Hi all,<br><br>This is PJ Park of the Mt Rainier, MD Bike Coop.&nbsp; I had a wonderful time at the conference this past weekend.&nbsp; I also had a wonderful time biking to the conference from DC on the C and O Canal and Great Allegheny Passage trails!&nbsp; On the trail I met Mike Shih of the Neighborhood Bike Project in Philly.&nbsp; We biked Wed. and Thursday, heading into PGH in the evening rain, guided from McKeesport to FreeRide! by Erok!&nbsp; 
<br><br>At Free Ride! I met the Mary, Jessica, Luis, Erok, and Stewart from PGH, and then I helped Kim of Ft Collins fix up a bike.&nbsp; Later, I biked over with Mike Shih to our host Rob&#39;s place near BBT.&nbsp; Rob was an awesome and gracious host.&nbsp; Dropped over to BBT that night and met more folks.
<br><br>Friday, I attended some good workshops:&nbsp; Getting Tools, Getting and Keeping a Space, and Volunteers.&nbsp; I wanted to know how my coop could sell bikes even though we are in a non-commercial zoned space.&nbsp; People said anyone can receive donations in return for goods and services.&nbsp; I learned that different coops have different licenses: business, non-profit/501c3, sponsored fiscally by a non-profit, nothing, etc.&nbsp; I liked getting a sense of the diversity of projects.
<br><br>Friday night we had a good ride around Pittsburgh.&nbsp;&nbsp; It&#39;s so beautiful!&nbsp; I love the hills, vistas, and bridges.&nbsp; It was so nice to enjoy Friday and Sat evenings with large group of bike coop bikers:)<br>Sat. I attended the AGRAPTO workshop and won a hat and a woven cloth for my attentiveness, willingness to sing, and my Spanish skills.&nbsp; I donned my hat at the SpandeXXX party Sat night.&nbsp; The party rocked btw!
<br><br>Sunday, I collected signatures for the Environmental Defense Undo Global Warming campaign (<a href="http://undoit.org">undoit.org</a>) asking our senators to support the Climate Stewardship Act which will set up a cap and trade system and reduce emissions 60-80% by 2050.&nbsp; I&#39;ve been collecting sigs on my bicycle journey to brazil (
<a href="http://www.biketobrazil.blogspot.com">http://www.biketobrazil.blogspot.com</a>).&nbsp; The petition has over 642,000 signatories now!<br><br>After filling my petition sheets with signatures, I attended the end of the Maya Pedal workshop.&nbsp; Then sadly, I had to leave. It was a wonderful conference.
<br><br>I rode home with Mike McMillan of Rockville Bikes for the World and Colin of Phoenix Bike Project of Arlington, VA.&nbsp; One of the best parts of the conference was collaborating with other coops in my area.<br><br>Thank you for reading.&nbsp; I invite you all to share your personal experiences of the conference!
<br>love,<br>PJ<br clear="all"><br>-- <br>PJ Park<br><a href="http://www.biketobrazil.blogspot.com">http://www.biketobrazil.blogspot.com</a><br><a href="http://www.imagestation.com/members/pjpark">http://www.imagestation.com/members/pjpark
</a><br><a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/PaulJosephPark">http://picasaweb.google.com/PaulJosephPark</a>