2011 FVMBA AGM Report

2011 has been huge for the Fraser Valley Mountain Bikers Association! Thanks to a membership that has more than tripled in the last year, we have amplified our voice as an advocate for biking in the Fraser Valley. This increase has also benefited our local builders, as we now have more resources to provide them with the tools and supplies they need.

2011 FVMBA AGM. Photo ~ Ian Harker.

The AGM was the perfect chance to reflect on the successes of the past year while looking forward to opportunities on the horizon. Outgoing President, Collin Burke, did an amazing job of leading the FVMBA this year. Under his guidance, the association accomplished a lot, including trail days, toonie races, group rides, and a lot of trail upgrades and additions. The only consolation to seeing Collin step down is knowing that he will still serve as Vice President and that another competent leader, Kevin Koopmans, has filled his shoes. Kevin’s vision and love for the sport is why the FVMBA unanimously chose him as our new President.

Speech. Speech. Speech. 2012 FVMBA President Kevin Koopmans. Photo ~ Ian Harker.

2011 Trail Updates

Sumas Mountain

The FVMBA has established a partnership with Trails BC and the BC Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations (MNRO) to develop a first-rate mountain biking destination on Sumas Mountain. The area has been formally recognized as the Sumas Mountain Bike Recreation Site and has seen enormous progress, including new trail signage and maps created in partnership with Gutsploder.net. These maps are now available at local bike shops.  Look to the near future for parking/staging areas at the top and bottom of the trails including picnic areas, toilets and information kiosks.

Work has begun on the upper staging area at Sumas. Photo ~ Kevin Koopmans.

The trails on Sumas continue to progress thanks to the dedication of our local volunteers. Knob Gobbler, Noah Fear and World Cup have seen a lot of trail work while Time Killer continues to be a Fraser Valley DH destination. Earlier this year, we saw Time Out decommissioned due to an adjacent development, however the new exit, known as No Time Out, is now complete and gets riders back to the main road along a wavy-gravy line with two impressive cedar bridges. 

2011 FVMBA President Collin Burke on Sumas. Photo ~ Dave Mackie.

The FVMBA is also keenly aware of the importance of having trails for novice and young riders.  As a result, we have engaged an experienced trail building company to construct a 6km beginner-friendly trail on the XC side of Sumas, adding to the outstanding and flowy XC/AM trail network already in place.

Bear Mountain

Across the river in Mission, last winter’s logging on Bear had a significant impact on the trail system. A new road replaced most of Backdoor and leads directly to the new trailheads for Bigguns and Wasp, which also has an amazing new viewpoint. Backdoor will not be lost, however, as a reroute is being cut and will include a connecting trail down to Corduroy. This new section of trail will be a solid up/down XC trail, making it possible to ride to the top of Bear without the use of any roads. Combine this trail with Cranks, a new trail accessed from Doyle Road, and Bear Mountain has some amazing XC opportunities. If you haven’t parked at Doyle and ridden up Cranks to Corduroy yet, you are missing out!

Eugene’s Bridge on Corduroy. Photo ~ Ian Harker.

We have also built a brand new trail on Bear designed just for kids. Rock n’ Roll is an easily-accessible 200m loop adjacent to the Saunders Loop hiking trail. It was designed so parents can watch their kids as they ride the whole loop. Rock n’ Roll even has a small, ground-level wooden feature that the little ones can cut their teeth on!

Events

Toonie Races

The FVMBA Toonie Race Series was an incredible success this year.  The Mission XC at Heritage Park, the Sumas Super D, the Vedder Super D, the Red XC and Bear Super D Races saw great riders come out to compete.  Arthur Gaillot proved himself as our All Mountain master of the Super D and XC courses by taking the win! You can look ahead to more races next spring as the FVMBA kicks off yet another race season. Look to next year when the FVMBA is planning to organize Gear Swaps at local events!

The mad dash starting the first race of the Toonie Series. Photo ~ Matt Scott.

Many thanks go out to the supporters of this world class event, including Pinkbike, Kintec Footwear, Life Cycles, Cranky’s Bike Shop, Velocity Cycles, Jack’s Cycle, Wenting’s Cycle, Pedal Sport, SuspensionWerx, Urge Bike Products and Avenue Body Shop.

Heritage Park Toonie Race winners, Karen Rodgers, Jean Ann Berkenpas, Julie Kozier. Photo ~ Matt Scott.

Support the next FVMBA Race Series by joining us for the Indoor 4X Races licensed by Cycling BC! This is a BC Cup Series race, so jerseys will be awarded. More details on the 4X races can be found at www.fvmba.com.

Bear Mountain Challenge

The FVMBA is stoked to have again worked with the Bear Mountain Challenge in hosting one of the best DH and XC races in the 2011 BC Cup Series and we will be involved again next year in putting on this world class event.

Group Rides and Trail Days

The FVMBA hosted a number of group rides throughout 2011 and our goal is to hold even more in the coming year.  Our annual Halloween Ride at Vedder Mountain was a huge success with many showing up in hilarious costumes, despite the downpour.

Trail work. Photo ~ Ian Harker.

Also, countless hours of volunteer work went into trail days this past year, including lots of love to Dilemma on Vedder Mountain. Thank you to all those who come out and earn good karma while giving back to the trails!

FVMBA Forum

The new FVMBA forum, accessed from the www.fvmba.com website, is now the place to go to find out about Fraser Valley trail conditions, to look for riding partners or to voice your concerns.

Strategic Partnerships with Local Governments and Trail Users

The FVMBA has recently forged a key relationship with Trails and Recreation Sites BC to legitimize trails in the Fraser Valley.  We are also maintaining relationships with the Vedder Mountain Trails Society, the City of Abbotsford, the City of Chilliwack and the District of Mission. All of these affiliations help gain support for the development and promotion of local trails.

The best part about the AGM is the opportunity to look back at recent success stories while forming a vision for what the new year has to offer. Although this year was a huge success, the FVMBA is only just warming up! The general plan for the new year is to continually build new trails, plan more events and develop new partnerships to help progress mountain biking in the Fraser Valley.

If you would like to get involved with the FVMBA, check out our website here.

 

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Our brethren to the east keep their trails covered in dirt and their spirits high. Do you ever venture to the land of big trucks and soft trails? Discuss below…