November 2013 - Siskiyou Velo

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
As our Club year narrows to final days, so does our Board of Directors. We started
the year with 12 and are now down to nine. The officers met recently to develop an
annual 2014 budget to present to the Board for approval. A slot in this budget is the
MLC which we have plans to redesign—maybe give it a new name. The task at hand
is one of manpower—who’s going to make it happen? At present, Board members
take the lead as planning goes on.
Ride Leaders
are the ones
who make the
club what it is.
How many Ride Leaders do we have? Close to 40 so far this
year. These are the ones who make the Club what it is. These
are the ones who put themselves out to not only plan a ride but
choose ways to make it interesting and fun. The Board has
plans to acknowledge their dedication by issuing them coffee
credit cards redeemable at their favorite cafes. They can receive their card at our December Annual Meeting.
You may recall a recent item about an early morning bicycle commuter who got a
ticket riding into Ashland on N. Main St. in the vicinity of Manzanita St. His violation:
ORS 811.440—failing to ride in the bike lane. The fellow bought the video from the
police department to use it at his court hearing. It’s an account of the incident as captured on the officer’s car or motorcycle camera. You may find it fascinating to watch
and hear the exchange between officer and cyclist. You may also realize that you don’t
want to end up in this cyclist’s place. See https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?
id=476890565698978&story_fbid=572663276121706 .
SISKIYOU VELO CLUB NEWSLETTER
siskiyouvelo.org
November 2013
SISKIYOU VELO
ANNUAL CYCLING
CELEBRATION
& ANNUAL MEETING
Sunday, Dec. 8, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Pioneer Hall, 73 Winburn Way, Ashland
DANCE to live music from local musicians GREAT MINDS UNPLUGGED, featuring acoustic pop music
from the 70's, 80’s, 90's...diggin’ and dancin' to fun versions of old favorites.
DRINK
EAT
Wine, beer, sodas and mixers provided. Bring your own spirits if that’s what moves you.
Chips and dips provided. Bring your favorite hors d’oeuvre or dessert treat to share. Plates, napkins
and utensils provided.
ELECT the Velo Club Board of Directors for 2014 (10 minutes).
THANK our ride leaders.
CELEBRATE the season with friends and fellow cyclists.
NO CHARGE
Want to help set up or clean up? Email Gordy at [email protected]
NEXT MEMBERSHIP MEETING
NOVEMBER 13
7 pm
PHOENIX LIBRARY
VIKI BROWN’S NEW ENGLAND TOUR
BILL HEIMANN: GETTING HOME AFTER A BREAKDOWN
Frank, Linda and Boomer Correia share a tandem
ride with the Velo Melo s on Oct. 26.
Siskiyou Velo Newsletter
November 2013
BRISK riders at the Applegate Dam
Page 2
ALERT
ALERT
ASHLAND ROAD DIET COMMENT PERIOD CLOSES OCT. 31
If you have been waiting to comment on the City of Ashland’s North Main Road Diet, time
is running out. Please navigate to http://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?
NavID=13461#peak_democracy and share your opinion. Below are quotes from the Club’s
letter to the City advocating retention of the three-lane cross-section.
“The new cross-section has proven to be an unequivocal success. While there are refinements that should be made, the addition of cycling facilities and the improvement of the
pedestrian environment has dramatically changed N. Main from a mono-modal facility into
a multi-modal one. In fact, the addition of cycling facilities to N. Main has allowed it to become the main street for all modes of travel, not just motor vehicles.
“The addition of N. Main to the City’s bicycle facilities network is critical to creating an efficient system of interconnected streets and paths. With it, a person can travel by bike from
the north to the south of the City, and vice versa, on roads that are suitable for cycling. “
TRAFFIC SAFETY 101 OCTOBER 19 COURSE
Brilliant sunshine and blue skies welcomed students to the Club’s second in a series of
three Traffic Safety 101 courses planned for 2013. The quick paced and intensive curriculum combined facts, figures, instructor demonstrations, student practice, and an approximate five mile on-the-road bicycle drive. Students praised the course for its content; in particular, the opportunity to practice bike handling and avoidance skills under
the supervision of League of American Bicyclists trained instructors, and the on-theroad in-traffic driving experience.
Students
Sunny Anderson*
Jackson Bangs*
Wayne Thompson,
Ken Kelley*
Mike LeTourneau*
Lara McCormick*,
Katie Broom
Sue Hutchison
Barbara Thompson*
Nathan Broom*
* those receiving Traffic Safety 101 Certificates
The November 23rd Siskiyou Velo Traffic Safety 101 course is full. Registered students
will receive confirmation and related information by email in the coming weeks. If members would like to be placed on the Club’s education/training waiting list they can do so
at bit.ly/svbikeed.
Slo Mos enjoy
the sunshine at
Pony Espresso
on Oct. 26
Siskiyou Velo Newsletter
November 2013
Page 3
NEXT VELO CLUB BOARD MEETING
November 6 7:00 pm Talent Fire Station
Here lies the body of George O'Day.
He died maintaining his right of way.
He was right, dead right as he rode along,
But he is just as dead as if he were wrong.
!! NOTICE !!
The Wednesday BRISK Ride Will start at 11:00 a.m.
beginning November 6
OCTOBER RIDE LEADERS
Ken Kelley
Gary Shaff
Dennis Cramer
CLIPLESS ?
Jean O’Donnell
Have you wondered why pedals are called “clipless”
when you actually clip your cleats into them? The answer gets back to toe clips, those strappy cages that
hold your shoes in place. Toe clips were high fashion
until cleats came along. Either type makes your pedaling more efficient as they enable you to get power
from the full range of a pedal stroke.
ML Moore
Judy Kerr
Ray Forsyth
Gary Foll
Wil Thompson
Fred Stapenhorst
Siskiyou Velo Newsletter
A switch to clipless can be scary at first and may well
bring on a fall or two—usually when you bring your
bike to a stop and forget to unclip. But as soon as
you get the hang of it and feel that quick turn to disengage and easy clip-in, you may wonder why you
didn’t get them long ago.
pg
November 2013
Page 4
How long have you lived in the Rogue Valley, and
where did you come from? My husband, Ron, and I
moved to Ashland from Marin County in the Bay
Area 7 years ago.
Elizabeth Zell has been very
involved in the leadership of the
Velo Club until recently. She has
ridden across the country many
times and is one of the strongest
women riders in the Valley.
How long have you been a SVC member? We
joined the SVC right away. We had been active in a
bike club in Marin and Santa Rosa, so we were
seeking out a local club. Right away we volunteered to head the MLC. It was a great way to
meet fellow cyclists and get to know all the beautiful back roads.
Tell us about your first bike. My first bike was a
Nishiki that I bought about 30 years ago. My
daughter took it to New York with her and used it
for commuting to work, until one too many trucks
ran into it while it was chained up on the sidewalk.
How has your cycling developed since that first
bike? After road biking for a number of years, I
switched to mountain biking. I then got into bike
touring and went back to road biking. For eight
years, before I retired, I bike commuted to work. I
have also done many centuries and a few double
centuries. I like to think that I've become a more
efficient rider over the years. I do try to work on
my cycling skills. I find I learn a lot from being in a
group of cyclists and talking to other riders.
How often do you get on your bike, and what is an
average ride for you? I ride almost daily. I average
between 150 and 200 miles per week. I would say
that 50 miles is about an average ride for me.
What (kind of bike) do you ride, and what do you
like best about it? Describe its personality. My current road bike is a Landshark. I just got a new
one this year. I named it "Jora". It's a bold bike
and looks like a party. Ron and I also have a Landshark tandem. My touring bike is a Waterford.
How many miles do you ride in a year? I think I'll
have about 9000 miles this year. Part of that is our
bike touring. My husband and I love to do self supported bike touring. We did a number of tours in
Oregon this year.
What is your favorite ride in the Rogue Valley? . I
have many favorites, but probably the Lakes Loop
is the number one. I love leaving Ashland and getting up into the trees and lakes. It's a whole different environment.
Siskiyou Velo Newsletter
What is your favorite ride world-wide? Ron and I
rode in the Czech Republic. That was quite beautiful with all the forests and lakes. Our most meaningful rides were crossing the US together on our
bikes and biking from Canada to Mexico paralleling
the Pacific Crest Trail.
What do you think is the best thing about riding a
bike? There are so many "best" things about riding
a bike. I guess I particularly love the fitness factor,
meeting other cyclists, and observing our environment in slow motion.
What is your most embarrassing experience on (or
near) a bike? The most embarrassing thing was
way back when I had the Nishiki. At that time we
didn't have clipless pedals. We had cages with
straps. I came to a busy intersection and forgot to
release my foot. I did a "dead cow" in the middle
of the intersection and couldn't get myself out. All
the cars were stopped and I'm sure the drivers had
fun watching me try to extract myself from my
bike.
What’s still on your cycle bucket list? My bucket
list, of course, includes more touring in the US and
abroad.
November 2013
Page 5
Sarah Paul identified last
month’s photo on Lower Grave
Creek Road near the Rogue
River.
This covered bridge has two
statewide claims to fame and is
about 1/4 mile off a paved
road.
The person who is the first
to identify this photo has the
privilege of submitting one
next month.
SISKIYOU VELO CLUB COMMITTEES
ADVOCACY
Edgar Hee
[email protected]
EDUCATION & TRAINING
Rees Jones
[email protected]
COMMUNICATION
ML Moore
[email protected]
Wayne Evitts
[email protected]
Dennis Cramer
[email protected]
BRISK
Dennis Cramer
[email protected]
VELOSHIP
Jean O’Donnell
[email protected]
CRANK IT UP
Judy Kerr
[email protected]
MELO VELO
Sandra Wetzel
[email protected]
SLO MO
Phil Gagnon
[email protected]
FELLOWSHIP & EVENTS
FUNDRAISING
MEMBERSHIP
MOUNTAIN LAKES CHALLENGE
RIDE COORDINATION
Visit us on the Internet: http://www.siskiyouvelo.org
Newsletter contributions accepted until the 15th of the month.
Contact the editor at [email protected] for more information. Members are welcome to
submit letters, photos, stories, classifieds or other notices of interest to the club.
Siskiyou Velo Newsletter
November 2013
Page 6
REGISTER YOUR BIKES
at
http://www.ashland.or.us/FormPage.asp?FormID=145
or
http://www.ci.medford.or.us/FormPage.asp?FormID=58
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Phil Gagnon, President
Viki Brown, Secretary
Gary Shaff, Treasurer
Dennis Cramer
Wayne Evitts
Gordon Gilmore
Edgar Hee
Rees Jones
ML Moore
Siskiyou Velo Newsletter
November 2013
Page 7