You are cordially invited to the SECOND SF Urban Riders Social Fundraiser, hosted by  Team Mojo. This event follows the DFL Film Night event which raised $500 from sitting around watching movies and drinking beer. It’s a great way to hang out with old friends, meet new ones, check out some cool cycling maps, and benefit a great cause. SFUR supporters have volunteered so much time in the field on SFUR projects, its important to find a rewarding social balance. Besides, the cycling community seems more than capable of meeting the funding challenges ahead one beer at a time!

WHAT: Mojo Party (SF Urban Riders Fundraiser #2)

WHERE: Mojo Bicycle Cafe 639 Divisadero Street SF, CA 94117

WHEN: Wednesday February 29th, 2012 from 6pm-10pm

Mojo Cafe will generously donate 50% of the nights proceeds to SFUR….(how cool is that!).

FESTIVITIES: Special Guest Beer’s on tap                                                                                                                                                   SFUR’s NEW Urban Trail Map on display                                                                                                                       McLaren Bike Park map and updates                                                                                                                                 Share stories of urban adventure

TKMBD 2011 Event in McLaren Park

Blazing Saddles was a great TKMBD partner.

The Presidio Y-Bike program and SFRPD assisted with the bike skills and rider management responsibilities again this year. The Y-Bike program has unique resources and programs that continue to be a key component to youth cycling opportunities in San Francisco.

Sheila Moon Athletic Apparel was on-site teaching the next generation about cycling fashion. The Moon booth made sure everyone got a chance for arm warmers or skull caps.

Matt Dove from the Y-Bike program talks trail safety.

After party at the Sheila Moon Athletic Apparel booth.

Specialized is always a welcome TKMBD sponsor. There presence and resources helps make the event  special…. with everything from the FREE Youth Bike Raffle, to all the other schwag they bring like shirts, helmets, water bottles, and bike karma.

Lets do it again next year!

At the end of the day Specialized T shirts for every participant.

Group photo at the Blue water tank in McLaren Park

Everyone is excited about Mountain Biking in the City.

We want to fill you in on some HUGE news. SF Urban Riders is moving forward with design for San Francisco’s FIRST BIKE PARK in McLaren Park!!! We have support from SF Recreation and Parks, and we have a lot of momentum. But this isn’t going to happen without your help.

Please go to Facebook and respond to the event:

McLaren Bike Park Community Design Meeting #1, June 18th, Crocker Amazon Clubhouse. MAP LINK.

If you can come, you’ll not only be supporting the park, but you’ll get to throw in your two cents on what you’d like to see built. Either way, please let your friends and colleagues know what’s happening and ask them to spread the news. We want all of your great ideas, and we need to fill the room with excited bike enthusiasts.

Check out a brief post about our progress and the first meeting here:

http://mclarenbikepark.org/2011/06/01/lets-design-a-bike-park/

Find us on facebook here:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/McLaren-Bike-Park/355861728763

Thank you for your support!!! See you June 18th at the Crocker Amazon Clubhouse at 1:00pm!!!

Contact: info@sfurbanriders.org

That all has changed at the Colonnade, thanks to the efforts of their local bike club, the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance.

While it was something that didn’t happen overnight, through their dedicated efforts and the aid of the community, they succeeded in creating a major success story. This dead urban space is now a draw for the local community, and also brings in mountain bikers from all over, bolstering the local economy. It now is a destination on the local bike path, and also features a dog park for local community residents.

There is much we can take from the example of Seattle. It clearly is possible to create an urban riding destination, and a safe place for children as well as riders and enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels. Let’s remember to shoot for the sky- there is no reason San Francisco shouldn’t be the next major city known for its urban riding opportunities. We have a great need for a place to ride for all user groups in the cycling family, and we can and will make it happen.

Here is a great documentary on the I-5 Colonnade Project:

For another great feature on the Seattle Skills Park, click here

As they spin around and through, the children’s faces lit up with enthusiasm and glee, grew focused and intense as they focused on riding the line, or just focused on riding.  It was a non-stop whirlwind of children playing through our home-made skills park, loving every minute of it.  Some fell down, all got back up.  Some rode fast, and others slow.  None needed encouragement.  They saw the teeter totters, the new bunny hop obstacle, and the 2×4 skills boxes, and just rode.  Over, and over, and over again.

Once again, SF Urban Riders brought a mountain bike skills course to the most important cycling demographic in existence today.  They perhaps are not the biggest group in terms of dollars spent or policies made, but certainly in terms of our future: The children.

With more space than we previously had available, a baseball diamond track was used as our backdrop, and inbetween the bases, we set up the skills course.  Many mothers fathers, and children were returnees from our first foray at the Excelsior festival, many were just passing by, and overall, we had more than 100 sign-ins, mostly youth that enjoyed our set up.

Truly this is the type of entertainment and physical activity that our children don’t get enough of.  This was more than evident as many children stayed on, pedaling non stop around the course for 1-2 hours.  It amazes me how children just know how to have fun on these courses.  Very few needed, or wanted, any coaching, and if they weren’t riding, would just watch the other children ride before they followed to imitate.

In a land that is filling up with strip malls, paved highways, and housing developments,  don’t you think it is time we created some fine opportunities for ourselves and our children in our parks?  Thanks for reading, and stay tuned to this website to find out how you can help, as SF Urban Riders moves forward through 2008, and into 2009, working hard to bring the children, both young and old, off road cycling recreation, within our fine City.

Check out the video!

SF urban rider staff were on hand to show kids and adults the ropes, explain our mission and why McLaren park would be a fantastic site for a bike park with skills based features, singletrack, and much much more.

It was truly amazing to see the enthusiasm with which children jumped towards these challenging balance beams and obstacles.  Smiles were on everyone’s faces, young and old alike as they romped through our temporary playground.  Over 75 children participated in the event, and every child had at least one parent with them, often two.  That’s nearly 200 people we’re pretty sure will vote for a bike park when the time comes.

Yappity yappity yappity.  I’ll now let the pictures speak for themselves.  And if you’re reading this, and are wishing you were out there, seeing what we’re all about, meeting the handsome devils (and she-devils) that organize and run this organization, than wish no more, and come out to Crocker Amazon’s Pilarcitos Cross race 10/19/08.  Details HERE