It's Election Time!
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CLUB OFFICERS Dec./Jan. 2015/2016 VOLUME 48 | NUMBER 9 PRESIDENT Skip Holmes 518-466-1182 9 Westphal Drive | Delmar, NY 12054 [email protected] VICE PRESIDENT David Liebschutz 518-439-5089 [email protected] SECRETARY Janet Reilly 518-446-1766 [email protected] BikeAbout THE NEWSLETTER OF THE MOHAWK-HUDSON CYCLING CLUB TREASURER Janice Verrastro 518-674-4473 [email protected] BOARD OF DIRECTORS Dave Beals 518-456-3728 [email protected] Dan Craven 518-461-4241 [email protected] Becky Lazorchak 518-899-2845 [email protected] Jude Sagor 518-729-3933 [email protected] CENTURY COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON Jonathan Benn It’s Election Time! [email protected] VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! President’s Letter — by Skip Holmes [ DEC./JAN. 2015/2016 ] Contact Jonathan to Volunteer The composition of the MHCC board and TOUR COMMITTEE officers will be changing next year. We 12.06 CAPITAL HOLIDAY CHAIRPERSON had two board positions become available LIGHTS IN THE PARK David Liebschutz 518-439-5089 last year, they were filled and the terms Washington Park | Albany, NY [email protected] do not expire until 2017. We also have the www.albanycapitalholidaylights.com four club officer positions that you will be CASUAL voting on. LAST CENTURY & Eric Randall 518-366-5363 12.13 FINAL FIFTY [email protected] Our club is a nonprofit organization and our bylaws require that 101/54 Miles | Schuylerville, NY QUICK we elect a slate of officers each year. I have served as President www.adkultracycling.com Bruce Curtiss 518-587-4408 for five years and have decided not to run for another year. David [email protected] Liebschutz is serving as Vice President and has agreed to run for DEADLINE FOR RIDES & TOUR President. Janice Verrastro is going to run again for Treasurer. 01.10 BIKEABOUT SUBMISSIONS Henry Wilkie 518-482-3902 She has now served in that capacity for 12 years and has declared Feb./Mar. Issue [email protected] that this will be her last year. Janet Reilly is our current Secretary OTHER COMMITTEES and has agreed to run again for next year. FIRST CENTURY 01.10 & FIRST FIFTY GOVERNMENT RELATIONS There is an election ballot on the back cover of this edition of the 101/54 Miles | Schuylerville, NY Vacant. Contact Skip to Volunteer. newsletter. Please complete the ballot and either mail it to the www.adkultracycling.com MAPS & REPORTS, CLUB HISTORIAN address shown on the ballot or bring it with you to the December John Berninger 518-439-6473 3rd meeting that will be held at Beff’s Restaurant on Everett Road TOUR DOWN UNDER in Albany starting at 6 PM. The club will provide a buffet meal 01.16 MEMBERSHIP CHAIR & RENEWALS, Australia DATABASE MANAGER for current members. Beverages will be available for purchase. www.tourdownunder.com.au Joanne Petrozzi-Jones 518-831-1707 We will have a social hour, a presentation, followed by a count 815 Herrick Road | Delanson, NY 12053 of the ballots. If you plan to attend please RSVP to serottaskip@ [email protected] gmail.com. WEBMASTER I agreed to run as MHCC President five years ago and am amazed how quickly the time has passed. We have had a number John Petiet 518-438-9102 of changes in this short time. Membership has increased to over 700 . We now have over 300 member led rides each season. [email protected] We moved from mailing over 600 copies of the BikeAbout every month to only 200 copies since most of you have elected to BIKEABOUT get your copy by downloading it. In the process of doing this we saved substantial costs in both printing and postage. That has EDITOR & DESIGNER allowed us to keep our dues at a very reasonable level. We developed a new website and then made additional changes so that John Ceceri 518-583-3708 you can use the web site from a smart phone. We designed a new MHCC cycling jersey that many of you now wear. We started [email protected] using a caterer at our Century Weekend for the post ride food and received many positive comments about that change. We have made donations to both the League of American Bicyclists (LAB) and New York Bicycling Coalition (NYBC) to support ADVERTISING Robin Krumanocker their efforts to lobby for safer roads. We started having our spring banquet at the Italian American Community Center to [email protected] provide a larger gathering space as well as better food selection. PHOTOGRAPHER You may notice I used the word we in the last paragraph. All these accomplishments happened with the combined efforts of Bob Cohen 518-877-5552 the board, officers and you the members. I have served as President and also in a previous capacity as Vice President and have [email protected] truly enjoyed providing leadership to MHCC and even more, riding with many of you. It has been a great source of enjoyment PUBLISHER for me. I hope you will continue to support MHCC; it is a wonderful cycling organization and will continue to be so with your Ron Gordon 518-372-4172 membership and support. Ride safe, ride often!! Winter Cycling Tips - by John Ceceri Just because the temperatures are dropping and the days are getting shorter, that doesn’t mean we have to stop riding. With BikeAbout the proper equipment and techniques, you can get in some winter miles, break up the monotony of riding indoors and get a Mohawk-Hudson Cycling Club jump on your spring training and early season rides. PO Box 12575 Albany, NY 12212-0575 To get the most out of winter riding and even enjoy it, there are a few things you have to understand. FIRST: It’s meant ABOUT THE MOHAWK-HUDSON CYCLING CLUB mostly to maintain fitness, not serious training. SECOND: It takes 20%-30% more energy to ride in the winter and your The Mohawk-Hudson Cycling Club consists of over extra clothing will add a few pounds (in addition to those holiday desserts we all overdo), so you’re generally going to ride 700 members who live and cycle in the greater slower then you do in the warmer months, and are probably not going to set any personal bests (although, if you keep track, Capital District area of eastern New York state. you can record warm and cold weather records to keep things interesting). THIRD: Winter air is pretty dry, so you still need MHCC sponsors road and mountain bike rides for beginning through experienced riders within an 80- to be aware of your hydration. FOURTH: Because of the shortness of daylight, you will probably end up riding at night, so mile radius of the Albany-Schenectady-Troy area, be prepared. FIFTH: Consider all of the conditions before going out, including the air temperature, the wind chill (plus the led by MHCC members. wind chill we create just by riding), road conditions, etc. If it’s really bad, err on the side of caution and ride indoors. SIXTH: The Mohawk-Hudson Cycling Club is affiliated Plot routes where the roads are maintained and/or have wide shoulders for maximum safety. I live in Schuylerville and Route 4 with the League of American Bicyclists and the Adventure Cycling Association. To subscribe to is a great example of a good road to ride on in the winter. It’s well maintained, mostly flat and straight (no slippery or winding the mailing list, send a blank e-mail to mhcc- downhills to navigate) and has a wide shoulder. I can ride it for 15 miles in either direction without any problems. SEVENTH: [email protected]. Winter riding is basically a bonus, but if you combine it with other winter activities you might already do like XC skiing, snow HOW TO JOIN shoeing, speed skating, etc., you’ll stay fit, have some fun and be rewarded handsomely in the spring. To join the MHCC, contact the membership chair, Joanne Petrozzi-Jones at: 831-1707 | I’ve been riding year-round for quite a few years and usually do several centuries during the winter. Below are tips on clothing [email protected] for an application. and equipment that have worked for me over the years, but feel free to adapt them to your personal needs. Each person must use a separate application E form to join. Membership in MHCC is $20 per BIKE: If you stick to riding on maintained roads, you can usually just use your regular road bike. I typically add year (includes subscription to BikeAbout), and fenders to help keep everything clean and dry, and sometimes install wider tires (25/28). I also have a mountain $5 per year for each additional member of the bike with road tires, so if it’s really sloppy, I’ll just use that. Also make sure to wipe your bike down and lube it after same household (does not include additional every ride, otherwise your chain, cassette, cables, brakes and shifters may rust and have to be replaced later on. subscriptions). E LIGHTS: Expect some night riding during the winter. Use at least one headlight and three taillights, and mount them to RENEWING YOUR MEMBERSHIP Please check your BikeAbout mailing label for the bike. A helmet light is good as a secondary light, but it’s harder for cars to see and because the beam is further from your membership expiration date. Remember that the road, it’s not as effective. Mount one taillight to each seat stay and the third one to your seat post or seat bag. Avoid we mail the issue during the month prior to issue clipping a taillight to your clothing or back pack, because once you get into your riding position, it disappears.