Happy Groundhog Day to all MAF members.  If you are like me, most of 2020 felt like a constant rerun, and the start of 2021 has been more of the same.  We continue to operate under our club COVID protocols and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.  Thanks to all club members and ride leaders for adhering to these protocols.

While on the subject of ride leaders, thanks to the 38 ride leaders who led enough rides in our abbreviated 2020 ride season to earn a ride leader award.  In addition to being generous with their time, 14 ride leaders chose to either donate their ride leader gift card back to the club or to support a club donation to our local chapter of NICA (a program that brings mountain biking to youth).  Without our ride leaders, this club would not be able to offer you a robust ride schedule each week.  We always need additional ride leaders; it’s not as hard or as timing consuming as you might think.  If you are interested in becoming a ride leader, please contact Manny Coelho, our ride coordinator. 

This winter has also brought some unpleasant encounters between drivers and MAF members.  On two occasions, riders were verbally harassed by a driver, had the driver make aggressive actions towards the cyclists while in the vehicle, and found themselves being threatened by a driver who got out of the vehicle.  Please remember, do not engage with drivers either verbally or with hand gestures.  Your safest action is to stop immediately.  Try to get a clear photo of the vehicle showing the license plates, and even video of the driver’s actions.  And call 911.  Both events this winter resulted in the police coming to the scene.  You can also file a complaint afterwards; just make sure you know the appropriate town or community where the event occurred.

While aggressive drivers are a problem, we must also remember that, as cyclists, we need to do our part in terms of “sharing the road”.  That means riding single file except on all but the quietest roads.  And, even on those quiet roads, if you hear “car back”, you need to single up immediately.  There are going to be times when it just isn’t safe to pass a slower cyclist in front of you, so don’t.  Yes, some drivers don’t like cyclists, but they may well be reacting to cyclist behavior, either past or present.

Finally, a plea to all to sign up for rides that are the pace you attend to ride.  For several years we have noted a tendency for faster riders to come to rides and “ride off the front”.  It has always been annoying, but this year, with the size of our rides limited due to COVID, it has become even more of a problem.  Riders from the “posted pace” have been shut out of the ride sign-up, and the ride leader has ridden alone.  Please attend rides of your own pace!  And if there aren’t any, become a ride leader and lead some.

Your MAF Board is looking forward to the rest of 2021, to resuming a more “normal” year, with social events, and less ride restrictions.  Until then, the Board continues to meet virtually, and we will likely use virtual platforms for our ride leaders’ kickoff and club spring kickoff. 

Liz Jennison

As some of you have heard by now, my wife and I are retiring from our careers of 42 years and plan to move out of state to be closer to family.  It feels like no time at all has passed since you allowed me to serve your interests as Vice President, Ride Coordinator, and now President of MAF.  I thank you all for that opportunity.

I’m not leaving yet!  I’ll be here for a few more months.  But it is that time again to pick a new slate of Officers and Directors.

MAF, like most non-profit organizations, is a strictly volunteer operation.  Without your participation our Club cannot function at the high level we have come to expect.  We need your help to keep improving the experience for us all.

What we are asking right now is who among you is ready to step forward and volunteer your time, your effort, and most particularly, your opinions to move our Club forward.

Except for the positions of President, Ride Coordinator, Treasurer, and Website Designer, most of the positions do not require an undue amount of time, just a passion to serve.  And, as I have learned, almost all of you have an opinion to offer and a passion for cycling.

While many of the Directors are willing to continue their service in their same capacity there will be some key vacancies, especially among the Officer positions.  These include Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary.  The Director position of Safety Coordinator will also need to be filled.

A description of the Duties of the Officers and Directors can be found on pages 6 and 7 in our current Bylaws on the Club’s website.  Here is the link:

https://mafw.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/BYLAWS-Nov-28-2018-FINAL-form-1.pdf

The nominating process:

Step 1 is to find who is interested in volunteering.

Step 2 is forming a Nominating Committee comprised of three individual Club members as well as two current board members.

Step 3 is the Nominating Committee will field a slate of candidates.

Step 4 is to hold the election in November, as per the Bylaws.

I have appointed the Club Treasurer, Michael Swearingen, as Chairman of the Nominating Committee. We are in the process of identifying the other required Committee members.  So please, if you have any interest in volunteering for the Club, you can email or text Michael as soon as possible.  We need your responses no later than Friday, September 4^th to give the Nominating Committee time to develop a complete slate of candidates.

Contact info for Michael is:         

Email:  treasurer@mafw.org     Mobile Phone:  201.400.1864

While I am excited for my move to South Carolina, I have enjoyed my time with MAF immensely.  I will miss you all, but I am sure you will be in good hands.  Many thanks to you all.

In the meantime, see you on the road.

Andrew Stroukoff

Members,

We will have a soft opening of our Ride Schedule on June 15th. 

Many of you will feel you need more time or information before you feel safe riding in a group.  Despite the Ride Schedule being open and active, if you are uncomfortable riding in a group under these conditions, don’t.  If you are uncomfortable leading a ride, don’t. 

Follow the 4 C’s

Avoid contact, confinement and crowds. And make realistic choices. 

For at least the first two weeks after opening the guidelines will be:

1. DO NOT RIDE IF YOU ARE SICK. Please report any contact with a COVID sufferer to Amy Horn, our Safety Coordinator.
2. Members must sign up ahead of time on the website. Do not just show up and expect to ride with the group.   You will have to sign up more than 30 minutes before the ride to allow the RL time to print the Sign In Sheet.  During this soft opening there will not be a ‘maybe’ option.  The RL will sign you in upon arrival. **You cannot bring guests to the ride**
3. RLs will have the discretion to limit the group size of their rides. No ride will have more than 10 riders.  This will be posted in the ride comments.
4. Ride distances should take into account the limited availability of rest rooms and food stops. 
5. Every rider should be prepared with sufficient fluid and food for the duration of the ride.
6. Every rider should bring a mask, bandana, or gaiter to be used pulled up pre- and post- rides and at all times when social distancing is impossible.  Try to leave a parking space between cars at the start points. You may wear your mask up when riding if you wish.  And, just like the new Major League Baseball rules – no spitting!  Bring tissue or a handkerchief and dispose of them properly.
7. Every rider should bring a small container of sanitizing fluid to be used when applicable.
8. Riders should maintain an appropriate distance while riding.  6 feet is too little, and 60 feet is probably excessive.  We should attempt to avoid bunching at intersections or when slowing for any reason. Use your good judgement.  We are all adults who have the best interest of our fellow club members at heart, as well as our own health and safety.
9. The foregoing may not be waived by individual leaders. Additional restrictions may be added by individual leaders with the same force and effect as the foregoing.
10. As always, ride leaders have the right to ask any rider to leave the ride when rules are not followed.

The Club may find it necessary to amend these guidelines based on experience or future announcements by local government authorities.  Please monitor the website.

We appreciate your cooperation!  After the first two weeks, who knows, we may be back in full swing.

Remember, we are all ambassadors.  Ride responsibly.

To quote Governor Murphy, “data determine dates”.

As of Monday, there have been 160,445 cases of COVID and 11,698 deaths from COVID in New Jersey.  This is almost as many as New Jersey lost on both fronts of World War 2.

Today we are still seeing 81 deaths per day and 2610 people currently in the hospital suffering from COVID.

While these numbers are frightening to contemplate, they represent a diminishing of the virus’ effect on our society.

Monday Gov. Murphy indicated the Stage 2 openings will occur on 15 June.  This will apply to non-contact sports, outdoor dining, etc.  Outdoor gatherings, limited use of parks and beaches was allowed on 22 May.

We will have a soft opening of our Ride Schedule on June 15th. 

Despite the Ride Schedule being open and active, if you are uncomfortable riding in a group under these conditions, please don’t. 

If you are uncomfortable leading a ride, please don’t. 

Many of you will feel you need more time or information before you feel safe riding in a group.  We get it!

We are working to create guidelines that will keep us all as safe as possible.  For at least the first two weeks after opening we will use these new, but temporary, guidelines to govern our Ride Schedule.   There will be limits to ride size and actions to allow for social distancing before and after rides.

We will have specific webinars for both ride leaders and club members to go over the new guidelines next week.  We will publish the complete new guidelines for you as soon as possible. 

Thank you for spending the past three months staying home, staying safe.  It is time for us to venture out, slowly and carefully, being mindful of our own health as well as others.  Come join us riding again.

As a thank you, for anyone who has an active MAFW membership on June 15, we will add 3 months to your MAFW membership.  This will happen automatically, no action required by you!

Looking forward to seeing you on the road.  It feels good to say that.

Andrew Stroukoff

April 2, 2020

Hi All

We all joined the Freewheelers for the bike riding.  But we stayed because it brought us into this wonderful community that is amazingly varied in interests, abilities and personalities. The basic idea of just wanting to ride hardly covers what we get by being a part of the amalgam that is the Freewheelers.

By now you have looked at our updated website.  All the functions you are used to are there, perhaps in different places, but they are there.

We also have a new and more useful ability to communicate with each other through Forums and Groups.  I have attached a User Guide to help you get started using these to connect with each other in this strange period of isolation. 

There is a new Group called Going Corona Crazy with a few threads to help us see what the rest of us are doing to cope with the strain and some advice to keep us safe.  Check out the good info from the Potomac Pedalers.

There are also Zwift Group topics and info on how to access the Club membership for RideWithGPS to see the entirety of the MAFW Tour Library.

I’m looking forward to when we can all ride together again.

BTW, I saw a video and figured we all know this song from our younger days.  It’s a hoot. Check it out.

https://www.facebook.com/john.a.tiscornia/videos/3403893116305964/

Andrew Stroukoff

Link to Forums User Guide