HBC Blog

Once again a group from the Huntington Bicycle Club has topped Bear Mountain.

Karen tells the story “This picture was taken atop Bear Mountain on Sunday, July 18
Temp was 93 at that point!
Notice the cool composure of all the riders, who just a few minutes before were cranking up a four mile stretch of mountain! I should add (because I am a true masochist) that we made a 1200 ft climb to the top…”

Steve, Angel, Rich, Nick, Karen, Scott, John, Mike and Javier

Looking good, thanks to Mike for taking along his iPhone and sending in a photo.

Message from Club President Tony Barone to all Gold Coast volunteers:

My expectations this year were exceeded only by the energy every one of you put forth in making this a very successful Gold Coast event.  On behalf of myself, the officers and chairpersons of the HBC we offer our endless thanks.   ~Tony

A few of the volunteers – the Roslyn rest Stop Crew!

(left to right) Elaine, Jack, Debra, Tom ,Karen, Sue, Valerie and Eva (is there something up in the sky?

Doug Haluza had a good excuse for skipping the Gold Coast this year. Instead of riding the north shore of LI he was upstate for the Saratoga 12/24, the UMCA Ultra Cup event. He entered the 12-hour Nighthawk race, which started at 7pm, so he got one lap in the light to check out the course before hammering through the moonless night. It’s run under RAAM rules, so it’s a non-drafting event, which means he rode alone most of the time. Each lap was 32 miles. After three laps, he was on track to do >200 mi, but cramped up on a climb at the beginning of the 4th lap, and had to back off.

Result? He  completed 198 mi by the cutoff time, which was good enough to re-set the course record. The only close call was a skunk that scurried out of the weeds and into his headlights–he just missed it, but the car behind him didn’t.

Great job Doug, maybe 200+ next year?

We had a beautiful day and a great turn-out for the Gold Coast. At the final rest stop before the finish, most riders were eager to tell us what a great ride they were having, and how much they were enjoying their day. (some first timers mentioned ‘enjoying’ the hills) The 100 mile riders were getting fueled up for Avery.

Hope you had a fun time!

Tuesday night was too hot for the HBC to meet in the usual (un-airconditioned) Greenlawn location. Instead, those who showed up discussed some last minute details of the upcoming Gold Coast Tour in the slightly cooler parking lot outside the church.

From Karen: “Volunteers are (desperately!) needed to staff the Roslyn rest stop for the Gold Coast on Sunday.
Please call Karen at 631-757-9032″

Don’t forget to remind your friends to join the Gold Coast fun at whatever distance they choose to ride — Sunday July 11.

I’ll be at the Cold Springs Train Station rest stop for the afternoon shift. See you there!

Arch

For those of you interested in joining the Frederick, Maryland Cycling Trip Oct. 9, 10 & 11 – Tony has provided the following update:

Once again (and for the last time) I’m sending out the following dates for the Frederick Cycling Trip. It seems the powers that be would opt for the following:  Oct. 9, 10 and 11, 2010.   That would be Sat, Sun and Mon. (Monday being Columbus day – so that those of you who teach have the day off).  I notified the Hampton Inn in Frederick of the change and they have accepted the new dates. For the new initiates you have only to ask Rich Lubasch, Lou Bruno, Alex Dick, Tracy and Mike Riedinger, Carl Fiore, Bruce Wessinger and a handful of others who have made this trip and they will be glad to tell you about it.  In the meantime, if you are already convinced that you would like to spend two days riding in the Maryland mountains then call and make your  reservation at the Hampton Inn – 301 696 1565 -  for Sat and Sun (we will ride Monday but be packed and ready to leave before the ride. In the past we have managed to keep a room for those of you who will need to shower and freshen up for the trip home.) Tell them you are from the HBC and they will hook you up with a double occupancy room to accommodate significant others, spouses and riding buddies.

Finally, if you have additional questions, contact Tony.