End of Year Party October 1, 2009

PARTY!!

The 2009 BMA Gurlz Ride season has concluded. Let's get together without our helmets on to spend an evening celebrating a season of fantastic rides and friendship. We'll get to know each other better and reminisce about all the fun we had this year!

Husbands, SOs, BFs, dates and friends are encouraged. The party is at Jenifer and her boyfriend's house; the Kristeniewski Household. The Kristeniewski Household is not childproof, so unless you have a baby on your boob, we ask that you not bring little ones who are crawling, walking, running or otherwise mobile.

The Boulder Mountain Bike Alliance (BMA) will be providing beverages and swag. The Ride Leaders will take care of main dishes, so all you need to do is bring a side dish, salad or dessert and your best storied from this year's rides!

Please come out even if you couldn't make it to one of the rides this year - you'll meet fun women to ride with next year. Feel free to let us know about other women you think might be interested in participating in our Gurlz Only Rides and we'll invite them too!

You should have received an invitation from Socializer if you are on our mailing list. If you would like to be added to the mailing list, please email us at bmagirls.rideleader@gmail.com.

Once you get the invitation, please RSVP as soon as possible. BMA needs a head count soon for the beverages and we wouldn't want to run out of beer!!!

Thanks and hope to see you on the 1st!

South Boulder Trails Recap

Twenty riders came out for our last ride of the season (even some new faces!). We didn't really see the colors of the sun setting that we had hoped for, but it was a beautiful, warm evening.

Thanks for a great season everyone. See you all at the party!

For more pictures, click here.

South Boulder Trails Thursday 9/10

Well, all good things eventually come to an end. We’ve had a fabulous time riding with many new faces this year and unfortunately, this Thursday's ride (September 10), is our last ride of the season. It will be an All Levels ride starting at the Flatirons Vista Trail Head south of Boulder. This trail head is located on Hwy 93 just past Hwy 128 on the right hand side of the highway (map). Depending on daylight and how many times we stop to take pictures of the sunset, we will ride up the Prairie Vista Trail to Doudy Draw and over to do a loop on Springbrook, If you have a bike light and/or a headlamp, please bring it with you as it can get dark quickly this time of year. I don’t anticipate staying out past dark, but having light devices just in case, is always a good idea. We may split into more than one group depending on skill and the number of ladies who come out. This ride is suitable for confident beginners. All obstacles can be safely walked. Please use the blog to arrange carpooling if desired.

Dinner and drinks will follow at a location tbd.

Important Info about the Rides:

1. All riders MUST wear a helmet, bring water, and have a trail-ready bike.
2. Riders should also carry the usual basics: spare tube(s), a pump, tire levers, a chain tool, and basic allen wrenches.
3. All riders ride at their own risk, group leaders take no responsibility for rider safety/injury.
4. Riders must sign a liability waiver once during the season. If this is your first ride of the season, please bring a signed waiver with you or be prepared to complete one at the meeting spot.
5. Rides launch at 6:00 pm so be at the trail head by 5:45 pm, dressed and ready to roll by 6 pm.
6. If the weather is questionable (as it has been lately) make sure to check the blog after 3:00 pm on Thursdays for updated info.
7. For permitting and planning purposes, please post your name in the comment field if you plan to join us. The comment field is also great for planning carpools, etc.

Send us an email if you have any questions – bmagirls.rideleader@gmail.com

Please don't be shy about coming out - all of us love biking and would like to hang out with girls that are interested in biking.

Looking forward to seeing you Thursday!
liz

Betasso Thursday 9/3

This Thursday's ride (September 3) will be an All Levels ride at Betasso Preserve, starting at the West trail head of the Canyon Loop Trail. We will ride 2-3 loops, depending on daylight and motivation. We may split into more than one group depending on skill and the number of ladies who come out. This ride is suitable for confident beginners; it has some exposure and short rocky sections. All obstacles can be safely walked.

Please try to carpool! Parking is especially limited at this trailhead. To carpool, meet at Boulder County Justice Center at 6th and Canyon at 5:30 or meet at the trail head by 5:45 pm. We will start riding promptly at 6:00 pm. The "Link" trail is currently closed for pipeline reconstruction and I recommend against biking Boulder Canyon to the trailhead and back.

Dinner and drinks will follow at the Rio.

Important Info about the Rides:

1. All riders MUST wear a helmet, bring water, and have a trail-ready bike.
2. Riders should also carry the usual basics: spare tube(s), a pump, tire levers, a chain tool, and basic allen wrenches.
   
3. All riders ride at their own risk, group leaders take no responsibility for rider safety/injury. Riders must sign a liability waiver once during the season. If this is your first ride of the season, please bring a signed waiver with you or be prepared to complete one at the meeting spot.
   
4. Rides launch at 6:00 pm so be at the trail head by 5:45 pm, dressed and ready to roll by 6 pm.
   
5. If the weather is questionable (as it has been lately) make sure to check the blog after 3:00 pm on Thursdays for updated info.
   
6. For permitting and planning purposes, please post your name in the comment field if you plan to join us. The comment field is also great for planning carpools, etc.
   
   

Send us an email if you have any questions – bmagirls.rideleader @ gmail.com

Please don't be shy about coming out - all of us love biking and would like to hang out with girls that are interested in biking.

Hope to see you Thursday!

Elizabeth

Heil Ranch Recap

12 strong riders turned out for our last ride in August - a jaunt up and down Heil Ranch. We broke into two fairly well matched groups and rode up the Wapiti Trail. At the juncture of Ponderosa Trail, the first group headed up to make a loop on super fun Wild Turkey. I believe the second group rode up and back down on Ponderosa.

Most of the ladies regrouping at the Wapiti/Ponderosa Intersection (photo cred Jenifer)

Rachel and Liz getting ready to take off again (Photo cred Karen)

Another Rachel! (photo cred Karen)

Miraculously, both groups ended up at the bottom of the Wapiti Trail at the same time! Everyone looked like they had a great time! In fact, one gurl, who hadn't been on her mountain bike in years, could not stop proclaiming enthusiastically how much FUN she was having! The weather was perfect and we managed to make it up and down well before dark, although I had to stuff my sunglasses in my jog bra toward the bottom of the descent, as it was getting darker in the woods.

Please note - it's getting dark earlier and earlier every night, and therefore difficult to complete a ride without lights. Consequently, we will be hosting only two more rides this season - September 3rd and September 10th (more info soon). We'll celebrate a long season of fantastic riding with an end of year party TBA soon!

Heil Valley Ranch Ride Thursday August 27th

This Thursday's ride (August 27th) will be an Intermediate ride at Heil Ranch, starting at the main trail head off Left Hand Canyon and Greer Canyon Road. We will ride up the Wapiti Trail and then sample either the Ponderosa Trail or the Wild Turkey Trail before coming back down the Wapiti Trail. The trail is suitable for intermediate and advanced riders who are comfortable with chunky rocks and some climbing. We may split into more than one group depending on skill and the number of ladies who come out.

Please try to carpool! To carpool, meet at 28^th and Iris – SE corner next to Sol Azteca at 5:25 pm or meet at the trail head by 5:45 pm. We will start riding at 6:00 pm prompt.

Dinner and drinks will follow, probably at Sol Azteca (we'll be right there). Or, we can go somewhere else quicker like Tokyo Joe's or Larkburger (both on Arapahoe).

Important Info about the Rides:

1. All riders MUST wear a helmet, bring water, and have a trail-ready bike.
2. Riders should also carry the usual basics: spare tube(s), a pump, tire levers, a chain tool, and basic allen wrenches.
   
3. All riders ride at their own risk, group leaders take no responsibility for rider safety/injury. Riders must sign a liability waiver once during the season. If this is your first ride of the season, please bring a signed waiver with you or be prepared to complete one at the meeting spot.
   
4. Rides launch at 6:00 pm so be at the trail head by 5:45 pm, dressed and ready to roll by 6 pm.
   
5. If the weather is iffy (as it has been lately) make sure to check the blog after 3:00 pm on Thursdays for updated info.
   
6. For permitting and planning purposes, please post your name in the comment field if you plan to join us. The comment field is also great for planning carpools, etc.
   
   

Send us an email if you have any questions – bmagirls.rideleader @ gmail.com

Please don't be shy about coming out - all of us love biking and would like to hang out with girls that are interested in biking.

Hope to see you Thursday!
-Jenifer

Lyon's Bike Park Recap

Wow! what a night! We had a group of over 20 ladies working on technical skills with Lee McCormack!!

Lee, the lone man for the evening, dolling out instructional advice (photo cred Tracy Emmanuel)

Lee surrounded by over 20 very attentive women (photo cred Jamie Costa)

We worked on some basic, but very important, weight transfer technique on flat ground, then moved to braking and finally on to terrain pumping, with a little instruction on ascending and descending technical terrain.

Lee showing us how to lower our posteriors the right way (Photo cred Jenifer Kwasniewski)

All us gurlz lowering our hips the right way - Utkatasana-style (photo cred Jamie Costa)

Practicing proper fore and aft body position (photo cred Jenifer Kwasniewski)

Practicing braking at high speed (photo cred Jamie Costa)


We played on the rocks, incorporating proper body position, good arm position and braking (photo cred Jenifer Kwasniewski)

With Lee's insightful instruction all the ladies came away with added confidence as well as some great exercises to work on!

We finally concluded the evening's session when we started running out of daylight, even though we all wanted to go on! (photo cred Jenifer Kwasniewski)

If any of you ladies are interested in taking part in a smaller, more focused clinic with Lee, please email bmagirls.rideleader@gmail.com, because we will be working with Lee to set up a series of technical sessions.

Click here for a whole lot more pics from the evening!