Arkansas Bicycle Club News         

Arkansas Bicycle Club Meeting Minutes May 10, 2012
The meeting was held at Boudreaux’s in Maumelle. Jim Britt called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Announcements were as follows:
• Travelers Baseball Ride – May 14, meet at Cooks
• Ride of Silence – May 16, Meet at Clinton Lib, 7:00
• Bike to Work – May 18, several routes (see arkansasoutside.com)
• Tour de Hoot – May 19, camping available in the gym
• Ranch Ride (Conway) – June 2
• Trail Day Ride – June 2, contact Jim if you can lead
• Tour de Rock, - June 9
• ABC Annual Picnic – June 14, no Bike & Build this year, spaghetti (as always) provided by Bill Steward, bring a dish to share
• 2 day Ride to Helena – July 7 & 8, contact Janet Nye or see the web site (forum) for details

Michael Lassiter of Redstone Construction, did a Paving Presentation
• Michael is a biker so he understands what kind of surface is best to ride on
• His company is involved in the new Traffic Circle on Rebsamen, soon we will have a continuous bike lane from the BDB to the trail at Junior Deputy/Cajuns
• A trail from Maumelle Park to LR Yacht Club is under discussion
• Chip & Seal (everyone’s favorite) is 2 & a half to 3 times cheaper than asphalt
• High traffic areas use concrete which is not the best bike surface
• More rumble strips are on the way, they are cheap to do & (according to authorities) save lives
• When riding in the rain or if the surfaces is wet, the worst is old chip & seal, paint & thermoplastic (the thick white line on roads like Rebsamen) is also slick, then concrete then asphalt

Submitted by Susan Linck for Diane McConnell, Secretary

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Arkansas Bicycle Club Meeting Minutes Apr 12, 2012
The meeting was held at Boudreaux’s in Maumelle. Jim Britt called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Announcements were as follows:
• Chainwheel will have an open house 6:30 pm May 2nd for Ellee Thalheimer who will discuss touring and her new book, Cycling Sojourner.
• Chainwheel is looking for a place to host a group from Portland where they can prepare food and share a discussion about bicycle culture and the economics of bicycle transportation on May 4th at 7:00 pm. Contact bruce@chainwheel.com with any suggestions you may have for a suitable venue.
• Chris Schenep from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arkansas talked about Biking for Bigs, a fundraising bike ride 9 am April 2 starting at River Trail Rentals. To register or make a donation visit http://bikingforbigs.kintera.org
• The ABC Annual Picnic is scheduled for the second Thursday in June unless it needs to be rescheduled for a vising Bike and Build group.
• Tour de Cure will take place April 14.
• Tour de Rock training rides are being held on Saturdays.
• 65 Roses Ride is April 21 in Searcy. ABC is a sponsor.
• Tour de Hoot in McGehee is May 19th. Register at www.tourdehoot.com Come the day before and participate in the Demott Crawfish Festival or have a pasta dinner at the Boys and Girls Club in McGehee.
• Kenny Gober asked that groups holding training rides consider other rides in the state when setting up their training rides.
• ABC 3 Day Training Bike Ride Around Arkansas will start at 9 am, Friday, April 27 at Ed & Kay’s Restaurant in Benton. First night will be spent at Lake Catherine State Part; second night at Gulpha Gorge campground. Ride leader is Jenny Rainwater jhrainwater@gmail.com
• Wine Country Ride – May 5
• Tour de Toad – May 6
• Cycle for Sight – May 12
• Sandwiching in History Ride will be held the second Friday in May (not the first as usual).
• ABC members, Coreen Frazier and Linda Schuck, are currently in New Mexico on their ride across the U.S.
Submitted by Diane McConnell, Secretary

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1. May 2. This is my favorite. My daughter, Ellee Thalheimer, has just finished her new book Cycling Sojourner: A Guide to the best Multi-Day Tours in Oregon. Ellee will be doing her kick-off event in Little Rock and talking to us about her book and touring in general on Wednesday, May 2nd at Chainwheel at 6:30PM. It will be an open house and we hope all cyclists that tour, that have considered touring or just wondered what touring is about will attend.

Ellee has been touring for over ten years, sometimes with me. She has been to Italy (I was there for a week) where she researched Cycling Italy for the Lonely Planet, Argentina, Cuba, across the US and of course Oregon. You can check out all about her and this project at cylcetouringoregon.com.


2. May 4. Elly Blue along with Joe Biel and Joshua Ploeg are traveling the Southeast US and are coming to Little Rock. Their goal is to bring people together to share ideas about bicycle transportation while enjoying delicious food. We know it will be on May 4th at 7 PM but don’t know where. We are looking for some ideas where they can both cook and serve. Please email me back at bruce@chainwheel.com or twobikes@aol.com with any suggestions. We need your help. Chainwheel will help sponsor the event but we will charge $10 a person for the meal. (it’ll be a good one.)

You can check the tour website out at dinnerandbikes.com and you can check out their individual websites at:

Elly Blue writes and speaks about the culture and economics of bicycle transportation and her blog is takingthelane.com

Joe Biel is the founder of Microcosm Publishing and a documentary filmmaker with a focus on bicycle culture and activism. His work can be found at cantankeroustitles.com.

Joshua Ploeg is the touring Vegan chef and author of many cookbooks. He will be preparing our meal and it will be vegan and also gluten free. His website is joshuaploeg.blogspot.com.

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We had 20 registered riders. Congratulations to Bob Bridges for winning the trophy by being just 1 minute off of his prediction. The fastest riders came in at 1:58 and the last ones were in by about 3:15 so everyone did great this year. Thanks to Judy McDowell for the timing and Debby Blackwell for the rest stop on Wye Mt.

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Arkansas Bicycle Club Meeting Minutes Mar. 9, 2012

The meeting was held at Boudreaux’s in Maumelle. Jim Britt called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Announcements were as follows:
• ABC members have been sent an email telling them they will be given $5 off registration for the 65 Roses Tour on April 21st.
• Meet at Natural Resources parking lot at 9 am Sat., Mar.10 for a ride to Hindman Park to help with the clean-up.
• Meet at Two Rivers 8:30 am Sat., Mar. 17 for a ride out Arch St. and stay to join the St. Patrick’s Day parade at 1:00 pm.
• Russellville fundraising ride for downtown bike racks scheduled for Sat., Mar. 31.
• CARTI Tour de Rock training rides will begin April 7th. You must be registered for the 2012 Tour de Rock to participate.
• Spring Bike Ride Around Arkansas (BRAA) will be April 2-7. Ride will start from Kenny Gober’s home near McGehee.
• Sunday Beginner Rides with Tanya Buys are 1 pm Sundays at the NLR Skate Park.
• Let Jim Britt know if you are interested in riding a tandem bike with students from Lions World Services for the Blind.
• Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism has a new free brochure on bicycling in Arkansas.
• The April ABC meeting will have a report on the April BRAA ride.

Submitted by Diane McConnell, Secretary

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Arkansas Bicycle Club Meeting Minutes Feb. 9, 2012

The meeting was held at El Chico’s in Little Rock. Jim Britt called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. Announcements were as follows:
• ABC Facebook page is up and running. facebook.com/arbicycleclub

• ABC has made donations to support the following organizations so far this year: Adventure Cycling, League of American Bicyclists, BACA (in support of Bike Summit), Recycle Bikes for Kids and CARTI (to support a training ride for the Tour de Rock).


• ABC will be working with Lions World Services to assist blind riders. Tandem bikes will be available. Meet at the Heifer building Sunday, Feb. 12 at 1:45 p.m.

• The Spring Bike Ride Around Arkansas (BRAA) will be a 6 day ride beginning Apr. 2nd. Contact Kenny Gober if you want to ride a shorter time period or have/need SAG support.


• John Linck and Janet Nye are planning a ride from downtown Little Rock to Helena, AR (overnight in DeWitt) on July 7 & 8 in support of Habitat for Humanity. Mileage will be approximately 80 miles the first day, 60 the second.

• Lake Ouachita Ride self-supported tour will be Feb. 24-26. Contact John Linck. See the Ride Schedule

• Training BRAA is scheduled for Apr. 27,28 & 29. Tentative plan is to start in Benton, proceed to Lake Catherine State Park, then Sheridan or Gulpa Gorge and back.

• Tanya’s Sunday Beginner Rides will start Sunday March 4. Check ABC website for details. The riders will join the St. Patrick's parade March 17.

Submitted by Diane McConnell, Secretary

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Our page is at Facebook

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Public Involvement Meeting to discuss the proposed Broadway bridge replacement over the Arkansas River between Little Rock and North Little Rock on Hwy. 70.

WHEN: Tuesday, February 7,2012 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
WHERE: Arkansas Transit Association (Training Room) 620 West Broadway Street North Little Rock, AR

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BACA Meeting - Thursday, Feb 2 - 7:00 PM at the Oyster Bar on Markham.

"On Thursday, February 2, we expect the House Transportation Committee to vote on the newly proposed American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, a bill that eliminates crucial funds for biking and walking. As a Member of the Committee, Representative Rick Crawford of Arkansas's 1st District is in a key position to save dedicated funding for biking and walking. Please contact him today and ask him to vote to preserve biking and walking....."

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The "Tweed Ride"! Tons of fun! Jan 29th Sunday 1 - 3PM. I believe this date is correct...but check the Facebook link below to confirm. Looks like the ride starts at the Clinton Presidential Center.

From Facebook
Free, everyone welcome! Meet up and wear your tweed and funky mustaches! Then we'll ride bicycles around town at a very social pace. Will end back downtown at Capitol Bar and Grill. Tweed bicycle polo after for anyone interested....."

Check out the Facebook page here for more info.....

and if everyone can dress like this....ride will be awsom!

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