Green Grass and Moist Trails at Passion Trail Bikes

Hey, long time no newsletter! There’s no excuse for us keeping you in the dark any longer, so here’s the latest news on the grassy verged and moist trail on February 23, 2010

0. Passion Trail Bikes is Hiring – Customer Service and Merchandise Specialist
1. Trailwork in Waterdog on 2/28 is ON
2. Awesomeland: Women of Dirt, Rio Theater 2/28 $12,000 in RAFFLE Prizes
3. Passion Spring Demo Days are March 6th & 7th!
4. Wednesday Wrides Wreturning March 17th
5. Looking for Food Catering Suggestions
6. ECdM Parking Lot Approved
7. North Yuba Trail Daze Saturday March 13


0. Passion Trail Bikes is Hiring – Customer Service and Merchandise Specialist
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Well, we made it through winter without Berry. Sniff Happily for him, he’s become quite the home improvement dude in North Carolina. We sure do miss him. Not to mention his trailbuilding and local knowledge, handsome little black dog, suave phone manners, and charm. It’s going to be darn difficult to replace him, but we have to. Spring is right around the corner!

If you, or someone you know, might fit the qualifications we’ve set out for the full time position of Mountain Bike Customer Service and Merchandise Specialist that we are now finally trying to fill, please visit our website at www.passiontrailbikes.com for details and instructions on how to apply. Please no phone or in-person inquiries, thanks!

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1. Trailwork in Waterdog on 2/28 is ON
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Patty’s getting back into the groove, or is that rut? with digging in the dirt. This Sunday, meeting at 8:30 am, she will be back out on the Lake Loop Trail Realignment project. Right now the exact project is still being decided, and there may be a coin toss to determine if we are working on the north side or the south side. Possible projects include backfilling the last of the retaining walls, removing some rock slides came down in the rains, cutting out brush for the final segment to connect the corridor around the lake, breaking up rock and setting it for a new stone retaining wall, and notching in the first pass of a bench cut on the slope beyond the first bridge.

Helpers are very much needed. If you’ve been feeling like you’d benefit from a little cross training and could use a different kind of workout, come on out and pick up a pick, a shovel, a rock bar, loppers or saw, or another one of those strange trailbuilding tools, like a pulaski or a McLeod.

Eric drives a rock bar chisel point into a large rock while Janet gives him some safe working room.

To get a chance to leave your mark on this incredible trail, please volunteer some time this season to help out. If you can come on one of the dates below, please RSVP to Patty at patty@passiontrailbikes.com, and let her know you’re coming. She will send you details on the project once they are finalized. And shoot an email out to your friends to let them know you’ll be helping out. We need recruiters too!

Upcoming dates on our trailwork calendar are as follows:

Sunday 2/28
Saturday 3/20
Sunday 4/11
Thursday 4/22

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2. Awesomeland: Women of Dirt, Rio Theater 2/28 $12,000 in RAFFLE Prizes
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MBOSC presents the first Santa Cruz Mountain Bike Festival from February 27-28, 2010 Featuring the California premier of Awesome Land: Women of Dirt.

Two-Day Mountain Bike Festival in Santa Cruz Brings Professional Female Mountain Bike Riders Including Lisa Myklak, Emily Johnston, Tammy Donahugh and Kathy Pruitt

Pending good weather, events held in conjunction with the premier include an open group ride through the Soquel Demonstration State Forest (SDSF) and a Jump Jam at Depot Park in Santa Cruz with the pro women on Feb 28th.

There will a $1/ticket event raffle after the film with $12,000 in great prizes including an Intense 5.5 EVP frame, a Fox 36 Talas RC2 fork and a BlkMrkt Mob frame (Chrome). There are many other prizes offered by local businesses including cycling clothing, CamelBaks, Light and Motion bike lights and gift certificates. You must be present to win at the raffle

There will also be a $5/ticket raffle for a new 2010 Titus El Guapo All Mountain Bike. Raffle tickets will go on sale at the Bike Festival until the Sea Otter Classic in April. We will do the drawing for the bike at the Sea Otter at the MBOSC booth.

Proceeds from the festivities will go toward efforts to rebuild and reopen the SDSF parking lot – which has been closed due to environmental issues.

The Titus Group Ride at Soquel Demo State Forest – Saturday Feb 27th 9:30 am

There will be a group ride at Soquel Demonstration State Forest starting at 9:30 am with many of the women featured in the film.

Titus Bikes will be on hand to allow riders to demo the El Guapo – a 6” travel all mountain bike – perfect for the trails at SDSF.

The BlkMrk Bikes Jump Jam at Depot Park – Feb 28th 10-3pm

The pro women from the event will be participating in a Jump Jam held at Depot Park in Santa Cruz from 10-3pm. BlkMrkt Bikes will have several of their bikes on hand to demonstrate.

California Premier of Awesome Land: Women of Dirt – Sunday Feb 28th 7 pm

Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz has teamed up with Bones Over Metal to host the California Premier of Awesome Land: Women of Dirt. The event is scheduled to take place on Feb 28, 2010, at the Rio Theater in Santa Cruz at 7 pm. This unique film spotlights some of the most talented women on knobby tires and the lifestyles that allow them to ride. Tickets can be purchased at the door or most local bike shops in Santa Cruz.

The film Awesome Land: Women Of Dirt looks through the eyes of the wondrous women that have helped grow the sports of gravity mountain biking, downhill racing, dirt jumping and free riding. Featured riders Lisa Myklak, Emily Johnston, Tammy Donahugh and Kathy Pruitt will be present at the premier, along with the filmmaker Mark Brent. There will be a Q&A session with the guests moderated Karen Kefauver, a freelance sports and travel journalist who authors the cycling column, Spin City for the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

“Our goal is to support local riding groups like MBoSC and cycling non-profits to host regional shows and share the ‘awesomeness’ the mountain bike has to offer. We want to give back to the community, and we want to do this in a way that the local organizations and promoters get to keep all the funds raised,” said film producer Mark Brent.

Tickets for the film are $10 and can be purchased before hand at Passion Trail Bikes!

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3. Passion Spring Demo Days are March 6th & 7th!
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We’ve got two trucks coming full of brand new Specialized bikes to test ride for free on Saturday and Sunday, March 6th and 7th. As usual, we will be taking reservations with three ride times per day so you can get a chance to feel out the latest and greatest from our friends in Morgan Hill. Stay tuned for a short email blast from us in a day or two, with info on the bikes and how to reserve a spot. We will have both road and mountain bikes as well as dozens of women’s specific designs to test.

We will have test bikes available from our existing demo fleet, including a few Ibis, Santa Cruz, Maverick, and Giant bikes. ALL demo bikes will be available for FREE test rides during the weekend. We are also working on getting some more bikes from Santa Cruz and Ibis. Unfortunately, Giant isn’t able to join our spring demo but we are hopeful we can get some 2010 test bikes in the near future.

Riders scoping out new Specialized bikes at last year’s spring Demo Days

We will be having a HUGE sale during the demo event, including blowing out last years’ new and used demo bikes at unbelievable prices. We will have big markdowns on clothing, so be sure to stop by and paw through the bargain rack. More details will be forthcoming!

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4. Wednesday Wrides Wreturning March 17th
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Oh, yeah. You heard it here. Daylight Saving Time begins Sunday March 14th, when we turn the hands ahead and get to see the sun in the sky after 7pm! WOOT! Be Wready for the Wreturn of the Wednesday Wrides on St. Patricks Day. We will be sporting green and celebrating spring! Launch time will be somewhere around 5:30pm, with post-ride festivities starting around dark, at 7:30pm.

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5. Looking for Food Catering Suggestions
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Speaking of Wednesday Wrides, we are looking for alternative ways to implement the fabulous “let’s eat after we ride” concept. If you do catering, or know someone who does, could you kindly get in touch with Patty, patty@passiontrailbikes.com who would like to Wride a little more and do food prep and food service just a little less? Thankyouverymuch.

Micheal and Travis performed culinary feats for a Female Friday last summer,
and now demand equal treatment for all in 2010

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6. ECdM Parking Lot Approved

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Hey, we are going to get a parking lot near gate CM03! The MROSD Board of Directors approved the plan at a meeting earlier this month. Read all about it here.

Along with the parking lot, they are closing the upper portion of Steam Donkey Trail, from the three steeps to the green unnumbered gate (Gate 4.5), and building a new trail to connect from gate CM03 over to Blue Blossom so you don’t have to ride on the road. We lose some cool old technical singletrack but gain a connecting trail.

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7. North Yuba Trail Daze Saturday March 13

Join SBTS for our March Trail Daze event where we will be working in the Tahoe National Forest on the North Yuba Extension.

Meet at Yuba Expeditions in downtown Downieville. Bagels and coffee will be served from 9-9:30am. Lunch and an after work BBQ will also be part of the fun. Expect to be out for about 5 or 6 hours, before the prospect of cold beer and more food lures everyone back to town. Bring some work gloves, a backpack, layers, and some enthusiasm. Working on this trail requires a two mile hike in and out. All are welcome. No experience necessary.

Sponsored By Guiness and Santa Cruz Bicycles

Special St Patty’s Day feast w/Corn Beef and Cabbage + Guiness

Sign up on the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship website

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Read back issues of the Passion Trail Bikes Community e-Newsletter on our website.

To contact us, email us at info@passiontrailbikes.com, or call the shop at 650-620-9798.

Happy Trails, from the PTB crew
Charles, Patty, John, Bret, Sterling, Pancho, Will, Peter, and Reba