8/31/2019

On 29 August, the Dept of the Interior issued a rule change regarding e-bike access on lands managed by the agency (official DOI letter in PDF form below). 

Agencies involved include National Parks (such as Crater Lake, John Day Fossil Beds) and BLM/Bureau of Land Management.  

The order does not include the US Forest Service, as they are part of the USDA/Dept of Agriculture. There has been no rule change with the USFS at this time.

The agencies involved have 14 days to make the changes needed to comply with the order. 

We want to remind everyone that COTA operates under volunteer agreements with the land management agencies and can neither make, or enforce any rules or regulations concerning e-bikes or any other access to non-motorized trails we maintain under these agreements. 

What we can do is advise the community on how the rules are applied to the trails we have maintenance responsibility for. We have not heard from the BLM yet on their plans to implement the new rule.  We will monitor this as closely as possible for further developments.

In the meantime, the rules for trails in national forests, like Deschutes National Forest, still apply. E-bikes are still not allowed on non-motorized trails on national forest land. Per the USFS website: E-bikes are not allowed on trails designated for non-motorized use.  Non-motorized trails include trails like hiker, horse, or mountain bike trails. E-bikes, like other motorized transportation, also are not allowed to travel cross-country off trail. There are no exceptions. 

More information on E-bikes and the USFS’s Travel Management rules (along with roads and trails that allow E-bikes) can be found here.

We will update the public as we learn more.

If you use it, we may lose it. Middle Flagline Trail is CLOSED until August 15th (as it is every summer) to protect elk calving. Do not breach the barriers or ignore the signage. Game cameras have been set up again this year to monitor trespassers.

​Thanks for protecting our playground by observing the rules.

Maps and more information can be found on the USFS website here: www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/deschutes/recreation/bicycling/recarea/?recid=38368&actid=24

COTA’s Board of Directors is a vibrant group of people committed to developing, protecting, and enhancing mountain biking in Central Oregon. The Board is responsible for organization-level direction setting, long-term strategic planning and decision making, and do most of the managerial and administrative work required to advance COTA’s mission.

​Say hello/goodbye to (most of) our incoming, outgoing and current board members, who all volunteer their time and energy to make trails happen! 

Welcome aboard... 
- At-large members (representing COTA as a whole): Travis Holman, Laurel Hunter, Adrian Jones*, Jesse Toomey
- Bend Chapter Rep: Emmy Andrews**
- Crook County Chapter Rep: Aaron Lazelle
- South Deschutes County Rep (SoDeCo): Dan Youmans

Thank you outgoing members...
- Sarah Carver*, Darlene Henderson, Stacey McKinney, Amber Toomey (former CC rep)

And the ongoing members:
- Drew Barber, Kelly Burke, Mark Campbell, Bob Gilbert, Woody Keen*, Casey Meudt*, Brennan Morrow, Bruce Schroeder

*not shown
**formerly COTA board Treasurer for past 3 years

Pictured above, front row L-R: Aaron Lazelle, Darlene Henderson, Amber Toomey, Stacey McKinney, Mark Campbell, Laurel Hunter, Emmy Andrews. Back row L-R: Jesse Toomey, Travis Holman, Brennan Morrow, Bruce Schroeder, Drew Barber, Bob Gilbert, Kelly Burke, Dan Youmans 

All COTA members welcome to join us for a brief meeting about trail news, projects and various efforts in Bend and our active chapters. There's a lot going on so join us to learn more. 

We'll also do a final tally of Board Member election votes and introduce our new team members.

This year we're meeting at Wild Ride Brewing in Redmond. Frosty beverages and snacks provided. Info/rsvp here on Meetup.

Updated 5/23 with details! ​As you may know, Loge Camps Entrada partners with a non-profit outdoor organization in each of their adventure camp locations to help support and nurture like minded groups. Here in Bend, we're the lucky ones.

On Saturday, May 25th, Loge has a fun day and evening party planned - everyone welcome & invited!

Loge is spreading those Good Karma vibes! Join us this Saturday for Trail Karma at LOGE Bend, a full day of fun & bikes benefitting COTA! Bike stuff will be happening all day, with events kicking off in the afternoon! Here's what will be going down:

- GRAND OPENING of The Entrada Cafe & Tap Room and the @evo Gear Rental Center! All cafe proceeds from the day donated to COTA

- FREE 2 hr MTB BIKE DEMOS of Giant and Devinci bikes! (with suggested donation to COTA 8:00am onwards

- MTB SKILLS CLINIC with @cogwild 10:00am-12:00pm (all levels!)  Sign up here for Skills Clinic. (click 'Free Clinic Sat May 25' button under Trip Overview)

- SHUTTLE RIDES leaving from the property with @cogwild Mountain Bike Tours & Shuttle. 9:00, 10:30, 12:00, 1:30, 3:00, 4:30, 5:30 Sign up here for shuttles.

- MAINTENANCE CLINIC with @evo 2:00pm

- @gorumpl sack races to win a Rumpl, chill out zone, and s'mores station starting at 4:00pm

- RIBBON CUTTING for the Cafe & Tap Room at 5:00pm

- OUTDOOR CONCERT SERIES
6-9pm presented by Rainier Beer

Two Bands Performing curated by @artisthome:
*@badpacifistmusic
*One Two Many

- FOOD TRUCK: @curbsidebacon

- SWEET GEAR RAFFLE with the proceeds benefitting COTA between music sets

- PHOTO BOOTH so you can imprint your good times!

It's gonna be a blast! See ya there!! #LiveOutsideGoExplore

Per the USFS: If conditions remain favorable, firefighters are planning to ignite a prescribed burn west of Bend in West Bend COD units 2 & 3 for a total of 350 acres. Those units are within the Phil’s Trailhead system and will include portions of KGB, COD and Marvin’s Garden, which will be closed during ignitions and likely for a few days while firefighters cool hot spots along the trails.

More information found on CentralOregonFire.org

​Are you interested in serving on the COTA Board? Join a fun group of people who work together well and make it happen! This is your chance to develop, protect and enhance mountain biking in Central Oregon. 

There are 3 Member at Large Board positions up for election this year, in addition to Bend Chapter Rep, Crook County Rep and the newly minted South Deschutes County Rep (6 board positions possible). 

How it works: Complete the nomination form and submit by May 1st. You must be a current COTA member (renew/join here). In May we will assemble a Voter's Guide, so that the election process can begin with the official ballot sent by email on June 1st to all members. Ballots for memberships received after third week in June must be cast in person at the annual member meeting, Thursday, June 27th, 2019 at 7:00pm at Wild Ride Brewing in Redmond. Election results announced at the meeting, followed by the COTA membership meeting.

Board of Directors Job Description
COTA’s Board of Directors is a vibrant group of people committed to developing, protecting, and enhancing mountain biking in Central Oregon. COTA’s Board is responsible for organization-level direction setting and decision making. Board members do most of the managerial and administrative work required to advance COTA’s mission. 

Board members attend approximately one 2-hour Board meeting per month. In addition, Board members manage committees, plan events, represent COTA at community functions, participate in fundraising efforts, and do many other tasks. Board members should expect to spend a minimum of 15 hours per month on COTA business. Most Board members spend much more time than this due to their passion for our work. 

The Board is elected by COTA’s membership. Board members serve 3-year terms. Board members must be current dues-paying COTA members for the duration of their term and should reside in Central Oregon. Prior Board and trail work experience are helpful but not necessary to serve on the Board. Other skills that are useful but not required include: event management, finance, general administration, volunteer management, fundraising, information technology, and marketing.
 
COTA’s Board is currently comprised of 15 members. COTA’s three Officers—Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer—are elected from within the Board. Six members are chapter representatives: Bend, Crook County, Madras, Redmond, Sisters, and South Deschutes County. The remaining 6 members are at-large. At-large members are expected to manage at least one committee. COTA’s committees currently include Trails, Communications, Advocacy, Finance, Membership, Fundraising, Training, Strategic Planning, Events, and Elections. Board members or active volunteers also fill four Coordinator roles: Trails Coordinator, Volunteer Coordinator, Membership Coordinator, and Sponsorship Coordinator. 

If you are interested in running for COTA’s Board and would like to speak with a current Board member to learn more, please email us here.

Here's the COTA Board Nomination Form.

With the expanding opportunities for mountain biking in South Deschutes County and strong public support, COTA proudly introduces our newest chapter! 

Bringing together mountain bike enthusiasts from the La Pine, Sunriver, and the Three Rivers South communities, the new South Deschutes County Chapter will work locally to implement COTA’s mission to develop, protect and enhance the mountain biking experience in Central Oregon.

“We welcome the new South Deschutes County Chapter to the COTA family,” said Bruce Schroeder, chair of COTA Board of Directors.  “This chapter will bring together an energized group of mountain bikers, businesses and organizations in South County who are passionate about the sport and dedicated to trail stewardship.”

COTA is a non-profit, volunteer organization that has built a national reputation for working successfully with the US Forest Service and other land managers to build and maintain mountain biking trails.  The new South Deschutes County Chapter joins other COTA chapters in Bend, Crook County, Madras, Redmond and Sisters.

The South Deschutes County Chapter will immediately turn its attention to the Sunriver Trails project, a recently approved network of trails just west of Sunriver.   The 10 miles of new trails, accessible from Sunriver over Cardinal Bridge and from Forest Road #41, will connect to the Wanoga and Cascade Lakes Welcome Station trail networks.  The project also involves restoring and preserving nearby elk habitat.

While much of the new Sunriver Trails will be machine built, the South Deschutes County Chapter will help provide volunteer work crews for the large amount hand finishing work that will be required. The Chapter will also assist in raising funds for trail construction and maintenance.

Another high priority project for the South Deschutes County Chapter will be the re-route of the Black Rock Trail to a safer crossing point over Burlington Northern Railroad tracks.  The four-mile Black Rock Trail connects the Benham Falls Trailhead with Lava Lands Visitor Center.

The mission of the South Deschutes County Chapter will include providing volunteer maintenance support to local trails, as well the development of new mountain biking trails in the area.  The Chapter will work with public lands agencies, such as the US Forest Service and the City of La Pine, to identify and support new mountain biking trail opportunities.

In addition, the Chapter will provide educational opportunities to the local mountain bike community, including training in trail construction and maintenance, and promoting appropriate mountain biking etiquette. 

Everyone welcome!

Interested in getting involved? Send an email to dan.youmans@cotamtb.com

Excellent news! The USFS recently approved approximately 10 miles of new mountain biking trails that connect Sunriver (near the Cardinal Bridge by Sunriver Lodge) with the Wanoga and Cascade Lakes Welcome Station trail networks. This occurs in conjunction with the Forest Service's intention to minimize human disturbance in the core habitat of the Ryan Ranch Key Elk Area. 

Per the USFS Decision Memo shown below:

The purpose of this project is to increase areas of undisturbed core elk habitat while also providing recreation opportunities.  

Trail construction will be a joint effort between COTA and the Sunriver community, with trail build events to be posted on Meetup (find COTA's Meetup page here).

Trail flagging will begin this spring, with most if not all mountain bike trails completed this fall. The majority of trails will be machine built with hand finishing, with a few sections contracted out to professional trail builders with appropriate larger scale equipment.

Interested in becoming a COTA Trail Steward? It's a great way to get involved and give some love back to the trails you enjoy.

Spring Trail Stewardship Level 1, Level 2 & Level 3 trainings coming up soon.

Level 1: Intro into Trail Maintenance and indoor PowerPoint Presentation*
Tuesday, Feb 19, 6-9pm - Enviro Center
​Wednesday, March 27, 6-9pm - Enviro Center

Level 2: Full day in the woods applying what we learned in the Level 1 *
Sunday, March 31, 9-5pm - Cascade Lakes Welcome Station
Saturday, April 13, 9-5pm - Cascade Lakes Welcome Station

Level 3: Advanced Trail Maintenance, Personal Protection and Crew Leader Training*
Tuesday, April 23, 6-8pm - Enviro Center
Level 3, Session 2 to be announced (May timeframe)

*Registration required; attendance is free. Trainings will be posted on Meetup in near future. Make sure you're a member of COTA's Meetup page here.

What's a Trail Steward? 
Stewards are trained volunteers whom sign up with COTA to perform basic trail maintenance needs for trails that COTA has a Volunteer Agreement with land managers (ex. USFS, BLM) to maintain. Trail maintenance needs include: logout (up to a log size that can be cut with hand saws (chainsaw use requires additional training and certification), brushing, water management needs (clean out current drains and creating new ones as needed), and basic trail tread maintenance.
- Prerequisites: 1+ year as a trail volunteer locally or other places
- Training Requirements: Minimum 4 hour training course for Level 1 Trail Steward and additional training requirements for Level 2-4. Trail work and experience from other locations will be considered for grandfathering in Trail Stewards after some brief training in COTA protocols.
- Expectations: Attend at least 2 work events, & log all volunteer hours; min 2 year commitment.

Level 1 - Learn how to look for trail issues, using the COTA App. Focuses on brush, treadwork, sight lines, safety, land management volunteer agreements.

Level 2 - At this intermediate level training, attendees will learn how to logout using folding saws; build/improve drains; build corners to withstand heavy use; and will also have a powerpoint component to delve into more detailed situational analysis of more advanced Trail Maintenance Techniques. This training is highly encouraged for anyone wishing to have a more complete skill set of trail maintenance techniques.

Level 3 - Group management, USFS Trail Design Parameters, land manager process/policies. Classroom setting. Levels 1 and 2 trainings are required for Level 3.