Bicycle touring
Next ride is the KLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ departing Huron, Ohio on:
May 4, 2008 at 9:00 a.m.
Check the information down below for this annual spring ride.
We had 35 riders for the ABCDEFGHIJ! on January 1, 2008! This was the 32nd time for this fun ride. Distances varied from 3 miles to 24 miles with most riders doing the full 24 miles. The temperature was in the mid-20's with snow falling and wind blowing for most of the time. The overcast skies prevented any sunburn and eliminated the need for sunscreen. Borrowed socks helped one rider make it back to town.
Come ride with us next year on the 33rd annual A Bi-Cycling Dandy Excuse For Getting Hibernated In January ride at 12:00 noon from Medina, Ohio. Check the information down below.
We had 25 riders on October 27, 2007 for the Friendsville Freebie Fifty (Fall Foliage & Frostbite Frolic)! ride from Medina, Ohio. The wind was brisk from the SW, a little drizzle came late, and temperatures were in the 50's. Check the information down below for next year's ride.
Some favorite rides:
31st Annual Friendsville Freebie Fifty / Fall Foliage & Frostbite Frolic (FFF/FFFF)
Saturday, October 27, 2007 at 10:00 am.
Try the OBF Calendar Listing or try the Bike Exchange Calendar Listing
News flash! We had a rather unimpressive ride on October 28, 2006 considering the chilly and windy weather! We had 4 people show up to ride. The weather was a bit chilly with morning temperatures in the 40's. Thanks again to Dracu-Lou for providing the entertainment at the cider stop. Hey Drac, how old are you? - 350? 450? You look like you're not a day over 50!
Here is most of the crowd from FFF 2002.
We hope to see you here this year. Remember, the last Saturday each October. Put it on your calendar now.
This is a free ride of 50 or 25 miles at Hallowe'en time. A map, cider stop, and Count Dracu-Lou are provided
NO other services are provided. NO sag wagon, NO snack stops, NO closed course, NO first aid cars, NO food. Get the idea? Then come prepared! The route does go through a couple of small cities where food may be purchased if you need it. The attendance is usually between 50 and 250 depending on the weather.
Donations up to 50 cents are cheerfully accepted for this ride. This ride is sponsored by the Medina County Bicycle Club of Medina, Ohio and departs from the Medina Public Square at 10:00 a.m. on the last Saturday in October. FFF2006, will be the 30th anniversary for FFF(FFFF).
There really isn't anymore information needed. For additional information, send an e-mail message or send a SASE to Medina County Bicycle Club, P.O. Box 844, Medina, Ohio 44258. You could also call Dracu-Lou (not too late or early in the day please!) at 330-725-0441.
33rd Annual
A Bi-Cycling Dandy Excuse For
Getting Hibernated In January!
(ABCDEFGHIJ!)
New Year's Day 2009 at 12:00 noon.
Here is a picture from the first ABCDEFGHIJ! Bike Ride:
Copyright Tom DeLombard 1977.
If you would like to see a full picture of the thirteen riders on the first ABCDEFGHIJ! ride, check out this
If you would like to see a history of ABCDEFGHIJ! from 1977 to 2004, check out this
Most of the crowd of 35 riders at ABCDEFGHIJ! 2008 were there early enough to get in the traditional group photo before the mass start. The weather was great with temperatures in the mid-20's and a light snow falling! A brisk breeze from the west made riding a bit chilly! A good time was had by all.
Here are some of the riders at ABCDEFGHIJ! 2008 getting on the road. A rather snowy day!
About half of the crowd of 105 riders at ABCDEFGHIJ! 2007. The weather was great with temperatures starting about 45 degrees, but falling to about freezing about 3:00 pm! A slight breeze from the south made riding 'out' a little chilly, but turning and riding back towards Medina was somewhat 'balmy' - yeah right! A good time was had by all.
If you would like to see more pictures from ABCDEFGHIJ!, check out this page of pictures.
This is a free ride of 24, 12 or 3 miles on New Year's Day. A map is provided, but NO other services are provided. NO sag wagon, NO snack stops, NO closed course, NO first aid cars, NO food. Get the idea? Then come prepared! The route does go through a couple of cities where food may be purchased if you need it. If you need them, there is a Burger King and a MickyD's along the route. Personalized participation certificates are available at the end of the ride for 25 cents. Donations up to 50 cents are cheerfully accepted for this ride.
Optional personalized participation certificates will be available for 25 cents after the ride at the South Court Stop-N-Go. Your name will be inscribed by hand on the certificate as you watch.
Dress for the weather that day! Be prepared for sudden changes in the weather! Check the weather forecast for Medina. As of Saturday (Dec. 29), the forecast for Medina was:
- Monday night : Rain showers likely...changing to snow showers. Lows in the upper 20s. Southwest winds 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation 70 percent.
- Tuesday : New Years Day, Cloudy with snow showers likely. Highs around 30. Chance of snow 60 percent.
Attendance is usually between 50 and 200 depending on the weather. You will be riding on public roads that day and there is no liability at all assumed by me, the Medina County Bicycle Club, its officers, nor any person assisting with this ride. Be prepared, ride safely, and enjoy the day.
This ride is sponsored by the Medina County Bicycle Club of Medina, Ohio and departs from the Medina Public Square at 12:00 noon.
For additional information, send a SASE to Medina County Bicycle Club, P.O. Box 844, Medina, Ohio 44258. You could also call Dick (not too late or early in the day please!) at 419-433-8353. Don't try to call me on New Year's morning because I won't be there! I will be out getting ready for the ride!
Where is the Medina Square you ask?
Medina area map. Easy access from I-71, I-76, and I-77. Check the downtown map below.
- From I-71 southbound from Cleveland and other points north, follow Route 3 south to the Medina Square.
- From I-71 northbound from Columbus and other points south, go east on I-76, then follow Route 3 north to the Medina Square.
- From I-271 southbound from Cleveland and other points north-east, continue on I-271 until it merges with I-71 southbound, then follow Route 18 west to the Medina Square.
- From I-77 northbound OR southbound, follow Route 18 west to the Medina Square.
- From I-76 westbound, follow Route 57 north-west to the Medina Square.
- From the west, follow Route 18 to the Medina Square. Alternatively, you can follow Route 224 to Route 42 north-east to the Medina Square.
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Medina city street map of downtown area. The square is where the red star is located.
Do not ride your bicycles on the sidewalks within one block of the square! City Ordinance prohibits that. Parking lots are found within a block or two east and north-east of the square.
KLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ!
Kinda Like May's Nine O'clock Picturesque & Quaint Rectangular Spring Tour Undertaken by Very Wishful Xenophobic Young Zealots!
Huron, Ohio on the Sunday before Mother's Day in early May
This is a "support yourself" ride 85 miles in length. There are no services provided, but also there is NO COST. Yep, it is another FREEBIE ride! The details are down there at the bottom of the page.
Tour of the Scioto River Valley (TOSRV)
Mother's Day weekend in May
This is a two day tour along the Scioto River from Columbus to Portsmouth, Ohio and return for a total distance of 210 miles for the weekend. TOSRV usually attracts around 6000 riders to Ohio's blustery spring weather each year. The ride provides seven food stops, a sleeping bag space in Portsmouth, exciting weather, plenty of riders and a lot of fun. Baggage transportation is provided. TOSRV is now sponsored by the Columbus Outdoor Pursuits organization.
TOSRV97 was the 36th annual tour and DUE (I think to bad weather for the last several years, the attendance was down to only about 4,200 riders. On Saturday, the temperature didn't get out of the 40's until we were nearly in Portsmouth. It was cold! I pity those who weren't prepared. Sunday dawned sunny and clear (So THAT is what Portsmouth looks like on Sunday morning without the usual fog!). The sun stayed out for rest of the day and a tail wind came along for part of the ride. All-in-all, a good DRY tour this year.
For an application for this year's TOSRV, check their web site. This ride sometimes fills up in early February.
Mid-Ohio Century
The Sunday two weeks before TOSRV
This is a tour from Delaware (the Ohio city, not the state) sponsored by the Columbus Outdoor Pursuits organization. This ride usually goes in fairly flat countryside to the north and west of Delaware. The available distances are usually 35, 50, 65, and 100 miles. Good foodstops and good company.
Columbus Fall Challenge
In the fall, late in September or early October
This is a two day tour in south-eastern Ohio that is a challenge due to the large hills that pepper the course. Food stops along the way are provided as is a covered sleeping bag space in the mid-point city. Baggage transportation is provided. The scenery is hard-to-beat as are the hills. A friend and I were the first ones done on Sunday one year.
Medina Twin Sizzler 44K Bike Race and 10K / 5K Run
4th of July
This massive race and run attracts hundreds of racers to the quaint town of Medina, Ohio on the 4th of July. The foot races are started first, followed by the bike race. Many bi-athletes are able to run the 5K and make it to the bike race in time. The bike race is about 26 miles long and is one loop in rolling and flat terrain.
These races are sponsored by and benefit the Medina County YWCA. Racing and places are by age and sex categories.
Touring Ride In Rural Indiana (TRIRI)
Now, both a summer tour and a fall tour!
Joe and Barbara Anderson, the Bloomington Bicycle Club, the Indiana State Parks & Reservoirs, and the Indiana State Parks Inns are pleased to bring you two Touring Ride In Rural Indiana’ (TRIRI) events. Both events feature overnights at Indiana State Parks & Reservoirs properties, layover days that feature loop tours and special sights to see in the areas, professionally prepared meals, and time to enjoy all the Indiana state parks & reservoirs have to offer. Check the TRIRI website for current information.
Other cycling resources:
- Road Soldiers Cycling Club is a cycling, scooter, and wheelchair organization based at the Ohio Veterans Home in Sandusky, Ohio. The Road Soldiers Cycling Club began in 1996 for the purpose of promoting cycling among the Home's domiciliary members. A number of years later, when a former cyclist had become electric scooter-bound, a second organization was formed to promote the interests of and recreational use of scooters and wheelchairs by wheeled members of the Home. Both of these organizations have thrown their lots together, and a full season of off-campus rides is done in unison from April into October with the transportation and dietary support of the Home.
- Ohio Bicycle Federation.
- The Wheelmen.
- Bikeexchange home page
- Bicycle Event Calendars from Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania from BikeExchange
- Crank Mail Newsletter e-mail at: crankmail@compuserve.com
- Medina County Bicycle Club, Medina, Ohio The mailing address is: Medina County Bicycle Club, P.O. Box 844, Medina, Ohio 44258.
- Maumee Valley Wheelmen, Maumee, Ohio
- Sandusky Bicycle Club, Sandusky, Ohio (Do a search for "Sandusky Bicycle" on that web page.)
- Lake Erie Wheelers Bicycle Club, Cleveland, Ohio e-mail at: dks@en.com
- Cleveland Touring Club, Cleveland Heights, Ohio e-mail at: clevtourclub@geocities.com
- Schwinn Bicycle Company
- Tandem Magazine Web site for Tandem Magazine published four times a year.
Here are the details about the KLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ! ride:
First, the name is:
Kinda Like May's Nine O'clock Picturesque & Quaint
Rectangular Spring Tour Undertaken by Very Wishful Xenophobic Young Zealots!
- The twelfth annual KLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ! will depart at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, May 4, 2008 from the BGSU Firelands Campus, Huron, Ohio for a "self-sufficient" tour of the Firelands area of Ohio. Riders will ride about 85 miles around the Firelands area of Ohio.
Twelve riders (and one non-rider) assemble in the chill morning air before setting off eastward back in 2002. These twelve plus the photographer and four others that started late comprised the seventeen riders in 2002.
This tour does NOT have sag wagons, food stops, snack stops, rest rooms (except at the start location), water stops, overnight accommodations, prizes, patches, certificates, gear shuttle, first aid vehicles, radio cars, or anything resembling those things. Did you notice the NOT before all those things? This ride does not provide the above items. This ride is an old-fashioned self-sufficient ride where individual riders were expected to be prepared to handle any problem themselves. I didn't hear of any problems encountered one year except for the headwind for about 20 miles heading west and then 20 miles north. (ouch!)
BE PREPARED TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF IF YOU COME TO THIS RIDE!- What DOES this ride provide? Well, strictly speaking, not much: a catchy name and a map. Not bad for a free ride. I will be riding that day on public roads and if you want to ride along, fine. The map will show you where I am going. There is no pre-registration required and no registration needed on the day of the ride. There is no liability on my part - implied or otherwise.
- The 85 mile route is a good preparation (yes, a little late, but I need it) for TOSRV. You can have lunch at a restaurant, sandwich place, or Mickie D's in New London or there is a good sit-down restaurant in downtown Fitchville. The route is basically Huron-Vermilion-New London- Fitchville -Steuben-Monroeville-Huron. The route is fairly hill-less, there are some gradual hills, one long, sweeping down-and-up, but nothing really serious. (This is NOT The Hilly Expedition [now THAT was a fun ride!].)
- The Firelands Campus of Bowling Green State University is located at the western edge of Huron, Ohio on Rye Beach Road, just south of State Route 2. Meet in the northern parking lot. See the map down below there.
- There really isn't anything more to say about the ride, but if you insist, you may ask questions by sending an e-mail to me to find out about the ride. I have put all I know about the ride here.
- NOTE: The name of this ride is designed to fit after the ABCDEFGHIJ! New Year's Day ride. Meet on the Square in Medina, Ohio at 12 noon on New Year's Day for that popular free ride.
Click on the map for a navigable map.
While you're here, check out a worthwhile cause: The Back To The Wild wildlife rehabilitation center.
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