Thursday rides have begun for 2023!
On June 15, Nick Seleni led Darci and Billy Whitney, Coleen and Loring Porter, and Jim Walker on the first official club Thursday ride since before Covid, on the classic Forest Home Road out and back route. Threatening weather was brewing despite a clear weather forecast, but within five minutes of leaving the beatiful new Saranac Lake Civic Center it was raining on us, hard, big chilly droplets! Fortunately it soon stopped, the roads dried off, and we had a nice ride. This week (Thursday, June 22) the ride will go from the Saranac Lake School Bus Garage on NYS Rt. 3 between Saranac Lake and Bloomingdale. Meet to roll at 6pm. This is a no-drop, all-abilities. ride of around 20 miles, an hour and a half to two hours. All are welcome, road bike preferred for this ride. Full list of rides for the summer soon to be posted on the rides page. Questions call Nick at 518-524-5310 and see you there!
Team ride Saturday, June 24, Champlain Valley/Elizabethtown!
Meet at Bouquet Valley Central School in Elizabethtown (parking lot on right side of school) at 10 am for a ca. 50-mile ride, hilly to rolling. All abilities are welcome provided you are up to the distance. The riding in the Champlain Valley is fantastic and this will be a good introduction and sampling of it. Questions call or text Jim Walker at 518-637-6590.
Annual Meeting Report, April 26, 2023
Dear Team,
Those of you who were able to attend, either in person or virtually, know that we had a really good meeting last Wednesday night. Thanks to Darci and Billy for setting up the Zoom hookup, which was great for the couple of people who used it--they would have had a long drive to attend in person.
In attendance were (in order of the pic attached, clockwise from front center): Kenny Boettger, Nick Seleni, yours truly Jim Walker, empty space for Roger Gocking the photographer, Dan Edelstein, Rich Karaz, Phil Neisser and Eric Kreckel via Zoom, Jason Amoriell, Steve Buzzell, Bill McGreevy, Dan Reilly, Tatyana Reinboldt, and Billy and Darci Whitney. Loring Porter somehow missed the photo but was there.
I think that is the best turnout in several years, so good for us!
We discussed the matter of the current (new, less racing-oriented) direction of the club, which we officers (Jason, Darci, Tatyana, and I) had asked for and received your thoughts on over the winter. What do people want from the club, what do they want it to do, now that very few members are avidly racing anymore? It boiled down to two broad categories:
1) Advocacy and community service/involvement
2) More rides and events
On the advocacy side, there had been suggestions that we become active in promoting bike safety and "sharing the road" with motorists, and there are certainly possibilities for that but nothing concrete yet.
On the community service side, we will again be helping with the Saranac Lake Kiwanis Bike Rodeo, which this year will be Saturday, June 3, location in Saranac Lake tbd, time is usually 10am-12am. (That is also a good opportunity for a club ride afterwards, let's see what we can do.)
And also we are in the process of adopting River Road for trash cleanup, and it should be official soon, with signs and the whole thing! Yippee! The Ausable River Association just cleaned up not only River Road but 86 all the way down to Wilmington--cheers to them--so River Road is pristine right now, but we'll look to get the first team effort to pick up trash there by sometime in early June if not earlier.
On the rides side, we have Kenny's Wednesday night Time Trial series starting (hopefully, weather permitting!) this Wednesday, May 3 at 6:30pm and running for six weeks, through June 7. All levels, any kind of bike, slightly less than eight miles, no fee but you must sign a waiver and wear a helmet (flashing lights a good idea too especially in the gloomy weather we've been having!). Score points (one for participating, one for winning male and female each week, one for bettering your previous time) toward the series prizes, which are given out at Kenny's series end party after the last TT.
We'll be starting up the famous Tuesday night rides from the Wilmington Town Park on May 9. They are 40 miles, brisk pace but no longer full race training rides like we used to do. We regroup many times during the ride, and as long as you like to push yourself, you are welcome. We'll wait for you--if you'll wait for us! Sometimes in early season we cut it to 30 miles due to lack of daylight. Flashing rear light mandatory, as is a helmet. Flashing front light always a good idea. Hydration, nutrition, a rain jacket if there's any chance of rain, and stuff to fix a flat. It's a great ride, hope to see you there. We leave the town park at 6pm.
Nick Seleni is planning to bring back the Saranac Lake no-drop rides on Thursdays after a couple of years of not having them. Those will start after the time trials are finished. Ca. 25 miles, varying routes to be determined, including some dirt/gravel. Watch for news!
I would like to inaugurate a planned schedule of weekend rides, at least once every two weeks, so hope that others will jump in and schedule and lead us on some of their favorite rides. I am committing to leading three so far:
1) Saturday May 20, Blue Mt. Road (Paul Smiths). Meet at junction of NYS Routes 86 and 30 (where the Hot Dog Man sets up!) for a ca. 45 mile ride. It can be half dirt/gravel and half pavement if you come back on NYS 458 and Rt. 30, or mostly gravel if you do an out and back. We'll decide based on what people want. Tentatively a 10am start, to be confirmed. We will accommodate all abilities.
2) Saturday June 24, Champlain Valley. Meet at Bouquet Valley Central School in Elizabethtown for a ca. 50-mile road ride, hilly in places, otherwise rolling. Again we will accommodate all abilities. Starting time also 10am to be confirmed.
3) Saturday July 15, Big Loop: Lake Placid, Wilmington, Jay, Keeseville, Elizabethtown, Keene, Lake Placid, ca. 85 miles. Start in LP probably 9am, to be confirmed.
It would be great if others threw their names out there to lead rides they love and want to share with the team. Don't hold back! We can get a calendar created somewhere.
Tatyana also expressed interest in leading a "coffee shop ride" early Saturday mornings, to be determined. Watch out for news on that too.
Ok, the other news is that we have decided not to do a team clothing order this year since last year the demand was low and Darci has quite a bit of surplus from previous years for those who want or need stuff. Thanks to Darci for having dealt with the clothing order for a decade and a half with no break until COVID--and having done a FANTASTIC job! Provided there is demand, we'll have a clothing order in 2024 again.
Also back in 2024 will be the West-Woodward Memorial Time Trial/NY State Time Trial Championships, date to be determined probably early August! We've held it twice before, in 2017 and 2021, and it was great!
The club officers stood for reelection and were unopposed, so will continue!
Ok, that is about it for the report. Looking forward to seeing you out at the time trials--hope it's not as wet and chilly as the forecast predicts, but as Kenny says, there's always next week!
All best,
Jim Walker
Secretary