Bristol Brewing held the Incline Friends Karma Hour fund raiser Tuesday evening. They donated $1 of every pint to the Incline Friends. It was crowded while I was there. It was good seeing people I know and meeting some other Manitou Incline lovers.
Other ways to help the Incline Friends is to join them, donate using the donate link on their website or putting money into the tube at the bottom of the Incline.
Here are some photos from the Incline Friends Karma Hour.
Last week President Obama signed the law clearing up the railway right-of-way issue with the Manitou Incline. The Colorado Springs council also passed the needed resolution for legalizing the Incline for hiking. The only step remaining to legalizing the Incline is a resolution by the Manitou Springs city council. Manitou Springs council is expected to vote on January 29th.
Although I think there are plans to do more than is needed, I noticed several loose ties when I hiked the Incline yesterday. Stabilizing some sections need to be done soon or more work will need to be done. The Incline Friends are tasked with raising money to repair and maintain the Incline.
Total cost to implement the Incline Management Plan will run about $1 million, and the Incline Friends need $200,000 of that by the first week of March to meet a critical grant deadline. They expect much of it to come from private donors, but not all of it.
There are a few ways to help the Incline Friends raise money. Tomorrow night there’s a fun one. The Incline Friends Karma Hour will be at Bristol Brewery (1647 S. Tejon) from 5 to 9 PM Tuesday, Jan. 15. Bristol will donate $1 to the Incline Friends for every pint sold. Click here for more on the Incline Friends Karma Hour.
Other ways to help the Incline Friends is to join them, donate using the donate link on their website or putting money into the tube at the bottom of the Incline.
Below are some photos from hiking the Manitou Incline on December 16, 2012. It has become a tradition for people to hang Christmas ornaments on one of the trees at the top of the Incline. With the dry winter there was very little snow on the Incline itself or Barr Trail in December. With the cold and little snow of the last couple weeks, there was more snow on it yesterday afternoon and more fell overnight.
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After 4 years and much hard work by many people the Manitou Incline is expected to be legal for hiking on February 1st, 2013. The U.S. Senate approved a bill clearing up the railway right of way issue for the Incline late Sunday. Sen. Michael Bennet pushed the bill in the Senate and Rep. Doug Lamborn led the effort in the House where the bill passed back in July.
The Manitou Incline management plan identified 13 key steps to complete before the Incline could be made legal. Now that all of those steps have been taken, the only things remaining are for Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs to pass resolutions making hiking it legal. The Colorado Springs City Council is expected to vote on the resolution at its meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 8. Manitou Springs has indicated it will vote on resolution during a Special Meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 29.
“As we look at closing this chapter of the process with a vote to legalize the Incline from the City of Colorado Springs and the City of Manitou Springs’ City Councils, we can begin the next chapter in our process – improving the Incline,” said Sarah Bryarly, Landscaping Architect and Project Manager for the City of Colorado Springs.
The Incline Friends is the non-profit tasked with fundraising for improving the Incline and have been a big part of legalizing the Incline. Incline Friends will need your help in a major fundraising push. Total cost to implement the plan will run about $1 million and they need $200,000 of that by the first week of March to meet a critical grant deadline. They expect much of this to come from private donors but not all of it.
They’ll start with the Incline Friends Karma Hour, 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 15 at Bristol Brewery (1647 S. Tejon). Bristol will donate $1 to the Incline Friends for every pint sold.
In the meantime, I’d like to encourage you to join Incline Friends and/or make an online contribution (find the PayPal “Donate” link on the main page of the Incline Friends website.) There’s also a donation tube at the bottom of the Incline that you can throw in a buck or more when you hike the Incline.
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Here’s a list of outdoor and cycling related deals for Black Friday and through the weekend to Cyber Monday. Some of the deals are already available and some are just on Black Friday or Cyber Monday so check the details.
A couple big deals are 40% off regular priced items and 20% off sale items at Konasports and up to 30% off at Sierra Trading Post. See list below for coupon codes. The list is alphabetical by store name.
Backcountry.com is running a few different sales through 11/28/12 with up to 70% off and includes free 2-day shipping on $50+ orders.
Take an extra 20% off orders over $50 including bikes and frames through Sunday with code 72635. Some exclusions. Free shipping on Monday and Tuesday with code 43841 on orders over $25.
25% off Rab, Patagonia, Brooks Range & ISIS. 20% Off All Ice Climbing Gear. Free shipping and free returns on all orders. Deals run Thursday through Monday.
Spend $125 and Get $25 OFF Your Next Order & Free Shipping. Offer Expires 11/26 at Midnight.
15% Off Sitewide on Snowboard and Ski Apparel and Accessories and More.
Save up to 50% on The North Face + Free Shipping over $75. Good through 12/1/12.
Up to 80% off bike and outdoor gear.
Save an Extra 20% Off Select The North Face Items through 12/3 while supplies last, with promo code: tnfsale. Free Shipping on orders over $49!
Lots of great bike and bike accessory deals.
Get 40% of regular priced with coupon code BCW40 and 20% off sale items with code BCW20. Excludes UGG, Oakley and Nixon . Free 2 day priority shipping in the US excluding oversize items. Click here to visit Konasports.
Save 20% on almost everything at Moosejaw. No code necessary! Deal excludes some brands. Ends 11/25/12.
30% Off Cycling Apparel – Jerseys, Jackets & More! Sale runs through Monday.
Door busters in every category including bikes. Take an extra 20% off items other than door busters and bikes. Ends Sunday. $20 off orders over $100 on Monday.
Extra 20% off sale items on Monday with coupon code CYBMON12. Excludes skis, ski boots and ski bindings.
Up to 70% Off Snowboards, Skis, Outerwear, and much more through Monday. Click here to see.
Biggest Sale of the Season – Up to 50% Off thousands of bike items.
Save on Gear with REI’s Cyber Monday Deals! Online only at REI.com. Save 50% on all REI Brand Outerwear for Men, Women, Kids on Friday only.
Get 20% off custom ski poles and free shipping with coupon code cybersoul.
30% Off All Patagonia Clothing for Black Friday-Cyber Monday AND Get Free Shipping Too. Ends Monday. Also check their sale page.
Get the best prices of the year Monday only. Expires 11/27/2012 At 8:00AM PST.
20% Off Almost Everything for Running, Cycling & Swimming + Free Shipping over $75 w/ code: BLACKFRIDAY20. Ends Monday night.
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The next Master Plan meeting for Red Rocks Open Space, Section 16 and White Acres is tonight at 6:30. It is being held at the Westside Community Center, 1628 W. Bijou St. The focus of tonight’s meeting is trails.
Info on trails in the areas and other information on the Master Plan process is posted on the Colorado Springs website. The schedule of future meetings for those open spaces is also posted there.
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Update 2/28/12: Both Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs city councils unanimously approved the IGA for the Incline. That’s 2 more big steps climbed but there are many more including an act of Congress before the Incline can be legallly opened.
Today is a critical day in the legalization of the Manitou Incline for hiking or running for those that can. Both Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs will be voting on the inter-governmental agreement for managing the Incline. It is far from certain that the agreement will be approved by Manitou at this time. Keep reading to learn what you can do to help.
Manitou residents are unhappy with the traffic and parking issues. Some on the Manitou Springs City Council feel they are being forced into allowing Incline hikers because it would be difficult to stop people at this point. They also want to find a way to make Incline users to pay to use it.
The Incline Friends was created for fundraising to avoid the liability issues with charging. Not charging also removes the hassle of needing to pay when you get there and needing someone to collect fees. The plan was hammered out with input from many people and hours of people’s time. Now it’s dragged on for so long that new people think they have a better way without understanding why the plan is the way it is or they’re getting greedy.
The Manitou Springs Council special packet has the inter-governmental agreement that spells out who will be responsible for what. In general Colorado Springs is responsible for the trailhead creation and maintenance. They also are responsible for much of the maintenance of the Incline itself. They also work with the Incline Friends to raise money and apply for grants. Manitou is responsible for parking and traffic control.
There’s an interesting poll on Pikes Peak Sports about paying to park and/or hike the Incline. Out There Colorado also has a pay for the Incline poll.
From the Incline Friends
Thank you for taking an interest in the Incline. The Incline Friends now need your help!
The Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) is scheduled to be reviewed February 28 by both Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs City Councils. This is a very important document. Both city councils must approve the IGA before the Incline can be made legal and open to the public.
Here is what we need from you:
If you live in Manitou Springs – Please contact your local City Council member and encourage them to approve the agreement on February 28. Here is the message you can send (copy and paste into an e-mail):
“In order to make the Incline sustainable and legal and address the ongoing parking and traffic impacts to Manitou Springs , we will need all parties working together to make the Incline an asset for our community, Colorado Springs and the Pikes Peak region.
A key component noted in the Intergovernmental Agreement is parking regulations and a residential parking plan for Ruxton Ave. and the surrounding neighborhoods, to manage the parking and traffic.
Other components include establishing a trailhead at the base of the Incline, addressing the unsafe conditions on the Incline, fixing and maintaining the surrounding and interconnected trail system including the Barr Trail and managing the overall use of the Incline.
Please consider signing the IGA on Feb. 28. As a resident of Manitou Springs, I understand that the alternative to not moving forward with the Incline is the status quo which is not acceptable. People in large numbers (350,000 – 500,000 trips per year) will continue to use the Incline and the City of Manitou Springs can benefit from these visitors visiting our businesses and contributing to our sales and tax base.
To do nothing is not an option! Nobody likes the situation as it Is, so collaboration and cooperation with other key stakeholders is critical. If we don’t’ do anything now, it will only get worse!”
Manitou Springs City Council contacts:
Mayor Marc Snyder – msnyder@comsgov.com
Donna Ford, At large – dford@comsgov.com
Randy Hodges, At large – rhodges@comsgov.com
Gary Smith, At large – gsmith@comsgov.com
Michael Gerbig, Ward 1 – mgerbig@comsgov.com
Coreen Toll, Ward 2 – ctoll@comsgov.com
Matt Carpenter, Mayor Pro-Tem, Ward 3 – mcarpenter@comsgov.com
All members can be reached @ 719-385-5481
__________________________________________________________________________________If you live in Colorado Springs – Please contact your local City Council member and encourage them to approve the agreement on February 28th. Here is the message you can send (copy and paste into an e-mail):
“In order to make the Incline sustainable and legal and address the ongoing parking and traffic impacts to Manitou Springs, we will need all parties working together to make the Incline an asset for Colorado Springs, Manitou Springs and the Pikes Peak region.
The Intergovernmental Agreement will address Incline parking and traffic issues, establishing a trailhead at the base of the Incline, addressing the unsafe conditions on the Incline, fixing and maintaining the surrounding and interconnected trail system including the Barr Trail and managing the overall use of the Incline.
Please consider signing the IGA on Feb. 28. As a resident of Colorado Springs, I understand that the alternative to not moving forward with the Incline is the status quo which is not acceptable. People in large numbers (350,000 – 500,000 trips per year) will continue to do the incline and our entire community can benefit from having this unique treasure available to locals and visitors.
Please don’t lose this opportunity to move this process forward.”
Colorado Springs City Council contacts:
Merv Bennett, At-Large – mbennett@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5469
Lisa Czelatdko, District 3 – lczelatdko@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5470
Angela Dougan, District 2 – adougan@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5493
Scott Hente, President – shente@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5487
Bernie Herpin, District 4 – bherpin@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5492
Tim Leigh, At-Large – tleigh@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5483
Jan Martin, President Pro-Tem – jmartin@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5486
Val Snider, At-Large – vsnider@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5485
Brandy Williams, At-Large – bwilliams@springsgov.com
(719) 385-5491
Thank you for helping move this process forward for the benefit of all.
Currently making the Manitou Incline legal is progressing well and the Incline could be officially open by summer. The Incline Friends is the group that is raising funds to help implement the Manitou Incline Site Development and Management Plan. They are having a membership drive 6 PM to 9 PM. Wednesday, Jan. 25, at Phantom Canyon Brewery.
Members of the Incline Friends committee will be on hand to provide updated information about the legalization process and where the project currently stands.
Community members are encouraged to join Incline Friends, the nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds, public education and volunteer coordination for the Manitou Incline. Membership cost is $35 per year. All who join will receive a new Incline Friends tech T-shirt. And Phantom Canyon has promised to buy a beer for the first 50 who join.
If you can’t make it to the membership drive at Phantom Canyon, you can join the Incline Friends online.
All 397 national parks across the country are offering free admission this weekend, January 14 through 16, to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Fee waiver includes: entrance fees, commercial tour fees, and transportation entrance fees. Other fees such as reservation, camping, tours, concession and fees collected by third parties are not included unless stated otherwise.
Camping probably isn’t on most people list of things to do at National Parks in snowy parts of the country for these free days but there’s still plenty to do in winter. Many National Parks such as Rocky Mountain National Park, Yellowstone and Yosemite are good for snowshoeing and cross country skiing.
More free National Park days in 2012
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Another endurance movie showing is coming to Colorado Springs and it benefits the Incline Friends. The new documentary “Unbreakable: The Western States 100,” is showing at Stargazers Theatre on December 7th at 7 PM. Doors open at 6 p.m. and top ultra runners Anton Krupicka, Geoff Roes and Anita Ortiz will be there.
The film by Journeyfilm’s JB Benna follows the footsteps of four extraordinary athletes, including Krupicka and Roes of Boulder, as they prepare for the 2010 race and the daunting challenge of running 100 miles across the Sierra Nevada, some of the most rugged country in the western United States. On race day you’ll join the runners shoulder-to-shoulder as they push their limits above timberline, and then risk life and limb on hell-bent descents.
This is a must see for anyone who dreams of striding across the sky to greet the sunrise.
The evening will be topped with a question and answer discussion with Krupicka, Roes and Ortiz, some of the top ultra runners in the world. Roes won the Western States 100 in 2010, while Ortiz claimed the women’s title in 2009. Krupicka, who attended Colorado College, is a two-time winner of the Leadville 100.
Tickets cost $10 and will be available at Mountain Chalet, 226 N. Tejon St.; Colorado Running Company, 833 N. Tejon St., and 9275 N. Union Blvd, Ste. 120; and Carmichael Training Systems, 600 S. 21st St., No. 100. Tickets will also be available for $10 the day of the show, but it’s wise to purchase them early. Tickets are also available online for $11 at imATHLETE.com.
The event is a fundraiser for Incline Friends, the organization created to help implement the Manitou Incline Site Development and Management Plan and open the Incline to the public. Although it still isn’t legal to hike the Manitou Incline, the Incline Friends are working to educate users, build relationships with other groups and residents who use and live near the Incline, and organize volunteer work days.
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Update: 2012 Black Friday/Cyber Monday Bike and Outdoor Deals
Alli Sports
On Black Friday they are offering 20% off all orders (including sale items) plus free ground shipping with code turkeys. Then on Cyber Monday they’ll have 30% off all regular price items plus free ground shipping with coupon code interweb.
Backcountry.com
Black Friday Sale at Backcountry.com – Up To 50% off plus Free 2-Day Shipping On Orders Over $50.
Bike Nashbar
Take 20% extra off orders over $50 including bikes and frames on Black Friday only. Use coupon code 48572. Some exclusions apply.
CampSaver
At CampSaver.com’s Black Friday Sale you can save up to 70% OFF with some great Door Buster Deals! Awesome savings on climbing gear, footwear, gloves, tents, packs, clothing and much more! Plus 15-20% OFF 20,000 items sitewide! And to top it off, these sale prices will be good through Monday.
Department of Goods
Black Friday they will have 100’s of items at least 60% off. For Cyber Monday they will have 72 items 72% off for 72 hours.
DogFunk
DogFunk’s Black Friday sale includes deep discounts of Up to 50% across 1,000’s of products. Plus they have FREE 2-DAY SHIPPING on $50 orders.
Eastern Mountain Sports
Take 20% Off (Almost) Everything at EMS.com through Monday.
GiantNerd
Get An Additional 15% Off Complete Bikes At Giantnerd.com. Use Coupon Code 15BM At Checkout. Expires 11/28/2011 At 11:59PM MST.
Half Moon Outfitters
Half Moon Outfitters is having a large sale on such brands as Patagonia, Smartwool, Marmot, Arc’Teryx, Horny Toad, Columbia Sportswear, and Mountain Hardwear. Hurry Sale ends on 11/29/11! Free shipping on items over $49! Also get 20% off on Smartwool Hats, Scarves, and Gloves when you enter the promo code wooliscool through 12/6/11.
Icebreaker
30% off all black product and 15% off everything else plus free shipping. Black Friday Only. Cyber Monday Special – Save 20% on all items in the Icebreaker Gift Guide. Plus FREE SHIPPING on all orders! Valid from 12:01 am EST 11/28 until 11:59pm PST 11/28. This offer cannot be combined with other coupons, discounts or promotions.
Jenson USA
Killer deals on bikes and accessories at Jenson USA through Monday.
KonaSports
KonaSports has 16% off bmx bikes with code XMASBMX16, 40% off apparel, sunglasses and watches that aren’t on sale with code BF40SALE and 30% off all sale items with code BF30SALE (excludes over sized).
LeftLane Sports
50% Off Ahnu Hiking Footwear And Trail Running Shoes. Ends 11/30.
MooseJaw
Take 30% Off All Vibram FiveFingers Running Shoes at Moosejaw.com through 11/27. No code needed. Get free Moosejaw e-Gift Card with any item over $99 with coupon code FREEGC. Some brands excluded. Ends 12/4.
Mountains Plus
Thanks-Gearing Sale UP TO 40% OFF at Mountains Plus. Expires 11/30!
Nantahala Outdoor Center
Monday get 30% Off All Patagonia At Nantahala Outdoor Center. Add Items To Cart To See The Discount Applied. Expires 11/28/2011 At 11:59PM EST.
Outdoor DIVAS
Receive 20% off ALL PrAna.
Performance Bike
20% off almost everything until 2 PM on Black Friday. Excludes Black Friday deals and outlet bikes.
Monday get $20 off purchases of $100 or more. No code needed.
Pro Board Shop
Take an Additional 10% Off All Skullcandy Heaphones & Earbuds at Proboardshop.com with coupon code skullcandy10 on Monday. Shop Proboardshop.com for Up to 70% Off.
River Sports Outfitters
20% off Cascade Designs-Therm-A-Rest, MSR, Seal-Line, Platypus and Tracks and 30% off Mountain Hardwear Kelvinator Jackets. Good through Monday.
Rock/Creek Outfitters
15-50% off at Rock/Creek’s Hiking & Camping Sale plus FREE Shipping over $49.
Snowboards.net
20% off skiing and snowboarding accessories through Monday. Some exclusions.
Summit Online
20% off skiing and snowboarding accessories through Monday. Some exclusions.
Tahoe Mountain Sports
Get 10-30% off all the new Patagonia Jackets, Pants and Fleece. Sale ends Monday 11/28 at midnight.
TriVillage
TriVillage is kicking off the Holiday Season with a 20% Sale from today through Monday, November 28th at midnight. Use coupon code BLACKFRIDAY to save 20% on hundreds of popular gift items for swimmers, cyclists, runners and triathletes.
If you need some gift ideas, I have gift guides from last couple years and most of the items will still make great gifts. I plan on posting updated gift ideas soon.
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