Moving Fast But With Intention

Our Q2 update on all things CAMTB

And just like that, the first half of 2022 is complete! On behalf of the CAMTB Board of Directors, I am pleased to share our Q2 update.  See below for details on our work these past 3 months, as well as insights on what’s ahead. 

In community,

Michael Anzalone
Executive Director, CAMTB

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Membership.  The CAMTB member community continues to grow steadily. We recently added three new member organizations: 

• Central Coast Concerned Mountain Bikers
• Motherlode Trail Stewardship, and 
• Orange County Mountain Biking Association 

This brings our member organization count up to count to 25, with a combined representation of 15,000+ riders here in California. Additional members are in the works from the Shasta/Trinity/Redding area, North Coast, Central Sierras, and the Inland Empire regions.  We’re anticipating recruiting 5-7 additional organizations by the end of Q3 and the same in Q4. Stay tuned for more member announcements months ahead! 

What’s up next for CAMTB members? We have four very important opportunities for the CAMTB member community to inform our work ahead:

1. Mid-year member check-ins (now through mid-July)
2. Member Survey to share feedback and to express your priorities for the coming year – (mid-July)
3. Advisory Council Meeting (Aug 12)
4. Inaugural CAMTB Member Retreat in Downieville (Sep 24-26)

Advocacy. Thanks to our member community, CAMTB has made great strides the past quarter, especially with the emerging CA State Parks initiative. Our member-led Legislative & Government Affairs Working Group continues to provide policy and legislation oversight for the CAMTB member community. To support this work, the group initiated the development of a public facing legislative tracker to provide updates, positions, and recommended actions on state and federal legislation impacts the off-road cycling community. This resource will live here on the CAMTB website, and be available for free.  Action Item: Do you have a passion for legislation? Contact us today to learn more about participating in the Legislative & Government Affairs Working Group.

CA State Parks. After a series of insights gathering interviews and a strategic planning session in Santa Cruz, our CA State Parks work is underway. Five member-led teams have been formed to lead some foundational work, including:

1. Fostering trust with the Leadership teams of CA State Parks Directors Office, and Partnerships Office
2. Understanding the priorities of the CA State Parks District Superintendents (collectively and individually) and becoming a solutions provider to help address those pursuits
3. Influencing local Road & Trails Management Planning and the related Change In Use Process
4. Helping Member Organizations get the most out of the CA State Parks Trails Manual
5. Addressing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in CA State Parks

This work is paving the way for our member community to make even greater contributions to the CA State Parks trail system. We also see this approach as an roadmap for working with other Land Managers in the state, like US Forest Service, BLM and CalFire. 

US Forest Service. Over 80% of the CAMTB member organizations are currently working with the US Forest Service, which makes them a prime candidate for our next land manager engagement. In Q2 of this year CAMTB reached out to the USFS Region 5 leadership team to open lines of communication with the agency and establish regular check-in calls with their Trails Program Lead. 

Additionally, CAMTB has been brought into two USFS trail planning efforts – one in the Stanislaus NF and another in the Modoc NF –  to help familiarize ourselves with the process. Before any specific coalition work commences, however, our Q3 focus will be on forming a member-led USFS steering committee to help define our shared needs and identify opportunities for engagement.  While this group takes shape we will also be actively recruiting off-road cycling advocacy organizations with USFS.  

The Art of Advocacy. In May CAMTB and its members attended the California Outdoor Recreation Partnership Virtual Summit, which was hosted in partnership with Outdoor Alliance. 

Over the course of 3 days, we heard from industry speakers, connected with other outdoor recreation advocates, and met with our state legislative offices to advocate on behalf of several bills for equitable access to the outdoors. CAMTB was well represented in each of the 8 regions. Member met with over 25 electeds and their staff including Assemblymembers David Chiu and Buffy Weeks and State Senators Nancy Skinner and Scott D. Wiener. 

To build on this experience, CATMB will be hosting an Art of Advocacy workshop for members, as a lead in to our own Virtual Legislative Summit with State lawmakers in September. The summit will provide members with an excellent opportunity to strengthen relationships with their district elected officials, while also advancing CAMTB’s shared advocacy platform of Stewardship, Access, and Inclusion. 

Next-Gen Advocacy: MindShift Youth Ambassador Program. Last month, CAMTB re-convened its Youth Ambassador Working Group to give shape to MindShift, an emerging program developed in partnership with the NorCal and SoCal NICA leagues. The program is slated to launch in January of 2022, and will build on NICA’s existing Teen Trail Corps program by helping cultivate the next generation of off-road cycling advocates in California.

Over the course of 6 mos, a select # of junior and senior Teen Trail Corp Captains will be offered unique experiential learning and leadership development opportunities to support their post-high school pursuits.  Participants will be given the opportunity to build relationships with professional and fellow student riders, while representing CAMTB, the NorCal and SoCal Leagues, and local CAMTB member organizations at various trail events, workshops, and lobby days with lawmakers and land managers. 

For the Love of the Trails. Now is the time to continue growing the trail advocacy organization that the Golden State needs and deserves.  Please consider making a one time or reoccurring donation in support of CAMTB and our 25 trail advocacy organizations.

Contributions by passionate mountain bikers and advocates like you will be used to Increase the capacity of a statewide trail advocacy organization; to create awareness of the issues which limit trail access for local clubs across the state; develop messaging that will foster a positive image of mountain biking to emphasize education, diversity, and healthy lifestyle choices; support our advocacy efforts with CA State Parks, the U.S. Forest, and in Sacramento; and last but not least, to build an effective and collaborative resource hub for trail advocacy best practices.`

Upcoming Events. And to wrap things up, we’ve been in deep planning mode these past three months, setting our sights on some excellent upcoming events. Stay tuned and save the date for:

• Lobby Laps – South Coast Edition in San Diego (Jul 31)
• CAMTB Advisory Council Meeting (Aug 12)
• The Art of Advocacy Workshop (Aug 20)
• CAMTB Virtual Lobby Day in Sacramento (Sep 13-15)
• CAMTB Connected Member Retreat in Downieville (Sep 24-26)
• Sea Otter Classic (Oct 7-10)
• Lobby Laps – North Coast Edition in Mendocino (Nov 1)