Passion Spring News #9

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Today's Topics:

1. Bike to work in style with Breezer Bikes
2. Docent ride: Pedal for Petals on Saturday 5/17
3. Wednesday Ride IceCream Social 5/14
4. VOCal work on Oat Hill Mine Trail needs Mtn bikers 5/17 and 5/18
5. Sudden Oak Death workshop in Belmont 5/22



1. Bike to work in style with Breezer Bikes

This is Bike to Work Week, and we thought you might be thinking whether bike commuting would work for you. Several of our customers have discovered that having a commute bike in the garage eliminates many of the mental barriers we tend to put up and use to justify getting in the car. Joe Breeze, one of the original roots riders who helped start the mountain biking revolution in Marin county, now builds functional and fun town bikes for getting you to work or to the market in style.

Breezer Bikes come equipped to serve as an auto-alternative: Racks. Fenders. Lights. Built-in generator. Chain guard. Kickstand. Built-in lock. Everything except an oil company credit card.

Bike to Work Day is this Thursday, May 15
Visit San Mateo County’s Energizer Station on the morning of Bike to Work Day
Get a free Bike to Work Day bag stuffed with information and goodies. Chat with other bike riders and have some refreshments on your way to work. Find the San Mateo County Energizer Station by clicking on the link on www.commute.org. Sign-up (only) at the Energizer Stations for a chance to win a cool Timbuk2 bag or a wall bike rack for your home.

Sign up for the Bike to Work Day raffle
If you pledge to bike to work at least once this month grab your chance to win great prizes such as a brand new bicycle from New Belgium Brewery, Marin Bikes or REI or a stylish messenger bag from Timbuk2. Visit www.commute.org and click on the ‘Participate and Win’ link.

Online Resources that will help you get started:
The Bay Area Bike Mapper: http://bikemapper.mtc.ca.gov/BikeMapper/index.jsp
Find a bike buddy: http://bicycling.511.org/buddy.htm
Ride safely: http://www.commute.org/programs.htm#bikeSafety

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2. Docent ride: Pedal for Petals on Saturday 5/17

On Saturday you can experience a nature-oriented ride up at Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve from 10am to 2pm. Join docents Patty Ciesla and Jeff Richardson for a relaxed mountain bike ride through grasslands and oak woodlands. This ride will tour about 6 miles of single-track and fire road trails seeking a wide variety of native wildflowers. Expect frequent stops to photograph and identify flowers and enjoy spectacular views from this summit ridgeline. Learn about the District’s prescribed burns and other methods of restoring this visually stunning landscape. Bring a camera and your lunch.

Where to meet:
Meet at the Caltrans vista point opposite Russian Ridge Preserve gate RR-01. The parking area is located on Skyline Boulevard, 1.2 miles north of Page Mill Road and 6 miles south of Highway 84. Those traveling from I-280 on Page Mill Rd. should allow approximately 35 minutes travel time from 280. MROSD requests reservations for this ride. Check out the activity page here to sign up.

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3. Wednesday Ride IceCream Social 5/14

Forecast is for hot and sweaty on Wednesday. We will have cool stuff for post-ride thermoregulation!

Sunset is at 8:07pm this Wednesday 5/14/08. Come on down and enjoy the twisty narrow singletrack that makes Waterdog famous. All rides start from the shop: Passion Trail Bikes, 415 Old County Road, Belmont, CA 94002 650-620-9798

The EARLY ride group will go out at at 6:15 PM. This ride might consist of people who have been doing a lot of riding this winter and have some juice in their legs. Note this is not a "fast" ride, but our leader is feeling frisky. Regroups will occur, but maybe only at critical intersections. Expect to cover most of the trails in Waterdog, some maybe even twice.

The REGULAR ride group will go out at 6:30 PM. The ride leader will enforce a social pace through trickery or other devious methods. The regular ride is a good group for people who enjoy talking while climbing and perhaps enjoying a moment at the top to take in the views before getting grins on the descents. Expect several loops of the sweet singletrack that defines Waterdog Park. Frequent regroups and maybe even a sweep rider will help keep the pace manageable for all. Extra large groups will split up to reduce the repetition of saying "Howdy, howdy, howdy" when we pass other trail users.

The FBG or Fat Bottomed Girl ride will go out at approximately 6:10 PM. Usually Patty, our resident Fat Bottomed Girl, leads the ride. Sometimes the ride leader is Charles, the Flabby Bellyed Guy. No matter who takes responsibility for this most relaxed outing, you can be assured that we enjoy taking out unfit, unsure, unskilled, or uncompetitive mountain bikers to experience a taste of trail riding. Our mantra is Equal Fun for Everyone! The FBG ride goes about half as far as the regular ride, maybe only doing a single short loop. More than just a pleasant pedal in the woods, the FGB ride usually involves coaching, tips, tricks, and laughter. It may also feature a chance to practice skills playing around the area next to the dirt jumps. The FBG ride will get back either a little early or at the same time as the other rides, so we all get to socialize together once we are off the bikes.

If you are habitually late or can't sneak out of work on time, you can try to form a STRAGGLERS ride group that goes out at 6:45 PM. We don't promise a group or a leader for the stragglers; you're kinda on your own for this.

Please bring a blinky light for the back of your bike, and maybe even a white light for the front. We will be returning on paved roads at dusk and you want to be seen by drivers and Belmont's fine Police officers who look out for our health and welfare. Speaking of which, all Passion Trail Bike rides will obey all traffic laws, stopping at stop signs and red lights; and all park rules, yielding to other trial users and riding as courteously, safely and predictably as possible.

All groups will meet back here at Passion Trail Bikes shortly before dark (about 8:30pm) for the usual story telling & beverage enjoyment. We will have stuff for the BBQ along with some carb laden side dish, chips and fatty snacks and EANABS to pair up with the Devil's Canyon Full Boar Scotch Ale. We will hang out until about 10pm, so come on down, even if you can't make the ride! Passion Parties are better with YOU in the mix!

Visit our website for directions to the shop, etc. www.PassionTrailBikes.com

Reminder: Even if you don't join the ride, the shop is basically open until really late. Like, 10:00pm! So if you want to shop, or drop off or pick up a repair, we will be here LATE on Wednesday nights, although there's a strong possibility there will be a frothy cold pint o' beverage on the counter. Yes, you can have one too. Please bear with us if you have to go into the lounge to find the help. Yes, you can have some chips too.

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4. VOCal work on Oat Hill Mine Trail needs Mtn bikers 5/17 and 5/18

Oat Hill Mine is an absolutely amazing, technically challenging trail not dissimilar to Gooseberry Mesa in Utah, but is only three hours away in scenic Calistoga. If you have not been, you have a great reason to go now. Come help out provide better drainage, get a couple rides in, and have somebody cook dinner for you. V-O-Cal needs 30 cyclists to ride up to the top of the trail and do some trail work up there. Tools will be driven up ahead of time. Sign up at http://www.v-o-cal.org and let Kevin@v-o-cal.org you can bike up.

Oat Hill Mine Trail

Crew Leader Josh forwards on this message: Hello volunteers, Just a quick note to remind you the Oat Hill Mine Trail project with Volunteers for Outdoor California (V-O-Cal) and Napa County Regional Park and Open Space District is coming up quickly, May 16-18, 2008. We are VERY excited about this project and are glad you have signed up to help. On Friday (5/9), we will send you an email with detailed information about the project. It will include directions, meals and schedule info and waivers to sign and bring.

We still have space on the project. Tell your friends, the more the merrier. If you know someone who is thinking about attending, but hasn't signed up, please encourage them to do so. It helps us get a head count for food. Also... We are looking to enlist up to 30 bikers on this project to ride up to the work site on Saturday (no tools when riding). The trail is challenging technically and physically so experienced, frequent riders in good shape is what we are looking for. Please send an email to Kevin if you are interested.

We are looking for extra helpers on Friday, starting at Noon. Given the challenging logistics of this project, we need extra hearty helpers to get tools on the trail and camp set-up. If you are available to help with the pre-project work, please contact Kevin@v-o-cal.org. Timing could be flexible so if you have any time on Friday, please send a note and we'll find a way to put you to good and fun use. If you're an early riser, we are looking for 5 volunteers to help with registration on Saturday and Sunday morning, from 6:30 a.m.-9:30 a.m. If you're interested, contact julie at jnorton@v-o-cal.org. We are also working on creating some carpooling options… See you on the trail soon. Stay tuned for the important message later in the week. Cheers, The Oat Hill Mine Trail Project Team and V-O-Cal Staff

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5. Sudden Oak Death workshop in Belmont 5/22

SUDDEN OAK DEATH IN SAN MATEO COUNTY: A COMMUNITY MEETING

BELMONT--A Sudden Oak Death (SOD) community meeting will be held at the Belmont City Hall. A cooperative venture of the City of Belmont, San Mateo County Agricultural Commissioner, University of California, California Oak Mortality Task Force (COMTF), and USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, the workshop is intended to provide disease information, preventative treatment options, and information on how to remove and dispose of infested material properly. There will also be an open panel discussion during which community members can ask questions, express their concerns, and brainstorm options for proactive community activities and management strategies.

When: Thursday, May 22, 2008 7:00 – 9:00pm

Where: City Hall, Council Chambers
1 Twin Pines Lane
Belmont, CA. 94002

“The greatest advantage we have against this aggressive pathogen is our capacity to work together. Through community meetings such as these, we can empower residents with the necessary tools to take action as individuals while also emphasizing the importance of a collaborative community response to this county-wide problem,” said Mark Stanley, COMTF chairman.

Caused by the plant pathogen Phytophthora ramorum, Sudden Oak Death is severely impacting woodlands throughout San Mateo County. Since the 1990s, P. ramorum has killed more than a million oak and tanoak trees in California.

For more information on the meeting, contact Daniel Ourtiague at (650) 595-7441 or dourtiague@belmont.gov. For more information on Sudden Oak Death and P. ramorum, contact Katie Palmieri at palmieri@nature.berkeley.edu or go to the COMTF website at www.suddenoakdeath.org.

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Happy Trails, the PTB crew
Charles, Patty, Berry, John, Bret, Sterling, Daryl, Daniel, Peter, Reba and Buster

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