BABES News and Notes

B.A.B.E.S. ride leaders back the switch to St. Louis Cycling Club

Since the inception of the Belleville Area Bicycling and Eating Society, we have been affiliated with the Gateway Council of Hostelling International. That will change with the start of the 2010 riding season...

Our leaders and a large number of our regular riders have decided to change our affiliation and become a part of the St. Louis Cycling Club. The reason for the change is because we want to be part of an organization whose sole focus is cycling.

When the B.A.B.E.S. started about 20 years ago, the Gateway Council was the dominant recreational cycling group in the St. Louis area. A big reason for that has been the success of the Moonlight Ramble, the organization's largest fundraiser. Bicycling, hiking and canoeing have been part of the Gateway Council's program through much of its 76-year history, but hostelling is the primary focus of the organization. Many of our regulars believe our money should be going back into bicycling, rather than hostel development.

The St. Louis Cycling Club was founded in 1897, and STLCC is the oldest continuously running bicycle club in the United States. In its early years, STLCC was primarily a touring group, and it evolved into a racing club. The club has expressed a desire to return more toward its touring roots as the St. Louis racing scene has changed.

Ride leaders Arlene Willmann and Thomas Carter have been talking with STLCC since October about the switch. They have done a thorough job making sure that STLCC's insurance covers recreational rides such as ours.

In November, ride leader Roger Kramer polled many of our regular riders, and they are overwhelmingly in favor of making the switch. Some had questions, and we'll try to address them here:

What's the cost of joining STLCC?

Membership fees are $30 for a full adult membership and $35 for families. Full membership includes a 20 percent discount off parts and accessories at The Cyclery, which sponsors STLCC, the opportunity to purchase Continental tires at greatly discounted prices and a $30 discount off the purchase of your first STLCC jersey. A sustaining membership is available for $10 a year, but does not include the discounts or full voting privileges.

How can I join STLCC?

Go to STLCC's Web site (http://stlcc.net) and click on the Info/News button. Once you're on the Info/News page, you'll see a button for Membership Application. Click on that, fill out the requested information, click on the submit button, and you should get instructions on how to complete the application process. If the information doesn't come up, mail your check to the St. Louis Cycling Club to Marion Morris, 3526 Oxford Blvd., Maplewood, MO 63143-4209. Then Marion will send you a waiver form to sign and return.

Will we still charge for non-members?

No. Under STLCC the vast majority of our rides will be construed as training rides. Training rides are open to members, but we are currently welcoming non-members to try us. The only rides we will charge for are major fundraisers.

Does STLCC have a senior citizen discount?

Not at this time. But as more of us become voting members, we certainly can ask STLCC to implement one.

Will the dynamics of our ride change?

A legitimate concern, given that STLCC has been a racing club for so long. As mentioned above, STLCC is transitioning from a racing club to a racing/touring club. While there could be some faster riders, riders of all skill abilities still will be welcome. We will continue to have routes of varying lengths for the Wednesday Evening Rides, Winery Rides, etc. Our rides will remain in the St. Clair County area and neighboring counties such as Clinton, Madison and Monroe. The people who have been ride leaders in recent years will continue to be ride leaders under STLCC. People who are STLCC members through B.A.B.E.S. would be able to do other STLCC rides that aren't part of B.A.B.E.S.

Will we have to have a fundraiser?

Probably! While we probably won't have a major fundraising ride in 2010, we most likely will start having one in 2011. Most cycling clubs have at least one major fundraising ride a year, and members will be called upon to ride or volunteer for the event, such as is now the case with Tour de Stooges.

Does it mean I have to leave the Gateway Council of Hostelling International?

No. Some of you have life memberships and many of you support its mission, and we encourage you keep up your membership. But once the switch is made, you have to be a STLCC member to get the discounts and take part in any members-only rides and events.

Will we still have to sign waivers every week?

Yes. Most insurance companies require clubs to have their riders sign a waiver.

Will the format of the newsletter change?

Yes. Ride leaders have expressed a desire to have more flexibility to announce last-minute rides, and the current newsletter format is cumbersome for those purposes. We have about 500 people on the current list.

We are developing a different newsletter format that will give ride leaders the opportunity to get the word out on their rides. Our thoughts are to make that available to members and regular riders. Once details are finalized, we will share that information with all of you. Almost all the information that had been made available in the newsletter will still be available publicly, most likely on the News or Calendar pages on our Web site.

BABES newsletter format changes

As we mentioned in our last two newsletters, ride leaders have expressed a desire to have more flexibility to announce last-minute rides, and the current newsletter format is cumbersome for those purposes. We have developed a different messaging format open to members and regulars that will give ride leaders the opportunity to get the word out on their rides.

For now on, only members and regular riders will be receiving newsletters on a frequent basis. The new version of the newsletter will be sent via a new e-mail address, bicycle2eat@gmail.com. You cancontact us through that address or with the current address, bike2eat@rogerkramercycling.org, although that address primarily will be used by Roger Kramer for BABES-related activities.

The current 500-plus name mailing list will continuie to exist, but it only will be used for major events such as The Gerry Frierdich Road to Recovery Benefit Bicycle Ride and Walk and our major fundraising ride, which will begin in 2011. Information that was available in the newsletter will be available on our Ride Calendar and News pages.

New Ride Calendar page

To give ride leaders more flexibility in scheduling last-minute ride, we have created a new Ride Calendar. You can find it at http://babes.rogerkramercycling.org/calendar/

If you have bookmarked the old Ride Calendar page, you will be automatically redirected to the new Ride Calendar.

We will continue to post our rides, plus other rides of interest from Illinois, Missouri and other Midwestern states. If you are a coordinator of a ride, you can submit a ride, but it will have to be approved by a ride leader before it's posted on the calendar.

We are always looking for new ride leaders, if you're interested in becoming a BABES ride leader, contact Arlene Willmann at awillmann@gmail.com.

Gerry Frierdich Road to Recovery

Friends and family of Gerry "Chief" Frierdich thank you for your participation in The Gerry Frierdich Road to Recovery benefit bicycle ride June 6 at Central Junior High School in Belleville.

Gerry was paralyzed from the chest down in an August 2007 accident. Gerry was riding his recumbent bicycle on South Green Mount Road when he was struck by a pickup truck. The driver of the truck faces felony charges, which are pending in St. Clair County Circuit Court.

Before the accident, Gerry frequently attended our Wednesday Evening Rides, and he was an award-winning portrait photographer for the Crafty Eye studio in Belleville.

Gerry rode 6 miles on a hand-crack wheelchair at the June 6 event. Special thanks go out to Thomas Carter, Paul and Chris Goelz, Roger Kramer, Hal Leventhal and Jerry Whittle, who assisted with SAG support for the ride.

BABES member takes cross-country bicycle trip

BABES regular Wayne Baird, who has led our Wednesday Evening Rides in O'Fallon the past few years,finished a cross-country bicycle trip that began March 14 in San Diego, Calif., and ended May 2 in St. Augustine, Fla. Wayne was a part of the Coast 2 Coast ride, which is led by Bubba's Pampered Pedalers owner Bubba Barron, a longtime friend of the BABES.

Wayne has created a blog about his journey, "He Escaped on Skinny Tires," and you can read it at http://skinnytires.blogspot.com/.

Belleville Area Bicycling and Eating Society on Facebook

For those of you are part of the social networking site Facebook, The Belleville Area Bicycling and Eating Society has its own page. You can view it here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Belleville-Area-Bicycling-and-Eating-Society/45579538139

To fully view the page and take advantage of its features and become a fan, you will have to sign up for Facebook. It's free, and you can reveal as much or as little about yourself as you want. If you are a fan, you can make wall posts and upload photos and videos from our events,

Monroe County bicycle ordinance

In 2000, Monroe County passed an ordinance requiring permits for rides of more than 50 people. Most of our rides that go into Monroe County have fewer than 50 people and therefore do not require permits. But we are posting the ordinance (PDF file) in case the BABES ever has a ride of more than 50 people going through the county or in case we are questioned by law enforcement officers about our presence in the county.

Rules of the Road

In recent years, members of the Belleville Area Bicycling and Eating Society have seen lots of violations of Illinois cycling laws on a wide range of group rides, including, unfortunately, BABES Wednesday Evening Rides. Under Illinois law, you must ride as far to the right of the road as safely possible. Riding two abreast is allowed as long as the normal and reasonable movement of traffic is not impeded. Keep in mind that it doesn't take much to impede the normal and reasonable movement of traffic on narrow country roads. Riding three or more abreast is prohibited except on bicycle paths or parts of roadways set aside for bicycles only.

In 2008, it is also the law that motorists must give at lease three feet of clearance while passing a bicycle. Bicyclists also may extend their right arms to signal a right turn.

For a breakdown of Illinois cycling laws, download this PDF file from the League of Illinois Bicyclists: http://www.bikelib.org/education/bikelaws.pdf.

Submit an article

If you want to write about your favorite bicycle adventures or vent off some steam about a cycling issue, you're invited to submit a story. You may e-mail the story to us. Photos and graphics are welcome, but be sure they are either in JPEG, PNG or GIF formats so they can be posted on the Web site.

We do request that that all articles are in good taste.