MrBond profile

Love this! Haven't rode the skinny on the steep section of Pangor in a long time . . .

Makes we want to do an old skool ride on my DeKerf.

Beautiful photo of a beautiful structure. Karen's attention to detail is amazing, you can see it all over the trail!

This board is like a coffee shop where every conversation is recorded and available to anyone with an internet connection. In this coffee shop, some people wear masks and some don't. As long as the mask-wearers wear the same mask every time they come in, a sense of community can develop and some of the conversations Gord would like to see can happen.

As long as the patrons and the owner react swiftly and consistently to other patrons that come in and display bad behaviour, most of the masked and unmasked patrons will stick around. If the goal is to keep the patrons coming back to the shop, people that shout, call others names or come into the shop and put up false, misleading or vitriolic posters about other patrons would politely be shown the door and not allowed back in.

If there isn't a sense of mutual respect and reciprocity, or the unmasked patrons think those that have been shown the door will be waiting outside to follow them home, then the conversations Gord and others want to have won't happen in this coffee shop.

I'm not sure how this could be implemented online, but the Chatham House rule is useful for people interested in promoting openness and sharing of information in meetings or discussions.

Have people been creating new NSMB accounts to start gossip threads since the beginning, or is this a new phenomenon?

The NSMBA message mentions restructuring. I'm interested how the new board will proceed with that and am confident they will let members know. When I used to be involved there was a goal of having two full time positions, an executive director and trail manager with a seasonal crew. Things have changed since then and I'm excited to see the direction they are heading.

Mark deserves a ton of respect for all of the reasons mentioned by previous posters. He doesn't deserve people gossiping about his employment status on an anonymous forum. If people want to continue the discussion, I'd suggest a change of the thread title and focus on what paid roles the NSMBA could establish that would best benefit the North Shore trails.

Guys stop. Just stop posting. This is ridiculous. Someone is going to regret what been said here, if he's even mentally capable of regret. Let's leave it at that.

If you keep posting you just contribute to the stupidity. Go ride Seymour instead.

I would SO LOVE to ride Seymour right now.

I rode Seymour today. It was great!

Lots of media activity today, I tried hard to make it clear to the media that this wasn't just a MTB issue, but an issue for all users. It's also a big issue for recreation and the local economy in North Van. Here's a couple that I though best covered the full spectrum of the issue from a trail users perspective:

North Shore News

CTV News

The found the radio interviews are best. More time to explore the issue, less opportunity to cut important facts, but maybe I'm biased cause I'm in them. . .

CKNW, Roundhouse Radio

I have been sharing all info on my Facebook page as it comes to me. My latest update is a request for information:

Why are these trails important to you, your club/organization or your business?

What would be the effect on you if access is prohibited?

I plan to compile this info into a compelling set of information to share with my colleagues in Provincial and Federal government to advocate on behalf of trail access. If you feel comfortable, please share and spread the word. Meetings are being scheduled with CMHC for next week and I'd like to have something for Monday.

If you'd rather comment on these boards, would someone volunteer to compile the info?

Thanks to everyone who has contacted me to offer support and ideas so far.

Mathew

I have posted an update on my Facebook page and will include an abbreviated message below. I'll be updating my Facebook page with new information as I receive it and trying to answer any questions that come up there. I probably won't be able to respond as quickly to points that come up on these boards.

The absence of accurate information has led to a lot of speculation about why the landowner, the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has taken this action after decades of showing no interest whatsoever in any active management of these lands. I'll do my best to provide the factual information that I have found below.

The NSMBA website first posted a notice that no trespassing signs has been posted on Friday, October 14th. On October 16th, they confirmed with the CMHC regional office in Vancouver that is was indeed CMHC that posted those signs. That update, including a list of impacted trails, can be found here.

I learned that CMHC staff from Ottawa had flown out to inspect the property during the week of June 14th, 2016. At this time they met with staff from DNV Parks, BC Parks and Metro Vancouver to gain insight on the issues impacting CMHC lands. No decisions were made regarding the use of the property or its future management at these meetings.

DNV staff received an email response from CMHC late Tuesday afternoon and were informed that CMHC is preparing a communique for the public. DNV staff will be following up with a phone conversation on Wednesday morning.

I have also been in touch with our MP Terry Beech. We have been sharing information and updates and he is working hard with the folks in Ottawa to get more information on behalf of his constituents. He is getting your letters.

I would suggest we continue to first press CMHC for an formal explanation of their recent actions. CMHC put up these signs without informing any of the adjacent land managers, or even their regional office in Vancouver. Once we have that explanation, then I suggest we hold CMHC accountable to work in much closer coordination with all stakeholders to discuss monitoring, enforcement and management of activities on their lands. Thirdly, I suggest we get a clear answer from CMHC to the two following questions:

1. What, if any, plans or planning processes are contemplated for the future of this land?
2. When will we know more and how will the public and other stakeholder be involved and informed?

It's a loamer right off the parking lot. The District closed it because it was the right thing to do.

Natural High will be reworked soon. Please be patient.

The LSCR falls under the Utilities Committee, not Parks.

Here's an overview with a few of the before shots:
http://nsmba.ca/structures/naturalhigh/naturalhigh.htm

I'll also ask around about the sign.

The swivel teeter is still there. I'll head up tomorrow to see if I can pull it out. Everything above the swivel teeter will be part of the parking lot. No changes to the new bridge after the teeter and everything below.