Dear friends:

I just received sad news of the passing of long time MAFW member Van Connolly, wife of George Connolly.  Van was the club statistician for many years as well as an avid rider.  Her husband, George, was a club president and actively involved with the Revolutionary Ramble from it’s inception.  Here is information regarding services:

Bailey Funeral Home ‐ Mendham  8 Hilltop Rd.  Mendham, NJ  Thursday February 13  Visitation  3:00 pm ‐ 7:00 pm
Friday February 14  Celebrant Service  11:00 am ‐ 11:45 am
Friday February 14  Interment  12:00 pm ‐ 12:30 pm  Mendham Hilltop Cemetery  18 Hilltop Rd  Mendham, NJ   

The family has requested that remembrances be made in the form of a tribute gift in memory of Bernice Connolly to the Alzheimer’s Association at https://act.alz.org.

Here is the email that George sent to Pat Kipp:

Hi Pat,

I’m glad to see that you are still involved with the club newsletter.  I just wanted to let you know that my wife, Van Connolly, recently passed away after a long illness.  She was an active rider and the club statistician for many years.  The club was a special place for us since its where we met and enjoyed many years of participation.

https://baileyfuneral.com/tribute/details/3426/Bernice-Connolly/obituary.html#tribute-start

Please pass this along to other friends who are still active with the club.

Thanks,

George

Greetings, friends.

I hope to see you at the winter party this coming Saturday, February 1.  As I write this, there are 57 lovely people who have signed up and we’ll miss your smiling face if you’re not there.  We’ll be raffling a few nice prizes and our DJ, DJ minus D, is ready to rock.  Looking forward to seeing you there

Warm regards,

Michael

Greetings, Friends.

I’m pleased to announce that another MAFW exclusive event has been added to the website calendar. 

As we are all contending with the cold weather, let’s get ourselves ready for the springtime cycling season. We are pleased to announce a special lecture and presentation to our members, entitled “Strength Training for Cyclists”, presented by Paul Coviello, PT, DPT, owner of Summit Physical Therapy, a Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopedic Physical Therapy and a committed cyclist as well. Many of you may remember that Paul gave a lecture at our annual November meeting, is a corporate sponsor of the Ramble, and has treated a number of MAFW members for their physical therapy needs.

Paul’s lecture and demonstration will be presented at his Summit location, 60 Morris Turnpike , Suite 2W, Summit, NJ 07901 ( entrance to parking lot is across the street from Benihana). The event will be on Sunday, February 16, 2025 at 4:00 pm. Space is limited for this event, only 15 members can be accommodated. Please sign up on the calendar on the club website. Refreshments will be served.

Kudos to Jeff Sperling and Paul Coviello for making this event happen for the club!

Keep an eye on your email as we plan to add more educational events in the coming months and watch for the kick-off for our monthly “special treat” rides once the weather warms up.  And if you have suggestions for informational/educational presentations please email me.  Let’s all contribute to add more value and fun to club membership.

Stay safe and stay warm.

Best regards,

Michael 

Here’s some exciting news to help warm you during this cold spell!

1. The Morris Area Freewheelers Winter Party takes place on February 1, 2025 at Fairchild Fire Company, 2 Burnham Rd., Morris Township from 6-10 PM.  Come out and party with us.  And if you have a significant other, don’t let him/her miss out on the fun.  It’s BYOB and there will be music.  Sign up on the calendar page on the club website.

2.  Save the date and plan to attend POP’S WINTERFEST 2025 on Janurary 28, 2025 from 6-8:30 PM.  Prizes and giveaways!

Pop’s Bike Shop, 34 E. Main St., Somerville, will be hosting a rep night! Company representatives from Shimano, Lazer Helmets, Niterider lights, Kuat car racks, Garmin, Continental tires, Skratch Lab nutrition and more will be there as will company representatives from Giant, Haro, and Dahon bicycle companies!

Come by and meet their new in-house Chiropractor Kate Denker, as well as Zachy Christodoulou from Yoga Odyssey!

Pop’s will have product demos and tutorials, new product introductions, as well as prizes and giveaways. SUPER special POPS WINTERFEST event pricing on a large range of road, mountain, and hybrid bikes with savings of 20% to over 50% on select models!  POPS will be offering parts and accessories specials from 20%-90% on a huge range of products from presenters listed above, as well as Muc-Off, Pearl Izumi, Elite indoor trainers, Cannondale, Tifosi Optics, Wera tools, and many others!

Pop’s will be accepting donations of used bikes for Ridewise, its partner here in Somerset county, that helps local people in need of transportation alternatives. Drop off that old bike that you no longer need, and we will refurbish it to be given to a local person right here in our local community.

Also, a portion of the proceeds of this event will be donated to aid victims of the Los Angeles wild fires. We will also be accepting donations that will go directly to help those in the bicycling community in California that need our help.

RSVP by email at repair@popsbikeshop.com.

Stay safe and stay warm.

Michael