Cheryl Lamberson started riding with the club last Fall, and has been riding regularly now since April and loves it more each time.  Her sister introduced me to mountain biking when visiting her in Tennessee a couple of years ago, and upon returning to Bakersfield she was looking for somewhere to mountain bike, and came across the SSFTA.  Her first bike was an old beat up Rockhopper that someone’s teenager had outgrown, but Cheryl currently rides an 8 year old Specialized Stumpjumper that she has nicknamed the Demon bike she flipped off of it the first time she rode it (and a couple of times since).  She's still working out her dream bike (although disc brakes are a high priority!)

Cheryl's favorite trails are Sand Canyon and Cactus and she also enjoys The Playground.  What she enjoys most about mountain biking is the challenge both physically and mentally.  'When I’m on the trail the only thing I’m thinking about is how to get up the hill (or how to get down) plus taking in the terrain so I can make good decisions about how to get around or over obstacles.  I learn something new every time I ride.  And the more I learn the more I enjoy riding'.

Cheryl's mountain biking goals for this year are to keep improving her technical skills, conditioning, and confidence ('I dream of being able to bunny hop and pop a wheelie').  She would also like to learn more about bike maintenance and simple repairs to handle situations that may come up while riding.

Cheryl would like to thank all of the club members for being so friendly and helpful.  One of her biggest fears when she first started mountain biking was not being able to keep up and having other riders get impatient with for holding them back.  She is happy to say that hasn’t been the case at all ('I mean, I slow them down…but no one has been impatient').  She has found all of the ride leaders and experienced riders to be nothing but helpful and encouraging. 

June Rider of the Month is Ken Ferguson from Tehachapi.  Ken rides regularly in the Kern Canyon area, and enjoys meeting club members when they head up there.  Ken started riding about 7 years ago, he'd been hiking several times a week to get into shape, but after severe hip pain, he pulled out his kids old mountain bikes from the garage to find a way to stay in shape and was able to ride without pain.  Currently Ken has two bikes, a geared Lefty Cannondale Scalpel and a Tomac Flint 29er single speed.  His dream bike is a Specialized SWorks Carbon Stumpjumper.

Ken's favorite trail is the Portuguese Pass in the Kern Canyon during the summer.   The thing he likes most about mountain biking is great people involved in the sport, but the least, is the pain from crashing due to riding beyond his skill level.  His plans for 2011 are to ride every available weekend in the Southern Sierra's.

Now that Ken's daughter has started riding in the foothills on Sunday afternoons, he's looking forward to meeting more club members.

Thanks for riding with us Ken!

The May Rider of the Month is a friend of SSFTA - Steve Messer.  Steve is a very dedicated/die-hard mountain biker, who has been riding in the Kernville area, and all across California for quite a number of years now.  Steve is very dedicated to trail maintenance and bicycle advocacy - and was a huge contributor to the success of the Keyesville Classic and the new single-track at Keyesville.  Steve's mountain bike story is a very interesting one....

Steve Messer began cycling on the dirt in mid-seventies Australia. A modified three-speed cruiser on dirt trails led the way to dirt bikes and later, bmx bikes. He left Australia a few weeks after graduating from high school, sailing the globe. After nearly three years away from bikes, he came to California in 1984. He began commuting by bike, road riding and within a year, racing triathlons. But the call of the dirt was too strong to ignore.  He got a GT mountain bike in 1987, and has never looked back. He helped organize mountain bike races and duathlons from 1986 - 1990 in Los Angeles, and has been riding the mountains of Southern California since then.

In 1993 Steve began guiding whitewater rafting trips on the Kern River, and from that grew his love for the Kern Valley and the Southern Sierras.  Guiding trips in the daytime, and riding from the guidehouse in Lake Isabella to Keyesville in the afternoons or on days off became a regular ritual. About the same time he joined the fledgling Over the Bars mountain bike club in Los Angeles, after finding a flyer announcing the club's formation at a local bike shop. OTB has been doing about three rides per week continuously since then. Steve brings the OTB crew to the Kern Valley several times each year. He still gets out on the river occasionally, but these days spends much more time on the trails when in the valley.

One particularly memorable ride was during the El Nino year of 1998. Steve and a small group of river guides and Kernville locals headed to Sherman Pass to do the Cannell trail. They were expecting to see some snow, but didn't expect to be post-holing for endless miles, to run out of food, water, light and warmth. They lost the trail in the snow, and ended up emerging cold and hungry in Weldon a few hours after sundown.

In 2004 Paul Ferguson, another Kern River raft guide and good friend of Steve's, started importing mountain bikes from Germany. Steve bought the first Bionicon in the U.S. from Paul in 2004 and still rides it. Bionicon was based out of Ridgecrest for those first years, moving to the Kern Valley in 2009. Bionicon sponsored the Keyesville Classic in 2008 and have taken the reigns of the event since 2009. Each year since then Steve has volunteered behind the scenes, helping Paul from planning and promoting through to race day operations.

Steve helped design the new courses for this year's Keyesville Classic XC and DH races, and routed approximately two miles of new singletrack to minimize the time spent on Pearl Harbor Drive. He also helped bring the So Cal High School League race to Keyesville. For the high school mountain bikers, he laid out a shorter course that included some of the new KC singletrack. Paul and Steve hope to have next year's Keyesville Classic off Pearl Harbor Drive completely, with plans for additional singletrack in the works. They are working with the BLM to add more singletrack to the Keyesville trail inventory.

After being a CORBA (Concerned Off-Road Bicyclists Association) member for several years, Steve began volunteering for the trail crew as his raft guiding days slowed down and opened up his weekends. He joined CORBA's board in 2009. This year CORBA became an IMBA chapter, coming full-circle as CORBA was one of the founding clubs of IMBA. Now he serves as CORBA's Vice President and a volunteer trail crew leader.

These days he averages between 150 and 200 miles per week, with at least half of that on either his original Bionicon Edison or a Supershuttle. The high point of his mountain biking life was riding the Colorado trail in 2006, from Denver to Durango. He won't commit to a favorite trail as there are "too many that I have yet to ride," but Cannell, Tahoe Rim, the Colorado Trail, Soquel, and Mt. Wilson Trail rank way up there. On any day you'll likely find him either riding to a trail, on a trail, or talking about trails and bikes.

Steve - thanks for all your efforts to build new trails, and keep the mountain biking community active.  We really appreciate all that you've done for the Keyesville Classic and the new course - thank you!  SSFTA members look forward to joining you at upcoming CORBA events - especially the Fat Tire Fest in October!

Check out Steve's amazing bike pics:

http://www.facebook.com/update_security_info.php?wizard=1#!/Stephen.Messer?sk=photos

Our April SSFTA Club Member featured as rider of the month is Mike Noel.  Mike was the fastest male SSFTA cross-country rider at the Keyesville Classic - completing 3 laps of the 8 mile course in 1 hour, 59 minutes 45 seconds, and finishing 5th in the Expert Men 40-40 category.  Way to Go Mike!!!

Mike has been mountain biking for 22 years - he got started when he was in college and his dad got a mountain bike.  Some of the local Bakersfield road riders were doing mountain bike rides in the winter and Mike borrowed his dad's mountain bike to go out with them when he was home for winter break.  After that he was hooked and saved up and  to buy his very own mountain bike and has been riding ever since.  Mike's bike has come a long way since then - right now he rides a Santa Cruz Tallboy which is the carbon 29er from Santa Cruz.  It is a pretty amazing bike (he thinks its by far the best mountain bike he's ever had and lighter and stiffer than anything he's had before).  Being 6'4" tall, the 29er format works well for him.   I always ask the Rider of the Month what their dream bike is - and Mike think's the Tallboy is pretty close for him - he thought maybe the tallboy with custom geometry and some way of protecting the carbon so he's not so worried about hurting such a sweet bike in an accident!

Mike has spent a lot of time riding, enjoyed many trails in the Western US - his favorite trail is a tie between the Tahoe Rim Trail and the Colorado Trail (trails many of us aspire to ride).  His favorite kinds of rides are the big rides with long climbs and technical downhills at high elevation where the only people you see are the friends you're with.  His least favorite part of mountain biking is the danger involved with crashing - especially when in the middle of no where.  Mike has some big riding plans for summer 2011 - he'd like to get back up to Downieville, Lake Tahoe, Bass Lake to ride to Shuteye Peak, 007 and the Willow Creek trail, plus he plans to ride Cannel Trail, Camp Nelson, and trails at Santa Barbara and Pasdena area... wow... so many trails, just not enough summer time...

Mike wanted to express his gratitude for the SSFTA as a great organization with a lot of quality people and events.  He's been busy road racing with the I have not participated in many of the events the past several yearsBolthouse Farms/AIAGE Cycling Team so far this year, but it is pleased there are so many people participating in the SSFTA and enjoying mountain biking. In a few months when the road racing slows, and the snow melts in the high country - Mike is looking forward to more time on his mountain bike.  Once his son, Eli (4 years old), gets a little older and starts mountain biking, he's looking forward to getting back involved with club events more.  Mike - we've loved seeing you out on your bike riding aroud the Keyesville course with Eli on the green bike seat on front of your bike, or watching him race around in the dirt on his little bike - looking forward to watching him take on the dirt too some day!  Ride on - all the best with your racing!

Rider of the Month for March is DJ - new club member, and one of the Monday night ride leaders.  DJ has been coming along to the board meetings, and also raced in the Foothills Race and finished 2nd in the beginner men's category he raced in.  DJ is 29 years old, he was born and raised in beautiful Bakersfield. He has a beautiful wife, Nikki, and two perfect boys, Hunter and Brayden. He rides only for the joy of riding and hates "Miracle Whip. " :-)

DJ has been mountain biking for a little over a year, and was introduced to the sport by his Dad. His Dad has always been a great athlete and riding bikes is a great activity that DJ can share with him, and hopefully one day with his kids.  Currently, DJ rides a 2010 Cannondale RZ120, and his dream bike would be a Trek Scratch Air.

Even as a newer mountain bike rider - DJ already has a great respect for the sport.  What he likes most about riding is that it is something that can be enjoyed alone or with others, and it is a year round sport. The thing he likes least about riding is falling. 'Its not if you fall, its when you fall.'  DJ's favorite trail so far is the Aliso Wilderness Trails in Laguna Beach - you can ride for days without riding the same trail.  Hopefully you'll lead a ride down there one day for us DJ.

After an impressive start to 2011 in the Foothills Classic Race, DJ's goals for 2011 are to race his first Xterran Mountain Bike Triathalon, and ride at least 10 new locations.  DJ would like to thank the SSFTA for making it so enjoyable to belong to a group, and making him feel welcome as a new member.  He's looking forward to seeing the high school team become the new face of mountain biking!

DJ - we're honored to have you as a member of the club, and really appreciate your efforts in leading the Monday night ride, and shaping mountain biking in Bakersfield!  Ride On!
 

Susan Bowen started riding with the club in 2008, and has been powering this season - plus she's also volunteered for several club roles - we're excited that she has recently developed the new design for the latest SSFTA jersey, and she has taken over as one of the ride leaders for the Monday night rides, keeping the ride going over winter.  She began mountain biking after being introduced to the sport by a friend, and despite bonking on her first ride along the Freeman Creek trail (which she highly recommends), she kept going - and sought out the SSFTA to ride with the club.  Even though she missed the group on the first ride she tried to join at Keyesville, it was the enthusiasm and guidance of veteran club members such as Todd Berlingeri that got her out and helped her develop her skills.

Susan now rides a Gary Fisher 29er Superfly - which she says is her dream bike!  Her favorite trail is the Kern Canyon Trail (all the way), and she doesn't have any trails she doesn't like.  The challenge, comraderie and just being in the outdoors are what Susan loves most about mountain biking.  She's been kicking butt out on the trails recently, and had a great ride at the Rio Bravo Rumble in January - look out for Susan competing in the Foothill Classic Mountain Bike Race this month, and at the Keyesville Classic in March.

Thanks for all your support for the club Susan, and for your dedicated riding style that keeps us all working hard on the trail, but still keeping it light-hearted & fun out there.

Jake Mendrin is one of the newest members in the SSFTA, and he started riding this summer after Jim McWhorter took him up to Lake Lopez - he was instantly hooked and rode the whole time he was there.  Jake is a freshman at Stockdale High School, has played baseball since he was 4 years old and rode BMX's until he was stolen (now he's just glad to be out riding again!).  He loves to play video games and fly fish, but most of he loves to MOUNTAIN BIKE!!!!

Jake rode with the club for the first at the camp-out at Mt Pinos in July, and although a little timid at first (even crashing into a tree), he was doing jumps with Michael before the day was out.  Jake currently rides a Kona DH and he dream bike is a Trek Remedy 9.9 - he's doing all kinds of odd jobs to earn money for this bike (do you need your lawns mowed or bike cleaned??).  After the camp-out, Pinos is definitely on Jake's list of top trails, along with 007 at Bass Lake and of course, everyone's favorite - Toad's.  He loves the challenging climbs and fun downhills, along with the many great friends from mountain biking, but his least favored moments are when his bike breaks, he's grounded (is that a fall, or being banished to his room?) or when he can't ride.

Jake will be racing in the Bakersfield Rattlesnakes Mountain Bike Racing Team in 2011.  Thanks for riding withe SSFTA Jake - its very inspiring to see your passion, and also your progress over the past 6 months!

Our December Rider of the Month comes from the 'Riders of the Mend' list - Terry Gaylord.

Terry has been mountain biking since 1995 and like many of our riders, got into mountain biking because it hurt less than when he crashed his motorcycle.  Terry currently rides a 1999 Specialized s-works fsr-xc team and also owns a 2009 Titus x carbon.  His dream bike would be a 2011 Specialized Epic s-works.

Terry's favorite trail is one he put together in the foothills for his dad called it the EG 63 - hopefully he'll take us all out on it when he's back on his bike.  His favorite things about mountain biking are the challenge of the climbs and the people he meets while out riding - and what he likes least is crashing.  Terry considers himself fortunate to belong to such a great club of wonderful people.  'Now lets go ride'.

Below are photographs of Terry  at the Homegrown Cross Series in Fresno - he's often seen participating in mountain bike races and events around California, or just at an SSFTA family barbecue and ride - he's always willing to get involved and get out on the bike - no matter where it is or what's involved.

November Rider of the Month is Esteban Solano.  Esteban has been riding regularly for about 6 years, he originally started road riding when he was young, but since he loves mountains and all things dirt related - he decided that mountain biking was more his style.  He can still occasionally be seen on the road bike (like on regularly training rides for the Cool Breeze Century), but baggies are more his style.

Esteban currently rides a Redline Ridgid Single Speed but on occasion will pull out the Specialized Rockhopper. He would love to someday to get a Specialized Epic.  Esteban's favorite trail is the Kern River Trail. He loves it because it offers plenty of everything - technical, downhill, uphill and the views are spectacular. He believes that the Kern County trail on a cool fall day is a slice of heaven on earth.

What he loves most about mountain biking is the challenge - you need to concentrate on more than just pedalling - obstacles, balance, cornering - it all adds to the excitement.  He loves it so much, he can't even think of any dislikes about the sport!

Esteban is definitely a team player - if you've ever been out on a group ride with him, you'll know that he's happy riding at the front of the pack and taking on the dirt with the best of them, but he's also really happy to ride with the riders in the middle or the back of the back, and is very generous with his advice and support of other riders.  Esteban has also been a regular at the BTC Summer Series, and ran in the Volkslauf with his daughter this year.

Brandon Hill is a new member to SSFTA in 2010.  He started mountain biking in 1990 and took a couple of years off when he was in the Air Force, due to lack of good trails in Kansas.  He restarted in 1994 untill he had a bad accident in 2003.  He took up mountain biking again in 2009.

Brandon currently rides a GT Avalance, but would love a GT Force.  His favorite trail in the foothills is Sand Canyon and he loves Cactus too (but can't always find it!).  What Brandon loves most about mountain biking is the people, and that its much more exciting than bike-commuting.  But he hates the ruts - they're always were he wants the line to be.

He's been helping his wife improve her mountain biking skills, and when she's more confident - he'll be back out more with the SSFTA.  (Bring her out too!).  We look forward to seeing you out there soon Brandon.

September rider of the month is Michael Wade.  Michael turned 15 this year, and completed his first century road bike ride in August at the Cool Breeze Century in Ventura - way to go Michael!!!!  Michael attends Highland High School, and commonly out in the foothills, on the out of town rides, as well as leading rides and suggesting ride ideas.

Michael is exceptionally enthusiastic about biking, and his race schedule this year has included:

Bakersfield Foothill Classic

Rio Bravo Rumble

Keyesville Classic - cross-country and downhill

Uncle Trent's Time Trial Race in Pyru

Michael currently rides a Trek Fuel EX9, but his dream bike (in addition to any bike that is sponsored by someone else) is a Santa Cruz Carbon V10.  His favorite trail in Bakersfield is Toad's, and his favorite out of town trail is Follow Me at Mammoth.  As far as his favorite thing about mountain biking - Michael just loves to get out and ride.

Mammoth is one of Michael's favorite places to ride, so much so, that he recently got good at picking up horse poop in order to earn his weekend of riding at Mammoth last month.  But apparently emptying the trash and keeping his room clean is still a challenge.  His goal for 2011 is to race at the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey in April - good luck Michael!

August Rider of the Month: a memorial to Grant Salyers. 

I met Grant in not the normal of circumstances. Picture the top of the Keyesville Snake Pit down hill race course, rocks, sand, roots and pine trees, a Tandem Mt. Bike with a bent front wheel, with his young son Scott waiting for his dad to get their bike fixed so they could tear down the mountain. I lent him my spoke wrench and made a friend that would last a life time.

A word that comes to mind when thinking of Grant would be “tough”. He had guts and perseverance. And he was frugal. His pickup had over 300 thousand miles on it! He chose to ride a downhill mountain bike everywhere because he wanted to buy just one bike. It must weigh 40-45 lbs. He wanted a bike that would do anything, and that, he made it do. We were all going to ride the Kern Canyon Trail one day. I told everyone, for my own motivation, that I would buy all a round of brews at the Kern River Brewery if I could not climb the Black Gulch climb. It’s a very long steep hill with water bars placed in strategic locations along the way by the evil forest service. As I made my way up to the top, I just couldn’t go any longer. My legs gave up, my heart was pounding. As I moved over Grant came by me like he was on a Sunday drive and rode over the top, on that down hill bike. I know he stayed in shape, but mostly it was determination and guts that made him go on while most just give up.

Grant was an unassuming quiet man. No bragging about his accomplishments. He loved his family and taught me a few things about faith that I will take with me for the rest of my life. Life is short. And in Grants case it was shorter than most. They say that only the good die young, and I believe it. I personally will strive to make each day count and not put off the things that I want to do or accomplish in my life time. Now is the time, make it count before it’s too late.

Jim McWhorter

July rider of the month is KP Enderle.

KP has been mountain biking for 10 years, he was looking for a fun way to stay in shape and met Tommy Bryant at Sniders Cyclery (and who can't resist Tommy....).  After showing up for his first ride he loved the atmosphere of the club, everyone was really friendly so he kept riding and then got into racing.  KP currently rides a 2004 Specialized Epic, and says he'll buy everyone on the board a new Huffy if he wins the lottery!!!!

KP's favorite trail is Sand Canyon, and he rode the McGill trail for the first time on July 5th - crazily he enjoyed riding up more than coming down!!! He enjoyed riding among the mountains and trees, but didn't like the pot holes on the trail.  KP was also the instigator for a Memorial Day ride back in May.  Like so many of us, KP loves the camaraderie of the people who mountain bike and enjoys seeing new people come and experience the fun of mt biking and challenge themselves to make it up the hills.  We were glad to have KP (among others) at the May board meeting to support this mission of the club as a supportive and fun riding group.

He is bummed that our riding area in northeast Bakersfield is getting smaller and smaller.  But feels one good thing about the economic downturn is they've stopped building so we have a few more years before we'll have to travel out of town to ride hills. KP would like to thank everyone who makes the SSFTA happen, without your commitment sacrifice, it wouldn't be nearly as much fun.

Thanks for being part of the club KP - its great to have people like you out there riding.

 

June Rider of the Month is Jeff Marshall. 

Formerly known as Giant Jeff, not only for his stature, but also for his ride; he will now be known as Niner Jeff, due to his spankin new X-Large, flashy orange, Niner Rip Nine. Jeff loves the feeling of freedom when riding bikes and fondly remembers his BMX days as a kid and “skiing” full rigids down the face of Hang Glider Hill.  After 25 years of riding, his favorite trails today include Cactus and Toads in Bakersfield, and regional trails such as Just Outstanding and McGill. Jeff has been a member of SSFTA since 2000, and after several years away from the bike focusing on family priorities, he has been back in full force for the last year and a half. Jeff loved the club’s Mammoth adventure last year and can’t wait for the trip again this August. When not riding, Jeff is spending time with his wife and 4 children (2 biological, 2 adopted), providing foster care (18 children over the last 5 years), working as a Counselor Supervisor for the CA Dept. of Corrections, and taking the family RVing. He is considering writing a book about his family’s 26 day tour of the U.S. in 2005. So watch for Jeff on his new noble steed – you can’t miss that flash of orange as Jeff whizzes by on the trails, sure to be smiling.

May’s Rider of the Month is Deanne Renting. Deanne started mountain biking and road riding in 2004 in her home city of Perth, Western Australia. Her job as a petroleum engineer with Chevron brought her to the Bay Area in 2007 and then here to Bakersfield last spring. Not even a week as Bakersfield residents, Deanne and her husband James became SSFTA volunteers, helping with a trail maintenance day at Keyesville, and everything else since then. Originally on James’ old Mongoose Rockadile, she graduated to her own Santa Cruz Superlite in 2008, and loves to take it on anything fast and swoopy.  She enjoys the satisfaction of making it up (or down) something really tough. Just look for Deanne out on the trails – she’s the one with the Aussie accent who is always smiling, chatting, and organizing some after-event social gathering. Deanne says, “What I love about the SSFTA is the great friends and the fact that you can always ride and there will be someone to ride with, but also someone to go get a beer or some food with afterwards.” Never idle, Deanne finds time to ride (she just completed 2 metric centuries and is planning her first century ride) amidst her busy work schedule, yoga classes, book club, MBA classes (she’s receiving her MBA from Berkeley this month) and has recently stepped up to become SSFTA’s new Membership Coordinator. Thanks Deanne!

Cowboy Bob is our March/April Rider of the Month. Riding a mountain bike for 15 years, Bob joined SSFTA 3 years ago, and began leading Sunday afternoon beginner rides last year. Bob's successful Sunday rides are enjoyed by everyone and even our expert riders sometimes come out just for the fun, social vibe this group generates. Always a jokester, Bob takes his support of new riders seriously and will ensure riders are safe and having a good time. Bob says he loves to mountain bike because he enjoys the people and the outdoors. When asked how long he's been mountain biking, Bob responds, "Not long enough to burn off this fat belly!" Bob was a dedicated volunteer at the Keyesville race this year despite being sick, and he managed to feed the rest of the volunteers with his mean tri-tip. So go join Bob on Sundays and help him work off that belly!

February's Rider of the Month is Kari with a K's husband and favorite Valentine Kevin. Kevin, an IT guy who recently joined SSFTA, is responsible for the wonderful new SSFTA website. He has generously donated countless hours of website work to the club, since moving here late last year from Vermont. Riding a mountain bike since 1997, Kevin finds time to ride no matter where he is living, whether it be California, Utah or Vermont. While deployed to Kuwait (Kevin is also a Major in the Army Reserves who has done two overseas tours in Kuwait [1 year] and Iraq [9 months]), he purchased an $80 full suspension mountain bike and rode 5-mile laps inside the the base perimeter in the sand! Dedicated bicycle and trail advocates, Kevin and Kari were members of a trail advocacy club in their region of Vermont.  During Kevin's stint in Iraq last year, Kari came home to Bakersfield and found SSFTA. And the rest is history. Now, Kevin and Kari are closing escrow on a house out by the Foothills, and they join a growing number of husband and wife riders. Welcome to Bakersfield and SSFTA Kevin, and thanks for our cool new website!

January's Rider of the Month is popular ride leader Mark, an expert in the dirt despite only starting to ride four years ago. Mark, a former professional motocross racer, was introduced to mountain biking by his buddy Jerry. Mark, Jerry and Eddie all rode together in the foothills before finding SSFTA in 2007. Now, a few short years later, Mark consistently leads weekly foothill rides (particularly on Saturday), as well as organizes fun out-of-town rides. Mark's first ride of 2010 was the New Year's Day Kern Canyon Trail ride, which brought out over 30 riders! Mark may prefer a mountain bike to a dirt bike these days, but don't be fooled into following him up or down some of the "trails" he finds. Everyone who rides knows when NOT to follow Mark: it's when he decides to ride up or off a cliff just to see if it's "rideable." Daredevil and "fast guy" to the max, Mark still finds a way to keep rides accessible to all ability levels. And like his friends Jerry and Eddie, Mark is one of the nicest and most helpful guys you'll ever meet. He knows the foothills like the back of his hand, and he'll be happy to show all who are interested some great Bakersfield and out-of-town riding!

December’s Rider of the Month Lisa has had an SSFTA family membership (with her sons Michael and Thomas) for the last couple years. She’s a regular at all the SSFTA social gatherings, but she only recently became a rider herself. Sunday, November 29 was Lisa’s first ride on a mountain bike, and she did great! She encourages all new riders to come out for the Sunday ride (2 pm at Thorner School). Cowboy Bob leads the ride for beginners, and he provides on-the-spot riding instruction. Michael refused to come out and ride with his mom on Sunday, but he better stop pouting (Santa is watching Michael!) and get used to it. Lisa, who has lost 50 lbs over the past several months, appears to have caught the mountain-biking bug that we all carry. In fact, she’s so excited about riding that she is hosting the SSFTA Christmas Party at her house on December 12! Thanks for your membership Lisa; we’re excited to see you out on the trails!

   
Rider of the Month is our website administrator extraordinaire Jack!  Currently on the disabled list with Valley Fever, Jack will be back in a flash as soon as he gets the okay from his doctor.  Riding with SSFTA for a few years now, Jack is known as one of the fastest uphill riders (”Jack Rabbit”) and best bike mechanics.  Also, he is responsible for the trail section named “Cracker Jack,” where he fell and broke his collarbone.  Jack is credited with all the recent changes to the website (as well as with keeping the website updated), is a liaison between SSFTA and local businesses, and is always bringing new people into the club.  He is a true mountain bike advocate, and he’s also one of the nicest people you will ever meet.  Thanks for your dedication and commitment to SSFTA Jack; it is much appreciated by all who ride!

 
Anyone who has had the privilege to ride with these guys will understand why they are riders of the month. You would be hard pressed to find a more polite group of young men who enjoy riding as a family. They became official members of the SSFTA back in May. They have been active in the weekly rides as well as many of the out of town rides. Not only are they polite, they will say excuse me as they go blasting by you. These guys can ride. They get that from their father. There will be no stopping Mars now that he has the new Specialized Enduro. The SSFTA has benefited from the addition of this family. Thank you Augie, Mars, Ivan, and Issac for all the participation.