October 2010 President’s Letter

Kalamazoo Bicycle Club rides will continue through Friday, November 5. There will be new riding opportunities with the start of the Wednesday night ride down the Kal-Haven Trail and with cyclecross riding out in the Richland/ Gull Lake area. Stay tuned for more details.

As the days are getting shorter, please remember to wear BRIGHTER clothing and to use lights when required to do so. Remember that the setting sun will affect drivers and interfere with their ability to see you. Stay safe!

The October meeting of the KBC will be when members wishing to be President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer can be nominated for the election to be held at the November meeting. Please feel free to participate. While it has been an honor to be the president for the past several years, I have only been president because no one else wanted the job and I was the only nominee. The same goes for several other positions within the KBC. Please consider running for office!

At the last meeting of the KBC, the board appointed Paul Selden to be the Road Safety Officer. Paul has agreed to be the contact person within the club for reports of unsafe road conditions (potholes, washouts, tree limb blockages and the like). A link has been established within the website to contact Paul. I want to thank Paul for being willing to do this.

The Kalamazoo River Valley Trailway is growing. Please consider participating in the trail ride coming up.

Mike Boersma, KBC President

Next KBC Monthly Meeting - October 12, 2010

The next KBC Monthly Meeting will take place at 7:00 P.M. on Tuesday, October 12, 2010 at the Kalamazoo YMCA on Maple Street. All KBC members are welcome to attend.

Volunteer Needed – Insurance Coordinator Position Opens Up

KBC Insurance Coordinator Joe Kucharski will be stepping down from his post at the end of the 2010 season, which means the club needs to recruit another member for this important position. Joe has done a masterful job of raising the profile of the Insurance Coordinator and has handled all submitted claims promptly. KBC is in his debt for having handled the job so competently.

KBC's insurance rider carries excess medical coverage up to a maximum of $5,000 per incident. What does this mean? If you are injured on a sanctioned club ride and need to receive medical treatment as a result of that injury, the insurance will pay up to $5,000 of your expenses after your primary insurance pays its share of the claim.

Joe says the main duties of the Insurance Coordinator are obtaining information after an incident, filling out the incident report, and faxing the report to the insurance carrier as quickly as possible. This, he says, takes about ten minutes per claim. In addition, the insurance coordinator gives a brief informational talk about the plan during the pre-season safety meeting.

While it would nice if such a position were never needed, the fact is that incidents and accidents happen, and it is valuable to have this coverage available as a benefit of membership. But now someone needs to step up to assume this role.

What about you? Are you adept at handling a bit of paperwork and are you willing to be the club's “go-to” person for its insurance program?

Please contact KBC Vice President Zolton Cohen at zcohen@ameritech.net if you can see yourself in this role. Your club needs your help and this would be a good way for you to contribute to the welfare of every member.

Zolton Cohen, KBC Vice-President

Date of Start of KBC Membership Defined

At the regular monthly club meeting held on September 14, 2010, two motions were passed that may have an impact on your club membership in the future.

The motions came about as the result of an unfortunate crash that required medical intervention. The injured club member found that his membership had expired eight days before the incident, making him ineligible to receive any benefit through the club's excess medical insurance policy.

In order to help define when membership starts and ends, a proposal was brought up at the meeting to have membership begin on the date a check made out to KBC is signed, a PayPal payment is received, or cash is handed over to someone in the club's administration. The thought behind the motion was that these actions signaled the intent – at that moment - of a new rider or existing club member to become a member, or to renew membership.

The second motion defines when club membership expires. Instead of the membership running precisely from date to date – for instance from September 10, 2009 until September 10, 2010 – your membership will expire on the last day of that anniversary month. In other words, the membership of someone signing up on September 10, 2009 would not expire until September 30, 2010.

Both motions passed unanimously and will be instituted by KBC's database manager, Paul Bruneau, immediately.

Paul points out that every member is notified each month – and has been since the Pedal Press went electronic some years ago – via the Pedal Press e-mail notification system, how long his or her membership has left to run. Please take note of this feature when you receive the e-mail notice for the next Pedal Press.

Zolton Cohen, KBC Vice-President

KBC Action on Road Hazards

Dear Fellow Members,

Our club is very concerned about hazardous conditions found on some of our most popular riding roads. On September 14, the Kalamazoo Bicycle Club appointed me (Paul Selden) Director of Road Safety to work with area engineers, officials, and others interested in reducing road hazards to bicyclists. This will supplement the efforts Victor VanFleet, Bike Camp leaders and assistants, and many others in the club have already taken in order to improve our safety. After being struck by a hit and run drunk driver (more about that in an upcoming issue), I am especially motivated to improve the safety of the bicycling public.

Since our region is experiencing many budget difficulties, the trick will be to think of innovative solutions that are also low in cost. Since some monies are already allocated to fix problem roads, my initial strategy will be to increase the bang for those existing bucks. First, I want to make it easier for you to contact the right people in charge of making improvements by developing a list of appropriate contacts for each of the jurisdictions through which we ride as a club. Longer term, I will be working with those jurisdictions to develop a consolidated, prioritized list of improvements to the roads we ride most often.

Many governmental units are involved with the roads we ride, so the list of whom to contact will take a little time to develop. But without waiting, you can identify and report road hazards that you come across, if you have some idea of the responsible authorities. Thanks to the quick action by our president and web master, you can also immediately send or cc: information about problem roads to our club's new e-mail address, pothole@kalamazoobicycleclub.orgAdditional helpful links will be up soon.

Regardless of whom you contact, try to have as much specific hazard and location information as possible. You could say, "I hate Angling Road," but it would be a bit more helpful to report, "There is a dangerous crack, five feet long, 1-1/2 inches deep, on the east side of Angling Road across from the intersection of Harley Avenue just north of Romence. It made me swerve closer to traffic." I reported that particular crack to our pothole contact at the City of Portage (Judy Graham, Administrative Coordinator, Streets and Equipment, 329-4444), by the way. Kudos to Judy and the Portage road crew for filling it as of this writing.

We can all pitch in to take other direct action when possible. For example, if you see a branch blocking a shoulder meant for a bike lane, clear it if you have the time and it is safe to do so. Even hard-core road bikers can dedicate a small part of a recovery ride to this type of simple road upkeep every so often; families can make it part of an outing. You never know how much that may help the next rider, and you'll feel good doing a good deed. Together we really can make a tangible difference.

I want your ideas on this effort–pitch in! Please e-mail your creative thoughts on how we can reduce road hazards to me at a directorroadsafety@kalamazoobicycleclub.org. Don't wait to make your suggestions–your idea may be a lifesaver!

Paul Selden, Director of Road Safety

Dark, Dreary, and Dangerous

The days are getting shorter, the days are getting darker, and the days getting dreary; that's the joy of fall weather! The reason for all of this is to help us understand and appreciate the glory and glitter of a nice day when it finally does come along. Yes, that means a perfect day for biking. Since weather is rather unpredictable, a nice day can suddenly turn into a nasty day. The question now is: are you ready for a change in weather?

Is your bike equipped with a white front light and a red rear light? The vehicle law doesn't specifically require lights but does mention installing lights. Also not mentioned in the vehicle code is wearing bright, visible clothing. If you prefer dark clothing or your bike affiliation garments are a dark color, it might be a good idea to buy a green, yellow or orange luminescent vest that contractors and road workers wear. These can be purchased at most hardware stores for five or ten dollars and the vest can be worn over your regular jersey and, believe me, you can be seen in most any light conditions!

Don't ever let it be said that you are not visible to the motorized traffic. This summer has produced a few bike/auto accidents, a few pedestrian/auto accidents, and a few motorcycle/auto accidents. In many, if not most cases, the car driver verbalized the same weak excuse, "I didn't see you in time to stop." You can minimize the validity of this standard excuse, how? – With bike lights and a visible upper outer garment.

Let's set a good example of safe biking for now and in the future.

Victor Van Fleet, Safety and Education Committee

Monthly Meeting Minutes

The monthly KBC general club meeting was called to order by Zolton Cohen at 7:03 P.M. on Tuesday, September 14, 2010 at the YMCA on Maple Street in Kalamazoo. Also attending were Ed Micalizzi, Tom Kiezer, Allyn VanDyk, Mike Mock, Bill Figely, Rick Whaley, AliceAnne Inskeep, Chuck Weirsma, Rhonda Wiersman, Mike Boesrsma, Doug Kirk, Jim Cupper, Paul Selden, and Renee Mitchell.

Rhonda gave an introduction concerning the "Warm Kids" program. This is a non-profit organization that provides new hats, gloves, and coats to area children. She would like to do a benefit ride for "Warm Kids" and she wanted some help and input from KBC about organizing this ride. Mike B. and other KBC members made several suggestions, including setting up an online registration system, publishing the ride in the League of Michigan 2011 Michigan Ride Calendar, organizing refreshment stops and getting food donations, obtaining Kal-Haven Trail passes (since the ride may be held on the Kal-Haven trail), and obtaining one-day insurance and rider waiver signing. A general suggestion was to plan activities that need to be done at least 90 days in advance. Bill offered to provide safety instruction for them. Because Rhonda wants to do the ride in the fall, Doug suggested that late September would be a good time and Rick suggested that the next-to-last Saturday in September would be a good time.

Tom gave the Treasurer's Report. He noted that the final accounting for the KalTour was in and that we had made $1188.13. Half of this money was donated to the Kalamazoo River Valley Trail Authority. It was also announced that the Anniversary Ride would be held on September 18 at the Kal Haven Trailhead on 10th Street. Mike B. noted that Renee had proposed that bike pumps be supplied by KBC as various gas stations that are close to KBC riding routes. Zolton noted that Joe Kucharski had also proposed this in the past. Reneesuggested that we label these pumps as being provided by the Kalamazoo Bicycle Club and she wanted approval by the club to purchase up to 8 to 10 pumps at $20 to $30 apiece to provide to the gas stations. Zolton suggested that the Renee contact gas stations for interest in doing this before providing the money to buy pumps. Paul suggested that we not micromanage the process and provide the money to Renee to buy the pumps up-front. Rick agreed with Zolton, but other agreed with Paul. A motion was made and seconded to provide Renee with $100 to buy pumps. This motion was passed with Rick dissenting and Zolton abstaining.

Zolton discussed an incident taking place this summer where there was a crash that involved person whose club membership had just expired and as a result, was unable to use the club's insurance. Zolton thought that it would be a good idea to define precisely when a person's KBC membership begins and end. He thought that the club membership should begin when the membership check is written or when the PayPal payment is received. There was general agreement that this made sense. After further discussion, it was decided that membership should end at the last day of the month that the membership is set to expire. A motion was made, seconded, and passed to define membership dates in this manner. Doug suggested that we discuss placing this in the KBC Constitution at the October meeting.

Zolton brought up the issue of advertising in the Pedal Press, based on the classified ad that for the nutritional supplement that had appeared in the last two issues. He felt that this sort of classified ad was inappropriate. Rick noted that he had given some thought as to whether or not to run this ad, but he decided to do so, because the product was related to bicycling performance. After some discussion, it was decided that Rick should use his judgment with regard to whether or not an ad should be run.

Rick then brought up the issue of whether a non-KBC member should be able to post a classified ad. He noted that he had received an ad from a person who told him that he wasn't a member of KBC, but that he wanted to sell a bicycle. Rick decided to run the ad, because he wouldn't have known that this person was a non-member if that person hadn't told him, and because the item being sold would be of interest to club members. The consensus, however, was that non-members should not be allowed to place an ad, so in the future, Rick will verify that a person posting an ad is a KBC member.

Jim asked for KBC's support to help publicize a family walk/ride for the homeless that will be held on the KRVTA trail on March 26, 2011. Mike B. suggested that Jim submit an article about this ride to Rick to be published in a future issue of the Pedal Press.

Paul sought the club's opinion on the club's interest in facilitating road safety. Zolton thought that this was a very important issue and that the club should get involved with County Road Commissions in order to fix specific road damage. The Road Commissioners have told Zolton that they rely on citizen input for road areas that need repair because they don't have the budget to seek out damaged areas. Paul volunteered to be in charge of this effort and he was appointed as Director of Road Safety for KBC with a term of service to be defined. Renee suggested that Paul write an article for the October Pedal Press about this and Paul agreed. (Ed. note: This article appears elsewhere in this issue.)

In new business, Zolton noted that we need a new KBC Insurance Commissioner. He will write an article asking for a volunteer for this position in the October Pedal Press. (Ed. Note: This article also appears elsewhere in this issue.) Mike M. noted that he is continuing to work on a breast cancer awareness charity ride and he is planning to have this ride on the 2nd weekend in June 2011. He will submit an article about this ride in a future issue of the Pedal Press.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:31 P.M.

Bill Figeley, KBC Secretary

Masthead

The electronically-distributed KBC Pedal Press comes out on or around the first of each month.

If you have an article or a notice that you want to go into the PedalPress, please email it to the newsletter editor, editor@kalamazoobicycleclub.org by the 20th of the month before its intended publication.

For example, if you'd like an article to be published in the November edition (distributed on or around the first of November), have it to the newsletter editor by the 20th of October.

KBC Statistics

Active subscriptions: 255

New members:
Lindsay Craig · Jeremy Hendricks · Kathleen Whidden · Alex Wiersma · Chuck Wiersma · Rhonda Wiersma · Sydney Wiersma

November Expiring memberships:
Carl Clatterbuck Family · Dave Dilno · Mark Finazzo · Renee Mitchell Family · Jeff Robertson Family

Renewed memberships:
Lee Anderson · Larry Kissinger · Pam McDonnell · Tim Krone · John Idema · Bruce Johnson · James Kison Family · Joshua & Jennifer Foote

Paul Bruneau, KBC Database Manager

Editor’s Letter –If You're Going to be Stupid, be Stupid Twice

I've done some stupid things while riding a bicycle. I've done some stupid things while not riding a bicycle. And, if you're lucky, these stupid things can cancel each other out.

For example, on a dreary Saturday last month, I decided to go riding in the rain. This, in itself, is not a stupid thing; unless there is also lightning and you've decided to fly a kite from your seat post. My philosophy about riding in the rain is that once you're wet, you're wet, and it's not going to get any worse; the sort of philosophy that can also be a source of comfort while eating a heaping plate of beets or while slathered in honey and covered with ants. It drizzled the entire ride and I did get wet, but that was o.k., and as I wheeled up to my driveway and pressed my garage door opener, I looked forward to the bottle of Gatorade and the warm shower that awaited me.

However, when I pressed the button, nothing happened. I pressed it again; same result. I pressed it a few more times, just to see if something different would happen. It didn't. "Hmmm, maybe the power is out," I thought, "but at least I've got my house key." So, I reached into the pocket of my jersey, only to find no key. Nor was the key in either of the other two pockets of my jersey, nor, for that matter, was my bicycle wallet, the wallet that I carry for identification purposes when I ride my bike. I had forgotten them. Since I had never gotten around to hiding a key somewhere outside my house, I was out of luck.

So, I started to check the doors to see if one was unlocked, since I have been known to unlock a door and then forgotten to lock it again. (Note to KBC cyclists/burglars: Watch out for the punji sticks I've strategically hidden throughout my house.) So, I checked the side door to my garage; it was locked. I checked the front door; it was locked. I checked the patio door; it was locked. I was 0 for 3 or 3 for 3, depending on how you looked at it.

While plotting my next move, I saw a neighbor's car pull up into his driveway and I watched his garage door open. So much for my "power is out" theory. I'm usually pretty careful about locking my windows, although, in the spirit of forgetting to lock the door, there have been exceptions. I figured that the most likely unlocked window would be a basement window, so I checked them, but they were locked. All the while, I was keeping up a running commentary on my intelligence and my general worthiness as a human being, which would have entertained my neighbors, had any of them actually been outside.

As an aside, I should note that breaking a basement window and crawling through it to get into a house is not a particularly enjoyable thing to do. I came home one very cold winter evening when I lived in suburban Columbus, Ohio to find that the bottom of my garage door had frozen to the cement and, while attempting to get some leverage to open this door, I inadvertently locked it instead. Then, due to the cold, when I inserted my key into the lock to the front door of my house, the locking mechanism broke, and I discovered that I could uselessly rotate my key 360 degrees. Since I did not have a key to my back door with me, I had to kick in a basement window, take off my coat in the zero degree temperature, slide through the window, and jump to the basement floor, while being careful not to give myself what would have eventually been a really cool scar, but for that moment would have been rather nasty wound, from any shard of glass that might have remained in the window.

Because the prospect of breaking a basement window was not appealing, I started to fiddle with the garage door opener; maybe a connection had loosened. That wasn't it. Maybe the battery had suddenly died, but since I had never gotten around to hiding a battery somewhere outside my house, I was out of luck. And since I didn't have any money with me, thanks to my forgotten wallet, I had no money with which to buy a battery, either.

Then, I decided to check the other windows to see if any of them were unlocked and to also get an idea of which window would be easiest to break. I started with the window to the side door of my garage, and, amazingly enough, when I pressed on the window, the door magically opened. Well, maybe it wasn't so magical. What had happened was that when I got my newspaper that morning, I had unlocked the door, gotten my newspaper, gone back through the door, and locked it. But what I hadn't done was completely shut it. So, I opened the garage door from the inside of my garage, brought my bike inside, and walked into my house, basking in the 60 IQ watt glow of my stupidity. And the next day, my garage door opener started working again.

So, sometimes being stupid twice can indeed cancel out the effect of being stupid once; sort of like multiplying two negative numbers and getting a positive number. (Yeah, that's exactly what it's like, Mr. Pedal Press Editor.) However, there was one time, back in the day before I even had my Fuji bike, when I was stupid only once with regard to a forgotten key, and I paid for it.

In January 1979, I ran a marathon and the race went well. In my haste to resume serious training again, I managed to injure myself, an injury that lasted all spring, throughout the summer, and into the fall. As a result, I began taking frequent rides of up to 3 hours on my 3 speed bicycle, in an attempt to keep as much of my hard earned running fitness as possible. One late Saturday August afternoon, I finished one of these long rides and found that I had forgotten to put my key in the pocket of the cut-off jeans that I was wearing (nothing but the finest cycling apparel for me). "No problem," I thought, "I can borrow my key from the manager of the apartment building," but she was not at home.

Making the best of a somewhat bad situation, I rode to the house of the president of our local running club, as I had agreed to help him prepare our monthly newsletter for mailing that evening, quaint as that may sound, nowadays. When I got there, I explained my situation to my fellow newsletter preparers, and after we were done, one of my club mates agreed to put my bicycle in the trunk of his car and drive me back to my apartment. However, my landlady was still not at home. By this time, it was getting late and I was hungry. Since my club mate had not eaten dinner either, we headed off to the local T.G.I. Fridays in search of nutritional sustenance more substantial than the eating of chicken wings.

Saturday night is date night and surrounded by couples who were there to dine after their Saturday night movie, dressed in all their finery, we fit right in. My club mate was wearing torn jeans and a rather ragged shirt, which perfectly complemented my aforementioned cut-off jeans and my sweat-stained, chain grease smeared t-shirt. (My chain had fallen off during the ride and I had decided to use my t-shirt as a rag to wipe my hands, partly because I hadn't planned on wearing it to a restaurant that night.) I'm surprised that the waitress didn't demand proof that we actually had any money before we placed our order, which would have been appropriate, since I didn't actually have any.

So, after borrowing money from my club mate to pay for my meal, we left the restaurant to what might have been the relief of all of the other diners, and we returned to my apartment to see if my landlady was home. Of course, she wasn't. At this point, my club mate told me that there was a spare mattress lying on the floor of the dining room of the house that he was renting with a couple of his friends and I was welcome to sleep on it that night. Why they had a mattress in their dining room was and always will be a mystery to me, but since the alternative was camping outside sans sleeping bag or tent, I gladly took him up on his offer. And so we drove from my apartment in Chapel Hill to his house in Durham, where I slept in style; wearing the clothes that at this point had almost become my second skin.

The next morning, I got up, hopped on my bicycle, and rode the dozen or so miles back to my apartment. Mercifully, my landlady was finally home. I really enjoyed my shower and I learned a lesson that I would always remember, where always is defined as for 31 years.

Rick Whaley, KBC Newsletter Editor

Some Upcoming Area Rides of Interest

Saturday, October 9, 2010. Colorburst Bicycle Tour, Lowell, MI. 17, 30, 62, 100 miles (paved) and 30 and 62 miles (unpaved). www.rapidwheelmen.com/colorburst.

Classified Ads

New: For Sale – Girls Trek MT-60 (mineral blue) in excellent condition, bought new in May 2007, adjustable for a 5 year-old up to 9 year-old, 6-speed with front and rear grip shift hand brakes, also has front shocks. Our daughter outgrew it and is now in an adult size mountain bike. Owner's manual and matching helmet included, photos available upon request. $125. Please contact Stephanie Sabin at (269) 350-6225 or sabinsms@gmail.com

Kestrel 200 SC road bike with Shimano DuraAce components and EMS composite forks. Campagnolo Omega wheels. White in color, good condition. Not sure how old it is (probably 1990s), but I bought it used in around 2000 and used it for about 15 Olympic distance triathlons, plus about 200 miles per year. Not sure what size it is, but it stands 32 inches high at the top tube. Asking price is $600, but will consider any offer. E-mail Rob at rkengis@hotmail.com or call 269-664-6489.

I am looking for a used carbon fiber bike. Contact Maggie Miller at maggiemiller@rocketmail.com.

Cannondale Ironman 2000 (model year 2003) time trial bike. Size 56 with the CAAD5 Aero frame. Components are Ultegra and Dura-Ace with Spinergy Xaero Lite 650 wheels. Additional race accessories include Zipp 800 full disk rear and Zipp 400 front with new tubular tires. Extra sets of tires included. $1,500 for full setup. Will also consider selling without Zipp racing wheelset. Call 806-7164 or contact Kellam.glen@yahoo.com.

RELIV Nutritional Shakes, they are great! For more info contact Mike @ 269-350-5010, 269–266–2671, or cmock88@att.net Independent Distributor.

Several items for sale. Ultegra 10-speed Crankset 53/39 175 mm ($125). Good condition. 105 10–speed crankset 53/39 172.5 mm ($100), very good condition. Burley delight trailer for two, about six years old – very good condition, the hitch attaches to the rear stays ($200). Slingshot cyclo–cross bike – Origin–8 carbon fork, 105 components, race face compact crank, sun/ringlet flea wheelset. 56 centimeters, not typical slingshot set up; standard frame can be seen on the slingshot website ($1200). Call Jeff Robertson at 269–924–8928.

For Sale: Trek Fluid CycleOps trainer, bought last winter, used once, includes climbing block. $140. Please contact Doug Weldon at (269) 372-0758.

Shop Notes

Alfred E Bike

320 East Michigan, Kalamazoo, (269) 349–9423
www.aebike.com

Billy's Bike Shop

63 East Battle Creek Street, Galesburg, (269) 665–5202 www.billysbikeshop.com

Breakaway Bicycles

185 Romence at Westnedge, Portage, (269) 324–5555,
www.breakawaybicycles.com

Custer Cyclery

104 North Octobera, Octobera, (269) 731–3492
www.custercyclery.com

Gazelle Sports

214 South Kalamazoo Mall, Kalamazoo, (269) 342–5996,
www.Gazellesports.com
Gazelle Sports has everything you need for your fall marathon! Food, footwear, hydration, clothing, even NipGuards™. Don't forget to pick up all you need for a fun and "as-comfortable-as-can-be" event! Visit us Downtown on the Mall or shop at www.Gazellesports.com.

Team Active

22 W Michigan, Battle Creek, 1–800–841–9494
www.teamactive.com

Village Cyclery

US 131 in Schoolcraft, 679–4242
www.villagecyclery.com

Zoo City Cycle & Sports

4328 South Westnedge, Kalamazoo (269) 552–3000
www.zoocitycycle.com

Bicycling Safety Disclaimer

Important: Riding a bicycle is an inherently dangerous activity. There are risks of injury or death. You could ride over something and fall, or get hit by an automobile or strike or be struck by another bicyclist. There are many other dangers to bicycling as well.

While nothing can eliminate all risks associating with bicycle riding, to minimize the danger, make sure you and your bicycle are in good riding condition. Know the rules of the road and also of the group you're riding with, and ride in a manner consistent with the protocols of that group. Always wear a bike helmet, use bike lights if riding in the dawn, dusk or dark, and consider purchasing and riding with additional safety equipment such as reflectors and rear view mirrors.