IMBA Chapter Program
Introduction
The International Mountain Bicycling Association developed the IMBA Chapter Program to strengthen mountain biking advocacy by combining local and national efforts. Mountain biking advocacy comes to fruition on the local level, but there are challenges for local clubs, especially those that are growing. Business and legal savvy rapidly dominate the clubs, causing volunteer burnout without even hitting the trails with tools in hand.
IMBA advocates travel the country speaking at different mountain biking events, teaching volunteers how to build sustainable trails, and advocating on national and regional levels. IMBA points out that volunteer burnout is a real issue affecting all clubs, and that a partnership between IMBA and local clubs would relieve local volunteers of demanding task associated with running an organization, which would minimize burnout.
The Michigan Mountain Biking Association knows firsthand how business and legal issues dominate the state organization, and that maintaining effective insurance policies and adhering to the law can be quite costly. The MMBA wants to focus more on local advocacy. It is because of this that the MMBA chapters are moving forward with the IMBA Chapter Program application process.
During this process, the MMBA Chapters have the option to draw new boundaries and change their names. They will ultimately become IMBA Chapters, with IMBA tending to the administrative business of the organization.
For a quick summary of the program, here's a couple of web pages that IMBA has on the program:
What this means for MMBA Members is that your chapter would become an IMBA chapter - instead of being an MMBA chapter and your membership becomes an IMBA Chapter membership - instead of an MMBA membership.
Frequently Asked Questions
We've been compiling a list of Frequently Asked Questions on the MMBA website. These are questions that we have heard out in our community, as well as some Frequently Asked Questions that IMBA has fielded from other clubs as they work through this process. for the most up-to-date answers to Frequently Asked Questions, see the FAQ page.
Proposed MMBA Organization - Post IMBA Chapter Transition
The MMBA will continue to exist. Since the administrative tasks will be handled by IMBA, the MMBA will be able to focus on state-level advocacy efforts.
There is a vision and a direction that is being followed. The state board will be working with other like-minded organizations to become members of the MMBA. Each Michigan IMBA Chapter would also be a member of the MMBA. The member organizations would help decide the direction and strategize for funding, advocacy and events.
Our current Advocacy Team (lead by John Gonway) will continue to bridge the gap between state and local advocacy. They would continue to take direction from the MMBA board and continue to be our key line of support for our local advocacy efforts. The MMBA would still support CPS and MiSCA. We would still maintain the MMBA website and newsletter. The annual meeting would still bring us together in the winter and if all goes well, perhaps some new state-wide mountain biking events could be seen.
The organizational chart below is a direction that the current MMBA state board is working toward. Please note, the organizations listed in the "Other Mich Cycling Orgs" are purely examples of the types of like-minded organizations we see as part of the MMBA going forward.
(click to enlarge)
