Winter Newsletter

Written By Duncan Coppedge

Season's Greetings! 

As the snow starts falling and the warmth of the holidays fills the air, let's reflect on all the work we've accomplished in 2023:

statistics of RVMBA for 2023

At our core, RVMBA is a vibrant community of passionate mountain bikers devoted to advocating, building, and protecting our beloved trails. Our board is driven by our love of the sport - 100% volunteers who love shredding our local trails together. 

Together, our mission is clear: To build, maintain and expand a world-class system of mountain bike trails that support and enhance the physical, mental and economic health of Rogue Valley communities. We want to grow our trail networks, improve our existing trails, and have more fun riding. This journey isn't a solo ride; we need the community to create something truly epic.

Join us.

Do your part and encourage your crew to become members so we can open new trails, maintain old trails, and champion mountain biking in the local community. 

Here's a quick recap of what we've helped accomplish or are still making progress on this year:

Fell On Knee - trailwork day with AWTA (December 17) We hosted our first joint trail work day with AWTA (Ashland Watershed and Trails Association) working on Fell on Knee trail.  

  • We worked on tread improvement - working on some turns, widening some tread, fixing some holes, and otherwise maintaining a sizable section of the Fell on Knee trail

Special thanks to Casey Botts! 

casey bots and kids on a lift


The board would like to acknowledge Casey Botts, who is stepping down as president of RVMBA. He's been a steady force in the often unseen and underappreciated work advocating on behalf of mountain bikers with local government and landowners. Casey is stepping down to focus more time in leading Ashland DEVO, the local youth mountain bike program. Casey's knowledge and experience has been instrumental in RVMBA's recent successes and helps set the direction for future trail building gains. Ryan Hawk has stepped into Casey's role.

Who is Ryan Hawk?

Ryan Hawk has been with RVMBA's board since 2021 as its Fundraising and Sponsorship Director. He started mountain biking in the late 80's, when there weren't really purpose-built mountain bike trails and riding technique was mainly about keeping your grip "loose enough" on a fully rigid frame and fork. After returning to Ashland several years ago and reengaging with the sport, he's been passionate about mountain biking as a source of community, recreation and economic development for the region. Advocating for our trails, engaging the community, and creating the best little mountain town are all top goals.  

Upcoming Events

December 16th (Sat)
Talent Lights-On-Bikes festival, 4pm-7pm. Info here. Volunteers needed flagging at road crossings, and helping younger kids decorate bikes.

January 20th (Sat) - Team Handlebar’s trailwork day on Jabberwocky.
Save the date for Team Handlebar's make-up trailwork date on Jabberwocky. This'll be a great chance to repair a trail that we ride extensively all season long. 10-2pm, Food/Bevys provided by Public Lands afterwards. RSVP to Nikki Dinger to secure a spot (nddinger@gmail.com).

Join the RVMBA Board!

Are you interested in learning more about what is going on behind the scenes and contributing to the local mountain bike community? Do you want to be part of the decision making process?  There is a lot going on at RVMBA and we could use your help! Reach out or chat with one of our board members.  

  • Membership Director -  duties include growing the RVMBA member base, keeping active members engaged and stoked about being part of RVMBA’s mountain bike community and the re-engagement of lapsed members.

  • Fundraising/Sponsorship Director -  duties include maintaining and growing RVMBA's ability to fund our local trail building and maintenance ambitions.

Duncan Coppedge
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