Tahoe Backcountry Alliance | Anthony Cupaiuolo | E52
In the last couple years of record-breaking snowfalls, budget shortfalls, staffing shortages and lack of affordable housing for CalTrans road crew workers, plowed parking areas for backcountry access are no longer a given. The Tahoe Backcountry Alliance is working with community leaders to help address these issues, focused on expanding winter access for all non-motorized users. Since 2015, TBA has expanded access for motorized and non-motorized use in Johnson Canyon, created a plowed parking lot on the west end of Donner Lake, is about to open a new lot for Tallac access and created a free SnoPark pass system for local residents. We sit down with Executive Director Anthony Cupaiuolo to chat about the importance of access for winter recreation in and around Lake Tahoe, the ongoing parking issues on the West Shore, its impacts on the local recreation economy and what the protocol is for backcountry users when parking areas haven’t been plowed.
Pedal For Positivity | Harrison Biehl | E20
In 2020, Harrison Biehl bought his first mountain bike and immediately put his mind in the track, progressively doing bigger and bigger rides. In summer 2022, he successfully completed his first “Everesting” mission - repeating the same climb until reaching 29,032 feet of elevation gain. As a fundraiser for TAMBA, Harrison tackled Stanford Rock trail on the West Shore of Lake Tahoe and completed the mission in under 24 hours. In the afterglow, tragedy struck when his close friend Joe Fazzio took his own life a week before Christmas. To honor Joe’s life and bring awareness to mental health, Harrison partnered with High Fives Foundation and launched the Pedal for Positivity. His new mission; “Trench to Everest” - climbing 65,099 feet - the elevation difference between the lowest point on earth, the Marianas Trench, to the highest, Mount Everest. Harrison did the ride on Old Highway 40 from Donner Lake to Historic Donner Summit on September 8-9 with a group of friends who rode by his side, completing nearly 60 laps in 29 hours. Recorded on Donner Summit at the site of the event, this is a heavy story of friendship, community, commitment, struggle and loss.