Van Sickle Bi-State Park Opens

The long awaited Van Sickle Bi-State Park located within easy walking distance from Stateline, in South Lake Tahoe, has quietly opened to the public.  This is a beautiful 750 acre parcel once owned and operated by the Van Sickle family for over a 150 years.  The park is in both Nevada and California.  While not complete, it does have a paved road access with parking at the foot of a new Tahoe Rim Trail section that meanders uphill and will eventually provide access to a connector trail to the Rim Trail.  The Park is open to hikers, bicyclists and equestrians.  Future plans call for camp sites and more trails.  Hike or ride your bike and as you gain elevation you will enjoy a beautiful view of the Lake and the quiet of the forest just a short distance from the Sateline corridor.

On Sunday, Sept. 18, join members of the Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition Board of Directors as they lead a fun recreational bike ride along South Lake Tahoe's bicycle path system.  The ride starts and ends at Blue Dog Pizza, located on the north end of Raley's Shopping Center.

The ride begins at 1:00 pm and is expected to last 3 to 4 hours and travel 15 to 20 miles. The ride is free and open for everyone interested in a relaxed pace ride, stopping for photos, and chatting about the bike paths and surrounding areas as there is interest.

Please ride your bikes to the start as parking is prohibited in Raley's Shopping center.  You may park in the adjacent lots behind Harrah's if needed.  Wear your helmet.

Let us know if you will be joining us so that we can have a better sense about the group size.  You can let us know by just emailing biketahoe@aol.com.  Looking forward to riding with you.

27 college age adults rode their bikes for 63 days from Baltimore, Maryland before arriving in South Lake Tahoe on Friday, July 29, in route to San Francisco.  This is the tenth annual 4K for Cancer ride across America - a group dedicating their journey to healing and increasing awareness about the disease.  What is remarkable is that most of them were not hard core cyclists before the trip, just casual riders at best, and their bikes are what you would expect to see on a college campus - no high tech carbon frames or current technology here - just the will to pedal 4,000 kilometers.

They were welcomed by Ex. Director, Joanne Conner, So. Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce, members of the South Tahoe Cancer Society, and yours truly, the Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition who prepared them dinner, and donated food and beverages for breakfast.  St. Theresa's Church hosted them for three nights as they refreshed themselves in local hospitality, swimming in the Lake, sightseeing, and just enjoying a remarkable accomplishment of arriving in California.  The photo captures their daily ritual before every ride - they dedicate the ride to family members and friends who have been inflicted with the disease, and to each other in their commitment to be strong and supportive on to their next destination.  On Monday morning, I lead them down Pioneer Trail, up Old Meyers Grade, and over Johnson Pass on their 125 mile ride to Davis, California.

Measure R Moves Forward

On August 10th, the JPA board decided to place Measure R on the November ballot.  The Measure proposes to expand the use of recreation facility funds to include existing bike paths and youth ball fields without increasing taxes.  This Measure, if it passes with a 2/3 vote, will enable Measure S funds to be spent on repairing and maintaining many much needed bike paths that were not allowed with Measure S. 

Trail Work Day Schedule

Time and location for all of these work days:  8:00 am to 3:00 pm at Sierra Canyon, located 0.5 mil north of Genoa, then west on Centennial Dr. and north on Snowshoe Lane. Parking is at the junction of Centennial Dr. and Snowshoe Lane.  No previous trail building experience needed.  Work for all or part of the day.  Volunteers must wear long pants, long-sleeved shirt, sturdy hiking shoes or boots and glasses or sunglasses.  Hard hats and tools are provided.  Bring water and lunch.  More info: 775.722-8784 or www.carsonvalleytrails.org.

• Lake Tahoe Summit. August 16, Homewood Mountain Resort.  10:00 am
• Great Tahoe Flume Race. Sept. 10. Spooner Lake Sate Park. 9:30-1:00pm (more info: www.renowheelman.org) 
• Tour de Tahoe. Sunday, Sept. 11. 9th annual ride around the Lake. 35/72 mile options (more info: www.bikethewest.com).

If you have bicycle related events that you would like posted on Tahoe Cycling News, then e-mail me a fact sheet with sufficient lead time. E-mail: biketahoe@aol.com.

Fill the bottle with hot water and put in 4 drops of bleach.  Let it stand overnight, then rinse with alternating hot and cold water to wash out any remaining bleach.  This kills bacteria and leaves no taste.  If the idea of bleach doesn't appeal to you, let the bottle stand overnight with a teaspoon of lemon or lime juice in the water.  You can also use baking soda. Rinse the bottle with warm water. Then put it upside down in your bottle cage to dry.  Or wash the bottle in a dishwasher every time you use it.

Don't drink from another person's water bottle.  This can spread all kinds of nasty infections.

Pony Express 100 Exploratory Ride

Inspired by 4K for Cancer, I am considering an exploratory ride from South Tahoe to Sacramento. Exploratory in that we will be following the 4K route and making adjustments to minimize the time spent on Hwy 50.  It will travel the Pony Express route as much as possible. I mention it here to see if there is any interest in joining me in planning a ride with support and possible overnight stay in Sacto this Sept./Oct.  I envision this as a small group of riders initially and if we deem it a cool and safe route, then we may organize an event ride, The Pony Express 100, the following year.  If you are interested, please contact me at entersport@aol.com and we can chat about it more.  Thanks, Ty.

Ty Polastri

President, LTBC