The monthly TAMBA trail work day for September will be on the highly respected (and used) Toads/Saxon Creek Trail. The section of trail to be worked on is in the upper portions along the rock gardens. No new alignments will be built, but the technical downhill rock lines will be kept in place, tightened up, armored better and protected from erosion and rear wheel brake dragging.

Because this is about 3 miles from the nearest road every volunteer will need to either ride his/her bike or hike in to the work area.

Plan to start work at 10am and have everyone to the work section by 9:30am on Sept. 24.

By Lenita Powers, Reno Gazette-Journal

Heads up, motorists.

If you’re passing someone riding a bicycle, you’d better keep at least 3 feet away or — as of this Saturday — you’ll be breaking the law.

Senate Bill 248 is one of two revisions to state laws the 2011 Legislature approved to make the roadways safer for bicyclists. Under Assembly Bill 328, the second revision known as the Vulnerable Highway Users Bill, motorists found at fault in a collision with a bicyclist or a pedestrian can be charged with reckless driving and face harsher penalties.

Both laws go into effect Saturday.

Sgt. Jim Stegmaier of the Reno Police Department said the law that previously required motorists to pass bicyclists at a safe distance was too vague, but the new 3-feet requirement specifically defines it.

“Everyone pretty much knows that a yardstick is 3 feet, and that’s roughly what we will use to judge,” Stegmaier said. “It’s going to be an eyeballing type of measurement. We won’t get down to inches, but if motorists brush too close, we will cite them.”

He said the fuzzy wording of the original statute would have been harder to enforce, but the 3-feet rule provides a concrete distance.

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By Mary Fenton, ESPN

Among the ranks of professional snowboarders, relatively few riders earn pro models. Factor in the female component, and for this year’s crop of boards, that number dwindles to precisely six: 2010 Olympians Torah Bright and Gretchen Bleiler, Dutch slopestyle sensation Cheryl Maas, Anne-Flore Marxer, Lisa Filzmoser, and the lady with the longest-running pro model, Barrett Christy.

This October, at long last, Christy will have company on Gnu with the release of the Ladies Choice by Jamie Anderson. It’s fitting: Not since Christy, the 10-time Winter X Games medalist, dominated the comp scene in the late-’90s and early ’00s has a female rider won with as much consistency and grace as Gnu’s newest pro (save Tara Dakides and Janna Meyen-Weatherby).

Just 21 years old in September, the South Lake Tahoe native has been a sponsored rider since she was 9 years old. Among her slopestyle accolades (a list that’s becoming so ridiculously long, it’s almost Michael Phelps-ian): the last two TTR World Tour overall wins, the last two Winter Dew Tour overall wins, a Burton Global Open Series win, a U.S. Open win, three Winter X gold medals (also: the youngest medalist and youngest female gold medalist in Winter X history), an Arctic Challenge win. And with two wins in New Zealand already this season — and the promise of Slopestyle on the Winter Olympic program come 2014 — it doesn’t seem like she’s slowing down anytime soon.

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Part of the multitude of events during the Lake Tahoe Marathon week is a free run for ages toddler to 12.

The Optimist Kids Fun Run begins at 2pm Sept. 24.

Kids get a finishers medal, drink and hot dog. If they register online, they will have their name printed in big letters on their race bib.

They will run from 25 yards to a mile depending on their age.

Grab your bike and join the Rotary Club of Reno Sunrise and edible Reno-Tahoe magazine for a bike ride like no other. Edible Pedal 100 is Reno-Tahoe’s newest fundraising bike ride celebrating the scenic beauty and culinary bounty of the region.

Riders will feast on local fare as they pedal their way through forests, meadows, farmland, quaint towns, and Lake Tahoe. The ride will take place Sept. 18, beginning at the historic Bowers Mansion in Washoe Valley, (15 miles south of Reno), and offers riders a 10-, 50- or 100-mile route.

While cyclists gobble up the beautiful landscape, they’ll also enjoy local fare proven to satisfy even the most discriminating palate.

The charitable ride includes all support and food and is $35 for the 10-mile route, $55 for the 50-mile route, and $65 for the 100-mile route. There’s also a commemorative bike jersey available for purchase.

Money raised will support local and international children’s programs, including Urban Roots, a Reno garden classroom program that assists Washoe County public and private schools in creating and maintaining edible school gardens. Other beneficiaries are the Virginia Palmer Elementary School in Reno, Rotary Youth Exchange, and Rotary Youth Leadership Awards.

For more details, route maps, featured fare and registration, go online or email info@ediblepedal100.org.

Mountain bike racing returns to the famous Flume Trail above Lake Tahoe on Sept. 10.

The Great Tahoe Flume Race is presented by the Reno Wheelmen and sanctioned by USA Cycling. It is part of the Sierra Cup Regional Championship Series, a seven race point series to determine the best riders in Northern California and Nevada.

The race starts next to Spooner Lake in Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park at 9:30am. The course will take riders over 23 miles. The course has more than 3,300 feet of climbing and the entire course is above 7,000 feet.

There are age and ability categories for all levels of riders. All categories will complete the same course. All proceeds from the event go to supporting the all-volunteer backcountry patrol in the Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park. Celebrating its 10th year of service, the patrol provides directions, mechanical help, and medical assistance to all park users. It is an International Mountain Bicycling Association affiliated National Mountain Bike Patrol, and one of the largest chapters in the country.

Registration is online. The race is limited to the first 200 to sign up.

With the completion of the Eagle Rock trail, it means the summit is about a 20-minute hike. The popular West Shore trail offers panoramic views of Lake Tahoe.

Until now, severely eroded user-created trails had been the only means of accessing Eagle Rock. Gullies were trapping water and depositing fine sediment into Lake Tahoe via Blackwood Creek.

The Eagle Rock trail construction involved a collaborative effort between the California Tahoe Conservancy and California Conservation Corps. AmeriCorps interns assisted with post-construction refinements. The Tahoe Rim Trail Association and the U.S. Forest Service, Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit provided training and field assistance.

AmeriCorps volunteers work on the Eagle Rock trail.

Views from Eagle Rock. Photos/CTC

The project was funded by $77,310 in Proposition 84 money and Conservancy staff time equivalent to $25,000.

The Conservancy purchased Eagle Rock and the surrounding 54.5-acre parcel in 1987 to provide public access, recreation, and opportunities for restoration of environmentally sensitive lands. In the summer 2012, the Conservancy will begin construction of the adjacent Blackwood Creek project.

Parking is available on the south side of Eagle Rock adjacent to the new trailhead kiosk.

Employees from California Technologies donated a weekend of time this month to help the Tahoe Rim Trail Association build sections of the Rim to Reno Trail System.

The TRT, which attracts more than 100,000 users annually, relies heavily on community volunteers like the Bay Area global IT management software and solutions company.

Bill Yee from California Technologies works the pickmatic to widen the trail. Photo/Provided

The inaugural Climbing Festival & Bouldering Competition in Meyers is Sept. 17.

Joshua Welch of Safe Haven Chiropractic in Meyers is spearheading the event so people can watch and learn about the beauty and athleticism of playing on granite.

He says Lake Tahoe bouldering has exploded in the last few years.

Jesse Bonin on Pimp Juice V9. Photo/Jason Hogan

The event is free to attend, with a small fee to compete.

Many climbs will be included in the contest ranging from 5.6 to V10 and beyond. Limited guides will be included in the competition format. The contest is for all ability levels. More than $2,000 in prizes will be awarded.

The free climbing festival starts at 2pm. Get some food, check out climbing booths and meet the athletes. Listen to great music and hang out in the beer garden.

The awards ceremony starts at 4pm, with a bouldering demo competition at 5pm.

More information is online, including how to sign up to compete, or call (530) 577.5433.

By Dan Hinxman, Reno Gazette-Journal

It used to be that if a country club’s management suggested the golf course be opened to public play, its members would revolt.

That is still the case at established clubs such as Hidden Valley, but in this unique financial environment — that of a recession coming on the heels of the dot.com boom — some are taking that route with membership’s blessings. And the result has been good news for both the club and public-course golfers who yearn to try new places.

“It seems to be doing well for us,” said Rob Young, vice president and general manager of Grizzly Ranch near Portola, about 45 minutes north of Reno.

Grizzly Ranch is in a crowded boat — private courses that were built in the late 1990s and early 2000s to cater to a population that saw its discretionary income skyrocket. Others in the region that fit that description include Reno’s ArrowCreek (Challenge), Montreux, Red Hawk (Hills) and Somersett; Washoe Valley’s Thunder Canyon; and Truckee-area courses Gray’s Crossing, Lahontan, Martis Camp and Schaffer’s Mill (originally Timilick).

All have dealt with tough times. Some are doing well enough to maintain their fully private status, including Somersett, whose membership recently took over management of the course. Others, such as Gray’s Crossing, Grizzly Ranch and Schaffer’s Mill, are balancing budgets and exposing their courses to potential members.

And if there’s a poster child for the movement, it might be Grizzly Ranch.

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