Support New Mountain Bike Trails in Big Willow

I want to share the comment below to the bike advocate groups I know, and I'd like to request your help supporting the youth of Minnetonka that spearheaded this project with help from MORC. The comment was posted on Next Door and many of the comments are a disheartening, but not surprising in the least. Please contact Kelly O’Dea (Recreation Services Director, kodea@eminnetonka.com, 952-939-8360) to voice your support for these new trails. Thank you! 

For my history, I grew up in Minnetonka about a mile from Big Willow. I was riding horseback in Big Willow in the early 1970s. As I grew older, I loved exploring the natural trails by bike and foot. In 2005, I moved back to Minnetonka about 4 miles from Big Willow. I bike Big Willow all year round, there's nothing better than cold winter ride along the banks of the Minnehaha. 

I also walk these trails with my dogs. I've had nothing but positive interactions with other park users. I can hardly say how excited I am to have quality single-track trails so close to home! I look forward to volunteering with trail maintenance and other duties with these new trails.

Here is the text of the post on Next Door:

"To all of my walking buddies and those who appreciate a quiet place to be with nature!

I saw an article in the Sun Sailor (see attachment) recently stating that Minnetonka was adding 2 new bike trails in 2018.  As I love biking, I read the article only to discover that they are considering putting 3 miles of off road mountain bike trails in Big Willow Park.  I was devastated.  Big Willow is the only place you can walk/jog on the east end of Mtka. without being next to cars or fast bikes.  It is such a beautiful treasure in the middle of suburbia – the Minnehaha Creek flows through it and there is an abundance of wildlife and natural resources.

Brad and I attended the community meeting at Mtka. City Hall last night where the Vantage Group presented their proposal to the park board and city council.  Of course, there were many people who got up to speak in favor of the project as they were the reason the meeting was called in the first place.  Many residents of Minnetonka are not even aware that these bike trails are being proposed for Big Willow.  Supporters were complaining that Theodore Wirth was the closest park with off road biking and it wasn’t always convenient to get there/drive their kids there. It sounded like the board was agreeing that this would be a good addition to our park system.  Finally, toward the end of the meeting a few residents got up and expressed their concerns about changing the ambience and tranquility of the park, along with doing damage to restoration efforts that are being done in Big Willow.  One botanist had written a very factual letter that was read at the meeting stating the reasons that off road biking would be very detrimental to the work that they are doing in Big Willow. There are some bike clubs that would like to have trails in Mtka. – which led to the parking issue as there are only about 6-8 parking spots for Big Willow Park.  There were suggestions made by opponents of other areas in the city that would not be negatively impacted and were not areas that Minnetonka was working to restore natural vegetation.  The 494 corridor and areas around  city hall were brought up for consideration.

Brad and I talked to a few park board members who were changing their tune about support of the project after listening to some of the residents speak.  They were beginning to understand that we see Big Willow as a very unique environment within a suburb that needs to be protected.  They recommended that we contact as many people as possible and have them send an e-mail or call:

Kelly O’Dea
Recreation Services Director
kodea@eminnetonka.com
952-939-8360

If the beauty and tranquility of Big Willow are important to you, please contact Kelly and let your voice be heard. Obviously, it’s close to my heart as I have been walking in Big Willow since 1980 and love having a nature area so close to home.  Michael did his Eagle project of soil erosion control along the creek in Big Willow.  Nicole worked for the city of Mtka. 2 summers ago as a tree inspector and frequently worked in Big Willow.  She taught us so much about the importance of the natural plants in that area.  Mountain bikes are loud and fast – and unfortunately, many mountain bikers don’t stick to the path or widen the path, destroying more of the natural landscape and causing problems such as erosion and opportunity for invasive species to take over.

Please pass this on to anyone you think would be interested.  Thanks for your support."

2017 Westside Dirty Benjamin - DNF

This was my forth year riding the Westside Dirty Benjamin; third year riding to/from the start/finish for the "Royal" Benjamin; and first DNF at any gravel grinder.

I must start with a huge THANK YOU to the organizers and volunteers that make this ride happen. I know that you put in a ton of work so we can go out and have a ton of fun on our bikes.

I left my house at 5:30 am to meet Kyle, Andy, Ken, and Robert in Hopkins. The ride from Hopkins to Chaska was good. I recalling saying something to Kyle about our fast pace to Chaska, it shouldn't have bothered me, but looking back, that was a first sign that my body was not full-strength.

We made the traditional stop at the Chaska McDonald's, I've been getting an Egg McMuffin with sausage before every gravel grinder for years (thanks Justin for getting me into that habit!)

When we got to the start line I was feeling good, 20-mile warm up and ready to grind some new gravel. I was really excited for the new route down to Le Sueur and back to Chaska.

I knew from the first 10 miles, I was not having a good day. I believe the flu that had taken me down over the Memorial Day weekend was still weaken me. My first flu-recovery ride was May 31; and my first (& only) aggressive-long training ride was June 6. That ride felt good, so I was optimistic... overly optimistic.

I typically ride out fast with one of the front groups, I like to use the strength of numbers to get some drafting over the first 20-30 miles. I know I'll fade off that pace as the miles go by, but it feels good to get the first miles covered fast. This year, I remember hitting the first big gravel climb and watching every other rider go past me like I was standing still.... no good. I also watched friends ride away from me that I typically ride with. Kyle and I rode LML together in March, we were evenly match most of the day and finished together. But at Benjamin, I just watched him ride away from me. BTW - Kyle is the only Royal Benjamin rider to complete the Royal this year, that was bad-ass in these conditions!

My only advantage on the day was my bike choice, I was on my drop-bar Pugsley (AKA The War Rig). The gravel was some of the softest I've ever seen on a gravel grinder. I heard reports that they added new gravel to these roads a day or two prior to the race. Most riders were sinking into fresh and sandy gravel. I watched many riders lose it in these conditions, trying to maintain control between the soft gravel and heavy winds. My 4" wide tires floated over the soft stuff, but even I sank in a couple times.

The winds were crushing and unrelenting - weather stations reported constant sustained winds of 20-25 mph with gusts up to 35+ mph (I feel like it was stronger out in the open fields). The wind was either a block headwind (see the video below) or a brutal crosswind. The wind was so strong that my typical pace of 13-16 mph on the front-end of a race was reduced to 11 mph.

The slow pace really added to another challenge: hydration. I started the ride with three full 22 oz water bottles (1 water; 1 Skratch Labs; & 1 Nuun). I was empty on all three by mile 30. The first water stop on the route was mile 47 - Rush River Park; and I'd planned to be there in about 3 to 3.5 hours. But those effing winds slowed me down so much that it took 4.5 hours to get to that water stop. Ray was a true friend and lifesaver, his company and water got me through to the Rush River Park. Ray was sharing his frame mounted CamelBak, taking off the nozzle so I could drink from the hose. I'm sure it looked funny/awkward, but I was bad shape so who cares. 2017 is the year I finally get over my issues with hydration packs, I'll be getting a 3 liter CamelBak in the near future.

The temps were quickly climbing up to 90F and past. I know my body and I need time to acclimate and train in hot temps before an endurance race, but this was our first 90+ day. The rising temps added a lot to my choice to DNF. I was feeling the early symptoms of heat stroke. I was reading this post the following day about avoiding heat stroke on endurance runs, based on these 5 points, it was clear I was going to struggle on this ride.

I've never been in such a deep and dark hole as I was on this ride. At this point, getting to Rush River Park was my one goal, it has a water pump. It was my hope that the water would helped me get some life back, to ride a little further. I tentatively planned to call my personal sag-wagon (Lisa) to pick me up in Le Sueur.... but that's 10 more miles! Ray and I rode into Rush River Park with Ray's friend Todd. When we got there we saw one other rider in the park, laying in the shade, it was Matt with Fulton. Ray checked on him and he was hurting. Ray, Todd and I drank lots of water, poured water on our heads and backs. It brought some life back, but I couldn't think of riding any further. I honestly expected to stay in that park for an hour before slow rolling the 10 miles to Le Sueur.

My eyes got big when I saw a red van pull into the park. Matt's fellow Fulton Racing teammate (sorry forgot your name) had driven down to give Matt a ride back to Chaska, They were generous enough offering me a ride back with them. All they asked in return is that I offer the next random rider help/support when they are in need.

After getting back to Chaska, I spent a while at the finish line drinking a warm BPR talking with some riders that had completed one of the shorter routes. We cheered on other riders as they came in.

Lisa and Lizz drove down to Chaska to give me a ride back home. Between the two car rides, I finished all three of my water bottle... again.

Sitting in the shade on our deck, having a beer, I pulled down my socks to see this 'grim-line'. The sunscreen and sweat made a great magnet for all the blowing sand.

A little about the bike, I picked my drop-bar Pugsley for a couple reasons, but mostly because it was ready to ride. This bike has treated me well over a number of rides, including 2016 & 2017 Almanzo 100, 2017 LML, and the 2016 Filthy 50. It's a mostly stock Pugsley with Salsa Woodchipper bars and Gevenalle shifters. I'm rolling Panaracer Fat B Nibble tires... great tires for gravel.

I'll be back for the 2018 Benjamin!