescal Ridge Fire Road) as well as about a mile and a half of the wider road bed to the east of the singletrack. In the past few weeks, Supervisor Skinner has used a Sweco trail tractor/dozer to fix and install several drainage channels, as well as bring the trail up to vegetation clearance guidelines for multiple use, specifically, equestrians. Many local trail users have complained to State Parks that the work was overdone and that a once narrow, serene singletrack trail has been obliterated into a road.

There are actually two separate sections, the “re-route” which was built as a true narrow trail, and the main Rogers Road Trail, which was originally a road cut that supported wide and heavy equipment.

Earlier comments on CORBA’s web site began by trying to assuage concerns of trail users not familiar with this kind of work by saying that typically trails “come back” to a more natural state after a couple of seasons. This can be said for the “re-route” section, although CORBA noted to Supervisor Skinner that the widening created a “faster trail” and suggested that possible speed control devices such as pinch-point structures be considered.

As for the wider section, based on the tour that took place on November 10, CORBA’s original comments were premature. After witnessing the complete section of the work area and hearing comments made by Supervisor Skinner, as well as an evaluation by professional trail contractor Hans Keifer, it is evident that the work that was performed lacked forethought and consideration for minimal impact. In fact, no Project Evaluation Form (PEF) was submitted for this work and therefore is in direct violation of the department’s own policy. We were assured by both Superintendent Brody and Supervisor Skinner that the work will not continue until a Project Evaluation Form is completed and that trail users will have a say in the process, which they said could take several months to over a year.

It’s true that after new construction or trail maintenance, trails look bare and lose their natural character.  Typically, Spring rains create new vegetation which helps the trails recover some of their more natural character.   This has been our experience on several agency trail maintenance projects in the past.  In the case of the recent work on the wider section of Rogers Road Trail there was a fundamental disagreement between the State’s position that Rogers should be maintained to “road” standards and that vegetation should be cut wider than the 8-foot wide/10-foot high vegetation clearance suggested by multiple use guidelines–and CORBA’s position that Rogers is a trail (the Backbone Trail), not a road; that the 8-foot/10-foot clearance was for new trail construction, not existing trails, and that the trail should be left as narrow and natural as possible while addressing and achieving the maintenance concerns of water drainage and a proper vegetation width for shared use with equestrians.

We acknowledged that this is a multi-use trail that must work for all users and that there are several drainage and maintenance issues that are beyond the scope of handwork.  We demonstrated how anything more than an 8-foot clearance wasn’t necessary for safety or sustainability and that in many cases the clearance that has been done was far wider than eight feet.  CORBA’s position is that this work went too far and urged State Parks to minimize the impact of the maintenance on the only bike-legal singletrack in Topanga State Park.

We were informed that the plan was to continue the work down to the Will Rogers State Historic Park Trail Loop, and we also expressed serious concern about continuing these impacts into what is admittedly an eroded and deteriorating section of trail. Superintendent Brody and Supervisor Skinner reiterated that moving forward, greater evaluation and a full PEF would take place and could take several months to over a year.

Examination of the new/refurbished drains that were installed shows minimal attention to corrected out sloping to facilitate proper drainage; drains were basically cut with only a few passes with the Sweco’s blade and very little additional shaping or contouring was evident. On another section of trail, an entire corner (approximately 250-300 square feet) was scraped clean of vegetation, with the reason for the denudation being “ it’s for the hikers. Hikers like the beautiful views.” This brush clearance ignores the fact that it created a large, bare, disturbed area of unprotected, easily eroded earth that will exacerbate hydro erosion because there is no root system to control runoff. Also, there was no drain installed at the bottom of the hill where water would run to from this bare area. Another section of trail further south was smoothed of ruts and out sloped correctly. However, the width of the tread was increased to approximately 12 feet, far more than what CORBA considers appropriate or necessary.

Maintenance Supervisor Dale Skinner (left foreground) and members of CORBA discuss the complete removal of vegetation from dozens of square yards of soil at an "overlook" section of Rogers Road Trail. Photo by Jim Hasenauer

Again, we were assured by both Superintendent Brody and Supervisor Skinner that the work will not continue until a Project Evaluation Form is completed and that trail users will have a say in the process. Check back here for further information as we get it. There will be several opportunities to get involved as trail planning in Topanga State Park and the rest of the Santa Monica’s moves forward. We encourage you to get involved with your parks’ planning process and be proactive in shaping park policy, planning and landscapes.

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Posted in Advocacy, Default, Santa Monica Mountains, Trail Access, Trail Crew | 5 Comments »

Saturday’s Rejuvination of the Wood Canyon Vista Trail

Monday, November 15th, 2010

On Saturday, ten mountain bikers and three members of the Santa Monica Mountains Trails Council trail crew fixed the drainage on 0.6 miles of the Wood Canyon Vista (Backbone) Trail in Pt. Mugu State Park, about one third of it’s length. We concentrated on the area that was most likely to be damaged by the winter rain. Running water does by far more damage to the trail than anything else, so we were building rolling dips to get the water off.

Building a rolling tip to divert water that would otherwise run down the trail and create a rut.

While we were working on this trail, a few dozen mountain bikers rode by, mostly downhill but a few were riding up. The vast majority slowed to thank us for our work in keeping the trail in top condition. Sadly, one small group and a few individuals sped through our work area, twice as fast as the other riders, despite our admonitions to slow down. It’s easy to understand why some hikers and equestians don’t like mountain bikers when irresponsible riders are encountered on the trail. Riders like these are the ones everyone remembers, not the great majority who are courteous and respectful to other people. Keep in mind that when you are traveling at say 15 mph down a trail and see hikers coming up and slow to say 5 mph to pass. This may seem really slow to you but to a hiker that is standing still on a narrow trail 5 mph still seems pretty fast.

A couple of riders complained to us that we were “ruining the flow of the trail.” Hopefully they will read this article and come to understand why the rolling dips are built the way they are.

I would like to thank the riders and hikers who came out to help fix up this trail. Everyone did a great job!

Finally, here are the winners of the prizes we had for mountain bikers who came to help out:

- $100 gift certificate for Helen’s Bicycles: Hector Ancheta
- Buff headband: Milind Mahajan
- Ergon grips: Paul Trinkkeller
- Mountain bike inner tube: Charles Cohen

Visit our photo gallery to see the work in progress.

Posted in Santa Monica Mountains, Trail Crew | No Comments »

Trail Maintenance: Get the Water Off to Preserve the Trail

Monday, November 15th, 2010

This rut on the Wood Canyon Vista Trail doesn't look like much now, but left to itself, it will evenutally consume the entire trail!

Running water is responsible for well over 90% of trail damage. Last winter we had a lot of rain that heavily damaged the Wood Canyon Vista Trail (and others), leaving it with deep ruts and loose rocks. The State Park maintenance staff fixed the ruts by running a SWECO (mini bulldozer) up the trail, and then new drainage channels were cut by CORBA and other volunteers.   

The number one trail maintenance objective is to get the water off the trail to keep new ruts from forming. During normal trail use, a ridge of dirt and rocks forms on the outside edge of the trail. This is called a berm and it keeps the water from running off the trail. We allow the water to drain off by constructing what are called ‘rolling dips’ or ‘grade dips.’ This is done by digging a depression in the trail, a few inches deep and sloped to the downhill side. We also cut out the berm so that water will be diverted off when it runs into the rolling dip. Downhill of this depression, we build a low mound called a ramp, slanted about 30 to 45 degrees across the trail, to act as a dam, a barrier of last resort to keep water from running down the trail.   

Riding over a newly constructed rolling dip.

The shallow depression should be about three to five feet long and a few inches deep, and the downhill ramp should be two to four feet long and a few inches high. The transition from the depression to the downhill ramp shouldn’t be so steep that tires won’t roll over them easily either uphill or downhill. Our first concern is safety and we don’t want anyone to have difficulty riding over them.   

We purposely make the depression a little deeper than needed, and the ramp a little higher. This is so the rolling dips don’t wear out too soon. We don’t want to have to rebuild them every few months! The ramp becomes more packed down over time, and, especially when it’s new, mountain bike tires can cut into it and disperse the dirt. The shallow depression will slowly fill up with silt and eventually won’t channel the water off the trail. In fact, the rolling dips that were built last spring on this trail were already choked with silt from some recent rainy days.

Posted in Trail Crew, Trail Hazards | 5 Comments »

State Parks Programatic EIR Public Hearing

Wednesday, November 10th, 2010

This Saturday, November 13, California State Parks will be hosting the final public hearing on their Draft Programatic EIR.

Bicycle access to trails in the Santa Monica Mountains and many other areas will be directly affected by the final version of this document, so it is important to ensure that mountain bikers are fully engaged in this process. CORBA and IMBA representatives will be attending, and we urge everyone who would like to see more trails opened for bicycles in State Parks to attend and make comments.

What is a Programatic EIR?  This is an effort to streamline the process of converting trails from one designation, such as hiker-only, to another designation, such as multi-use. This is good for mountain biking.  According to IMBA:

California State Park’s Director Ruth Coleman has embraced a statewide Programatic Environmental Impact Report (PEIR) that will improve the process to convert trails to shared-use status. “This will lay the groundwork for the efficient conversion of trails that IMBA California and clubs have been requesting for some time,” says IMBA California’s Tom Ward. This bodes well for efforts to open Bill’s Trail in Marin, as well as numerous trails in Santa Cruz and Humboldt counties, Mt Diablo State Park, Folsom State Recreation Area, Donor Lake State Park, various Sonoma County parks and miles of trails in the Los Angeles basin. According to Ward, park managers have often shown support for improved mountain bike access — but each time they attempt implementation they are threatened with lawsuits from opposing forces. “The intent of PEIR is to curtail the legal challenges to each trail conversion project,” says Ward. He adds, “This is a major milestone for IMBA’s efforts to increase mountain bike access in state parks.”

The meeting will take place from:

1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Saturday, November 13
Lake Activities Building,Lake Perris State Recreation Area,
17801 Lake Perris Drive,
Perris, CA 92571 [map].

The Notice of Preparation for the draft PEIR can be found at http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=980. Public comments are being accepted through November 30. Comments on the PEIR may be submitted in person at the workshops, or by either mail to:

Environmental Coordinator – Trails PEIR
1 Capitol Mall, Suite 410
Sacramento, CA  95814

Or by email to:  ceqansc@parks.ca.gov
(Note:  In the Subject Line, write:  ‘Trails PEIR’)

Comments can also be submitted by Fax to: (916) 445-8883;  Please address faxes to: Environmental Coordinator – Trails PEIR

We’ll have more details and a more thorough report after Saturday’s presentation and hearing.

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Posted in Advocacy, California, Santa Monica Mountains, Trail Access | No Comments »

Trail Work on Rogers Road Trail Halted

Wednesday, November 10th, 2010

CORBA has learned that the recent trail work that has begun on Rogers Road Trail approximately two miles from Temescal Ridge Fire Road (western terminus in Topanga State Park) has been temporarily halted. This has happened in large part to intense input from the public and CORBA, and a request from CORBA for State Park officials to re-examine the necessity and scope of the work before continuing. We have been told by both the maintenance and ranger departments that officials have met internally and are reviewing the protocol and standards for this work. Additional meetings will be taking place this week to determine how and when additional trail work on Rogers Road Trail may take place. At this time it is unclear when the work will resume and at what level, and/or if it will continue the full length of trail to Will Rogers State Historic Park.

Please stay tuned to this web site for further updates.

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Posted in Santa Monica Mountains, Trail Crew | No Comments »

Mountain Bikers Preserving the Trails

Monday, November 8th, 2010

Sunday’s trailwork on El Prieto went exceptionally well. We had perfectly cool, clear weather, damp soil that was easy to work with, and good spirits all around. Thanks to the approximately 50 people who came out to show this heavily damaged trail some much-needed love.

Rock Armoring Teamwork

Rock Armoring Teamwork

In over 320 person-hours of labor, several washed out drainages were restored, brush was cut back, and many vulnerable sections of the trail tread received rock-armoring treatment. We were even able to restore one section of the original trail that had all-but vanished since the fires. With some diligent hand-tool work and brush cutting, the “cactus corner” section was re-cut and benched, and is ready for finish work.

Special thanks to the St. Francis high school mountain bike team, who came out in force to contribute. Of today’s volunteer trailworkers, more than half were high school team mountain bikers.

As high school students, not only did they learn about trail construction and sustainability, they also gained insight into what makes a “good” trail: how it flows, how it handles water, how sight-lines affect safety on the trail and many other tidbits that one usually doesn’t have time to think about when riding a trail.

Another wonderful aspect of high-school team riders is that many of their parents also get involved. Many are introduced not only to the sport of mountain biking, but to volunteerism and trail stewardship. At least eight parents of high school racers also put sweat equity into the trail on Sunday.

The Forest Service is also requiring all volunteer trail working groups to use safety gear including gloves and hard hats. Thanks to the generous support of REI we were able to outfit all our volunteers with hard hats, a first for CORBA trail crews. We also thank Flat Attack tire sealant for their support of CORBA’s programs.

Special thanks also to Banner Moffat and the Friends of El Prieto, for their ongoing regular work that has helped keep this trail from disappearing altogether since the Station Fire, even though it remains closed to the public. We’re hoping that El Prieto will be a top priority for re-opening by the FS after the rain season ends.

El Prieto trailwork

The original trail restored

Flash flooding and unstable hillsides are still major concerns, and the reason this and many other Station Fire trails will remain closed at least through next spring. In a recent meeting with the non-motorized trails supervisor for the forest, we discussed some creative ways that CORBA, the Friends of El Prieto and other volunteers might work together to open this trail sooner, rather than later. Some possibilities might include a “conditional” opening, where the trail would be closed at any sign of rain, and surveyed after each rain for safety. At this point, the mountain bike community would welcome any access to El Prieto.

Keeping the trail in good shape is the first and most important step towards that goal. Thanks again to everyone who came out!

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Posted in Angeles National Forest, High School League, Trail Access, Trail Crew, Trail Hazards | No Comments »

Elsmere Canyon Now Public Land

Saturday, November 6th, 2010

The city of Santa Clarita recently closed escrow on the 842 parcel of land known as Elsmere Canyon. Elsmere was slated to become the largest landfill in Los Angeles during the 1990′s, before Senator Barbara Boxer and Congressman Howard McKeon fought to prevent the devastating landfill project.

Elsmere Canyon Map

(more…)

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Posted in Angeles National Forest, Environment, Los Angeles | No Comments »

Giant Sequoia National Monument – Public Comments Extended

Thursday, November 4th, 2010

Many mountain bikers from Southern California venture out to the trails of the Southern Sierras.  Places like Freeman Creek Trail, Quaking Aspen, Camp Nelson and other areas have been enjoyed by off-road cyclists for many years.

Camp Nelson Trail

Camp Nelson Trail, at the heart of the Monument

The Sequoia National Forest is currently accepting public comments on the Giant Sequoia National Monument draft Environmental Impact Statement, which includes several Management Alternatives. This Draft Environmental Impact Statement (draft EIS) describes six alternatives that would amend the 1988 Sequoia National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan to manage the Giant Sequoia National Monument. The draft EIS document will implement President Clinton’s 2000 Proclamation which established the Monument.

Of the six management alternatives presented, Alternative C  could result in a ban for mountain bikes on trails in the Monument, while Alternative D would limit mountain bikes to existing trails without any future expansion. Dispersed camping and other activities are also adversely affected. The remaining options allow for most current trails to be grandfathered in, with varying degrees of flexibility for trail use designations.

We prefer Alternative B, which allows for existing bicycle use and future expansion of recreational opportunities. Alternative F is also favorable to multi-use and bicycles, with the only difference between B and F being the way that fuels reduction and fire control are managed. The complete draft statement is available online for review.

For those who are concerned about California trails being forever closed to mountain bikers, please make your comments to the Sequoia National Forest. This National Monument is bordered by extensive Wilderness areas and a National Park, all of which is off-limits to mountain bike use. We can’t afford to lose more! If you haven’t ridden this area, it offers some spectacular high-country riding and is well worth a visit. It is also very much worth protecting for it’s unique ecological and recreational value.

IMBA is also reviewing the document drafts and will issue their official comments soon.  We encourage everyone to write in support of Alternative B, and strongly against Alternatives C and D. Note that you must login and/or register on the SNF Public Comment Portal to post your comments.

Comments are being accepted through December 3rd, 2010.

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Posted in Advocacy, California, Trail Access | No Comments »

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