Please join cyclists in Holland and support Laura Harris at Cross Country Cycle, as she organizes Holland’s Ride of Silence this year. Know that you will be riding with cyclist across the state and worldwide on Wed. May 20th at 7:00 PM. 

The Holland Ride will leave the Holland Civic Center at 7:00pm.  Come and sign in at 6:30pm and be prepared to roll out at 7:00pm!

On May 20, 2009, at 7:00 PM, the Ride of Silence will begin in North America and roll across the globe. Cyclists will take to the roads in a slow, silent procession to honor cyclists who have been killed or injured while cycling on public roadways. Although cyclists have a legal right to Share the Road with motorists, the motoring public often isn’t aware of these rights, and sometimes not aware of the cyclists themselves. The Ride Of Silence is a free ride that asks its cyclists to ride no faster than 12 mph and remain silent during the ride. The Ride, which is held during National Bike Safety Month and Week, aims to raise the awareness of motorists, police and city officials that cyclists have a legal right to the public roadways.

In 2008, 299 registered Rides of Silence took place on May 21st, in all 50 states, in 18 countries, on 5 continents. We hope to exceed that this year. 25 were held in MI, 31 are registered this year:

Adrian, Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Bay City, Boyne City, Cadillac, Detroit, East Lansing, Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids, Downtown YMCA - Spin for Silence. Grayling, Grosse Pointe, Harbor Springs, Haslett, Holland, Houghton, Kingsford (Iron Mountain), Jackson, Lapeer (E of Flint), Lennon (W of Flint), Kalamazoo, Manistique, Menominee, Midland, Royal Oak, Saginaw, Sault St Marie, Spring Lake, Traverse City, Westland (Livonia-Dearborn), Ypsilanti

http://www.geocities.com/markpedal.geo/2009_MI_Map_Annual_RofS.pdf

The new MCC Membership center is now open!  New and returning MCC Member can now sign-up and pay your membership dues online!

All current and past members will be receiving a email announcing that our Annual Membership drive has now moved online to the membership center.  This will save the Club $$$$ in printing and postage, allowing us to redirect those dollars for area cycling events and causes that the Club supports!

Click here to visit Membership Center

The Monday night ride is almost here for 2009. The first ride is 6:30 pm at the Aquatic Center May, 4.

MCC got some very good feedback last year and over the winter about last year’s format, so we will continue that for 2009 with minor changes.

There will be two groups leaving. Sport 1 will go around Hutchins Lake and through Fennville. Approx. 40 miles with a pace of 20-21 on average. This group leaves at 6:30. This is a RIDE. No sprinting or putting the hammer down to drop the group. The group sticks together as much as possible. Sport 1 will stop in Douglas to catch any riders that fell off while on Blue Star Highway. Also there will be a regroup on the top of 58th street/Old Allegan Road hill. Sport 1 will usually NOT go through New Richmond.

Sport 2 leaves a 6:32 pm. This shorter route turns at 126th Ave. off 62nd. 35 miles with a pace of 17-18 mph on average. This is a RIDE. No sprinting or putting the hammer down to drop the group. Sport 2 will also stop in Douglas and try and regroup at the top of Old Allegan Road hill. Sport 2 will go through New Richmond as long as road conditions permit, otherwise we will take 58th instead.

In 2008 there was another group that also started at the Aquatic Center at or before 6:30. This historically has been a faster ride than either the Sport 1 or 2, and usually includes strong pace setting, sprinting and good hill climbs. This is a great ride for anyone wishing to train hard and get faster, but it’s also a ride with plenty of time to talk with others and enjoy a good ride. This is a skilled group of riders who encourage others to join them. This earlier group is not an MCC ride. The club supports this group but is not responsible for route, distance, or schedule. The club encourages this group to form and leave earlier than 6:25 to avoid confusion of groups and congestion on city/county streets.

Also, PLEASE READ! The club has gotten credible information that the Allegan County Sheriffs Dept. is looking out for cyclists not obeying the “two abreast” rule for riding in the lane. Some groups have already been pulled over and given verbal warnings about this, MCC expects this will continue this summer.

The MNRide will ride every Monday night unless the NOAA has issued a Thunderstorm or Tornado WARNING for Ottawa or Allegan county. Otherwise all conditions are fair for riding.

Please post QUESTIONS for the MNRide on the MCC forums.

Thanks, see you May 4th 6:30 pm

We wanted to take a moment and let you know that online registration for the 2009 Holland Hundred Bicycle Tour is now open. This years edition includes some changes big and small! Complete details about this years tour can be found at the Holland Hundred website .
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To register online, please visit the Holland Hundred page on active.com .

Sincerely-
Holland Hundred Planning Committee

A lot of good work is going on with your club!  Great announcements are coming.  The below links are the minutes from the past 2 monthly Board meetings.

• March 2009
• April 2009

Please feel free to send any questions or comments to any board member.   Board Member names and email addresses are always listed on the Club Info page.

Sincerely-
Randy Kuite

Greetings MCC’ers!
Join us next Monday for the last club meeting of the Spring! We will be suspending General Meetings from May through September to maximize our saddle time. So come on down to the New Holland Brewery for the April Get-together!

The program will feature a short presentation on getting your bike ready mechanically for the season by Jeremy “Berger” Berghorst, the Service MGR @ Velo City.He’ll cover chain care and other quick maintenance tips. We’ll also give you the scoop on the club’s new & expanded Weekly Ride Schedule and the club will be pickin’ up the tab for appetizers and drinks!

8:00pm in the conference room upstairs. We really hope to see you there!

Ride on!

Mike Clark, Prez for the MCC Board