BEST PLACE TO MOUNTAIN BIKE

Maybe Oleta River State Recreation Area (3400 NE 163rd St., North Miami) is the perpetual winner in this category, but since Amelia Earhart won "Best Place To Mountain Bike" back in 1999 and then slipped a few notches, drastic improvements have been made, thanks mostly to the volunteer efforts of a local cycling group known as In Da House, a mountain-bike crew that cares. These cyclists have weeded, repaired, cleaned, and made improvements to the park just as it seemed on the verge of being declared unsafe (and off-limits) for bikers. It's still not a technically oriented biking location (there's the occasional mud hole and such), but that makes it all the better for newcomers to the booming sport who have felt the patronizing glares of experienced mountain bikers at other trails. How do you become a winner? Work at it.