Voice of the Mid-Columbia | Kennewick, Pasco and Richland, Wash. |
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closeSunday, Jul. 05, 2009
Cruising the Mid-Columbia: Tri-City Bicycle Club treks 3 times a week with all ages
By Ingrid Stegemoeller, Herald staff writer
Sitting casually around a table in the Richland Community Center on a recent morning, a fit-looking group of seven cyclists with the Tri-City Bicycle Club discussed the morning's ride route.
Clad in black spandex bike shorts and a yellow jersey, Richland's Bob Morford suggested a 25ish-mile route up Dallas Road.
Tom Patten of Pasco thought westerly winds would make 10th Avenue in Kennewick a better choice.
As the group munched on doughnuts and drank coffee -- meals and snacks are a key element of any club ride -- they settled on Morford's route.
"He's the ride leader," said Bill Painter, 86, a regular of the Thursday morning rides.
Helmets on, the riders took off into the sunshine on three recumbent bikes -- on which riders sit in a reclining position -- and four road bikes.
Club members meet for rides three mornings a week -- Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The informal get-togethers promote safety, education, fun and good food as much as the rides.
"We don't drop people, we don't leave people behind," said Lora Bannan of Benton City who started riding about two years ago.
She heard about a bicycle tour of area wineries and decided to give it a spin.
"After I got out there I discovered I really enjoyed it," said the club's newsletter editor.
At a recent meeting, several members described their first club experience with the group very similarly: They arrived, saw a bunch of white-haired cyclists and figured the ride would be no sweat.
"We couldn't keep up with them," said the club's President Ed Nordquist, flashing a smile.
He and his wife Kathleen joined the club about 10 years ago.
Nordquist describes the group as a club that does touring, meaning multiday rides with stops along the way
"You actually get to see the flowers ... and have a better connection with where you're going," he said.
Painter, a Richland resident, has been a serious biker for about 30 years and said he usually rides three times a week with the club.
"The best thing (for beginners) to do is start riding with somebody that has more experience and can give you finer points and teach you," said Painter, who also summits Badger Mountain about 200 times per year.
Though many of the club's most active members sport white hair, the group is open to all ages. One frequent cycler is 9 or 10 years old, said Bannan, 35.
Along with the camaraderie comes a collection of biking knowledge to solve problems from flat tires to misbehaving chains to seats that are too high.
"You get a lot of support," said Bobbi Garrison of Pasco. The former Sunnyside resident said she used to bike alone and often found herself lost.
Biking with the club has helped remedy that problem, said Garrison, now the club's secretary.
She and Bannan are preparing to do the famed 200-mile Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic on July 11-12.
Another longtime club member, John Ittner, trained for a past Seattle to Portland ride in two months, a feat he credits to the club. He went from riding 10 miles two or three times a week to finishing the 200-mile ride.
"I wouldn't have done it if it weren't for the club," said the club's treasurer and webmaster.
Ittner stressed the club's emphasis on safety. All riders must wear helmets, said the Richland man, who's certified by the League of American Bicyclists to teach safety courses.
Club members have made several trips over the years to area schools to do helmet fittings, and they've donated the equivalent of 2,000 to 3,000 helmets to kids over the past decade, Ittner said.
Another safety point the club trumpets is that bicycles should be treated like other vehicles on the road. They follow the same rules cars do.
"(Drivers) need to treat us like a vehicle," Bannan said. "We do try very hard to obey traffic laws."
And while safety is taken very seriously, there's no question club members know how to have a good time.
"One of the big things for weekend rides ... the whole ride is organized around where they're going to have snacks or lunch," said Rob Witcraft, the club's vice president.
The club's unofficial motto?
"Ride to eat, eat to ride," Ittner said with a smile.
On the club's recent Thursday morning ride, the seven cyclists ended up biking 37 miles, Painter said.
"A few hills. The wind was very nice to us. The temperature was great," he said. "It was a very pleasant ride."
For information about the club go to www.tricitybicycleclub.org.
* Ingrid Stegemoeller: 509-582-1537; istegemoeller@tricityherald.com; Business Beat blog at www.tricityherald.com
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