This email was in answer to my email announcement of the idea for the park. My response follows...
Sounds great! Who do I make my check out to? So. Cal. would be perfect loc. for a dedicated year round training facility for all MTB disciplines. Slalom, DH, etc. Maybe this could help us compete w/ the Euros. The east coasters still haven't discovered what an inexpensive & great MTB winter getaway LA or So. Cal. is.
I see your in the 619. Have you ever done the Julian 7500? I have (11 hours
of fun & flowers).
Stay upright,
P*
Hi!
Thanks for your feedback about the MTB proposal. My accountant says to hunker down for the long haul--this could take years. But then, I probably (possibly/maybe?) could close a deal on a 50 acre site this week with 700 feet elevation change AND possibly--financing. But I was really hoping for more--a lot more. I don't think it can be done on that size area. But I'm going to try to look at it anyway.
I've had suggestions ranging from finding an Indian tribe which would allow it on their reservation to using shuttle buses instead of a ski lift... If it isn't GREAT, the pros won't get involved, and no one will bother to come back. So, the #1 priority is to secure a big area with lots of elevation change and have it be close to a major city.
I like your idea of thinking of it as a "dedicated training facility". Also, you're right about LA being a great vacation spot anyway for East Coasters, especially in winter, and they really don't know it. AND we need a mountain bike park that would allow us to compete with Europe--our atheletes need it, especially now that MOUNTAIN BIKING IS AN OLYMPIC SPORT! (exhibition, at least, this year.)
So thanks again for your feedback and I'll keep you informed...
Sincerely,
Russell Hoffman
P.S. We haven't done the Julian 7500. I don't think I'd survive! For me, I think a 3000 foot climb in a day is about all I could survive. We do 1200 foot climbs and 15 mile rides all the time, so probably triple that would be about the limit of our endurance, I would guess. We ride so we can ride more, but our 9-5's keeps getting in the way of our training!
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