News All Around

Good news! We have a bike club!

Last night was the organizational get together for the new cycling club. From the dormant idea of a group of idealists, and the fresh vigor of a new group of enthusiasts, comes something special.

This is great! We had a large gathering of folks interested in promoting a club. We have revived the old Fayette Biking for Life. There are a new slate of officers, a lot of new members, and a new dedication and direction. Many many thanks to those who have gone before, to Carlton, and Dick, and George, and Bonny. Thanks to you, and to the efforts of a new group of people, a flame has been rekindled. We have a new set of officers, a sound structure, and the support of a core of good and concerned people. This is the beginning of something important and profound. A new dawn is breaking. I’m not sure why, but the words of C.S. Lewis seem appropriate. “Farther in, and farther up!”

Some Thoughts on Quality Bicycle Touring:

Before I go any farther… A few words are appropriate on the basic structure of ideal of group bicycle touring. This is my ideal. While I make no claims to being the absolute authority on this, my experience leads me in this direction. So… A group tour should do the following.

1. Include a group of cyclists who are committed to riding together, and to sharing the joys and challenges of a long multi-day trip.
2. Be self-supported. Meaning that riders will carry what they need on their bikes, clothing, tools, spares, etc.
3. Not involve intentional camping! Look, sometimes “guerilla camping” is necessary on a tour, but… I love a good hard day’s riding, but I am strongly in favor of clean sheets and hot water at the end of that day. I plan to stay overnight at decent, affordable, hotels or B&Bs.
4. Include mostly scenic routes, with a specific destination of some particular attractive type; i.e. mountains, historic sites, large and significant geographical destinations, or some such point of interest.
5. The ideal route would be a loop or out-and-back, that started and ended at home. This can be modified to include “remote start and ride home,” or “offset start” (where we go to a rally point and use it as a start/finish), or “local start – distant finish.”
6. Routing and riding should be flexible. If the group decides to go longer (or shorter) on a given day, this should be possible. Stops for enjoyment of unscheduled and unplanned points of interest should be allowable.

7) The Journey is the Destination!

New Touring Ideas:

I have previously mentioned and “teased” an announcement of a new touring idea. I’m not going to go into details until tomorrow’s post, but here are several (I think) cool tour suggestions.

1) Highest Point Tours: We ride from here in Fayette, GA to the highest points in all of the states that share common borders with us. This is actually a collection of several different tours.

2) Outer Banks of NC: The basic idea is a long (maybe very long) regional tour. How does a trip to, and along the Outer Banks sound? Long ferry trips, coastal wilderness areas with unspoiled beaches, great food and amenities at the destination.

3) Key West!! What more do I need to say on this?

Stay tuned.