Blog Archives

Here you will find Blog entries over one year old...

4/26/07
All I have to say is the Monday night ride ROCKS!!! I am new to riding and it is a perfect ride for a newbie riding for fun or training for their first race. Hope to see you all out there.  Anon.

4/26/07
I agree with D. Bates. I would rather have vehicle drivers wave than throw a hand full of ashtray pennies at me. M. Mahy

4/19/07
I just got asked a question by a coworker about cyclists riding two abreast and refusing to form a single file line. I get asked this question hundreds of times a year. This has to be the number one complaint I’ve heard of all drivers. I’ve been on rides and yelled car back only to see a handful of clowns (who did heard me) do nothing about their position on the road. I’m really curious as to what riders think they are accomplishing by both ignoring Missouri law and frustrating drivers. If a goal of all cyclists is greater acceptance on roadways, than for heaven sake, when a car approaches yell “car back,” and form a single line. D Bates

4/12/07
I’m sorry if you had a bad experience on a club ride last year. I don’t know which night you rode on but each one has a totally different feel. The Monday night beginner ride is very relaxed, very successful, and no one gets dropped. The Thursday ride is fast with the other nights being in the middle. The St. John’s Seniors has reportedly been very successful and covers a large variety of riders. I’ve met Valerie Griffin (the director) plus some of the members and they certainly appear to have a good time. Lastly, Springbike has almost 300 members of all types and ages with a board consisting of 6 men and 4 women. It is a common problem that the more hard core riders are bad about socializing and riding only with “their” group. We’ve addressed this problem with the Monday ride and I’ve talked to a couple of members about leading a more intermediate group on Tuesday (in case a fast group breaks off). I would highly recommend looking into the St. John’s group but also come out try the Monday night ride. I guarantee you that you will be talked to and you will not get dropped. Tim Weston

4/7/07
I tried riding in the Springfield Bike Club last year but they really did not want any woman, especially 55 and new to the group, riding with them to slow them down. So I would like to try the St. John’s Seniors this year. Can you give me any info on this and when do you start riding? I am athletic but a newcomer to biking. I usually just ride the Galloway Trail alone. Anon
Dave replies (on behalf of Dave only): I believe this is a common problem in cycling clubs - I’m 58 and usually at the rear of the pack myself. I’ve been toying with an idea of setting up a “Find A Ride” page here in which members can find others in the club with similar abilities and find a time to ride together.

4/5/07
I ride out past you Wednesday nighters from time to time. I’m heading home from work and generally in a hurry to get to church. I give a wave whenever I see you all. I often wish I could join you. But living in Republic I can certainly attest to the fact that there are miles and miles of lightly traveled and freshly paved roads to the west. D Bates

4/5/07
West out of Republic is a great ride! There are loops with varying distances from 20 - 37 miles. I’d like to see the Wednesday night ride get a good group going. Mia

4/2/07
I know most of you like to ride East of Springfield. However, the best riding is West, (No traffic and great roads). There are a few dogs scattered around but I have not had any problems thus far. “Go West young man,” you won't regret it. Anon.

4/2/07
I think we need to let people know the Hickory School ride is not marked. Gary

3/27/07
How NOT to ride in city traffic: http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=7a4_1173478371

3/19/07
SAC River Trail clean up has been scheduled for April 7 at 8:00 am.

3/19/07
It seems that the Tuesday night ride is no place for an out-of-shape cyclist trying to get back in shape for the season... who ended up winning the race?

3/14/07
Anyone doing Ride the Rockies this year ? (ridetherockies.com). I just found out I got in the lottery. email me if anyone wants to communicate.

3/13/07
An additional note to Dave below, netcyclist.com is also a free site for tracking your progress. PT

3/11/07
All, Just wanted to say a big thank you for welcoming me to the chili ride. My wife’s family is from the area so she will be happy that I can hook up with this bunch once in a while as opposed to staying in St. Louis and hitting Springfield later in the day. Again, I really appreciate meeting a great group. I would like to go back and take that dog out at the bottom of the hill before the one that was probably the steepest. Anyway, thanks again. Hope to ride with you all soon. Gene Edmiston

3/7/07
Has there been a date set for cleaning up the SAC River Trail? It sure would be a great time to get this done before it gets hot and humid. David

12/15/06
We now have 20 routes on bikely.com. This hyperlink gives search results for “Springfield” in the “US”, in “Missouri.” We also have a “Maps” sub-page in our “Special Interest” page. Dave C.

12/15/06
I was reading comments on dog repellant. For best results, watching that dog rub his face on the ground, I recommend law enforcement formula type spray specifically “Fox Five Point Three.” It can be purchased on the net as well as most local law enforcement supply retailers like Kelly Tactical located at Fort & Sunshine. Guaranteed results! That dog will never attack you again. However, don’t get any on you or another rider because it will take several minutes and a lot of water to wear off. Again, this is the best stuff available but be careful and down wind when deploying. anon.

11/30/06
Here’s a good site for winter commuters and riders. The site offers some good tips, articles, and reviews on clothing and gear, and other Winter riding issues. Some of it is a bit overkill for us midwesterners, but still helpful. www.icebike.org/ DBates

11/10/06
I’m sure a lot of you are aware of my accident by now. I caution all cyclist to be very cautious on the Greenways Trail. There are a lot of inexperienced bikers on it. Believe me, I know!!! Also I want to remind everyone to be sure and wear their helmet no matter how far you are riding. Your head hitting the pavement can happen at any time no matter how short or long the ride. RIDE SAFE, BE SAFE AND ENJOY THE RIDE! Dave Julian

10/20/06
Here’s our Bikely Springfield-Strafford-Fair Grove route.

10/18/06
Blunt is clearly wooing the cycling vote now! http://velonews.com/pr/prn/articles/11037.0.html D.Bates

10/12/06
Here’s a favorite of mine for west-siders - Republic-Ash-Grove-Willard-Missouri. It’s about 50 miles, starting in Republic. 
D. Bates 

10/1/06
Here’s my latest bikely route Springfield-Rogersville-Ozark loop djc - it follows a Cartoons ride of several years ago - about 65 miles depending on where you start. (If we get enough “bikely” routes I’ll be happy to set up a dedicated page for it.) Dave.

9/28/06
... check out www.bikely.com. Free and easy way to enter ride routes and share the link with others. Here is the Springfield to Ash Grove ride we do often. Ash-Grove-Ride-for-dpi Would love to see other local routes loaded. Doug Nickell

9/22/06
I’ve reported “Sneaky Dog” twice now, but not much has changed. Though he has been tied up more often, but not always. For route selections, try using this site gmap-pedometer.com. It was started by a runner, but works well for cyclists too. Great way to scout a new route and check mileage. It uses Google’s maps feature, so it’s free. D. Bates

9/21/06
In response to D. Bates’ comments concerning the mean dog on FR 156...he has a name - “Sneaky Dog”. He uses tactics and he definitely hates cyclists. He will hide in tall weeds alongside the road, hide around corners and will run across the road behind you and attack from the rear. Sneaky Dog is a baaad doggie! He also knows exactly how far to stay out of reach when you show him the Halt pepper spray. He knows.

9/21/06
There is also a dog spray called HALT II, put out by the same company that makes HALT, that is 1.0% capsaicin compared to HALT that is 0.35% capsaicin. I only have to assume it is more effective than HALT. Roughly the same price. I have never seen it locally, but have ordered in on the internet at OMARK SAFETY in Des Moines Iowa. 2 cans shipped is about $17.00. -Brian Deck

9/18/06
Dave, where did your dog attacks occur?
Dave replies: Farm Road 219 as it turns south near the top of the climb from Turner’s Station.

9/18/06
Has anyone previewed the new Greenways trail at Lake Springfield? The west 250' or so has a VERY steep drop with two back-to-back 180-deg hairpin curves, and a very sharp drainage ditch in the middle of the second hairpin, ZERO sight distance either way. I’ve ridden a lot of bike paths and this is the most dangerous spot that I have ever seen. Anyone know the Greenways folks? Can it be changed? Dave Hiett.

9/15/06
A first on the Springfield-Strafford route return. Just past Strafford where turns right to head back, past the old Blunt homeplace and before the new Blunt homeplace, BMD (big mean dog) came under the fence and right at me. This was the closest I have come to being dog food. Friend sprayed it. This was a black chow something mix. It’s two buddies stopped at the fence. The fence is for cattle, not dogs, so keep an eye/spray handy for this one. Usually it is the slinkers that get us, but this one meant business and it was loud.
Dave replies: What did you spray it with and how effective was it?
Hi Dave, the spray is HALT, the stuff the mail carrier’s use. It is effective and harmless to the dog. It comes out in a nice straight stream for good aiming too. I have seen it at the local bike stores. It comes with a clip for handy attachment to camelback strap, etc.

9/14/06
Word has it that Republic is cracking down on dogs off the leash. There’s a black mutt off FR 156 just east of the new James River connection to 44 that hates cyclists. If you’ve run into him (you’d know if you did) report it to the police. D. Bates

9/13/06
A great way to learn new routes is to participate in the group rides through out the week and on the weekends.

9/11/06 
Beautiful route for Kevin’s ride Saturday. should make the route map available. Would be a great ride in the fall as the leaves turn.

9/5/06 
 I think it is a great idea. I personally would use it all the time. I would ride more if I knew the terrain layout, and specifics of the route. Otherwise, I tend to ride around my home, where I know the roads or on trails.

8/28/06 
I think it is a great idea! We ride B, D, PP, KK, U, and numerous other farm roads and would love to read input from other riders. Hopefully, with some encouragement riders would be willing to submit a report on the routes they have ridden that could be posted for other riders to read. Kathleen Burnette

1/11/07 - 1/22/07
Anyone thinking of doing Ride the Rockies this year ? I think there is a group of 10 from here that is doing Ride the Rockies (if their number comes up lottery-wise, I’m assuming). (Anon.)

1/9/07
The bikely total is now 29 routes!

2/24/07
Our website has a link to the Bike Journal website that I only discovered a few weeks ago.  I started to keep track of mileage on this site. It’s free, by the way.  Here it is again:   http://www.bikejournal.com/   I noticed that there appear to be very few active Springbikers using this site.  The representation as a club compared to other clubs seems miniscule. I am putting this out on our Yahoo network because many may not be aware of it; I only discovered it by accident while wandering around on our site.  (Thanks for putting it there, by the way.)  I just can’t hardly stand to not put something down every day.  Of course in order to do that I have to get off my rear and go for a ride. Great motivational tool, and great way to keep track of progress too. I sure like it so far. Dave Hiett

2/20/07
A few people are meeting in Republic tomorrow [Ed: Feb. 22] around 3:30 (early, I know) at the High School to take advantage of the great weather and ride the Red Route. Anyone is welcome! Mia

2/18/07
Have they figured out the day when we will go help clean the trail up by Walnut Grove? Gary