Chaper Meeting Minutes - 2/8/10

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting at Summits Wayside Tavern with a toast to the new Rope Mill project final approval to start work.

- First work party is scheduled for Feb. 20^th.

- Charlie has come up with a new blade dubbed the “Frankenblade” for the Dingo that should speed up construction. The plan is also to use a Tamper machine to tap down the trail.

- We will need all the help we can get and plan to contact our 18 new crew leaders to ask for their help.

- Canyons Burgers wants to get involved with possibly supplying food for work parties. They have also committed to making a donation to SORBA each time someone visits their restaurants and presents their SORBA membership card. 

Blankets Creek trails remain closed due to the freeze thaw and wet conditions.

- The Dragon’s Tail reroute still needs work. The new South Loop extension has been flagged and recently the county received complaints from neighbors about the close proximity of the trail to their property. The county has been out to the site and has determined that the trail does not exceed our boundaries. 

- New gravel has been placed at the entrance to Blankets by the county and they are in the process of getting bids to clear the clogged storm drain. We will make an announcement when they plan to do the work since the entrance will be closed while they are working on it.

- Mosquito Bite left side has remained closed since the flood and we are now planning to build a 48’ boardwalk 3’ wide with some rollers and banks to address the issues there. 

Work on the trail marker project is continuing. We have gotten feedback from the FD and have implemented some of their request. We have decided to use fiberglass stakes for the markers. 

Bike Patrol classes will be held sometime in the spring/summer if needed. All of our patrollers from last year have CPR certifications that are good until 7/2011. 

March 19-21^st is the SORBA/IMBA spring Festival and board meeting at the Nantahala Outdoor Center. Please visit SORBA.org for registration details. 

The IMBA World Summit will be held in Augusta May 5-8. We have reserved campsites so let us know if you plan to attend. 

The meeting was adjourned by Jay Wilkes.

Chapter Meeting Minutes - 1/11/10

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting at Pure Taqueria in Woodstock by commenting on the continued work with the City of Woodstock on the Olde Rope Mill Park-Taylor Randahl Memorial Trails project.  Work on these trails should begin this spring after the USACOE approvals have been received.  We will be acquiring a new diesel Dingo through a lease/purchase arrangement for this project.  We will have access to a demo this week for a “test drive”.  

We continue to move forward with the South Loop extension with the invaluable help of SOFA (SORBA Freeride Alliance).

Our need for volunteers will be strong throughout 2010 as we build new trails at Olde Rope Mill Park and Blankets Creek. 

Reinhart College continues to be very interested in improving their trail system to become a venue for high school mountain bike racing.  Charlie Shultz has done some preliminary work to reroute the existing trails to meet IMBA trailbuilding standards, creating a better flowing 5.5 miles of singletrack trail. 

There is a meeting open to all interested parties this Wednesday, 1/13/10, concerning the development of mountain bike clubs in the State's high schools. Stefanie Bunkley, will be there to address this program and how IMBA-SORBA and its chapters can help to build junior participation in mountain biking. Tom Saurett, Walt Bready, and Stephen Mullins with IMBA-SORBA will attend this meeting at Forsyth County Parks & Rec at 4075 Spot Road in Cumming, GA. 

Once again, the IMBA World Summit will be held in Augusta, GA on May 5-8, 2010.  Almost the entire IMBA staff will be coming to this event.  As has been discussed previously, this summit will showcase mountain biking in the Southeast U.S., the IMBA-SORBA partnership model and the FATS trails and other trails in the Augusta area.  As details about accommodations and camping options becomes available, we will post this information on www.sorbawoodstock.org. 

On that note, www.sorbawoodstock.com recently became available and we have purchased that URL.  Anyone entering that URL will be automatically routed to our .org site. 

The trail counter information has been posted on our web site.  The effects of trail closures in recent months are reflected in these counts. 

We closed the Blankets Creek trails effective today because of the freeze/thaw process that causes considerable damage to the trails.  Everyone is encouraged to check our chapter web site or call the trail condition hotline number (770) 621-5015 before making the drive to the trails.  We need to focus our volunteer hours on building new trails in 2010, not repairing existing trails damaged by riding on them when they are closed.  This closure could last for a couple of weeks or more.  

The reroute of a section of the Dragon’s Tail will be completed after some final Dingo work has been completed.  The Dingo demo will be used for this work.  This reroute was inspired by the Ridgeline Trail at Dupont in NC. 

The purchase of the approximately 5 acres of land adjacent to the Blankets Creek parking lot will be finalized shortly.  CRPA is targeting Fall of 2010 to build amenities, to include permanent bathrooms.  We are exploring building a BMX track and dirt jumps in this area.  There is an existing building on this property that will be used as a tool shed and work shop and can be used for chapter meetings when the weather prevents outdoor meetings at the trailhead.  A part of the purchase agreement for this land will allow the current property owner to reside in her home as long as she is able.  When she eventually leaves the property CRPA will have control of the entire parcel. 

The trail marking system should be in place by Spring 2010. 

The meeting was adjourned by Jay Wilkes.

Chapter Meeting Minutes - 12/14/09

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting with the election of officers for 2010 commenting that we now have a trail director for each of our primary trail systems (Blankets Creek and Olde Rope Mill). The nominations, as presented at the November meeting, are: 

President - Jay Wilkes

Vice President - Scott Stewart

Secretary - Ellis Alexander

Treasurer - Chris Griffin

Trail Advocacy Director - John Hicks

Trail Director-Rope Mill - Charlie Shultz

Trail Director-Blankets Creek - Dave Hamilton

Marketing/Communications Director - Bill Blount

Bike Patrol Director - Jeff Murchison

The vote was unanimous for this slate of officers who will serve beginning 1/1/10. 

Someone recently attempted to break into our $1 donation box at the trailhead.  It has been repaired and reinforced. 

Some of the key issues discussed at the SORBA board meeting in November are:

-         The new IMBA/SORBA insurance policy that covers our chapter has two key changes—(1) teeter totters are no longer allowed and (2) land managers can be listed as additional insured on the policy.

-         A new revenue sharing percentage is now in place that will greatly benefit local chapters/clubs and encourage membership growth.  We previously received $3 for every $30 membership.  That has been increased to $12 for each $30 membership.

-         The IMBA World Summit will be held in Augusta, GA, May 5-7. This will be a major showcase of SORBA and the FATS trail system.  Woodstock Chapter members were encouraged to consider attending all or some of the summit.  More details will be available soon. 

Trail counter data is available for September-November.  Blankets Creek was closed for half of September and October.  The counters tell us how much poaching we have when the trails are closed.  Fortunately, the number of poachers was relatively small during September and October.  In November we had approximately 8,000 riders (counted at the trailhead).  The highest number of riders continue to be on the Dwelling Loop, then the Van Michael Trail and then South Loop. 

Our trail marking system is close to be installed.  We are working with the county to finalize the purchase order for the markers. 

The master plan submitted for the Olde Rope Mill Park trails did not include trails on the north side of the Little River (those trails were not originally planned).  The USACOE has asked that we resubmit the master plan with the north side trails.  The City of Woodstock is asking the USACOE to allow us to proceed with construction of the south side trails and allow us to submit again for the north side.  We had hoped to begin construction in November but it now looks like the first quarter of 2010. 

At Blankets Creek, we have made the singletrack on Mosquito Flats smoother and more attractive to beginner riders, especially kids.  We have also marked a re-route around the heavily eroded turns near the top of Dragon’s Tail.  A work party will be held on 12/19/09 to begin cutting this re-route and installing the wooden boardwalk on the connector between the bridge over Blankets Creek and the Dwelling trailhead. 

The Reinhart College Board of Trustees is very interested in making their trails a venue for high school races.  They see their trail system as a potential draw for students and want to showcase their school and trails to high school racers. They realize that a lot of their trails need to be re-routed to create more flow and have asked us to help them accomplish this.  Jay commented that Stefanie Bunkley has done a great job developing the Cherokee Mountain Bike Club and has groomed some very successful high school racers.  High school mountain bike racing is on the rise across the country and Reinhart College wants to be a part of that growth. 

Acquisition by Cherokee County of the approximately five acres of land adjacent to the parking lot at Blankets Creek will hopefully be completed by the end of 2009.  This property will be a huge addition to Blankets Creek, allowing expansion of the parking lot and eventually permanent bathrooms, pavilion and other amenities. 

The meeting was adjourned by Jay Wilkes.

Chapter Meeting Minutes - 11/09/09

Scott Stewart called the meeting to order. He then announced the Chapter BOD nominations for officers for the 2010 term. Scott noted that all were carryovers with the exception of Trail Director. He explained that we were splitting the trail director position so there will now be an additional position created. 

The nominations are: 

President - Jay Wilkes

Vice President - Scott Stewart

Secretary - Ellis Alexander

Treasurer - Chris Griffin

Trail Advocacy Director - John Hicks

Trail Director-Rope Mill - Charlie Shultz

Trail Director-Blankets Creek - Dave Hamilton

Marketing/Communications Director - Bill Blount

Bike Patrol Director - Jeff Murchison 

Scott explained that any five members who would like to make a nomination can do so at this time or in writing anytime before the closing of nominations at the end of the month. He then asked if anyone had a nomination. No one replied. 

Scott then moved on to other business:

-Rope Mill is still in the approval process. Work will not begin until at least mid January.

-We have a work party scheduled for Nov. 21. We expect to be working on the rebuilding of the boardwalk and de-rooting Mosquito Flats.

-The lower half of Mosquito Bites is still closed and will remain so until it has dried out. John Hicks noted that we should put up some signage to indicate that the upper half is bidirectional until the lower half is reopened. Bill Blount agreed to create and erect signs as soon as time permits.

-Bill Blount noted that the emergency signage project is on track for completion summer 2010 and we are currently waiting for the leaves to fall so we can go out and flag the locations for the signs and determine emergency routes. An early December date was discussed. 

Scott adjourned the meeting.

Chapter Meeting Minutes - 10/12/09

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting commenting on the very good turnout of volunteers to help clean up Blankets Creek Mountain Bike Trails after the floods.  The trails were finally opened over this past weekend, but were closed again today due to more rain.  We learned from this flood that a lake level of 850 feet puts the bridge over Blankets Creek underwater.  The boardwalk just past the bridge is still a mess.  We will need to turnpike that area in the future to elevate the trail. 

The trail counters survived the heavy rains, despite a few leaks.  We now have them in more durable sealed containers.  During the month of August we had 10,000 visitors to our trails based upon the reader at the trailhead. 

Several Woodstock Chapter members attended the Helen Fat Tire Festival and said it was a great event.  Attendance was affected because of the rainy weather, but those who did attend had fun.  Jay indicated that Helen is interested in adding more mountain bike trails to help attract more year round visitors. 

SORBA financial administration is now being managed by IMBA.  Another positive development in our relationship with IMBA is the change in member dollar sharing.  Each chapter used to get $3 for each member.  That has been increased to $12, providing a significant incentive for all chapters to increase membership. 

The project at Olde Rope Mill Park is waiting for approval by the USACOE.  We are still hopeful that we can begin work during November.  We learned at the Helen Fat Tire Festival that the IMBA Trail Care Crew will be spending time with us at Olde Rope Mill Park when we get started. 

We are still on course for a chapter ride at the Jackrabbit Mountain Bike Trails in Hayesville, NC on Saturday, November 6, 2009.  We are hoping to be joined by the RAMBO and Gainesville SORBA chapters. 

We will not have a Dirty Duathlon race at Blankets Creek in 2010.  Lisa Randall, who did an outstanding job of directing the first two races, is a new mother and will not be able to commit the time for this event.  We hope to be able to return to this event in future years. 

As we all know, the IMBA World Summit will be held in Augusta, GA on May 5-8, 2010.  Jay shared that Augusta and the USACOE are working together to build more trails between now and the summit.  Holding this bi-annual event in Augusta is a huge feather in SORBA’s cap and a great opportunity to showcase some excellent trails in the southeast U.S. 

SOFA has offered to help us build the advanced South Loop extension and other free ride features.  Michael Stans attended our meeting tonight and spoke about the effort to encourage each chapter to designate a Free Ride Director.  This model is being applied very successfully with RAMBO.  SOFA is no longer a stand alone chapter.  They are working through existing chapters and providing expertise when requested.

Chapter Meeting Minutes - 8/10/09

We had over 50 people in attendance at tonight’s meeting, probably our largest turnout ever.

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting thanking Hurricane Bay Car Wash for providing Slope’s Barbecue for dinner at tonight’s meeting. Their car wash is located on Highway 92 just east of I-575. Ken from Hurricane Bay Car Wash was at the meeting and very generously provided free car wash tokens to people at the meeting.

Jay noted again that we had 28 patrollers certified on 7/11/09, more than twice the number in past years. NMBP jerseys are being provided by the chapter and have been ordered for all patrollers. We continue to work with the Cherokee County Emergency Services to set up a trail marking system on the Blankets Creek trails. Cherokee County is paying for the markers.

Kevin Long brought a jersey fit kit that was provided by the jersey supplier, Pactimo. We have over 50 orders for the Bill Blount designed jerseys. The deadline for ordering a jersey was tonight’s meeting.

Stephen Mullins of Pro Trails has done some great work building berms at several key points along the Van Michael Trail allowing riders to carry more speed through some of the turns. If you see him working on the trail, stop and thank him for the improvements he is making to this great trail.

The trail counter data continues to provide some valuable information about the volume of traffic on the different trails and the time of day and days of the week where the traffic is highest. In July, riders rode over 25,000 miles on the Dwelling Loop, which is greater than the distance around the earth at the equator. The infrared reader has been installed in the $1 box and will provide us with data about the total number of riders entering the trails from the parking lot.

Joe Woycke with the Cherokee County GIS (Geographic Information System) Department attended our last chapter board meeting and has offered to help us with GPS mapping of our trails and possibly providing GPS addresses for the 911 emergency system to use to direct emergency responders to injured riders on the trails. 

The Olde Rope Mill Park project will be a significant focus for our chapter over the next 1-2 years. With all the land the City of Woodstock has made available for the Taylor Randahl Memorial Trail we will be able to build 10-11 miles of new trail. In addition to these trails, there will also be land available for some beginner trails. The long term plans are to connect this new trail system with Blankets Creek, which will create a network of singletrack mountain bike trails in excess of 30 miles. The plans for these trails are under review with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a process that is expected to take 90 days. We should be able to begin work on these trails around November 1^st.

We will be providing training for Trail Crew Leaders on August 22-23. Walt Bready with IMBA-SORBA who typically conducts this training at the Chicopee Woods Trails has agreed to conduct the training at Blankets Creek if we could get a minimum of 10 people for the class. The response to this opportunity was overwhelming. We have 22 people who have expressed the desire to be trained, including seven people from the City of Woodstock Parks and Recreation Department. This level of participation by the City employees is an indicator of how committed they are to helping us build and maintain trails and learn about and apply IMBA standards for all their park trails.

Jeff Murchison updated everyone about the new distribution feature we have with our new web site. You can now register at www.sorbawoodstock.org and choose which issues you want to be notified about by e-mail when information on our web site changes. You can choose to be notified for some or all of the articles that are posted or when the trail opened/closed status is changed.

Our group ride at Raccoon Mountain was a big success. We will be announcing another group ride soon, possibly for the Jackrabbit Mountain Bike Trails near Hayesville, NC. These recently constructed trails were laid out by Mike Riter and have received great reviews from riders.

Jay Wilkes (Pres.), Scott Stewart (VP) and Chris Griffin (Treas.) met with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and CRPA to review our relationship and future plans and projects. It was a very positive and productive meeting. Based on plans already approved, they have given the go ahead to build the advanced South Loop Extension on the east side of Blankets Creek and an extension on Mosquito Flats. They were also very positive about the proposed downhill section on the old fire road that is currently taped off. They just need to see a plan for local approval. They also agree that we need to construct the connector trail between Olde Rope Mill Park and Blankets Creek, rather than leave it to rogue trail builders.

A question was asked about what is being done to alleviate parking congestion. This will become a significant issue when the church next door begins construction on their sanctuary and will no longer be able to allow overflow parking from Blankets Creek. We have been very fortunate to have such a generous neighbor, but that will soon have to change. With our existing property we could possibly add 20-40 spaces if we remove some trees and expand the parking lot. The County is very aware of the problem and is exploring options with us but they may wait to see what the impact of two trailheads (Olde Rope Mill Park and Blankets) will have on the problem. The suggestion was made that we all make the effort to park closer together and to spread the word among our friends. The suggestion was also made that we find a way to mark spaces, possibly painting or taping the cable around the lot, to indicate spacing.

Another suggestion was made to designate a day each month or week for “sessioning” on the trails, where everyone would be notified at the trailhead to be on the lookout for riders congregated at certain places on the trail. That led to discussion that we should be able to do that any time. Riders who are sessioning must be alert and give right of way to through traffic. No decisions were made.

Finally, Jay thanked Brian Berg, SORBA Woodstock Chapter member, who spoke to the Cobb County citizens Parks and Recreation Committee to recommend using park bond money for more bike locations in Cobb County.

Chapter Meeting Minutes - 7/13/09

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting thanking Canyon Burgers in Woodstock for providing hamburger meals for tonight’s meeting. Everyone was encouraged to visit all the businesses who have provided meals for our meetings and thank them for their support.

National Mountain Bike Patrol training was conducted last Saturday, 7/11/09. we had 28 patrollers certified, more than twice the number in past years. SORBA Woodstock paid for the training for each patroller and will provide each a NMBP jersey. The suggestion was made that we have some way to indicate at the trailhead when any of our bike patrollers are on the trail (i.e., a magnet with our name on the $1 box). We will explore the options and report back to the chapter.

There was discussion about the recent injured teen who was extracted by boat from the Dwelling Loop. As many may have seen, it was covered by one of the local TV stations—obviously a slow news day. He initially complained of neck pain and the emergency responders took every precaution to immobilize him and transport him to the hospital. Fortunately, the rider was treated and released without any severe injuries.

There have been a few other injuries requiring emergency responders, including a first time rider who suffered head and shoulder injuries immediately following the bike patrol training class and another rider with a compound leg fracture. There was also a recommendation that we send out an e-mail to all bike patrollers to alert them to demo days at Blankets Creek due to the number and experience level of riders that those events attract.

Jay gave an update on the Olde Rope Mill project. The City of Woodstock has voted to fund building the Taylor Randahl Memorial Trail, providing $150,000 in their 2010 budget. We expect this to be about 10 miles of trail on the north and south sides of Little River that will be connected by a pedestrian/bike bridge the City will build across the river at the park. It will likely be a two year project for SORBA Woodstock. We have already flagged and mapped the trail. The plan is currently being reviewed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. That process will take approximately 90 days which will bring us to a start date for work on the trails sometime this fall.

We are still in the process of setting up our new web site. As we have reported earlier, we have contracted with a company for this service rather than use freeware that is more subject to being hacked. This site has features that will allow us to do a better job of distributing information to members. We also continue to get new people signed up for our Facebook page, which is another vehicle we use for communicating about our chapter activities.

As we have publicized, we will have a group ride at Raccoon Mountain this coming Saturday, 7/18/09 at 11:00 am. A group will leave the Blankets Creek parking lot at 8:30 am or you can meet at the trail. It is an intermediate ride with sweepers and there will be a faster group, too.

We have a meeting with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Cherokee Recreation and Parks Agency on Thursday, 8/6/09, to review our relationship and future projects and plans.

We have designed a SORBA Woodstock jersey that has been for sale on our web site for $45. Bill Blount designed it and Kevin Long has found a company to make them at a very competitive price. The deadline for ordering is 7/31/09 and we will have a fit kit at the August meeting to confirm sizes.

Thanks to Charlie Shultz for repairing the dingo.

Jeff Murchison has published our trail data for June on our web site which continues to show very heavy usage on the Dwelling Loop.

Chapter Meeting Minutes - 6/8/09

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting with an update about our trial projects. We have authorized Pro Trails to do additional work on the VMT. The skills yard, the downhill on the old fire road and South Loop Extension projects are all contingent upon progress on the Olde Rope Mill/Taylor Randahl Memorial Trail.

The class for Bike Patrol training, including CPR and First Aid, will be held on Saturday, July 11^th at the Cherokee County Recreations and Park (CRPA) building on Highway 5 north of Woodstock.

Our next work party will be on Saturday, June 20^th. We will finish spreading gravel in the low lying areas of Mosquito Flats. The work performed thus far in that area has greatly improved those trails. We will also hand finish the machine work on the VMT that was completed by Pro Trails.

We are in the process of moving our web site to a more secure hosting service. The previous hosting service was subject to hacker attacks. This new service will provide more security and additional features for maintaining the content on the site.

We will have a work party at Reinhart College soon. We will communicate that on our web site and at the next chapter meeting.

On August 6^th we will meet with the USACOE and CRPA to discuss ongoing projects and issues.

David Potts and the Greenprints Project have appealed to the City of Woodstock to fund the trailbuilding for the Olde Rope Mill/Taylor Randahl Memorial Trail. The City Council is expected to vote on this tonight.

We have initial data from the trail counters and have made some adjustments in the sensitivity of the readers. Next month we should begin to receive data on all three major loops. The infrared reader has yet to be installed in the dollar box at the trailhead.

The trail marker project continues to move forward. We have chosen colors for the markers and the purchase will be completed soon.

The plaques for major contributors and volunteers have been installed and look great! Thanks to Bill Blount for designing and ordering the plaques, to Ken Nix for providing the stands for mounting, and Bill and Scott Stewart and Chris Griffin for setting them in concrete and mounting the plaques.

IMBA has announced that the 2010 IMBA World Summit will be held in Augusta, GA. The feature trail system will be FATS. The City of Augusta has agreed to build a pump track in town. This is a huge compliment to SORBA and recognition by IMBA of the importance of SORBA to their future. It is also a great opportunity for the Central Savannah River Area Chapter of SORBA to highlight the awesome trails they have built.

Ellis Alexander reported about the NC Bike Summit held at Lake Norman State Park on May 30^th. John Hicks and Ellis were invited by Tom Sauret to give the presentation on fundraising for Blankets Creek that they gave at the SORBA Board of Directors meeting last November. John was unable to attend but Ellis was able to give the presentation. It was a great opportunity to showcase our Woodstock Chapter and our trails and to share our successful experience in raising funds to build new trails. The purpose of the summit was to provide all the mountain bike chapters in NC the ability to share their knowledge about the various land manager requirements in that state. It will also allow them to present a common, professional voice to these land managers, further enhancing the image of our sport.

Chapter Meeting Minutes - 5/11/09

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting with an update about the Olde Rope Mill Park/Taylor Randahl Memorial Trail. We continue to work on other funding sources for these trails. We manned a booth at the Woodstock Recycles & Rocks to promote our organization and this new trail. The event was a success. 

SORBA Woodstock’s annual Pedalpalooza event was another big success. Thanks to Chris Griffin and others who helped organize this festival. 

Cherokee County decided not to dig up and replace the conduit at the entrance to the parking lot. They will attempt to unclog the existing conduit, which will take less time and money. 

We have tested the trail counters and will be installing them over the coming weeks. 

Jeff Murchison is working on setting up a class for Bike Patrol training, including CPR and First Aid. We are focusing on a date in July. 

Cherokee County has appropriated funds to purchase the trail markers. We will continue to work with them to complete this project. 

We have contracted with Pro Trails to improve sections of the VMT. We continue to plan the building of the downhill section of the old Dwelling fire road as well as the skills yard rebuild and expansion. The South Loop Extension is still in the planning stages. When we are able to devote the time to this new advanced section of trail will depend upon the Olde Rope Mill Park/Taylor Randahl Memorial Trail funding. If we receive the necessary funding for Rope Mill we will focus on that trail first.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 4/20/09

The April meeting was postponed one week due to rain on the original meeting date of 4/13/09.

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting with an update about the Olde Rope Mill Park/Randahl Taylor Memorial Trail. The City of Woodstock did not receive the RTP grant they had applied for. We and the City are working on other funding sources, including the Greensprint Project. Charlie Shultz is finishing the flagging of the trail. On May 9th the City of Woodstock is holding an all day event titled Woodstock Recycles & Rocks! The City’s web site (www.woodstockga.gov) describes the event at Olde Rope Mill Park:

Olde Rope Mill Park 9 am – 12 pm

Park/Stream Clean-Up The City of Woodstock’s spring cleaning continues with a park and stream clean-up at Olde Rope Mill Park from 9:00-11:00 am. Gloves, garbage bags, and refreshments will be available.
Walking/Mountain Bike Trail Tours Come see the first completed ½ mile section of our planned trail system then take a tour of the mountain bike trails coming soon. The tour begins at 11:00 am and lasts approximately one hour. The bike trail is undeveloped, so wear appropriate walking gear. The Greenprints Project and the Southeastern Off-Road Bicycle Association will be on hand to answer questions. The Greenprints Alliance of Woodstock will be there to take donations and provide information on its plans for land conservation and the building of the trail system.

Shawn Mullins will finish off the day with a concert in the Woodstock downtown City Park at 7:30 pm.

SORBA Woodstock’s annual Pedalpalooza event will be held at Blankets Creek on Saturday, May 3rd. There will be music, bike demos and plenty of food and drink.

Bill Blount continues to improve our chapter’s image with his professional creative designs. He has created an excellent tri-fold booth exhibit that explains who we are and what we do. He also designed and ordered the black granite plaques honoring our major donors to the Blankets Creek New Trail Construction Campaign and the volunteers who built the Van Michael Trail and Mosquito Bite Trail in Area 51.

Cherokee County will soon be repairing the conduit under the entrance to the parking lot at Blankets Creek. The day of the repair the parking lot will be closed, but the trails will be open. Riders can park in the church parking lot next door.

We have purchased trail counters to provide us more accurate data about the number of mountain bike riders at Blankets Creek—total riders, riders by trail and what time of day they are riding. We are frequently asked by Cherokee County and most recently the Greensprint Project to provide ridership data. This information is also valuable when applying for grants. These counters will be installed in the next few weeks.

Jeff Murchison is working on setting up a class for Bike Patrol training, including CPR and First Aid.

Lt. Shannon Gibbs with the Cherokee County Fire Emergency Service is working on the trail numbering system. Mark Taylor, SORBA Woodstock member and an EMT, is working with Shannon to finalize the system. The County Commissioners have approved the expense for erecting the signs.

Bill Blount has designed a t-shirt that will be given to each volunteer who spends 16 or more hours this year maintaining our trails. Make certain your hours are getting logged, including any hours you spend on other SORBA trails.

Neal Nichols and Tucker Judd volunteered as Trail Crew Leaders at the recent work party at Sope Creek. This National Park Service trail is open to mountain bikers.

We continue to plan the building of the downhill section of the old Dwelling fire road. We also are presenting plans to the Corps of Engineers for rebuilding and expanding our skills yard.

The South Loop Extension is still in the planning stages. When we are able to devote the time to this new advanced section of trail will depend upon the Olde Rope Mill Park/Taylor Randahl Memorial Trail funding. If we receive the necessary funding for Rope Mill we will focus on that trail first.

As we have mentioned in previous meetings, on April 24th Bob Farmer will be leading the National Guard Wilderness Training exercises at Blankets Creek. They will be set up in the parking lot and the skills area but will not be using the trails. The trails will be open for riding.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 3/9/09

SORBA Woodstock Chapter Meeting Minutes
3/9/09

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting with an update about the SORBA/IMBA Board of Directors meeting held in Augusta, GA on February 28, 2009. The major topics discussed at the meeting were the revised budget for 2009 and the focus this year on increasing local chapter membership. Member dues are critical to funding SORBA/IMBA operations and membership numbers are extremely important when IMBA is lobbying for funding and support of issues important to mountain biking. We need to look for ways to increase our visibility.

Jay reported that the member database issues have been resolved. SORBA Woodstock has 185 members with 106 currently paid. Many memberships lapsed early this year and we will be working to get renewals as well as new members. We will use our e-mail address list we developed during the VMT trail building project (approximately 110 addresses). Everyone was encouraged to send their e-mail address to him ( president@sorbawoodstock.org This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) if they are not on the list because it is a great way for us to communicate about issues, events and information important to our chapter.

To increase our visibility we have created a Facebook page. We are also exploring purchasing water bottles with our logo that can be given to new bike purchasers at our local bike shops (Free-Flite, OutSpokin’ and REI) that will also have an information piece inside telling people how to become a SORBA/IMBA member.

Bill Blount has designed a great Trail Builder t-shirt that will be given to all volunteers who log 16 or more hours of volunteer time on our trails in a calendar year. Bill showed the prototype which was met with unanimous approval.

Jay commented that our chapter minutes are up to date on our web site (www.sorbawoodstock.org).

Jay also reported that the Board is considering building and selling trail building and maintenance tools that will be available for sale to other SORBA/IMBA chapters. This could be an ongoing source of funds to help us build and maintain our trails.

The Dirty Duathlon is on, rain or shine, this Saturday, March 14. Lisa Randall has done another great job of organizing this event this year. The trails will be closed at 9:00 pm on Thursday and will remain closed until 2:00 pm Saturday after the race. Set up for the race will begin Friday at 1:00 pm. Lisa has volunteers lined up for Friday and the day of the race. Any additional volunteers will be welcome to join in.

Lt. Shannon Gibbs from the Bridge Mill station of the Cherokee County Fire Emergency Services attended the meeting along with two of his firemen. They will be in attendance for the race on Saturday to provide support in the event of an emergency. Lt. Gibbs also proposed a trail marking system that will provide his team of responders a detailed map of our trails so that when emergencies occur they can be directed to specific points. With this map they will also be provided shortcuts to reach different sections of trails as well as evacuation routes other entry points from surrounding neighborhoods. We also discussed with him alternative lock systems that will make it easier for the responders to drop the cable where the gator accesses the trails from the parking lot.

Jay reported for Jeff Murhison, our Bike Patrol Director, that we are recruiting new Bike Patrol members. In addition to recertifying the 10-15 current members we hope to grow the patrol to 25 members. SORBA/IMBA membership for Bike Patrol is $50 versus the $30 regular membership. As an incentive reward for volunteering we will buy members a Bike Patrol jersey. We also pay for the First Aid and CPR training that is necessary to become a Bike Patrol member. We will also train new Trail Ambassadors, a new IMBA program that increases the number of people on the trail who can educate and inform riders without the responsibility for First Aid and CPR. Trail Ambassador members will also receive a jersey for volunteering.

We are in the process of upgrading our web site bandwidth so we can put videos of our trails that people can enjoy.

Jay reported that the City of Woodstock was unsuccessful with their RTP grant to fund the Taylor Randahl Memorial Trail at the Olde Rope Mill Park. We are working with the City and the County to find other ways to fund this new trail. The $10,000 grant from REI that was provided in support of the RTP grant will still be used to support whatever funding we are able to obtain. The flagging of the trail continues to move forward.

We are moving forward with our plans to upgrade the skills yard. The upgrade will involve expanding the area and adding a number of new features. This will be an excellent addition to our trail system and provide riders of all skill levels an area to hone their bike handling skills.

We continue to seek a volunteer to be our chapter Ride Coordinator. Our plans are to alternate months between work parties and group rides.

Pedalpalooza is scheduled for May 2, 2009. Bill Blount has designed a great poster that will be posted at local bike shops, in our kiosk and on our web site as we get closer to the event. It was suggested that we include a parts swap area at this year’s event that will allow anyone to bring excess parts to be sold or traded.

Jay expressed thanks to Scott Stewart, VP of SORBA Woodstock, for leading the effort to build the new extension on the Dwelling Loop which adds about .4 mile to that trail. We have temporarily closed the fire road and will soon begin work on creating a downhill section with table top jumps on that section.

Neal Nichols announced that he will be posting a ride at Reinhardt College. Look for it on the SORBA forum.

Ellis Alexander expressed thanks to Lisa Randall for everything she is doing for our chapter with the Dirty Duathlon. This event raised over $8,000 for us last year and will likely exceed that amount this year.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 2/9/09

SORBA Woodstock Chapter Meeting Minutes
2/09/09

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting with an update about the City of Woodstock MOU which we executed recently. We have flagged 2 miles of trail and are working toward a 4-5 mile race course layout. The City of Woodstock is expecting an answer about their RTP grant application in mid-March. The REI $10,000 grant is ready to support them if they are successful with the RTP. The City also plans to build a bridge across the Little River which will open up more land for trails.

The Reinhardt College bridge building work party was a big success. A picture of the bridge and many of the volunteers who built it is on our chapter web site.

The LDL trail building is moving forward. We have contracted with ProTrails to help us with several sections of this new trail. When it is complete we will close the fire road and begin planning and work on a downhill section with table tops. A large work party is planned on 2/21/09 with as many as 60 Georgia Tech fraternity brothers from Delta Upsilon who performed community service on our trails last year and are back for more.

We have also asked Steven with ProTrails to touch up some rutted sections of the VMT.

Several of us walked the South Loop Extension and were thrilled with the possibilities. It will offer some very technical routes with some raised ladder bridge and board walk sections.

The skills yard expansion and redesign is moving forward as well.

Our next chapter meeting will hopefully be at the trailhead, weather permitting.

Jeff Murchison is still working on finalizing the date for Bike Patrol and Trail Ambassador training. Board members will be either a Bike Patrol or Trail Ambassador member. Jeff’s goal is to increase visibility. We are also planning to provide Bike Patrol and Trail Ambassadors with jerseys for volunteering for this important work.

The Dirty Duathlon is on course to be another great success. 210 racers have registered five weeks before the event which is outstanding considering how little advertising has been done. The reputation from last year’s event has been very positive. While initialing targeting 300 participants, we have decided to limit it to 250. Lisa Randall asked for race day volunteers and for a PA system. Sponsors include OutSpokin’ Bicycles, the primary sponsor who has donated two full suspension bikes for awards. Peter Genz has given a $1,000 cash donation, Van Michael Salons has donated $1,000 of gift cards and Mike the Mechanic has donated $500 cash. MTB Tandems, Starbucks and Classic Subaru are other sponsors of the event. Lisa encouraged people to sign up for race day volunteers.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 1/12/09

SORBA Woodstock Chapter Meeting Minutes
1/12/09

Jay Wilkes opened the meeting with an update on the new trails at Rope Mill Park. The City of Woodstock is pursuing a $100,000 Recreational Trails Program (RTP) Grant. The RTP is an assistance program of the Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Federal transportation funds benefit recreation by making funds available to the States to develop and maintain recreational trails and trail-related facilities for both non motorized and motorized recreational trail uses. The RTP funds come from the Federal Highway Trust Fund, and represent a portion of the motor fuel excise tax collected from non highway recreational fuel use: fuel used for off-highway recreation by snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, off-road motorcycles, and off-road light trucks.

The City has decided to name the trails for Taylor Randahl, an avid rider who was tragically killed when a vehicle struck a deer and threw the deer into Taylor. It is a fitting tribute to a young man who was a very competitive mountain bike racer and close friend of Thomas Turner who was with him that day.

We are moving forward with planning the South Loop Extension, a technical one way run on some very steep terrain on the other side of Blankets Creek from the parking lot and Mosquito Flats. The trail will be accessed from the trailhead of the South Loop.

The Lower Dwelling Loop (LDL) is moving forward very quickly. We are also planning to turn the fire road section of Dwelling into a downhill run with tabletops. And we are moving forward with planning on a new skills yard.

We are in the process of updating our By Laws to include recent changes.

Jeff Murchison will be conducting the annual Bike Patrol classes to recertify existing members and certify new members. Volunteers are welcome as we are trying to grow our Bike Patrol numbers. We will also train Trail Ambassadors, the new IMBA program for volunteers who will have all the training of a Bike Patrol member without the CPR and First Aid.

Trail closures are to be expected in coming weeks with cold weather and freeze/thaw conditions that are very damaging to the trails.

Lisa Randall is doing a fine job with the Dirty Duathlon again this year. The course will be a five mile run on the Dwelling Loop (like last year) and will be about 12 miles of mountain biking on the VMT, the Dwelling Loop and a section of the South Loop. We will shorten the South Loop with a rake and ride connection.

We are still researching the best solution for our donor recognition plaque. We are focused on getting the right combination of affordable cost, durability and attractiveness.

Tom Learman confronted some adjacent property owners to the USACOE Blankets Creek property who were on the dry lake bed firing weapons. The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department was called and is investigating. Tom was able to provide a video of the people involved.

Bob Farm requested use of the forest around Mosquito Flats, Mosquito Bite and some of the VMT for Wilderness Search and Rescue training of the Georgia State Defense Force. The training would occur on Saturday, April 11. We agreed to allow the training pending approval from the Cherokee Recreation and Parks Agency. Bob was thanked for his service to our country and the feeling was that we would be glad to let them do this as long as the trails are still accessible to riders.

There was some discussion about where we might find dirt for the new skills yard and the downhill section of the old fire road.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 9/15/08

SORBA Woodstock Chapter Meeting Minutes
9/15/08

John Hicks opened the meeting with thanks to Free Flite Bicycles for the delicious chicken dinner they provided for tonight’s meeting. Dan Thornton’s son, Daniel, was the host.

The Grand Opening Festival for the VMT is ready to go. We have bike shop demos provided by OutSpokin’, Free Flite, Cycleworks, unicycle.com and Yeti. MTB Fellowship will provide hydration drinks and trail side photos.

Bill Blount continues to do a great job with graphics for this event and other chapter needs.

Lisa Randall has agreed to be the race director again for the Second Annual Dirty Duathlon. She asked for volunteers and said she needs help with sponsors.

On October 4th Alan and Marcia Gibson will conduct and Intermediate/Advanced Skills Clinic. A $20 fee for each participant will be donated to SORBA Woodstock. This will
be done the same day as Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day, but there should be no conflict.

We are still looking for a group ride coordinator to help with our plan to alternate work parties and group rides from month to month.

John Hicks gave an update on the Greenprints Project. A four mile loop of mountain bike trails is planned for the south side of Little River at Rope Mill Park. When the money is available the City will hire Pro Trails. There are also plans to build a bridge across the river and eventually connect those trails with Blankets Creek at the South Loop.

We continue to target next spring for building the South Loop extension—technical lines and some downhill, probably a one way trail.

The Reinhardt MOU will be signed soon. The College wants to keep the trail challenging.

Election of officers will be coming soon.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 8/11/08

SORBA Woodstock Chapter Meeting Minutes
8/11/08

John Hicks opened the meeting with thanks to Kevin Poske and OutSpokin’ for the great BBQ dinner they provided for the meeting. He also thanked Charlie Shultz and Tom Learman for taking care of a dozen trees down on the trails due to the recent storm.

The Reinhardt MOU will be executed very soon.

The USACOE has authorized Cherokee County to cross jurisdictonal lines to pursue horse and ATV riders who are using USACOE property illegally. This is an important development that will allow local law enforcement to assist in controlling these illegal users that are damaging our mountain bike trails.

Five SORBA Woodstock volunteers helped with the work on the new Flying Squirrel trial at Chicopee.

Cherokee County Recreation and Parks Agency will be installing the new sign at the entrance over the next week. They will also fix the drop off at the entrance from the pavement to the gravel lot. The rules sign will be up soon at the trailhead.

Thanks to Bill Blount for the many creative contributions he has made to help us present a consistent and attractive image for our chapter. He has produced a new trail map, a flyer for the Grand Opening, improved our web site and created a great donor recognition plaque that will be erected at the trailhead in the near future.

Combining the SORBA member database with the IMBA database has lost the connection of members to chapters. This issue is being worked on and will be resolved.

Take a Kid Mountain Biking day is on for the first Saturday in October. Also, the new Trail Ambassador program will be rolled out this fall.

We are looking for a group ride coordinator—any volunteers? Our plan is to alternate each month between work parties and group rides.

The next work party is Saturday, August 16th. We will continue to work on the rerouted switchback.

John Hicks provided an updated on the Greensprints Project which was passed by the City of Woodstock Council members. The SPLOST vote in November will determine funding for this project. If passed it will provide $80 million in funds, some of which will go toward building 60 miles of trails. The long range plans include building a bridge over the Little River at Rope Mill Park and connecting trails there with the South Loop at Blankets Creek.

Discussions continue with the USACOE about our building more mountain bike trails on their property.

SORBA Paulding is doing a great job building new trails. They have helped us in the past and we need to return the favor.

We are exploring building new trails on the other side of Blankets Creek from the parking lot. It will be accessed from the South Loop trailhead and will be an advanced section hopefully with some challenging downhill sections.

The Grand Opening for the VMT is on course for the last Saturday in September. Bill Blount has created an awesome poster that you can see on our web site. We need volunteers to help lead group rides. Cherokee High School will be cooking burgers and dogs. OutSpokin’ and Free Flite will have bike demos that day and REI will have a tent and will be helping with volunteer rewards.

The message was sent out that whoever is tearing out the log crossing at the beginning of the CCW entrance to the VMT—please stop! It is an intentional filter to discourage riders who lack the skills to ride the VMT from entering that trail.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 7/14/08

SORBA Woodstock Chapter Meeting Minutes
7/14/08

John Hicks opened the meeting and asked Ellis Alexander to give an update on the IMBA World Summit he attended in June in Park City, UT. Ellis reported that he was very impressed with the quality of the agenda at the meeting and the leadership of IMBA. While he learned a lot of useful information that can help our chapter be more successful, he indicated that when you compare what our chapter has accomplished to others around the country, we have a lot to be proud of. We are already putting to work many of the initiatives and practices that were taught in the breakout sessions at the summit.

Jay Wilkes gave an update on the Reinhardt College MOU. John and Jay met with the CFO of the College along with SORBA Executive Director Tom Sauret. The meeting was very successful and we expect to sign an MOU very soon.

John Hicks reported on the progress of the Greensprints initiative by the City of Woodstock. SORBA Woodstock is expected to play a major role in this effort. There are 400 acres of property at Rope Mill Park that the City will soon ask us to help them build mountain bike trails on.

John Hicks reviewed the expenses and the funds raised for the VMT.

The next work party will be Saturday, July 19th and will continue to focus on the rerouted switchback and some log crossings.

There is a work party at Chicopee on Saturday July 26th and SORBA will be providing tools and some volunteers.

Everyone in attendance was encouraged to provide their e-mail address for chapter updates.

The Grand Opening for the VMT will be Saturday, September 27th.

A beginner clinic will be held on Saturday, July 19th.

National Take a Kid Mountain Biking will be held the first weekend in October and Bike Patrol members and other volunteers are encouraged to participate in the event.

Cherokee County will provide a sign at the trailhead with the rules for the trail.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 6/16/08

SORBA Woodstock Chapter Meeting Minutes
6/16/08

VP Jay Wilkes opened the meeting informing the attendees that President John Hicks was attending the Woodstock City Council Meeting tonight about the Greensprints long range plan to build trails in Woodstock and Cherokee County.

Jay gave an update about the Van Michael Trail and the efforts to deal with the erosion on one small section along Blankets Creek. He thanked the 196 different volunteers who have spent over 2,600 hours building this new trail. We are targeting a grand opening event in September. We will invite the media, County Commissioners and major donors. REI is working with us on the volunteer rewards program.

Bike Patrol first aid cards will be available soon.

IMBA and SORBA memberships are now one and the same. Some confusion with renewal appeals from both organizations, should be resolved soon.

We will have a new sign at the main entrance in a few weeks that is provided by Cherokee County.

Discussions with Reinhardt College are moving forward to develop a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the College whereby SORBA Woodstock would provide trail design and volunteer help to help the College finish their trail and bring it up to IMBA standards. A bridge across the creek will be a major project of this relationship.

The USACOE has discussed with us about developing mountain bike trails in the Red Top Mountain area. They are very pleased with our stewardship of the Blankets Creek trails and believe that we help them push out illegal uses of their property (ATVs and horses, etc.).

The next work party will be July 19th and will focus on finishing the work on the new switchback created to reroute away from the section that created the erosion problem.

Two Demo Days have been scheduled by local bike shops. Free Flite will be on June 21st and OutSpokin’ will be on July 19th.

Nimblewill is schedule for August. Some question about the date.

When we wind down the work on the VMT we will start alternating between work parties and group rides.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 3-12-08

 

Written by Ellis Alexander

 

Wednesday, 12 March 2008 22:07

 

SORBA Woodstock Chapter Meeting Minutes
3/10/08

John Hicks opened the meeting with word that the spring SORBA Board meeting will be this Saturday, March 15. IMBA/SORBA database issues have been resolved. We will soon be one organization. Tom Sauret will be full time with SORBA in about 60 days.

Ellis Alexander reported that we have raised $48,430 in cash contributions for the Blankets Creek New Trail Construction Campaign and that gross receipts for the Dirty Duathlon are approximately $11,000 before expenses for the event. Lisa Randall estimates that net cash generated by the event for the new trails will be $7-8,000. This does not include recognition for in kind contributions from sponsors for the event.

Dan Thornton spoke about the Georgia Ride to the Capitol on Tuesday, March 11. Free-Flite will be providing the sound system. Last year eight mayors participated, this year hopefully fifteen will ride. Approximately 1,500 riders are expected. Dan encourages riders this year and for future years. Georgia’s Lt. Governor will speak, Mayor Shirley Franklin and other mayors. The Metro Atlanta Mayors Association are behind this event—60 plus mayors. The Mayors of Woodstock and Ball Ground are planning to participate. John encouraged individual notes to mayors thanking them for support.

The Bicycle Summit was held in Washington, DC this past week—500 biking supporters lobbying politicians. Dan participated in this important event that draws attention to biking issues and funding for members of Congress.

John Hicks spoke about the City of Woodstock Greenprints Project. Scott Gordon and John Hicks are members of the Project Steering Committee. The committee will see draft plan in two weeks. Open houses will be held on April 1, 2, and 3 for interested parties to listen, learn, ask questions and provide feedback. Go to www.thegreenprintsproject.com for more information about the open house locations and times.

The April SORBA Woodstock chapter meeting will be held at Blankets Creek, April 14. We will have a very special guest speaker. The reigning female endurance mountain bike champion, Monique “Pua” Sawicki, will attend our meeting and speak to us about her experience as a professional mountain biker. Thanks to Bruce Dickman for arranging this visit from a world class athlete.

Dan Thornton will sponsor an event with Gary Fisher at the Free-Flite store in Marietta no Saturday, May 17. Gary Fisher will be in town for the 24 hours of Conyers. Dan will hold an event at his store Saturday night as a fundraiser for the new trails at Blankets Creek. Regardless of what money is raised at this event, Dan commits to an additional $5,000 contribution to our new trails fund. Gary will be there from 7:00-9:00 pm—do a talk and answer questions. Dan plans to have a silent auction with equipment donated by suppliers.

As reported earlier in the meeting, gross cash receipts for the Dirty Duathlon are up to $11,000. The event should generate $7-8,000 for the new trail fund. Lisa is chasing down last prizes for the event. If you have volunteered and have a conflict, let Lisa know. She has others who are available to volunteer. 215 riders have registered. We need to post the trail closing times on our chapter web site. Van Michael will have a Cut-a-Thon that day providing hair cuts for contributions. Proceeds will be donated to the new trail fund.

We will have work parties this weekend. Saturday morning, 9 am to 1 pm and Sunday afternoon, 1 pm to 5 pm. We need all the volunteers we can muster to attack the hand finishing of the Van Michael Trail that remains. If you are available during the week, coordinate with Charlie Schulz or Jay Wilkes so we can identify what work needs to be done.

A large pile of mulch is available from a builder adjacent to the trails. We will use it as ground cover on some sections of the trail.

Pedalpalooza is May 3, which will serve as the grand opening of the Van Michael and Mosquito Bite Trials

Chapter Meeting Minutes 2-17-08

 

Written by Ellis Alexander

 

Sunday, 17 February 2008 18:01

 

John Hicks opened the meeting with good news about our fundraising efforts.

Ellis Alexander displayed the $10,000 “big check” from Bikes Belong signifying the grant we received for the Blankets Creek New Trail Construction Campaign. That gift and the early receipts for the Dirty Duathlon have pushed our funds raised to $40,000. Ellis emphasized the role SORBA played in winning the Bikes Belong grant. Our grant application was submitted under the SORBA umbrella and required significant financial data from SORBA that Tom Sauret and his staff pulled together for us. Ellis also highlighted the support from local bike shops for our application. Free-Flite Bicycles, Cycleworks, Habersham Bicycles, Intown Bicycles, and Bicycle South are all Bikes Belong members who wrote supporting letters for our application. Dan Thornton of Free-Flite is President of the North Georgia Bicycle Dealers Association and was instrumental in encouraging the other Bikes Belong members to support our application. Bikes Belong member support carries additional weight with the Bikes Belong Grants Committee. Out Spokin’ Bicycles also wrote a supporting letter and is playing a key role as presenting sponsor of the upcoming Dirty Duathlon race and fundraising event.

Walt Bready updated everyone about the Nimblewill Festival which will be held April 26-27, 2008 and encouraged everyone to attend. Added features to this year’s event are a gear swap and a retro/vintage bike ride. It will be a short ride but entertaining for everyone to see. He also talked about the new Southeastern Single Track E-news that many of have received in our e-mail. The Fat Tire Times has traditionally printed and distributed six times a year. It will drop back to five issues in 2008 and possibly four in 2009. You will soon learn aboutexploring electronic versions for distribution. 20th anniversary issue in the works. Walt talked about the upcoming events on the SORBA calendar, including the Dirty Duathlon fundraising event at Blankets. IMBA World Summit in Park City, UT to be held mid June 2008. See the IMBA web site for more information.

IMBA and SORBA merger is almost finalized. The database merging is still in process.

The Ride to the Capitol will happen in March. Georgia Bikes, a statewide bicycle advocacy group, sponsors this annual event to raise awareness about bike riding.

Tim Feltner reported that this Saturday, February 16, we will have Bike Patrol training. CPR starts at 9:00 am and First Aid and Bike Patrol training will follow.

Pedalpalooza will happen May 3. We are focused on finishing the new trails by that event.

The new trails continue to progress, but a lot of finishing work is left to be done. The frequency of work parties will increase, including week day work as the daylight hours extend into the evening.

Volunteer hours have been very impressive. It is important that those people who are working on their own during the week must communicate with Charlie Shultz about the work they are doing and Tim Feltner to document their hours worked. We have a number of people over 50 hours and will have some over 100. Since September 2007 we have over 1,100 hours volunteered from over 100 different people. Rewards for different levels of hours worked start at 25 hours.

John Hicks highlighted the importance of tracking volunteer hours for grants we may seek from various organizations. Also, our insurance coverage requires tracking who is on the trail.

Lisa Randall, organizer and promoter of the Dirty Duathlon event, reported that Out Spokin’ Bicycles has stepped up and will donate $9,000 of equipment and gear for the event, including one man’s and one woman’s full suspension mountain bikes. How they will be won is still a secret, but you have to be a race participant. Several sponsors have made cash contributions as well as several individuals. Kevin Poske and Out Spokin’ have done a lot to make this event feel like a big time event. Lisa showed the t-shirt design. 135 people have signed up for 200 positions. The registration has picked dramatically in recent days. Lisa expects the registration to close very soon. Thus far, $7,645 has been raised. If the event sells out we will raise $10,000 which will yield, after event expenses, approximately $7,000 for the new trail fund. Lisa requested that about one mile of the Van Michael Loop be used for the race. John Hicks said we would seek Charlie Shultz’s input on that decision. Lisa solicited volunteers for event day. She needs seven volunteers for course marshals, especially Bike Patrol members, and two people to help with parking at the church. Also need a generator. Walt volunteered the one in the SORBA event trailer. The trailer will also have a podium and start/finish banner and wooden stakes. Lisa also indicated the need for a race waiver. Walt will forward a template that SORBA has used for other events. The race starts at 9:00 am and should be finished by 12:30 pm. Volunteer arrival times will depend upon your job. We will need to close the trail sometime during the day on Friday to allow for set up in the parking lot Friday night.

February 24 is the Duathlon training day for those who need to learn about the trails. That will also be a bike demo day for Out Spokin’ Bicycles and Specialized.

Chapter Meeting Minutes 12-10-07

Meeting Date - 12/10/07
Meeting Location - Williamson Bros BBQ - Canton
Attendees - 17

Bike Patrol - Bike Patrol training for 2008 will be Feb 16th at Cherokee County Parks - South Annex. If you are already in the Bike Patrol or would like to be, please contact Tim Feltner - Bike Patrol Director. Bike Patrol members are responsible for educating, assisting and informing trail users. The class will consist of CPR training, First Aid training and a IMBA Bike Patrol training class.

Trail School - Those wanting to sign up for Trail School please contact Jay Wilkes - Secretary. We have two members that would like to go so far. SORBA Woodstock will pay for members to attend. To be a certified Trail Crew Leader for SORBA Woodstock you must attend trail school. Dates are January 12/13 and January 26/27.

New advanced trail construction update - We have machine cut ~3 miles of trail. 2.25 miles of those have been completed hand finished. Work Parties will continue on the First and Third Saturday of every month until construction in complete. With enough help, we are estimating a March/April completion date. We have had over 90 different volunteers show up for work parties, with many doing multiple. Over ~800 hours have been logged on the new trail construction since September.

New trail fund raising - Ellis announced two donations that were given at the meeting. Brian Berg donated $1000 and John Hicks donated $500. We have applied for a grant from Bikes Belong. Awards from Bikes Belong will be presented at the end of January 2008 (keep fingers crossed). We still need to raise $20,000 to complete the new trail construction.

Thomson Day - Bruce Dickman joined us tonight to discuss Thomson Day 2008. Bruce is spreading the word to all chapters to make this a HUGE event. It will be a weekend long festival at the Thomson factory in Macon, GA the weekend of January 19th. Races, games, camping, rides, bands and a long list of activities will be held. More info to follow.

Blankets Creek Dirty Duathlon - Lisa Randall unveiled her race that will be held on March 22, 2008 entitled Blankets Creek Dirty Duathlon. This is the first ever race to be held at Blankets Creek with all proceeds to be donated for the new loop trail construction. The race will consist of a 5 mile trail run and 10-12 miles of Mountain Biking. Visit www.blanketsduathlon.blogspot.com for more information.

Elections - 2008 Elections were closed with no new entries. Voting was conducted for next years officers. Next years officers are as follows:

John Hicks - President
Jay Wilkes - Vice President
Ellis Alexander - Secretary
Chris Griffin - Treasurer
Tim Feltner - Bike Patrol Director
Charlie Shultz - Trail Director