News

VVCC Board Member Pam Milavec

We recently had the following email exchange with Pam:

1.        Pam, what are some of the challenges the VVCC has faced during your board tenure?

We had a couple challenges facing us when I first became involved with the board. ADOT was threatening to remove the Rt. 179 bike lanes because VVCC no longer had funds to maintain them as per a 2009 agreement. Road riders, who had left the VVCC over the years because they were concerned about the club’s direction, were asking for our assistance due to the unsafe condition of the bike lanes.  Convincing road riders that there was a place for them in the VVCC and getting the bike lanes maintained quickly became top priorities for the board.

2.        What are some of the successes?

Over the past couple years, the club has gone from 65 members to 258 members, including many road riders who have joined both the club and the board of directors. After some political wrangling, ADOT has agreed to take over maintenance of the Rt. 179 bike lanes. New trails are being built and some great existing trails are being added to the Forest Service trail system.  The Posse Ground bike park has added to the growth of this area as a cycling destination. We’ve got the Bikes for Kids program and close relationships with local schools.  These successes occurred due to an influx of new board members combined with experienced longtime board members who already had great relationships with local partners and the Forest Service.

3.        What are your favorite local trails?

The ones I can ride to from my house: Turkey Creek (love the get away from it all feel of that area), Slim Shady, Easy Breezy, Llama, Templeton, etc.  And, I’m really looking forward to Transcept becoming part of the local trail system!

4.        What have you been up to this summer?

We’ve been back in western PA, as we are still part-timers here in Sedona. We got to see our daughter graduate from college and help her move so she could start her first job as an RN.  We did some great road riding, including at Shenandoah National Park and near the Chesapeake Bay. Unfortunately, we had one of the wettest summers ever, so I didn’t spend much time on the mountain bike.  I’m really looking forward to shredding the red under the AZ sun as soon as I return!

5.        What parting words would you like to convey to VVCC Members?

I think the future of the Verde Valley cycling community is very bright.  We now have great relationships with ADOT and Yavapai County, as well as many of the local communities and schools.  And, our relationship with the Forest Service is better than ever.  There is strength in numbers and a growing, vibrant club will benefit all area cyclists.

5 Minutes With is always looking for VVCC Members to profile. If you'd like to be profiled in a future article, please contact Kevin at moretrailboss@gmail.com.

July 1st began the VVCC's 16th year as a bicycle advocacy organization. In recognition of 15 years of improving the bicycling environment and quality of life in the region, we have been scouring the archives - thank you Daniel Paduchowski - to bring our past to the present. The below articles appeared in the November 2, 2005 edition of the Cottonwood Journal Extra and November 9, 2005 Very Independent and are reprinted below...

The world's only women's mountain bike festival is coming to Sedona October 26-28. Roam Bike Fest is a three day gathering (aka party) of female riders, influencers, and play makers all here for one purpose: to have a ridiculously fun weekend exploring, learning, and shredding trail in a world-class riding destination. Over 250 women will be participating.

On Festival Saturday, ROAM is conducting a raffle with a Women's Stumpjumper Comp Carbon 27.5 as the grand prize. Raffle proceeds will be donated to the Verde Valley Cycling Coalition and Check-In Foundation

The Red Rock Ranger District has announced the trail work day schedule for November and December 2018. In total there are seven work days scheduled, six on the Western Gateway in West Sedona and one workday on Transcept in the Village of Oak Creek.

The Western Gateway workdays are sponsored by REI and the Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund. The Transcept workday is sponsored by the VVCC. Rumor is that Lagunitas Brewery will also be providing refreshments après.

Date	Trail	Sponsor
11/8/18	Western Gateway	SRRTF/REI/Lagunitas
11/10/18	Transcept	VVCC/Lagunitas
11/17/18	Western Gateway	SRRTF/REI/Lagunitas
11/29/18	Western Gateway	SRRTF/REI/Lagunitas
12/6/18	Western Gateway	SRRTF/REI/Lagunitas
12/15/18	Western Gateway	SRRTF/REI/Lagunitas
12/20/18	Western Gateway	SRRTF/REI/Lagunitas

Once we have the locations, we'll set these workdays up as events.

According to VVCC Member Rhett Atkinson, "great time at the VVCC annual picnic.  It seemed well attended, guessing ~50 people there.  Food was good, company great.  Perfect day, although it was beginning to warm up as the rides were ending."

Grand prize winner of the Hollywood Racks bike rack were Patti and Dennis Wyman pictured below.

The day started with free admission to Dead Horse State Park and road/mountain bike rides. After the rides, VVCC Board Member (and master griller) Paul Hallinan presented the VVCC's mission, board election results and accomplishments from the fiscal year ended June 30, 2018 to the attendees.

The raffle raised $325. Thanks to members' generosity, raffle proceeds at our "free" events help ensure that 1) the VVCC is able to produce "free" events and 2) our sponsors and potential sponsors continue to support the VVCC by providing raffle items and free beer to entice members to consider their offering. Thank you to Hollywood Racks, Lagunitas and all our sponsors in helping us produce these events. Details on how the VVCC uses raffle funds can be found on the Financial Information section on the VVCC's website.  

VVCC President Marty Glinsky

Unfortunately, we failed to catch up with Marty due to travel schedules. Marty was traveling between Syracuse (50th high school reunion), Boston to see family and Tucson watching his great nephew, the QB, lead the USC Trojans to a win over AZ. Meanwhile, the grand inquisitor who selects these victims each month as well as the questions, is currently in Eastern Europe making a bid to become a modern day czar. So, we thought you might enjoy this picture of Marty (he's the one on the left) instead of reading his drivel.

Nominated by the VVCC, the Sedona Community wins the inaugural Power of Partnership Award from the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA).

This award recognizes local organizations and volunteers who work tirelessly to make the most of mountain biking. The Sedona Community is being recognized for the partnerships and cooperation between the City of Sedona, Chamber of Commerce, Friends of the Forest, Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund, the 35 local businesses who make up Trail Keepers, local citizens, and the VVCC with the Red Rock Ranger District working to maintain and enhance the non-motorized trail system near Sedona and the Village of Oak Creek.

The VVCC will accept the award on behalf of the Sedona Community at an award ceremony during IMBA’s 30th anniversary party in Bentonville, Arkansas on Saturday, October 27.

In conjunction with the VVCC Board Election, we asked members views on three items: e-Bikes included in the VVCC's Mission; Wilderness Bike Access and Premium Memberships.

56.1% of respondents said that e-Bikes should be included in the VVCC's mission. 21.1% of respondents said No; 15.8% of respondents said they don't know while 7.0% of respondents had no opinion.

As to Wilderness bike access, 68.4% of respondents were generally in favor with some nuance. 17.5% of respondents said Yes; 40.4% of respondents were in favor on trails evaluated and approve by the land manager and 10.5% of respondents were in favor only on new Wilderness declarations where  existing bike access would be eliminated. 28.1% of respondents were not in favor of Wilderness bike access while 3.5% of respondents indicated they were road bikers and had no opinion.

Enough member respondents indicated that they would support Premium Memberships to warrant the discussion with the Membership Committee. 26.3% of respondents indicated they would support a $100 Premium Membership level w/socks supporting Western Gateway (15/8%) and Bikes4Kids (10.5%). 8.8% of respondents indicated they would support a $1,000 Premium Membership level w/Jersey supporting Bikes4Kids (5.3%) and Western Gateway (3.5%). If the Membership Committee decides to launch Premium Memberships, we'll let all members know.

A huge thank you to each member who took the time to vote on the board election and answer the three item questions.

The polls closed yesterday and the results are final. Congratulations to Bill Jackson, Lars Romig, Paul Hallinan and Marlene Macek for their election to the VVCC Board for a three year term.

We had 150% voter increase over last year which may make this year's election the highest on record. Here's the ballot totals:

Bill Jackson                   96.5%

Lars Romig                    94.7%

Paul Hallinan                 91.2%

Marlene Macek             91.2%

The VVCC was recently notified by Wells Fargo - Arizona Community Relations that it was approved for a grant in the amount of $2,000.00 to support Verde Valley Bikes for Kids. The funds will be received in the next 4 to 6 weeks.

Verde Valley Bikes for Kids provides bikes for mountain bike clubs in both Cottonwood Elementary Schools as well as Oak Creek Elementary School in Cornville and Beaver Creek Elementary School in Beaver Creek. Additionally, Verde Valley Bikes for Kids 

• will provide new bikes to Verde Valley students who exceeds grade, attendance, conduct and citizenship standards in the above schools and West Sedona Elementary School next spring;
  
• Provide free kids bike helmets to attendees at the Sedona Celebration of Spring; and
• A grant to the local National Interscholastic Cycling Association mountain bike racing team.

Wells Fargo announced in May that it will give $400 million in cash to nonprofits in 2018. A big thank you to Wells Fargo for recognizing the Verde Valley Bikes for Kids community commitment.