In light of that, we have some current updates we want to share with you pertaining to FWD and the direction we're going next year.
Membership-
We have acquired 22 members to Fearless Women of Dirt. Memberships will officially open up on January 1st. We plan to do a suggested $20.00 minimum donation for membership, but if folks want to donate more they sure can.
Decorah Bicycles will not be hosting their annual Bike Month fundraiser, instead they will have a donation box out during most of the year to collect money for DHPT.
The fundraiser has been successful, but over the past 2 years it’s been more difficult to gather donations. Especially from those out of town. Folks have also asked when and where to donate to the trails during the year. We figure some may be inclined to donate smaller amounts more often if they had a place to do so.
For FWD sponsors, we have the same fantastic lineup of Impact Coffee, Sugar Bowl Ice Cream, and Pulpit Rock Brewery. Same gist for their perks. Pulpit Rock after scheduled rides and Sugar Bowl will be active May-August. Decorah Bicycles discount of 15% for all active members.
If there is a local business you think would be fun to work with or on board with FWD, please share!
FWD Night for 2019
Thinking Tuesday, April 30th
Try having a bike ride start at 5 p.m.? Just social from 6-8? Keep it 7-9?
Hold the social at bike shop or make it more casual? End of season women's night?
Hold the social at bike shop or make it more casual? End of season women's night?
FWD Rides-
Structure for the FWD rides will be changing until the Carlson Property trails are officially built.
We will not have beginner-focused rides regularly.
We will not have kids rides scheduled in advance.
Structure for the FWD rides will be changing until the Carlson Property trails are officially built.
We will not have beginner-focused rides regularly.
We will not have kids rides scheduled in advance.
We may have rides for these two categories on a sporadic basis depending on schedules.
1st Wednesday and 1st Sunday of the month will be p.m. rides for intermediate/advanced riders.
We will start our Wednesday ride at 6:30 p.m. due to the difficulty of being able to leave right at 6 p.m.
Sunday ride will go on as planned- but I will no longer (at this time) offer morning rides.
May 4th - should be International Women’s Mountain Bike Day. It would be cool to have a Saturday morning ride and a Saturday p.m. ride.
Josie can lead one at 5:30 p.m.
This will be intermediate/advanced rider focused.
May 11th- Skill building Saturday starting at 5:30 p.m.
Instead of “beginner” rides, Our aim is to have a couple of skill building days. This will provide a foundation for those who are new to mountain biking and need to learn the basics. This will also help us as more experienced riders to be mindful of our technique. Literally, we will learn together.
There will be a renewed focus on integrating more new riders once we have a new trail system.
Josie talks about restructure-
The learning curve is steep with our current trail setup, and it takes a lot of gumption to stick with it as a new rider. It’s also challenging to set aside time to create rides and not have folks show up.
Ideally, we’d have a group for experienced riders and a group for newer, less experienced riders. Both groups would have a sweep and a ride lead. We typically do not have enough riders joining our rides to accomplish that.
It’s been too challenging to have such a diverse mix of riders show up at one time and it creates an unfair situation for all of those involved. We do not have the ideal setup to handle the mix of riders we currently get, nor do we have a great setup on legitimately introducing new riders to mountain bike trails without a steep learning curve.
For 2019 our rides will be intermediate/advanced focused with some all-levels welcome skill rides thrown in for good measure.
We will have two rides happening once a month- this might help drive up attendance.
This will also allow me to be free enough to have one-on-one rides with folks newer to riding.
Anyone joining our rides is expected to have had at least one season of mountain biking under their belt or a handful of rides with our FWD Ambassadors or myself to give the “all clear” to participate.
Currently I see 2019 as a focus on building relationships with women mountain bikers from other areas, and possibly collaborating together for rides. I am going to pursue expanding Fearless Women of Dirt into other communities while slowly increasing visibility in the Decorah area.
Amy- Fearless Women of Dirt Cedar Valley
Currently into Des Moines and Chicago for 2019.
1st Wednesday and 1st Sunday of the month will be p.m. rides for intermediate/advanced riders.
We will start our Wednesday ride at 6:30 p.m. due to the difficulty of being able to leave right at 6 p.m.
Sunday ride will go on as planned- but I will no longer (at this time) offer morning rides.
May 4th - should be International Women’s Mountain Bike Day. It would be cool to have a Saturday morning ride and a Saturday p.m. ride.
Josie can lead one at 5:30 p.m.
This will be intermediate/advanced rider focused.
May 11th- Skill building Saturday starting at 5:30 p.m.
Instead of “beginner” rides, Our aim is to have a couple of skill building days. This will provide a foundation for those who are new to mountain biking and need to learn the basics. This will also help us as more experienced riders to be mindful of our technique. Literally, we will learn together.
There will be a renewed focus on integrating more new riders once we have a new trail system.
Josie talks about restructure-
The learning curve is steep with our current trail setup, and it takes a lot of gumption to stick with it as a new rider. It’s also challenging to set aside time to create rides and not have folks show up.
Ideally, we’d have a group for experienced riders and a group for newer, less experienced riders. Both groups would have a sweep and a ride lead. We typically do not have enough riders joining our rides to accomplish that.
It’s been too challenging to have such a diverse mix of riders show up at one time and it creates an unfair situation for all of those involved. We do not have the ideal setup to handle the mix of riders we currently get, nor do we have a great setup on legitimately introducing new riders to mountain bike trails without a steep learning curve.
For 2019 our rides will be intermediate/advanced focused with some all-levels welcome skill rides thrown in for good measure.
We will have two rides happening once a month- this might help drive up attendance.
This will also allow me to be free enough to have one-on-one rides with folks newer to riding.
Anyone joining our rides is expected to have had at least one season of mountain biking under their belt or a handful of rides with our FWD Ambassadors or myself to give the “all clear” to participate.
Currently I see 2019 as a focus on building relationships with women mountain bikers from other areas, and possibly collaborating together for rides. I am going to pursue expanding Fearless Women of Dirt into other communities while slowly increasing visibility in the Decorah area.
Amy- Fearless Women of Dirt Cedar Valley
Currently into Des Moines and Chicago for 2019.
I think your plan of having skills-focuses sessions for the noobs is a great idea. Giving them the tools to attempt a technical trail makes sense! Maybe you do this in a structured way with a goal date of X where the new riders go ride as a group after so many sessions.
ReplyDeleteThat is the goal :)
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