8 Years Strong

On November 30th, 2014,  the Hinton Mountain Bike Association's president, Jan Vassbotn, will be stepping down from his post.  Jan has given the club 4+ years as an executive member, with a number of those years as President. The current, and past executive, that have worked with Jan, want to give him a big THANK YOU for everything he has done to promote the HMBA, the Bike Park, and the sport of mountain biking in our region. In all honesty, it hasn't always been pretty and it hasn't always been fun, stress free work, but Jan poured heart and energy into making this club successful.  Thank You, we appreciate everything you have done!

HMBA has been very lucky!  Since starting in 2007, it has seen numerous dedicated members step up to the plate and volunteer their time on the executive and as directors and coordinators.  All these individuals deserve to be recognized!  In order of appearance between 2007 and 2014:

• Kyle Madill
• Nick Threinen
• James Claggett
• Jay Hore
• Chris Lavoie
• Stephen Hanus
• Debbie Mucha
• Ashley Kalk
• Jacquie Hore
• Mike Jodoin
• Jailin Threinen
• Tim Trahan
• Shawn Cripps
• Krista Paniec
• Jan Vassbotn

• Stacey Cherry
• Alicia Bourbeau
• Julie Duval
• Tracy Allen
• Melanie Dreyer
• Nathan Friesen
• Maria Koelbl
• Riley Beauchamp
• Kevin Myles
• Sharon Meredith
• Marie-Soleil Pinet
• Sarah Keilbach
• Mike Mahoney
• Jenn Laing

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Thanks for a great 2014 season! Our membership numbers were the highest we have ever had. Every weekend, we seemed to be meeting someone new at the Bike Park, so our amazing backyard is getting recognized as a great biking playground. Beaver Bike fest was a success and the 2 day August format may stick (we will be looking for consistency on the dates as well).

Thank you to all current and past executive, members, volunteers, and sponsors, for making this club as great as it is. It really is a great thing to be a part of.

Have a great winter and don't forget to contact us if you are interested in sitting on the board or helping with Beaver Bike Fest organizing!

HMBA jerseys and socks - Awesome gift ideas!

Are you looking for a great gift idea for that special someone ?  Are you looking for a gift that looks awesome AND benefits a biking community?  The Hinton Mountain Bike Association has rad jerseys and socks for sale - and they can be bought via our website!  

All proceeds from apparel sales goes back to HMBA and supports our various activities and events.

HMBA seeking your input on Happy Creek Trail

The HMBA would like some feedback from all trail users for our Participatory Budget project for the Happy Creek Trail boardwalk restoration... Please share some reasons why the Happy Creek trail is important to you!   It would be awesome to get some 'user' quotes for this project.   Please indicate how often you ride/hike/run/walk it.   What makes it stand apart from the other trails? Thanks everyone!

Talisman Investing in our Community, again!

Much thanks to Cody Begon and Talisman for a generous donation of $500 to HMBA! Through its 'Investing in our Community' program, Talisman gave Cody $500 to donate to his choice of group or program and he once again chose HMBA! Thanks Cody!

The cheque was presented to Jan Vassbotn, HMBA president, at the year-end BBQ for HMBA's Sprockids program at the Hinton Bike Park.

HMBA submits proposal for Hinton's Participatory Budget

HMBA has submitted a proposal for the 'Participatory Budget'. Hinton's amazing signature trail, Happy Creek, is going to need some major work done on all the bridges and wood features. We will keep you all in the loop with reminders to come down and vote when the time comes! This is not just a project that will benefit the mountain bikers, but it will benefit runners, walkers, hikers, and visitors who enjoy using this great trail!

What is Participatory Budgeting?

Participatory Budgeting is a democratic process where community members directly decide how to spend part of a public budget. It is taxpayers working with local government to make budget decisions that affect their lives. It is a different way to manage public money that engages people and government.  Click HERE for more information on this process!

Voting

Citizens of Hinton and Yellowhead County (west of Obed) over the age of 14 may vote on one of two days (a Wednesday and Saturday) by paper ballot. 
Only ONE vote per person!

Latest Trail News: 

On Monday, September 29th, a group of trail users describe the state of the boardwalks found on Happy Creek: 

“Howdy, had a man down while hiking on the Happy Creek Trail tonight. Several boards rotted through, one tipped up under foot weight. Didn’t have any tools with us and wasn’t sure how to leave this. Put rotted boards to the side, hoping the gap would be obvious to riders”

— Sarah Burns - via HMBA's facebook group page

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Photo by HMBA Member, Sarah Burns

Secure Energy Donation

HMBA sometimes takes heed of the well known quote "Good things come to those that wait!" -- So it may have taken a year to get this photo, but its a good one! Seriously, a year ago Secure Energy donated $10k to HMBA and for that we are very grateful. It took this long to be able to get both groups together for this photo opportunity, but it was nice to finally meet and be able to thank them in person.  It's because of generous donations like this from our corporate friends that projects like this summer's Skill's Area and Dirt Jump Facelift can happen, so THANK YOU to Secure Energy!

Pictured left-to-right: Jan (HMBA Prez), Jason Kazmir (Obed Manager), Laura Balcaen (Sales/Marketing), Julie (HMBA VP), Marie-Soleil (HMBA Treasurer) and Kevin (HMBA Trails/Operations).

AFD Gravity Cup Update: Event Cancelled

Recent weather conditions forces this weekend's event to be cancelled.

Post by AFD Racing.

Dirt Jam Under the Lights - Saturday September 13!

Thank you The Hinton Voice Inc. and Oui Print for donating this awesome poster!   And thank you to Jules Oilfield for sponsoring the big lights!!  Don't forget to check out AFD Racing .

2014 Bike Hinton Campaign - Sponsor Recognition

The Hinton Mountain Bike Association would like to thank the following sponsors for their support in all of or in part with bikehinton.com website sponsorship, Bike Hinton Giveaway prizes, 2014 Trails Map, and promotion of Alberta's Mountain Bike Mecca!

Beaver Bike Fest Results are in!

Click to view the 2014 Beaver Bike Fest Results!

Sign up for the AFD Gravity Cup - Earlybird Special ends August 22!

Early Bird Registration for the AFD Racing Gravity Cup in Hinton ends Friday, August 22nd! Be sure to sign up! ‪#‎bikehinton‬!

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More Great Support From Local Businesses

Thanks to The Hinton Voice and Ouiprint for designing and printing this awesome poster!

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Amazing Support For Beaver Bike Fest!

We are 5 days away from our signature event and the Hinton Mountain Bike Association has had amazing support from local and regional businesses!

• Hinton Luge Association
• Scooper Dooper and The Gourmet Lunchbox

Bike Hinton Giveaway Winner Announced!

The winner for the Bike Hinton Giveaway on facebook was drawn today.  The lucky winner is Sarah Burns!!  Congratulations Sarah!  We hope you enjoy your prizes from these local sponsors!

Dinner for two ($50 value)

Two pairs of HMBA socks

Town of Hinton goodies

Two nights stay

Lunch for two ($25 value)

Two hard-tail bike rentals

2014 Map of Hinton Mountain Bike Trails Now Available!

The latest map edition (2014) to Hinton's Mountain Bike Trails is hot of the press this week!  Maps will be freely available at the Hinton Visitor Information Centre and local bike shops!

Click on the image above to open the full map pdf (11 Mb).  Hinton Bike Park trails included.  See below for low resolution images.

A big THANK YOU to our sponsors that helped support the creation of this map!

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Low Resolution Image of Map Front

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Low Resolution Image of Map Back

Hinton Bike Park - Refreshed!

In the early evening of Friday, August 1st - Jay Hoots and his wonderful hard-working crew were packing up after a full & dedicated week at reshaping the park's Skills Area, (mini) Pump Track and Dirt Jumps.   Their love for our park can be seen in the great work they've done.  Big thanks are also shouted out to all the volunteers that came out to give a hand!!

The Happy Creek Bike Park was also given some TLC and has surely seen lots of action since!

A BIG THANK YOU to all the Hinton Mountain Bike Association's sponsors!!!

• Mark Deagle Log Home Builders;
• Hinton Home Hardware;
• The Cat Rental Store;
• Wolverine Integrated Resource Management (Terry Dodge);
• Lakeview Inn & Suites; and
• The Town of Hinton

Make sure to explore the park in the next few weeks and get ready to participate in the upcoming 5th Annual Beaver Bike Fest on August 23 & 24th!