Minutes from the GHORBA Meeting, April 12, 2004.



Trails Report:



Stephen F. Austin State Park: Kelly Strader reported that the Girl Scouts have
graciously donated $500 for decking of several bridges on the "Flat Trail". The
Girl Scouts will be doing the work this weekend the 17th of April. 30 - 2x8x12
and 10- 4x4x16 and 2-4x4x10. The 2x8s are for decking and the 4x4s are for
curbs.



A work party is scheduled for April 24 at 9 am. There will be approximately 3
NEW miles of trail cut at the "North Beach". This will give a section of single
track after a small rest on the Brazos trail. Bring your gloves and trail
clearing tools. Park and meet in the lot by the swimming pool. Bring your bike
and ride the trails afterwards.



Memorial Park: Clay Fenton has stepped up to help out with the Trail Steward
duties for Memorial Park. Thanks, Clay! He reports that there are several big
trees down and a few places holding water. GHORBA will be hosting a work party
at Memorial Park on April 24 at 9 am to deal with these issues. Bring your
tools and gloves. Meet in the parking lot nearest the soccer fields.



Both of these work parties count towards Texas Mountain Bike Racing Association
(TMBRA) Paydirt points. Even if you don't race, you are still eligible for the
Paydirt Raffle. Paydirt forms must be postmarked no later than May 1, 2004.
Check out the TMBRA website for more info.
http://www.tmbra.org/paydirt/paydirt.htm



Jack Brooks Park: Coby James reports that several new bridges are in place, but
not permanently set just yet. They've had a few problems with vandals moving
the bridges, so be careful. When it dries up enough, these bridges will be
cemented in. There are also some unique teeter-totter bridges and ramps - Cool!
If you're not brave enough to try those, there are alternate routes around the
obstacles.



Cypresswood: Kevin Hatfield and GHORBA will be meeting with Harris County Flood
Control concerning possible official use of the Cypresswood trail system for
recreation. Christina Case reported that GHORBA was contacted by the National
Parks Service to complete a survey on working with HCFC to develop more uses of
their properties.



Treasurer, Mike Lutomski reports that we are in good shape financially and that
GHORBA will be purchasing QuickBooks software program to use for our bookkeeping
purposes.



Remember if you shop at Randall's you can add GHORBA to your Randall's Good
Neighbor Card - GHORBA's number 10247.



Events: Christina Case is working on several fun events!



Group Ride April 24, 9am. - with Northwest Cycle Club to be held at Bluff Creek
Ranch in Warda. This trail is perfect for most all riders. Join us for a fun
ride outside of Houston. Riders of all abilities are welcome - you won't be
left behind! There is a $5 land access fee. DIRECTIONS TO WARDA : Warda is on
Highway 77 half way between the towns of Giddings, 10 miles to the north, and La
Grange 10 miles to the south. http://www.bcrwarda.com/



SweatFest 2004 - This will be two separate events. An inexpensive, simple and
fun, time trial format to raise money for the trail systems.

July 10 at Jack Brooks Park

August ? at Stephen F. Austin State Park



Ride Clinic: to be held on June 19, location to be announced. A mountain bike
skills clinic for adults of all ability levels. A small fee to cover costs
will be required with registration. More info to follow.



Chris has also applied for a $500 grant for bridge materials for Stephen F.
Austin State Park.



SprocKids: GHORBA President, Jeff Neilsen, has been in touch with City
Councilman Adrian Garcia to sponsor a kid's clinic in the heights area. Keep an
eye out for more details on date and location. These clinics not only teach
kids mountain bike skills but is a great way for GHORBA to give back to the
community. Consider volunteering for this worthwhile event. It's priceless to
see the smiles on the kids' faces!



Mike Lutomski is working to put together a Mountain Bike trip to Monterrey,
Mexico. Tentative date is Memorial weekend. It's only an 8.5 hour drive from
Houston and includes 3-4 days of epic rides in the Monterrey area, guided by
experienced local bike shop owner. Contact Mike for more information
mikelutomski@...



University of Houston is hosting the Collegiate Mountain Bike Finals at Double
Lake in Coldspring, Texas on April 24 & 25. GHORBA Board member, Coby James, is
seeking volunteers for both days. If you can help out, please contact Coby at
cjames8@...



Mark your calendars now for the Houston Big Ring Challenge, October 23 &24.
This is GHORBA's second year to host a fall TMBRA race. Thanks to all of our
sponsors and volunteers last year's race was a success. We have already been
hard at work behind the scenes on preparations for the fall race. Right now we
are trying to line up corporate sponsors. GHORBA is making an effort to not
lean on the local bike shops for too many donations (they get hit up all of the
time for freebies!). Think about any connections that you might have who would
be willing to donate. Their donations will benefit all of the local Houston
Trail systems. Remember that a donation to GHORBA is tax-deductible as we are a
non-profit organization. Contact Keith Porter porterka@... or Cynthia
Stewart cynbiker@... if you need more information.



Many thanks to Will Black, Pro Mountain Bike Racer, Cat 1 Road Racer and
Manager of BikeBarn on Westheimer for speaking about training and cycling
fitness. He had a lot of helpful information!



Our next meeting will be held on May 10 at Otto's BBQ. We'll welcome back
dietician, Angela Kirke, who will talk on Proper Hydration for cyclists.



For more information and updates http://www.ghorba.org






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