“Well its that time of year again when thoughts turn to green grass, sunny hillsides and two wheeled adventures. Yes my friends it is time to think about Bike to Work/Bike to Play day!” Alicia Mittleman
1) Thad Eggen started with a trivia quiz about Shimano. Mike Lewelling received accolades for answering 3 out of the 6 questions correctly and was awarded a six pack of tasty Michelob Ultra (beer of champions…(?)) Mike was slightly thrilled. Of note: Shimano possesses 50% of the market share in bicycle components & Shimano established itself on the market by reversing the industry trend of presenting innovations only at the top tier of the product- Shimano presented innovations on the bottom tiers as well.
2) Greg Sampson presented on the nascent Athletic Coalition’s second meeting. The purpose of the Athletic Coalition is to promote Estes Park as an athletic/adventure destination. The A.C. is generating ideas such as: 501c3 status, developing a web site for all outdoor organizations to announce their activities and organizing other events to attract outdoor adventure travelers to town. Many members of EPCC were in attendance, Greg Sampson has volunteered to be the EPCC liason.
3) Alicia Mittleman talked about initiating planning for Bike to Work/Bike to Play 2015. The town would really like EPCC to take full control of the event next year- so this year is a training wheels ride for EPCC! Date for Bike to Work Day is: Wednesday June 24th, 6 AM-9AM at the Estes Park Visitor Center. Alicia has done a great job of listing the process for this fun celebration of Bicycles. The initial meeting has been held, we look forward to hearing from Alicia regarding the next planning meetings and the help needed for Bike to Work/Bike to Play.
Mark Kougl mentioned that plans are underway for Bike to Work/Bike to Play week in the Park.
Ideas that were brought up included: disseminating information to Families for Estes, committing to a car free week, having more mechanics on hand, publicizing the event in Spanish and participating in Bike to School day (Tuesday May 5th)
4) Todd Plumber presented on the proposed Bike Park (phase 1 of the Recreation District’s master plan for Stanley Park) All meetings regarding the Bike Park have been positive. The current issues with the bike park are: money, design choices (man made materials or all dirt), School District approval and professional design.
5) Glenn Case updated EPCC about the pursuit of a 501c3. Rebecca Earhardt and Jill Lancaster have assisted Glenn with the process. Becoming a non-profit will be helpful for EPCC so that we can organize funds and donations for projects like the Bike Park. Ideas were shared regarding pairing with similar organizations to use their 501c3 status and talking with other bike clubs to see if/how they became non-profits. Using a lawyer to help us file was highly recommended- cost at $500.
6) Ride waivers were brought up by Greg Sampson. (sorry about using the passive voice their- you got to break the mold sometimes, right?) We can’t just rely on bike shorts to protect our backsides in our culture. Once again, the idea of checking with other established organizations was presented.
7) Post-meeting idea: organizing a “slow-spokes” ride group for those of us who aren’t Steve Wens- aka “Mr. Speed”. As with any ride- Please post on fb when, where, who and what anticipated level of ride! Let’s hope we all can get out there soon and spin those tires!
