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PACA Newsletters 2011

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PACA Newsletters 2011 Empty PACA Newsletters 2011

Post  Admin Thu May 05, 2011 7:11 am

Nov. 2011

So the weather isn’t cooperating with us, but at least we have a great selection of winter sports at our doorsteps to keep us in shape until spring riding reappears! Remember; the best thing about winter is that it means spring is on its way :-) We do however have a few tidbits of more-or-less cycle related news for you to digest in the meantime:

Nickel Plate Nordic XC Ski & Snowshoe Expo’ - This Friday, Nov. 25th, the Best Damn Sports Bar in Penticton will be hosting the Nickel Plate Nordic XC Ski & Snowshoe Expo’. Doors open at 5pm. PACA will be on hand, along with numerous other outdoor sports and fitness related groups. Be there! What does that have to do with cycling? See note about fitness above.

Grrrrrreat! News about the proposed Campbell Mt. southeast access route - City of Penticton council have endorsed the bridge and stairway-with-viewpoints plan and started shuffling the appropriate paperwork to get the show on the road, er, the bridge over the creek and the stairway up the hill. See the planning maps and discuss it with a PACA member on Friday evening.

Winter Outdoor Groups - Many of PACA’s members are avid xc-ski, snowshoe, snowboard, dh-ski, backcountry skiers and winter hikers. To this end, I’ve created a new section in the PACA discussion forums titled ‘All things self-powered / winter-sport related’. Feel free to use it to communicate with like minded folk. See the link:
https://bike.darkbb.com/t768-all-things-self-powered-winter-sport-related#1206

IMBA's Trail News, Fall Edition is out - Kick back with a favorite bevvy' and enjoy the latest off-road press, free of charge, care of the International Mountain Bike Association.

Life in a Day - Ok, so this is completely unrelated to cycling, but I thought you might like this; check out Google's Life in a Day movie, now freely available online -- Celebrate Life!!!


HOT Tip for a Cool day.

Ditch the plastic base layers! While almost every base-layer garment one sees these days is made of some form of polypropylene / plastic derivative, all of the fancy anti-microbial treatments in the world soon fail, and after a heavy session outdoors, you - and there is no way to put this nicely, will stink! Poly' layers really get 'the funk', but there is an alternative to the funkiness... Merino Wool! Its kinda' pricy, but with a little shopping around you will find yourself in long-sleeve / long-johns that will not only keep you toasty warm this winter, but will also find you smelling like a rose long after your polypropylene-clad friends are afraid to expose an under-arm. Show you care by shopping for 100% mulesing-free New Zealand merino wool.


















Oct. 2011

Hi everyone, and welcome to the belated Oct. newsletter! We've a mix of news, views and events for you this time around:

Thanks to the many participants and volunteers, PACA's 2011 Bike Festival went off without a hitch and exceeded our expectations in every way. Since we flooded you with info' pre-event, and our website hosted a good deal of post-event information, I won't recap in-depth. Suffice to say, “it was a fantastic success because of you”! PS: Wicked MONSTER CX track Jeff :-)

Someone has been vandalizing the BC Parks signage Nitwits have apparently determined that spray-paint was required on the many new signs erected within the Skaha Bluffs climbing area by Parks staff. To date, this hasn't included the PACA signage for WARD1 / Rock Oven etc, but given time... If you have (any) information about these vandals, please pass it on to the Ministry of Environment office; ask for Mark or Sara. Boneheads like this need to face the consequences of their brain-dead actions!

Sophie is on the lam! Tina Hoeben's dog Sophie has been 'out there somewhere' for several weeks now; updates are available on Tina's Facebook site here; https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=619187342&sk=wall - or contact us here at PACA and we'll pass the info onto Tina. . Since all of you receiving this are 'outdoorsy' folk, I figured that this newsletter might reach someone who has seen Soph' and can help.

Nearly-end-of-season !!Kudos!! to the dirt and road riders who attended PACA's many guided rides this year. Hats off to Ron H. for guidance and thumbs up to those who attended our many PACA Trail Days in 2011.

Development of Trails Master Plan (RDOS) Open House - October 25, 2011 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm at the Penticton Lakeside Resort, 21 Lakeshore Drive West Penticton. Contact Mark Woods, Community Services Manager Phone: 250-490-4132

HOT Tip
For all of you mountain bikers out there; ditch the skinnies! While moving to a wider, heavier tire is shunned in racing circles as "added unsprung weight, gyroscopic-effect | rotating mass, rolling resistance" etc., the truth is that recreational riders don't need to be concerned with shaving seconds off anything other than the time it takes between after-work to on-trail!

In the real world, a heavier/wider tire will help reduce sidewall cuts and pinch-flats while increasing traction due to a larger contact patch. It will also supply an extra half-inch or so of overall suspension.



















Sept 2011

Welcome to one of the best months of the year for cycling in the Okanagan; cool, breezy days and fewer bugs! Another great thing about Sept. is that its fast becoming Penticton’s festival season; with the Skaha Climbing Festival this coming weekend, followed a few weeks later by PACA’ s Third Annual Bike Fest’!

The Skaha Climbing Festival
Many of the valley’s cyclists are rock climbers as well, so it only makes sense that PACA is participating in this Saturday’s Skaha Climbing Festival. PACA members will be leading intermediate rides up the Gillies Creek watershed (immediately east of the climbing area) at 10am, noon and 2pm. There is no fee, and we welcome everyone to join us for a look at the amazing - sanctioned - trails in this area! Check out the Skaha Climbing Festival website here: http://www.skahaclimbingfestival.com

PACA’s Third Annual Bike Festival
Join us September 22nd to September 25th; an array of events and festivities are on tap to be enjoyed by riders of all ages. Check out our new Bike Festival website at www.pentictonbikefestival.com (volunteers always welcome)

PACA Trailday; Sept 11th
Join us as we create a new, easier entrance / exit to the Ellis Canyon trail. This Ministry-authorized project will enhance the start / finish of one of the valley’s most scenic trails. Full details on PACA’s homepage under the ‘Trail Maintenance Schedule’ link at www.bikepenticton.com

HOT Tip
Go Greener; while riding your bike is a great way to do your bit for the environment, did you know that you can use bio-lubricants on your bike in place of mineral oil based lube'? Vegetable oil based lubricants actually out-perform their mineral based brethren in nearly every way, and when you wash your steed at the end of the day (with bio-soaps) you can feel guilt-free as you watch the grit drain into the gutter! Google ‘Bio-Lubricants’ for more information


















Aug. 2011

Sticking with the “better late than never” mantra… welcome to your August newsletter!

While it may appear that PACA has been quiet of late, we do have many tasks at hand - a balanced mix of urban and rural bike projects.

Campbell Mt.'s Eastern Access. - Slowly but surely, Campbell Mt.’s eastern access issue is developing into a workable plan. The area has been thoroughly plodded upon, measured and discussed by city staff, the general public, contractors and engineers. It won’t happen overnight, but we will have an access route sooner than later.

Urban Paths - PACA members sitting on Penticton’s Transportation Demand Committee are working with city staff to expand the existing bike routes within the city. Plans are afoot for additional connections and corridors over the coming years. Projects under review include a Skaha Lake to Channel Parkway connector, an Okanagan College to Channel Parkway interface and additional painted bike routes.

PACA Info-sheets - Numerous locations around town now sport ‘tear and go’ information sheets which highlight all aspects of cycling in and around the city of Penticton. We feel that this will help tourists and locals alike to locate places and people to ride with more often.

Campbell Mt. Signage - PACA is working with the City of Penticton, BC Trails & Rec. Dept. and private land owners in an effort to allow us to place small but informative signage on the mountain. The concept is to indicate one circuitous route as well as one summit route.

Gillies Cr. Signage - PACA has been digging in posts and erecting signage for the Rock Oven and WARD1 trails in the Gillies watershed. This is a spinoff from our access agreements with the various environmental groups involved in that area. If anyone wants to help out, please contact Andrew at 250.486.2443

Trails BC - has asked us to put our two cents worth into the motorized vs. non-motorized discussions over the KVR in this valley. I suggest that you read the link under NEWS atop www.bikepenticton.com for more information. This is a cause worth getting yourself up to speed on.

Sunday rides - are rockin’! Join us each Sunday morning, 9am at Smith & Co. for coffee and kickoff. This Sunday’s roadies are heading out for a 60k ride while the mountain bikers are heading up to Apex Resort for some sweet singletrack.

Hope to see all of you ‘out there’

Hot Tip

This one is aimed at mountain-bikers, but may apply to roadies as well. All too soon we must renew our drive-trains; new chain, cassette, chain-rings etc. Since we live in a valley, and everything fun is 'up' consider purchasing rear cassettes with additional cogs (teeth). The difference between an 11x32 cassette vs. a 12x36 cassette is [massive] when it comes to climbing!

PACA




















July 2011

SUMMER IS FINALLY HERE and PACA has been busy as usual, working on all things BIKE. Check out this month’s list of ‘things that make Okanagan cycling better’.

New Trails - We’ve been hard at work on a small section of singletrack trail on the east face of Campbell Mt. The new re-route will make the Canyon Trail a little more enjoyable. Expect a trail opening later this week! UPDATE: Here it is

The July Ride Schedule - Check out PACA’s guided ride schedule atop our homepage. We encourage riders of all skill levels to join us in discovering the Okanagan. New riding friends, new trails, new experiences!

Trails to the North - Join us on July 31st as we travel to Kelowna to ride their excellent trail networks! Both dirt and road riders will enjoy a day of south slope trails and quiet back-roads, followed by swimming; in the H2o centre if the weather is grey / Okanagan Lake if the sun is beaming. Check out our homepage for times, days and trail maps.

Bike Festival Coming Together - PACA’s executive is closing in on the final details of the 2011 Penticton Bike Festival. This years’ event will include a Lake to Lake Family Ride with burgers-by-donation, followed by a live band (One 2 Many) at the Parrot on Friday the 23rd, a Cyclocross event on Saturday the 24th and the charity Test of Humanity Enduro on Sunday the 25th. We always welcome volunteers to contact us and make this great annual event even better!

‘Off The Record’ trail in Gillies Cr. Watershed - BC Parks, The Nature Conservancy and The Land Conservancy have generously agreed to keep a Gillies Cr. watershed trail open that they had previously considered closing and reseeding. While we can’t publicize or sign it, we can legally enjoy it! Join us for a club tour of this amazingly flowy ‘K-Trail’!

Ride with Da’ Man! - Join World renowned cycling coach Ron Hayman on a small-group learn n’ ride expedition to Painted Rock on July 21st at 6pm. This educational experience is free to PACA members, $40.00 to non-members. Only 10 positions are available, so contact us soon!

Donation Button - We’ve decided that it might be nice to enjoy the philanthropic groove of all of you who support the many initiatives that the club promotes for urban and rural, on and off-road riding in the valley. As someone very wise once said; “the greatest joy is in giving” :-)

Twitter - We’ve joined the Twitterverse! This joins our Facebook page in helping to communicate rides and topics of interest to the cycling community. Check us out on Twitter ( @pacapenticton ) or just ‘follow’ us. Here is a quick tutorial on Twitter ‘Following’ http://support.twitter.com/articles/162981-how-to-follow-others

First Aid Classes - As we’ve done in previous years, PACA is organizing another one-day member-only first-aid class. Learn valuable skills that may one day help friends, family or even yourself. Contact us to express interest in this class (or to sign up for PACA membership :-)

Ride Hard! PACA


Hot Tip

A bath / shower with your helmet and gloves after every ride keeps things fresh and ready to flow. If you need an explanation, push yourself away from the computer screen right now and go have a sniff of your gear... back so soon?, see what I mean?






















June 2011


Summer is kicking into high gear and so is PACA! “Come ride with us”!

Bike to Work Week 2011

Unless you’ve been under a slab of rock on the Mice, then you’re aware that its Bike To Work Week! Rowena is doing an amazing job of steering the event this year and wants everyone to know that it’s not too late to join in the fun. Check out details here: https://bike.darkbb.com/t565-bike-to-work-week-2011

PACA Rides Vernon

Join us June 3rd to 5th as we explore Ellison and Kalamalka Provincial Parks. The Vernon bike club has invited us to enjoy their singletrack forests and help them ring in the BC Parks 100 festivities. Learn about this excellent event here: http://okcycling.com/347/parks-100-multi-sport-event-at-ellsion-park and here: http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/BCParks100

It’s going to be a great trip! Check campsite availability here: https://secure.camis.com/Discovercamping

June Ride Schedule

PACA’s planned routes for June 2011 are posted on our club’s main site at www.bikepenticton.com Check out the rides; I guarantee that you will find something for nearly every level of off-road rider.

Trail Maintenance

PACA is deeply committed to maintaining, and when necessary, rerouting or decommissioning singletrack trail networks. Last Sunday we began work on a reroute of a steep, washed-out section of Campbell Mt.’s eastside trails. The task is yet to be completed, but we’d like to see it so by mid-June. If you are of like spirit, contact us to help out at paca.penticton@gmail.com. Lets Git er’ Done and ride!

Hot Tip

When storing your camelback water bladder for the day, rinse and empty [all] of the water from bag, including the hose and bite-valve. Roll it up, wrap an elastic band around it and throw it in the freezer. You will never have to worry about nasties growing in the bag / hose / bite-valve, as nothing will survive the freeze / thaw cycle. I’ve been using this technique for years, without any negative effect on the material.

:-)
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