This has been a great year for the MNR and we would like to thank all those who joined MCC’s most popular weekly ride. The MNR will continue through September until the last Monday in October which is Oct. 27.

The start time will be 6:30 p.m. Distance will be determined by groups and when the sun sets. The idea is to have all riders in the parking lot shortly before or after the sun goes down. As of Sept. 1 the sun set is 8:18 pm, Sept. 30 7:27 pm.

Please wear or mount blinking lights. They’re inexpensive and could save your life. The more we have the safer the group.

Usually the Hutchin’s Lake group turns at 126th Ave. and the Sport group cuts off at Old Allegan Road and adds some miles on the north side of the Kalamazoo River. The Tour group will also shorten their route, TBA.

Some frequently asked questions:

Didn’t the MNR use the Daylight Savings time schedule before?
Yes, in years past we used the Daylight Savings Time dates for the start and finish of the MNR. But, since the Federal Government has added weeks to that and is now earlier and later in the year, we switched to the end of October instead.

Why not move the start time earlier so we can keep riding the same routes?
Done in years past, but we switched to one start time to keeps things simple. Start time is 6:30 pm for the first group. As someone said last week, “If you want more miles, do them before the ride.”

What about poor weather?
How do I know the ride is on or canceled? The MNR is only canceled if the there is an official Severe Thunderstorm Warning in effect for Ottawa or Allegan county at 4:00 pm and continues until through the MNR ride time. We will try and post this to the MCC website and send out an e-mail. Sometimes we might not be able to do this so please pay attention if poor weather conditions exist. Otherwise the MNR continues even if the weather is raining/windy/cold or any combination of the three. Show up and see what other brave souls will ride with you into a gusty wind with sleets of rain.

Marshall