Mary Blake is the one to thank for bike trails

Who was responsible for our extensive bike trails in Newport Beach

and Orange County? The answer is Mark Blake, certainly not Don Webb.

Apparently he is claiming all the credit.

We were serious riders in those days ... Dick Higby, Henry Mackel,

the Cottons. We all rode every weekend 20 to 50 miles, and that was

when the bike trails were started.

1972 -- that’s a long time to remember, back when Mary Blake

rallied the Girl Scouts to get behind her idea and her plan of how to

get bike trails built in Newport Beach so that children could ride

their bikes safely to school and the beach. “Bicycles to the beach”

was Mary’s slogan. The goal obviously expanded.

Mary’s vision and tenacity won over the bike trails committee

members at that time.

Convincing the City Council that bike trails were needed in our

community was another matter. Mary showed up at the City Council

meeting, having gotten the issue concerning bike trails on the

agenda, with Girl Scouts of all ages in uniform.

Approval was given, and the plaque commemorating the first bike

trail is on the northwest corner of Jamboree and Eastbluff Drive. It

had to start somewhere.

The effort to construct the bike trails in the city of Newport

Beach represented a combined effort of hard-working committee

members, interested residents, business owners and city staff. Only

through the cooperation of all these parties had the bike trails

system as we know it been made possible.

This was about the time that Mary Blake and I were introduced. We

became good friends, and along with her lifelong friend, Dick Higby,

I watched with interest as progress was made on the bike trails

throughout the county.

I understand that a lot of credit goes to Webb for his engineering

skills and his hard work on the bike trails committee, but let us

also not forget all the others: Betsy Carpenter, Allen Beek, Steve

Scholkoff and Carolyn Hendrickson, to name only a few who served.

Yes, we have Mary Blake to thank for her efforts and the success

of our wonderful bike trails.

BILL CRAWFORD

Balboa Island