COWs Fall Rally–Green Bay, WI

Friday, September 27, 2013

Because we were not able to leave home until 12:30pm, we didn’t arrive in Green Bay until 5pm—too late to bike the Friday Ice Cream Ride. Many team members did bike and they reported that they had a great ride. Dennis and I enjoyed sitting on the deck of the Fajita Republic restaurant watching the teams roll in. This also gave us time to pick up our registration packet from hosts Barb and Steve Derenne and gather information about our upcoming weekend in Green Bay.

We chose Mackinaws for supper which was in walking distance from our hotel. We shared our plans with others and by evening, we had 10 teams joining us. Mackinaws did a super job taking care of our last-minute, large group. One delightful gentleman offered to take a photo of our group. We later found out he was the owner of Mackinaws. Not only were they friendly here but the food was awesome!

Saturday, September 28, 2013
COWs Fall Rally Day #2: 40.66 miles
TANDEM Pedal Time: 3 hours 14 minutes, average speed 12.5

28 tandem teams gathered in the parking lot of the Country Inn & Suites to chat before the 9:00am mass start onto the roads east of Green Bay. The sky was blue and the temperature rose into the 80’s by ride’s end. The planned route was fabulous and included not only road riding but also put us on a bike path along the shores of Green Bay with its fabulous views.

We continued pedaling along this beautiful route until we came to the town of Dykesville. In this town was a wonderful resting spot where we stopped for a mid-morning treat. As we sat in the outdoor seating section of Sweet Seasons, we could watch and wave to all the tandem teams passing by. Many stopped to join us and soon the complete outside deck of the restaurant was full of red and white jerseys.

Well-fed and rested, we pedaled back towards Green Bay. We encountered one very steep hill near route’s end. The treat we had at Sweet Seasons gave us the energy we needed to keep the pedals moving. We reached the top, gathered our breath and continued on towards our end point. After washing up and packing our bike away for the day, we, along with 4 other teams decided to return to Mackinaws for an early supper. Because it was so tasty on Friday night, I ordered the same meal of pan fried walleye—YUM!

Our rally hosts were planning an evening social and we finished at Mackinaws in time to attend. After visiting with many COWs members, we settled in to play a serious game of Spinner Dominoes—a great way to end this busy day.

Sunday, September 29, 2013
COWs Fall Rally Day #3: 31.10 miles
TANDEM Pedal Time: 2 hours 18 minutes, average speed 12.9

On the last day of the COWs Fall rally we usually bike a few miles to breakfast returning to the hotel in time for the required check out. This year we were on route by 8am and chose to bike the ice cream route which we missed on Friday. We had breakfast at our hotel and then joined a few teams that wanted to repeat this route with us.

What made this route so special, other than the company joining us, was the chance to bike the Fox River Trail, named because of its beautiful views of the Fox River. In the past this has been a well-traveled route: First by Native Americans, then French explorers and traders and later the Milwaukee and Northern Railway. The Fox River State Recreational Trail stretches 20 miles from downtown Green Bay to the Brown/Calumet County line.

Back at the hotel, we packed everything up and said good-bye to many we wouldn’t see again until spring. We really enjoyed this biking adventure in and around Green Bay, a part of the USA we haven’t yet biked. We are grateful to have such dedicated club members volunteer to organize events that allow the club to come together.

2013 Midwest Tandem Rally-Ohio

Thursday, August 29 through Sunday, September 2, 2013

Thursday, August 29, 2013

We arrived in Fairborn, Ohio, early Thursday morning and were allowed to check into our hotel room at the Wingate by Wyndham for some much needed rest after driving 12 hours through the night. We then connected up with other MTR attendees that arrived early and went for supper at the Texas Roadhouse. A great start to this exciting weekend.

Friday, August 30, 2013

Morning Pre-Rally Ride: 45.90 miles
TANDEM Pedal Time: 3 hours 39 minutes, average speed 12.4

Arriving early had its benefits. We were able to gather with Kathi and John from Wisconsin and Sally and Gary from Missouri to bike one leg of the Miami Valley Bikeway system. We parked at the Beavercreek Station and headed east towards the Xenia Station. The weather was great and we were all excited to start pedaling.

Lunch was enjoyed at Roosters, an unusual diner along the bike trail. We would definitely return to this area to bike more of these great trails around Greene County Ohio.

Back at the host hotel, things were beginning to gear up for the opening of the 2013 Midwest Tandem Rally—Let the Rally begin! Organizers were rushing to complete their final tasks before registration was declared officially open. Dennis and I were visiting the vendor booths when we were asked to model for the local newspaper doing an article on this tandem event. We rode a tandem around the bike storage area wearing the official 2013 MTR jersey. We left our names with the reporter but never did find the published piece but it was fun to have had a glimpse of fame for just a moment.

MTR Day #1: 12.06 miles
TANDEM Pedal Time: 1 hour 3 minutes, average speed 11.4

At 2:00 p.m. we met up with Michelle and Alan Andersen to bike the official ice cream route. We stopped at Graeter’s for a quick and delicious ice cream treat and then continued pedaling through the town of Fairborn back to our hotel.

MTR is all about gathering with friends you haven’t seen in a while. We love to get everyone together to take advantage of every moment. The rules: Pick a time, invite teams to attend, get drinks and pass the hat for pizza. The party began at Veerkamp’s hotel at 6:00 p.m. We had a wonderful desk attendant at our hotel that offered use of the outdoor patio for our event and suggested we try the local pizza company—great pizza at an awesome price. Seven teams arrived and we all enjoyed kicking off MTR with this social event.

Saturday, August 31, 2013

MTR Day #2: 68.97 miles
TANDEM Pedal Time: 4 hours 52 minutes, average speed 14.1

The mass start began promptly at 9:00 a.m. and Dennis and I lead the group of 346 teams towards the countryside. With that many teams following you want to make sure you know where you are going and getting out of the parking lot can be a challenge sometimes.

Lunch was served at the Young’s Jersey Dairy under a large shelter. The use of our name badges again provided a very organized way to feed this crowd efficiently. We were blessed with wonderful riding conditions in the morning hours but by noon the temperature became rather uncomfortable. Our water was getting low and the sun was emitting some fierce rays. We arrived back at our hotel by 3:00 p.m. and gave in to exhaustion. Water was handed to us as we slouched to the ground. After regaining our strength, we gathered again with a few teams to return to Texas Roadhouse with plans of using our dinner discount tickets this time. Following supper, we stopped to visit with the Wisconsin COWs in their hospitality room then onto Kathi and John’s travel seminar—they always do such a wonderful job sharing their travels across the USA. We wrapped up the evening with a visit to One Eye Jacks where we joined six teams already involved in the celebration of another fine MTR day.

Sunday, September 1, 2013

MTR Day #3: 49.71 miles
TANDEM Pedal Time: 4 hours 4 minutes, average speed 12.2

With Saturday’s struggles behind us, we looked forward to another sunny day of riding. We did, however, break from tradition and gathered a group to bike the Miami Valley Bikeways instead of biking the planned route for the day. High temps were expected and we opted for the shade provided on Ohio’s wonderful trail system. We biked from the Xenia Station to the town of Dayton and enjoyed the beautiful RiverScape MetroPark.

Back at Xenia, lunch was waiting for us in an air conditioned building at the Fairgrounds. For a few more biking miles after lunch, we picked up the Ohio-to-Erie Trail out of Xenia.

This hard-working group of Ohio natives was partly responsible for making MTR 2013 a huge success. We missed them on route this year as their duties kept them from joining us. Thanks to all the Ohio MTR volunteers for making this a very enjoyable rally—not bad for this newly organized club!

Banquet day always gets us back to our accommodations early to fancy up for the main event—ha, ha. Actually, I offered my help to photographer, Miles, who was challenged with putting together the evening slide show. He repaid me with his thanks and allowed me to pick out a photo of my choice at no cost. The banquet meal was super and the variety was immense. Entertainment included a presentation by Tom Hinkle of the Bicycle Museum of America. He brought with him an antique bike display and educated us on many facts about bicycling over the generations—did you know that Schwinn never built a bike? Huffy was commissioned to build for Schwinn—very interesting.

This ended MTR 2013 for us. We would be off to West Virginia in the morning on our 13 eastern states adventure. We said our good-byes to all except Kathi and John who would be joining us on this journey east.

MTR 2013 Ride Statistics

33 states and 3 countries were represented (USA—11 from MN and 17 from WI, Canada, Brazil) totaling approximately 346 teams

65 teams enjoyed their first MTR; this was our 8^th MTR

The state with the most teams in attendance was awarded to Ohio with 73 registered riders; Michigan came in second with 49 teams in attendance

Our Total MTR 2013 Biking Miles: 176.64

Upcoming MTR Locations: MTR 2014—Fort Wayne, IN; MTR 2015—Rockford, IL

A Road of Our Own

Chatfield Loop: 44.92 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 3 hours 19 minutes, average speed 13.5

This is really what fall is all about—no destination, no time requirements, beautiful scenery and no worries. We ended up 20 miles from home in Chatfield, MN on this spectacular biking day. After a short stop at the local Dairy Queen, we got back on the bike to pedal a few miles out of Chatfield on Hwy 52 before turning onto County Road 7 which would loop us back to Eyota, Dover, St. Charles and then home.

A surprise was awaiting us when we reached CR 7. Our turn towards Eyota was blocked by nasty orange and white stripped barricades. What to do now? Upon further inspection by my captain, it was concluded that we could lift the bike over the construction zone to the other side.

One good thing about the road block signs is that once you are on the other side, you have a reprieve from traffic coming up behind you. It’s like having a road of our own.

There are always extraordinary things for us to see when we are out on the bike but the fall activities remind us that our 2012 biking days are numbered. But for now, we will continue to enjoy the sound of our freewheel spinning down the road.

September 2012 — Total Biking Miles 454.46
Accumulative 2012 Miles — 2541.22
Total Miles on the Rans — 18,238.06

Seeking Solitude on the Root

RRT–Lanesboro/Fountain/Preston: 37.88 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 2 hours 54 minutes, average speed 13.0

We thought we would get in some quiet biking towards Fountain on the Root River Trail but the families were out in full force all trying to get one more outdoor adventure in before the colder months set in. Normally this family traffic would be on the trail towards Whalan and Rushford but that segment of the trail was under construction this weekend so we had lots of company on our end of the trail.

We hadn’t been up to Fountain in a while so decided on that route today and to add more miles we then looped up to Preston before returning back to Lanesboro. Out of Preston, we decided to see if there was any progress on the trail connection towards Forestville State Park. We noticed a bit of work done but there is still approximately a 7-mile stretch that needs to be completed to allow cyclists access to the State Park via bike trail.

Even crowded with people, the Root is still a bicycle haven and the fall colors add visual enjoyment for us on this last weekend of September.

Biking with Kennedy

Burley Biking South St. Paul: 10.26 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 1 hour 14 minutes, average speed 10.26

We had plans to do some major biking with Kennedy today but had to scale them down as Kennedy was a bit under the weather—those darn teeth. The instant the Burley wheels began to turn, our granddaughter was fast asleep. We decided to trek towards the South St. Paul Regional Trail along the Mississippi River heading north towards Kaposia Park. We climbed out of Kaposia for about 2 miles pulling the additional weight of the Burley which contributed to our low mph for this adventure.

The fall colors were in bloom on this beautiful Friday afternoon. Biking the trails of this city is always so enjoyable. Once Kennedy awoke from her nap, we retraced our path back to see the ant at the Wildflower Levee Park. Dairy Queen was on our way home so we all stopped for Kennedy’s favorite treat: “up cream”.

Priorities

Dover Loop: 20.57 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 1 hour 31 minutes, average speed 13.4

As the work day dragged on, it was clear a bike ride to Dover’s Roadtrip Roadhouse Bar & Grill for supper would be a priority. We watched our time closely to make sure we wouldn’t be caught biking back home in the dark. Biking this time of the day can be very rewarding—quiet roads and awesome sunsets!

Inspired Ride

Boyum Loop: 15.42 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 1 hour 16 minutes, average speed 12.0

We decided to bike on this windy Sunday after a call from our Tandem Club presidents, Joan and John Laabs. They just reached 4000 miles on their new Volae tandem and called to let us know they were still putting on bike miles. We also had John and Kathi Johnson in mind when we decided to hit the road for some neighborhood biking. They have been biking through the Ozarks this week and taking a beating not only from the hills but also from the wind. These couples inspire Dennis and I to get out and bike. The temperature is still great for biking and we hope it continues through October.

A Harvest Ride

Utica/Dover Loop: 29.84 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 2 hours 19 minutes, average speed 12.8

It’s now the end of September and we know the 2012 biking season is coming to an end but what a fabulous year it has been. As we pedaled towards Dover, we noticed the colors changing around us. Not only have the trees begun to change but the landscape has also turned a harvest gold color. We passed farmers happy to be in their fields harvesting their crop. Everything is beginning to move at a slower pace.

7th Annual Minneapolis Bike Tour

36-Mile Road Route: 37.68 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 2 hours 45 minutes, average speed 13.6

We came to this ride less prepared than usual, leaving home without a camera battery in the camera, water in the water bottles or sunglasses on the bike and even though we were not as organized as usual, we managed to have a fabulous ride. We began to see bikes on vehicles as we neared Kenwood Parkway in Minneapolis and our excitement began to grow. We needed to be on route by 7:30 a.m. so arrived ready to ride by 6:30. The Minneapolis park commissioners were at the start to welcome us and cheer us on our way.


Note: All photos of this biking event were taken using a Droid Motorola cell phone.

We registered for this ride through Living Social, an online business that offers daily deals and discounts, which was a savings of 50% off the normal ride fee. So all we had to do now was sit back and enjoy the ride along with 4000 other riders. The weather was the best ever—mid 60’s, sunshine, slight wind and once away from the mass start, few hills and lots of traffic-free surface to claim.

The route took us around 5 pristine lakes and then along the Mighty Mississippi, travelling past the University of Minnesota before returning back to our start at Parade Field. This 36-mile loop had 4 full rest stops and allowed us to bike the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway unhindered by motorized traffic. Rest stop #4 allowed me to shake hands in gratitude with a representative of Calhoun Cycles where 7 years ago we rolled our Rans Screamer our their door not realizing at the time the relationship we would have with this bike.

This is definitely a route we would like to share with our tandem friends in the future. Who would think this beauty could exist within this urban setting? The Minneapolis Park and Rec Board has done a wonderful job protecting the many miles of inner city property for all to experience and enjoy (http://www.minneapolisparks.org).

A Post Ride Party was planned following our cheerful finish and included music, food vendors and various exhibition booths—a wonderful way to end this fun riding day.

Our Second Saint Paul Classic Bike Tour

41-Mile Big River-Grand Round Tour: 42.39 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 3 hours 19 minutes, average speed 12.7

The St. Paul Classic followed the Jesse James Tour and we had just returned from a week of biking Middleton and the Dells of Wisconsin with little rest between. We chose to bike this event on the tandem this year as opposed to our singles of last year. The new River Loop was nice, taking us just blocks from Amy & Luke’s home in South St. Paul.

The amount of riders on this 18th annual Classic Tour made for a pretty stressful ride on the tandem. The volunteer staff was awesome and the music is always an added treat but 6000 bikes all on one route can get very congested.

There were a few obstacles along our route other than the volume of riders—a train stalled on the track caused many to take an unscheduled rest but it was fun to walk up and down the line visiting with some of the riders. We also encountered a large tree down across a trail we needed to use to route us across town—how low can you go?

My favorite rest stop along the route was at Como Park where the Roe Family Singers were again entertaining us while we munched on various goodies provided by the ride vendors. A close second is the Indian Mounds Park stop which also had live music and beautiful views of the Saint Paul city scape.

With riders everywhere, it’s amazing we didn’t witness any crashes. All seemed to be very cautious.  The officials posted at numerous intersections along with over 500 route volunteers helped to insure our safety.

It was on this beautiful day of biking that we rolled over 18,000 miles on the tandem since its purchase in 2005 and we took a moment to reflect on the many miles of enjoyment we have had on these two wheels.

The Classic delivers again this year providing miles of traffic-free cycling showcasing the beautiful parks and parkways of Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Jesse James Bike Tour–Northfield, MN

60-Mile Desperado Route: 65.48 miles
Tandem Pedal Time: 5 hours 6 minutes, average speed 12.7

The Jesse James Bike Tour had been on our To-Do list since early in our biking career and this year we finally had the day free so we could attend.

We preregistered for the ride in August and paid the $60 ride fee to bike the 60-mile Desperado route. Complimentary Subway sandwiches were served at ride’s end. The route was pretty flat but the winds during the first half of the ride were challenge enough for us.

We joined 1200 riders on this picture perfect riding day. The windmills along our route were a constant reminder that wind was evident. A cheering section came in the form of the girls in the photo above. We thanked them for their support as we continued to grind past them and on up one challenging hill.

The tour had many rest stops along the way and we took advantage of each one to get relief from the wind.

We travelled through many little villages along the way enjoying the route more once we turned east and the wind was at our back.

We finished back in Northfield and parked the bike along side the school and then sat to enjoy the subway sandwiches being served by many Jesse James Tour volunteers. As we ate, we heard a crash behind us—the wind tipped our bike over and smashed my favorite bike helmet. This is now the third helmet I have lost because of this type of accident and I believe I have now learned my lesson—do not, at any time, leave a helmet hanging on the stoker’s hand rest.