How did you find out about MORC?

[berrywise]

I honestly can't recall how I found out about it. I can remember moving up to the Twin Cities from Winona and I believe Bill Hall might have mentioned it to me becauase shortly thereafter we both attended a board meeting at REI. From there it was on to the website and after hanging out in the forums that where it really got me pumped up to start involving myself with the local trail building and other aspects of Morc.

What's your story?

[gopherhockey]

When I moved to the cities I lived downtown St. Paul, so I rode out to Battle Creek all the time. One day some one-way signs showed up there and they had MORC stickers on them. The stickers had no web site or phone numbers so all I knew was there was a group called MORC but didn't know how to join. Eventually I found Jan Lee's review of Lebanon on another web site and contacted him.. he got me in touch with Tim and Dale and the rest is history.

[ppgc]

I was looking on the internet(google) for other trails and maps in the metro and found the website. After lurking for a while I decided to join the forums and then give up some $$.

[SuperClydesdale]

I got "cornered" by Tim in the parking lot of Lebanon Hills a couple of years ago and he explained the who/what/why of MORC. Sent in my membership app a few days later.

Mark

[Paul Swenson]

After I moved back from NYC in the summer 2003 I started riding Lebanon. It had been years since I had last been out there and was amazed how much the place had improved. I noticed MORC on one of the signs and was interested in who was responsible for the vast improvements. I joined shortly after I googled it.

[Aaroneous]

I was looking on the internet(google) for other trails and maps in the metro and found the website. After lurking for a while I decided to join the forums and then give up some $$.

This is my story exactly. I just feel stupid I lived in the area for like 5 years before I bothered to plug "mtb trails minneapolis" into Google.

[bike>>rider]

I either saw the newsletter or a poster at an Erik the Bikeman store

[ppgc]

This is my story exactly. I just feel stupid I lived in the area for like 5 years before I bothered to plug "mtb trails minneapolis" into Google.

Same here, about 5 years. After I got lost in the river bottoms mid summer in the tall weeds and itch weed, I was like, there has to be a gosh darn map online. :)

[Beau]

The internet.

[Thewavebb]

I googled it a few years ago when I was just getting into riding and wanted to find decent trails in the Metro area.

[funky-funky-chicken]

Stopped riding off road when I had kids. Went for a ride a couple of summers ago after about 5 years having been away. I was so impressed with the improvements and changes made to Lebanon Hills in that time, that I just had to find out who was responsible.

I read the sign down at LH and I sent in a membership application as more of just a contribution before ever really getting "involved." I hope to participate more, but a variety of things conspire against me.

[mara]

My Esteemed Boss had been giving money to MORC every year, but I didn't pay much attention until the first Spring Cup after I'd started mountain biking. I was volunteering. They were spreading the gospel and asking people to become members. Three or four variations of my name on membership cards later, here I am. And if people mess my name up now, I know they're just doing it to annoy me :p

[JBergland]

Mostly through what has developed at Lebanon Hills.

JB

[Magic]

I owe my knowledge and start with MORC to Don Y. He and I had some run in's at Battle Creek in the early days. As time went on, I decided to join the fight instead of fighting the fight. Next came helping out at Leb. and getting to know John L. and crew. That's how it all went down.

[mech_e]

I had a friend who got me to ride a trail along the Milwaukee River in Milwaukee, WI. Then, there was a cyclling club I participated in down in Rolla, MO. I figured there must be a group of people that did similar things around here. A little time with google, and voila. Is there anything google can't find?

[waitabit]

Through Dennis Porter and "Stan Beaver", aka Dan Cheever.

[guest_s]

Chris D told me about the website one day. I registered for the forums and started posting. I realized I was a bit different, back then anyway, than most riders because of my extensive BMX background. This caused a few ripples....:) It took awhile to convince me, but I eventually became a MORC member. It took a couple of trailwork sessions at Leb to get me to realize what MORC was really about. Then I got drawn in. Now look, I am on the MORC and MOCA board. I like what MORC is about, so I jumped in.

Somehow, I changed some, but MORC also evolved to be more accepting to non-XC riders. That was cool and now look at us with all the freakin' freerider nut cases.....:p We also just added an Observed Trials forum. MORC has come a long way in just a few short years.

[KleinCrazy]

hmmm...

Living in Worthington, MN and coming up to the cities to ride with a buddy from college at Terrace Oaks in the summer of 96 we ran into Gary Sjoquist. He was planning some work on the trail and we talked a little.

When I moved up to the cities in Feb 98 I once again ran into Gary, Don Y, Dale I think and others at an IMBA Crew Workday at Terrace. I think it was later that year when I showed up at my first MORC Board Meeting and became a Board Member by default ( I showed up) 3 meetings later.

Been a member every since.

[fasterfoster]

A friend of mine, Gary Sjoquist, led another group (I can't remember the name) of mountain bikers before MORC existed. He kept me up on the information.

BTW, Gary had been active in the two wheeled scene even before that. Gary was a racer with the Central Roadracing Association (Motor cycle roadracing) and later was on the board for the CRA.

Gary is an incredible ambassador for our sport!

[bakkeb]

My friend Mike Cosgrove told me about it when I got back into riding bikes again, about 5 years ago. Became a real member 3 yrs. ago and plan to be forever. :banana:

[flombe]

Blasting down a trail, I almost ran over Bill O'Reilly when he was trailboss in the early stages at Theo Wirth. He told me about MORC and MOCA and I looked it up on the web. After observing the progress at Theo and checking the forums, I cut a check for a membership. Looking forward to becoming more involved soon!

[jeffgude]

Summer 1997: I attended a "MTB expo" at either Buck or Hyland Hills, I don't remember which. Gary Sjoquist did a short talk about his North Central Mountain Bike Group (MORC's predecessor). I signed up, received a newsletter or two, then was invited to a meeting at the brand new REI store in Bloomington, Gary was looking for help keeping the organization moving.....I've been involved ever since.

[nigel]

I blame the trails and the cycling industry.

[syntaxjunkie]

Not long after I decided to point my wheels back toward the dirt after being off it for about 15 years, I ran into someone (think it was Jeff) at Battle Creek, doing some work on the trail. We had a good talk. I checked out the site and joined up.

Even then, it took me a few years to decide that I had to try and fix the marketing end of the organization and run for the Board of Directors. A decision which most of the Board has quietly regretted ever since.
:banana:

[Earthman]

i had been MTBing for about 4 or 5 years, Shawn ( jitterjep ) his family and mine have been friends for at least 50 years. i ran into him and we started biking about 2 years after that he told me about MORC. i am not sure when he found out about it but when he did i did.

also since we are talking about MORC, it is not that big of a deal but i am a MORC member and it has never shown up in my user info like in the post below me. i know i am still a member since i just got the 2006 membership card ( postcard ) in the mail yesterday.

[Bikerkid]

I started to get into biking after I got out of high school, and I wanted to know where some trails were around my house, and I found MORC online, joined the forms, then after a while joined MORC, and don't know if I will ever not be a member.

[TML]

I signed up at a Spring Cup race at Buck Hill in May of '98. I had been riding all during college in Mankato and when I moved up to the cities I thought to myself, "there's got to be some sort of advocacy group here". Sure enough, MORC had a table set up at the Buck race and it was exactly what I was looking to be a part of. Proud member ever since.

[Burke]

"You should come to the board meetings"

[fcc983]

Moved from WI. I wanted some nice trails to ride on. Googled "mtb trails mn" and the MORC website was the first link.

[Paul Swenson]

"You should come to the board meetings"

So you're sort of like the Victor Kiam of the MTBing community?

[ryno lite]

I was harassed multiple times in 2001 by Jan Lee in the Leb parking lot so I gave in and joined in 2002. Jan was the man! Our membership would be over 1,000 if he hadn't moved to Idaho! Thanks Jan for coercing me into joining such a great group!

[gopherhockey]

I was harassed multiple times in 2001 by Jan Lee in the Leb parking lot so I gave in and joined in 2002. Jan was the man! Our membership would be over 1,000 if he hadn't moved to Idaho! Thanks Jan for coercing me into joining such a great group!

Jan was the father of many of us... I too was sad to see him go! He and Paula were great group riding partners as well. <sigh> They also taught me everything I know about snowboarding.

Why am I depressed all of a sudden... :cryin:

[Burke]

So you're sort of like the Victor Kiam of the MTBing community?
Ha! Funny!

[ryno lite]

Jan was the father of many of us... I too was sad to see him go! He and Paula were great group riding partners as well. <SIGH>They also taught me everything I know about snowboarding.

Why am I depressed all of a sudden... :cryin:

I think it's pretty cool that the guy who tuned me into MORC was a legend like Jan! I've met some pretty amazing people of all kinds in the MORC ranks, but I have yet to meet anyone else like Jan and probably never will again!

[gopherhockey]

I think it's pretty cool that the guy who tuned me into MORC was a legend like Jan! I've met some pretty amazing people of all kinds in the MORC ranks, but I have yet to meet anyone else like Jan and probably never will again!

Hear, hear! :beer_yum:

[stoneage]

I was around when Don Youngdahl and a few others had early meetings, but didn't get excited about the whole idea until we started being shut out unilaterally from off road areas, and started to build trail on my own. Realizing there was a real change in the wind, I decided to go legit.

[Trouble]

well i just randomly one day actually did some research!!! online and found morc, then i actually got involved now everyobdy loves me (not) but i was jsut cruzing online, i heart google!

[Tim Wegner]

I got started with Gary Sjoquist. Ran into him at Terrace Oaks in 1992. Joined the North Central Mountain Bike group bit did not get involved. Several years later my sons and I ran into this "old guy" at the river bottoms. He had a chainsaw strapped onto a back pack and had ridden his bike in to an area that needed some bridge work. That was Don Youngdahl---he is still an old guy and I have become much older. Don told me about MORC and their efforts.

It was not until 2000 when I met Dale Gundberg at a stakeholders meeting for Lebanon Hills. I represented x-c skiing and Dale represented Mountain bikers. This stakeholder committee was going to help re-write the master plan for Lebanon. Dale and I became quick friends with a common cause -- preserving mountain biking at Lebanon as a legitimate activity. This committee met for 18 months 2 X per month for about 3-4 hours each meeting. Dale and I attended about 95% of the meetings.

One day Dale asked me if I knew that IMBA was looking for a new representative in Minnesota. I said I did not know but I was interested in that position. Little did I know that Dale was also interested in being the IMBA representative. Being the leader that Dale is he did not tell me of his interest. He submitted my name to IMBA and I became the IMBA representative about 4 months later. So now you can all think "Oh, what might have been if only Dale had become our IMBA representative."

About a year after becoming the IMBA guy, Dale and I were riding to a MORC board meeting. He said he was thinking about buying a Toro Dingo to help MORC build trails faster. I looked at him and asked "Are you looking for a partner?" Dale's response was "Who you!!?" And from that conversation (one of the longer ones I have had with Dale) Trail Source became a company.

Wow this was supposed to be only how did you hear of MORC and if you read this it has become a short auto biography. Sorry to have bored you guys.

What I have seen is that if a small group, like MORC was in the beginning, gets motivated and accomplishes so much, just imagine how much we will accomplish as MORC continues to grow with many new faces with high levels of enthusiasm become involved in these efforts.

TW

[socrates]

Had moved to Shakopee in the fall...took my bike to Eric's in Burnsville (the old one next to Byerly's) and was chatting with one of the guys there who told me about this great trail called Leb Hills and the great group building it at the time....the rest is history (I've been causing trouble for the liberals ever since)

[Don Youngdahl]

Jan was the man! Our membership would be over 1,000 if he hadn't moved to Idaho! Thanks Jan for coercing me into joining such a great group!

I'll claim the credit for recruiting Jan Lee into MORC, although it didn't take a lot of persuasion. When I was chatting with Jan in the parking lot at Leb, I told him about MORC and the trail building we were doing. His response was typical Jan: "I want to be part of that!" In less than a year, I think Jan was on the MORC Board.

Don Youngdahl