Siskiyou Velo

Club Activities in 2022

As we approach 2023, I wish everyone health and happiness in 2023. It’s also a good time to review what our club accomplished in 2022. If you have any questions, ideas for activities in 2023, or want to get more involved, please email me at president@siskiyouvelo.org. Thank you.

2022 Summary of Siskiyou Velo Activities and Accomplishments 

• Hosted a table at the Ashland Bike Swap in April to promote our club. A few club members helped clean and fix donated bicycles to be sold at the swap. Proceeds helped fund bike education in local elementary schools.
• John Fries, Phil Kolczynski and Mark Moran highlighted with bright spray paint the bumps, cracks & other hazards on the Greenway pavement so that they are easier to see.
• Local advocacy to promote safe and enjoyable cycling:
  • Invited members to provide input about the
    • Future of Bear Creek Greenway (April and August)
    • Medford’s Wayfinding Project – improved signage (March)
    • Multi-modal study of proposed improvements for cyclists and pedestrians in downtown Medford (August)
  • Developed and distributed a petition to show community support for infrastructure along HWY 99 to improve cycling & walking in the downtown corridor. 337 people signed the petition which we presented to the Medford City Council on November 3. We are hoping that Medford will create a bike lane along one section of Main Street in 2023 when re-paving is planned.
  • SV members and board members served on Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee and the Jackson County Active Transportation Advisory Committee
• Promoted the Ride the Rogue bike ride in September
• Maintained a list on our website of organized bike rides in Oregon, Northern California and other states. https://www.siskiyouvelo.org/other-rides-and-events/ Thank you to Jeff Roberts.
• Hosted a bike corral at the Bikes ‘n Brews bike ride on October 15. Club members kept an eye on 60 bikes while their owners enjoyed lunch and the Heart of the Rogue Festival.
• Wrote and distributed a guide to hand signals for cyclists
• Created business cards with a QR code to distribute to people and merchants. If you want a few to carry with you, please contact Lisa Brill at president@siskiyouvelo.org.
• Offered 3 new levels of bike rides:
  • Easy Rider, thanks to Steve Nickel (although we need to find a new leader for 2023)
  • Thursday Hilly rides, thanks to Tony Hayes and John Fries
  • Explore Southern Oregon rides, thanks to Phil Kolczynski
• Continued offering our standard club rides – VeloMelo, Saturday Brisk, Monday coffee, Wednesday coffee ride and Fred’s rides. Many thanks to our volunteer leaders: Bob MacCracken, Dennis Cramer, Fred Stapenhorst, George Stevens, John Fries, Julie MacDiarmid, Lisa Brill, Phil Kolczynski, Richard Handler, Robin Dressler, Steve Nickel, Tony Hayes, and Viki Brown.
• Enjoyed ourselves at three social events: the June BBQ, August Ice Cream Social and December Holiday Party.

Plans for 2023 We will continue many of the club activities we initiated in 2022, and hopefully embark upon a few more. Broadly speaking, ideas for 2023 include:

• Continue community advocacy to enhance the cycling experience. We will continue to work with Medford to encourage better bicycle facilities in the OR 99 corridor through the city.
• Support standard club rides and identify a leader(s) for the EZ Rider group
• Hold at least one general meeting on a topic of interest to club members
• Write additional guidelines promoting cycling safety, rules of the road and technique
• Provide a table and/or bike corral at local bike rides offered by other organizations
• Offer social events
• Promote the Siskiyou Velo at public events
• If you have any ideas, please email Lisa Brill at president@siskiyouvelo.org

Meetings of the Board of Directors are open to members

Monthly board meetings are open to all members. They are held the fourth Tuesday of each month, 4:30 to 6:00 PM. They are held at the Medford Library and also accessible via Zoom. For details, please click here.

If you have any questions or ideas, please email me at president@siskiyouvelo.org. Thank you.

Lisa Brill, Siskiyou Velo President

Posted by Lisa Brill 3 weeks ago | 0 comments | View/Post New Comment

Phil's Frosty Ride, 12/7/22

On December 7, twelve intrepid cyclists departed on Phil’s Frosty Ride, from TouVelle Park to Shady Cove. It was 36°F and overcast, but the weather was predicted to clear in an hour. Dream on!! Dressed warmly, we persevered and had lunch at Phil’s Frosty, a local ice cream place in Shady Cove. Fortified with warmer fare (grilled cheese, fries, coffee, hot chocolate), we returned to TouVelle. The skies never cleared and the temp rose by a mere 2 degrees, but we had fun. This is a great route, and I plan to do it in warmer weather in 2023. Many thanks to Phil (wearing reindeer antlers) for creating the route and leading the ride.  https://ridewithgps.com/trips/109067180 32 miles, 1350 ft elevation gain.

Posted by Lisa Brill 1 month ago | 0 comments | View/Post New Comment

Jackson County Transportation Plan Update--Virtual Pubic Meeting Invitation

Jackson County is nearing completion of their Transportation System Plan (TSP) Update.  This document updates financial information, removes completed projects from the project list, adds projects from the Rogue Valley Active Transpiration Plan and finalizes and reprioritizes projects expected to be constructed over the next 20 years.  One of the last steps before the TSP Update is finalized and adopted is a Virtual Public Meeting which further explains the updates and presents a draft of the final document.

Jackson County would very much like to receive the public’s input prior to finalizing and adopting the TSP Update.  This VPM is now open for comment and may be found at: https://tinyurl.com/jacksonvpm-2.  Please join the Virtual Public Meeting and provide your comment.

Posted by Harlan Bittner 1 month ago | 0 comments | View/Post New Comment

Outcome of SV’s Petition Drive in Support of Bicycling and Walking

Earlier this year, the City of Medford approved funding to study improvements in bicycling, walking and other modes of active transportation in the downtown region bordered by Riverside, East Main, Central and Court Streets (see Multimodal Enhancements Study).  The study resulted in six options that would vastly improve cycling and walking in this area while maintaining adequate traffic flow, and included a variety of separated bike lanes and increased pedestrian crossings.

As part of the Multimodal Enhancements study, the city conducted a survey to determine pubic response to the options developed. The city received a surprising 700 responses.  While 200 responses were positive for the changes, we were disappointed to learn that 500 of the responses were against any changes.

So Siskiyou Velo created a petition to show support for the improvements under consideration.  We gathered 337 signatures in a short period of time through canvassing at the Heart of the Rogue Festival and placing information in bike shops, coffee shops, libraries and RCC.  We also wrote a guest opinion on this topic published October 23 in the Mail Tribune. Lisa Brill, president of Siskiyou Velo, spoke to the Medford City Council on November 3 and presented the petition to the Councilors.

We are told by city planners that the proposed improvements along East Main Street will likely be implemented in 2023 when regular maintenance of that section of road is planned.  The proposed improvements along Court, Central and Riverside are being further studied by the city.  We will keep you informed about the future plans for this area of Medford.

Thank you to all of you who took the time to read and sign the petition.

Posted by Harlan Bittner 1 month ago | 0 comments | View/Post New Comment

Holiday Party, December 3, 2022. Please RSVP.

SIskiyou Velo will celebrate the holidays, and our members, at the annual Holiday Party. It will be held on December 3rd, 6:30 PM, at the IOOF Hall in Jacksonville at 175 S Oregon Street. This is next door to Good Bean Coffee.  Please RSVP to Robin Dressler (robincdressler@gmail.com) so she has an accurate count for the caterer (Back Porch BBQ). We should be able to handle a small number of guests, so let Robin know if you want to bring someone. The venue isn’t huge so members will get preference. If turnout is similar to most events we should have room for guests.

Parking in the immediate area is limited. There is plenty of parking near the library which is only a 3-4 block walk.

We look forward to starting the holiday season with you.

Posted by Lisa Brill 1 month ago | 0 comments | View/Post New Comment