Archive for the ‘Los Angeles’ Category

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Santa Monica Mountains Cyclery Pays Cyclists to Lose Weight

Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012

It’s the time of year again when many people make resolutions to improve their health and fitness. This year, the Santa Monica Mountains Cyclery (SMMC) aims to make it just a bit easier. When a resolute customer buys a bike from SMMC before January 22nd, he or she will have the opportunity to earn $0.10 per mile for every mile ridden on that bike in 2012.

“We know that many people out there want to improve their fitness and maybe lose a few pounds, and we just want to give them a little nudge in the right direction,” says David Kooi, owner of SMMC. “Cycling is one of the easiest ways to exercise. It’s a low-impact sport that eats up calories and builds strength, stamina, and cardiovascular fitness.”

Under the program, participants will log their miles at Strava.com, a social training website, using GPS devices. Twice during the year, SMMC will reward participants with gift cards for the miles they have ridden. “A simple training plan that consists of 3 rides per week averaging 20 miles per ride will reward the customer with more than $300 for the year. When you can buy a quality fitness bike for $750 these days, that’s significant savings for the consumer,” says Kooi. Participants can earn up to 50% of the original bicycle purchase price.

About Santa Monica Mountains Cyclery: The Santa Monica Mountains Cyclery is located at 21526 Ventura Blvd in Woodland Hills, California, and serves residents of the San Fernando Valley, including Woodland Hills, Calabasas, Tarzana, Encino, Sherman Oaks, West Hills, Agoura Hills, Topanga, Malibu and others. SMMC presents a selection of the finest road and mountain bikes available, as well as quality bikes for getting around town and to and from work. SMMC has an extensive selection of clothing, parts, and accessories – everything you will need to get riding safely, quickly, and stylishly down the road or trail. SMMC also performs bike repair, tune-ups, and maintenance and has a full bicycle fitting studio. More information at http://www.smmcyclery.com or call 818-453-3204.

From PRWeb.com

Posted in Conejo Valley, Health, Los Angeles, Santa Monica Mountains | No Comments »

SMMNRA Superintendent Smeck to Leave for New Yosemite Position

Wednesday, December 14th, 2011

Woody Smeck, Santa Monica MountainsCORBA congratulates Woody Smeck, Superintendent of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SMMNRA) on his new appointment.  He’s leaving on March 30 to become Deputy Superintendent at Yosemite National Park.  Woody came to the SMMNRA as a landscape architect in 1990.  He worked his way up and was appointed Superintendent in 2001.  During his tenure, the SMMNRA grew in stature in the National Park system.  Woody helped politicians understand the importance of National Parks near developed urban areas.  He helped foster interagency coordination and cooperation with the California Department of Parks and Recreation, the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, and other agencies in the SMMNRA.  He helped keep park programs on track in difficult budgetary times.

Most important to the mountain bike community, Woody was always accessible, fair, and honest in his dealings with us.  There is more mountain bike access on NPS land in the SMMNRA than anywhere else in the country.  Woody has been clear that responsible mountain biking is manageable on public lands and has expressed that view to his NPS peers.  We owe him a huge debt of gratitude.

Woody has been a pleasure to work with and we’ll miss him.  Our loss is Yosemite’s gain.  A search is underway for a new NPS Superintendent in the SMMNRA.

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Posted in CORBA News, Environment, Los Angeles, Media, Santa Monica Mountains | No Comments »

Light Rain Provided Perfect Dirt for CORBA Kids Ride

Saturday, November 5th, 2011

Though it was a small group who showed up for the November CORBA Kids ride in Cheeseboro Canyon last Saturday November 5, their enthusiasm ran big.  Light rains the day before provided perfect riding conditions.   The summer dust was lightly packed, the skies were clear and blue, and the temperature was pleasantly brisk.

After our standard greetings, 3 adults and 3 kids saddled up and headed out. Dave rode up front with Ethan and Nolan, John rode with Josiah, and Kat was sweeper and some-time photographer. When we got to “The Bees,” John guided the kids one-by-one through a small water crossing; the kids did great! We continued on until we hit 3.25 miles before taking a break and turning back. Most of the kids were tired after a total ascent of 500 feet.

During the break, John demonstrated the strength of his Kevlar gloves. He dared the kids to hit his gloved knuckles with a rock, and they each took a turn. After watching a large group of adult riders negotiate some technical rocky areas, the group saddled up. Most of the kids were uncomfortable riding back down some of the rockier sections, so they learned another lesson in mountain biking: There’s no shame in walking! Once we got past “The Bees,” everyone enjoyed the mostly downhill ride back to the parking lot.

After the ride, the kids snacked on chips and cookies, while the adults compared bike racks.

Check out the photo gallery of this ride. Next ride will take place Saturday December 3rd in Sullivan Canyon; meet on the Brentwood side: http://www.socalmtb.com/socal/trails/sullivan.htm . Hope to see you there!

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Posted in CORBA News, Los Angeles, Rides and Events, Santa Monica Mountains, Youth | No Comments »

Nov 13th Fat Tire Fun(d)raiser

Sunday, September 18th, 2011

Save the date: November 13, 2011.

For 2011 we have altered the format of our annual anniversary event. In years past it had grown to be quite the undertaking, with lots of festival activities, vendors, a poker ride, even a cyclocross race. Although fun for attendees and a great success, our volunteer coordinators and support staff got pretty burned out, despite the many accolades received from appreciative participants.

The bottom line is to raise money for our programs while having fun celebrating our great trails and advocacy efforts. So this year we decided to keep it simple and do what we love best–RIDE! We are excited to be back at Malibu Creek State Park in Calabasas. The main ride route will feature the Crags Road Trail through the creek canyon, past the MASH site, and up Bulldog Motorway, and will also connect to National Park Service property at the Solstice Canyon section of the Backbone Trail with an optional out-and-back to Kanan Dume Road at Tunnel #1. It will continue along Mesa Peak Motoryway and down Tapia Motorway, finishing by coming back into Malibu Creek State Park via the Tapia Spur Trail. With the out-and-back to Kanan Dume Road the ride is 27 miles, or 15 miles if the Backbone Trail to Kanan Rd.  is skipped. There will also be shorter easy rides in Malibu Creek State Park including the Grasslands Trail to De Anza Park. There will be plenty of opportunities for every level of rider to have a great ride in support of your local trail advocacy organization.

Of course, we’d hate to pass up the opportunity to have some cool demo bikes on hand, and so far we have gotten commitments from Trek, Specialized, Giant, and Bionicon who will have some of the newest technology on hand.

We’re also very excited to announce that New Belgium Brewery will be serving samples!

And of course there will be a raffle, with some really cool prizes including bikes, gear, and more.

Click here for more information and to get registered. Hope to see you there!

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Posted in Charity, Fat Tire Fest, Los Angeles, Media, Rides and Events, Santa Monica Mountains | No Comments »

Santa Clarita Valley Trail Users Update

Tuesday, August 30th, 2011

Dear Friends,

We are reaching out to all of you who signed the petition supporting equal access for all trail users, including cyclists, on the Canyon Trail at the Placerita Nature Center.  Here’s an update.

About 25 of us met with three park officials from LA County Parks and Rec on August 19 to express our outrage about the recent closing of the Canyon Trail to cyclists.  At this meeting, the County officials explained that the previous signs allowing cycling on this trail were a “mistake” and also cited environmental and safety concerns relating to off-road cycling on this trail.  However, the County officials admitted that this is a matter of policy and that policy can be changed.  Kimel Conway, the senior official present at the meeting, agreed to schedule a meeting with Russ Guiney, the Director of LA County Parks and Rec, if we would prepare a “brief” summarizing our concerns and the possible solutions to their concerns.

Since then, we have formed a committee to press on with our cause.  Here’s what the committee has resolved thus far.

1.  We have prepared a “brief” as requested by the County in preparation for our meeting with the Director.  We are now working on scheduling that meeting at the earliest possible time.

2.  We recognize that the issue is much bigger than the Canyon Trail at the Placerita Nature Center.  Recently the trails at Vasquez Rocks were also closed by the County for much the same reasons.  We need to advocate for safe and equal access to ALL SCV TRAILS.

3.  We believe our best position is to advocate for safe and equal access for ALL USERS, not just cyclists.  Even though others in our community want to exclude cyclists from the trials, we believe an inclusive position is most likely to succeed.

4.  We have named our group the SCV Trail Users and will use the slogan, “Safe and Equal Access for All”.

5.  We need to build a database of supporters as we will likely need to mobilize larger numbers at future public hearings.  We will be using our Facebook Group, The SCV Trail Users – Safe & Equal Access To SCV Trails, our current petition, and this email list for this purpose.

6.  We will be designing and distributing a flyer and a business card (to carry with you when out on the trails) with information about the Facebook Group, the petition, and our email list.  We plan to make the flyers available at all of the local bike shops.

What can you do to help?

Please help us build our database of supporters.   We believe this will be critical to our success!  Join our Facebook group, sign our petition, and add your name to our email list.  Please ask other supporters to do the same.  And be ready to show your support!

Facebook Group:  http://www.facebook.com/groups/saveplaceritatrail/

Petition:  http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/canyon_trail_mtb_access/

Email SCVTrailUsers@gmail.com to add an email address to our list.

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Posted in Advocacy, Los Angeles, Trail Access | No Comments »

Canyon Trail Closure in Placerita Canyon Nature Center

Monday, August 29th, 2011

The Canyon trail winds its way for 1.85 miles along Placerita Creek between Walker Ranch and the Placerita Canyon Nature Center. It makes a great loop with the Santa Clara Truck Trail and Los Pinetos. For many years cyclists have been riding this great loop, and it is a local favorite. It is one of very few beginner- and kid-friendly trails in the Santa Clarita Valley.

In July 2011 the trail was posted closed to bikes with no public notice, warning or input. Law enforcement have been on hand to ticket cyclists who ignore the signs, or didn’t notice them.

The alternative return route after riding Los Pinetos  is to ride pavement from Walker Ranch out to the Nature Center and back to the usual parking area. This paved, narrow two-lane road has no shoulder and no bike lanes, and is much more dangerous.  There is no alternative easy out-and-back off-road ride for beginners or those looking for an easy ride.

In County Nature Preserves like Placerita Canyon, it is at the sole discretion of the director whether trails are opened or closed to bikes. Local riders have been in contact with the park’s management about the closure, and are working to find solutions to mitigate the concerns that have led to the closure of the trail to bikes.

While it is encouraging to know the County is open to hearing the concerns of local trail users who are directly affected by this closure, to have received no prior official or public notice of the closure has left the local cycling community frustrated and angered. The reasons for the closure were unclear, though environmental impacts to Placerita Creek were initially mentioned. However the trail remains open to equestrians who have much more impact than bicycles. Trail user conflicts seem to be the real reason, though to our knowledge no specific injuries or instances have been cited. 

CORBA has long argued that excluding a user group from a trail only leads to further division among user groups, whereas including all users helps bring the trail user community together to find solutions. As the local cycling community works with the County to find a reasonable compromise to re-open the trail, cyclists should avoid riding the Canyon Trail and obey all posted signs in the area.

Read more of the local perspective from the RightOnSCV.com blog or coverage from The Signal.

 

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Posted in Angeles National Forest, Los Angeles, Trail Access | No Comments »

Summary of Public Scoping Comments Newsletter Available for Rim of the Valley Corridor Special Resource Study

Monday, August 29th, 2011

What follows is the contents of an email we received from the National Park Service:

 

Summary of Public Scoping Comments Newsletter Available for
Rim of the Valley Corridor Special Resource Study

Thank you for taking time to send us scoping comments to help guide the Rim of the Valley Corridor Special Resource Study. We received more than 2,000 comment letters and e-mails. Over the past several months, we have been reviewing and analyzing your ideas, suggestions and questions. We thank you for taking the time to comment. We’ve learned a lot about the issues that concern you, the special places that you value, and what you hope this study process will accomplish. This summary of Public Scoping Comments, “What We Heard from You,” is now available in Newsletter #2.

The public comments focused primarily on the following broad topics:

- suggestions for the scope and definition of the study area
- suggestions for the study process
- natural and cultural resources that the NPS should consider for possible significance
- existing recreational uses and future recreational needs
- issues and opportunities to be considered in the study process

Also included in this newsletter is an update to our “Frequently Asked Questions” and “Next Steps in the Study Process.”

We look forward to staying in touch with you throughout the process!

Anne Dove                          Margie Steigerwald
Project Manager                   Planner
We need your help getting the word out! 

Given the size and complexity of the study area, we need your help in getting the word out about the study.  If you know anyone who would be interested in this study, please forward this message to them and encourage them to sign-up for our distribution list. 

Download Newsletters

 Contact Information

Mail:      National Park Service
                  Rim of the Valley Corridor Special Resource Study
                  570 W. Avenue 26, #175
                  Los Angeles, CA  90065

Website:  �
www.nps.gov/pwro/rimofthevalley

 E-mail:     pwr_rimofthevalley@nps.gov 

 Phone:     Anne Dove, Project Manager (323) 441-9307
                       Margie Steigerwald, Planner (805) 370-2373

 

Posted in Los Angeles, San Gabriel Mountains, Santa Monica Mountains, Verdugo Mountains | No Comments »

Safer Streets for Cyclists – take action!

Friday, June 17th, 2011

We are mountain bikers but we too sometimes ride our bikes on the streets. Please help us to support California Bicycle Coalition 3-foot passing legislation.

Senate Bill 910, cosponsored by the California Bicycle Coalition and the City of Los Angeles, would require motorists to give bicyclists at least three feet of clearance when passing from behind under most circumstances.

The California Senate approved SB 910 on June 1. On Monday, June 27, the bill will be up for a vote by the Assembly Transportation Committee. We need bicyclists like you to contact Assemblymember Bonnie Lowenthal, the chair of the committee, by phone, email or fax to let her know why this bill is so important to the safety of all bicyclists on the road!  A file documenting all messages of support for SB 910 accompanies the bill as it moves through the legislative process. This information is read by legislators and their staff and helps make the case for the bill. Your voice definitely counts! The deadline for calling or sending a message is 5 PM Tuesday, June 21.

You can express your support for SB 910 by phone or by email or fax. Click here for more information.

 

 

 

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Posted in Advocacy, California, Health, Los Angeles, Regions, Road Riding | No Comments »

CORBA/IMBA Affiliation Update

Wednesday, June 1st, 2011

A few months ago we told you about our decision to partner with the International Mountain Bicycle Association’s (IMBA) chapter program. The process is complete, and we are happy to announce that the transition is going very well. However, there are still a few things that were unforeseen, one of them being the renewal process.

Many CORBA members have recently received a renewal notice from IMBA, which may be confusing. This is because your CORBA membership automatically became an IMBA membership when we made the transition. No problem! Simply renew your new IMBA membership and select CORBA as your local chapter each time you renew. From now on when you renew, you will renew both your IMBA and CORBA membership at the same time, with everything being handled by IMBA. If renewing by telephone, please make sure to indicate CORBA as your local chapter.

We encourage you to continue to make donations directly to CORBA to help support our local efforts of advocacy, trail building and maintenance, free monthly mountain bike skills classes, Youth Adventures at-risk youth outings, Kids Club, and our web site www.corbamtb.com. CORBA still receives a percentage of membership dues though through this affiliation with IMBA, but dues alone can not support our programs entirely. Our Trail Crew requires annual tool purchases, and Youth Adventures is in constant need of bikes, parts, and helmets, as well as snacks for participants because many of these kids can not even afford a granola bar for themselves or come to the outing without having had breakfast. Other costs include licensing and insurance for our trailers and ride programs. It adds up! Click here to go directly to our donation page. http://www.corbamtb.com/join/donate.shtml Thank you for your support in helping us keep trails open to bicycles!

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Posted in Advocacy, CORBA News, Los Angeles, Santa Monica Mountains, Trail Access | No Comments »

Voice Your Support of Trails TODAY!

Thursday, May 12th, 2011
FROM THE CALIFORNIA BICYCLE COALITION:

Our partners at America Bikes just found out late last night that the U.S. Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee is deciding what goes into the next federal transportation bill today and tomorrow.

We need every advocate in California to take action TODAY!

If we don’t act now, dedicated funding for biking and walking programs may be written out of our transportation system for the next six years.

Senator Barbara Boxer is the chair of this committee and we need you to get word to her in every way and medium possible TODAY that we’re counting on her continued support for dedicated funding for biking and walking.

In every media interview related to Bike to Work Week, please be sure to thank the Senator for her continued support for dedicated funding for biking and walking, specifically Transportation Enhancements, Safe Routes to School and the Recreational Trails Program.

In addition, we ask that you alert all your members and supporters as soon as possible, urging them to call the Senator’s office today. Please use the message below.

Our apologies for hitting you on a day when you’re already very busy, but we just learned of this after 10 p.m. last night and with all the media being generated about Bike to Work Week this is a great opportunity for maximum impact. Again, we can’t stress the urgency enough: To preserve dedicated funding for biking and walking in next transportation bill we need California to get Sen. Boxer to take action today.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at (916) 446-7558 or dave@calbike.org.

Dave Snyder

Relaunch Director/CEO
_________________________________________________________________________

Senator Barbara Boxer needs to hear from you RIGHT NOW.

The committee she leads in the US Senate, the Environment and Public Works Committee, is deciding what goes into the very important federal transportation bill today and tomorrow. She needs to know that we want her to fight for bicycling and walking programs like Transportation Enhancements (the federal funding sources that helps pay for bicycling and walking facilities and programs throughout California), Safe Routes to School and the Recreational Trails program.

If we don’t act now, bicycling and walking programs may be written out of our transportation system for the next six years.

At this very moment, she is negotiating with other senators who don’t think bicycling and walking are an important part of the transportation bill. She needs to know that we have her back on this issue and she shouldn’t give up on these crucial programs.

Call Senator Boxer right now and tell her:

“I am one of your constituents and I think bicycling and walking need to be a part of the transportation bill. Please ensure that Transportation Enhancements, Safe Routes to School and the Recreational Trails program continue with strong and dedicated funding as they are today.”

Calls to DC are best. Her Washington, DC office number: (202) 224-3553. If it’s busy and you’re short for time, here’s her LA office number: (213) 894-5000.

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

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