The 1997 International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) Pacific Summit was held in Oakridge, OR on September 12-14. I was able to attend this Summit with help from the Flyers Cycling Club. I'll try to outline some of the highlights of the weekend.

The three-day session began with a four-hour workshop on advanced trail building by Kurt Loheit, IMBA Trail Coordinator and Phil Wolff, a forester with the Washington Department of Natural Resources and a specialist in erosion control on trails in wet environments. Phil Wolff is the forester in charge of managing the trail system in the Tahuye State Park on Washington's west coast. [Editors Note: The Tahuye boast some 225 miles of trails in it's boundaries. If you ever get a chance to ride here, I would highly recommend it.]

On Friday night, IMBA co-founder Michael Kelley gave the welcoming address, and then joined a handful of members on a night ride. (During that ride a lightless Sean Thorniley, president of the Sonoma, CA, County Trails Council, demonstrated a temporarily gravity-defying "air-ride" as he cut a corner and discovered a couple of seconds too late that the trail was three feet to his right. No harm ... he landed on the trail, ahead of his bike, and didn't tumble down the hillside, providing us all a good laugh.)

On Saturday, members began a day of sessions that included:

• A presentation by Leonard Francies on the model training program for beginning mountain bike riders, the Backcountry Bicycle Trails Club (BBTC) of Seattle's "Mountain Bike Boot Camp"
• A discussion on ways to increase membership and member involvement, using models provided by Portland United Mountain Pedalers (PUMP) and the Central Oregon Trail Alliance
• An explanation, with some occasionaly heated discussion, of the demonstration fee system and the alternative Oregon Stamp Plan proposal by Yuri Samer of Oregon Mountain Bikers and the Disciples Of Dirt of Eugene;
• Talks from two Oregon congressional staff members. Betsy Boyd, district director for Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) and Lisa Rockower, field representative for Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), emphasized that to be effective we must (a) develop good relations with our senate and congressional district staff and (b) target those representatives who are on appropriate committees. Boyd noted that If your local congressperson is not on a committee affecting legislation, you are wasting your time by calling about that legislation unless it is a very "hot" issue.
• Talks on agency perspectives from Bob Ratcliffe of the Salem, OR, District of the Bureau of Land Management and Sue Baker of the Lowell Ranger District of the U.S. Forest Service
• A talk by Greg Dutson of Oregon Equestrian Trails (OET) on improving relationships with equestrians. At that session, Dutson announced approval by OET of a Memorandum Of Understanding between OET and Oregon Mountain Bikers.

Attendees then raced to get on their bikes for one of several rides on the many miles of bliss-inspiring singletrack in the Oakridge area, squeezing in two to three hours of riding before the banquet. [Editors Note: See Oakridge Ride Reports for my impressions of the riding around Oakridge.]

In addition to setting goals and discussing next year's conference (which will be hosted by the BBTC folks from Washington), delegates selected 20 mountain bike activists and supporters to receive awards for service in the region. Recipients ranged from active mountain bike advocates to agencies, a city official and a bike shop.

In a goal-setting session at the dinner following the Saturday session, attendees adopted as one of the Summit's five goals for the coming year, "to develop relationships with elected officials and their staffs."

Other conference goals, which were recommended for adoption at the club level, include:

• Develop and improve relationships with land managers
• Continue efforts to bring more members into IMBA (this goal was carried over from last year)
• Increase the number and involvement of women and minorities
• Encourage trail work exchange days with neighboring clubs (inviting members of neighbor clubs to trail work parties).

On Sunday morning about half of the 40 people attending the conference joined in a productive trail work party on a new trail the Forest Service is building near Oakridge. Several delegates stuck around for more riding, including a Monday ride of the famous McKenzie River Trail.

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