Those of you who have hung up your bikes for the season, read no further.  For those of us still cranking away both on the trails and on the road, there is an aweful disappointment that many of us face.  We're simply not as fast as in the summer.  The website Research Trailer Park has an interesting article regarding why we can work as hard but not go as fast in the cold.

Read more on how to winter cycle in the [Articles] Section under [Winter Cycling].

If you ride in Winter please try to lessen the impact on the trail tread.  Ride ONLY when the trail is frozen.  Once the ice melts away in later afternoon you will be riding on MUD.  That is not a good thing.  Many of us cross train on xc skis or spin inside.  If you ride the bike trail all winter then please try to lessen your impact on it.  I hang up the bike & get out the roller skis &  xc skis, but have fun on the frozen tundra. 

See you in the spring,

No-air Bud

Annual elections were held on Nov 19th.  And nothing has changed.  For 2010, the Outback Trail Officers are as follows.

President	Bud Hettrick
VP	Joe Exl
2nd VP	Jamie Owens
Treasurer	Will T Smith
Secretary	Pete Borcz

 

Hopefully we'll all do a good job for trail improvement in 2010.

A at the Glen yesterday showed one thing.  Fall is good riding and the changes we've made in past years have definitely made the trail more resilient to water.  There are some slip/slimy turns and you are probably not going to ride as fast, but fall is still good riding.

In any case, it's getting colder and many people are hesitant to ride in colder conditions.  Read further to learn more about cycling through the deep fall and through the winter.  And do check out the articles section for more information.

There was a front rim & tire found on or about June 2nd in the gravel parking lot @ the Glen.  If it is your tire email me describing the rim/tire   @  bud.hettrick@outbacktrail.org  and I will supply YOU w. the email of the guy who has possession of it.  We all space stuff off & we'd like to get this back to the owner.

Let me know,

No-air Bud

A work crew of seven of us got the new signs & split rail fencing on the Iron Horse completed.  Thanks to Jamie,Lyle, Pete, Eric, Rick,Daniel & myself.   It is our hope that with some physical barriers and more improved signs people will be more aware that there is mixed user traffic on the Iron Horse.    The new signs are @ the 4 main intersections where the Outback / Ironhorse share the paved trails.

Thanks again to the crew for gettin this done in 1/2 a day & we still had time to spend as we wanted.  Special thanks to Lyle who worked a midnite shift, took a short nap and worked his butt off for 5 more hours on the trail. 

The signs were paid for by NOAA & Indiana DNR's Lake Michigan Coastal Program Grants.  The split rails were from a Pfizer Grant courtesy of Ryan.  We have one more section to complete & that should happen in two weeks.

Enjoy the trails,

No-air Bud

We all use bicycles as a tool for recreation.  But every once in a while we need to be reminded of the that the bicycle is the transportation vehicle for every man as it requires no fuel except what we put in our mouths.  In some nations, access to a bicycle (even those things they sell at Wal-Mart) can be a life changing experience facilitates economic mobility for those who can afford them.  Check out this article at http://cnn.com about Pedals For Progress.

One of the most important aspects of cycling is your pedalling technique.  An efficient technique can add a significant amount of power to your pedaling.  I found this excellent article discussing the different pedaling techniques.  It's a great thing to practice on a stationary bike in preparation for spring.