Moronacity Cycling Journal » Entries tagged with "Bike Clubs"
Social Network? No. Social Hurricane.
One of the interesting things about the Internet is the vast network of people out there. I’ve met a lot of those people through the MMBA. Unfortunately, I’ve met most of those people during races and related social events when crowd hopping is a necessity. For example, I was deliriously happy at the pre-race party for the Copper Harbor Fat Tire Festival. Ask anyone who met me. I had a big smile on my face and I was euphoric. I was just so freakin’ happy that I don’t know how to describe it. I knew almost everyone in the room and was highly entertained by those I didn’t really know (thanks Wisconsinites!). One group of people was the Lakeland Area Mountain Biking … Read entire article »
Filed under: Bike Culture
Race Pace
Sunday Trail Day It’s the week before Christmas . . . er, Fat Tire, and I have the anticipation that a child would have for presents. I have a great week planned, and it has started off properly, considering the climactic event. Yesterday was the weekly Copper Harbor trail day. I showed up early to assist Rachel with providing breakfast for the trail crew, then I headed out with Sam, Sam, and Ann for some pre-race trail cleanup. Last year, this highly motivated kid and his mom showed up for trail day. We all remember them because the kid’s name is Sam, just like Keweenaw Adventure Sam, and they were working together building new trail. I was surprised to see Sam and his mother join us, again. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Mountain Biking
Join a Local Bike Club
Many cities or regions are fortunate enough to have a cycling club. While some cyclists are elites and need to ride with fast groups, there are many organizations that cater to riders of all levels. My area is a great example of the different kinds of clubs that can exist: C4 – University cycling club Keweenaw Cycling Club – new community club open to families and creating a kids’ race team. Red Jacket – BlueSky Health Cycling Team – adult race team with riders of all levels. Trekkers – Community cycling club geared toward adults that meets once a week and sends out about three groups of riders: beginner, intermediate, advanced. All gather together for a potluck afterwards. Bike shops often host weekly rides through the summer as well. While there … Read entire article »
Filed under: Bike Culture
The Feminine Face of Cycling
I live in a cyclist-dense community. Two small communities connected by a bridge over a canal contain one university cycling club/racing team, two community cycling clubs, and an adult cycling team. Allow me to briefly plug these groups: * Copper Country Cycling Club (C4) – Michigan Tech’s cycling club and racing team* Keweenaw Cycling Club – Still in the beginning stages, the KCC is a new cycling club that is also starting a kid’s competitive cycling team.* Red Jacket – BlueSky Health Racing Team – A group of close-knit riders who fell in love with the camaraderie brought about by the impromptu Red Jacket cyclocross team.* Trekkers – Started as a group of adults getting together for adult fun time. It evolved into what is now a large … Read entire article »
Filed under: Bike Culture
Cycling Forums
The Internet is a pretty addicting little tool. Many of us have spent hours, if not days, surfing the web with endless information at our fingertips. I spent one whole night last week surfing through the backwards chronology of the English monarchy on Wikipedia. If you are reading this blog, it is probably a safe assumption that you spend some of your bandwidth surfing through various cycling forums as well. I am quite … Read entire article »
Filed under: Bike Culture
Small Towns Ahead of the Rest
It’s interesting to hear people say things like, “No one will notice, it’s a small town,†or “No one will figure it out, it’s a small town.†What they don’t realize is this isn’t your typical small town. In Michigan, the twin cities on either side of the Portage Canal are referred to as Houghton/Hancock. Even in combination, the two cities are not the largest “city†in the Upper Peninsula. It’s a small place, but that’s the allure. What is truly unique about this “small town†are the people who live here. Consider this, Houghton/Hancock • have two universities: Michigan Technological University in Houghton, and Finlandia University in Hancock• one hospital – Portage Hospital• four bike shops Four bike shops!? Yes. We are world class. … Read entire article »
Filed under: Bike Culture
