Well last night was an AWESOME success. It shows the pride and excitement the community has. As a donor, you should be privy to the progress of the Park and where your hard earned and donated dollars are going. Below, please find an example of the first Donor Report.
Enjoy!!
(You can vie this blog post below also on the web site. Click here )
Jan 2009
Dear Valmont Bike Park Donor,
Welcome to the first edition of the Valmont Bike Park (VBP) Donor Report. The VBP Committee will be sending these out about once a month to keep you, our donors, up to date on bike park happenings and progress. You can unsubscribe at any time using the links at the bottom of this email, but we hope you'll stay with us until the grand opening of the
park in 2009.
Sincerely,
Mike Eubank
Valmont Bike Park Committee
From the Valmont Bike Park Committee
Ushering in a New Era - the Valmont Bike Park
A Message from Bobby Noyes
The Valmont Bike Park is finally becoming a reality. After years of advocating and countless meetings, the City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Department is moving full speed ahead with design and development - just check out Pete Webber's design update below. Boulder Parks and Rec is proud to call Boulder Mountainbike Alliance (BMA) a partner in this process, and is overwhelmed by BMA's support. Most user groups play a very small role in the development of parks facilities, and BMA is breaking new ground with their active role in design, development and maintenance of the Valmont Bike Park.
To date, we have raised more than $115,000 from over 400 donors, and more donations are coming in every day. No other project in the recent history of Parks and Recreation has garnered such support. We want to sincerely thank all who have opened their wallets to support this project.
Our financial contributions will expand the budget to create a dynamic bike park and give Boulder-area cyclists of all levels a place to call home. Just as important, our contributions have also fostered a new level of reciprocity with the City. The City now realizes how important this park is to the cycling community, and is working feverishly to make it happen. Although shovels have yet to hit the ground, your dollars are hard at work.
On a side bar, donors at the $100 level or above will be honored at the Valmont Bike Park as previously stated. The City has hired a local artist to design elements of the park while incorporating our donor recognition, but the final product might use media other than "bricks" to better fit the park design and aesthetic. Rest assured you will see recognition of your contribution at the site - thanks for your trust!
-Bobby Noyes, Chair, Valmont Bike Park Committee
Progress and Plans at VBP
Construction Projected for Summer 2009
Park designers are working furiously to complete the final design and gain thumbs up from the City of Boulder planning department and other city officials. The final design details are being drawn this winter by a team that includes City staff, a group of design specialists, and members of the cycling community. For the biking-related amenities, the pro design team includes the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA), gravity specialists from Alpine Bike Parks, and designers from Alta Planning and Design.
The City hopes to put the construction work out to bid later this spring and begin building during the summer. It is impossible to predict an opening date, but everyone is working hard to get it completed as soon as possible.
Although not final, the current plans include:
- 3-4 mile network of flowing trails for all abilities
- new-school dual slalom race course
- gravity-fed slopestyle area with beginner, intermediate and expert lines
- 250'- long dirt jump area
- lots of technical features
- two pumptracks
- "learning loop"
- cyclocross staircase
- wheel-sucking sandpits
- spectator plazas
- start/finish straight
- even a tricycle track for the munchkins
Earlier this fall, the design team hatched the idea of converting the big old steel warehouse building on Valmont Road into a covered bike terrain park. Initial plans call for the walls to be removed, leaving just a roof that will provide protection from the snow, rain and summer sun. At this time, the City is conducting a feasibility study to determine if the building is structurally sound and how much a renovation would cost.
Stay tuned for future updates and opportunities for volunteer workdays later this year. Amd be sure to attend the
Campaign Party scheduled for Tuesday, January 27th to check out the new park plans.
-Pete Webber, IMBA
Fundraising News
Bikes Belong Kicks Off $10K Matching Funds Campaign
Dollar-for-dollar matching through February 6th
Bikes Belong is the national coalition of bike-industry retailers and suppliers working together to put more people on bicycles more often. Through grassroots grants, national partnerships, lobbying, and promotion, Bikes Belong works to make bicycling in the U.S. safe, convenient, and fun for riders of all ages and abilities.
Headquartered here in bike-friendly Boulder, Bikes Belong is pleased to support the Valmont Bike Park through a Matching Funds Drive scheduled for January 21 through February 6th, 2009. For all individual and business donations collected during this time from our community, Bikes Belong will contribute up to $10,000 in matching funds. Please take this opportunity to donate to your local bike park or help share the story by encouraging friends to contribute. "Valmont Bike Park will make Boulder an even better place to be a bicyclist, and we're thrilled to have this world-class facility in our own backyard," said Tim Blumenthal, Executive Director of Bikes Belong.
Contribute today, and double your investment in the future of bicycling in Boulder! Visit www.valmontbikepark.com to DONATE NOW and have your funds matched, and please join us at the kickoff party on January 27th at Boulder Cycle Sport.
- Elizabeth Train, Bikes Belong
Valmont Bike Park Fundraising Hits $115K
and still climbing
Dalbey Foundation Donates $50K to VBP
Gift to Support Tot Lot, Tricycle Track
Teaching kids to ride a bike will soon get a little easier in Boulder, thanks to a $50,000 gift from the Dalbey Foundation. The donation will fund educational features at the bike park, including the tricycle track and tot lot. "This donation benefits Valmont Bike Park by enhancing facilities to help children and families learn how to ride safely and experience all aspects of cycling." said "Botsy" Phillips, President of the Boulder Mountainbike Alliance.
Founded in 2005 by local entrepreneur and former competitive cyclist Russ Dalbey, the Dalbey Foundation is the charitable arm of Dalbey Education, Dalbey's business headquartered in Westminster, CO. The Dalbey Foundation's mission is to support efforts that provide people of all ages with the tools and education to improve their lives, their emotional, physical and spiritual health. A great fit with the Valmont Bike Park.
According to Dalbey Foundation spokesperson Susannah Christy, "The opportunity to invest in Valmont Bike Park was a natural fit for the Dalbey family. The project promotes everything they care about - families and children, education, health and fitness - in this case, promoting health and fitness through cycling."
The Dalbey Foundation Tot Lot will be the official name of the Valmont Bike Park amenity, thanks to their donation and support. Additional naming rights at the park are also available for donations of $15,000 or more. Please contact Mike Eubank at mikeeeubank@comcast.net for more information on these options.
VBP Fundraising and Fun at the Cyclocross State Championships
More Cowbell!
The VBP Committee had a banner day at the Cyclocross State Championships, held December 2008 in Boulder, CO. It was 62 degrees, sunny, and perfect conditions - to support the riders and Valmont Bike Park! Big thanks go to the following supporters for their in-kind donations to VBP:
Antonio and the Rocky Mounts Brat-Squad cooked up hundreds of brats for all. In addition to Brats, the VBP tent included socks, posters, CX Magazines, new brochures and the video on display for everyone to see. Donations that day brought in over $1600 for VBP! Most donations came from the brats/beers, but we did have several larger $250 & $100 donors that completed the form on the brochure.
At these CX events, everyone was excited about the future bike park and pretty much knew what the park was about. The experience with the cyclocross community this fall has been great. Most of the riders and core enthusiasts have donated to the park and are really excited to see it come to fruition. We are looking to replicate this awareness with the gravity, free ride, dirt jump and short track crowd, so please contact
Rob Love if you would like to host or include the VBP booth at an event. Now that 'cross season is over, we are looking to host events this winter and continue to promote awareness with other events and more community members. Stay tuned for more.
From the Valmont Bike Park Committee
We can't say it enough - thanks for your support!
VBP/Bikes Belong Campaign Party (and Check Out New VBP Plans)
Valmont Bike Park has got a lot to celebrate - a huge number of donors with more every day, over $115,000 in funds so far, a gigantic grant from the Dalbey Foundation, and now a matching funds campaign with Bikes Belong.
VBP, BMA, Bikes Belong and Boulder Parks and Recreation are hosting a party to mark these occasions and get ready for many more. Join us on Tuesday, January 27, from 4-6pm, at Boulder CycleSport. We'll celebrate the many successes of VBP while encouraging contributions through the Bikes Belong fundraising campaign. We will also have the latest park design plans available for everyone to see and enjoy. Everyone is invited - bring your family and friends!
New Brochures Are In!
The VBP tri-fold brochures have been revamped with new graphics and are ready to hit the streets.
Can we display a stack at your business? Want a few to pass out in your neighborhood or to friends? The easiest way to get started is to pick up some from RockyMounts or Boulder-Denver Couriers. If you ask nice, the BD Couriers are willing to deliver (within Boulder city limits), and other arrangements can be made. Just contact Mike Eubank to get some brochures and spread the love.
How You Can Help VBP Even More
It will take more than money to make this fine bike park what we want it to be. There are so many small ways you can still help, by spreading the word and encouraging even more grass-roots support of Valmont Bike Park:
- Wear your VBP socks and t-shirt - people see the shirts and socks and ask about the park, seriously. If you don't have 'em, these limited edition softgoods are available at RockyMounts and some bike shops.
- Forward this newsletter to your friends and personally encourage them to donate, the one-on-one touch always counts. Links for easy forwarding are at the bottom of this newsletter.
- Write a quick email to City Council, voicing your excitement and support for the bike park
- Distribute VBP brochures - display them at your business, put a stack in the break room at work, pass them out to your neighbors.
- Get ready for workdays later this year, start your weightlifting routine now!
Landmarks Board Rejects Moving Platt Farm House
If you take a look today, you'll notice that smack in the middle of the northern section of Valmont Park is a historic farmhouse. Sadly, the Platt Farm House has fallen into disrepair, but current plans for VBP include moving this historic asset the west side of the property, then rehabilitating and retasking it as a community resource.
Unfortunately, on January 7th, the City's Landmarks Advisory Board voted 3-2 to reject staff's recommendation to relocate the Platt Farmhouse. Do not despair! - the VBP Committee has successfully advocated that this decision be called up by the Boulder City Council; a full hearing will occur on February 17th.
Stay tuned for future developments, but know that VBP Committee is working hard to do right by the farmhouse, the bike park, and the community - by encouraging relocation of the Platt Farm House to the west side of the park. If you'd like to help reach out to Council and/or can attend the Feb. 17th meeting to support VBP, please contact Jason Vogel or Mike Barrow.
-Andria Bilich, BMA
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Valmont Bike Park Committee | 3155 Darley Avenue | Boulder | CO | 80305
