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Entries tagged: Mountain Biking

Marla Streb, a former World Mountain Bike Champion and Team LUNA Chix Ambassador, will be a panelist at the National Women Cycling Forum on March 20. Learn more here.

Who or what inspired you to start cycling?

In 1990, I was convinced by a friend (now my husband, Mark) to tour Europe by bike, where we rode and camped throughout 13 countries trying to “find” ourselves. After two months together over mountain passes and in tough weather, we became soul mates (and only showering twice in that time also kept us platonic!). A few years later, the same guy encouraged me to become a professional mountain bike racer and supported me throughout my 16-year career.

What’s your favorite memory or proudest moment on a bike (or in bicycle advocacy)?

Winning the World Cup in Austria in 2005 — that win kept me from retiring, and I raced for four more years (for a total of 16 years!)

What campaigns, events or other efforts are you working on right now or looking forward to that have the potential to increase women cycling?

• LUNA Chix: I work with the LUNA Chix Ambassadors, 280 women from around the country who are biking enthusiasts. These women go back to their hometowns and are the influencers there, and they do the same thing locally.
• Bike MINDED Program: We at Bike Maryland hold adult commuter workshops and kids rodeos, with an emphasis on safety. Normally, parents accompany kids and we reach them just as well (including moms). Also, I lead women’s only rides from downtown Baltimore.

What advice would you give to women who are wary of cycling — or to women who want to have a bigger impact in advancing cycling in their community?

I encourage women to take a clinic or cycling camp to learn proper techniques (and avoid bad habits). Most women who take a skills clinic become more confident. They can relax and have fun on their bike, and they also make important connections with other female cyclists. To make a bigger impact in the community, women should support and encourage each other to try cycling for fitness, fun, and transportation.

If you could look 20 years into the future of the cycling movement, how would you hope things would be different?

I would like to see at least 50 percent female ridership, especially during commuting hours. Also, I hope to see many women more commuting/running errands, with their children safely in tow.

The Marin County Bicycle Coalition has plenty of street cred. Since its inception in 1998, the California advocates have compiled an impressive track record, including helping to increase weekday cycling trips in the region by more than 135 percent and reduce collisions by more than 34 percent.

Now MCBC is taking its advocacy off-road.

Yesterday, MCBC launched a new Mountain Bike Initiative that aims to “increase trail access for mountain bike riders in Marin County, encourage safe and civil behavior among all trail users, and promote trail stewardship.”

“As mountain biking popularity continues to rise,” the advocates explained in the program announcement, “MCBC is compelled by its growing membership base to devote its unique experience and resources in advocacy and education to achieving similar success off-road.”

Thanks to a new source of funding (and a fundraising campaign- donate here), MCBC will soon hire a part-time director who will work toward a host of program goals, like opening more trail opportunities for mountain bikers and creating more trails that serve as transportation.

“The organization will participate in trail planning processes alongside government agencies, land managers, environmental organizations and the public,” the MCBC noted in the announcement. “It will be deeply involved in activities encouraging all users to create a cooperative, respectful, friendly and safe environment on trails. With this program, MCBC looks forward to creating more positive change in Marin County.”

Read more on MCBC’s website.

According to Vermont’s Local Motion, the Vermont Legislature just passed two critical roadway safety bills this session and plans to remove mountain bike trails in Essex were halted.

According to Local Motion:
“1) Ban on Texting While Driving (S.280)

The VT House and Senate put aside their differences and agreed to a bill that bans texting for all drivers and also bans cell phone use by teenage drivers. The Governor indicated he would sign the bill. Thank you Local Motion members who responded to our advocacy call! Thanks also to Senator Mazza for seeing this through. Free Press Coverage

2) Safe Passing Bill (H.540)

Thanks to the tremendous leadership of Nancy Schulz and Judy Bond of the VT Bicycle & Pedestrian Coalition, the Legislature passed a bill clarifying how motorists must pass walkers, cyclists and other “vulnerable roadway users” and also prohibiting motorists from threatening behavoir towards walkers and cyclists. Read the final bill language here. If you appreciate this work, please consider joining the VT Bike/Pedestrian Coalition.

3) Saxon Hill Mtn Bike Trails Spared…For Now

Thanks to the leadership of Fellowship of the Wheel, Chittenden County’s mountain biking club, over 100 people turned out to a public forum where the Town of Essex was considering a development proposal that would have removed nearly all mountain biking trails from Saxon Hill. The next day the developer withdrew the project’s plans.”

Learn more about Local Motion.

Learn more about the Vermont Bicycle and Pedestrian Coalition.