NBCC

NEW BERN CENTURY CYCLISTS

Eastern North Carolina

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This website has but one purpose: To encourage cyclists of all ages in the New Bern NC area to cycle a Century trip and to give recognition to those that have done so.

Why? So we can get cyclists together for monthly Century trips weather permitting. Having a large group of cyclists makes the trip easier and more enjoyable. If you've never ridden with a group of riders it's time for you to discover something new about cycling.

Visitors since 3/6/02

What's a Century trip? It is a rite of passage for all serious cyclists to be able to say that they have cycled a trip of 100 miles in a single day, usually within 5 to 8 hours. Others say one has to be crazy to ride 100 miles. 

Why ride a Century? Because of the challenge! The mere thought of being on a bike for some 5 to 8 hours impresses sedentary folks but anyone can ride a Century that is healthy and prepares for it. I'm 79 and have cycled 56 Century trips since age 67. It's great fun and excellent aerobic exercise. Overweight? You'll burn several thousand calories each trip!

What does one need to do to prepare for a Century? Cycle, cycle cycle! The more you cycle on a routine basis the easier it is to ride a Century. If after riding your bike for 10 miles your legs are sore you're obviously not ready for a 100 miles. You should be able to knock off  at least 25 miles with no pain before attempting 100.

Do I need a special bike? It's going to be hard pedaling an old one-speed heavy bike with fat tires but I'm not going to put down any bike except to say that the trip will be much easier and faster if you have a lightweight roadbike. What's a roadbike? You won't find one at Wal-Mart. It's a bike with a lightweight alloy, aluminum or carbon fiber frame, drop handlebars and very skinny tires (appx. 700mm x 23mm). Prices start in the hundreds and go to the thousands. Many folks have popular mountain bikes nowadays. They'll make the 100 miles but they won't keep up with roadbikes. You guessed it! I'm a roadbike nut...

 Why join the NBCC? It costs nothing and simply places you on an e-mail list to be notified when a Century or any other shorter trip is planned so that you may join the group. It also permits you to send messages to all members by addressing your message to nbcc@XXXalways-online.com (remove XXX). Send your request to Dave Wallace at davewallace@XXXsuddenlink.net (remove XXX). The e-mail list will be sent only to members that are on it. 

Where does a Century trip go? Wherever you or a member that plans the trip wants it to go. The monthly trips that we have been taking over the past few years have departed from River Bend and go to Trenton,  then to Beulaville where we have lunch at Hardees or McDonalds. After lunch we cycle to Fountaintown, Catherine Lakes, Richlands, Trenton and back to River Bend. See mileage chart you can print out. Besides lunch we usually take about 4 short rest stops at stores along the way. Ordinarily we depart on a Sunday morning at 8 AM and return by 3:30 PM. Saddle time is around 6 1/2 hours with the remaining time for lunch and rest stops. Average overall saddle speed usually ranges from 14.5 -16.5 mph depending on the wind. A group of cyclists always makes better time by taking turns "pulling the group" while others draft behind. You'll be surprised at the difference drafting makes. 

How can I be added to the Century Trip Recognition list?  It's easy, provided you live in the vicinity of New Bern NC where you'll be able to cycle with us occasionally. Just complete a Century trip and have it verified by another member. Send your request to Dave Wallace at davewallace@XXXsuddenlink.net(remove XXX). As you complete more Century trips send in update info. (By the way it is not the intent of this web page to record century trips of cyclists all over the country)

Dave Wallace 

NBCC CENTURY TRIP RECOGNITION

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OTHER CYCLING WEB PAGES

ANNOUNCEMENTS

(Scroll to the bottom for the latest narratives of trips. I try to keep approximately one year of narratives)

Fifteen Riders: Send any corrections. I may be missing someone. Riders on the 35-mile Jasper loop  were Mac Flyte, Bill Sadler, Millard Godwin, Gordon Carberry, Beverly Rust, John Klecker, Merrill & Diane Edington, Cliff Blackwell, Tim Sargent, Victor & Katie Romano (I don't think they're both Romano's yet as they plan to be married in October). Joining the paceline in River Bend was Gary & Amy Bielejeski and Dave Wallace. The pace was too fast for me so I didn't keep up with the front group. At times there were several groups ahead.  My cumulative saddle average at the 70 overpass, Jasper, and River Bend was 17.3, 18.3, 17.3 ending with a group of 4 riders.  Riders ahead were out of sight.

Dave Wallace 6/22/08

Fourteen Riders: Riders on the 35-mile Jasper loop (26 from River Bend) were Flythe, Sadler, Godwin, Carberry, Klecker, Blackwell, Bowman, Rust, Romano, Hanes and new rider Mike Daugherty visiting from MD. Meeting them in RB was Amy and Gary Bielejeski and Dave Wallace. I dropped back to accompany Victor Romano and Katie Hanes who were lagging behind at Rhems so we never saw the group except at rest stops. Our saddle average at Jasper was 15.3 and overall 14.9 as recorded from River Bend. It was a nice ride not having to chase after cyclists. Millard Godwin reported that some cyclists had inquired at Flythe's shop if a slower group existed Sunday morning.  If anyone is interested in running at 16-17mph from RB I'll be happy to drop back with them. 

Dave Wallace 6/29/08

Six Riders: It was raining early Sunday morning but cleared in time for the 35-miile Jasper loop but only two riders showed up to depart from Flythe's shop in New Bern: Travis Bowman and Bill Sadler. Meeting them in River Bend were Gary & Amy Bielejeski, Philippe Lafargue and Dave Wallace. Saddle average from RB to 70, Jasper and RB was 19, 18.6 and 17.5. It was a good ride and except for Travis, the group stayed together for most of the trip. By the way, a large bear crossed the road ahead of us as we approached NC 55 going to Jasper.

Dave Wallace 7/6/08

Sixteen Riders: Riders on the 35-mile Jasper loop (26-miles from River Bend) were Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, Millard Godwin, Gordon Carberry, John Klecker, Cliff Blackwell, Travis Bowman, Victor Romano, Katie Hanes, Tim Sargent, Coleen & Steve Decker and Dave Livingston. Meeting the paceline in River Bend were Philippe Lafargue, Bill Dickerson and myself. I dropped back to accompany Bill Dickerson who recently has a hip replacement but he decided to drop out before Rhems so I didn't catch up with the group until the rest stop at the US-70 overpass. My cumulative saddle average from RB to the overpass, Jasper and back to RB was 16.9, 17.3 and 18 mph. . I returned in the "B" group of 7 cyclists. The other 8 were ahead out of sight. When we have a large number of cyclists the group seems to never stay together. We had great weather.

Dave Wallace - 7/13/08 

Bill Sadler later reported the following saddle averages from New Bern. My averages were from River Bend. I had not even realized that 3 groups had formed. We're sure getting faster!

"The Sunday 7-13-08 35 mile bicycle ride had the fast group finish the ride at an average pace of 19.7 MPH the next group came in at 19.3 MPH and the final group averaged 18.9 MPH.."   

Bill Sadler - 7/14/08

Eleven Riders: Riders departing New Bern on the 35-mile Jasper loop were Mac Flythe, Gordon Carberry, Tim McLear, Cliff Blackwell, Beverly Rust, Travis Bowman and Ben Rauch. Joining the paceline in River Bend was Amy & Gary Bielejeski, Philippe Lafargue and myself. Seeing that Ben Rauch was unable to maintain the pace, I dropped back to ride with him following the US-70 overpass rest stop. My cumulative saddle average from RB to the rest stop, Jasper and return to RB was 19.0, 17.5 and 16.5 mph. We ran into rain on & off for the whole trip but it felt good on such a hot day. 

Dave Wallace - 7/20/08

About 50 Riders: The Multiple Sclerosis MS BIKE tour training ride was held at Craven Community College on Saturday and about 50 riders showed up. Many were from New Bern whom I'd never seen before so I passed out NBCC cards. The ride was supported with a rest stop and consisted of either a 19 or 47 mile route. It was supposed to start at 9:30 AM but most cyclists departed early so there was no organized group ride. I was the last to depart and passed lots of lone single riders and very few groups along the 19 mile route and was among the first to arrive back at the college about 10:40 AM. Too bad there was no attempt to train riders in group riding which is what the MS BIKE tour with 2000 cyclists is all about.

Dave Wallace - 7/27/08

Photo sent of Dave & Amy Bielejeski by Gary Bielejeski,

Twelve Riders: The following is from Tim McLear. I'm sorry to hear about the crash. It's the first one for the group that I can recall, other than Millard going down after hitting the killer storm grate on Pollock St. I helped edit the names in red below. Not sure who the other Tim is. It might have been Tim Tabak, age 50, riding a Kane bike who lives New Bern. 

Thirteen Riders: The following riders departed from New Bern at 8:30 AM on the 35-mile Jasper loop ride: Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, John Klecker, Tim McLear, Victor Romano, Katie Hanes, Travis Bowman and Merle & Dianne Edington. Meeting the paceline in River Bend was Amy & Gary Bielejeski, Philippe Lafargue and myself. We had just gotten less than a mile down Tuscarora Rd with the group moving along at 18-20 when Gary's front wheel touched a bike in front and Gary lost control and went down. John Klecker then hit Gary's bike and went down. Gary's helmet was broken and he received a head injury with bleeding and possibly a shoulder injury. John's injury was mainly to his shoulder. 911 was called and a First Responder arrived out of Rhems/RB area in about 10 minutes. A passerby provided a towel to help stop Gary's bleeding as he remained conscious the whole time. An ambulance finally arrived and took Gary and John to the hospital. The First Responder took the Bielejeski's and Klecker's bikes to Bielejeski's home in River Bend. The trip was cancelled and cyclists returned to New Bern or River Bend. This was the second accident the group has ever had (Carberry last Sunday). Mac Flythe and I agreed that it was probably attributed to (1) more riders in the group than in the past and (2) cycling at faster speeds. Later I learned that both Carberry and Bielejeski were using aerobars at the time which I don't think are a good idea in a paceline.

    On the plus side Mac Flythe just announced (1) that he quit smoking and (2) that he finally broke down and bought a Lightning P-38 recumbent which he was sporting today. I don't know if there's a connection between the two but Mac is certainly going to need lots more more wind on his lightweight fast P-38. We may never catch him now. His P-38 is yellow.

Dave Wallace 8/3/08

UPDATE 8/4/08 

Bielejeski: 3-5 cracked ribs. Shoulder blade and collar bone fractured. Chipped hip bone. Staples in head wound caused by helmet.

Klecker: 2 broken ribs, separated shoulder, partially collapsed lung and a leg bruise. 

Nine Riders: On the 35-mile Jasper loop: Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, Bill Sadler, Merle & Dianne Edington, Tim Sargent, Cliff Blackwell and Travis Bowman. I joined the paceline in River Bend. My cumulative saddle average to the 70 overpass, Jasper and return to RB was 18.1, 17.9 and 17.5. Philippe Lafargue was missed and everyone thought he had taken up ballroom dancing after the crash last Sunday but I told them he'd be back next Sunday. Except for Travis that we see every now and then, the group stayed together pretty much until we hit Clarks Rd where we broke up into twos and threes as usual. Mac Flythe had to make his new P-38 Bent look good so he took off like a bandit on Clarks Rd. 

Dave Wallace - 8/10/08

Eight Riders:  Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, Bill Sadler, Tim McLear, Eric Mills, Ben Bunn and Travis Bowman departed New Bern at 8:30 AM Sunday and were met by Dave Wallace in River Bend for the 35-mile Jasper ride. Eric and Ben were welcomed as new riders. Except for Travis the group stayed together most of the time and my recorded cumulative saddle average from River Bend to the 70 overpass, Jasper and back was 18.3, 18.4, 17.6. Weather was a bit warm but not bad as long as we kept moving. It was a good ride.

Dave Wallace - 8/17/08

Seventeen Riders:  Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, Bill Sadler, Tim McLear, John Klecker, Eric Mills, Ben Bunn, Tim Sargent, Nancy Alexander, Merle & Dianne Edington, and Travis Bowman departed New Bern at 8:30 AM for the 35-mile Jasper loop. Meeting the paceline in River Bend were Amy Bielejeski, Carol Stanton (Amy's sister), Philippe Lafargue, Mark Masser (President of NB Outdoor Adventure Club) and Dave Wallace. First-time  riders were Nancy Alexander, Carol Stanton and Mark Masser. It's always a fast ride when we have so many cyclists and the group usually breaks up. Millard and I were alone returning from Clarks. A group was ahead of us and another one behind us and both were out of sight My cumulative saddle average to the 70 overpass, Jasper store and River Bend was 18.5, 18.4 and 17.9. It was nice having John Klecker back so soon after his crash on 8/3 (see above).  

Dave Wallace - 8/24/08

Fourteen Riders:  Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, Tim McLear, John Klecker, Tim Sargent, Merle & Dianne Edington, Cliff Blackwell, Beverly Rust, Gordon Carberry and Elliott Marks departed New Bern at 8:30 AM for the 35-mile Jasper loop. Meeting the paceline in River Bend were Philippe Lafargue, Leigh Epps and Dave Wallace. First-time  riders with the group were Elliot and Leigh, both visiting from the Raleigh area. My cumulative saddle average from River Bend to the US-70 overpass, Jasper and back to RB was 17.3, 17.2, 17.2. The group broke up upon leaving River Bend and I cycled the entire trip with Rust, Epps and Carberry. We have many fast riders nowadays. Perhaps someone will report what their saddle average is by sending a message to nbcc@always-online.com

Dave Wallace 8/31/08

Sixteen Riders:  Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, Millard Godwin, Tim McLear, John Klecker, Tim Sargent, Merle & Dianne Edington, Cliff Blackwell, Gordon Carberry, Eric Mills, Randy Allen (Jax), Ron Lather, Cliff Parson and Tim Stewart departed New Bern at 8:30 AM for the 35-mile Jasper loop. I met the paceline at River Bend. First-time  riders with the group were Lather, Parsons and Stewart. My cumulative saddle average from River Bend to the US-70 overpass, Jasper and back to RB was 19.1, 18.3, 18.1. We're lucky the group didn't crash on the way to Jasper as a three-legged dog got mixed up in the group and I believe got sprayed by Flythe. The group broke up returning on Clarks Rd into 3 or more groups as usual.

Dave Wallace 9/7/08

Twenty NBCC Century Riders on the 2008 MS Bike Tour: The MS Bike Tour was held on September 13, 14, 2008 with 2200 registered cyclists. Routes were 30, 75 and 100 each day. Special congratulations go to double Century riders Millard Godwin, Bill Sadler and Cliff Blackwell.

Other Century riders were Mac Flythe, Tim McLear, Susan Hamilton, John Jaskolka, Amy Bielejeski, Nancy Alexander, Leigh Epps, Cassandra Crowder, Kevin Reynolds, Joanne Somerday, Katie Hanes, Victor Romano, John Williams (MD), Mark Masser, Dave Schnorenberg, Ben Bunn and Dave Wallace. It was a tough ride with temperature 92-degrees on Saturday and 96 on Sunday. You can see my statistics, a narrative and photos of the tour on my MS web page at http://pages.suddenlink.net/davew/2008ms-150.htm

Congratulations to all the folks above that cycled their very first Century trip and others that cycled the 75-mile routes.

Dave Wallace 9/16/08 (Sat. Start photo)

Six Riders:  Well, I guess the MS Bike Tour last weekend took it's toll on the Sunday ride because there were only 6 cyclists : Bill Sadler, John Klecker, Tim Sargent, Cliff Blackwell, Philippe LaFargue and I'm guessing Jim Preis. Jim wrote to me on the 18th inquiring about group rides when visiting his parents in New Bern and I suggested he join the Flythe group. It sure was a fast trip because John Klecker reported that Tim, Cliff, Jim and himself arrived back at the bike shop with a 19.7 mph saddle average. Bill Sadler reported he ran into Joanne Somerday along the way and rode back with her. 

Dave Wallace - 9/21/08

Seven Riders:  We missed several of our regular riders this weekend that left Saturday to cycle the trip across NC ( CNC see http://www.ncsports.org/cncevent1.php). This morning Mac Flythe, Cliff Blackwell and John Williams (CA) departed New Bern at 8:50 AM and were met in River Bend by Gary and Amy Bielejeski, Philippe Lafargue and myself. It was nice seeing Gary back so soon after the terrible bike crash in August. It was a fast trip today with my cumulative saddle average from River Bend showing at 18.6, 18.2, 18.4 at the Overpass, Jasper and River Bend. The group broke up 4 & 3 returning on Clarks Rd as usual. Gary had a flat before arriving at Jasper that took about 10 minutes to repair. 

Dave Wallace - 9/29/08

Eight Riders:  Several of our riders were missing again after cycling across NC and arriving at Oak Island Saturday. This morning we had Mac Flythe, Merle Edington, Millard Godwin,  Randy Allen and new member Steve Allert. Meeting the paceline in River Bend was Dan Sosa, Philippe Lafargue and myself. Allen, Allert and Sosa were all from JAX. The paceline came through River Bend at about 21-22mph so Dan Sosa and I decided not to chase after them. Further down Tuscararo Rd, Millard Godwin caught up with us after being left behind leaving New Bern. The group got back together from the overpass rest stop to Jasper but returning home broke up 4/4 with Mac, Millard, Dan and myself in the slower group. My recorded overall saddle average from River Bend was 17.7 mph. The fast lead group surely must have averaged 20 mph or more. 

Congratulations to those NBCC members that I'm aware of that rode the Cycle North Carolina (CNC) 400+ mile trip from Black Mountain to Oak Island south of Wilmington: Bill Sadler, Tim McLear, John Klecker, Joanne Somerday and Mark Masser. 

Dave Wallace - 10/5/08

Eight Riders:  I missed this trip in beautiful, but windy weather but heard that 8 riders made it on the 35-mile Jasper loop. Was told it broke into two groups of four at Tuscarora Rd and that Mac Flythe, Cliff Blackwell, Philippe LaFargue, Merle & Dianne Edington, Carol Stanton, Tim McLear and probably Tim Sargent were the 8 riders.

Dave Wallace  - 10/12/08

Five Riders: Tim McLear, John Klecker, Bill Sadler, Amy Bielejeski and myself departed from the River Bend Shell station at 8 AM on Friday 10/17 and completed a 30-mile Trenton trip. We stopped for breakfast in Trenton and returned via QuakerNeck country club. It was a fast trip with an overall saddle average of 18.5 mph. 

Dave Wallace - 10/17/08

Seven Riders: There were seven cyclists who rode the Rhems-Tuscarora-Jasper Loop this morning. Tim McLear, Merle and Dianne Edington, John Klecker, Bill Sadler, and I left Flythe's Bike Shop and were met by Philippe Lafargue at Riverbend. I failed to check my computer along the route. It was windy and cool. We had head wind most of the way except from Jasper to US 17. It seems the wind shifted direction during our ride. After Clarks, we broke into two group as usual. I had an overall average of 16.8, but I suspect the faster group returning from Clarks was higher.

Millard Godwin - 10/19/08

Eight (to nine) Riders: Great weather for the Sunday 35-mile Jasper loop with starting temp close to 60.  Departing New Bern were Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, Bill Sadler, Tim McLear, Merle Edington and Steve Adams. Meeting the paceline in River Bend were Philippe Lafargue and Dave Wallace. Welcome to Steve Adams, a retired Marine who joined the group. Dianne Edington also rejoined the group leaving Jasper after she had to drop out at the start because of a shoe problem. From River Bend I recorded 18.6 saddle average but overall 17.6 after dropping out of the paceline to join Mac and Millard on the return trip. 

Dave Wallace - 10/26/08

Eight Riders: The following eight cyclists rode the Jasper loop this beautiful Sunday morning. Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, Bill Sadler, John Klecker, Tim Stewart, Steve Adams, Philippe Lafargue and myself. Joining the paceline in River Bend, I recorded a saddle average of 17.8 at the 70 overpass stop, 18.1 at Jasper and 16.9 overall. I dropped out of the paceline returning to join Millard at a slower pace. On Clarks Rd, as usual, the group broke up 4/2/2. 

Dave Wallace - 11/2/08

Thirteen Riders: More great weather so we had a good turnout. From New Bern: Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, John Klecker, Tim Stewart, Chris Blackwell, Carol Stanton, Nancy Alexander and Merle & Dianne Edington. Joining the paceline in River Bend: Joanne Somerday, Leigh Epps (Raleigh), Mark Masser and myself. The group never stayed together going or returning but met at two rest stops. I returned with Epps, Alexander, Stanton and Masser and my overall saddle average from River Bend was 16.5 mph. We rode a rotating double paceline line returning which I've posted below again so everyone will know how it works:

Rotating double paceline:

Dave Wallace 11/9/08

Nine Riders:  Too cold and windy for me this Sunday morning. Where was chief polar bear Millard Godwin? Also I heard  from Steve Adams that he had a surgical procedure Thursday and will be down for a couple weeks or so. dw

John Klecker writes: We had Merle and Diane, Tim Sargent, Tim McLear, Cliff, Mac, Bill and myself from the bike shop and Phillipe from River Bend.  Not sure what the average speed was because my computer needs a battery.  It was about 48 degrees and windy but a good ride.
Thanks,
John Klecker 11/16/08

Six Riders: With starting temperature in the 30s it's hard to believe that 6 cyclists rode the 34-mile Jasper loop on this freezing Sunday morning. Cycling at 16mph at 35-degrees feels like 25-degrees. That doesn't sound like fun to me. But apparently it did to polar bears Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, Cliff Blackwell, Tim McLear and Merle and Dianne Edington. Nobody recorded average speed according to Bill Sadler. I bet it wasn't much over 16mph!

Lost my bet. Mac reported in later with 17.8 mph overall. Wow, pretty fast in such cold weather...

Dave Wallace 11/23/08

Zero Riders: Rain all Sunday morning on 11/30/08.

Dave Wallace - 11/30/08

Eight Riders: Too cold and windy for me on this Sunday morning but Dianne Edington reported that 8 cyclists braved the weather. Glad to see Steve Adams back after surgery. Dave Wallace                                                    

Six Riders: Starting temperature was about 40-degrees and expected to reach 50's so I joined the following 5 cyclists that departed New Bern for the 34-mile Jasper loop. Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, Tim McLear, John Klecker and Randy Allen (JAX). We were clipping along at 20-21 when about a mile from the 70 overpass Randy's heart monitor registered 240. I dropped out with Randy but we finally determined the monitor was not working properly. It was quite a scare. The group remained together from the overpass to the Jasper rest stop but thereafter broke up into three groups 2-2-2 and finally 2-4 with Tim and John ahead out of sight. I slowed the lagging group down since I had not cycled with the group for a month due to the weather. I recorded only 16.2 overall saddle average from River Bend. 

Dave Wallace 12-14-08

Three Riders: It looked too much like rain on the way for me to join the Flythe group this Sunday morning  but luckily it held off until 11 AM just as 3 riders returned to the bike shop. Here's Mac Flythe's report" dw

Six Riders: Starting temperature was in the 60s but only 6 cyclists showed up for the 34 mile Jasper ride. From New Bern: Bill Sadler, Cliff Blackwell, Randy Allen (Jax) and Nancy Alexander. Joining the paceline in River Bend was Philippe Lafargue and Dave Wallace. The group broke up 3-3 on the way to the 70 overpass stop but stayed together to Jasper. Returning we were together at times but leaving Clarks broke up 2-4 with Blackwell and Allen out of sight ahead. I remained in group B which averaged 15.3 overall from River Bend. It was a comfortable trip but quite windy returning which caused our saddle average to drop from 16.5 in Jasper. By the way, we saw Travis Bowman cycling in the opposite direction out of Clarks.

Dave Wallace 12/28/08

Eight Riders: It was a cool start at 45 degrees and looked like it might rain but 8 riders showed up for the 34 mile Jasper ride: Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, Millard Godwin, Cliff Blackwell, John Klecker and Nancy Alexander departed New Bern and were joined by Philippe Larfarge and myself in River Bend. We ran into light rain on Tuscarora Road and off and on for the whole trip but it was short lived and light. The group broke up several times 3 and 5 with Blackwell, Klecker and Lafargue leading. Overall from River Bend and return I recorded 15.1 saddle average, much slower than usual but an enjoyable ride. Nice to have Millard Godwin back after a long absence. 

We're very sorry to hear that John Randell passed away. John was a member of the Multiple Sclerosis Bike Tour Planning Committee and volunteered for many tasks. I understand John was age 64. 

Dave Wallace 1/4/09

There was no group rides on Sunday 1/11 or 1/18 due to inclement weather

Five Riders: It was a cold dreary start at 35 degrees and never got higher than about 42.  It was entirely too cold for me but Bill Sadler reported the following 5 polar bears made the 35-mile Jasper loop from New Bern: Bill Sadler, Mac Flythe, Tim McLear, Clifford Blackwell and John Klecker. Nice going guys. Almost a repeat of the ride mentioned above on 1/27/08. 

Dave Wallace 1/25/09

Four Riders: Too cold for a wimp like me. Here's what John Klecker wrote about 4 polar bears cycling the 35-mile Jasper loop.  (dw)

Four Riders: It was a cold start at 38-degrees and only Cliff Blackwell and John Klecker came from New Bern to meet Philippe Lafargue and myself in River Bend for the Jasper ride. Cliff and John went ahead alone at a speed too fast for me. Philippe dropped back and pulled me to the 70 overpass where we decided it was too cold and windy and returned to River Bend via US-70 and Clarks Rd for a total of 18.5 miles. The wind was relentless at times and the temperature never got higher than 42-degrees.  

Dave Wallace 2/15/09

Zero Riders: Mac Flythe reported that nobody showed up at 8:30 AM on Sunday for the 35-mile Jasper loop. Temperature was almost 60-degrees but the streets were wet and weather radar show lots of weather heading this way. But it never happened. Later, after the sun came out I cycled around River Bend but the wind was so bad I returned home. February has been a bad month. 

Dave Wallace 2-22-09. 

Zero Riders: Lots of rain washed out the 35-mile Jasper ride this Sunday. By the way, this may be my last posting for awhile as I'm going in for colon surgery on 3/5 and may be in the hospital for up to a week. I'll probably then be off my bike for several weeks recovering. But if you guys will send a report on your trips I'll try to post it as soon as I can.

Dave Wallace 3/1/09

Zero Riders: Lots of rain washed out the 35-mile Jasper ride this Sunday. 

Dave Wallace 3/15/09

Millard Godwin 4/12/09

??? Riders: The weather was absolutely fantastic but nobody reported who cycled the 35-mile Jasper loop on Sunday morning. My guess is there were so many riders that nobody knew the names of them all. I'm still out because of colon surgery on 3/5. Doc wants me off my bike until May 1, which is not too far off! I'm really getting cabin fever.

Dave Wallace 4/19/09  PS: later heard there were 12-14 riders.

Fifteen Riders: With starting temperature 70-degrees I knew we'd have a good turnout. Send e-mail if I have some names incorrect: Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, Bill Sadler, John Klecker, Philippe LafargueMerle & Diane Eddington, Travis Bowman, Nancy Alexander, Joanne Somerday, Steve Allert, Ryan Tuttle, Dave Wallace and two new guys, Chris Kelso and Dennis Luffey. It's hard to tell how many separate groups we broke into. Being back for the first time after surgery in March I hung back with the "B" group but returning home into heavy wind I think the last 5 of us were actually in the "C" or "D" group. My recorded cumulative saddle average from RB to the 70 overpass, Jasper and back to RB was 16, 16.5 & 15.7. I'm guessing the "A" group probably averaged 19 or better overall. 

Dave Wallace 5/3/09

Eleven Riders: A Mother's Day ride with 11 cyclists: Bill Sadler, Merle and Dianne Eddington, John Klecker, Philippe Lafargue, Cliff Blackwell, Tim Sargent, Beverly Rust, Travis Bowman, Dave Clark (Wash, NC) and myself. Going to Jasper I hung back in the "B" group with Bill Sadler and Beverly Rust. Returning it was just Bev and me and our cummulative saddle averge from RB to 70 overpass to Jasper and back to RB was 16.2, 16.2 and overall 16. In the future, if someone in the lead group will e-mail their overall saddle average right away I'll post it. 

Dave Wallace 5/10/09

Eight Riders: Well eight, if you want to include Travis Bowman whom we only see at rest stops. Otherwise there was Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, John Williams (MD), Steve Bengel, Dan Sosa (Jax), Bob Newsham (Richlands) and myself. I hung back with Dan and Bob most of the trip and our overall saddle average from River Bend was 15.7. Steve Bengel and Bob were new to the group. 

Dave Wallace 5/17/09

Ten Riders: Great weather for the 35-mile Jasper loop (26 from RB). New Bern riders: Mac Flythe, Cliff Blackwell, Steve Bengel,  Nancy Alexander and Travis Bowman. RB riders: Philippe Lafargue, Leigh Epps (visiting from Raleigh), first time riders John & Dianne Tom and myself. With the wind behind us I recorded a saddle average of 19.2 to the 70 overpass stop and 18.8 at Jasper. But back into the wind returning to RB brought the overall saddle average down to 16.8. On Clarks Rd, for a change, the group formed a double rotating paceline and stayed together all the way to Tuscarora Rd. We missed several of the usual cyclists today whom I suppose may have been out of town for Memorial Day. 

Dave Wallace 5/24/09

Eleven Riders: The weather was great for the 35-mile Jasper ride (26 from River Bend). Riders were Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, John Williams (MD), Steve Bengel, Tim McLear, John Klecker, Nancy Alexander, Philippe Lafargue, Chris Rossignol, Travis Bowman (rest stops only). and myself. Bill, Nancy, Chris and I made up a slower B group that had a 15.7 saddle overall from River Bend. Mac Flythe mentioned the lead group's saddle average was 18.3 at the Jasper rest stop. It was Chris Rossignol's first time riding with us and he ended up having to call someone to pick him up in Jasper after discovering a leaking tire valve.    

Dave Wallace 5/31/09

Ten Riders: Great weather again for the 35-mile Jasper loop (26 from RB). Riders were Mac Flythe, Millard Godwin, Bill Sadler, Merle & Diane Eddington, John Williams (MD), Tim Sargent, Tim McLear, Eric Mills and myself. I joined the paceline in River Bend and dropped back with Millard for a saddle average of 17.3 to the 70 overpass stop. All was going well until at 10.34 miles from RB on Dry Monia Rd a dog ran in front of me and I went down. I was told I was unconscious for 5-10 minutes until First Responders arrived. The next thing I recall was a medical person putting a bandage on my elbow. I felt fine and refused to be taken to the hospital but finally agreed to let the owner of the dog, Marcellus Brock, take me home. All is fine now except a sore swollen hip which I'm treating with an ice pack, a black eye and a little road rash here and there. Apparently I was the only one that went down. Sorry I missed the ride guys. Nice to see Eric back with us. 

Dave Wallace 6/7/09

Sixteen Riders: Another great day in the 70s for the 35-mile Jasper ride (26 from River Bend). Riders: Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, Millard Godwin, John Klecker, Merle & Dianne Eddington, Eric Mills, Nancy Alexander, Philippe Lafargue, Chris Rossignol, Randy Allen (Jax), Dan Sosa (Jax), Jonathan Irwin (New), Philippe Lafargue, Travis Bowman (rest stops only) and myself. 

Nancy, Chris, John Imbriaco, Dan, Millard and I made up a slower B group for most of the trip with a 16.2 overall saddle average from River Bend. Mac Flythe reported that the lead group's overall saddle average was 19.1 to the bike shop.Whew! Nice to have new cyclist Jonathan Irwin join us and have John Imbriaco back after a long absence for a knee replacement. 

Dave Wallace 6/14/09

Ten Riders: 10 riders showed up tonight. Ended up splitting into several groups. 6 riders stayed together until end. We did 32 miles at about 20.5 mph.  I had a max sprint at 36.9.  I'm trying to remember all the names..  Charles Fetzer, Ben Lindeman, Ryan Tuttle, Will ?, Johnny Edens, Scott ?, Jeree DeVisser, Steph Rynas, Brian Stoll, and myself. Good hard ride tonight.  Hopefully we'll get even more next week!
 
We'll be doing this ride every Tuesday.  Meet at the St Delights Church in Bridgeton. Roll out is 5:30 PM.

Pat Jacques 6/18/09

Eight Riders: Father's Day! Where were all the riders for the 35 mile Jasper loop? Mac Flythe,  Jonathan Irwin, Steve Adams, Mike Wagers and Travis Bowman departed New Bern at 8:30 AM and were met by Philippe Lafargue, John Imbriaco and myself at River Bend. Mike is John Imbriaco's son-in-law visiting from SC. It was also nice having Steve Adams back after surgery last year but he only cycled to the 70 overpass. I dropped back to cycle with John Imbriaco in the B group for most of the way for an overall saddle average of 15.9 from River Bend. Mac Flythe reported an overall saddle average of 18.3 mph for the A group.

Dave Wallace 6/21/09

PS: Thanks to Mike for the photo which I believe is on NC 55 after leaving Jasper. John is leading followed by Philippe, Dave, Mac and Jonathan

Fourteen Riders: Mac Flythe, Bill Sadler, Tim McLear, Tim Sargent, John Klecker, Nancy Alexander, Jonathan Irwin, John Williams (MD), and Steve Adams departed Flythe's bike shop at 8:30 AM for the 35 mile Jasper loop. Meeting them in River Bend was Philippe Lafargue, Gary Bielejeski, John Imbriaco, Jeremy LeRay and Dave Wallace. The slower B group consisted of John Imbriaco, Nancy Alexander and myself, accompanied by Bill Sadler and Steve Adams at times for an overall saddle average from River Bend of 16.9. Mac Flythe reported an overall saddle average of 20.1 for the A group. Bill Sadler had a flat on Tuscarora Road returning but repaired it about 6 minutes. It was great weather and a good ride.

Dave Wallace 6/28/09

Hey, if you're looking for someone to cycle with and you are a member send a message to nbcc@XXXalways-online.com (Remove XXX) telling folks when and where you'd like to go. After the trip send me a message and I'll post how it went and who joined in. That's what this club is all about. 

   Dave Wallace - davewallace@XXXsuddenlink.net (remove XXX)

Background wallpaper photo was taken at the National Senior Finals cycling events at DisneyWorld in 1999. See http://pages.suddenlink.net/davew/clermont.htm

This web page was created by Dave Wallace davewallace@XXXsuddenlink.net (removeXXX) on 3/27/2002. If you're not interested in cycling how about joining our Pickin & Grinin group that currently plays at the Howell Care Center in River Bend on Fridays from 7-9 PM. See web site at http://pages.suddenlink.net/davew/pickin.htm

Updated 6/28/09