Congratulations!!

At the annual Christmas Party Sunday, 14 December, the Club elected a new Executive Board -

President - Meredith Wayant
Vice President - Terry Fortman
Treasurer - Jean Turley
Secretary - Elizabeth Linthicum

We look forward to a long, warm summer and another successful Melon in 2009! Meredith is a veteran Melon Head; Terry has been a coach, mentor and mechanic to members for longer than he'd like to admit; Jean is not only a past President, but has also been a Melon Head, Co-Melon Head, and has set up many multi-day travel rides. Elizabeth has been a member for several years, and brings her sparkling personality as well as her administrative talents from her job at Naper Settlement.

Congratulations again!!

Is That Motivated, or Motorvated?

Bless me, it has been a long time since my last rant...I mean blog entry. It appears that winter has closed in. No real snow yet, but my Aunt & Uncle are back from Alabama for the holidays, and I haven't been on a bike for way too long. I have my Cycle-Ops trainer ready to spin. It's right where I left it last spring - folded up against the fireplace in my living room/training center/laundry sorting general area. All I really need to do is get either the single-speed or the road bike upstairs, locked in, and....watch TV for awhile. Or sort socks - actually, that would make more room for the bike and trainer... My road bike even has a PowerTap wheel, so there's that instant feedback on progress or lack thereof.

Anyone else out there looking for a way to get started at getting started?

Courtesy in Groups

Hey all-
This is a little missive regarding riding in groups. Not working pacelines - just on group rides. We've been over many points previously; this is just a reminder. It applies to all ride paces, whether road or trail.

There are several people who reliably and generously lead rides. While the practice of using cue sheets has fallen off, the routes have become pretty standard. As seasons shorten and lengthen, there may be some variations, but the rides rarely reach terra incognita. Many of us have been riding these routes for two or three years. Many of us live in the area. The problem arises when a ride leader is never relieved - always forced to be in front, because people in the group claim to not know the route. This is patently silly. To force a ride leader to drag our honky butts for 20 or more miles is not only ridiculous; it's inconsiderate. Pulling out of line to pass a leader without taking a turn in front, is not only inconsiderate - it's dangerous.

Although these rides may not be engaged in a paceline, it is still incumbent on the riders to take their turn(s) pulling. When the leader fades left, or slows down, don't stay behind him(her) - take your place in the lead. Ask about the next turn. Thank the person you're relieving for pulling. Follow this pattern, and everyone on the ride gets a shot at being in front, and no one is overworked. The pace will naturally pick up, and everyone will learn(belatedly) to be aware of where they are; both on the ride and in the group. We can't, after so many years of riding together, continue to be a flock of baby ducks, blindly following the ride leader, never learning the names of the roads and streets we're riding on. We can make every ride a learning experience; we can put out some effort to make it more rewarding to lead rides - for everyone.

The more critically aware of our environment, the better ride leaders we'll all become. Then we can give the ride leaders we have a decent break, while developing more ride leaders. Watch. Listen. Learn. Lead.

The good news is, we still have several weeks of good riding left before the darkness falls. Our annual fun rides - SCARY and TOAGY. YEE-HAAAH!!!

Correct line-up for the photo...

That's Rick, Eric, and Kevin Bailey, l-to-r. Spatially, not politically. This was at the Ellsworth Street Brewery a couple of weeks before the Melon. Eric looks way better without the neck brace.

The Melon, the Flags, and The Long Road

Rick, left, and Eric.

Well, OK, I'm going for some kind of alliteration with the title. I hope it causes different echoes in every reader's mind.

Once again, the Melon turned out to be a transcendant event. Volunteers did come out of the proverbial woodwork; so much so that the riders were very complementary. Many thanks again to those who did double duty!! Another bonus - the Somonauk po-lice didn't have any run-ins with cyclists this year; at least there were no reports/complaints.

We used a unique route marking system - those cute little adhesive flags on the roads. The glue is very sticky, yet the paper flags themselves wear away in about ten days to two weeks. Nice. Next year, now that the route marking crew knows how many flags are in the roll, the markings will be even better.

As some of you may know, NBC member Eric Peterson is... well, a maniac. He's an ultra-distance cyclist, who qualified last year for the Paris-Brest-Paris timed ride.

Particicpants qualify by means of completing rides at distances between 200 and 600 kilometers. There is a group - Great Lakes Randonneurs - which oversees the qualifying rides, and keeps evryone's records straight. The real deal, PBP, is a 1,200 kilometer ride, with a limit of 90 hrs. The clock doesn't stop until the time limit is hit, or the riders' limit is hit. Oh, yeah...it's not a supported ride. The PBP riders, in qualifying and on the actual ride, use touring bikes, loaded with gear and supplies. No outside help. And the clock never stops. No weather breaks; no daylight only mileage.

After Eric knocked off the PBP, he continued to do the long miles/kms. Rick cosaro and Eric were up in Wisconsin, doing a training ride. At 9:30 pm. On a relatively rural road. A woman on her way home from work intersected with Eric's bike; Rick Cosaro kept his cool, grabbed a cell phone, and called in the po-lice. Eric was helicoptered to the University of madion Hospital, where, fortunately, he impressed the staff with his fitness, attitude, and resiliency. Eric was up and about in ten days or so - and riding shortly after that. He did the Melon also.

So, a little commotion for a guy with Reynolds 853 steel in his bones!!

Congratulations On Another Successful Melon

Melon logo/T-Shirt design by Heather Mair


Hey All -
Let's here a long, loud, standing ovation for Meredith Wayant and her Melon Metric Team - Terry Fortman, John Tunnell, and Larry Alvino!! And right along with them, all of the people who volunteered and gave the club a morning, afternoon, or both!!!

More details will emerge as we sort throught the tally of riders. After registration closed, Marty Kotecki and I did the 32 mile ride. We heard nothing but complements from the participants - the route was very well marked, the rest stops were fabulous, there were SAG vehicle all over the course(s), and all of the volunteers were very helpful! Here's an early return:

Just a note to thank you for again sponsoring a great ride Sunday. This was my 3rd Melon 100 Mile Ride and the first with one of my sons. The experience could not have been better on all levels but it could not have happened without the level of planning and coordination you pulled off again.

You never disappoint - the volunteers were tops - friendly - helpful and fun.
The route could not have been better marked better
The rest stops were so well stocked
We saw evidence of many SAG wagons looking out for the riders.
The route map was great but thankfully we didn't really need it thanks to the great route markers.

Thanks again for not only just a ride but a great experience. The Melon Team really knows how to run a ride.
John Wright

Thanks to our dedicated printer, Wally Lindberg, we had a brochure and a set of maps that made registration easy, and navigation was a breeze, due to the map and the innovative route markers discovered by Rick Cosaro. The route itself was marked by members of the Beer & Bike Caucus - the 100+ milers who do a century every month, and ride all winter.

A full list of volunteers will be posted shortly.

Thanks again - and stay tuned for the volunteers-only Thanks-a-Melon picnic!!!

Disastrous Weekend

We learned Sunday that Eric Peterson was involved in a car -vs - bike accident during a 600 km brevet ride near Madison WI. Luckily, Eric was not alone on this ride - Rick Cosaro was there, and was able to keep Eric awake while waiting for the ambulance. The driver was a young woman on her way home from work. Eric's injuries were serious; the prognosis, however, is good. The car, a Saturn, was doing about 35 MPH; on a rural road, in central Wisconsin, it could have been much worse.

Eric is in excellent shape, and has always had a very positive attitude; keep him and his family in your thoughts. We wish him a speedy recovery.

Experienced Riders Should Know Better

Hello All!!

We had a great turnout for Monday's Easy ride. There had to have been 18 or so people, and it was a beeee-ooootiful night for a ride. Rick Cosaro led the ride, out through Fermi and back. I sort of led a little, and swept a little. Oh, by the by, the main group dropped the leader.

A couple reminders: There are several roads we ride on a regular basis. Olesen, Green Trails, Greene, Royce, 248, 103rd St., Washington, Mill, Herrick, Stonebridge, and Mack. As the title of this entry indicates, these roads should be ridden single file. Automatically. No reminders needed. Greene Road between 75th and Royce; Herrick from Warrenville to Butterfield; and the entire length of Mack Road can be dangerous. There are curves and / or blind hills; last night there were several cars who went way too wide(their error) and almost experienced head-on collisions. We would have been the collateral damage. Too add to this, there was a casual rider on Mack, riding on the wrong side of the road. Several of us warned him; he got a little surly. I hope he didn't get a little side-swiped, or worse.

The clear danger, and bad example to both motorists and new riders, is when they see soi-disant experienced riders hanging outside the line, chit-chatting, riding one or no handed, passing on the left out of sequence, half-wheeling other riders, et cetera, the newbies either get confused, or think it's OK to emulate bad habits. Ride leaders(still way too few) can't very well give a mid-ride reminder to the newbies whilst giving the experienced riders a pass. I have received complaints from experienced riders about other experienced riders - both paries of the same error.

I fully realize we are not conducting training for racers. We are, though, trying somehow to pass on a legacy of dedicated, serious, recreational riding. Many of us follow racing; not quite as many delve into the studious side of cycling. While listening to Phil Ligget and Paul Sherwen tell stories of the peloton, there is no substitute for actually riding - and sometimes, riding above one's current level. I rode with the infamous Spokes groups for 1 1/2 seasons before being humiliated once or twice too often. NBC is getting a reputation as a fast group as well, at least according to several newbies and email inquiries. The rep, though, is a good one. And I want to keep it that way. Cycling courtesy, safety concerns, and common sense are important to remember and to employ.

It is incumbent upon ride leaders and experienced riders to set a good example; it is equally incumbent upon all of us to learn from these examples. Ride leaders really do need to give a pre-ride briefing - hand signals, hazard indicators, ride speed; the whole thing. It's not hard to do, and doesn't take long. If a rider or group of riders decides to roll out ahead, tell the leader.

Thanks and have a nice day!

Wilkommen, Bienvenue, Welcome!

Now that the Naperville Bike Club's website has been upgraded, we have the capability to add a feature from the Newsletter. This is the opening salvo for the Letter from the President. As in the print version, this will be the locus of info, rants, bad cat jokes, and general commentary. We're likely adding a forum feature soon, too. This will, of course, be moderated, in order to keep things as civil as possible and also to avoid any legal problems.

So, off we go, into the wild asphalt yonder!