Then there’s the thorny issue of the future of David Hiller, Cascade’s singular advocacy voice. Although no one inside the club, including Hiller, will say anything publicly, the clear message is that the David Hiller of old does not fit the Cascade blueprint moving forward.

The good news is that just about everyone from junior staff to senior board members understands the challenges, which one called “opportunities.” The bad news is how much has to remain on hold till a new ED arrives.

To be sure, bike clubs the world over would love to have problems brought on by more than 30 percent growth over the past two years, to 13,000-plus members. The salary Cascade is offering for the executive director — $80,000 to $100,000 — is bigger than the entire budget of many cycling organizations.

By the same token, pushing the reset button is going to take time at a juncture where the club’s community presence is more vital than ever. It will turn the board into the equivalent of club management working full-time non-profit jobs, something board members understandably have mixed feelings about.

The turmoil makes recruiting a new executive director a hugely taller order. At the same time, the club must prepare for its signature winter-spring events, including the annual Seattle Bike Expo, bike swap meet and Chilly Hilly recreational ride.

It all creates an explosive backdrop for the club’s annual meeting 6:30 p.m. Oct. 21 at REI. While typically only a few dozen members attend, with most itching to dispense with official business so things can move to the ever-popular slide-show portion, this year’s event could draw several hundred — well beyond the capacity of REI’s meeting room.

A Different Kind of Advocacy?

Cascade is enjoying unprecedented clout among local officials, lawmakers and business leaders. “We have politicians coming to us, asking what they can do to earn Cascade’s endorsement,” said board member Tim Hennings. Last fall’s elections solidified the club’s influence, with bike-friendly candidates Mike O’Brien (city council), Mike McGinn (Seattle mayor) and Dow Constantine (King County executive) all buoyed by Cascade’s endorsement and active support.

With Ayers’ support, the club’s advocacy vision and implementation has largely been shaped by Hiller, a tireless lobbyist and politically savvy in-fighter. Much of the credit for infrastructural progress in Seattle — bike lanes, road diets, completion of the Burke-Gilman and Interurban Trails — redounds to Hiller’s brilliant vision and dogged spade work.

“I’m deeply humbled by and greatly appreciate the outpouring of community support,” Hiller said by phone. “But I’m not authorized to speak for the club at this time.” The latter itself is quite a departure — for several years Hiller has been the most quoted and visible club official.

“David is tremendously effective and has accomplished incredible things — but I couldn’t stand working with the guy,” said a former Cascade executive who, like many interviewed for this piece, requested anonymity because of ongoing relationships with the club.

Descriptions of Hiller’s style tend toward “direct” and “confrontational” more than “genial” and “diplomatic.” He does not suffer fools, and he refuses to sugar-coat.

Case in point: Renton’s recent decision to impose a 10 mile-an-hour speed limit on cyclists on the Cedar River Trail — a restriction that for a commuter or veteran cyclist is like forcing a marathoner to walk. The change was rationalized by the death of an elderly pedestrian after colliding with a cyclist on the trail — but it also seemed more punitive than reasonable or necessary.

“We find Renton’s response to be unsound and grossly disproportionate,” Hiller told the bike blog BikingBis. The comment may have aptly verbalized the dismay the cycling community felt, but was problematic from the standpoint of professional PR and an eye toward future rescinding of the 10-mile limit.

“It could have been handled differently and better,” said a Cascade insider, who cited the Renton case as “indicative of how we need to alter our advocacy process.”

But a “different” style of advocacy is seen by many members as “PC” and ineffectual. Longtime cyclists know the only way to get change is to fight hard and stand up to political pressure from the highway lobby and car culture. Doing so may not always require the hard-nosed approach of a David Hiller — but when it does, only a David Hiller will succeed.

Consider what board members seem convinced is a “backlash” against cyclists manifested in debate over road diets (Nickerson and 125th Streets), bike boxes, cycle tracks and other progressive measures. Longtime cyclists have heard the same complaints for years. “There’s no backlash,” one asserted. “Cyclists just happen to be gaining ground and finally getting their due, so the opposition is getting bent out of shape.”

For Cascade, Hiller may be a case of can’t live with, can’t live without. A new executive director “may look at David and say, I don’t want any part of that,” a board member told us. But a former Cascade executive said, “I wouldn’t be surprised if a new ED said we’ll give David a chance to change, do peer reviews and after three months assess how things are going.” That’s if he stays with Cascade — Hiller was rumored headed for Mayor McGinn’s staff earlier this year and has been mentioned as a potential legislative staffer.

Anyone with any history at Cascade would hate to see Hiller go. As Seattle City Council member Mike O’Brien put it, “A Cascade without David Hiller is a far less effective organization than a Cascade with David Hiller.”

For better or worse, it’s fair to expect a gentler, less hard-edged advocacy from Cascade — with “the same goals we’ve always had, but a professional approach,” Hennings said.

A New Transparency?

The handling of Ayers’ departure — announced without notice or dexterity — points to another source of membership frustration: organizational transparency. Members complain that, after taking their annual fee, club leadership offers little in the way of communication or explanation of its actions.

Some members blame the board for control-freakism. On the club’s message board (online forum), a thread erupted in support of recalls, which would require a petition from 5 percent of the membership (650 to 700 members) and vote at a specially convened meeting with a minimum of just 25 members present. From dialog on the forum, however, there seems little consensus on the wisdom of such a move.

Another tack would be write-in votes on two current ballots for board members. One widely mentioned candidate, Michael Snyder, founder of the closely read bike blog SeattleLikesBikes.org, said he’s not sure a recall of the board would be advisable or that he would want to serve. “I’d consider it,” he said, but only if it became apparent “there is an urgent need to get a different style voice on the board.”

According to Hennings, who has emerged as the on–the-record spokesperson for the board, “none of us wants to be running Cascade Bicycle Club.” But till a new ED arrives, Hennings said, “we’re committed to doing what it takes to keep the club on track.”

Transparency is high on the board’s agenda. First up: Winning the trust of the membership. Hennings said the board wants to “channel negative feelings into positive energy” at the annual meeting “and build from there.”

Facing similar membership disillusionment, Cascade’s off–road cousin, the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance, held an all-factions-invited powwow at Duthie Hill Mountain Bike Park last fall. Breaking the gathering into small groups, with each naming a leader to take notes and report back to the plenary, Evergreen managed to turn potential mutiny into a feel-good brainstorming session. Many of the ideas were subsequently implemented, with resulting membership increase and engagement (although notably Evergreen still lacks a permanent executive director as well).

About that Web site

Like many non-profits, Cascade has long had “Web update” on its to-do list. The club site bristles with information that often is nigh impossible to find even with an internal search. The message board is clunky and antiquated in the era of Facebook and Twitter. The home page looks mostly like a calendar listing.

According to Hennings, president and founder of ObjectPublisher Web Services, which produces custom PDF brochures and catalogs, a sweeping makeover has been in the offing for more than two years and will be implemented within the next six months. It will run on a Drupal-CiviCRM open-source platform popular with membership organizations, the issue being ongoing support once the changeover is made. Drupal is sophisticated but complex, and maintaining it requires a certain amount of programming chops.

While improving the Web site is one goal, interfacing with Cascade’s booming membership also is driving the change. Large organizations necessarily need repeated tech “touches” with members to ensure they re-up and engage with club activities. Strong database management can automate things like sending emails about rides a member has been on before, logging member participation in events and rides on an annual basis (info that’s golden during re-up time), having vital statistics of club members for political campaigns, PR and corporate sponsorship purposes, and simply gaining new blood.

Database feedback also is vital for planning purposes. Cascade watchers say the club is in danger of ossifying — its demographic is heavily weighted toward the forties and older.

Cascade’s technological needs are such that it plans to scour the tech sector for a potential ED. Certainly locally, the Puget Sound region is surfeit with cycling techies, most notably evinced in F5 Networks’ sponsorship of Bike to Work day last May.

What next?

Cascade’s immediate future looks like the proverbial stack of dominoes, with Hiller being the lead chip. Whether he stays or leaves will have a huge impact on subsequent steps, starting with the annual meeting. If he stays, the club will have to decide whether to unmuzzle him or find a different strong voice to lead. In its absence, a palace revolt could well gather momentum.

The next few days promise to be crucial.

UPDATE: Cascade’s annual membership meeting did little to quell dissension.

Cascade Bicycle Club reported converting more than 30 drivers to the joys of bike commuting through its Green Bike project, which gave drivers a free bike if they did more than 50 percent of their commuting by bike over a three-month period.

We talked to one of the participants, Phyllis Rowland, HR assistant and recruiter for Wellspring Family Services. A “bike to the beach” kind of rider before the program, Phyllis has some words of advice to would-be bike commuters for making the transition a successful one. [By the way, if you commute via SODO, Cascade needs your input.]

Phyllis Rowland congratulated by City Council member Tom Rasmussen

From Cascade’s press release:

The Green Bike Project aims to convert drive-alone commuters to bicycle commuting by providing equipment, instruction, encouragement and incentives. Cascade Bicycle Club outfits each person with a bicycle, helmet and lock and gives them safety and mechanical training. In return, participants pledged to replace at least 50 percent of their drive-alone commutes with bike commutes by Aug. 1. Those who achieved the goal will be rewarded with ownership of the bike they’ve used throughout the program.

An impressive 86 percent of participants successfully achieved their goal this year.

“This is an incredible result. In only three months, we’ve helped more than 30 people new to bike commuting become comfortable, confident, and competent cyclists. I don’t know of many other programs that can boast an 86 percent success rate,” said Chuck Ayers, executive director of the Cascade Bicycle Club.

The program does more than transform participants’ commutes; it transforms lives.

“I love riding my bike to work,” said Alex, of the Odyssey School. “I plan to keep it up for the rest of my life.”

“I was really amazed with how quickly my body adapted to riding. I was really sore the first time I did it, and noticed huge improvements in how well I was able to go,” said Heather of Darigold. “I was one of those ‘move out of the way, bicyclists!’ type of drivers before this, but now have a lot more understanding for them.”

Participating companies in the 2010 program were: Case Design, Committee for Children, Darigold, Iron Bow Technologies, Outdoor Research, Odyssey School, and Wellspring Family Services.

The Green Bike Project demonstrates that with encouragement and support, people can dramatically change travel habits by trying bike commuting. That ultimately means fewer cars on the road, more money in peoples’ pockets, and improved health throughout the region.

In South Carolina, a man was stabbed in an argument over a bike. Somehow I don’t think we’re talking about a Pinarello or M3 here either…

On a serious note, Seattle’s Cascade Bicycle Club and the City itself are being sued to prevent construction of the “Missing Link” to the Burke-Gilman Trail. This is strictly a delay tactic — a previous appeal was tossed out — and a waste of time and money as well as an attempt to “break the bank” of the club, the nation’s largest local cycling club. More later, but for now here’s the club’s statement. Please contribute what you can.

Fixing what's broke

The Cascade Bicycle Club’s victory in the Burke-Gilman “missing link” case today represents something big for the cycling community.

Cyclists are used to losing in cases like this. Used to losing in court when it comes to a motorist’s or cop’s word against theirs. Used to losing bike lanes, as on Stone Way North, in deference to truck traffic and “business concerns.” Used to losing on bills in the state legislature enforcing vehicular assault in bike accidents, 3-feet-please traffic buffers and bike-friendly transit stations.

But in the post-Obama electoral climate, where change is something you can believe in, hope still reigns. And as much as bike access through Ballard, hope is what won in Hearing Examiner Sue Tanner’s decision rejecting business interests seeking to block trail completion. Hope that the tide has shifted in favor of diverse forms of transportation, in favor of bicycling for human health, well-being and environmental protection, and in favor of cyclists as more than second-class, fringe citizens.

If you ride the Burke-Gilman northward from Fremont roughly paralleling Leary Way, you eventually find yourself dumped into a brutal no man’s land of storefronts, potholes and crowded streets in Ballard. There are maybe 15 different ways to proceed, none of them particularly efficient or safe. For bike commuters and recreational riders alike, a major conduit through the city terminates in chaos.

Assuming no further court appeals, the go-ahead gives a green light to work on removing railroad track hazards under the Ballard Bridge and configuring Shilshole intersections at 17th Avenue and NW Vernon Place for safer crossing. Signs and a safe route also will be designated through the Ballard business district.

For the past 20 years, fixing the notorious Missing Link has been on the city’s to-do list after it began plans to take over rail right-of-way from Burlington Northern. When the moment came to begin actual work, a coalition of business interests including the Ballard Chamber of Commerce, Salmon Bay Sand and Gravel and Ballard Oil, filed a permit appeal last December seeking to stop the project.

Hearing Examiner Tanner discounted several appellant arguments, the most noxiously contradictory being the claim that improving the trail would create a “traffic hazard.” The whole point of connecting the Missing Link is to reduce traffic hazards created by bikes and cars forced into incompatible configurations.

“After reading the 20 point (Examiner’s) conclusion, it’s clear that the appellant’s ‘kitchen sink’ appeal was found to be meritless,” said David Hiller, advocacy director of the Cascade Bicycle Club, in a press statement. “We hope this is the point at which trail opponents recognize that this project is going to improve safety and mobility for everyone in the community.”

The trail has widespread support not just in Seattle and King County but throughout Ballard, where Friends of the Burke-Gilman Trail collected more than 460 signatures supporting safety improvements on Bike to Work Day May 15. Over the years Cascade has spent more than $20,000 in legal fees to keep viable the Burke-Gilman Trail.

There’s still lots to be done to put cycling on equal footing with other forms of transportation in the city. Wins like today’s are going to be the exception rather than the rule for the near term. But the trends are favorable, a new order is in motion and a more open consciousness is signaled in everything from stimulus funding to workplace regulations.

Completion of the Missing Link represents the kind of symbolism we’ve been waiting for. Cyclists can be forgiven for savoring this one.

Cascade’s press release

Ballard News Tribune story

Another city adjusts to increased bike traffic: Vancouver BC is winnowing vehicular traffic on the Burrard Bridge to expand access for cyclists and pedestrians. Burrard is the chief bridge crossing from downtown to West Vancouver, and an extremely busy bike route. Previously bikes used the sidewalk (the east side is bikes only), but now the western-most outside lane will be bikes only as well. The move comes as other cities, notably Los Angeles, grapple with how to handle the surge of bicycle commuter and transportation traffic. Too many bikes make motorists angry and impatient and pose safety hazards to cars and cyclists both.

Seattle’s Cascade Bicycle Club will offer “Breakfast on (or near) the Bridge” the next two Fridays (the first was today) on the west side of Mercer Island to support bike commuting during construction repairs on I-90. The club will run its Bike Bus from Mercer Island to downtown, the U District and Bellevue during construction periods, scheduled for May and July.

Wrap-up report from Port Angeles on the Pro Gravity Tour initial race, congrats to Katie and Curtis!

Bellingham Herald: Craigslist ad leads Bellingham police to suspected bike thieves. “The investigation began when a woman, whose mountain bike had been stolen, told Bellingham Police she thought she saw the bicycle for sale on Craigslist, said Mark Young, police spokesman. An officer went to the Web site, tracked down the listing and saw the bike being offered for $1,500. The ad included a picture that matched the description of the womanís bicycle, Young said.”