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SAMBA Mountain Bike News
American River Parkway Update: On Feb. 26, 2009, Sacramento Assemblyman Dave Jones introduced legislation to recognize the updated American River Parkway Plan. The plan allows for an off-pavement bicycle trail network between river miles 2 and 6. The legislation was introduced as an urgency measure. Passage will require a 2/3 vote, but the bill will become law immediately upon being signed, instead of 1/1/2010. This means we could have legal trails a little earlier than we thought. The bill is AB 889. You can read it here.
2009 SAMBA Fundraiser: Special Thanks to Sacramento Cyclocross for making the final race of its 2008 season a fundraiser for SAMBA. The tight, twisty race course plotted by Rich Maile at Sutter's Landing Park in midtown Sacramento was rumored to be one of the best yet, and the weather was nippy but gorgeous. There were several races and probably over a hundred racers in all categories. The race was followed by a huge party at the Old Soul Baking Company with pizza and beer and a monster raffle. This was a very successful fund raiser for SAMBA, as well as an excellent finale for the Cyclocross season here in Sacramento. What, you've never heard of cyclocross?
2009 SAMBA general meeting and cocktail party: This is slated for Saturday, March 14. Become a member and find out more. It's only $10 per year.
SAMBA volunteer efforts along the American River Parkway: SAMBA is the adopted steward of Mile 2 on the North Bank. Our mile begins about 100 yards West of the Northgate Boulevard overcrossing, and runs to about 200 yards east of where the bike trail from downtown intersects the main bike trail. Our area includes some of the grittiest parts of the Parkway, and also includes some of the areas where will will have trails in the future. We pluck a lot of trash from the Parkway, with a special focus on large trash. This spring we removed more than 25 tires and wheels from a swampy area just north of the bike trail. Steelhead Creek also runs through our mile, and we have removed many items from the creek. More recently, we found and had removed an automobile engine, but we've found all kinds of crazy and occasionally toxic stuff. We also remove invasive plants like Red Sesbania (Adobe Acrobat). SAMBA has participated in the Great American River Cleanup and the Earth Day river cleanup for many years. Prior to adopting mile 2 North, we were the stewards for mile 5 on the South Bank. In July, 2007, we removed all Red Sesbania from the swampy area just upstream of Paradise Beach. SAMBA members also helped plant the native plant garden at the new visitor center at the William Pond Recreation Area, at the end of Arden Way, and have volunteered for the Rex Ride and other Parkway fundraisers. The stewardship program is run by the American River Parkway Foundation.
Background paper: Off-road bicycling and the American River Parkway (MS word, 2 MB). This paper was presented to the American River Parkway Update Citizens Advisory Committee on March 28 and to the general public on March 31, 2005.
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has recognized the importance of mountain biking and its low environmental impact with its draft new land management plan.
