October 2025
Vol. 44 No. 4
Website: www.humbike.org
Email: info@humbike.org
New and Renewed Members of the HBBCA
The following are new and renewed members since the last newsletter. If you haven’t renewed your dues for 2025, please see the application at the end of this newsletter. Any members joining/renewing now, or for the remainder of 2025 will receive a membership good through 2026.
New Members
Erika Winner, Eureka
Renewed Members (since last newsletter)
Korina Johnson & Alan Hale, Arcata
Cara Barnes, Eureka***
Those with a ** next to their name gave an additional donation. Those with *** have given a $25 or greater donation in addition to their dues. Thanks to all those who have joined or renewed their commitment and those who have given additional donations to support our many causes. Get on board now for all the benefits, including discounts at bike shops. See application at the end of the newsletter.
Next Meeting
The next meeting of the HBBCA will be on Monday, October 27th. The dinner meeting will be at Chapala’s Mexican Restaurant, 2nd and C Streets in Eureka, from 6-8 pm. The agenda will be set by the attendees.
Gail Popham has left Eureka for Oregon
Gail Popham, the HBBCA Secretary/Treasurer for the last 15 years has left Eureka for McMinnville, Oregon. It’s not just our loss, but Gail has been a Trail Steward for the downtown Eureka Trail for many years, overseeing several volunteers who have been removing invasives, weed whacking, mowing, placing chips, and planting and maintaining native plants and shrubs along the section of trail between C Street and Del Norte Street. When those 50 or so plants and shrubs were planted, Gail personally hauled about 50 one gallon milk jugs of water weekly for months to assure they all survived. Probably over 90% did survive, and she saw to it that those that did not were replaced.
Gail has been interested in moving into a Life Plan Community, and she found one she liked in McMinnville. She will have an independent living apartment. The facilities are on 57 acres with lots of native landscape and walking trails.
Lucky for us, Gail has volunteered to continue to do all of her Secretarial duties in her new home. Not only has Gail kept close track of all of our members, and sends out the membership cards, she has been a tremendous help to Rick Knapp in reviewing draft Wheel People newsletters before they are published. She does a great job finding all the mistakes before you see the quarterly Wheel People. The only things she won’t be able to do is pick up the mail and deposit membership dues and donations. For now, Rick will assume those duties. Oh, she also won’t be attending our meetings. That was always the part she liked least.
Gail is settled into her new place and already enjoyed a 4-mile walk on the grounds the first week.
Thanks for all you have done for the HBBCA and our community, Gail. We wish you much happiness.
C Street Bike Boulevard Nearing Completion in Eureka
As of September 24, RAO Construction has completed repaving of C Street, full width, and added curb extensions and median improvements between Harris Street and Waterfront Drive. Ultimately short portions will be converted to alternating one-way to discourage through motor vehicle traffic.
In the early stages of planning, the HBBCA wrote a support letter for a State grant, conditioned on the City holding a public meeting at the Jefferson Center to get community input on the details before design was finalized. That didn’t happen, which is disappointing. We are hopeful that the resulting project will serve cyclists well and will be considered an asset to the community when it is completed.
Cal Poly to Provide Bike Parking as Part of Foster Campus Connectivity Project
As reported in the September 10th edition of the Times-Standard, Cal Poly is advancing a new Foster Campus Connectivity Project designed to provide parking and shuttle services for students at a new facility at 2000 Foster Avenue. The new long-term student parking lot is expected to begin this fall and be completed by early 2026. There will be 212 auto parking stalls. There will be a shuttle station along with bus shelter, two bike shelters, as well as outdoor bike racks. Weekday shuttles will be provided to the campus every 15 minutes between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. according to the article.
Arcata City Council Gets Update on the “South Arcata Multimodal Safety Improvement Plan”
The following are excerpts from the September 5th edition of the Times-Standard: A plan to remedy the lack of biking and walking infrastructure in south Arcata is in the works and has been for the last 18 months since the City received a grant from Caltrans. The main goal according to City Engineer, Netra Khatri, is to connect parts of Arcata separated by U.S. Highway 101 for people walking or biking. The plan aims to do this by adding a biking and walking path across the 101/255 interchange which presently has no bike lanes or sidewalks.
Consultants from GHD presented alternatives at the City Council’s September 3rd meeting. The recommended alternative for the interchange portion was to add a roundabout, reduce traffic lanes and add a shared pedestrian and bicyclist path on the bridge. GHD acknowledged that the desire was to separate bike and pedestrian traffic, but for the bridge section only width constraints prevented separation. [HBBCA has emphasized separating bike and pedestrian traffic is important for bike safety.] For Samoa Boulevard, they recommended a protected bikeway and for South G Street a buffered bike lanes.
Currently, funding for construction has not been secured, and was said to be “expensive.”
Rick Knapp joins Volunteer Group to Help Maintain New Section of the Bay Trail
Ever since the new 4.1 mile Final Four was completed, Rick has been working to keep Himalaya berry vines from encroaching onto the bike trail between the Eureka Slough Bridge and the north end of the levee at California Redwood property. This is particularly difficult since there is a 3-foot chain link fence along the 1-mile section along the levee. In September, Rick formerly joined the trail volunteer group headed up by Pete Carlson of Arcata. In September Rick and Pete have worked on that 1-mile section twice, with more to go before winter slows down the vine encroachment until Spring. With “Old Growth” Himalayas just behind the fence, this problem will be perpetual unless the County periodically cuts them down away from the fence. If you are interested in joining Pete’s group on this effort, please call Rick at the number on the last page to discuss. A walking group is badly needed to prune back berries on the 1.5 mile section north of the Eureka Slough Bridge. Rick and Pete have been doing the middle section by bicycle.
Who to Call When You See a Safety Concern (Rev. 9/27/24)
The HBBCA periodically checks with agencies in the Humboldt Bay region to determine appropriate contact personnel to respond to bike-related issues. If you see a condition that needs to be corrected in order to improve safety or convenience for cyclists such as a pothole in a bike lane, accumulated debris on a roadway shoulder, the need to re-stripe a bike lane, the need to clear vegetation encroaching on a shoulder, or a street light that is out, call the responsible agency/person listed below. Of course, if you see a condition that requires immediate attention, like a stop sign knocked down, call 9-1-1. For non-emergency conditions, the following contact information is provided:
Caltrans
Customer Service Liaison, Jessica Henry Gibbs
707-441-5655 online Customer Service Report:
csr.dot.ca.gov
County of Humboldt
707-445-7421 Public Works
RoadsDispatch@co.humboldt.ca.us
Abandoned Vehicles:
County Sheriff’s Office, 707-445-7251
City of Arcata
Engineering Administrative Staff
707-825-2128
Engineering@cityofarcata.org
Abandoned Vehicles:
Arcata Police Dept. at 707-822-2424
City of Eureka
707-441-4203 publicworks@ci.eureka.ca.gov
Abandoned Vehicles:
707-268-5232
eurekapoliceabatement@ci.eureka.ca.gov
HBBCA Board of Directors (Rev. 10/4/25)
(all phone numbers have 707 area codes)
President---------------------- Rick Knapp
499-5918(cell) email: info@humbike.org
Vice-President---------------- Brett Gronemeyer
845-2117(cell);
Secretary----------------Gail Popham
502-8030(cell)
Director of Planning-----open/available
Director of Publicity ----open/available
Contact Rick Knapp if you are interested in filing a vacant Board position.
Please Join or Renew Your Membership for 2025
Your membership, on a calendar year basis, will help pay for youth helmets, bike racks, this newsletter, the website, BikeSmart promotions, “Bike Month” activities, prizes, postage, insurance, etc. And, it will help demonstrate your commitment to our goal.
With your membership card, you may request discounts on bike parts and accessories at Revolution Bicycle Repair and Adventure’s Edge. Discounts are typically 10%, but may vary. Membership cards include stickers on the back showing discounts offered by the various bike shops.
Enclosed: $_____dues ($5.00) $_____donation
Name_______________________________________________
Address_____________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Phone__________________(h)______________________(w)
____I’d rather receive my newsletter by email. This is my neatly printed email address:
_____________________________________________________________
Mail to HBBCA, P. O. Box 9054 Eureka CA 95502-9054
Website: www.humbike.org
Email: info@humbike.org
New and Renewed Members of the HBBCA
The following are new and renewed members since the last newsletter. If you haven’t renewed your dues for 2025, please see the application at the end of this newsletter. Any members joining/renewing now, or for the remainder of 2025 will receive a membership good through 2026.
New Members
Erika Winner, Eureka
Renewed Members (since last newsletter)
Korina Johnson & Alan Hale, Arcata
Cara Barnes, Eureka***
Those with a ** next to their name gave an additional donation. Those with *** have given a $25 or greater donation in addition to their dues. Thanks to all those who have joined or renewed their commitment and those who have given additional donations to support our many causes. Get on board now for all the benefits, including discounts at bike shops. See application at the end of the newsletter.
Next Meeting
The next meeting of the HBBCA will be on Monday, October 27th. The dinner meeting will be at Chapala’s Mexican Restaurant, 2nd and C Streets in Eureka, from 6-8 pm. The agenda will be set by the attendees.
Gail Popham has left Eureka for Oregon
Gail Popham, the HBBCA Secretary/Treasurer for the last 15 years has left Eureka for McMinnville, Oregon. It’s not just our loss, but Gail has been a Trail Steward for the downtown Eureka Trail for many years, overseeing several volunteers who have been removing invasives, weed whacking, mowing, placing chips, and planting and maintaining native plants and shrubs along the section of trail between C Street and Del Norte Street. When those 50 or so plants and shrubs were planted, Gail personally hauled about 50 one gallon milk jugs of water weekly for months to assure they all survived. Probably over 90% did survive, and she saw to it that those that did not were replaced.
Gail has been interested in moving into a Life Plan Community, and she found one she liked in McMinnville. She will have an independent living apartment. The facilities are on 57 acres with lots of native landscape and walking trails.
Lucky for us, Gail has volunteered to continue to do all of her Secretarial duties in her new home. Not only has Gail kept close track of all of our members, and sends out the membership cards, she has been a tremendous help to Rick Knapp in reviewing draft Wheel People newsletters before they are published. She does a great job finding all the mistakes before you see the quarterly Wheel People. The only things she won’t be able to do is pick up the mail and deposit membership dues and donations. For now, Rick will assume those duties. Oh, she also won’t be attending our meetings. That was always the part she liked least.
Gail is settled into her new place and already enjoyed a 4-mile walk on the grounds the first week.
Thanks for all you have done for the HBBCA and our community, Gail. We wish you much happiness.
C Street Bike Boulevard Nearing Completion in Eureka
As of September 24, RAO Construction has completed repaving of C Street, full width, and added curb extensions and median improvements between Harris Street and Waterfront Drive. Ultimately short portions will be converted to alternating one-way to discourage through motor vehicle traffic.
In the early stages of planning, the HBBCA wrote a support letter for a State grant, conditioned on the City holding a public meeting at the Jefferson Center to get community input on the details before design was finalized. That didn’t happen, which is disappointing. We are hopeful that the resulting project will serve cyclists well and will be considered an asset to the community when it is completed.
Cal Poly to Provide Bike Parking as Part of Foster Campus Connectivity Project
As reported in the September 10th edition of the Times-Standard, Cal Poly is advancing a new Foster Campus Connectivity Project designed to provide parking and shuttle services for students at a new facility at 2000 Foster Avenue. The new long-term student parking lot is expected to begin this fall and be completed by early 2026. There will be 212 auto parking stalls. There will be a shuttle station along with bus shelter, two bike shelters, as well as outdoor bike racks. Weekday shuttles will be provided to the campus every 15 minutes between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. according to the article.
Arcata City Council Gets Update on the “South Arcata Multimodal Safety Improvement Plan”
The following are excerpts from the September 5th edition of the Times-Standard: A plan to remedy the lack of biking and walking infrastructure in south Arcata is in the works and has been for the last 18 months since the City received a grant from Caltrans. The main goal according to City Engineer, Netra Khatri, is to connect parts of Arcata separated by U.S. Highway 101 for people walking or biking. The plan aims to do this by adding a biking and walking path across the 101/255 interchange which presently has no bike lanes or sidewalks.
Consultants from GHD presented alternatives at the City Council’s September 3rd meeting. The recommended alternative for the interchange portion was to add a roundabout, reduce traffic lanes and add a shared pedestrian and bicyclist path on the bridge. GHD acknowledged that the desire was to separate bike and pedestrian traffic, but for the bridge section only width constraints prevented separation. [HBBCA has emphasized separating bike and pedestrian traffic is important for bike safety.] For Samoa Boulevard, they recommended a protected bikeway and for South G Street a buffered bike lanes.
Currently, funding for construction has not been secured, and was said to be “expensive.”
Rick Knapp joins Volunteer Group to Help Maintain New Section of the Bay Trail
Ever since the new 4.1 mile Final Four was completed, Rick has been working to keep Himalaya berry vines from encroaching onto the bike trail between the Eureka Slough Bridge and the north end of the levee at California Redwood property. This is particularly difficult since there is a 3-foot chain link fence along the 1-mile section along the levee. In September, Rick formerly joined the trail volunteer group headed up by Pete Carlson of Arcata. In September Rick and Pete have worked on that 1-mile section twice, with more to go before winter slows down the vine encroachment until Spring. With “Old Growth” Himalayas just behind the fence, this problem will be perpetual unless the County periodically cuts them down away from the fence. If you are interested in joining Pete’s group on this effort, please call Rick at the number on the last page to discuss. A walking group is badly needed to prune back berries on the 1.5 mile section north of the Eureka Slough Bridge. Rick and Pete have been doing the middle section by bicycle.
Who to Call When You See a Safety Concern (Rev. 9/27/24)
The HBBCA periodically checks with agencies in the Humboldt Bay region to determine appropriate contact personnel to respond to bike-related issues. If you see a condition that needs to be corrected in order to improve safety or convenience for cyclists such as a pothole in a bike lane, accumulated debris on a roadway shoulder, the need to re-stripe a bike lane, the need to clear vegetation encroaching on a shoulder, or a street light that is out, call the responsible agency/person listed below. Of course, if you see a condition that requires immediate attention, like a stop sign knocked down, call 9-1-1. For non-emergency conditions, the following contact information is provided:
Caltrans
Customer Service Liaison, Jessica Henry Gibbs
707-441-5655 online Customer Service Report:
csr.dot.ca.gov
County of Humboldt
707-445-7421 Public Works
RoadsDispatch@co.humboldt.ca.us
Abandoned Vehicles:
County Sheriff’s Office, 707-445-7251
City of Arcata
Engineering Administrative Staff
707-825-2128
Engineering@cityofarcata.org
Abandoned Vehicles:
Arcata Police Dept. at 707-822-2424
City of Eureka
707-441-4203 publicworks@ci.eureka.ca.gov
Abandoned Vehicles:
707-268-5232
eurekapoliceabatement@ci.eureka.ca.gov
HBBCA Board of Directors (Rev. 10/4/25)
(all phone numbers have 707 area codes)
President---------------------- Rick Knapp
499-5918(cell) email: info@humbike.org
Vice-President---------------- Brett Gronemeyer
845-2117(cell);
Secretary----------------Gail Popham
502-8030(cell)
Director of Planning-----open/available
Director of Publicity ----open/available
Contact Rick Knapp if you are interested in filing a vacant Board position.
Please Join or Renew Your Membership for 2025
Your membership, on a calendar year basis, will help pay for youth helmets, bike racks, this newsletter, the website, BikeSmart promotions, “Bike Month” activities, prizes, postage, insurance, etc. And, it will help demonstrate your commitment to our goal.
With your membership card, you may request discounts on bike parts and accessories at Revolution Bicycle Repair and Adventure’s Edge. Discounts are typically 10%, but may vary. Membership cards include stickers on the back showing discounts offered by the various bike shops.
Enclosed: $_____dues ($5.00) $_____donation
Name_______________________________________________
Address_____________________________________________
______________________________________________________
Phone__________________(h)______________________(w)
____I’d rather receive my newsletter by email. This is my neatly printed email address:
_____________________________________________________________
Mail to HBBCA, P. O. Box 9054 Eureka CA 95502-9054