Future BBC
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 Civil War Century Sept. 6, 2008
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Attention Civil
War Century Participants POSTPONED UNTIL SUNDAY, SEPT
7! The Reasons for our Decision -- Please realize that there is no solution that
will be optimal for everyone. So we have done the best we can with the
information that is currently available. After much discussion of the CWC
committee leadership, and much examination of the weather trends, we have
decided that the most prudent decision is to postpone the CWC event Sunday
morning. Though events of this nature rarely cancel due to weather, the current
forecast for Saturday is severe enough that we believe it could present a danger
to you, our participants and volunteers. By postponing until Sunday, we believe
that many of our participants (we hope most of you!) will be able to enjoy the
event, though a day later.
The weather forecast (this one from
Weatherbug.com) seems to have been trending toward a worse weather event rather
than a better one, compared to earlier predictions. The current predictions (as
of 11:40 AM on Friday) are: Saturday: Rain with isolated thunderstorms. Rain
may be heavy at times. Strong winds with highs in the mid 70s. Northeast winds
15 to 25 mph increasing to east 35 to 45 mph in the afternoon. Chance of rain
near 100 percent. Sunday: Partly sunny. Highs in the lower 80s. Northwest
winds 5 to 10 mph.
Realize, of course, that weather predictions can
change, and Saturday's (or even Sunday's) weather could differ from these
predictions. But for us to be able to re-organize the event for Sunday, this was
the latest that we could make our decision.
Another factor is that our
Amateur Radio operators, CARA, have been mobilized by Howard County for Saturday
to support any weather emergencies that occur, and thus would not be available
to support us. Though we believe that cell phones may have been sufficient to
support our SAG service (though with spotty coverage), the loss of these very
capable volunteers would have been difficult.
What we are Doing --
We are contacting all of our
suppliers and support services. We have been contacting our volunteers to
determine if they are available to support the event on Sunday. We are answering
the flood of EMAILs and Phone Calls that have been pouring
in.
Issues with delaying the event until Sunday -- Of course there are many things that may
affect the event, since we are delaying it:
- We may have fewer volunteers. Of the 120 volunteers that we had lined up for
Saturday, we have heard from 75 of them. We have been fortunate to have had
offers of help from additional folks that had NOT volunteered for Saturday. So
currently we have 55 confirmed volunteers. We are still attempting to contact
the 45 volunteers that we have not yet heard from. We expect that we will have
2/3 of our original compliment of volunteers.
- We do not have access to our final rest stop, Barlow VFD. This rest stop was
18 miles from the end of the 50, 63, 75, and 100 mile routes. The prior rest
stop, Fairfield VFD, is 29 miles fro the end. We believe this is tolerable, and
we plan to have SAG vehicles available during that final leg of the ride to
provide water and snacks.
- We are uncertain of our 25-mile rest stop on the 100 mile route. We believe
that if all else fails, we will be able to set up in the Gathland Parking lot,
if not the pavilion.
- We are unsure of having as much maintenance support for you on Sunday. We
are still looking into this issue, but we believe that most of you are
experienced riders that know how to handle "maintenance
situations".
A Caution for you, our Riders -- Since there is a possible severe weather event
on Saturday, you will need to be extra careful for gravel and debris in the
roads. This debris, of course, can be a danger, especially on fast descents. Be
extra vigilant! The debris also tends to cause more flat tires - carry extra
tubes and patches! And be prepared to follow your cue sheet, in case the weather
has obliterated any of our markings on the road!
Schedule for the Ride --
You all received our first
communication about the check-in and schedule for the ride, etc. Included below
is a recap (with the days adjusted). In addition, the following new notes apply:
- Though we have canceled the event room that we had scheduled for the Cozy
Restaurant tonight (and rescheduled for tomorrow night), a few of us will be
available for pre-check-in tonight at the Cozy restaurant, between 7 and 9PM.
Stop by to say "hi" and/or to check-in for Sunday, morning.
- The event room in the Cozy has been re-scheduled for tomorrow night, and you
are welcome to join us for dinner and/or event check-in then.
- Since there inevitably may be people that do NOT get the word about our
postponement, several of us expect to be present at the site tomorrow morning.
We will be able to do the ride check-in for Sunday if we are there. (HOWEVER,
regardless of the weather, there will be no ride on Saturday.)
- CWC@baltobikeclub.org will be monitoring and answering EMAIL tonight until
11PM, and most of tomorrow. Please understand how busy we are with the
arrangements and be patient!
Conclusion -- We have had many (often constructive) comments
about the weather and how to handle the event from the participants and
volunteers, and also from many folks that are not currently volunteers or
riders. We appreciate the constructive comments. We have also had many wonderful
and understanding responses from our participants, and we really have
appreciated them. Organizing an event of this size is a very difficult and
time-consuming undertaking for an all-volunteer group. And an unexpected weather
event makes the situation incredibly more difficult. So we believe that you will
all be very understanding and patient with us. We pledge to do the best we can
to make this an enjoyable event for you on Sunday! Finally, we are very sorry
for the inconvenience to you, our participants, that is being caused by this
unfortunate weather!
The BBC's
Mission -- The
Baltimore Bicycling Club (BBC) was established in 1967 and has a membership of
over 1700 riders. The mission of our not-for-profit recreational organization is
to promote and sponsor bicycling activities in Baltimore City and neighboring
Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford, and Howard counties. The BBC also
promotes, defends, and protects the rights of bicyclists for a safe road riding
environment in our communities through advocacy and education. Visit our
Advocacy section to learn more about current issues.
BBC
Membership -- The Baltimore Bicycling Club is open to any interested individual 18
years of age or older. There are two classes of dues: individual and family.
Persons under 18 years old belong through a family membership and must be
accompanied on all rides by a responsible adult. Each BBC Membership receives
the club's bi-monthly newsletter. Go to our On Line Membership
Application to join or renew your membership.
BBC Rides
-- The heart of
any cycling club is the rides that it provides for riders of all abilities.
Non-members are invited to join any of the rides offered. The BBC offers
scheduled rides with ride leaders during the week, on Saturdays, Sundays, and
major holidays. These rides include cue sheets detailing the ride route. In
addition, there are evening rides on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from May
through October. Evening rides have cluster starts from two locations and are
for all rider levels; these rides are leaderless. See our Rides & Events
section for more details.
BBC Cue
Sheet Library -- Speaking of rides, the Cue Library allows members and non-members to
search through the BBC’s most popular rides. Check out that section, print out a
copy and go on the ride when you can.
NOTE --
The majority of
documents used on this site are PDF documents. You can download Adobe Reader for free to read them.
Why join the BBC -- Let's be honest. What's a
bicycling club all about? Why join a bike club when you can go on free
club rides, keep the cue sheets, and do rides on your own? You don't even
need a cue sheet for some rides .... just follow the trail .... or maybe a good
back roads map will do.
Well, as many of us already know, there are lots
of reasons to belong to a bike club, especially when it's a club as good as the
BBC. Some of the top reasons are:
- Meet others who enjoy cycling .... make a new friend .... find your true
love.
- Learn to be a better bicyclist.
- Shed the stresses of everyday life (at least for as long as the ride lasts).
- Become fit .... lose weight .... look like the athlete you've become.
- Participate in club events and get a member discount.
- Impress your friends and family with your fun-loving lifestyle (and the fact
that you have become an athlete!).
- Support the bicycling community and encourage bicycling friendly
legislation. Did you know that virtually all income received by the BBC,
after expenses, is donated to bicycling advocacy groups such as One Less Car,
League of American Bicyclists, and the East Coast Greenway? The club must
support such groups to keep our rights as cyclists on our representatives' front
burners. By influencing highway legislation, and the design of roads and
communities, bicyclists can avoid being squeezed out by ever increasing
development, AND make going-places-by-bike a genuine option for more
people.
Whatever your reason for joining is, your fellow members
appreciate the fact that you are one of us. You may be a Casual rider, you
may be on the BBC Racing Team, or you may enjoy cycling with another group, but
we're all members of the nationally respected Baltimore Bicycling Club.
Next time, bring a friend along on an easy ride so they too can rediscover
the joy of riding a bicycle .... this time as an adult!
Thanks for
listening, Frank Anders
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