What’s happening this weekend….

I know it’s only Tuesday but I’m already dreaming of the weekend. The weather will be in the low 60′s with lots of sunshine. A perfect fall weekend in my mind! There are two great events happening this weekend, so get outside and enjoy!

On Saturday there is a fall foliage bike ride. The ride begins at 10 AM and is meeting at the Collegeville Farmer’s Market on Main Street in Collegeville. The ride will take you on the Perkiomen Trail toward Green Lane and will return by about noon. Families are welcome – but kids should be on a 20″ tire or larger (or you can pull them in a cart or on a child tandem – available for rental at Bikesport).

A picture I took last fall while on a bike ride in Green Lane Park.

On Sunday, there is a 5k trail run in Green Lane Park. The run is being organized by two local high school seniors, Kyle Miller and Gunnar Bergey, as their senior project. The 5K is to benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Charity. The course is a 5k trail run that starts on the Perkiomen Trail.  You can expect to experience rocks, roots, and mud. Most of the course is run on single track, with a few sections on a gravel walking path. The race starts at 10 AM. You MUST pre-register on runreg.com. There will be NO DAY OF REGISTRATION as Montgomery County Parks do not allow day of registrations. Registration closes Friday, October 21, at 11 PM. Please help support a great cause and some awesome kids in completing their senior project!

If you know of any other events happening this weekend please share them!

Is that a sale I smell?

Bikesport in Trappe has just received their new rental fleet from Trek and now they’re selling the old ones! They have some  hybrids, mountain bikes, and road bikes at great prices! They have been used, so keep in mind they will have some nicks and scratches, but they come with free basic tune-ups for life! If you’ve been thinking about buying a bike for yourself or your growing teenager this is a great chance to get a quality bike for a great price.

The sale is first come, first served. The sale starts at 4:00 PM, Friday, October 14th (THAT’S TODAY!). The sale will go on through this weekend or as long as supplies last. The total amount of bikes available is about 15 and there are no kids bikes in the fleet. However, Bikesport still has several used bikes for sale so be sure to check those out too.

EXAMPLE OF A GOOD DEAL: 2009 Trek 3700, Originally $350, now $180!

4th Annual Cycle Mania @ Blue Marsh

This weekend there’s a mountain bike race with a great cause behind it. Wood-to-Wonderful’s 4th Annual Cycle Mania at Blue Marsh will be held on Sunday, October 16th, click here for the race flyer and more specific start times, you can also register online at BikeReg. The race will benefit the Wood-to-Wonderful Reading Pedal-ers junior mountain bike team.

The Reading Pedal-ers was formed in April 2011 in partnership with Northeast Middle School in Reading, PA. There are between 15 and 20 members of the club – most of whom have never ridden a mountain bike before joining the club.

The Pedal-ers range in age from 7 to 18. Two members of the club have been racing mountain bikes since 2009. Club members are also learning how to maintain their bikes. The club members plan to race in the MASS races in 2012.

Learning about this new development team makes me really excited. I love to see how the sport of cycling has taken off in the past couple of years. It’s similar to the excitement I experienced growing up playing soccer and watching it go from the obscure to the main stream. I believe that Lance Armstrong has done for cycling what the US Women’s National team did for soccer in the 90′s.

I look forward to seeing this new development team at the races this coming year.  The weather looks to be great this weekend and if you’ve been thinking about trying to race now’s the perfect chance!

For more information about Wood-to-Wonderful and the Reading Pedal-ers, please visit the organization’s website: www.woodtowonderful.org.

Grateful

Today’s weather was perfect for a bike ride! After doing some chores in the morning I was ready to go for my ride around lunch time. Lately I’ve bee riding to Green Lane park and back. Today I decided to switch it up and do a Chester County ride that I haven’t done for awhile. I love this time of year when the leaves are just starting to change and the humidity has finally dropped. It’s perfect for enjoying the great outdoors!

I certainly wasn’t the only one who was out enjoying the weather and in a good mood despite the Phillies loss last night. Today was one of the very rare occasions where I experienced ZERO aggressive drivers! In fact there are three drivers that stick out in my mind for going the extra mile and having some patience. The first incident occured when I was on Longview Road in Limerick and a BIG dog came out into the street barking at me. I was able to get her to stop by yelling loudly but she wouldn’t go back in the yard and I was hesitant to ride off for fear she may give chase. I was just reaching for my water bottle to spray her when a gentleman in a red Jeep pulled up and started honking the horn at her. He then made sure to block her view of me as I rode off! I’ve never had that happened before! The second driver showed some extreme patience with me. As I was climbing a hill on Pughtown Road, they came up to a stop from a road on my right. Unlike, most drivers they didn’t pull out and cut me off as I struggled up the hill. They waited for me to drag myself up the hill and then made their turn going the opposite way. The third and final act of kindness came when I pulled off at the base of Coventryville Road to call my husband to see what dinner plans were and how much longer I had to ride.  A very nice couple stopped to ask if I was alright. It’s good to know that if a cyclist was in trouble there would be people out there to help them!

Thanks for all the good vibes today! The weather looks great for tomorrow as well, try and get out and enjoy it!!

Cyclo what? Cyclocross!

There’s been a lot of talk lately in the cycling community about cyclocross or “cx” or “cross”. It seems to be taking over quickly as riders look for a fun release in the fall after riding hard all summer. The races are tons of fun for both racers and spectators. Some people race for fitness, for sport, or just fun. A good description of cyclocross is a bike race mixed with steeplechase. So what is cyclocross?

Cyclocross was developed in Europe in the early 1900′s as a way for road racers to remain fit during the fall and winter. Some say the racers would race each other to the next town over from them and that they were allowed to cut through farmer’s fields, over fences, or take any other shortcuts in order to make it to the next town first. While adding some variety to winter training, riding off road in more difficult conditions than smooth pavement improved racers’ on-the-road bike handling abilities. Cyclocross finally made the leap across the pond in the 1970s with the first racing being held in 1975. The sport has experienced a growth in popularity in the US since the mid 90s and now the Pacific Northwest hosts some of the largest events in the country.

Cyclocross race courses are typically short and feature some pavement, some dirt, some woods, some steep hills, and some obstacles that require riders to dismount, work their way through and then get back on and ride some more. A race lasts between 30 and 75 minutes. About 80% of the course is rideable, with the rest made of natural obstacles like creeks, mud, and fallen trees combined with man-made barriers.

A cyclocross bike by Trek - available at Bikesport in Trappe!

A different kind of bike is used to race cyclocross. The bikes are more road bikes than mountain bikes. The bikes feature knobbier tires and cantilever brakes that help keep mud and leaves from getting clogged in them. You can also use a mountain bike without bar ends. But keep in mind you will be lifting and running with the bike.

If you’re looking for a new twist and a great way to keep in shape during the off season, you might consider giving cyclocross a try. Numerous races are held in our area and all of them offer beginner level (Cat 4) racing. For most people cyclocross is all about having fun! It’s also great fun for spectators since it is a lap race you’ll see lots of action.

I’m going to be attempting a few races this fall and I’m looking forward to getting muddy and having a good time!

For more information on cyclocross and local races visit:

• Cyclocross Magazine
• BikeReg

A video for your viewing pleasure:

The Coal Cracker Classic 2011

The Coal Cracker Classic takes place this Sunday, September 11th in Tamaqua, PA. I’ve been looking forward to this race for many reasons. It sounds like a great course and it’s on a day of significant importance to me. I’m ready to take on these trails and hopefully finish strong. The group that is putting on the race have been working very hard to ready the trails. Even through all this crazy rain the trails are said to be in great shape! This event features both a XC race and endurance race. A description of the course can be found here. Check out this great promo video for the race. It really gets me excited for the beauty we’ll be riding in. Hope to see everyone in the coal region!!

Fishing!

I know this blog has mostly focused on cycling. However, it is an outdoor blog as well! One of my favorite outdoor activities is fishing. I love to be outside, enjoying mother nature, and to me there is no more peaceful way than a day spent on or in the water. I’m not partial to any one kind of fishing but my husband has gotten me into fly fishing. It’s a great challenge to me as I spend much of my time retrieving my fly from over hanging branches. But everyone once in a while I do actually catch a fish! I also enjoy reading fellow TownSquare blogger, Michael Agneta’s blog Troutrageous.

We recently returned from vacation in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. We spent most of our time visiting with family and doing some sight seeing. But for both of us the highlight of the vacation was our 1/2 day fishing trip. The area of Wisconsin we were in has a TON of lakes that are filled with bass, wallyeye, musky, and northern pike. We headed out with local fishing guru and guide Chris Terry to focus on catching some bass. I found Chris through his blog Southeast Wisconsin Fishing Report. His in-depth reports of local fishing made me feel very comfortable in hiring him as our guide.

It had been a while since I used a spinning rod. But Chris was patient and was a great teacher and showed us some great techniques that will allow us to catch fish almost anywhere. Here are some pictures from our morning we spent with Chris:

Golden Lake at about 6 AM

Large Mouth Bass – first big fish of the day!

My 5lb small mouth bass!

I found it a lot of fun to fish again. We haven’t fished for a while because we’ve been focused on so many other things. It’s lots of fun to see the great outdoors from another vantage point.