This Saturday we have set up Trek rides from Trek’s store in Stirling. We have C+, C and D+ rides covered but I need a ride leader for the D ride. I know there is a hill to start but it gets better, and terrain is only C+. The main purpose of these rides is to get your bikes inspected for free by Trek. You can then get your bikes fixed by Trek at your leisure or take the inspection report to your bike shop. Last year Trek did take 2 bikes since they were unsafe to ride but did give the riders new bikes to ride. The main purpose of these Trek rides is to make sure you are riding a safe bike. I will be going to North Carolina for a week of cycling in October and want to make sure my bike is ready.
We hope you join us this weekend for the Trek rides, but alternative rides will be allowed, and we are still looking for ride leaders. For the Sunday picnic at Schooley’s Mountain no alternative rides will be allowed.
Hope everyone had an opportunity to enjoy the weather this week,
The 9/14/22 Denville Bike, Pizza and Beer ride joint ride with BTCNJ was a great success. The weather was great, and we had approximately 65 riders roll out this morning. We provided multiple rides with various paces so everyone could participate. After the ride, we all met at the Diamond Spring Brewery in downtown Denville, and we utilized our ride leader celebration ride funding to purchase 18 pizzas for the hungry riders. Everyone hung out and had a great time. We also had some preliminary conversations, and we are looking to set up a similar event in October that will end at Burnt Mills Cider in Bedminster. Stay tuned for further details
Next week we have two great events for you but first an important announcement.
I have received a lot of comments lately on the need for our bike club to modernize a little. As to that matter, our existing bylaws do not specifically authorize voting using the Internet, and they also do not specifically authorize meetings using Zoom and similar computer applications. The Board believes that the bylaws should be amended to provide these authorizations, and we have prepared proposed bylaws amendments that would accomplish this. We will be presenting these amendments at the upcoming picnic on the 22nd and will be holding a vote on adopting them. If they are adopted, they will become effective immediately. A small change to bring is in alignment with corporate standards in a post covid world. To see the proposed changes please utilize the attached link. MAFW-2022-bylaws-with-proposed-changes-V.-2.0
The two events next week are as follows:
Semi-Annual Trek Inspection Ride – 9/21/24
The previously scheduled date was cancelled due to excessive heat. Many of you remember that last year we launched our first ever Trek Inspection Rides starting from Trek Stirling’s location. These events were very well received with all participants receiving Trek’s free safety inspection on their bikes. Trek will be offering a $50.00 discount on their level 2 service and $100 discount for Level 3 service, if needed. There will be refreshments, bagels, coffee and juices before and after the rides. Trek will also have Trek Fest specials inside their store for members to shop after the ride. We are staggering the start times of the rides, so that Trek can properly inspect and discuss their findings with our riders. Parking will be in the Trek lot, next door at the Day Care Center, and along Main Street in Stirling. Bathrooms are available in the store. Trek Service will be on duty at 8:00 am, so please arrive about 45 minutes to an hour before your ride starts. Rides are now available on our website.
Annual Fall Picnic – Schooley Mountain Park – 9/22/24
The MAFW Fall Picnic will be on Sunday September 22nd, at Schooley Mountain Park in Long Valley. For those that have not ridden out of the park it’s a beautiful location and the rides are fantastic as well. The picnic is free (and you can bring a guest). We are looking to finalize the headcount for the fall picnic on Sunday September 22nd. Weather looks to be perfect as of this evening (low 70’s and partially cloudy). The picnic is free (and you can bring a guest or potential new member), but please sign up using the form at the top of our web page so we know how many people to expect. People whose last name starts with:
A-F
Please bring an Appetizer/Salad.
G-O
Please bring a Main Dish
P-Z
Please bring a Dessert.
There is a full ride schedule for the day of the picnic, with rides at all paces. There should be a ride for anyone who is interested and remember to sign up for the ride you plan to do in addition to signing up for the picnic.
There are a few rooms left at the hotel for Roy’s Penn Dutch weekend. Grab them before they’re taken by other guests and you can still get the group discount rate. Call the hotel at (717) 768-1101. You have until October 3 to cancel, at no charge. And please add your name to the MAFW calendar. Contact Roy for any questions.
Deadline to sign up for Roy’s Penn Dutch Weekend is tomorrow. After tomorrow Roy has to release the rooms he has reserved and after tomorrow they may not be available. You do have until Oct 3 to cancel. Signup can be done via the MAFW calendar and be sure to contact Roy if you have any questions.
Watch the website to see information on upcoming events, communication from our club president and ride coordinator, and ride guidelines.
Our Social Coordinator, John Storey, is always in need of your help for a number of our activities. Please email if you are interested: social@mafw.org
MAFW has 2 main guidelines or mottos that riders and ride leaders should follow:
Nobody rides alone including the ride leader
Ride leader sweeps for all rides except B and faster
Just a reminder that the September 2024 edition of our NL is online. To read: click https://mafw.org/newsletter/
What’s in this issue:
Revolutionary Ramble 2025
Freewheelers Election at November Members Meeting
Morris Area Freewheelers Foundation’s CPR & First Aid Course Update – Rob Greenberg
Connect with the MAF Bike Club on Social Media – Tracy Brown
Message from the President – Joe Reo
Message from the Ride Coordinator – Manny Coelho
MAFW T-SHIRTS – Roy Fischman
Bon Ton Roulet – Manny Coelho
BOB’S VERMONT TOUR – Manny Coelho
A Quick but Efficient Method for Obtaining the Right Seat Height- Tony Marchand
2024 Calendar
Fall Picnic September 22
Tour de Bronx – October 6 – Drew Thraen
THE SIXTEENTH ANNUAL MILESTONE PARTY October 8 – Patricia Kipp
A “Delicious” Experience Awaits You, October 21 – Rob Greenberg
Gettsyburg Fall Weekend October 25 – 27
Photo Gallery
Nostalgia
Cartoons
Roy’s Penn Dutch Weekend October 4 – 6, 2024
MAF Bike Adventures 2024 See website for more detail
Cycling Guides by Mark Jay
People Cycling
Safety by Paul Malinowski
Club Sponsors
Club Officers
Enjoying your E-bike, trike, gravel bike? Let’s hear about your experience.
Folks, many of you have taken some interesting trips this year or in the past. So why not share your stories & photos with fellow club members?
We welcome any articles that you feel would be of interest. WHEN YOU HAVE A SPARE MOMENT, PLEASE SEND ME A STORY AND PICTURES OF YOUR BICYCLING ADVENTURES. Submit any information by the 24th of the preceding month at the following email address: newsletter@mafw.org
If you have any issues with your login credentials, please contact Membership Coordinator Betsy Eastwood at the following email address: membership@mafw.org
Periodically Rob Greenberg will be instructing a no-cost CPR course sponsored by the Morris Area Freewheelers Foundation. For those interested, you can contact Rob by phone at 973-334-0125 or by email at robdg01@aol.com for the next available session and more information.
Last call for a great labor Day Weekend kickoff saturday morning!
Bring a guest: )
. August 31st – Freewheelers post-ride paddleboat races, swimming, and picnic! Join us on Saturday August 31, 2024, at Sunrise Lake in Lewis Morris Park for a day of riding, getting wet (or not), and fun: ). Rides will start leaving the park at 9AM and upon returning we will have picnic tables by the beach with chicken, cold flavored seltzers and dishes by members. In addition to bike rides, paddleboat races, swimming and food, Len Friedman will be leading a 4-mile hike in Lewis Morris Park starting from Sunrise Lake. Be sure to sign up on the Ride Schedule if you want to hike. There is no charge for a member and a guest. If you are not joining a ride, you should be there by 11:30AM. https://mafw.org/events/sunrise-lake-paddleboat-races/ People whose last name starts with:
There is room for one single woman on the Lake George Getaway: Friday afternoon September 6 – Sunday, September 8, 2024. Once again, let’s hope for nice weather! It again promises to be. a great event with some fun activities planned and great dining choices. We will be staying in the lakeside hamlet of Bolton Landing, located 8.5 miles north of the Village of Lake George on the western shoreline. Enjoy the midSeptember weather with evenings that can be cool, but the days are almost always warm (sometimes after a chilly morning). There is a facility for storing your bike indoors at the hotel. While this is a cycling weekend, there are lots of off the bike activities to suit most tastes including hiking, boating, horseback riding, zip line adventures as well as tourist entertainment like sight-seeing cruises, museums and shopping. Everyone will enjoy just sitting on the dock with a drink in hand looking at the view.
Contact Jan Gorban, jgorban@gmail.com if you are interested in rooming with her at the Northward Ho and further details.
Hurry, the getaway is next week.
Manny
Pace & Terrain Definitions
Road Day & Evening
When choosing the pace you want to do, please consider:
if you are new to the club it is better to start with a slower pace and your work your way up to faster paces
choose the right pace for you on that day and don’t pigeon-hole yourself into a single pace classification. Factors impacting your pace include
terrain
how much you have been riding
who you are riding with
your conditioning
distance – note that you should increase the maximum length of your rides gradually. It is recommended that you do not attempt a ride any longer than 20% more than your longest ride of the season.
Pace classifications use average speed, which is the total distance divided by the moving time. This is the average speed reported by most by bicycle computers, although you might have to adjust the options to exclude time while not moving. It is critical to realize that your average speed is significantly less (typically 3/4 or less) than your “cruising” speed on flat terrain.
DAYTIME PACES (Updated: April 2015)
Pace
Minimum Average Speed
Description
A
18+ mph
Hard fast riding, few stops, slower riders will be dropped, frequent pace lines.
B+
17 mph
For very fit cyclists, slower riders will be dropped, leader rides at listed pace, occasional pace lines.
B
16 mph
For fit cyclists, terrain varies, up to 30 miles between rest stops. Leader sweeps no slower than 16 mph. BUT if there is a concurrent identical (same tour #, same start time) C+ ride, or the ride leader has posted “no sweep” in the ride comments, the leader rides a B pace and does not sweep.
C+
14.5 mph
For accomplished cyclists, terrain varies, up to 30 miles between rest stops, leader sweeps no slower than 14.5 mph. If there is a concurrent identical (same tour #, same start time) C ride, the Ride Leader may choose not to sweep and depend on the C ride to look after slower C+ riders.
C
13 mph
For accomplished cyclists, terrain varies, up to 30 miles between rest stops, leader sweeps no slower than 13 mph.
D+
11 mph
For experienced cyclists who want an easier pace, up to 20 miles between rest stops, leader sweeps no slower than 11 mph.
D
9 mph
Relaxed riding for experienced cyclists, easier terrain, up to 15 miles between rest stops, leader sweeps no slower than 9 mph (typically no longer than 35 miles and on terrain not more difficult than C+).
CA(Casual)
Casual
Relaxed riding, no steep hills, frequent stops, group stays together.
S (Special)
varies
Special ride. Click on ‘More’ (after login) to read special comments.
EVENING TRAINING RIDE PACES Paces for evening rides have a T prefix to indicate that they are “training” rides. Training means that the rides are typically shorter, do not have rest stops and riders generally ride at a faster average compared to day rides.
Pace
Average Speed
Description
TA
18+ mph
Hard fast riding, few stops, slower riders will be dropped, frequent pace lines.
TB
16.5+ mph
For very fit cyclists, slower riders will be dropped, leader rides at listed pace, occasional pace lines
TC
15+ mph
For accomplished cyclists, terrain varies, leader sweeps no slower than 15 mph.
TD
13+ mph
For experienced cyclists, leader sweeps no slower than 13 mph
TE
11+ mph
For any cyclists who can average 11 mph and ride the posted distance without a rest stop, leader sweeps no slower than 11 mph
Ride leaders on A, B+, B, TA and TB rides are not required to sweep, so riders on such rides should either be confident that they can keep up with the pace of the group or be comfortable riding independently.
Ride Leaders on C+, C, D+, D, TC, TD and TE pace rides are required to sweep. However, riders on those rides must be able to average at least that minimum speed, making only the scheduled rest stops, or they may be dropped.
TERRAIN RATINGS:
The terrain rating for a tour is determined by “average climb”. That is the total climb, as determined by ridewithgps.com as per the club’s map of the tour, divided by the length of the tour. Total climb is the total uphill climb ignoring the downhills. Note that the total climb as reported by ridewithgps.com is almost always lower than the climb reported by bike computers doing a route. That difference is “built into” the classifications below.
The ratings are:
Rating Average Climb (ft/mile)
A greater than 75
B 50 to 75
C+ 40 to 50
C 25 to 40
D less than 25
Two tours with the same terrain classification may have very different terrain profiles. For example one C+ terrain route may be relatively flat with one big climb, while another C+ terrain route may have lots of “rollers” but no big climbs. The best way to determine the type of terrain a route covers is to click the “MAP” link for the ride from the ride schedule and look at the terrain profile at the bottom of the ridewithGPS.com page for that tour.
Path & Trail Rides
ALL PATH AND TRAIL RIDES ARE SCHEDULED DURING FULL DAYLIGHT HOURS
PACE: Varies with type, terrain and group.
MB Mountain bike required (Bike with 26-inch or 29-inch knobby tires, flat bars)
HB For MB’s or Hybrids (road-sized frame with flat bars, wide tires, pedals that allow EZ off and on) Tires should be at least 28mm or 1 1/2 inches wide; some road bikes will accept 28mm tires, but road bikes not recommended.
TERRAIN:
For MB rides (Trail)
HT Highly technical – may include steep climbs/descents, very rocky, large intentional obstacles, drop-offs – for very experienced riders only
MT Moderately technical – may include some steep climbs/descents, water crossings, some rocks or roots – for lower intermediate riders and up
NT Not technical – relatively smooth hard pack with few or no steep hills or obstacles – riders of all abilities
For HB rides (Path)
NH Not technical for hybrid bikes. All HB rides will have an NH terrain rating. Trails are generally hard pack and may be partially paved – riders of all abilities. Road bikes with 28 mm tires OK, but hybrid still better.
Indoor Rides (e.g. Zwift)
Indoor rides will have the Pace set to “I” to indicate an indoor ride.
