Christopher Estes Vice-President Randy Higgins Director Emeritus

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2 Evan Wilson President Christopher Estes Vice-President Randy Higgins Treasurer Cathy Pratt Secretary Randy Higgins Director Emeritus Open Head Ride Captain Open Safety and Advocacy Chair Bob Ayars Membership Chair Open Special Events and Publicity Bob Ayars Head Race Captain Fixed Gear History To be continued! Susanne Aldridge Website / Social Media saldridge@gmail.com Dave Durkee Newsletter Editor newsletter@rapidwheelmen.com Dave Durkee Time Trials Coordinator timetrials@rapidwheelmen.com Gears are Levers leverage@rapidwheelmen.com

3 President Evan Wilson Once again we re in the time of year where we really start planning for the upcoming riding season. Maybe it s the weather, but probably, it s just that it s a good idea to start getting ready early. Later in the season, we ve got our ride events: Maple Leaf and Colorburst. It s pretty early to organize volunteers for those just yet, but it s certainly appreciated if you get in touch with the organizers early. There are tons of other bike events going on all over West Michigan, of every type. Don t be shy about getting in touch with a promoter about helping out when you hear about an event you want to support. I ve helped out at quite a few, sometime helping the event itself, and sometimes showing up to support friends. I don t have the mountain biking chops to ride the Lumberjack 100, but I had a ton of fun a few years ago, supporting a friend who was riding it. It s a good time to plan one s season, be it riding, or helping out. That planning includes the call for our most important resource: volunteers. The Ada Time Trials are coming up at the beginning of May, and need volunteers all the way through August. You can volunteer for the whole time or just a week or two, whatever works. The earlier you get in touch, the more likely you can find a position that will let you ride on the weeks you re helping out. Look for more details later in the newsletter. Looking forward to seeing you there! We ve also got the Ride Around Kent County and Bag Balm in May. Next up is the 100 Grand on June 2nd. I ll be coordinating that event, so you can imagine it s the one on my mind the most at the moment. The rest of June will be packed with volunteer opportunities, with the club rest-stop on the MSU Gran Fondo, possibly a stop during Active Commute Week, and the National 24 Hour Challenge. 45th Annual 100 Grand Bicycle Tour Saturday, June 2, 2018

4 club news club meeting GRATA Central Station 250 Grandville Avenue SW Grand Rapids - 2nd Floor Thursday, March 1, :00 pm Board Meeting 7:00 pm - West MI Coyotes (check Yahoo Group for the latest updates) pick of the pics - Colorburst Award Recipients. Clockwise from upper left: Spoke Folks MI Trails and Greenways Major Taylor Cycling of W. MI Greater GR Bicycle Coalition

5 March 2018 Day Date Ride Name Ride Start Ride Details Contacts Dave Durkee. timetri- MON See you in May! Ada Time Trials May through August Max heart rate and fun for 15 miles m TUE Details to come Jessica s Ride Moderate pace, 20, 30, or 40 miles Jessica Crawford TUE See you in 2018! Caroline s Ride Think Spring! Moderate to Good pace, miles Caroline Blake. carolineblake@att.net WED 7,14,21,28 Panera Bread Coffee 2:00 pm During the winter months, the rides will be switched to a meet and greet over coffee. Join us at Panera Bread at Knapps Corner. Watch Yahoo group for changes. Bob Ayars WED Think Spring! Challenger Think Spring! Moderate to Fast+, miles Mike Burden, THU Think Spring! Beginner s Ride 6:00 PM Slow easy ride in Millennium Park, about 1 to 1.5 Hour Evan Wilson THU Think Spring! Ladies Ride 6:15, Ada Community Church Moderate pace, miles Laura Melendez or lada480@yahoo.com THU Think Spring! Cannon Cruise Think Spring! Moderate to Fast Pace, 25 to 30 miles. 3rd Thu-Dirt Bill Thompson. Ck Yahoo Group SAT Think Spring! Dawn Patrol 8:00 AM, Start varies. Check Yahoo Good to Fast pace, miles Mike Burden SAT Think Spring! Cannon Cruise Think Spring! Moderate to Fast pace, miles Bill Thompson. Ck Yahoo Group SAT 3,10,17,24, 31 Mystery Coffee 10:00 am During the winter months there will be a meet and greet over coffee, but you must keep an eye on the Yahoo Groups to find out where:) Bob Ayars

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7 editor s echelon Jochen s yodel Editor Dave Durkee I m devoting this entire issue to a long time friend and fellow racer and tourist, Jochen Ditterich. I first met Jochen in 1982 when I joined the RW Race Team. At that time, Jochen had already been an accomplished road racer. He didn t have to brag about it, he had the Master s State Championship medal to prove it. The story behind his epic win is one I cannot even begin to tell, but it did involve his seat or seatpost breaking during the race. Not being able to sit is a huge disadvantage! Only his natural ability and raw determination persevered, to eventually win the day. I was always 20 years younger than Jochen (funny how that happens), but I always remembered that when I looked at our time trial times at the Ada Time Trial results on Tuesdays (Yes - Time Trials Tuesday, Grattan Raceway on Thursday was a normal training regimen for road racers.) With the 20 year difference, our times were always about the same. Cover photo: Jochen on one of his very favorite rides: RAG- BRAI. Photo credit: Jim Steenwyk So my goal was always - always- to be as fast as Jochen 20 years later in my life. He was my inspiration. While I was about 26 years old, Jochen was turning those 15 mile times close to 36 minutes. That s 25 mph average folks. At the age of 46! That might not seem too fast nowadays, but remember we had steel framed bikes and no aero anything. Riding your regular road bike down in the drops. He was just that fast. And he could keep up a motoring pace for a long time. 24 Hour type of stuff. So I knew him mostly as a racer. Most know him as a avid tourist and cyclist. Whatever your memory may be, we hope you can share it with all of us at his Bon Voyage party on March 25th. It will be epic, as is the man. Dave Bon Voyage details in this issue! I want to thank several members for sending me some recent photos of Jochen, notably Bob Ayars and Jim Steenwyk. We ll get to those soon, but I thought I d start with a newspaper clipping I have. Jochen gave this clipping to me in 2008, when I re -joined the race team. It s from the Grand Rapids Press, dated June 9th, In those days, the Rapid Wheelmen ran the time trials in Ada on Tuesdays, then sent the results to the GR Press for publication the next day. Forthwith: Jochen got me that day by over a minute. But both of us beat Mike Krywanski, a fact that Jochen was proud to point out to Mike if he ever saw him. Later Mike would become a nationally ranked Master racer, but at one time both Mike and I attended the School of Jochen. Jochen mentored many riders, including RW Racers on this list - John Olen, Nathan Jarrett, Sue Fry, and Elliot Cohen. Sue held the women s TT record for almost 10 years at 37:10. Notice that almost the whole Obermeyer family attended, as they often ran the TTs. Continued.

8 Jochen s yodel Jochen continued One of the only good pictures I have of Jochen from the 1980s. We were at a race about the Summer of He s wearing a Rotary cap from the Rockford club, of which he was a member. The kid is his son Kirk. Kirk is wearing a Fisk Knob Time Trial tee-shirt, likely from that year s annual Spring classic that the RW ran for years. Kirk was a junior racer on our team at the time. Looks like the same day as above, and Jochen is making the rounds. He s talking to one of our newer junior racers at the time, John Segard. In the foreground is Ken Mange. Ken was an excellent 24 hour marathon rider and very knowledgeable road racer. Jochen would later help Ken and Dean Witt open the Speed Merchants bike shop in Rockford. The Speed Merchants shop still stands at its original location in Rockford with the same name. You can blame Jochen for all the success the shop has had over many years. I probably spent more time with Jochen s son Kirk than I did with Jochen. I remember at least two times I hauled Kirk off to a bike race somewhere. After a while, I kept asking myself Why isn t Jochen taking him to these races? I think eventually I realized it was because I let Kirk play anything on the radio he wanted. On the left is Kirk at a race in Windsor. He s wearing the typical yellow/black skin suit that we all had at the time. I look back on that time about how much I enjoyed working with Kirk, and helping Jochen out with him when I could.

9 Jochen s yodel Jochen continued Every time I look at this picture of Jochen and myself, I have to chuckle. The caption I wrote at the time says Kirk took this picture, and I remember he did. As you can see, it s very out of focus. But it s the only good picture I have of Jochen and I together. I don t blame Kirk as much as myself, for not telling him how to focus a manually focused camera. We re standing in a residential area in Rockford, sometime around the time of the Cat 3 race. Rockford had a criterium race for many years, and as you may guess, Jochen had a lot to do with those races too. The Mac Attack, circa Some nut had the crazy idea to have a 4 man team time trial race from Mt. Pleasant to Mackinaw City miles - and no - there were no rest stops. We picked up our drink and food in musette bags as we waved to our support crew on the way up. Your crazy RW riders included, left to right, Don Eeningenberg, Jochen, John Whiteman (red jersey behind me), and myself. We were like a well oiled machine until I bonked near mile 85. Since we only needed three guys to finish, I dropped out. Later Jochen told me that he really thought he was going to be the one to drop out, but I ruined his plans. Good thing he s such a strong rider. But I m still not sure if he ever forgave me for being so weak! Good thing he s my friend - uh - I think.

10 Jochen s yodel Jochen continued Here s some more recent photos sent to me from Bob Ayars and Jim Steenwyk. I m sure there are stories here too.

11 Jochen s yodel Jochen continued Bob Ayars says - Jochen and his tent Bag Balm - Grover Hill Jim Steenwyk sent this picture, which I think he likes as he s ahead of Jochen on this climb. Look at Jochen s perfect riding form. That s what 5,000 miles a year for many years can do for you!

12 Jochen s yodel Jochen continued Silver Lake If you didn t know better, you d say Jochen loves riding RAGBRAI the way he keeps wearing that jersey. Grand Haven As much as Jochen likes riding, he liked riding with people he enjoyed the best. Here s a pic from several years ago including many RW members that were good company and good conversation. We hope Jochen will visit often, so he can do this again many times.

13 Jochen s yodel Jochen continued Bag Balm - Day 2 Thanks to Jim Steenwyk for the picture.

14 Jochen s yodel Jochen continued Jochen s Bon Voyage Party Most people who have been in the Rapid Wheelmen for any amount of time may know Jochen Ditterich. He s been in the club for so many years it s hard to count. He has served as RW President, Safety Chair, and some other leadership positions that I may not know about. Jochen is a volunteer who can always be counted on. He s been volunteering at almost every Rapid Wheelmen Time Trial for many years, and he also volunteers at all the club invitationals including the 100 Grand, Maple Leaf, and Colorburst. He s been a fixture at the 24 Hour Challenge, and helped at Grattan. Jochen was on the Rapid Wheelmen Race Team and also organized weekly club rides for many years. Jochen is known for his rides always leaving on time. Those who have been around longer than I have could probably add lots of examples to this list. As many of you know, Jochen has decided to move to Reno, Nevada to be near his children. He expects to leave sometime April. After his many years of service and friendship to the club, the Rapid Wheelmen would like to throw him a going away party. I hope you will be able to attend to let Jochen know how much his friendship and service to the club has meant to you. Cedar Springs Brewing Company 95 North Main Cedar Springs, MI (located near the White Pine Trailhead) (616) 696-BEER CSBrew.com Sunday March 25 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. In the Bavarian Room The club will pay for appetizers. You will be responsible for your own drinks. You may also order food from the menu at your own expense. The restaurant offers sandwiches and German fare as is appropriate for our German friend. I will provide a cake. Please RSVP for this event so that we have an idea of how many might attend. It will make food planning much easier. You can me at carolynpeacock@charter.net or call at (616) Thanks. Carolyn Chapman

15 club notes Bag Balm Ride - From Terry Vanderkolk - Bag Balm is a ride from Rockford to Cadillac and back on Memorial Day weekend. It is supported by a SAG vehicle with all the supplies you need. These include water, Gatorade, Coke, lemonade, cookies, brownies, Aussie Bites, Ensure, an assortment of fruit and anything else I can think to throw in. Lunch is provide on Saturday and Sunday. Pizza for dinner Saturday evening. Staying at the Days Inn in Cadillac. The fee is $110. What a deal! Registration information will follow closer to the date. More information about Bag Balm. Registration will begin with the April edition of the newsletter. This ride is not for the casual rider. You must be able to ride at a steady 15 mph for 115 miles. The ride is on the White Pine Trail for only a short time each morning and then is primarily on quiet secondary roads. The fee includes all the food and snacks you will need. Any further questions contact me Terry, at terryvk1945@gmail.com

16 club notes TIME TRIAL VOLUNTEERS NEEDED The Rapid Wheelmen Ada Time Trials are one of the best benefits of being a Rapid Wheelmen member. We have the free event every week from the first Monday in May until the last Monday of August with the exception of Memorial Day. (Must be a Rapid Wheelmen member to participate but may join at the event.) The event is open to members of all ages and all cycling abilities. Generally, we recommend that the member be able to ride the 15 mile course in around 60 minutes at most, but we make allowances for special exceptions. We run the event each Monday with a small crew of about 6-8 volunteers. If you multiply 8 volunteers by 16 time trials per season, that means we have about 128 volunteer positions to fill. Many of our wonderful volunteers help multiple times so that makes my job easier. This year our long time Counter, Jochen Ditterich, will be moving to Reno so that opens up about 16 slots to fill. Also, we are in need of more volunteers who can tabulate the Results at the finish line and fill out a spreadsheet to submit for on-line publication. We also need more people doing Signs. If you are interested in helping with any of these, let me know. If you are more interested in another position, we are in need of more new volunteers so that we don t wear out our current volunteers. We would love to have you join the crew in any position you would like! Here are descriptions of possible volunteer positions: REGISTRATION: This volunteer helps participants register for the event. It includes taking money for joining the Rapid Wheelmen, making sure participants fill out their liability releases, and assigning a start number for the rider. This position is mostly filled by our Time Trials Coordinator, Dave Durkee. Dr. Dave will need a few vacation weeks this summer so we will need help then. It is recommended to be able to arrive by about 5:15 p.m. to start registration and be able to stay until about 6:30 p.m. This is a good position to have if you want to ride in the Time Trials. HOLDER: This volunteer holds the participants bike up at the start line and releases the participant when the counter gives the signal. It s not difficult but requires a minimum amount of strength. The Holder may choose to race in the Time Trials by going last. We may have this position pretty much filled for the summer, but we can always use back up in case a volunteer has a schedule conflict. The Holder may be able to race in the Time Trials by going last. The Holder is needed from about 6:15 p.m. until around 7:00 p.m. COUNTER: This volunteer is responsible for making sure that each rider starts at 30 second intervals. Additionally, the volunteer must make sure that the rider number matches the start time on a spreadsheet. The volunteer needs to be focused on starting each rider at the right time as necessary to correctly score the rider s finish time. NEED: High. We have a lot of open slots for this position. This volunteer may also ride in the Time Trials by going last. The Counter is needed from about 6:15 p.m. until around 7:00 p.m. SEQUENCER/STOP WATCH CLICKER: This volunteer makes sure each rider lines up to the start line in the proper order and on time. The sequencer also records the rider s finish time by clicking the stop watch as the rider crosses the finish line. This position requires attention and focus also as sometimes there are several participants crossing the finish line at the same time. It s helpful if the stop watch clicker can identify the riders to avoid confusion when traffic is too loud to hear the rider s number, for example. The Sequencer/Clicker is needed from about 6:15 p.m. until around 7:45 p.m. usually. SIGNS AND CONES: This volunteer places the signs and cones on the course prior to the start of the Time Trials and removes them after everyone has finished. This is the perfect volunteer position for someone who wants to race in the Time Trials as all your work is before and after the Time Trials. Generally, it is recommended to put the signs and cones out by about 5:15 5:30 and remove them around 7:30 7:45 if all the riders are off the course. We like to fill this position with someone who can commit to 3 or 4 weeks in a row as it is necessary to keep the signs and cones in your possession until the end of your commitment. WEB RESULTS: This person posts Time Trial results on the web and to social media. This position is filled currently. FINISH LINE RESULTS: This person records the racers finish times on paper as the racers cross the finish line. After every racer has crosses the finish line, the volunteer reads the raw results to any remaining participants in the parking lot. Finally, the volunteer enters the raw results into a spreadsheet and submits them for publication. It is not required, but the Results volunteer may also choose to write a summary of the Time Trial for that evening for publication. This person should have good attention to detail on spelling of names and data entry. The Results volunteer is needed from around 6:15 p.m. until around 7:45 p.m. Data entry will also be required after returning to your home and the spreadsheet is expected to be submitted on Monday night. While the commitment for this position is demanding, we don t usually expect the Results person to volunteer more than 3 or 4 times a season. ON CALL PERSON: This volunteer gives his/her name as someone who can be called to fill a missing position due to a last minute conflict. We usually have several people on call for each week. For the most part, we use the on call person to go to the turn-around in case of a record attempt, but we may ask if you are available to fill in for a volunteer who can t make it at the last minute. We will work around your schedule, and you will always be given the choice to help or not depending on your availability. We usually know if we need one of the one call persons at least a day or two before the Time Trial. WE NEED HELP. CALL OR NOW. Carolyn Chapman, Volunteer Recruiter, carolynpeacock@charter.net or (616) I d be glad to answer any questions you may have.

17 club notes Volunteer Opportunities

18 club notes Tuesday s Trail Ride 2018 & Yoga Mark your calendars!! Starting May 1 through September 4 Day Ride: 10am to start, (as the weather warms may move to 9am) Mileage: Varies Locations: MOVES EACH WEEK; Look for Special Locations & Dates Location: Fred Meijer White Pine Trail - Comstock Park Trailhead on Mill Creek Ave behind Vitalles; Moderate/Flat Terrain DATES: May 1; June 26; August 21 **Special Location: Leelanau Trail near Traverse City at Cherry Bend Staging Area; May 29 Location: Fred Meijer Standale Trail at Walker Sports Complex Ice & Fitness Center on Remembrance Rd; Moderate Terrain DATES: May 8; July 10; August 28 Location: Forest Hills Trail at Roselle Park Trailhead on Grand River Ave; Hilly Terrain DATES: May 15; July 17 Location: Grand Haven TBD??; Moderate/Flat Terrain DATES: May 22; July 24 **Special Location: Sleeping Bear Trail near Glen Phillip Hart Visitor Center; July 3 Location: Musketawa Trail at Marne Trailhead on 8th Ave; Flat Terrain DATES: June 5; July 31 Location: Greenville at Fred Meijer Hartland Trail at Greenville Staging Area; Moderate Terrain DATES: June 12; August 7 Location: Holland TBD?? at Fred Meijer Kenowa Trail. Upper Macatawa Greenway Trail; Moderate Terrain DATES: June 19; August 14 **Special Location: Betsy Valley Trail at Beulah Trailhead Visitor Center; September 4 Contact: Jessica Crawford call/text SPECIAL NOTES: Rides require, at minimum, an appropriate bike in good working order, water and a helmet. We suggest a spare tube, energy food, maybe a little cash in case we stop, and your biggest smile! Many rides are held subject to weather; please dress appropriately for weather. It's a good idea to confirm dates, time and location. SPECIAL, SPECIAL NOTE: At the half way point for those interested we ll stop to do a little Yoga.We'll see you out there be safe and have fun!

19 classified ads For Sale Bianchi Axis CX Bike Excellent shape, 55 cm. Contact Bill Thompson at Trek T200 Tandem Steel, lite lilac beauty, needs a home. Size is about 56 / 50, but the rear is very adjustable. Full pannier braze-ons front and rear. Cross country touring machine. Pictures upon request. Price reduced greatly for quick sale! Contact Dave Durkee at $700! davedurkeeod@gmail.com

20 bike shops Alger Bikes th St. S.W. Grand Rapids, MI (616) Central District Cyclery 1309 Plainfield Ave NE Grand Rapids, MI (616) Freewheeler Bike Shop 915 Leonard Street NW Grand Rapids, MI (616) GRBC (Ada Bike Shop) 597 Ada Drive Ada, MI (616) Village Cycle & Fitness 450-A Baldwin Jenison, MI (616) Village Cycle & Fitness 5991 Kalamazoo Ave SE Grand Rapids, MI (616) Village Cycle & Fitness 2844 Thornapple River Drive SE Cascade, MI (616) Village Cycle & Fitness 5278 Plainfield Ave NE Grand Rapids, MI (616) West Michigan Bike & Fitness 2830 East Paris Ave SE Kentwood, MI (616) West Michigan Bike & Fitness 4300 Chicago Dr. SW Grandville, MI (616) GRBC 1311 Fulton St E Grand Rapids, MI (616) GRBC 1200 East Paris SE Grand Rapids, MI (616) Speed Merchants 106 E. Bridge St. Rockford, MI (616)

21 Rapid Wheelmen PO Box 1008 Grand Rapids, MI Support your club, ride in club colors! Items will be available for purchase at club meetings and events. t-shirts - $12 shorts - $65 bib shorts - $70 jersey - $60 water bottle - $5 or 2 for $8 To arrange a purchase, contact: Randy Higgins: treasurer@rapidwheelmen.com Groups Join the Rapid Wheelmen Yahoo Group! Like us