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  • 07/12/2019 11:13 AM | Chuck Nicewonder (Administrator)

    Speedtrap Ride Tuesday, July 9th recap

              The Speedtrap Ride, Ottawa County’s best Tuesday night ride, attracted thirty-nine cyclists to Elmore this past Tuesday, July 9th, to ride the Speedtrap Ride route in reverse.

              Scott Lang led the Ghost Pepper Riders and reported a riding average of 23.1 mph.

              Bob Kayden led the inaugural ride of the Cayenne Pepper Riders and reported a 20.8 mph average. Bob also reported that his group had eight riders and seven bikes. One bike was a tandem. Thank you, Bob, for assuming the leadership of the Cayenne Pepper Riders!

              Tony Mazurek led the Habanero Riders and reported a riding average of 19.2 mph

              I rode with seven other Jalapeno Riders. Ron Purk from that group reported 15.8 mph.

              The Sweet Pepper Riders split into two groups. Marnie Arndt, John Galdeen, and Loren Moore rode 16 miles at 14 mph, while Becky Kayden and Joyce Purk rode  11.6 miles at 12.5 mph.

              Riding the route in reverse seemed to go smoothly. Temperatures were in the 80s and less humid than last week’s hot weather. There are more left turns riding the route in reverse, but riders could easily see any oncoming traffic. There was an ENE breeze, which I thought would make the ride back into Elmore challenging, but it did not. The only drawback might be that we were riding into the sun more riding the route in reverse.

              After the ride, several riders enjoyed a cookout and picnic with good food and drink in front of the bike shop. Thank you Rob Golden, and Spoke Life Cycles, for providing the meat. Some stayed and enjoyed good conversation until at least 10:00 pm!

              Pictured are first time Speedtrap Riders Jeff Kleinschmit and . Phillip Clapp and his brother Randy Clapp. Welcome all to the Speedtrap Ride!

              Next Tuesday, July 16th, is tandem night! Come out to Elmore and ride some quiet roads with some friendly people! Sign-in begins at 6:00 and we ride at 6:30 pm. I hope to see you then!

    Chuck Nicewonder

             

  • 07/11/2019 10:36 PM | Daniel Riley (Administrator)

    It might have been only 92 Windsday, but the heat index was more like 100! But that didn’t deter the Windsday crew. 25 riders came to battle the heat and enjoy the evening together. But being clever riders, they knew to beat the heat and stay hydrated. Edgar and the Fast & Furious group cruised at a 21.9 average, Jen and the Reasonably Fast crew came in under 19.6. My Reasonable & Reliable group came in at a cool 17.4. Marty Extejt guest lead the Relaxed group to it’s season high of 14.3. Thanks for leading the group Marty!

    New rider Kristie Schmidlin came out on this hot night for her first ride of the year on her new bike.  And by first ride of the year, I mean first ride of the year. Period. No other rides yet this year. She impressed the R&Rs with her strong riding. Man, can she can kick it. And her friend Morgan was on her first group ride ever and performed by like a pro. Both said they would be back again.

    Come on and join us next week at Timberstone JHS for a cruise through the flatlands. We’ll see you there.

  • 07/11/2019 9:35 PM | Daniel Riley (Administrator)

    It looks like the weekend to head north for TAB - groups going to Ann Arbor for OHR, Intro to Gravel heading to Adrian. The Adventurers are joining in by doing our Michigan Villages Tour. Join us Saturday for a 50 mile jaunt starting at the Secor Park Nature Ctr at 8:00. We’ll pedal north through Blissfield then cruise along the River Rasin to Deerfield and Petersburg for our rest stop before returning to Secor Park. Roads are in surprisingly good shape. Weather is forecast to be good - sunny with temps rising to 85 by noon and winds out of the West. Expected average speed is 17 mph. Hope to see you there - Secor Park Nature Ctr, leaving at 8:00 sharp.

    The route and GPS file are available at: 

    https://ridewithgps.com/routes/30497991

  • 07/10/2019 1:56 PM | Jenifer Wiles (Administrator)

    Last nights ride brought out 15 riders. We headed out to Old 24 heading East on Neowash, right into the wind. This made the overpass an exciting adventure. Old 24 served us well and our average coming off that section was well over 21 mph.  I thought this would give us enough buffer to come out with around 20.5 avg, since the rest of the ride was North and mostly East into the wind.  The wind ended up dying down so it did not take much away from us.  We pulled into the parking lot with an average of 20.9 mph for our 28.5 mile route.  Thanks to Julie for again inviting us into Cycle Werks for snacks with the Lady's Ride.


    See you next week on Old 24.


  • 07/09/2019 2:48 PM | Daniel Riley (Administrator)

    Windsdays are back on schedule again after our fireworks interruption. If you haven’t checked us out yet, come and join some of the friendliest riders in TAB. Our 26 route mile is flat and smooth, with very few turns. Edgar’s Fast & Furious group like to challenge riders with a 21+ mph pace. Jenifer and her Reasonably Fast group like to average a 19-20 mph pace. My Reasonable & Reliable riders enjoy a more leisurely ride targeting around 17 mph. And our Relaxed group keeps a comfortable pace for all on a shorter 20 mile route. 

    It’s looking like the hottest ride in TAB will have the hottest night of the week. Temps look to be rising to the high 80s maybe even 90. The winds are expected to behave - out of the Southwest at 5 mph - though they have a habit of fooling with us. 

    I did a recon run last week out to CR 4-3 and found it to be in much better condition than CR 4-1 our western turnaround road. Much better pavement, and flatter too. So expect to add an extra .8 mi to the ride. It’s well worth it.

    Finally, good news & bad news. This is the last week for the construction on westbound Sylvania Ave between McCord & King! It should be open next week. Bad news - eastbound on the same section will be closed for 3 weeks starting next week.

    We’ll see you all at Timberstone JHS, 9000 Sylvania Ave. We leave promptly at 6:30 so get there early. I hope to see you there!

  • 07/09/2019 8:37 AM | Deleted user

    In the wake of Thursday's Freedom Ride we received additional funds from a few generous members which brings our donation total to $1404.00. Thank you so much for coming out and for supporting this cause and for taking time to donate even if you weren't able to ride. I was very proud to be able to contact the organization and provide these funds on the club's behalf. Thank you!


  • 07/09/2019 7:47 AM | Jenifer Wiles (Administrator)

    Last weeks Old 24 ride included 14 riders, 1 flat, and an average speed of 20.5 mph. Thanks to Ken, Tyler and Walter who volunteered to stay back and fix the flat.

    Tonight we will once again head out to Old 24.  Expect the average speed to be between 20.0 to 20.6 mph.  We will be heading out from Cycle Werks in Whitehouse at 6:30 for a 28.5 mile loop out to Old 24 and heading north on County Road 3.

    See you on Old 24.

      Image result for picture of group cyclists



      • 07/08/2019 10:44 PM | Deleted user

        A slight change to our gravel ride schedule. One Helluva Ride has a gravel route this Saturday from Chelsea, using a lot of the Waterloo G&G route that I was planning to use as well. Please go support OHR and the Ann Arbor Bicycle Touring Society if you want to ride the Waterloo G&G route. It's a well supported ride and the gravel is easier for me to swallow than some of the paved roads up that way.

        Instead of heading to Chelsea, the Intro to Gravel ride will leave from Cotton Brewing in Adrian, MI at 9am for a 47 mile cruise. We'll start by winding through town to the Kiwanis Trail. The gravel roads just north of town will take us to one of my favorite roads, Taylor Rd. There will be two planned stops, one at the end of Taylor Rd near mile 19, and the second after the closed (but hopefully still passable) road around mile 33.5. Plan for 12-14mph average, regrouping as needed. Remember, "no rider left behind". (Although we've been known to get carried away in the last mile or two.)

        Here is the planned route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/30501667

        Start location: Cotton Brewing, 626 Oak St, Adrian, MI 49221

        Departure time: 9am

        Please wait until Friday evening to load the route to your device. I need to double check some turns and cues.

        Thanks as always for the continued support and coming out to the rides.

        Nate


      • 07/08/2019 4:18 PM | Chuck Nicewonder (Administrator)

        Speedtrap Ride Tuesday July 9th

                  The Speedtrap Ride will once again roll out from Spoke Life Cycles/Elmore tomorrow, Tuesday, July 9th, at 6:30 pm. We will ride the regular Speedtrap Ride route in reverse, beginning on SR 51 going to SR 105.

                  Scott Lang will lead the Ghost Pepper Riders on a 25-mile course. If you ride with him, expect to average 22+ mph. Are you ready?!!

                  Tony Mazurek will lead the Habanero Riders over the same course. He expects to average 18 – 20 mph.

                  I will lead the Jalapeno Riders on a slightly shorter 22-mile ride. We hope to average 16 – 17 mph.

                  Marnie Arndt will take the Sweet Pepper Riders on a ride whose distance and speed is comfortable for those in her group.

                  Tuesday is predicted to be sunny, with a high of 84 degrees and ENE winds 5 to 10 mph—not the hot and humid weather we had last week.

                  After the ride, there will be a cookout and picnic in front of the bike shop. Spoke Life Cycles will be providing the ground beef and hot dogs. Please bring a side dish to share.

                  If you haven’t experienced the Speedtrap Ride, tomorrow is a great opportunity to ride some quiet country roads, meet some great people, and enjoy this special event. Sign-in begins at 6:00 and we ride at 6:30 pm! I hope to see you then!

        P.S. Coming next week July 16th: Tandem Night!

        Chuck Nicewonder

      • 07/05/2019 12:55 PM | Chuck Nicewonder (Administrator)

        Speedtrap Ride Tuesday July 2nd recap

                  The Speedtrap Ride, Ottawa County’s best Tuesday night ride, brought twenty-five cyclists to Elmore this past Tuesday, July 2nd.

                  Scott Lang led the Ghost Pepper Riders and reported a 22-mph average.

                  Tony Mazurek led the Habanero Riders and reported a riding average of 18.5 mph.

                  I rode with two other Jalapeno Riders: Claude Watkins and Justin Hart. We recorded an average of 15.4 mph

                  Marnie Arndt and Becky Kayden were the Sweet Pepper Riders. They rode 13 miles, some of it on the North Coast Inland Trail. However, riding on the trail wasn’t good because there were branches down in many places forcing them to walk their bikes around.

                  Right at 6:30, the rain came down very hard. We knew it would be short-lived, and it was. In five minutes, it was over. However, we thought there might be another one. Not so. Roads were wet only for the first few miles.

        Some of the Ghost Pepper Riders thought that THIS week we were riding the route in reverse, and that’s what they did.

        A few of the Ghost Pepper Riders did fall off the pack and rode separately., probably because of the heat.(The high temperature was at least 90).  The heat was a likely reason riding averages were not as high as they have been the last few weeks. However, there was a tailwind for much of the ride returning to Elmore.

        Pictured are first-time Speedtrap Riders John Del Toro and Adam Stemen, who rode with the Habaneros. Welcome John and Adam to the Speedtrap Ride.

        Several riders did enjoy food, drink, and good conversation at the Portage Inn in Elmore after the ride

        Next Tuesday, July 9th, we will ride the Speedtrap Ride route in reverse. There will be a cookout and a potluck in front of the bike shop after the ride. Spoke Life Cycles will be providing the ground beef and hotdogs. Please bring a side dish to share. Please join us for this special occasion. I hope to see you then!

        Chuck Nicewonder

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