The Halls of Congress

Jim & I had the pleasure of going to Washington DC in March to attend the annual National Bike Summit. The biggest ever, 500 bicyclists attended, over 60 of those were IMBA members! Thanks to Bikes Belong, our reg fees were reduced. Thanks to FATRAC a portion of our fees were also covered. Off we went to ask for better funding for our National Forests and BLM programs. The National Park Service was a specific "ask" since a new Centennial Project will be highlighting several projects that might be good for mountain biking. A new thing for the NPS, IMBA is working closely with this federal agency which historically has prohibited mountain bikes on single track. Jim & I appreciate FATRAC's donation to make our trip to the Halls of Congress easier. Meetings were set up for us...we headed to Congressman Doolittle's office first. His legislative aide was probably looking for a new job as the congressman is in his final months of service. Still, he listened to our message about access to backcountry trails and providing facilities for the youth back home in the District. Jim & I used Southwest Airline vouchers, and did a "home stay" using the guest bedroom of a local bicycle advocate. This way we kept costs to a minimum. We really encourage other FATRACers to attend a future National Bike Summit, held in March in DC each year. You must be an IMBA member or a League of American Bicyclist member. Both awesome, valuable organizations which spend hundreds of hours in Washington when we can't be there. This is good for biking. If you have any interest in attending, just get in touch with us. Working with our elected officials brings what we learned in civics class in ninth grade a reality!!