March 2022 HBC President’s Letter
Welcome Sweet Springtime, We Greet Thee . . .
It’s been a quiet biking month since the last president’s letter. Nonetheless, HBC remains quite active.
On March 4th about 25 HBCers and friends went for a Winter Walk before enjoying the March Birthday Bash at the Edina D’Amico. Due to the COVID surge, this had been the first in-person Bash in months. It was nice to gather as a group once again. We’ll repeat the monthly in-person Birthday Bash tradition on Friday, April 1.
During our March board meeting we reviewed plans for our Spring Kick-off event scheduled for May 21st at Burnes Park in Hopkins. The Spring Kick-off features coffee, pastry, biking, socializing and lunch (either bring or buy your own). Ride leaders are putting together routes for a variety of speeds and distances. Stay tuned as Jean Mangan continues to organize the event.
HBC has over 30 ride leaders who plan, map, lead and report ride participation. During the past operating year seven members completed their leadership training and together led over 50 rides. New leaders bring fresh perspectives, new rides, and new accents to existing routes.
The reasons our ride leaders lead rides vary. Many like to promote the fellowship brought by leading a group of like-minded people along a favorite route. Others like the opportunity to set the pace and the food stops. Other people like putting together a ride with a theme such as architecture, coffee shops, ice cream shops or area history. Being a leader is also a motivation to get out and go riding yourself. That’s a pretty good list. What reasons resonate with you?
If you are not a ride leader consider it. The steps to become a ride leader are well-defined and are not difficult. Step one is to find a current ride leader to mentor you. Your mentor will teach you lots including how to put together a map, how to post the ride on the event calendar, and how to conduct a pre-ride briefing. In addition to your mentor, other ride leaders will answer questions and help you succeed.
Planning for our annual ride leader refresher event is in the works. This year, members of the board who are ride leaders will conduct the refresher. Stay tuned for the announcement.
We need a ride leader to step forward and lead the ride leader team. The main responsibilities of this role are:
Ride leader, contact me or Dawn Wilson and we will get you moving forward.
In other news:
E-Bike Challenge Minneapolis – long time HBC member Russ Lowthian ( publisher of Have Fun Biking.com ) is one of the principals behind this event. The E-Bike Challenge runs on April 2nd and 3rd at the Minneapolis Convention Center. Click this link for more information: https://ebikechallenge.com/
30 Days of Biking – April 1 marks the beginning of this year’s 30 days of biking. Learn more here: https://30daysofbiking.com/
Thanks, be well and stay safe.
Alan Wichman, HBC President
February 2022 HBC President’s Letter
We Leave Behind the (Not So) Bleak Midwinter
“Were I not a member of HBC, I never would have formed such meaningful friendships and I never would have gone on so many enjoyable bike rides and bike trips both close to home and in other countries. That’s why HBC means so much to me.”-- Presenter at our most recent Smart Cycling held last Friday, February 25th.
Here’s a summary of what HBC has been up to since the last President’s letter.
On January 21, we hosted the first of three Smart Cycling events planned for 2022. This Zoom event featured an Indie film from Portugal, “The Soul of a Cyclist”, which profiled several European cyclists who choose to ride classic bicycles over high tech bikes. Even through subtitles, nearly 30 attendees enjoyed the film and more importantly the time to socialize.
Because of COVID the board cancelled the in-person Birthday Bash at the Edina D’Amico scheduled for February 4. Instead, HBC ran another film, “Inspired to Ride”, through Zoom. This film featured a handful of riders from around the world who pedaled over 4200 miles across the US as part of the Trans AM Bike Race in 2015.
If you were not able to attend either of the film events described above, watch the videos on Amazon or Vimeo. Google two of the Trans AM bike riders: Mike Hall and Juliana Buhring featured in “Inspired to Ride”. Both have incredible personal and bicycle stories.
A few days ago, on February 25th over 50 members and guests gathered at the Golden Valley Davanni’s event room for dinner and a social hour followed by a panel discussion of multi-day, out of town bike trips. HBC members Russ Lowthian, Marcy Kelash, Mike Becker, John Hardy, Dawn Wilson, Kent Malcolm, Ed Newman and Carmen Price shared their experiences biking in Europe, Africa and the US. The panel shared their recommendations finding organized trips and putting together their own trips. Special thanks goes to Carmen who MC’d the event and to Mike Becker who assembled the accompanying video display.
On March 25 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm, we will present our third Smart Cycling event of 2022. Entitled, ‘Getting Ready for Ride Season’, this event will include Greg Swanson’s overview of the Ride with GPS route planner and navigation app. More information about this Smart Cycling event will be emailed shortly.
A shout out goes to Shelli Hesselroth, our Smart Cycling team lead, who orchestrates these fine events.
An in-person Birthday Bash is planned for Friday, March 4 at the Edina D’Amico. The March Bash will include a pre-event walk through nearby neighborhoods, lots of time for socializing over dinner and of course, Birthday Cake.
Planning is underway for our Spring Kick-off rides. Jean Mangan is leading the planning team. The Spring Kick-off will feature social time, snacks & beverages and several ride options. Save May 21st for this event. Standby for details.
There will be no Tour D’Amico (TDA) this year due to the impact of COVID. The board will use the hiatus from TDA as an opportunity to re-engineer the event. Stay tuned for updates as we look toward 2023.
Over the past several years, our club’s operating expenses have increased. While the board has cut expenses over the last two years to help keep us on the good side of the balance book, expenses exceed our income from dues.
When the club was founded an individual membership cost $25.00. Today over 22 years later, an individual membership remains at $25.00. The Consumer Price Index, an indicator of inflation, puts $25.00 in the year of the club’s founding to be over $40.00 today. The board has made no decision about how much and when dues will increase but it is a discussion point. Stay tuned.
This club moves forward through the efforts of our member volunteers. We need a ride leader to step forward and lead the ride leader team. This position has a positive impact on the experience of our riders. Don’t be shy, contact me and we’ll get you started.
Here’s a membership benefit you likely didn’t know about. HBC is a member of the League of American Bicyclists (LAB). Check out the LAB website https://www.bikeleague.org/ for information about bike advocacy and LAB’s mission and vision to help create a bicycle friendly America. LAB publishes a quarterly magazine, American Bicyclist, available on this webpage for you to read online or download: https://www.bikeleague.org/americanbicyclist
Check your knowledge about bike safety by taking this quiz provided by our friends in the Florida Bicycle Association: https://flbikesafetyquiz.com I have a bit to learn. How did you do?
As we leave the (not so) bleak midwinter behind and look to the promise of a long spring, summer and fall biking season, I wish you safety, wellness and all the best.
January 2021 HBC President’s Letter
The Hiawatha Bike Club Board of Directors met on Monday, January 4th. The approved meeting minutes are attached. Our main goal was to review and approve the 2021 budget. The Board approved a “slimmed down” budget to see us through another year largely influenced by the pandemic. We do not plan on having the Annual Volunteer Banquet since we didn’t have the Tour D’Amico last year. However, we are excited to plan a “Kickoff Picnic” in late May to reunite members for a fun outdoor event with safe distancing measures. Our IT team has been working diligently to simplify systems that will also be less expensive in the future. The approved budget has a $2,996 deficit, which will be covered by the Reserve Fund. We are grateful for the prior Boards and Audit Committees who have maintained a comfortable “rainy day” fund for the club through the years.
While it may not be possible for us to have the full Tour D’Amico event in 2021, we are discussing an alternative member event for Independence Day. We expect to know more next month, as the situation is fluid. I will update you when we have a solid plan. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we evaluate the situation.
We are grateful for our team of very talented and dedicated IT specialists who are working on improving the HBC website and infrastructure. Leon W. has implemented a new and improved waiver process in RideStats. This process ensures that members sign the waiver every ride year, as recommended by our insurance company. The waivers are signed electronically and saved permanently for the Club records.
Marty R. has spearheaded a conversion from Paypal to AffiniPay for the payment processor. This will save the Club significant annual cost because of AffiniPay’s relationship with our membership and website provider, Wild Apricot. Before your next renewal date, you will receive a reminder email from HBC with a link for renewing your dues. Please consider selecting the auto renewal option to avoid any interruption in your membership
2021 New Year’s Resolution – Get Out and Ride Now! See Greg S.’s informative and helpful article on winter riding tips on the home page of the website. Greg has also posted a self-paced 18 mile all trails route. Be sure to sign up if you’d like to try out this interesting ride. Not too soon to start accumulating your ride miles for the 2021 season!
All the best,
Shelli Hesselroth
HBC President
