Spring Ride Report

The Spring Ride was fantastic. Despite the less than favourable weather, the weekend was incredible. Great guys, beer, biking, beer, dog-fest, hanging out and drinking beer. What’s not to like?! The weather was soggy, but that made the biking interesting and since we had a lodge, there was warmth and dryness to keep the good times rolling. Friday saw 3 opportunities to ride the falcon trails, Saturday was Ingolf awesomeness with 22 riders enjoying the ride, and Sunday was it’s usual relaxing day. There were movies, one freak (non-bike related) accident, an intense bonfire, tequila, a lot of "that's what she/he said's" and plenty of laughs. I had a great time with a great bunch of dudes. Thanks to the FGBC for making the best bike weekend happen. JS

Alley Cat - Thursday

Do not miss Lorenzo's altar call to the ABES Alley Cat.

You know where and when. JS

Johnny, Jeff, James, Lorne and I rode this trail Thursday May 20th. Activity Route: -- Elev. Avg: 347 m Location: Morden, Canada, Elev. Gain: +0 m Date: 05/20/10 Up/Downhill: [+274/-274] Time: 08:44 PM Difficulty: 5.0 / 5.0   Weather: N/A   -5 C temp; 26% humidity   -5 C heat index; winds SSW 14 kph Performance Distance: 14.39 km Time: 1:45:19 Speed: 8.0 kph Pace: 7' 30 /km Calories: 592 Map   Elevation (m)   Speed (kph)   Splits Km Pace (min/km) Speed (kph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 5' 06 -2' 24 11.7 +3.7 -9 m 2 10' 03 +2' 33 6.0 -2.0 +15 m 3 6' 40 -0' 50 9.0 +1.0 -5 m 4 8' 03 +0' 33 7.4 -0.6 0 m 5 10' 48 +3' 18 5.5 -2.5 -6 m 6 5' 44 -1' 46 10.4 +2.4 +14 m 7 9' 43 +2' 13 6.2 -1.8 +10 m 8 3' 17 -4' 13 18.3 +10.3 +9 m 9 3' 58 -3' 32 15.1 +7.1 +14 m 10 7' 43 +0' 13 7.8 -0.2 -11 m 11 12' 30 +5' 00 4.8 -3.2 +1 m 12 3' 11 -4' 19 18.8 +10.8 -9 m 13 3' 27 -4' 03 17.4 +9.4 -21 m 14 11' 45 +4' 15 5.1 -2.9 -2 m end 10' 31 +3' 01 5.7 -2.3 -7 m Versus average of 8.0 kph

Posted from bimactive.com

Watch your back Dan - Abe is coming to get ya

From the desk of Bruce...

Some of us are pretty keen on getting the miles on our bikes. I have someone who tops the heep. Abe Sawatzky of Altona put on just over 6000 kms last year! He came in for a tube change in winter and told me that he got 5000 kms on his last set of tires. $ 10.00 mountain bike tires.

Last week he came in for a tube change and was a little miffed that the tube only lasted until May. "Only 6 months", he said. Of course, I didn't want to lay blame on our products so I asked him how many kms it took him. With the same tone of discontent he said, "Only 2000."

Here is a photo of Abe who now has 2200! for the year! So far!!

Abe is the guy on the left. Whoa!! his name is ABE!!

Bruce.

Jesus Pwn3d U - Thursday Night Alley Cat

Is the Lord going to kick your A this Thursday night or are you going to show him how its done? We'll be digging into the Word Abes style for this week's race. Bring your Gideon Testaments for bonus points. See you at JS at 9 bells.

Winnipeg bike ride

Today the wind seemed to beckon us to do an impromptu ride to Winnipeg.  Ben, Jeff and Shaun were the first to leave town. Curt and I decided to give chase and rode a hard steady "sprint" and, (with a lot of help from a sweet tail wind), managed to catch up with them in St. Jean where Jeff's sister offered a wonderful spread of sandwiches, tomato soup and peach juice.  After resting our legs and re-hydrating, we set off again to Morris. In Morris, our group split ways and Jeff and Shaun mentally prepared themselves for the long hard ride back home against wind.  Ben, Curt and I continued to enjoy the winds steady push to Winnipeg.  There were times that it seemed that the wind was pushing us faster than we could pedal!  Sweet!  We took a little break to replace Ben's inner tube after unsuccessfully navigating some of the 75s many potholes and drop offs.  We reached Winnipeg after 3 h 6 min of riding time, average speed 33 km/h, top speed 60 km/h.
Just to make the day more sweet, we bumped into Albert at the McDonalds on Pembina who had also decided to make the bike trek to Winnipeg.  Good times!

CK

Good stuff

SKI BOYS from Benny Zenga on Vimeo.

JS

Thursday Night Ride Double-Header Report

Thursday Night Ride #2 Report:


Last Thursday's ride followed a panic-riddled script, with individual ABERs showing up at HQ, seeing that no one else was there, assuming the worst (that you are the only nerd riding tonight), promptly leaving and riding alone. It was only by the grace of the  GREAT ABE that Charles, Tom and myself were united in trio, thus forming the Societal requirements.

Highlights of our ride included: finding each other, various degrees of sprinting down the runway road. There was also the unexpected cellular phone call to Charles, after which he requested a detour to pick up some keys. Tom, ever the philosopher, appropriately provided this nugget for cerebral consumption: "Can there really be a "detour" when one is riding aimlessly in the first place?" WOW. That blew my grade 7 mind. After that we traveled to the Willow Bay velodrome for 2 laps. We also humoured Charles by following him to the Hill, where, by the grace of the GREAT ABE, we met Ben, Dwig-het, and Ryan. Ben had followed the similar script and formed this splinter cell group. There were also reports of a Shaun sighting, who apparently does not have the favour of the GREAT ABE. He rode alone. All of this Chaos was all a little much, so Tom and I headed toward the watering station. Charles, continued to ride. Ben, Dwight, Ryan and Shaun have not been seen since. Good times. MD


Thursday Night Ride #1 Report:

Jeff, David, James, Lorne and I enjoyed an early evening spin at the Lake Minnewasta and Trans Canada trails. Lorne had a flat tire in the parking lot, Jeff lost half a pedal, David had an endo, James was pooped, the ticks were being tickey, and the sweetest trails delivered their sugary, life affirming, flowing goodness. This is all to say that the ride was awesome. DSwat brought post ride hydration, A&W provided supper and the clubhouse brought it all together. Our estimated time of return was optimistic (horribly wrong) and we missed the Thursday Night Ride #2 (report pending). DSwat has pictures, video, and GPS details of ride 1 that he may or may not post.

Conversation at Grumpy’s included: Steve’s broken hand (softball injury? Fighting injury!), Lorne’s employment options, auction/garage sales, dentist horror stories including David’s purplesaurus burrito projectile puke, weekend camping plans and grudge, housecoats, bald v bald-ING, NHL playoffs, Stand By Me, and Bruno. Paul made a brief cameo (he’s as elusive as he is lanky). Race coordinator Lorne “Dunkey” Hildebrand urged us to do our devotions and focus on the New Testament in preparation for next weeks Alley Cat. Good times. JS

ABES Thursday Night Ride Double-Header

Ride 1 - Meet at 6:00 and we’ll drive to Lake Minnewasta (Morden) to bike the trails. We should be finished riding in time to return to ABES headquarters by 9:00. Let me know who's interested or if you can provide transportation.

Ride 2 – Ride from ABES headquarters to the clubhouse as directly or indirectly as the group decides.

Next Week: Lorne’s Awesome Alley Cat

Brandon Race Report

From the desk of Bruuce...

Here is a little snippet of Sunday in Brandon.

This time we made it in time to get Rory a practice lap on his 3 km course. As I was riding, I thought that his course would be perfect for me. They have a beautiful section of single track for these kids. It makes them work hard. It was also a good warm up for me. Rory came in 3rd!

For the 7 kms lap in the Sport category (2 laps), I would say that the trails are a lot like the hills in the Pembina Valley. Some might argue that, but there much more similar than the Grand Beach sand and rocks.

Things I remember about the ride...thirsty. It was hot. I sure need to practice my single track riding. There must be a word for my riding style, because I was all over the trail and in a single track there isn't that much room. I felt like a pinball with all the trees.

I did learn a thing about shifting too. The last half lap I thought I should use the small ring in front, and then I could suddenly climb! I had done a lot of walking before that. I haven't had any mechanical failures yet.

Notes of interest. I also talked to Lincoln Wiebe. He's another rocket from Tinker Creek riding Comp. He mentioned that he read the article about taking a pee while riding your bike. I missed that one. Anyway, he's got a great story to tell... Lincoln?!

Last note. I got 13th!!

Trail Ride Report

Gavin, Charles and I met Craig and Jon Loewen to ride the deluxe trails in and around the Trans Canada trails off the 201. We met up with trail builders Gord Hamm and Alf Loewen and they tolerated our pace until they grew tired of our frequent stops. The trails are incredible, unrelenting and they thoroughly kicked my A. Gavin was the ABES all-star with a very strong ride - he does much better when his pedal stays in. Thanks to Craig and Jon for being gracious hosts and showing us some sweet new trails. I hear there are many more newer trails that I have never seen. Sweet. JS

Sunday Trail Ride

Craig tells me that the trails are rideable. If you want to bike the trans Canada or Tinker trails today we're leaving Altona at 1:30 and meeting Craig on top of the 201 at 2:00. Let me know if your interested. JS

Burger Ride Report

 DB, yes DB, Dan and I enjoyed a sunny road ride Saturday morning. Paul Krahn made a cameo to flex his stocky legs and show that he does in fact ride bike. The ride highlights include fixing a bulging tire, portaging through a creek because of a missing bridge, a deluxe mozza mushroom  burger with fries and a breeze to push us down the 201 to our post ride rehydration at ABES headquarters. Good ride.  JS

Thursday Night Ride Report

The group was large, then small, then large, then small, then large. We had trouble keeping ourselves together, or even starting together. The ride started with Steve, Mike, David, Myron, Lorne, Charles, Kyle, Craig, Preston (welcome to ABES Preston), Bruce, Curt, Dan, and me (who did i forget this time). We had another zippy paced ride around town - I think David has a couple of pics of the ride. We lost Duke early. He rode his own route and pace. Paul and Tom may not have been on the ride but they knew where to find us. Conversations included: Auction sales, bikes, riding bikes, the awesomeness of bikes, beer, bike races, bike trails, babes, beers with bike themes, drinking beer after biking, and babes drinking beer on bikes. It was all complicated yet very simple. Good times. JS

Notice the difference?

Saturday hamburger ride?

Is anybody interested in a road ride this Saturday?

Not to detract from the awesomeness of the Thursday Night Ride, but...

I was thinking we would ride the 243 to Rosetown,

North on the 306 to Plum Coulee for lunch,

then back home via the 201.

If we leave around 10am we would be back around 2.

The weather is supposed to be fantastic and I'm eager to get on the bike.

The pace will be reasonable.

Anybody interested?

JS

THURSDAY NIGHT RIDE

In honour of Mr. Kenton Peters' 40th birthday today I propose we all ride either a) a BMX bike or b) one of those sweet fake motorcycle bikes with the red plastic gas tank.  Anyone have one of those?  That would be the coolest thing ever.

Rain or shine it all starts at nine!

Who likes good times?

If you like riding bike, camping, beer, and good times, the Spring Ride is for you. The eager beaver club (me included) arrive Friday (May 28) at noon to get in a pre-weekend spin. Most dudes show up Friday night and ride Saturday, and maybe Sunday. Last years epic ride was unusual and will not ( I hope) be attempted so that the average dude can enjoy the ride. But, unlike any other year, we will be camping at the base of the Falcon lake trails so you're never more than a kilometer from camp (beer) in case of technical difficulties (tired). Ingolf trail, Eagle Lake, and Minnaki are other trails that may be attempted as well. I heard rumblings of people bringing road bikes - it's never happened before, but time will tell. This is one of the best biking events of the year. I've booked this weekend off about a year ago. I hope you can make it too. Talk to me if you need a push in the right direction. JS

Thursday Night Ride report (better late than never)

Pre-ride shits and giggles - Dwight, Jeff, the Duker, Ben and Shaun.

Shaun, Lorne and Gavin cruising through town.

Pit stop at the SE corner of Greater Altona area.

Johnny loves when bike lights accentuate his love of cycling.

Ben.  Yes, Ben.

Dwight shows off his sweet ass stripe and LJ combo.

Lorne and Ben.

Paul (note the lack of  surname initial) and the Duker.

Johnny (aka Snidely Whiplash) and Jeff.

Jeff and Shaun.

Steve B. and Gavin.

Thursday night.  Sweet ride.  And I vaguely remember telling Johnny I would handle the post-ride report.  Hmmmm.....let's see what I remember, shall we?

According to my mental vault we had ten riders out.  Myself, Johnny, the Duker, Lorne, Gavin, Jeff, Shaun, Ben (welcome back Ben!), Dan and Dwight.  Welcome Dwight, good to have you join us!

A nice little ride, kind of fast again (a precedent we'll have to address in the near future) with a few sweet highlights.  Gavin's rear wheel deciding to dislodge from his bike (in the middle of Highway 30), a nice little loopy run through the very dark Altona Park (led by speed demon Johnny), and the usual riding banter.  We got strung out a little as different groupings required different paces but we all met back at Grumpy's in the end.

The post ride crowd was joined by Paul and Steve B..  Paul has officially been upgraded from Paul B. to just Paul.  There is only one Paul in ABES now until an unnamed douche bag makes a miraculous reappearance.  Conversation (at least the ones I was privy too) varied widely...Ben's upcoming sabbatical and Thailand/Burma jaunt, Lorne's upcoming life changes, and of course the agenda.  A rarity.  ABES having an agenda.  We discussed t-shirts (good), price of said t-shirts of $15 (good), the use of any extra funds (Bikes Without Borders?  Wool jerseys?  Bike repairs/parts for Altona's burgeoning refugee population?  Kegger?  All solid options and I'm sure we'll decide something in our own sweet time) , Tinker Creek Tuesday night ride option (good), and the Sneak Attack.  The Sneak Attack.  Might be a go, might not.  Needless to say Duker's fears were assuaged when informed that it did not involve him being attacked in a bathroom/shower.

All in all a good ride, sweet after party and a slow ride home.  Just like most Thursdays.  That's why we love them.

DS

Activity Route: -- Elev. Avg: 247 m Location: Gretna, Canada, Elev. Gain: +0 m Date: 05/06/10 Up/Downhill: [+2/-2] Time: 10:04 PM Difficulty: 3.7 / 5.0   Weather: N/A   -16 C temp; 81% humidity   -16 C heat index; winds N 19 kph Performance Distance: 18.36 km Time: 0:49:07 Speed: 22.4 kph Pace: 2' 41 /km Calories: 691 Map   Elevation (m)   Speed (kph)   Splits Km Pace (min/km) Speed (kph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 3' 17 +0' 36 18.2 -4.1 0 m 2 2' 09 -0' 31 27.8 +5.4 0 m 3 2' 52 +0' 11 20.9 -1.5 0 m 4 3' 14 +0' 33 18.5 -3.9 0 m 5 2' 50 +0' 09 21.1 -1.3 0 m 6 2' 35 -0' 05 23.1 +0.7 0 m 7 2' 11 -0' 29 27.3 +4.9 0 m 8 2' 36 -0' 04 23.0 +0.6 0 m 9 3' 00 +0' 19 19.9 -2.5 0 m 10 2' 26 -0' 14 24.6 +2.2 0 m 11 2' 23 -0' 17 25.0 +2.6 0 m 12 2' 21 -0' 19 25.5 +3.1 0 m 13 2' 18 -0' 22 26.0 +3.6 0 m 14 2' 40 -0' 00 22.4 +0.0 0 m 15 2' 20 -0' 20 25.6 +3.2 0 m 16 2' 47 +0' 06 21.5 -0.9 0 m 17 3' 27 +0' 46 17.4 -5.0 0 m 18 2' 32 -0' 08 23.6 +1.2 0 m end 3' 20 +0' 39 18.0 -4.4 0 m Versus average of 22.4 kph

Posted from bimactive.com

Albert visits the Mormons

Albert and some friends went to the bicycle mecca, Moab, and has these beautiful pictures to share. Looks like it was awesome and terrifying. A report would be nice.

DSwat promised a Thursday Night Ride Report. He must be finalizing the video, pictures, GPS mapping, ride stats and clubhouse minutes. Hope to see something before the next ride.

JS

THURSDAY NIGHT RIDE

HOPEFULLY THIS WILL NOT BE NECESSARY TOMORROW NIGHT...

SAME TIME, SAME PLACE, SAME FORMAT, BLAH BLAH BLAH...

OKAY, A FEW ORDERS OF BUSINESS FOR ANYONE WHO MIGHT READ THIS BEFORE THURSDAY.  IN OUR LAST FEW RIDES (EITHER ON THURSDAYS OR OTHER DAYS) A FEW ITEMS HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED AD HOC.  I'D LIKE TO SHARE THEM WITH THE LARGER GROUP FOR POSSIBLE DISCUSSION AT THURSDAY'S POST-RIDE GATHERING.  

1.  ABES SHIRTS.  JOHNNY HAS PURCHASED A BUNCH OF T-SHIRTS AND WE'RE DISCUSSING PUTTING OUR LOGO ON THEM AND SELLING THEM.  INTEREST?  PRICE?  WE'VE TOSSED AROUND THE IDEA OF $15/SHIRT.  GOOD?  BAD?  THE COSTS INVOLVED ARE THIS.  T-SHIRT, IRON-ON LOGO, PRINTER INK FOR LOGO, LABOUR.  I'VE VOLUNTEERED TO DONATE MY TIME FOR THE LABOUR PART AND WE'RE THINKING THE TOTAL COSTS FOR ONE SHIRT WOULD BE ABOUT $7.  THAT LEAVES US APPROX. $8 PROFIT PER SHIRT SOLD.  WHICH BRINGS ME TO #2...

2.  MONEY.  SELLING T-SHIRTS IS EASY BUT WHAT DO WE DO WITH THE MONEY?  WELL, WE'VE ALREADY SET A SMALL PRECEDENT (THANKS TO THE INITIATIVE OF SHAUN) OF RAISING FUNDS FOR BIKES WITHOUT BORDERS.  NEVER HEARD OF THEM?  CHECK IT OUT...

http://www.bikeswithoutborders.org/

Bikes Without Borders is a Canadian organization using bikes and bike-related solutions as a tool for development in marginalized communities.

THINKING GLOBAL IS AWESOME.  BUT LET'S NOT FORGET TO LOOK LOCAL EITHER.  ANOTHER IDEA THAT HAS COME UP WOULD BE TO COME UP WITH SOME TYPE OF LOOSE PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR BRETHREN AT MOTO PARK X (YES, THAT IS SPELLED CORRECTLY!)  COLIN B. HAS MENTIONED THAT THEY'RE ALWAYS TRYING TO RAISE MONEY FOR IMPROVEMENTS AND SINCE THEY'RE A NON-PROFIT, VOLUNTEER BASED ORGANIZATION (WHO JUST HAPPENS TO BE KIND ENOUGH TO LET US RIDE THEIR SWEET TRACK) MAYBE THEY SHOULD RECEIVE SOME CONSIDERATION.


ANOTHER REVENUE STREAM MIGHT BE TO CONTINUE WHAT SHAUN DID WITH HIS ALLEYCAT AND SPLIT THE ENTRY FEE.  A PORTION WENT TOWARDS PRIZE MONEY WHILE A PORTION WAS DIRECTED TOWARDS BWB.


3.  TINKER CREEK.  JUST A SHORT DRIVE TO THE WEST OF US LIES SOME BEAUTIFUL, ROLLING, FLOWING SINGLE TRACK TRAILS THAT ARE EAGER TO BE RIDDEN.  EVEN BETTER?  THESE TRAILS ARE POPULATED BY A BUNCH OF GUYS WHO ARE MORE THAN WILLING TO LET US TAG ALONG WITH THEM ON TUESDAY EVENINGS!  I THINK A MASS ABES GATHERING TO JOIN OUR BRETHREN OF THE TINKER CREEK FARM TEAM MIGHT BE IN ORDER.  DISCUSS.


4.  SNEAK ATTACK.  TO BE DISCUSSED "IN CAMERA" ON THURSDAY.


HOW MANY OF YOU ACTUALLY READ ALL THIS?  LETS FIND OUT AFTER A SWEET, POSSIBLY WET, RIDE ON THURSDAY.


DS

For Ben

Remember Duke's Star Wars Alley Cat? That was awesome. JS

From the desk of Bruuuuce

Grand beach race report...

We left a little late on Sunday morning. Sheesh, I'm usually always on time for church! We started with 110 km/h, but by the time we left Selkirk we were well under 140.

Rory and I have signed up for the Cup races and we couldn't have hoped for better riding conditions in sand! On the other hand watching someone go by every half hour in the cold rain takes a little wind out of the fun.

Rory is in the under 11 category and he finished 6th out of 10 racers. He's started his own water bottle collection thanks to the boys at Olympia.

I had no idea where I was ending up in the race. Ok, I did have an idea. Some dough-head told me I had an early lead and that I should go hard. I wound up 14th out of 17.

I found out what the 'rock garden' was. I was very thankful for the XAM and it's full suspension, especially on those big uphill walks.

I didn't crash and didn't get hurt. I guess that means I didn't go hard enough. Brandon is next! 13th place is mine!

Bruce

Well done boys. That's great.

I noticed that ABES and Back Alley have both registered as clubs with the MCA. Two bike clubs in town!? HAHAHAHAHA! JS

The Sunday Post

Crazy Hippy Hipsters

Burrito Project from Jon Chou on Vimeo.

Green Death Alley Cat Review - Part 2

Export ABES

From the desk of Shaun D...

The weather conspired against the ABES last Thursday and the option to delay again was open, but the teams The Duker and Dave, Johnny and Paul, Lorne, Steve and Charles, Tom and the newest ABE Craig would have none of it. The second Spring Alley Cat Green Death was a go, exploring complex themes related to the intersections between biking and smoking: getting winded, spending your cash before the essentials, giving your body a pounding because there seems to be no other way, taking a break in the midst of an otherwise panicked schedule and so on. The race went on without a hitch, save the coordinators lack of knowledge regarding the clinic. Perhaps I should pay them a visit more than once a decade.

Race times were all pretty close:

Paul and Johnny rode a perfect race at 35 minutes and all questions answered correctly – even with their race sheet was in the process of complete disintegration.

Dave and Duker rolled in next after 38 minutes of riding and answered all questions correctly.

Steve, Lorne and Charles, while getting to the bar a little before The Duker and Dave to answer the arithmetically related question in comfort clocked 41 minutes. The trio added 3.5 minutes to their time with 1 incorrect answer.

Tom and Craig took the honourable (in the minds smokers anyway) DFL after finishing a minute later, at 42 minutes. They added 10.30 minutes to their time because of 3 incorrect answers.

But smokers are never perfect: we’re slow, easily winded, we’ll never win a race where the heart and lungs are a major contributor and our minds’ start going when the nicotine levels get low. Plus, the tobacco industry isn’t known for its virtuosity. So, to maintain the consistencies in the Green Death Alley Cat between smokers, Big Tobacco and racing bikes I had to take bribes to level the playing field. And only one team took the opportunity with Dave, while chugging a beer, doled out $15 for ‘Bikes Without Borders’. Not only did that bribe grease the wheels for a victory, but it’ll help buy wheels and grease along with the rest of the bike for a rural medic in an AIDS stricken part of the globe. ABES fight AIDS. 3 minutes and 30 seconds (the cost of an incorrect answer) were taken off of their time allowing them to squeak into 1^st, with only 30 seconds to spare.

With the bribe and the remaining entry fee cash $40 was sent over to ‘Bikes Without Borders’. http://www.bikeswithoutborders.org/

Nearly everybody took home something. Steve got the shaft as cash and prizes got snapped up. I’ll send a mug your way next time I get one that’s unsellable. Tom had inquired a few weeks ago – I’ve got a 9” x 11” x 2” pan with your name on it.