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This Windsday is going to be really cool. Cool temps forecast to top out at 80 at the start time and dropping to 75 at 8:00. Cool breezes out of the NE at 5 miles per hour. Cool people to ride with. And best of all, cool Dairy Queen treats for after the ride, thanks to Ben Rowe of the Trilby Dairy Queen. With those waiting for us after the ride, I bet we’ll move quicker than ever!

So don’t miss this Windsday. We’ll be there at Timberstone JHS, 9000 Sylvania Ave. I try to get us out of there promptly at 6:30. So get there early, enjoy the ride, then stay for the treats! And be sure to give Ben a big thanks for his generosity!

Speedtrap Ride Tuesday July 30^th

 

          The Speedtrap Ride, Ottawa County’s best Tuesday night ride, will roll out again from Spoke Life Cycles in Elmore tomorrow, Tuesday, July 30^th, at 6:30 pm.

          Scott Lang will lead the Ghost Pepper Riders on a 25-mile ride with an expected average of 22+ mph. Are you ready?

          Bob Kayden should be back to lead the Cayenne Pepper Riders over the same course at 20 – 22 mph.

          Tony Mazurek will lead the Habanero Riders again over the same course at 18 – 20 mph.

          I will lead the Jalapeno Riders for a slightly shorter 22 miles at 16 – 18 mph.

          Marnie Arndt will take the Sweet Pepper Riders out at a speed and distance comfortable for those in her group.

          The weather looks good for the ride. There is a 40% chance of scattered thunderstorms, but mainly in the morning. The high is predicted to be 84 degrees, with west winds at 5 to 10 mph.

          After the ride, some riders may gather at the Portage Inn in Elmore for food, drink, and good conversation.

          The Speedtrap Ride is a joint venture of TAB and the Flatlanders, not a common occurrence. So, come out to Elmore for something different: a mixture of two clubs, quiet country roads, and great people, too! You’ll be glad you did! Sign-in begins at 6:00 in front of the bike shop and we ride at 6:30. I hope to see you then!

P.S. Next Tuesday, August 6^th, after the Speedtrap Ride tentative plans are for a cookout at the home of Scott Lang, less than one mile from the bike shop!

Chuck Nicewonder

 

We really couldn’t ask for a better day for a ride Saturday - sunny but with moderate temperatures. Well, we could have used a little gentler breezes, but they really weren’t a problem. After a final head count, we had 20 riders for our trip out to Winameg. Often a group that big can be overwhelming, and bit tough to manage - think herding cats. But this was a great group. We all rode at a consistent speed, and stayed well organized. It made for an easy day for me.

We took a bit of a different route out of Whitehouse to our stop at Delta, heading west through the Maumee State Forest before heading north to Delta. The best part was the freshly paved CR F and 6-3 that lead into Delta. Smooth as silk!

After a quick 10 minute stop, the group was ready to go onward. We swung by the flowers on CR 8-1 and were able to meet the gardener herself out there working. Rick Metcalf, in all his years riding out here, had never met her and wanted to thank her for her beautiful work.

We soldiered on to Winameg destination. The town is so small that Marty Extejt missed it and asked where it was (the 4-way stop at CR 10-2 and CR L). The approach to the town has some nice shady roads with curves and terrain change that makes it interesting so I’m not surprised he missed it. 

We then went westward toward Swanton and guess who we saw? Linda and Meanderers - that would be a great band name by the way. They were on their own trip out to see the flowers and were heading back too. We politely passed them and arrived at our Swanton rest stop, just missing a passing train in downtown Swanton. Lucky us!

We left just in time for the Meanderers to arrive and cruised the last 10 miles back to Whitehouse and our picnic for Mark Nowatarski for a total of 44.6 miles at a pleasant 17.4 mph.

No Adventurers ride next week - it’s Pre-MARR. Details will follow. Be sure to be there!

When I write these reports, I try to pick out something special about the ride - the weather, a special event, an outstanding performance. But every now and then it’s just a plain old pleasant run-of-the-mill night. And that’s what last Windsday was. With nice temperatures and low wind, 33 riders came out to enjoy a pleasant evening. And we did. The Fast & Furious recorded an outstanding 23 mph, the Reasonably Fast scored a swift 20.4, the Reasonable & Reliable group with a couple of new riders scored a mellow 16.6, and the Relaxed group, with guest leader Dave “Paul” Pakulski came in at a season strong 15.8. (Names in quotes are the wrong names I often call these poor guys. It’s a drag to get old!)

Jan Meeker-Walczak has wanted to come out all season, and finally made it! She said that trying to keep 17 mph seems more challenging than on her other rides. Must be our beautiful open fields with their breezes, since otherwise we’re flat as can be! But she was still smiling! She said she’ll be back soon.

Come see us this Windsday at Timberstone JHS, 9000 W. Sylvania Ave. We’ll leave at 6:30 sharp so be sure to get there early!

Twelve riders left Wildwood Metropark, headed out to Country Charm in Metamora for breakfast Sunday morning. Along the way we captured Ron Toneff and made him eat breakfast with us. Mike Daum joined us there after a mad chase into a good headwind. A few turned back or went on to do their own thing following breakfast; the rest headed further out into it and found a glorious tailwind for the return leg. At Secor Park the group remained largely-bunched for the sprint with Mr. Daum taking honors. Nice group!

This Saturday’s Adventurer Ride is a change from the previously scheduled ride. Longtime club member, former board member and friend Mark Nowatarski is leaving us to move closer to his family. The club wanted to say good-bye by throwing him an after ride picnic this Saturday in Whitehouse. So I’m switching things up.

We're going to ride out to Winameg, a scenic little village NW of Delta. We were there earlier this year on the Fulton Villages ride. But there’s more than one way to get there. This time we’ll leave from Whitehouse and ride up through Delta to reach Winameg and come back through Swanton for a 45 mile trip. This is a snack ride, since we have a picnic waiting for us in Whitehouse after the ride. We will stop in Delta at mile 15 and Swanton at mile 36 for quick rest stops and to make sure we all have enough to drink. Plus we get to go by the flowers northwest of Delta, a perennial favorite (pun intended!). 

We’ll leave from Cyclewerks in Whitehouse at 8:00 sharp, so please come early and be ready to ride by then. Avg pace is 17 mph range (+/- 1 mph). The forecast from weather.com is projecting light SW breezes and temps starting at 70 at 8:00 and rising to 83 by noon. In other words great riding weather! So come out and join us for a beautiful ride, if you can, stay for Mark’s picnic. Make my morning by coming out and riding with us. The more the merrier!

As always, GPS tracks are available on Ride With GPS - 

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/30498283

This week's Intro to Gravel ride is a 45 mile, flatter than a pancake, exposed to all elements route from Forest View Lanes in Temperance, Michigan. This is one of those routes that looks easy on paper, and it may be. But if the wind is just right, we'll be struggling through the whole route because there is barely a tree in sight. There is a planned stop at the gas station in Ida around mile 22. We will regroup as necessary with about a 15mph average speed.

Forest View Lanes bar and grille menu can be found here: https://www.forestviewlanes.com/bar-grill

Here is the planned route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/28989340

Start location: Forest View Lanes, 2345 Dean Road, Temperance, MI 48182

Departure time: 9am

Speedtrap Ride Tuesday July 23^rd recap        

Sunny skies, temperatures in the upper 70s, and light winds drew forty-three cyclists to Elmore for the Speedtrap Ride last night.

          The Ghost Pepper Riders rode with a 22.9 mph average, as reported by group leader Scott Lang.

          Dan Waggoner substituted for Bob Kayden(out of town) as leader of the Cayenne Pepper Riders. Dan reported a 20.8 mph average. Thank you, Dan, for leading.

          The Habanero Riders rode with an 18.6 mph average reported by leader Tony Mazurek.

          Eight Jalapeno Riders stayed pretty much together throughout the ride. Ron Purk from that group reported 16.4 mph.

          The Sweet Pepper Riders split into two groups. Marnie Arndt and those who rode with her rode 20 miles at 14.3 mph, while Becky Kayden and Joyce Purk rode 16.3 miles at 13 mph.

          It was tandem night! Pictured are the five tandems on the ride:

Dan Waggoner and Kathy Slovak, Tony Mazurek and his daughter Emily(who is headed for Miami University this fall), Doug and Kathy Metzger, Judy Daiello and Jeremy Sneath, Dave Stover and Jana Loy.

          Yes, the weather was very pleasant as riders rolled out from Elmore. However, all that changed about two-thirds of the way through the ride. The entire northern sky became very dark, and it became very windy! Some groups did experience rain in addition to the wind; some groups just felt a few drops. The steady rain did come down as riders began driving out of Elmore after the ride.          

          After the ride, several  riders and even some non-riding spouses gathered at the Portage Inn in Elmore for food, drink, and good conversation!

          The next chapter of the Speedtrap Ride will take place next Tuesday, July 30^th. Sign-in begins at 6:00 and we ride at 6:30 from Spoke Life Cycles in Elmore. I hope to see you then!

Chuck Nicewonder

 

Stop in at Spoke Life locations or send me a message on fb or via email at rschieb@gmail.com to grab tickets!

Not only do we have cool riders, tomorrow night we’ll have cool temps too. Predictions are for temps within the high 70’s compared to the 90’s of last week. And it looks like the winds won’t be our typical Windsday winds, they’ll be breezes. Cool Temps + Gentle Breezes = Great Windsday Riding. Edgar, Jen, our guest Relaxed leader and I will be at your service, providing your riding pleasure. The fun starts at 6:30 sharp at Timberstone JHS, 9000 Sylvania Ave.

P.S. Westbound Sylvania between McCord and King is finally open! Of course that means eastbound between King and McCord is closed. You win some, you lose some.