The Cue Sheet

The Newsletter of the Elmhurst Bicycle Club
Riding Strong for over 31 Years

March
2009

ALERT! The March Club meeting is Wednesday, March 18.

2009 EBC Ski Trip (or how we had fun in da UP, eh)

Story and photo by George Hermach

The first week of February saw 39 of us EBCers journey to Ironwood, Michigan, for the tenth annual EBC cross-country ski trip. Morgan and Linda of the Indianhead Motel were our hosts, and what great hosts they were, sometimes joining us for socializing, games, or skiing.

There was ample snow and temperatures varied from below zero on Tuesday morning to above freezing on Friday afternoon. While most of us cross-country skied, some of us downhill skied, snow shoed, hiked, visited nearby waterfalls, shopped, went to the movies, or some combination of these activities. ABR was our favorite trail system, and many of us supplemented those trails by going to Wolverine, Milje's, and/or Sylvania. The downhillers went to Big Powderhorn and Whitecap.

And we all ate well, breaking in early and late groups for dinners at different restaurants to avoid overwhelming any one establishment. There were cocktail parties with munchies in the motel lobby before dinner each evening, and games such as Mexican Train after dinner. On two days, we had special lunches at ABR - pasties (a UP specialty) on Monday and brats on Thursday.

It was nice to see some of our members from outside the Chicagoland area join us - Jerry Radek from Kansas and Kathy Storm and Susie Wolf from the Quad Cities area.

Skiing at ABR on Friday afternoon, I overheard two women talking on an adjacent trail. One of them said to the other "I feel sorry for people who never leave the city, for they don't know the beauty of the woods in winter." How true!

All in all it was a great trip. Next years ski trip dates are tentatively set for Sunday January 31 to Friday February 5, so mark your calendars.

As a footnote to the trip, the EBC skiers took up a collection and will fund a bench to be placed along the river on the Jack Pine Trail at ABR. A plaque acknowledging our donation will be placed on the bench. Thanks to Joanne DeZur for coordinating this effort.

Sunday, March 8th Chili Party

By Marge Ricke

The annual Chili Hike/Ride/Party will again be at Marge Ricke's house. 2 rides will begin at noon and a hike at 1:00 pm.

The party will begin at 3: pm. Everyone should bring a serving of either meat or meatless chili which will be added to the pots. While everyone is hiking or biking the chilis will simmer and at 3:00 pm we will have a wonderful feast.

In addition to the chili everyone is asked to bring an appetizer, side dish or dessert (Please RSVP with the side dish, etc. that you will be bringing.) Please see the ride schedule for hike and ride details. Call or email Marge with any questions. margericke_gmail.com 630-616-8481 (home) 630-639-8322 (cell)

Earth Day Clean Up April 25

By Mary Ann Badke

Annual Earth Day Trail Cleanup of the Illinois Prairie Path & Great Western Trail
Saturday, April 25, 2009 - 9:00AM til Noon-ish
(No Rain Date—The cleanup will last until approximately noon.)

The Elmhurst Bicycle Club will once again take responsibility for cleaning up along a 1 mile section of the Great Western Trail between Schmale Road on the east and Gary Avenue on the west. Don Kirchenberg, volunteer Chairman of the Friends of the Great Western Trails, has said this annual “spring cleaning” is appreciated year around by trail users and the Friends of the Great Western Trails.

Since we started supporting this event in the 1990s, many EBC members have volunteered to help in the clean up. It’s a great time to meet and greet fellow EBC Members, and creates a great feeling to keep our trails clean. Please come out to help us this year.

The staging area will be the parking lot of the DuPage County Farm Bureau Foundation located at the Northeast corner of Gary Avenue and St. Charles Road (south of the Great Western Trail).

So on Saturday, April 25th, bring friends and family, sturdy gloves, “grabbers” (to reach under bushes). Wear clothes that cover your arms and will not stick to those nasty little thorn bushes. We already have some heavy duty bags but bring one of your own in case we run out.

We want to recycle found glass and cans but will have to take it home to our own community pick up. Bring your recycling bin if you want to do this for us - we can load it up at the end of the morning.

Those with wagons or two wheel carts to help carry the filled garbage bags are asked to bring them along too.

Steve Josephs will lead a ride to the Clean Up Event, starting from the Elmhurst Depot at 8 a.m.

For further information on EBC participation in this event, contact Mary Ann Badke at 630-663-0295, 708-341-1160 cell# or e-mail mabstime_aol.com.

For two general maps of GWT sections –
Kane & DeKalb Counties trail section can be found here: http://www.kaneforest.com/greatwestern.asp.
The DuPage section of the GWT can be found here: http://www.ipp.org/images/bwippmap.gif along with maps to the IPP and Fox River Trail.

Awards at the April Meeting

By Susan Sperl, Membership/Awards

There are 58 members who will be receiving award jersey's,
10 awards for Ride Leader,
29 patches plus certificates.
Please email the size you will be requiring for your award jerseys.

Letter from the President

By Ray Dal Lago

If you're like me you can't wait until the roads are finally free of salt and snow and grit and winter yuck. Now is the time to get your bike ready for 2009. Check your tires for holes, cracks and imbedded glass or stones. See if you have any loose spokes. This might be the year to replace your chain or all your cables. Check your brake pads. Check the entire bike! Whether you choose to do your own maintenance or have shop work on your bike, get it done! If riding is not as comfortable as it once was maybe, just maybe, it's time for a bike fit. Many club members have had bike fits and the results are wonderful. A slight change is seat position or a slight change in cleat position can make a tremendous difference in your comfort level AND your riding ability. Many of our advertising bike shops have qualified bike fitters. Ask club members for recommendations.

I've received some good ideas for upcoming meeting speakers. The CBF is now the ATA (Active Transportation Alliance) and we'll need an update on the new name and mission statement. Some of you (myself included) are thinking of a custom bike so I'm investigating a speaker on that topic (thanks Tom Mara). We've got members who have made memorable trips and I hope to convince a few people to bring out the slides, video or pictures to share with the rest of us. Each week I receive e-mails from many individuals and organizations wanting to speak to the club. Most of them are asking to speak so they can try and sell (eventually) products or services. While it's interesting to hear some of the speakers I don't want to make our EBC meetings resemble The Shopping Network. If you have ideas for speakers or if you want to present let me know.

Our EBC family continues to grow and change. We're seeing new members on all levels of club rides and also at the meetings. If you're a long time member and you see someone you don't know, introduce yourself. Help our new members feel welcome on a ride or hike. This eventually leads to more involvement from members and it helps develop friendships.

Our EBC advocacy is the strongest it's ever been (thanks Bob Hoel). We are getting recognized by more and more local government entities. We're part of the Elmhurst Chamber of Commerce and we are an affiliate group of the Elmhurst Park District. We're making our name and our cause known to more and more people in the area. Due to our advocacy other towns and villages are examining ways to become more bike friendly. It's a known fact: a bike friendly town is a more prosperous town.

Thanks again to everyone who volunteers time and effort to help us have a great club. If you have club ideas or suggestions talk to any of the Board members (Steve Josephs, Susan Sperl, George Pasterino, Rollie Porter or me). We always want to know how we can keep this club fun and interesting. See you on the roads and trails.

Advocacy

By Bob Hoel

A petition to Wal-Mart was circulated at the meeting requesting that bike racks be installed at the outside front of the store for both customer and Wal-Mart associate usage. Over 70 signatures have been gathered and Wal-Mart corporate customer service has been contacted.

The Villa Park bike interest meeting, sponsored by Dave Hegland, VP Village Trustee, was attended by about 10 people. Pamela Brookstein, Active Transportation Alliance (formerly the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation), spoke to the group about starting a bike initiative. Efforts will continue. Mike Mast, VP resident and EBC member, attended as well.

On February 18, Ray Dal Lago, Steve Sinderson and I presented at the Addison Citizens Advisory Council about the Salt Creek Greenway Trail coming to their community in 2009. This was meant to raise their awareness of the Trail and to offer them the benefit of our experiences in Elmhurst. The information was well received by Village staff.

On Feb. 19 and Mar. 4 the Club will have membership tables at the Jefferson Elementary School Summer Recreation Fair (PTA Council-sponsored) and the Churchville Family Fitness Fun Night (District 205-sponsored), respectively. This will give us exposure to several hundred families in the Elmhurst community and has the potential to bring in new members.

The Elmhurst Bike Task Force is moving along well with initiatives on several fronts. EBC member Steve Sinderson is leading the group charged with developing a town map of streets suitable for family biking. An initial draft of their work was displayed at the meeting and it is hoped that an electronic version will be on the City website within a couple of weeks, with the hope that we will get community feedback. In this process it is helping to identify gaps in cross-community routes and shortly they will be asking the city to address some of these issues.

The Task Force Education sub-committee is well underway and has identified target audiences and ways to get bike education to them. This is being led by EBC member Rebecca Clancy. We are getting great support from the City, the Park District and the School District staff.

Finally, the Active Transportation Alliance (ATA) is organizing a Spring 2009 League Cycling Instructor (LCI) course (developed by the League of American Bicyclists). A couple of Club members have shown interest and another article elsewhere in this newsletter talks more about the value of being an LCI to both the Club and the community at large.

League Cycling Instructor Seminars

By Bob Hoel

The League of American Bicyclists has a large, well developed, time tested safe cycling curriculum. The offerings for adults include a basic 9 hour Traffic Skills 101 course, an advanced 12 hour Traffic Skills 201 course, and several 3 hour classes on selected topics. The offerings for children include a 1 hour introductory class and a 7 hour course. There are also a series of 30 to 60 minute presentations on selected topics. The courses involve both classroom and on-bike activities.

The on-bike activities include basic handling skills, emergency maneuvers, and a group ride on roads to put the safe cycling skills learned in the classroom into practice.

The League trains and certifies instructors to teach the courses through League Cycling Instructor Seminars. The LCI seminar involves 20 hours of training on how to best teach bicycle safety and riding skills. It focuses on teaching skills, and provides opportunities to practice-teach both classroom and on-bike parts of the Traffic Skills 101 curriculum. Peer critiques are an important part of the instructor training. Student and instructor manuals as well as other teaching aids and audio/visual materials are available to League Cycling Instructors.

League Cycling Instructors are automatically covered by insurance during seminars and classes conducted in accordance with League procedures. The policy is designed to cover the LCI against suits brought by students who are injured in class or while cycling after taking the class. The policy includes property damage liability as well as bodily injury liability coverage, and will pay legal costs for defending against claims, as well as damages.

Madison Memorial Day Weekend

By Larry Gitchell

As always, the general plan is that we stay in a hotel on the west side Saturday and Sunday nights. I'll get an arrangement with a hotel for a room block and send out details soon. It's most likely going to be the Hampton Inn West Towne, or the Best Western next door.

Typically, Saturday's ride starts from Olin-Turville Park on the southeast side of Madison. Over the last couple years we've gone to McFarland, Stoughton, and Sunnyside, three nice small towns outside Madison, with a lunch stop at a local restaurant.

Sunday is normally the long ride of the weekend. We've gone to the Mount Horeb Mustard Museum several times, as well as riding to the tiny town of Riley, and Aunt Mary's Hooterville Inn in Blue Mounds. These are usually road rides with some serious climbs, but there is a trail option, which has gentler grades than the road version. This year I plan to ride to "The Only Waunakee", a town north of Madison. We'll get to see some new territory and part of the Route 12 Bikeway.

On Monday we ride a loop around Madison, often visiting several bike shops, and incorporating a BratFest stop before heading back to the hotel parking lot.

Those who want to can also visit Bratfest early, since it's held across the road from our Saturday starting point.

Look for more information through the newsletter and the list server.

Elmhurst Bicycle Club President Ray Dal Lago presented League of Illinois Bicyclists Executive Director Ed Barsotti with a "Big Check" at the February EBC Board meeting.

Links to other interesting articles

Two Trails and a Train: The C&O Canal and the Allegheny Gap" By Nancy Rice: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/nancydctopittsburgh

Blanketing the nation with bicycle routes: http://www.tampabay.com/features/travel/article952301.ece

Please submit articles and/or photos for the newsletter to Cindy Reedy (cmreedy_prodigy.net) AND Sharon Hermach (ganskesh_hotmail.com). The deadline is the 15th of the month.

March 2009   •   •   •   Club Rides