Go By Bike School Challenge

Go By Bike School Challenge Kicks Off

Friends of Pathways is proud to bring you the Go By Bike School Challenge. With funding from the Teton County Recreation District and the WYDOT Safe Routes to School Program, the School Challenge allows students and teachers to log miles they bike, walk or roll to school and other activities. Safe Routes programs can improve safety not just for children, but for a community of pedestrians and bicyclists. They provide opportunities for people to become more physically active and to rely less on their cars .(SRTS, 2009)

Based on our incredibly successful summer program, Go By Bike, students in grades Kindergarten through 12th will be able to compete against classmates, by grade level or by school all the while having fun exercising, lowering their impact on the environment and saving money (for themselves or their parents!). “Close to 400 adults participated in the Go By Bike summer commuter challenge. It was a great way to keep track of miles, compete against friends and meet personal goals. The School Challenge will help motivate kids to actively get themselves to school; cutting down on traffic and increasing physical activity ”, said Stephanie Thomas, Friends of Pathways Development and Communications Director.

Registered participants will be eligible for prizes from Friends of Pathways each quarter. In addition, reducing time students and teachers spend in the car will have the following positive impacts:

* Reduce impact on our fragile environment. Small changes have a huge impact on our community and planet.
* Increase fitness. It’s recommended that students’ age 6-18 receive 60 minutes of moderate exercise per day. The School Challenge fits your exercise into your daily routine.
* Fight congestion! Be part of the solution and bike, walk or roll to school

For more information or to sign up for your free account, go to http://schoolchallenge.friendsofpathways.org. We’re looking forward to a great school year of walking, riding and rolling to school.

Fitzgerald’s Sponsors Pathway Ambassador!

Fitzgerald’s Bicycles has provided funding to Friends of Pathways to keep the vital Stewardship Program running through the months of fall ensuring pathways and pathway amenities are well maintained.
“Partnerships between local business and non-profits are essential to growth in our community. We saw the Stewardship Program as an asset to our riders and the community and wanted to help it be sustainable”, stated Scott Fitzgerald, Owner of Fitzgerald’s Bicycles. Donations to support the Stewardship Program can be made at www.friendsofpathways.org. 100% of gifts will benefit pathway maintenance and stewardship in Jackson Hole.

Read the full press release at:
www.FriendsOfPathways.org

GSKA and Teton Pass Trails Coordinator Weekly Update - Sept 26th

Submitted by Erik Jacobsen
GSKA and Teton Pass Trails Coordinator
Hello everyone. What a week! After winter, of course, this is my favorite time of year out here. The trails are in excellent shape, the temperatures are cool, and the colors are vibrant. I had the pleasure of touring much of the Greater Snow King Area logging sign locations and what they say. We will be putting up fresh signs next year on all the directional posts. Some were a little confusing and I’m trying to clear that up. Also Linda and I are looking to rename a few things to avoid confusion, namely the whole Hagen complex. We looked at Galen’s new worker map and noticed that Sink or Swim now continuously travels from Josie’s to Hagen proper. It is my intention to call that all Sink or Swim eliminating “High Hagen” and calling that Sink or Swim as well. Instead of calling Hagen Highway what it is now, I want to call that the Hagen trail; since it also runs continuously all the way to the Cache Creek trail and Putt Putt. Also, I want to call the Hagen River Trail simply the River trail. Now when folks ask us how to get to the Hagen trail, we won’t have to say “which one”.

I met with Scott Neison this week, and he brought to my attention a little battle that has been going on in the KC, Sink or Swim, and Josie’s area. There is a very ambitious “Stick Man” up there. He has good intentions. He is closing a lot of the multi-braided side trails in that area with sticks. Unfortunately he is just going a little overboard with it and laying down just about every stick he can find. He also places some sticks in dangerous locations. Some are too small and very pointy causing the infamous “pungy stick” danger. Scott and I walked with his dog, and I saw what is going on. The dogs like to grab the sticks and inevitably some of them fall in the trail. This can be very dangerous when encountered on a bike. Scott has been pulling a lot of the more dangerous ones all summer, but more a more reappear and so the battle goes. I will be taking the crew up there this Fall and work on a solution. My plan is to plant rocks and sage in the spurs. These will stay and not fall into the trail. I thank Scott for bringing this problem to my attention.

GSKA and Teton Pass Trails Coordinator Weekly Update - Sept 20th

Submitted by Erik Jacobsen
GSKA and Teton Pass Trails Coordinator

Hello everyone. I’m back from my week off and back at it. I almost needed a vacation from my vacation. (lots of rafting, biking, and backpacking with the brother and his wife.) We went back to wiggle-world last week. The switchback count is starting to widdle down, two left. (unfortunately the last two are going to be the hardest ones) We pretty much got a two-for-one special this week. We built one big normal switchback (beautiful with three layers of big timbers), and then we got a bonus easy one just built with dirt. The Jackson Trail Crew continues to give excellent help and support to the front-country trail program. We have a new switchback prodigy, Chris Owen. He has learned how to scribe, cope, and build switchbacks quicker than anyone I’ve seen. His first cope was perfect. He has taken quite a liking to the swithcback construction operation and we might just have to hang on to him a little while. Casey Stewart also joined us for the week and learned how to build switchbacks. She did a real nice job too. On Thursday we had the whole Jackson crew and had quite the operation going on. I felt like I was on the new Discovery show “American Loggers”. We were peeling timbers, rigging timbers, and setting timbers all at the same time. Sarah Newcolm did her first scribe and cope. It came out real nice. We were real close to finishing what may be one of our best switchbacks on the hill on Friday. Instead of rushing it and making it sub-par, we called it a weekend and will return to make it world-class.

Have a nice week.

1st Annual Grand Targhee Downhill Mt Bike Race

The 1st Annual Grand Targhee Downhill Mt Bike Race on September 12th was awesome! Once again, Andy Williams and the crew at Targhee put on a stellar event. It was great to see so many competitors of all ages toe the line for the epic descent down the ‘ghee. The course was intense! Top times were just over 7 minutes, the upper course was extremely rocky, and the finishing stretch on the service road was a lung buster. Check out all the results of the Grand Targhee Downhill Race by clicking on the link below:
Targhee Downhill Results

Michelle G finding her inner Zen before lap one

Eric B was stoked with his first DH race - I can't think of better cross training for Dh racing than Hockey!

Dave B wondering trying to focus for his first downhill race while developing a spreadsheet to decide on what DH Bike to build

BoJo tapping into the Team DH's blazing speed

Fitzgerald’s Dig Day 2009

Every year we sponsor one of the Teton Freedom Rider’s Dig Days. This year we worked on Lower Lithium and finished up the lowest rock table top jump and the uphill berm that leads into it. Thanks to everyone who came out and helped. Also big thanks to our sponsors who stepped up with great raffle prizes: Jamis, Orbea, Sugoi, Serfas, Lake.

Bob B setting the stage for the take off

You have to thread the needle on this one

Our fearless leader Harlan preparing for the next Scottish festival

We all managed to avoid the black lung even though we worked in the mine all day

The pig taking 5 and enjoying a hard earned cold one

What could possibly go wrong with this landing?

Plenty of Jamis swag* - *additioinal charges may apply for the Jamis Kromo

Cyclocross Season is Here!

Once again, Victor Velo is presenting 3 weekends of Cyclocross racing in Victor, ID.
Oct 3rd, Oct 17th & 18th (MooseCross), Oct 31st
hup, hup, buttercup!