Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Bike for Sale

Trek 7600 Hybrid Bicycle
  • 20 Inch (51cm) aluminum frame
  • Front fork Roc Shock
  • Recently Overhauled
  • New rear cassette
  • New chain
  • New rear wheel
  • Blackburn rear carrier
  • Rear fender
Excellent commuter or recreational bicycle
Priced to sell - $350

Offered by Dr. Madosky, send Jeff Kloha an e-mail (contact in link at right) and I'll forward it to him.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Marc wins Cyclocross Race!




The day after the Concordia Century, Marc E did the cyclocross race at Creve Couer Park. It was his second cross race, he came in fourth last time. Way to go, Marc!

Free Events at Ghisallo Sports

At the end of the century I mentioned that our shop sponsor, Ghisallo Sports, is having a couple free events in the next couple of weeks. First, a women's event on Nov 8 and then a chili cook-off/winter gear info event on Nov 11. Click on the links for more info.

They also have three regularly-scheduled rides each week, low traffic/high hills:

"Our first group ride will start Monday morning October 1st at 9:30am. This is a 34mile co-ed group ride with some good hills and all are invited to join. The club is also continuing with the Wednesday morning Womens rides at 9am and joining the store ride every Saturday morning at 7:30am with a two route option for advanced and intermediate cyclist."

I hit the Saturday ride most weeks, if you're interested. They have a ton of bike, running, and tri gear at their huge store, worth dropping in to see.

Concordia Century Wrap-up

W-I-N-D-Y about sums up the ride. Not a cloud in the sky, perfect temperature, and wind. The weather summary said that winds were out of the south at 14mph at 1:00 and 19 mph at 3:00, so the last 40 miles were not real fun.

21 riders participated, and apart from some torn skin and bibs, some lost lunch, and Mark's three flats we had a safe ride. The first group finished with a 20.2 mph ave, the pair of women had a strong ride, and everyone that wanted to finish, did (even if it took a while!).

Many thanks to Ghisallo Sports (link at right) for the Sports Beans and awesome door prizes. Also thanks to Vicki, Martha, and Elva at Holy Cross for the perfect pancakes and sausage.

Here are the awards:
Best Friend of the Seminary: John J (second in a row, Matt was right there, too)
First Finisher-Female: Loreen M and Susan K
First Finisher-Male: Russ T
Best New Rider: Peter W
Rob Donaldson Memorial Flat Tire Award: Eric E
Sportsman Award: Leigh G (Mark G deserves part of it, too)

I'll let everyone add comments on the ride, what happened, how much pain you felt, how many miles you did the day after. Marc E did a cyclocross race the next day and won! Anyone else? Post pics, or send them via e-mail and I'll post them up. Anyone have pics/results of the beard contest?

Send me an e-mail if you have any suggestions for next year. We'll keep the group rides going through the winter, stay posted. Tour de Sem is May 3, mark your calendars now.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Directions to Post-Ride at Holy Cross

For those of you driving to Holy Cross for the post-ride festivities, here are the directions from CSL:

1. Take I-64/40 East toward downtown St. Louis.

2. Exit at Jefferson Avenue, go south

3. Approx. 2.5 miles south is Concordia Publishing House

4. Turn right at stop light, Miami Street. Holy Cross is one short block

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Wed Tune-up ride

A group is heading out at noon on Wed, 10/17, for 25 or 30 miles. I assume weather permitting. Meet at Luther.

Monday, October 15, 2007

Concordia Century 2007 FAQs

Why?
This is the third running of the Concordia Century. It started after the success of the first “Tour de Sem” in May of 2005, when Dr. Arand complained that he couldn't finish the ride because it was too early in the season to do a century. So we set up a Fall ride, and he still hasn't ridden it.

Why else?
Because it is flat, it is easy to set up, and it's good for you. And the pancakes and sausage in the huge frypan on the bonfire afterward are awesome. And the students that finish first get better calls. (guaranteed).

When does it start?
We will roll at 8:00 am on Oct. 20, rain or shine (cross your fingers). Arrive a bit early for some instructions and an opening.

Where does it start?
At Luther Statue on the east end of Concordia's campus, at the base of the tower, up the hill from Kaldi, etc.

What should I wear?
That's up to you. It will probably be chilly to start, so arm and leg warmers are a good idea because you can roll them off when it warms up. Friday night's low is predicted to be 50, the high Sat of 75.

What is the route?
The route is already posted on this blog. After winding our way downtown we head north on the Riverfront Trail, across the Chain of Rocks bridge and then the canal bridge, back on some lightly traveled roads/shoulders to the Lewis and Clark visitor's center, then it is paved trails all the way to the Grafton visitor's center. We turn around and head south from the arch past Soulard and Budweiser to historic Holy Cross Lutheran Church for pancakes and sausage.

What support will there be on the ride?
Ghisallo Sports in Chesterfield is providing a van for support. It will be stationed at the Chain of Rocks bridge until everyone passes, then in the casino parking lot in Alton until everyone passes back south, then the Chain of Rocks bridge again and then the end of the Riverfront Trail, 3miles from the finish, just in case. It can carry up to five bikes if you need to cash it in. It will have a tool kit (you'll have to wrench yourself, though), spare tubes & tires, extra gels, and water. You will want to carry two spare tubes on this ride, Almost every time out there I get a flat for some reason, and one year someone got four flats on this ride. There are also many water and public restroom stops on this route.

What should I bring to eat & drink?
A lot. One bottle of sports drink per hour and one bottle of water at least every couple hours, plus gels, beans, blocks, peanut butter & honey, bananas, whatever works for you. Eat as much as you can without puking. I used to say “eat as much as you can,” but some guys went over the line the year that we got a bunch of stuff from the Bread Company. It wasn't pretty.

What pace will the ride go?
That is up to you. I know that one group is shooting for 5 hours, a group of women are planning to stick together, and other groups will form up naturally. The best plan is to ride as comfortably as possible for the first half–don't push yourself to stay with a faster group at the beginning, or you'll trash yourself and get a ride home (and a call to North Dakota). There will be probably five or six clumps of riders, just find someone to ride with and get to know someone new. We want to be done at Holy Cross by 4:30, with the post-ride awards at 3:30-3:45, earlier if possible.

How many people are riding?
Probably 20-25. We'll see who shows up.

What about my bike?
Check to be sure that the shifting is working right, the chain is lubed, the brakes actually stop the bike, the tires are pumped up, and there are no slits, cuts, or pieces of glass stuck in your tires. If you don't know how to do all that, the friendly folks at Touring Cyclist can help you out, or our ride sponsor, Ghisallo Sports in Chesterfield.

Can I change my clothes after the ride?
Please! You can toss a duffle into the support vehicle, but this will be coming back in pretty late. I will be dropping things off at Holy Cross on Friday. If you bring a bag by to my house by Friday morning I'll drop it off so it is there for you whenever you finish.

How do I get back to campus after the ride?
We'll have enough vans/bike racks to get everyone back to campus.

Are there trophies?
Sort of. Prizes will be awarded for First Male Finisher, First Female Finisher (get ready to sprint at the end!), Best New Rider, Best Friend of the Seminary, Sportsman Award, and the Rob Donaldson Flat Tire Award. There will also be drawings for a bunch of door prizes from Ghisallo Sports. There's also some kind of facial hair contest going on, if that's your fancy. And if anyone beats Kloha, he'll keep his legs hairy (extra incentive for my wife).

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Sunday Ride

As long as the weather holds up I plan on meeting at Luther Tower at 2:00 for a 3 hour ride tomorrow (10/14). Hope to see you there!

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Century Registration Still Open

We have 19 cyclists signed up already for the Concordia Century on Oct. 20. You can still sign up, see the "Concordia Century Registration" entry on Sep. 29 for a form. The long-range weather forecast looks great.

Monday, October 8, 2007

Updated Century Ride Map

Ha! Using the "Hybrid" view, you can actually see the MRT! I altered the map slightly so as to accurately reflect the route. I did not add the "parade route" on Lindell.

Kloha, if you could give me a turn by turn, I can try to add it to the map. Otherwise, we use what we have.

I will figure out a way to print these out so they are most useful for riders.

Keep pedaling!

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Group Ride 9/30

Here are some pics that Mark G. took on Sunday:
This is at the start. Elizabeth has the cool retro wools with the classic Pinarello.









North on the Riverfront Trail



At the Missouri/ Mississippi confluence