Folks,

SDMBA board elections are coming up next month. At the meeting last night, the current board voted to expand the number of seats from 7 to 9. This was done to encourage new blood and new perspectives. At the same time, a number of board members are stepping down. Therefore, there are going to be 5 or 6 open slots.

What this means: If you want to nominate yourself or anyone else to be a board member, NOW is the time. With a significant majority of the seats open, the organization will become what people make it.

Look at events of the last week: When have 500 mountain bikers gathered ANYWHERE in the united states to protest ANYTHING? When have four networks showed up to cover it? As a result of this event, we had about 50 people show up to the meeting last night and a lot of them signed up for various committees, etc. It will still take years to get anything done in SD County, but maybe just maybe we’re hitting a bit of a turning point in terms of building some momentum.

To my mind, SDMBA is also at a bit of a turning point where it can either transform itself and contribute to that momentum, or fade into semi-obscurity. So this is a plea to everyone to seriously consider STEPPING UP by nominating yourself or someone you know and helping to make it into the organization you want it to be.

Anyone who tries to turn this into a SDMBA bash fest has officially nominated himself for the elections. My point is that if you think it sucks, it does not have to suck forever, and a 70% board turnover is a significant development. Bitching on the internet won't change things--but stepping up and trying to put some of your ideas into action just might.

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http://paleovelo.com/

Goes without saying that if you have ambition to be on the board, a prerequisite is that you be a member.

I'd also forewarn. There is no instant gratification being a trails advocate in this town. You will hear "no" at least 20 times for every "yes" you get and I guarantee they'll be times you question why you even try.

Advocacy to date has been via contacts with government officials and land managers. The lesson that may or may not have been learned with DMM and East Elliot is that trails need to be included in development plans at the time habitat takes and mitigation are negotitated. Once those plans are rubber stamped and permits issued, asking for trails to be added is too late.

Expertise in MSCP, biology, etc are key skillsets needed.

Does being a SDMBA board member or committee member mean that your focus is trails advocacy?

Not in my mind. Not directly anyway. Networking with the bike industry is an essential element that has been lacking. I'd hoped becoming an IMBA chapter would have helped there. Perhaps SDMBA has failed to tap into the potential IMBA might offer or perhaps there's nothing behind the curtain being offered. I don't know, I mostly stepped away a year ago.

SDMBA also needs Public Relations focus. The association can do a better job of publicizing to the ridership in town how much effort they put in on the riders behalf. I'll acknowledge that the measure of success is the results of those efforts as opposed to x number of hours getting told to buzz off.

SDMBA also (perhaps more imporatantly) needs to make strides in public relations to non-riders and non-trail users in San Diego. Events, fundraisers for charities, and so forth are one path towards that. Find more newsworthy causees that get SDMBA and local mountain bikers on the local news in a positive light. Hells Angels and Toys for Tots as an example.

I'd also add that one of the things lacking on the current board is the ability to mobilize bikers in the ways we just saw on Saturday. There are lots of tools in the advocacy toolbox, and SDMBA has been really good at using a few of them—lobbying in small groups, attending meetings, etc. But a huge part of advocacy is mobilizing the grassroots and creating enough energy to sustain a membership base. SDMBA should have 2000 members, not 600.

I'd say that Doug Johnson/leadmoto has shown some very serious leadership in this regard, and that might be a good complement to other skill-sets that are needed. Not sure if he'd accept a nomination, but we could try to draft him.

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http://paleovelo.com/

It usually works best to wait until people fall asleep during the meeting, and nominate them then. Just ask Basil

Is it possible to get a list of the positions, who has the position now,what that position entails, and which ones will be open?
I noticed some names on the web site but it didn't seem clear to me.

EDIT: Also, some realistic time commitment per month would be helpful

To add to Rodster's comments, and I'm just guessing here, but one requirement you will need is to be able to deflect crap at a high rate of speed and live to tell about it.

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You never know what tomorrow will bring so go ride your EBike today or walk your pooch
Fear the Yeti
"Go ride your bike today, don't let the old man in.."

Mike

I am not (yet) an SDMBA member. I was at the protest ride and I attended the meeting last night hoping to be swayed to actually join up. I want to see the spirit that I saw on Saturday grow and build. I'm VERY passionate about recreational land use issues. I would like to see SDMBA become more aggressive in their tactics. Yes the "kill em' with kindness" is real nice and neighborly but you have to remember that the people we are up against are sharks and snakes in the grass. They will smile, shake your hand, promise you what you want to hear and then put a knife in your back without a second thought. They are driven by money and the hope of political power. You don't have to look any further than PQ and Tunnels to make that crystal clear.
I feel like SDMBA needs a couple things. A lawyer is one of them, a biologist who specializes in habitat management/conservation and ecological impact studies is the other. I have a good friend who is the latter. He is also an avid mountain biker but he has some issues with sdmba (nothing to do with advocacy) and I'm trying to talk him into getting involved. I know that Richard Duquette is a "cycling lawyer" and he races mt. bikes. Does anyone know him personally?
The other side of this is bike shop involvement. Anyone who owns a shop and is not actively pushing for mt. bike inclusion and advocacy is a complete fool.

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"To protect these sensitive habitats, we must first destroy them with bulldozers, trucks, and signs so people understand how important it is that we manage them" - Chris Zirkle

"Nothing dollarable is safe, however guarded" - John Muir

I nominate myself to be Minister of Propaganda!

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Scum on a Bike

I second that nomination

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You never know what tomorrow will bring so go ride your EBike today or walk your pooch
Fear the Yeti
"Go ride your bike today, don't let the old man in.."

Mike

The position is yours Ray. Congratulations!

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By choosing not to help the situation, you have chosen to be part of the problem.