Hi all,

We had 17 riders start the route, and we picked up John along the way, actually it was on the way back next to breakfast, but I won't tell anyone, promise. I also won't let it slip out that we start at 6:30, but if you ask John he might have someone else to blame......Ok, enough John harassing, at least for now, there is soo much material today, not sure if I'll get it all in. We had 4 new riders today, welcome Jill, Ryan, Jeff, and Sue.

Let's see, the ride didn't start off well, I was late, see, I had a flat on the way to the park. Once I got there, I noticed I had a large slice on my tire, so we put in a boot, and off we went. About 10 miles into our route, my tire blew up. Upon further inspection, I had another slice, so we proceeded to fix that one as well. Off we went. Overall the gang held together like a bunch of hungry wolves (or was that just my stomach growling). Our traditional sprint up Horne was won by Gary, but I gave him a run for his money (at least that's my story and I'm sticking to it). After our regroup and discussion of bikes and weights, Carter (his name just seems to pop up) provides some valuable insight into making not only the bike lighter, but the rider as well (he was referring to me, but that is irrelevant). First he says the rider can get an appendectomy, since that is just extra weight, then liposuction, followed by a frontal lobotomy.

Ok, so the gloves are off now as we made our way to Breakfast. Oh, did I mention that is where John met us? Anyway, as we are all peacefully getting ready to eat at Neighbors Cafe and receive those nice little muffins, Gary asks John if he wants all of that butter. John then explains the art of butter shooters (kind of like a Jello shooter with alcohol), followed by cream cheese chasers. Did I mention that John joined us at breakfast. Oh by the way, we are having a charity bike wash for John, everyone will be needed to wash his bike since it has been about a year since it has been cleaned, and who knows how long it has been since that chain has been oiled...

There was plenty more, but this being a G rated newsletter, I better stop there. Oh, and I got another flat on the way back. Three flats, 5 CO2 cartridges, 2 boots, a sliced finger, and riding with this group, priceless......

Ride Schedule for July:

Special Edition - Thursday 7/4/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park, ride with Sue. Our holiday adventure takes us Round the Mountain. That would be South Mountain and we are headed 'round the "other" way, counterclockwise. (Some consider that backwards, the rest of us know it to be the correct way to head round the silly thing.) One route, 43 miles, no climbing. If you are not sure you can do 43 miles, come on out anyway. We'll send a sag truck back along the course to pick up any bodies if needed. Breakfast at Bruegger's Bagels, southeast of Chandler Blvd & Rural.

Sunday July 7th - One year anniversary of Spin Cycle. Come on out and celebrate. Our route will be the Mckellupe Loop. Down Kyrene to Mckellips, hitting the wind tunnel there to Center and back. Breakfast at Crackers. Mileage 34 standard and 40 heavy duty.

Sunday, July 14th - Germann Hunt Loop, Germann to Higley or Lindsey, then back to Queen Creek with a detour at Hunt Highway, then back to Queen Creek and either going directly to Wildflower at the mall, or taking the long way down Queen Creek to 56th Street, then back to Chandler. Standard miles at 35, heavy duty 45.

Another option - We have been invited to ride on the West side, maybe somewhere at Estrella Mountain. Might be interesting to ride somewhere different. Jim Marshall has offered to setup a route for us, but I need to know who might be interested in doing this ride. We could get a couple of vehicles going over to car pool and make sure no one gets lost. Let me know if your interested. Based on interest, I'll follow-up next week.

Sunday, July 21 - Ohcotukee Loop. Up to Queen Creek, back down to Ahwatukee to do some climbing for the heavy duty riders. Mileage of 35 for standard, 45 for heavy duty. Breakfast at Marie Calendars.

Sunday, July 28 - Modified Mummy Mountain. Down to Mummy Mountain around it on our new route. Some gentle climbs to one big honker (that is a bike technical term). Mileage of 35 for standard, and 45 for heavy duty. Breakfast at Petes 19th Tee at Rolling Hills Golf Course.

Hi All!

What a great pedal this morning-- we had 52 riders, actually 53 if you count the youngest participant we have EVER had in the pack. Newbies Jeff and Vicky Bryant came on a tandem, pulling a trailer containing their infant son. The babe was a typical cyclist-- happy when his bottle was full and the line was in motion, impatient with the stops for flats. Kudos to his mom and dad for being able to hold 20mph on that tandem while dragging a trailer! Everybody else seemed to have a grand time wandering about the route today, breakfast at the Wildflower was excellent.

Coming up...

Thursday 7/4/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Our holiday adventure takes us Round the Mountain. That would be South Mountain and we are headed 'round the "other" way, counterclockwise. (Some consider that backwards, the rest of us know it to be the correct way to head round the silly thing.) One route, 43 miles, no climbing. If you are not sure you can do 43 miles, come on out anyway. We'll send a sag truck back along the course to pick up any bodies if needed. Breakfast at Bruegger's Bagels, southeast of Chandler Blvd & Rural.

Saturday 7/6/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. There are a number of riders coming in to the pack who are learning to do what we do so they can complete the MS150 bike ride this fall. To accomplish that they need to learn to do a couple of short, moderate climbs. We are going to "practice" just that kind of climbing with a route that gives the standard riders three climbs during their 26 miles of this course around Tempe and south Scottsdale. Advanced riders, same climbs, but a total of 36 miles. Breakfast is JB's, northeast of Southern & Dorsey.

Saturday 7/13/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Will there be a White Mountain Tour? Stay tuned, we are still waiting for a decision on that ride. If the tour is off, head to the park! We are off on a loop to the southeast, mileage options 25 miles or 35 miles, no climbing. Breakfast is Home Town Buffet, northwest of Warner & Evergreen.

Tid bits...

The heat is on. Remember your "training" for riding in our summer oven and living to tell the tale. Try to get outside a couple of times during the week to get acclimatized, drink lots of water the day before, wear sunscreen, find shade if you stop for a flat, drink LOTS of water during/after the ride and skip heavy, greasy foods at breakfast.

Riding in the heat is simply an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.

Ride safe.

Hello all,

We had 16 riders today make it today. Our group made it with a little help from Carter to get us through the first turns as I went back to my house to get my bike (usually helps if you have the bike so you can ride it....). That statement probably deserves more follow-up, but to be honest, I'm not into self incrimination, but I did catch up to the group at the first regroup. Once we started going, we had a little head wind to keep us all working. Once we took the left turn at Lindsey or Higley, it was much easier, and even better yet once we got to Guadalupe with that great tailwind.....

Breakfast at Ripe Tomatoes was great, with Chad trying to sell his extra whip cream and talking about lard and who knows what else, but that could have been just me....

Next week

Sunday, June 30th, Tour de Lehi. Mileage options of 35-40 miles, all flat, we'll one slight hill, but don't worry, no sprinting, trust me. Breakfast at Neighbors Cafe.

July schedule will be out within the week, but rest assured, we will ride somewhere, tell some stories, and eat...

Take care.

glen

Hi All!

Though a lot of our regular riders were off doing who knows what today, we still had 49 riders appear at the park, many of them new to our pack. For those riders joining in to our weekly fun by way of training for the MS150, welcome! If you survive a summer of our rides, you'll be ready for ANY of the big rides this fall. We braved the traditional head winds across McKellips, with only a few delays for flats, and most found their way to the breakfast stop at Neighbor's. A little bike envy amongst the group due to Chad appearing on a sweet new ride with some really cool components. We're impressed that he is secure in pedaling a bike that is already pre-named "Lola"! A discussion was also had as to why the sleek, zippy riders usually skip the food stop while the rest of us more moderate pedalers always take advantage of the calories. The decision was that we just have our priorities straight!

Coming up...

Saturday 6/29/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. We head to the southeast by way of Lindsay, with options of 29 miles or 36 miles, no climbing. If 29 is too much, this is an easy one to breakdown to a shorter route. Breakfast is the Wildflower Bread Company, southwest of Price & Chandler Blvd (east side of the Chandler mall).

Thursday 7/4/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. A holiday ride! Celebrate your freedom (this is assuming you get the day off work!) by making the voyage Round The Mountain Backwards with us. Many riders do the ride around South Mountain, but only our gang pedals to a different cadence by going 'round counterclockwise. Put on your red, white, and blue riding gear and head to the park for the 43 mile adventure (no climbing unless you are silly enough to zip up to the Towers as we go by Central!). Breakfast at Bruegger's Bagels, southeast corner of Chandler Blvd & Rural.

Saturday 7/6/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. "To learn you must do." Ya know who said that? Yoda, in the Star Wars movie. Very smart little dude. Our standard riders are going to take on three climbs during their 26 miles of this course around Tempe and south Scottsdale. (Yoda also said "There is no try, only do.") Advanced riders, same climbs, but a total of 36 miles. Breakfast is JB's, northeast of Southern & Dorsey.

Tid bits...

Many riders are asking and wondering about the White Mountain Tour considering it's proximity to the raging forest fires in the north country. The answer? Stay tuned. Ride leader for that event (our prez Mike Morross) is currently talking to the powers that be about conditions and our options. As soon as an official decision has been made, an email will go out to this circle.

Ride safe.

Happy Fathers Day!!!!

We had 16 riders today, with one new addition to our group, Charlene, and an old addition we found along the way (John, you didn't think I would forget....). On our way to Queen Creek we saw John Arle doing a few miles getting ready for the group. It was great to see you John, and now that you have done a few miles, we all expect you next week.......

The group of riders made their way down Queen Creek, with us breaking into two groups. We had sprint bonuses actually labeled on the map, however, I was safe since nobody reads the maps anyway, so I took the first two sprints. Jeremy got the King of the Hill honors. Overall, a great ride for Fathers Day. Most of us found the second regroup and even a smaller group of us made it to breakfast. So, we all talked about the rest of you.....

Next week:

Sunday, June 23, unless I find something better, let's do the Germannlupe loop, up Germann to either Lindsey or Higley and then down to Guadalupe. Mileage options of 32-42, breakfast at Ripe Tomatoes.

Sunday, June 30th, Tour de Lehi. Mileage options of 35-40 miles, all flat, we'll one slight hill, but don't worry, no sprinting, trust me. Breakfast at Neighbors Cafe.

Tip of the week:

As it starts to get hotter and hotter (yes, it is going to get hotter), keeping hydrated is key. The general rule of thumb is to take a drink every 15-20 minutes during a ride. In addition, drink plenty of fluid prior to the ride. It is recommended to offset some water intake with a drink with electrolytes. Something like a PowerAde, Gatorade to replace the nutrients and salt back in your body.

For more cycling tips, see the attached web site: http://www.cptips.com/.

Hi All!

As usual, the offer of free food brought out the troops this morning. We headed out of the park with 63 riders for a ramble around in the Foothills. Thanks to Val for volunteering to ride sweep (uh, that IS what you were doing back there, right Val?) Our express train looked a little like a united nations team with Honeywell, ProCon, and PPC team jerseys riding shoulder to shoulder. (If our pack can blend competitors like that, maybe there is hope for the world?) All wound up back at the park after the ride for breakfast under the trees. Our other Saturday morning gang, Sun Lakes, brought their pack to join us giving us a total of about 75 riders plus several members who drove to the breakfast. Special thanks to Tom Adams for helping with the breakfast set up!

Coming up...

Saturday 6/22/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Off to the east we go by way of McKellips. Mileage options 28 miles or 37 miles, a little gentle climbing on each, and a head wind is traditional on this route! Breakfast at Neighbor's Cafe, northwest of Guadalupe and Alma School.

Saturday 6/29/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. A loop to the southeast on the Lindsay Loop. Mileage options 29 miles or 36 miles, no climbing. For breakfast we are going to check out the Wildflower Bread Company at the Chandler mall, southwest of Price & Chandler Blvd. (Have you tried their Cinnamon Raisin French Toast?? Hmm...carbos.)

Saturday 7/6/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Standard riders, get your granny gears lubed up! Two route options, 26 miles or 36 miles, with three climbs, all of which are on the standard route! Earn your pancakes with a route around Tempe that gives up some great views. Breakfast is JB's, northeast of Southern & Dorsey. (Yes, Mr. Mohr, they do have an all you can eat buffet there!)

Tid bits...

The next grand adventure to the pine trees is approaching rapidly. Join the White Mountain Tour on the weekend of July 13/14 and breathe some cool air while you pedal. For details, see your monthly newsletter or click here.

Ride safe.

We had 20 riders make the trip around South Mountain today. Great ride for those that made it, and those that made it and wish they hadn't (you know who you are). Let's see, nothing really exciting happened today, except there was not a bathroom to be found. Not only was it closed at Desert Breeze Park, but the ladies didn't want to use the Women's cactus on Maricopa and Riggs, and to top it off, the Texaco half way around wasn't open either. The final regroup at Dobbins and Central did have a working and open bathroom, you just had to take a number.

There were several sprints, which I mysteriously won (Everat, I didn't count the one you won, because, it wasn't on the map!!!!). Jim mentioned that it might be helpful to let the rest of the group in on when those sprints are going to happen. I promptly replied back, why would I want to do something like that, that would take away all of my advantage (and also the advantage of writing these rambling reports).....We'll between these ramblings, we actually did ride around the mountain. Breakfast at Wildflower was great. Overall, a good day for riding.

Sunday, June 16 let's the do the Ocotukee loop, starting in Ocotillo and heading over to Ahwatukee and the foothills. Mileage options of 35 to 45 with some gentle to harder climbing with a couple of loops around the hills. Breakfast at Marie Calendars.

Sunday, June 23, unless I find something better, let's do the Germannlupe loop, up Germann to either Lindsey or Higley and then down to Guadalupe. Mileage options of 32-42, breakfast at Ripe Tomatoes.

Sunday, June 30th, Tour de Lehi. Mileage options of 35-40 miles, all flat, well one slight hill, but don't worry, no sprinting, trust me. Breakfast at Neighbors Cafe.

See ya..

glen

Hi All!

We had 49 riders head out of the park this morning. 47 of them made it at least as far as the first regroup! A search party was sent out back along the route to locate the Jance & Lanet tandem team that had gone missing. They were soon found, dead in the water with a busted chain. With assist from Rick Marquis and Bob Culbertson they got things rolling again, but decided to limp it back to the park. Meanwhile our express pack was honking around the advanced course trying to keep up with one of our guest riders, Bob Pongrantz. (Uh, yes, that would be the same Bob who was the first rider across in the finish line in the Tour de Phoenix this year!) Bob was on a rest day so he kept the pace under 30 for the gang.

Several riders asked what the huge and interesting structures are that are appearing at the intersection of 56th/Queen Creek/Maricopa roads, at the northeast corner. Anybody know?

Coming up...

Saturday 6/15/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Saturday Cycling hosts the PMBC/GABA quarterly membership ride/breakfast/meeting. We head to the Ahwatukee Foothills, with mileage options of 24 miles with no climbing or 35 miles with moderate climbing (or any version in between!). Breakfast is served back at Kiwanis Park, ramadas #6/#7, which is just north of the parking lot that we start from. Eats will be offered up starting at about 9:15am and will last until all of the food is gone! Breakfast is free for members, $4 for non-members.

Saturday 6/22/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Off to the northeast we go by way of McKellips. Long route 37 miles, short 28 miles, a little gentle climbing on each. Breakfast is Neighbor's Cafe, northwest corner Alma School and Guadalupe.

Saturday 6/29/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. A loop to the southeast by way of Lindsay, with options of 29 miles or 36 miles. (Note, if you don't have 29 miles in those legs, this is an easy route to cut shorter!) Breakfast is the Wildflower Cafe, southwest of Price & Chandler Blvd (at the Chandler mall).

Tid bits...

We have some riders not quite catching the concept that we have switched to an earlier riding time for the summer. For the sake of the calendar challenged, here is our riding schedule for the year. Tattoo this on the back of your hand, and you're all set:

January 8:30am
February 8:00am
March 7:30am
April & May 7:00am
June/July/August 6:30am
September/October 7:00am
November 7:30am
December 8:00am

Ride safe.

Hi All!

There are a few words that strike fear into the heart of organizers of major bike rides everywhere. Two of them are "Road Closure". Our helmets are off to Tour de Payson ride leader Bob Beane for going above and beyond the call of duty last week when the forest service closed one of the primary roads to be used for the debut of our new ride in Payson, just days before the event, due to fire restrictions. The routes were reworked, maps created, packets were assembled into the night Friday. We had about 70 riders take on the challenge of the new tour, including five locals who volunteered to ride amongst us with the goal being to try and keep the majority of the riders on course. The pack took up our traditional method of dealing with a new route... following the map if convenient, or forging new roads when in doubt. The views, cooler (well, cooler than home!) temps and great company made the day a grand success, no matter what course was taken. Thanks again to Bob for the incredible amount of research and work put into this event-- and to our volunteers who made the event happen; Kathy Hendricks, Janet Nash, Matthew Bolan, and Pete Joyce.

Holding down the home front, ride leader Val Horton had 27 riders who just couldn't stand the sight of pine trees appear at Kiwanis Park. They made the voyage to Lehi, consumed bagels, and checked out the new I-60 College bridge. (Val-- thanks for leading-- we had the pack chant your name as they crested the top of the 12% grade climb right at the beginning of the ride in Payson!)

Coming up...

Saturday 6/8/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Open roads are calling us... so off we go on the Tour de Sue. Route options on either Queen Creek or Riggs, mileage 25 or 35 miles, no climbing. Breakfast is Perkins, northeast of Chandler Blvd & 54th St.

Saturday 6/15/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. FREE FOOD!! Oh, yeah, and a bike ride. Our quarterly membership ride/breakfast/meeting takes the pack on a loop into the Ahwatukee/Foothills area. The map is still "in development" but mileage options will be something like 25 miles with little climbing or 35 miles with moderate climbing. Breakfast is served right back at Kiwanis Park after the ride and is free to all PMBC/GABA members. Location is Ramadas #6/#7 located at the east end of the lake in Kiwanis. If you are not riding out with the pack and want to join in on the breakfast, we will start serving at about 9:15am and our officers will yammer for a few minutes at about 9:30am.

Saturday 6/22/02 6:30am Kiwanis Park. Our riders seem to either love or hate our wind training ride across McKellips. Hey, if you don't like it, at least you get to eat breakfast at Neighbor's Cafe! Off into the wind we go, with mileage options of 28 miles or 37 miles, a little gentle climbing on both. Neighbor's is northwest of Guadalupe and Alma School.

Tid bits...

Saturday Cycling rides under the banner of the valley wide riding association Phoenix Metro Bicycle Club (PMBC), which in turn is affiliated with the statewide association Greater Arizona Bicycling Association (GABA). Not a PMBC member yet? Wanna join? Annual membership is $15 and gets you lotsa cool perks like free breakfasts now and then, insurance, a spiffy monthly newsletter, and discounts on a lot of the major riding events during the year. Pick up an application any Saturday morning or see our website at: http://www.sportsfun.com/gaba/

Ride safe.

As a direct result of your participation in, and the financial success of Phoenix Metro Bicycle Club events in the last few months, the Board and Officers of the Phoenix Metro Bicycle Club passed a special motion that authorized a $1,000 donation to the CAzB (Coalition of Arizona Bicyclists). This donation will be made with the request that as much as possible of these funds be spent in an effort to maximize Arizona's utilization of available TEA-21 funds for bicycle-enabling enhancements. Our club is concerned that millions of dollars of earmarked-and-available alternative transportation money will go unspent, to the detriment of Arizona cyclists, including our club members.

PMBC treasurer Bob Beane presented a check to the CAzB board at their meeting on Monday, May 13th, and personally volunteered to assist in pursuing the objective associated with these funds.

We hope that the Coalition will accept this donation in the spirit of a "challenge" to meet or exceed the expectations of the cycling community of our state. PMBC stands ready to help pursue the objective of obtaining and assigning ALL AVAILABLE FUNDS to bicycle-related projects for our state.

Howdy all, another great day in Arizona.....The weather is starting to turn a little hot, but that didn't detour our gang of 13 riders....Our adjunct ride leader (Carter) did not do that well today, at least that's my story and I'm sticking to it, no real reason other than to continue to give him a bad time from last week. On our way to our first regroup, I actually suggested that we stop at the regroup ON THE MAP, however, the group did not feel it was necessary, but, me being the ride leader that I am, insisted On my return out of AM/PM, my bike was not where I had left it (needless to say, your first reaction when your bike is not where you left it after just paying some hard cash to get it can instantly turn your stomach). However, the group decided that it would be a little cooler in the shade next to them (you know how that bike gets so hot and goes so fast, but that is for later in the story)....

We split into two groups, and never did see the rest, but seeing how their car was not at the parking lot when we got back, we assume you got home ok. The fast pack made its way down the wind tunnel of McKellups (since when did they start that road construction anyways), but still made some nice time with Dave Lehnen pulling us most of the way (I guess he didn't ride hard enough in Payson on Saturday, actually he was doing well today and grateful for the pull). On our stretch up Center Street, Ron made a break for the top, but hey, guess what, I actually won a sprint (thanks Gary for taking the day off!!!). We regrouped and made our way to Crackers, which by everyone's accounts is probably the best breakfast around. The last hill on Extension, the group decided to sneak up, but....hey, what do you know, I got another one. There was a comment at breakfast about riding faster than the speed of light, but even though I'm taking it out of context, it was all about me (it was too good to pass up for today's write-up).

On a final note, I saw John Arle today and he is doing well. I was riding up and down his street until he came home when I saw him!!!! Actually, he said he was a making a trip to New York and was going to start riding after that (ok John, I've publicly committed you, you can thank me later).

Sunday June 9, around South Mountain. Time to start putting in those miles. Mileage is 45-50. Breakfast is the Wildflower at Guadalupe and McClintock.

Sunday, June 16 let's the do the Ocotukee loop, starting in Ocotillo and heading over to Ahwatukee and the foothills. Mileage options of 35 to 45 with some gentle to harder climbing with a couple of loops around the hills. Breakfast at Marie Calendars.

Sunday, June 23, unless I find something better, let's do the Germannlupe loop, up Germann to either Lindsey or Higley and then down to Guadalupe. Mileage options of 32-42, breakfast at Ripe Tomatoes.

see ya..

glen