Wisconsin Bike Fed Magazine, September, 2016

M A G A Z I N E 15 S E P T E M B E R 201 6

PEDAL

OUT

From the charming city setting to the scenic natural trails, Delafield was made for two-wheel travel. Venture out by bike today, and discover what Delafield is all about.

IT’S IN OUR NATURE (888) 294 - 1082 // VisitDelafield.org 1

1 6 K N O C KO U T LO C AT I O N S

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Contents 8 Meet Your Ambassadors 14 The Saris Gala 16 Chris Fortune Tells How The Gala Got Started

18 Gwen Jorgensen: Whatever it Takes 26 Durango, Wisconsin 44 Cyclesport: The Trip Of A Lifetime 45 Faraday: More Than Just a Pretty Bike 48 On A Steel Horse I Ride 54 Fyxation's Tour De Chequamegon

Bikepacking Weekend

60 September Bicycling Events 62 October Bicycling Events 63 November Biycling Events

On the Cover: The incredible scenery of Durango, CO. Photo by Dave Schlabowske

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9th Annual, RW24 - Riverwest neighborhood, Milwaukee About 56 words to describe The annual Riverwest 24 —the theRW24... craziest 24-hour bike race in Milwaukee (and probably the entire planet). Truly one-of-a-kind, and we can't wait for next year. photographs by Peter DiAntoni

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Chris Aalid/Marketing Coordinator

The Saris Gala Sparkles Brighter Than Ever

chris.aalid@wisconsinbikefed.org

Zac Barnes/Central Region Director

It all started with a grill and some beers in a warehouse.

central@wisconsinbikefed.org

Dave Cieslewicz/Executive Director dave.cieslewicz@wisconsinbikefed.org

Chris Fortune, the owner of Saris Cycling Group in Madison, just wanted to help out one of his favorite organizations, the Wisconsin Bike Fed. But from that humble beginning on Saris’ factory floor a little more than a decade ago has sprung the largest single fundraiser for any bike advocacy organization in America.

Eric Crouthamel/Valid Bike Shop Manager eric.crouthamel@wisconsinbikefed.org

Carolyn Dvorak/Southwest Region Director carolyn.dvorak@wisconsinbikefed.org

Sarah Gaskell/Planning Manager sarah.gaskell@wisconsinbikefed.org

Tony Giron/Smart Trips Coordinator tony.giron@wisconsinbikefed.org

Matt Gissibl/Resident Dirt Tester matt.gissibl@wisconsinbikefed.org

Wendy Hanisch/ Director of Development and Events wendy@wisconsinbikefed.org

Tom Held/Share & Be Aware Comunications Coordinator tomh@wisconsinbikefed.org

Well, folks, we heard you and we are delivering big time. This year’s special guest is none other than Olympic Gold Medalist and Waukesha native Gwen Jorgensen. Fresh from her triumph in the women’s triathlon in Rio, Gwen will join us at this year’s Gala, Friday November 4th at Union South in Madison.

You can order tickets online at SarisGala.org now and you can bet they’ll go fast.

Andrew Kaczmarek/Finance Director andrew.kaczmarek@wisconsinbikefed.org

Bryan La Bissoniere/Membership Coordinator bryan.labissoniere@wisconsinbikefed.org

Martha Laugen/Membership Director martha@wisconsinbikefed.org

Jake Newborn/Youth Education Program Manager jake.newborn@wisconsinbikefed.org

Mirtha Sosa/Milwaukee Bicycle Coordinator mirtha.sosa@wisconsinbikefed.org

Dave Schlabowske/Deputy Director dave.schlabowske@wisconsinbikefed.org

Jessica Wineberg/Program Director jessica@wisconsinbikefed.org

Board of Directors Ted Galloway, Chair, Bill Koch, Vice Chair, Clay Griessmeyer, Secretary Dan Goldberg, Assistant Secretary, Dave Jablonowski, Treasurer Mike Basarich Brien Christopherson Peter Gray Cassandra Habel Bill Hauda Michael Johnson

Julian Kegel Bill Koch Beth Liebhardt Janet Loewi Gary Peterson John Siegert

Melissa Vernon David Waters Robbie Webber Gigi Koenig

Magazine Staff Editor: Dave Schlabowske

The annual Saris Gala has become a Wisconsin cycling tradition. Special guests over the years have included Phil Liggett (more than once), Bob Roll and Gary Fisher. But when we survey Gala goers each year they consistently tell us that, while they loved the guest, they wished we would feature a woman cycling celebrity.

That’s pretty darn exciting. But Gala attendees also tell us that they attend the annual party for two basic reasons: they want to support the Bike Fed’s work and they want to meet up with a community of like-minded folks who love to bike. The free beer and snacks don’t hurt either.

A good party and the chance to meet a world class athlete and an inspiration to young women everywhere is probably more than enough to justify its own existence. But the real purpose of the Saris Gala has always been to provide resources to support the Bike Fed’s work.

And that work is more important than ever. We’re redoubling our efforts at the local level all across the state, doing more public education on safe cycling than ever before, and gearing up to push an ambitious agenda at the state level.

The goal, as always, is to simply get more people on bikes and to create more and more places to ride a bike safely no matter what kind of riding you do.

Art Director: Chris Aalid

Advertising: Matt Gissibl/matt.gissibl@wisconsinbikefed.org The Wisconsin Bike Fed Magazine is a complimentary addition to Bike Fed Annual Memberships.

Proudly printed on Appleton Uptopia Paper, milled in Wisconsin.

Reach us at (414) 255-0371

You can read more about the Gala and other bike fun here in the fall 2016 edition of the magazine. Enjoy the read!

Dave Cieslewicz Executive Director WISCONSINBIKEFED.ORG

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FINISHED. DONE. COOKED. Thanks to everyone who rode 178 miles with us across the state in the second-ever Ride Across Wisconsin.

We couldn't have done it without help. Thank you to to our sponsors, all who pitched in, and everyone who told their friends about the ride. We'll see you next year!

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MEET YOUR AMBASSADORS S T O R Y B Y T O M H E L D • P H O T O S B Y DAV E S C H L A B OW S K E

The Wisconsin Bike Fed’s Share & Be Aware Ambassadors bring rich and diverse backgrounds to their work, with one common belief: the world is better every time someone feels safe riding a bike or crossing a street.

bassadors work to reduce the number of people hurt and killed while walking and biking by educating all road users. Just as important, they make others feel more confident on foot or bike.

Covering thousands of miles, they preach safety, encourage healthy lifestyles and work for safer streets. Sometimes that means carrying loads of pamphlets for miles and miles on a cargo bike or standing for hours in a steaming parking lot. They talk to groups at festivals and In the 2016 summer season, 13 ambas- bike rides and random people they meet sadors spread the safety message across riding from town to town. They exemplithe state, working on one of the advoca- fy persistence, expertise and passion, and cy group’s largest projects under a con- share a commitment to share the sense tract with the Wisconsin Department of of freedom that bicycling provides. Let’s Transportation. In basic terms, the am- meet them.

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With more than a dozen Share & Be Aware ambassadors scattered across the state, the Bike Fed has someone near you to help with safety education and encouragement.

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Michelle Bachaus usually hauls Share & Be Aware materials around the Fox Valley and Green Bay with her Yuba Boda Boda cargo bike. Mirtha Sosa, works mostly on Milwaukee's near South Side and has broaded our Latino community outreach at events and with numerous appearances on Telemundo.

KENDRA VOLK (WAUWATOSA)

Volk learned the importance of cycling while studying at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. She also has a strong interest in sustainability and a desire to start a farm.

Motivation: “Realizing that everyone’s everyday decisions and actions, including my own, have such huge cumulative effects on local communities, and the world at large, ultimately guided me to view bicycling as the healthiest transportation option available.”

First rides: “Seeing my brother on a bike and wanting my own set of wheels!”

MIRTHA SOSA (MILWAUKEE)

Sosa studied global health at Marquette University and sees a connection between that pursuit and the impact of Share & Be Aware.

Motivation: “I thought that doing work with the Bike Fed would be an amazing opportunity to gain experience working to reduce chronic diseases, obesity, hypertension, diabetes etc. and making strides for environmental health as well.”

Achievement: “The best thing I have done so far to make walking and biking safer is the outreach, the classes and rides I’ve led with the Latino community in Milwaukee. Share & Be Aware has enabled me to provide free resources and support to the community, in Spanish, and this is huge in the way of ensuring transportation equity and safety for everyone.”

ALEX BELD (SHOREWOOD)

Beld has just started his career as a journalist, but works with our Share & Be Aware program to fulfill his passion for safer streets.

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Motivation: “When I was younger, I watched my grandma bravely raise her hand at oncoming traffic and just start walking. I’ve realized she was just demanding her space. Not everyone knows that it’s their space or they aren’t always able to make themselves seen. My grandparents and everyone else should be able to cross a street without having to fight for it.”

First rides: “Playing a really unsafe game of bike tag.”

RICHARD HABLEWITZ (TOMAHAWK)

Hablewitz also works for the Wisconsin State Patrol enforcing commercial bus and

Kendra Volk (left) and Alex Beld (right work in Milwaukee's northern suburbs and the greater Milwaukee area.

truck regulations.

Motivation: “I am a lifelong bicyclist and environmentalist.

Promoting bicycling as a means of transportation and fitness, along with my knowledge of the road laws, makes this a dream job for me. I am committed to making the roads safer for everyone and I enjoy education through non-enforcement.”

Achievement: “I work in rural areas that have few resources for bike safety. I have tried to reach out to these communities and let them know what can be done to make roads safer for all users and what the Bike Fed is all about.”

MICHELLE BACHAUS (APPLETON)

Bachaus was inspired to become an advocate while living in a rural area, where she felt trapped by the lack of safe roads to ride with her children.

Motivation: “My reward is pretty much when I have a line at my table at an event and parents are waiting with their children for 20 minutes. They can hear what I’m saying and they wait because they appreciate and value the message we’re sharing with the kids.”

Approach: “I’ll look for big events, ride any number of miles every day, and stop in every town that I pass through, a

John Rider (above) works on safety issues in Dane County and is an Effective Cycling instructor training LCI's for the League of American Bicyclists. Dan Gibes (left) enjoys teaching classes and tabling at events in Waukesha County.

with the five-speed shifter lever on the top-tube for Christmas.”

ZAC BARNES (MADISON)

JOHN RIDER (MADISON)

gas station, a bike shop or a café and talk to people about sharing the road with people biking and walking.”

DAN GIBES (WAUKESHA)

Gibes finds being an ambassador allows him to live the maxim: “Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life.”

Motivation: “I am passionate about all things cycling.

The work we do as ambassadors--talking to people about biking and bike safety--is fun and interesting, and you meet so many great people from the entire age spectrum.”

First rides: “Riding in the child’s seat on my dad’s 10-speed. I remember the excitement when he would take a turn fast and we would lean into the road--so scary and exhilarating at the same time.”

CAROLYN DVORAK (LA CROSSE)

A former school teacher, Dvorak serves as a Share & Be Aware team leader and educates driver’s education instructors on pedestrian and bi-

cycle safety.

Motivation: “Education is a key component to helping people understand how to walk, bike and drive together safely.

I enjoy teaching people how to feel confident riding with traffic and showing people how to find routes to get to the places they want to go.”

First rides: “I remember the thrill I felt when I was first learning to ride a bike and I realized my dad was no longer holding on.”

Rider found his legs in 20 RAGBRAI rides, starting in the 1980s. He biked across the country twice and has become an Effective Cycling Instructor and seminar leader.

Motivation: “I want to help people learn how to navigate their worlds safely by bicycle so they can enjoy all of the benefits that come from that: health benefits, saving money by not driving, the independence and also helping reduce pollution and traffic volumes.”

First rides: “Getting a gold Schwinn Stingray Fastback

Barnes has worked as a linguistic and cultural ambassador and brings a worldview to his role as an ambassador.

Motivation: “I see safe, active transportation as a lowcost and life-changing way of bringing people to understand their state and their fellow human beings.”

First rides: “Riding the ‘booger’ bike behind my parents, and later in high school, my transformative moment to beginning my ambassador training was when my mom was in a crash on her bike that could have killed her.”

AMMAR NSOROMA (MILWAUKEE)

“MY GRANDPARENTS AND EVERYONE ELSE SHOULD BE ABLE TO CROSS A STREET WITHOUT HAVING TO FIGHT FOR IT.”

Nsoroma works to make bicycling safer and more accessible for all people in his urban community and unites people of various ethnic and cultural backgrounds in the push for safe streets.

Motivation: “Organizing groups of riders to be a visual and physical presence on the streets.”

First rides: “Getting a red Columbia bike when I was about four.”

JEREMY GRAGERT (EAU CLAIRE)

Gragert has devoted himself to environmental sustainability WISCONSINBIKEFED.ORG

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and urban planning through his work with the Chippewa Valley Transit Alliance and the Sierra Club.

Motivation: “One of the most difficult and frustrating parts of working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector is addressing the safety issues embedded within our transportation system, whether we are talking about the safety of people driving, or people walking or biking.

That is a major reason why I like to be part of the solution through Share & Be Aware.”

First rides: “Riding my brother’s blue trike between the house and the barn in northern Minnesota.”

MARIAN WEBBER (HUDSON)

Webber has advocated better resources for pedestrians and cyclists through her work with the River Valley Trails organization.

Motivation: “The opportu-

nity to talk to members of my community about making these counties safer places to bike, walk and drive. We can each do our part to respect each other as we drive, bike and walk.”

Achievements: “So far, in my experience, the people love us and see us as a resource for

safer opportunities to ride and walk in their communities.”

MARINA DVORAK (LA CROSSE)

Dvorak studies organization and professional communication and environmental studies at the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse.

Marina Dorak (above) works on safety in the La Crosse area. Marian and Jim Webber (left) are from Hudson, an area of Wisconsin that attracts a lot of visitors from the Twin Cities area.

Motivation: “One of the most rewarding experiences I have had while encouraging safe biking, walking and driving was participating in a Yield For Your Neighbor action, helping kids, students and families cross a busy street by escorting pedestrians crossing with signs reminding drivers to yield for their fellow community members. The community response was encouraging.”

First rides: “As a kid a favorite summer activity was riding from our house in Holmen along the Great River State Trail to the Trempealeau Hotel on the Mississippi River.”

FIND OUT MORE To see the work that your Share & Be Aware ambassadors are doing across the state, or to request a safety ambassador visit for your workplace, school, or community, visit ShareAndBeAware.org

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The Saris Gala is back — with a few suprises up it's sleeve.

We've put together the inside scoop on Wisconsin's biggest bicycling bash, from the Olympian special guest, to the

incredible auction items.

Let's start with the inside story of how the Gala grew from a pizza party into the biggest single-night bicycle advocacy fundraiser in the country.

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CHRIS FORTUNE TELLS HOW THE GALA GOT STARTED 16

Look for the 13th edition of the Saris Gala on Friday, November 4th, at Union South in Madison, featuring Olympian Gwen Jorgensen. A VIP event with Gwen precedes the festivities and there will be the usual silent and live auctions, great food and drink, and lots of good friends on hand. Tickets are on sale now at wisconsinbikefed.org/gala.

To put it all in context we asked Saris Cycling Group founder and CEO Chris Fortune to give us some quick history on the epic event he founded. Here’s what he told us:

“In 2003 we recognized that it was really important to have a strong Bike Fed and they needed resources to survive and flourish.

There was a need to support the people that were key to driving cycling initiatives and we felt it was worthy of our time and resources, and friendships over the years, to do this.

“It started as a pizza party in our plant with maybe 50 attendees. Mostly friends and family who wanted to help support the Bike Fed. I reached out to my friend Rich Divelbiss from Pizza Hut of Southern Wisconsin and he agreed to donate. We used all our connections to get donations over the years. We have great partners in Madison and have had wonderful support from the biking industry including Trek, Pacific, Planet Bike and others who have all helped over the years.

“The community has truly embraced the event and as it grew we reached out to more and more people. Over time it became the biggest single night cycling advocacy fundraiser in the country and we

hosted over 700 guests at Saris for many years.

“We’ve had a star line-up of special guests. We were incredibly lucky to have Phil Liggett join us 3 times. We’ve had Floyd Landis and you can look at the history there and see how we were a part of it. The 7/11 Cycling Team was another highlight.

“The Saris Gala has had a great run and the Bike Fed is in a much better place now than where they were at the start.

We’ve raised over $1M over the course of the years.”

We couldn’t have said it better ourselves, so we didn’t try. Thank you so much, Chris!

We’re looking forward to seeing you and the Saris team on November 4th.

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THE SECRET TO GWEN JORGENSEN’S SUCCESS IS THAT THERE IS NO SECRET— JUST STEADFAST DEVOTION AND A REFUSAL TO QUIT.

WHATEVER IT TAKES BY AIMEE BERG

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GWEN JORGENSEN KNEW IT. SHE JUST DIDN'T WANT TO BELIEVE IT. SO SHE SHOUTED TO A RIDER WITH A BETTER VIEW. “DO I HAVE A FLAT?” “YES.” “ARE YOU SURE? YOU NEED TO BE SURE!” SHE URGED. “YES! YOU HAVE A FLAT.”

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o, roughly 40 minutes into her Olympic debut, she stopped, ejected her rear wheel, and swapped it for another while a half-dozen people passed her. She would later discover that a tiny piece of glass had split her tire.

Yet she pedaled on, aware that her blazing running speed wouldn’t be enough to carry her to the Olympic podium — a place where just one American had stood in the 12 years since triathlon was added to the Games.

Instead, Jorgensen finished 38th.

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“Oh, I just cried,” said her older sister, Elizabeth, who watched on the sidelines in London. “That’s my role in the family; I’m the crier.”

Not Gwen. Immediately, she thought, What can I do to get gold in Rio? Audacious? Maybe.

At that point, Jorgensen had not even been competing for two-and-a-half years. She was coached remotely, swam with a club team and rode with local pros in Wisconsin. Frankly, no one really expected her to show up at the 2011 London test event and automatically qualify for the Olympic team 2 hours and 41 seconds later, with a silver medal around her neck. When she was coaxed into the sport, she didn’t even have a proper road bike. And before that, in 2009, she didn’t even know triathlon was in the Olympics.

Furthermore, she was so unaggressive as a child that her older sister

would constantly speak for her. In the car, when her mother asked a question and heard no reply, she’d peek in the rearview and see Gwen nodding. In grade school, she finished running a mile so quickly that a teacher thought she cut corners and made her do an extra lap — while a pair of twins in her sister’s class were excelling in flexibility tests (like the sit-and-reach) and being told they were destined for the Olympics. The twins, Paul and Morgan Hamm, did go to the Games, twice, in gymnastics — but, as Elizabeth said, “No one ever said that to Gwen. Instead, she got an additional lap.”

Later, when Gwen became a top violinist in high school, her parents told the orchestra director that they doubted wheth-

er she had the bold temperament to be a concertmaster. (She ultimately assumed the role, even though she didn’t enjoy the spotlight.) At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, she competed in swimming for three years because she loved the water, but when she told her coaches she might switch to track, they suggested it was OK to move on.

But Jorgensen firmly believed in herself. Whatever she aspired to, she achieved. Whether it was a 4.0 GPA, a running scholarship as a walk-on, a master’s in accounting or a job at Ernst & Young. Finally, 2004 Olympic triathlete Barb Lindquist realized that Jorgensen was too driven and too talented to ignore and recruited her for triathlon.

So ‘gold in Rio?’ Why not?

But Jorgensen couldn’t prepare for her second Olympic Games the same way she did for her first. She’d need a real training group, and she’d have to really commit.

So shortly after London, she traveled to Wollongong, Australia, about 50 miles southwest of Sydney, to train with Jamie Turner’s elite group. “She was very novice on the bike, and she wasn’t comfortable with being uncomfortable,” Turner recalled. “But there was a lot of potential under the bonnet.”

That October, after spending just one month with Turner, Jorgensen placed second at the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final in Auckland, New Zealand.

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Cindi Bannink, her coach of three years, realized what was happening. ”I think Gwen said, ‘Oh! Now I get it! Now I see how an environment like that could be helpful for me,’” so the two parted amicably at the end of 2012.

If Jorgensen was going to leave her family and an accounting career in Wisconsin, one of the keys was that her boyfriend (now husband) Patrick Lemieux made the move with her. Lemieux was a pro cyclist whom she’d met during a training ride in the summer of 2011 who had also been a tremendous teacher on the bike.

SHE WAS VERY NOVICE ON THE BIKE, AND SHE WASN’T COMFORTABLE WITH BEING UNCOMFORTABLE. BUT THERE WAS A LOT OF POTENTIAL UNDER THE BONNET.

He agreed, so the couple relocated to Australia in January 2013. Initially, Lemieux assumed he’d train in his free time and just “be there” for Gwen. “But I realized that the more work I did, the more success Gwen was going to have because she could just focus on training and recovery,” he said.

So he jettisoned his own athletic career and started to do all her cooking, cleaning, bike assembly and chores. His efforts were so thorough that Jorgensen didn’t even touch a trash bag for months.

“Finally, at the end of the year, she says, ‘I’ll take out the garbage.’ Ten minutes later, she comes back and goes, ‘I don’t know where the garbage can is,’” Lemieux said.

“That’s when I knew I was taking really good care of her.

“Ultimately, how she does is how we do.

My work is a direct reflection of her success,” he said.

But Turner had to draw the line at least once — for Jorgensen’s athletic sake.

Since Turner can’t force his athletes to change their behavior, he gives them “betterment tasks,” and Jorgensen’s task was to stop “one-potting.”

“Patrick would cook oats in the morning,” Turner explained, “and they’d be eating out of the same pot like little cupids, with butterflies and hearts flying around them. I said, ‘Pat’s eating too much of your food. You need to have greater control over your serving sizes. Let’s reduce the one-pot frequency.’ Telling the little cupids they can’t have this lovey moment was a challenge for Gwen. But she took it up.”

All the while, Jorgensen’s triathlon skills were improving, but there were critics. Lemieux heard it all: Oh, she’s only good because she runs fast. Oh, she’s only good on easy bike courses. Oh, she’s only good in wetsuit races.

GRADUALLY, JORGENSEN CONTRADICTED

She’d string together good results on difficult bike courses, she’d race well without a wetsuit. And finally, in Stockholm, on Aug. 24, 2013, Jorgensen had a world-class swim, a world-class ride and a world-class run, to score her third World Triathlon Series victory.

Even now, Jorgensen calls it, “one of the most successful races I’ve had.”

ALL THE NAY-SAYING.

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The euphoria was short-lived, though. Eight months later, in April 2014, Jorgensen considered quitting.

It wasn’t just her 12th-place result at ITU World Triathlon Auckland. She said she’d failed mentally there. Her third place at the next race, in Cape Town, South Africa, was no solace because she said she failed to perform physically. Suddenly, she was questioning her ability. “I thought maybe I just don’t have what it takes on race day. I should just stop.”

“She was pretty serious about quitting,” Lemieux said. “I supported her if she wanted to do that.”

But he and Turner suggested she take a week or two to think about it. So Jorgensen and Lemieux went on a short holiday and did no training. After three days, Jorgensen couldn’t wait to start again. And that was it. She never considered quitting again.

“I felt I had more in me, more to give, and wanted to prove to myself I could do it,” she said.

At the next race, in Yokohama, Japan, Jorgensen was back on top, and her victory marked the first of 12 consecutive wins on the ITU World Triathlon Series circuit (including two world championships).

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MONTHS LATER, on April 9, 2016, when Helen Jenkins of Great Britain beat Jorgensen by 41 seconds at Gold Coast, Australia. Lost in the headlines was the fact that some nations used the event

as an Olympic qualifier so some triathletes were peaking specifically for that day. (Jorgensen, however, had won the Olympic test event the previous summer and was already Rio-bound, so her training was aimed at Aug. 20.)

Nonetheless, Jorgensen won the very next race, in Yokohama in May, and another one in June, in Leeds, with a spectacular run that required her to close a gap of more than 90 seconds. Still, her competitors wonder: How does she do it? What’s her secret to consistency?

One factor is that she’s had no long interruptions in her training. Aside from a crash on her hip at the end of the 2013 season that caused her to DNF at the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final London, she’s been healthy for the past

four years. Equally important, Turner said, is that Jorgensen no longer thinks of inconveniences as “sacrifices.” Now they’re just part of the investments she makes in order to get the return she wants. The rigors of travel? Part of the investment. Living overseas nine months a year? Also an investment.

Third, is 100 percent commitment.

As Jorgensen put it, “I’m fully investing every single hour of every single day into this sport.”

But here’s the twist: there is no twist.

All that commitment and investment “is just her ability to show up every day and do what’s required,” Lemieux said.

“It’s really nothing special. Neither of us is doing anything extraordinary. We’re just trying to do 100 percent ordinary, every single day.”

This article originally appeared in USA Triathlon Magazine. Please visit www.usatriathlon.org/magazine to learn more. Download the free USA Triathlon Magazine app in the App Store.

Catch Gwen at the 2016 Saris Gala, Friday November 4th in Madison.

Tickets available now at SarisGala.org 24

SHOW OFF YOUR CYCLING PRIDE

There’s nothing like Wisconsin bicycling, and there’s nothing like wearing it proudly.

Visit WisconsinBikeFed.org/merchandise now and get the latest premium cycling apparel shipped right to your door.

Bike Fed Members take up to 20% off on select items.

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STORY AND PHOTOS BY DAVE SCHLABOWSKE

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OK,

these mountains may be in Colorado, but there were so many Wisconsin connections when we visited Durango back in July that it felt like old home week. I was able to hang out with old friends I raced with in the first year of the Alterra Mountain Bike Team. We got to drink beer from brewing kettles that were used in Milwaukee’s first craft brewery. Oh, and former Trek Pro Travis Brown led us around the choice segments of the Durango-area mountain bike trails, which are maintained by Trails 2000 and managed by his wife, Mary MonroeBrown--also a former Wisconsinite and Trek employee! If it weren’t for the lack of oxygen and the horny toads, I might have forgotten that I was in Colorado!

You have a chance to win a similar trip next summer, thanks to the generosity of Bike Fed members Barb and Brett who have donated a week at their fabulous Durango home for our Saris Gala this November 4th, in Madison. Our hope is to turn this into an annual trip each year, but for now, we have secured a trip for up to six people for a week during the summer or early fall of 2017. The dates are to be determined depending on the schedules of the winners.

Because I have friends out in Durango, I have ridden there a number of times, but it had been about eight years since I was last there. I needed a refresher visit to help me piece together a fabulous week of mountain biking. So I emailed Mary Monroe-Brown and asked if she, one of the Trails 2000 volunteers, or her former-Olympian husband Travis could meet us over coffee or dinner and give us some tips on where to ride.

Ironically, Mary was with their daughter at their family cottage Up North in Boulder Junction when I emailed.

She did get back to me right away though, and Cc’d Travis, who did us one better. He said he would be happy to lead us around the trails for a couple days! How is that for an offer you can’t refuse?

I was particularly excited for this trip because on my previous Durango adventures I had ridden my rigid Waterford all-rounder with 26-inch wheels, mustache bars and cantilever brakes. For this trip I would be bringing my new Milwaukee Bicycle Company Feral 29er, decked out with a Manitou Marvel Pro fork,

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Answer Carbon SL cockpit and made-in-the-USA Industry Nine Torch Ultralite wheels! This is the first new mountain bike I have purchased since the days of the old NORBA circuit and Bobke’s Prayer Stix. I was seriously hoping this 24-pound rocket ship would be enough to carry my older, no-longer-in-race shape, 15 pounds heavier butt up above tree line.

To fill out our trip and help cover expenses, the Bike Fed’s resident dirt tester Matt Gissibl and I twisted the arms of my friends Todd and Casey to get them to join us. Then we loaded up the Sprinter van with mountain bikes and headed West to do some recon so we could

put together an awesome trip for a some lucky auction winners. After 22 hours behind the wheel, countless crossings of the Platte River and a stop in Omaha to grab some delicious African food, we made it to within 14 miles of Durango when we hit a San Juan Mountains traffic jam.

NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU TOOT YOUR HORN, YOU CAN ONLY MAKE A SHEEP GO SO FAST. Despite being surrounded by 500 or more sheep

convinced the grass was greener down the road, we were only delayed about 20 minutes. When we caught a

glimpse of our final destination as we drove up the steep gravel road outside Durango, our jaws dropped. Even before we stepped across the threshold, we knew these were going to be nice digs, and they didn’t disappoint.

Above: Matt Gissibl riding through the wild flowers toward Engineer Mountain. Previous Spread: Todd Kalkoske and Casey Masterson ripping the “Rib Cage” flow trails at Phil’s World.

Brett and Barbs’ recently constructed house has four bedrooms with two baths, a killer kitchen and priceless views. Two of the guest bedrooms have double beds, and the upstairs loft has two futons, so the house can comfortably accommodate up to six guests (plus the Bike Fed staffers) if two couples don’t mind sharing a bed. We imagine that this would be a great vacation for WISCONSINBIKEFED.ORG

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Durango is a great town filled with as many local writers and artists in the bookstore as world champions in the coffee shop. It does have the occasional traffic jam when the sheep get moved to a different pasture. The old steam engines to Silverton run multiple times a day.

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couples who like to mountain bike. Of course the house has all the expected amenities, including laundry, so you don’t need to bring a ton of stuff. We did laundry halfway through our trip.

The house is about 20-25 minutes outside Durango, so it doesn’t take long to get into town. I love Durango because it is a real town, not just a tourist town like Vail for instance. Despite having major tourist attractions like Purgatory Ski Hill, the narrow gauge Iron Horse Railroad, river rafting and of course world-class mountain biking, the town of 17,557 has all the things residents need like real grocery stores, a farmers market, auto dealers, etc. It does cater well to visitors with great restaurants (killer Tibetan food), wonderful galleries, a first-class bookstore (featuring many great local authors), coffee shops, four microbreweries, a local distillery and four cool bike shops.

After a decent night’s sleep in a real bed, Casey, Matt, Todd and I headed to Durango Coffee to jumpstart our first morning in town and watch the end of the Tour de France stage. After some great joe and an exciting sprint finish, we headed over to meet Travis Brown at his house for a tour of the town trails. Durango is located in a valley that is surrounded by amazing mountain bike trails that locals can access within a five-minute ride from their door. Our adventure started that day at

Overend Mountain Bike Park, named after five-time world champion and local legend Ned Overend. The last time I was in Durango I ran into Ned at a photo gallery after my face met the dirt during a misjudged jump.

We were standing next to each other when he looked at my reflection in the glass of the photograph we were admiring and he said, “mountain biker?” “Uh, sort of,” I replied. He grinned and moved on to another photo.

We spend most of our time out riding, not hanging at the house, but if you come with us on our trip back to Durango next year, you can’t brag about roughing it. The house we stay at is gorgeous and has every amenity you could ask for. Having laundry is particularly nice so you don’t have to bring a ton of clothes.

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That is one of the cool things about Durango, it is filled with professional racers. I once asked Bob Roll (who lived in Durango on my previous visits) what was the difference between the group rides in California where he lives now compared to the group rides in Durango where he lived when I first met him. He broke into his big Bobke and said “Well they are a heck of a lot slower. There aren’t five former world champions on every ride!” The Durango Wheel Club’s infamous “Tuesday Night World Championships” group ride isn’t a misnomer! There are A, B and C groups though, so if you bid on this trip and want to ride shoulder to shoulder with the pros, we can bring road bikes along for a change of pace.

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BACK TO THE TRAILS THOUGH. You could probably ride the trails around town for days and never cover your tracks twice. At Overend Park we rode Hidden Valley, Perin’s Gulch, 8 Bells and Spirit trails, but my favorite trail was called Star Wars, a short but fast and fun flow trail connecting Grabens Loop and Slime Gulch. It is a pretty steep and flowy downhill singletrack with very few obstacles so you can leave off the brakes and “use the Force.”

We could have ridden another hour or more in Overend Park, but Travis was cherry-picking the best local trail segments for us, so we then headed to Twin Buttes to ride the Cliff Rock and Ed and Flo Trails. By the time we were done with those everybody was hungry, so we

pedaled back into town for some delicious tacos and HUGE burritos at Nini’s Taqueria, where we also refilled our water bottles. With the hot, dry air, I was super thankful for the three bottle mounts on my Milwaukee Bicycle Company Feral. The rest of the guys were using 100 ounce hydration packs.

After a great lunch we headed over to the Horse Gulch trail system to ride for a couple more hours, hitting Meadow, Stacey’s, Horse Gulch Road, Sugar and Skyline trails. Travis wanted to lead us around Animas City Mountain, Dalla Mountain Park and Falls Creek, but with the heat we called it a day and vowed to get up earlier next trip out. Temperatures were in the mid 90s by the time we were done, so we went for a cooling soak in the Animas River. Depending on what time of year we do the 2017 trip, the temperatures could be much cooler.

After the ride we ate great food at Steamworks Brewery, downed a couple of great craft brews (killer Flemish Red) and then headed down the hill to Carvers to fill up some growlers to take back to the house. Carver Brewing was the first brew pub in Durango and was

Casey Masterson and Todd Kalkoske riding along Hermosa Creek. Hermosa Creek is one of the “must do” trails whenever I am back in Durango. Don’t be deceived by the scenic beauty you enjoy on the first half of Hermosa, the trail has some serious climbing later in the ride.

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founded by Bill and Jim Carver, originally of Whitefish Bay. They were back visiting family in 1988 when Century Hall, Milwaukee’s first craft brewery and a great early alternative rock venue, burned down. Bill Carver purchased the brewing equipment, took it back to his restaurant and bakery in Durango and opened his first brew pub, which has been making great beer and delicious food ever since.

The climbs were killing Todd because he brought his Gary Fisher Rig single speed. Plenty of people ride single speeds in the mountains but the gearing is way different than what Todd brought. After the ride Travis uttered one of our favorite quotes from the trip: “You don’t bring your Chequamegon gearing to Durango.”

Coming from a veteran of the Fat Tire 40 and Durango native, this was sage advice! To save his legs, Casey offered to let Todd ride his fully geared carbon Superfly, to which Todd did not decline. I think it was somewhere on the aptly named Star Wars Trail where Todd forgot to use the force and broke a spoke on Casey’s bike. We made it back okay, but too late to get the wheel fixed at a shop, so Travis said Casey could ride his prototype Fuel EX. Um, sure Travis, thanks!

You don’t bring your Chequamegon gearing to Durango.

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It is a dry heat, but it does get hot in Durango. You have to drink a lot of water on your rides and a dip in the Animas River is a great way to cool off after. The Animas runs right through Durango where you can rent rafts or inner tubes if you want to make an afternoon of floating.

It is strange how riding through the vast wilderness, surrounded by huge mountains can make you feel small but at the same time part of something bigger than yourself.

Rides like this really do seem to renew my spirit.

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Casey Masterson riding at Phil’s World, which is about 40 minutes drive west of Durango. The trails are very close to Mesa Verde National Park and actually closer to Cortez than Durango, but totally worth the drive. Ask anyone who has ridden there and they will tell you one thing: “RIB CAGE!”

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Although the ride was decidedly short on air, it was long on beauty.

THE NEXT DAY, AFTER WATCHING THE TOUR STAGE AT DURANGO COFFEE AGAIN, we planned

to hit the high stuff with a ride on Engineer Mountain Trail from Coal Bank Pass, as shown in the opening photo. We packed lunches because our ride would be nearly 6 hours long. Travis brought a filter pump in case we ran out of water, but with the cooler temperatures at altitude, we were fine for hydration. I should have brought an oxygen tank in my third water bottle mount though, since our ride began at 10,600 feet and climbed to just above 12,000 feet. Although the ride was decidedly short on air, it was long on beauty. We hit peak time for wildflowers and ate our lunch next to a waterfall surrounded by colorful wild Columbine, Orchids, Primrose, Geraniums and Coneflowers.

After lunch we continued up, passing snow, mountain lakes and the towering 13,000-ft. Engineer Mountain. On other trips I have stopped at the base of Engineer to scramble up to the ledge just a couple hundred feet from the top to have my lunch. This trip I was moving so slow that Travis was worried we might not make it back before dark, so we skipped the scramble. The final reward for our efforts was a 2,500 descent back to where Travis had parked his truck in the morning (and pedaled up to meet us at Coal Bank). My hands were so tired from braking I could hardly squeeze my water bottle, and my smile muscles were sore from grinning on the gorgeous drop through the Aspens.

After the ride we stopped back at Travis and Mary’s home for a beer and Travis drew the routes we had ridden the last couple of days on our Latitude 40 trail maps. He even let us keep his bike for another day while we got our broken bike fixed.

Beyond being incredibly nice and generous, Travis is an amazing tour guide filled with detailed information about the area and bicycle technology. I don’t

These two photos show the contrast in climates you get around Durango. From Alpine vistas with Marmots and snow on the ground in July, to hot dry desert sand and Horny Toads.

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think we asked one question he couldn’t answer. As a longtime contract project manager for Trek, Travis was a fountain of information about bicycle suspension, bike production and mountain bike history. I have never had a tour guide as good, outside the docents at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. Dinner that night was at Animas Brewing Company, located right next to a cool old narrow gauge railroad trestle bridge over the Animas River. The original coalfired steam engine of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad passes by numerous times a day. It’s fun to watch as the train passes over the many people rafting and kayaking down the Animas River. Oh, and the beer and food were great too!

Our first day riding we were blown away by the quality of the trail right in town. Our second day we were challenged by altitude and rewarded with alpine beauty. Our third full day began with breakfast at the house again, and then we met Hermosa Tours to shuttle us to the start of the Hermosa Creek Trailhead. Riding the trail along Hermosa Creek was shady and beautiful, but included a couple of very challenging climbs near the finish. I had to stop a few times to rest and to let a father and his eight-year-old son on a tandem pass me up! (Yes, they also descended faster than me, sigh.)

Ego-bruising encounters aside, Hermosa Creek Trail is one of the must-do iconic rides that I try to do every time I visit Durango.

Where to eat next? We opted for Ska Brewing Company, which serves good food along with their excellent beers. It was another hot day, so I opted for a multi-cultural pairing of their Berliner Weisse with the jerk shrimp salad. Ska Brewing, like most other Durango Brew Pubs, is a strong supporter of cycling. Seven years ago they even helped organize the BoulDurango Brewery Tour from Boulder to Durango, a ride that has been going ever since.

Our last day we headed over to Phil’s World, next to Mesa Verde National Park, for more of a true desert experience. My ex-pat Milwaukee pal Kevin Hall recommended it as one of his favorite trails. Kevin and his wife Deb raced with me on the old Alterra Mountain Bike Team before he moved to Durango. He is now Durango’s Director of Community Development and worked with Mary Monroe and Trails 2000 to build many of the local trails. Kevin said that he might be able to spend some time guiding our next group trip if his schedule works out.

Phil’s World only has about 750 ft. of elevation difference, so it was a welcome respite from all the climbing we had been doing the previous days. Kevin told us they hold a 12-hour race at Phil’s World that he likes 40

to do and he highly recommended we do a trail segment called Rib Cage. We loved the trails and riding in a totally different microclimate than any of our previous days, and the ripping fast flow Rib Cage trail did not disappoint. It was ear-to-ear grins every buffed-out hill and berm. As soon as we finished we wanted to do it again. And thanks to the smart trail builders, we could, as there is a shortcut trail segment back to the start of Rib Cage. Phil’s World is like a giant buffed-out pump track on steroids! Wow, was that fun!

We packed a lot of fun into our four-day stay in Durango, but there is a lot more we didn’t have time for. We got the essentials done, from the riding to the green chili burritos at the Durango Diner, and we even squeezed in the amazing Tibetan buffet. We didn’t have time to do the local road ride, ride the downhill flow trail at Purgatory, make the train trip or do any rafting or fishing, but we can certainly try to schedule any of those things in if the trip winners want to do them on our 2017 Durango adventure.

Left: the guys taking a break during a ride. Top left: Travis Brown leads Casey Masterson through some incredible Alpine trails on our ride from Coal Bank Pass to Engineer. Top right: A local riding Hermosa Creek on locally built frame. Above: Matt and Todd riding the town trail network. You can see Durango in the background below you at many points on these trails.

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Above: Me taking a water break on my Milwaukee Bicycle Works 29er with Durango below me. Left: Todd Kalkoske capturing the view outside the back of the house we stay in.

MEANWHILE, IF YOU ARE I N T E R E ST E D IN JOINING US ON THIS TRIP

next year be sure to attend the Saris Gala in Madison on November 4th, as it will be one of the premier live auction items!

Email me at daves@wisconsinbikefed.org or call for more details. Similar trips with Adventure Cycling or Trek Travel cost $1,500 per person, so if we can get a group of six together, this trip to Colorado could raise $9,000 to help make bicycling better in Wisconsin!

Talk it up with your friends. Remember the house has four bedroom with two baths, a killer kitchen and priceless views. Two of the guest bedrooms have double beds, and the upstairs loft has two futons, so the house can comfortably accommodate up to six guests (plus the Bike Fed staffers) if two couples don’t mind sharing a bed. This would be a great vacation for couples who like to mountain bike!

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SINGLETRACK MINDS CONQUER OVER 200 MILES OF WILDERNESS TRAILS

BIKE & RUN EVENTS IN MARQUETTE MICHIGAN

JULY 16

Red Earth Classic

AUGUST 13

Ore to Shore Mountain Bike Epic

SEPTEMBER 3

Marquette Marathon and Half Marathon Blackrocks 5k

SEPTEMBER 17

AUGUST 19-20

XTERRA Lake Superior Shore Run

AUGUST 27

Margi Gessik 100

Marquette Trail 50 Ultramarathon Moose on the Loose 5k

SEPTEMBER 24 OCTOBER 1

Marquette Mountain Bike Enduro

FOCUS YOUR MIND AT

TRAVELMARQUETTEMICHIGAN.COM

T R AV E L

MARQUETTE embrace your natural identity

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THE TRIP OF A LIFETIME Thanks to our long-time friend Colin O’Brien from Cronometro, we will be auctioning off a Cyclesport Travel trip of a lifetime. The winner of this auction can choose between any of their three amazing 2017 ten-day trips to ride in Europe valued at $5,400. Each trip can accommodate a maximum group size of ten cyclists. See cyclesporttravel.com for maps of the routes and more details.

JUNE 20TH–30TH

PYRENEES PLAYGROUND TRIP $4900.00. ARRIVE AND DEPART TOULOUSE, FRANCE. This trip includes

routes up many of the famous Pyrenean climbs featured in the Tour de France, including the Tourmalet, Hautacam, Luz Ardiden, the Aubisque, and the Plateau du Beille. Riders will also have the opportunity to ride in the bucket-list Ariegeoise Cyclosportive.

JULY 17TH–27TH

FRENCH ALPS ADVENTURE $4800.00. ARRIVE AND EPART LYON,FRANCE. Ride many of the storied

climbs of the Tour de France, including the Col Du Glandon, Col du Telegraphe, Col du 44

Galibier and of course the 21 hairpin turns of l’Alpe d’Huez.

SEPTEMBER 22ND–OCTOBER 1ST

ITALY TUSCAN ADVENTURE SEPTEMBER 16TH–25TH

TUSCAN ADVENTURE $4500. ARRIVE AND DEPART PISA, ITALY. Join us for a delightful trip through

the varied landscape of Tuscany. You will experience all Tuscany has to offer, from the lush forested Alpi Apuane in the north to the vineyards and olive groves of Chianti in the south, as well as the classic open rolling hills of the Crete Senese. We will stay in the stunning, vivacious town of Lucca for the first four nights. Lucca is a medieval walled city with narrow ancient streets and is the home of Puccini.

Daily rides from here include: » Tour of the Villas in the foothills just north of Lucca » The Monte Sera route with an 8km climb and a view over Pisa and the coastal plain to the sea. » The marble quarry classic ride from Massa to lunch in Castelnuovo and returning to descend to the ocean though the marble quarries. » A visit to the source of the tale of Pinocchio deep in the Alpi Apuane. This ride includes tiny remote mountain villages after riding along the Serchio river valley.

For the second part of the adventure, we bring you a couple of hours south into the heart of Tuscany’s Chianti region. Staying in

the village of Radda, you will experience an ancient hill town with incredible views in every direction.

Rides from Radda will visit many hill towns and vineyards, including a ride to the north where we will visit Greve for lunch and stop in Panzano to say hello to the world famous butcher, Dario Cecchini. Downhill from Radda we will ride through Gaiole, which is the home of the Eroica event, the premier gravel ride in Italy.

Finally, a short drive will take us to Asciano for the start of the stunning Crete-Senese route. The journey up and down the high ridges of this unique landscape will leave an indelible impression.

We will visit a long list of villages you will likely not have heard of. Volpaia, Dudda, Lucolena, Gaiole, Monteluco, Asciano, Piazza, Castello Brolio, Greve and Panzano are just a few of the places we will ride through.

An excellent one-day Tuscan cooking class at Badia Coltibuno is available on request for an additional $150.

We are happy to facilitate a visit to Sienna. It is an easy day trip from Radda via bus or taxi.

Saturday the 24th is spent travelling back to Pisa for an afternoon exploring the many sights and enjoying a farewell dinner.

Florence is often added to the itinerary of our guests. We can help set up your visit to Florence before or after your Cyclesport Travel adventure.

The Faraday Porteur may be the prettiest electric-assist bicycle on the block, but the real beauty is in how this elegantly designed ride can get you where you’re going without breaking a sweat.

FARADAY, MORE THAN JUST ANOTHER PRETTY BIKE Review and photos by Dave Schlabowske

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I

t was 89 degrees with 100% humidity for my initial test ride to a meeting at Colectivo Coffee on 68th Street in Wauwatosa. The route was only a little more than two miles from my house, but that cafe is at the top of a pretty big climb.

Thanks to the 250 watt hub motor, I climbed the hill with ease and arrived at my meeting looking fresh. Studies with power meters have shown that people get about the same amount of exercise riding e-assist bikes, they just get where they’re going faster. If you have not ridden a modern electric-assist bicycle, you may not understand how they can help people ride further and more often. The results from a 2014 survey showed that 55% of respondents had ridden a traditional bike weekly or daily. That jumped to 93% after they bought an e-bike! Of those surveyed, 6% had not ridden a bike as an adult. With an electric bike, 89% of those now ride

The Faraday is more than just a pretty commuter bike. All the features and accessories are really well thought out. The front rack mounts to the downtube, the double kick-stand keeps the bike stable when loaded and even the U-lock holster works well.

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PLANETBIKE.COM

SUPER BRIGHT, WATER TIGHT, WITH SIDELIGHTS daily or weekly! The survey was conducted by John MacArthur, manager of the Sustainable Transportation Program at the Oregon Transportation Research and Education Consortium and research associate at Portland State University.

This 51cm Faraday Portuer S was donated by our friends at Fyxation and Faraday. This bike comes equipped with an attractive and practical leather U-lock holder and detachable front rack. The front rack mounts to the downtube rather than the handlebar and fork, so it doesn’t affect steering even when you load it up. The bike also has built-in lights. The bright front light can be mounted below the rack as well.

Because the battery is in the behind the seat tube and the motor is in the front hub, the Faraday is one of the most well balanced e-bikes in terms of weight distribution. The bike has two levels of assist, and a range of about 20 miles on a charge. With the assist, you don’t need more than the Sturmey Archer 5-speed internally geared hub. With RETAIL VALUE: $2,800 • the IGH, Avid mechanical MORE INFORMATION AT disc brakes, painted fenders, faradaybikes.com • Test ride lights, a rack, double kicka Faraday at Fyxation, 2943 stand, and a comfortable, N Humboldt Blvd, Milwaukee, upright position, the Faraday fyxation.com Porteur S makes for a very well appointed all-weather commuter or just a pretty, practical bicycle.

THE DEETS

MEET THE BLAZE 180 SL 4 MODES INCLUDING OUR NEW BIKE PATH-FRIENDLY COURTESY™ PULSE 275˚

IPX6 IPX6 WATER RESISTANCE RATING

AMBER SIDE LIGHTS PROVIDE 275 DEGREES OF VISIBILITY

USB RECHARGEABLE

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ON A STEEL HORSE I RIDE

Milwaukee Bicycle Company's new Feral 29er REVIEW BY DAVE SCHLABOWSKE

I

have not purchased a new mountain bike since the days of purple-anodized Onza bar ends, when Ruthie Matthes ruled the NORBA Circuit. Don’t worry, my rigid, lugged-steel single speed with it’s 1.95 Dart/Smoke sneakers still hangs in a place of honor in my basement stable, ready for a retro roll. I will never sell that bike or my 26-inch Waterford All Rounder that has taken me from Durango to Silverton and back on the Colorado Trail.

But at 54 years old, I was looking for a little bicycle equity for our trip to Durango. It was too late to train more; I figured a new bike might be just what I needed to help me motivate my older, less-fit butt over the mountain passes of the San Juans. While a dual suspension rig is the really the ideal tool for the trails around Durango, going from a 26-inch steel fork to a modern 29er with a fancy sus48

pension fork was all the change this old man could deal with in one evolutionary step.

Enter the newly designed Milwaukee Bicycle Company Feral 29er. Built by my old friends at Waterford Precision Cycles (where I spent a blessed but brief stint welding and brazing), the Feral’s tig-welded True Temper OX Platinum tubing was still a nice upgrade from the Tange Prestige on my Courtney Single Speed. Because the frames are welded just down Highway 36 from Ben’s Cycle, I was able to order mine with three water bottle mounts and rack mounts and a bass boat red sparkle powder coat, and they still got it done in two weeks! Custom jobs are no problem for the experienced builders at Waterford. The stock bike’s rear dropouts are now 12mm through axles, but if you want to run a belt-drive Rohloff, Waterford can build

THE DEETS: True Temper OX Platinum Complete Tubeset • 73mm Threaded Bottom Bracket Shell • 1-1/8”-1.5” Tapered Headtube • Paragon Machine Works Post Mount Rear Disc Brake • 142mm/12mm Paragon Machine Works CNC’d Rear Dropouts • 28.6mm Front Derailleur Clamp • 27.2mm Seatpost • 30.0mm Seat Clamp TIRE CLEARANCE: Clearance for 2.5” Tires. STOCK DERAILLEUR ROUTING: Rear Derailleur Cable Stops Stock (front derailleur stops optional) BRAZE-ONS: 2 sets of water bottle bosses • Disc brake cable guides • Rear derailleur cable stops • Disc brake only • Stainless Steel Milwaukee Headbadge, Milwaukee Script and WI State Badges FORK COMPATIBILITY: 100mm suspension fork • 100mm suspension corrected rigid fork • BensCycle.com

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it that way for you. Got long legs and a short torso? Your bike will fit like a bespoke suit after Brett sizes you for your custom frame.

Up front, the redesigned Feral 29er has a tapered inchand-an-eighth/inch-and-a-half head tube (natch) with downtube gussets that work together to increase front-end rigidity, especially when paired with the QR15mm through axles on the Manitou Marvel Pro fork I picked out. Manitou’s forks also feature their patented hex-lock quick release, for a faster wheel change.

FOR A GUY WHO HAS BEEN RIDING RIGID FORKS FOR THE PAST 20 YEARS, I

won’t pretend to understand the wonders of modern shock technology and tell you why I love how the velocity-dependent needle circuit responds to oil flow rate through the low-speed needle on Manitou’s Doroado TPC+ 4-Dimensional Compression Damping. All I can tell you with absolute authority is that this cross-country weight fork is SMOOOTHE! On the 40+mph gravel road downhills, the Marvel took the edge off the washboard as well as it absorbed the big hits without bottoming out on the rocky drop-offs on the trail. On the rocky descent from above the tree line on the Engineer Mountain Trail, by the time I rolled down 2,500 feet through the Aspen colonies to desert mesa below, my hands were so tired from braking I could hardly squeeze my water bottle, but my upper body was not sore at all. The Manitou Marvel took the beating instead of me and allowed me to ride things I would have walked before, which makes it worth every penny.

Also from our friends at Hayes Bicycle Group in Mequon, I knew I wanted the Answer SLK Carbon handlebar,

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seatpost, Rove G2 stem and Fall Line XC grips. This combination has become my go-to cockpit on all my bikes because it’s light, bombproof and looks great. Besides coming from a local company, working for the Wisconsin Bike Fed, I am partial to red and white accents.

For the drivetrain, I opted for a mix of SRAM XO and XX1.

SRAM’s mountain bike groups are always leading technology and their 1x11 has set the standard for years now. The tempting 1x12 SRAM Eagle was not out yet when Ben’s Cycle built my bike up, or I might have considered it. It is probably overkill for my Wisconsin trails, but I was looking down for an extra gear on some of those climbs in Colorado.

My last important compo-

nent choice was wheels, and I once again went with Industry Nine Torch Ultralites. These are the mountain bike version of the wheels I have on my gravel bike. I love these wheels because they are made in the USA, carbon light-weight but with alloy rim prices, and they have proved to be incredibly strong.

When I try to keep up with my younger, faster friends, I tend to make mistakes. Although I get tired and take plenty of big hits, these wheels remain perfectly true (on both bikes). The guys I ride with are not only faster, they are also better technical riders than me, and they still break spokes all the time, taking the same lines I ride without problem on my i9 wheels with their straight pull, nobend, alloy spokes.

!

U O Y THANK U u O o Y y K k N n A a H h T t / M O C .

E R WWW.DAIRYLANDDA

than k you to our spo nso rs

special thanks to our charities & volunteers for making the 2016 Dairyland dare a success!

WATCH FOR US NEXT YEAR IN THE 2017 WISCONSIN GRAN FONDO SERIES

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Look at the map of bikepacking routes on the popular bikepacking.com website and a midwesterner can’t help but feel ignored.

Fyxation Bicycle Company and the Wisconsin

STORY AND PHOTOS BY DAVE SCHLABOWSKE

Bike Fed aim to change that.

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O

ur inaugural Tour de Chequamegon Bikepacking Weekend, October 7th-9th, will finally and literally put midwestern bikepacking on the map!

Before we get into the details of the trip and how you can sign up, a little background for those unfamiliar with the term bikepacking. It is believed to have been coined by by Dan Burden in his 1973 National Geographic article, “Bikepacking Across Alaska and Canada.� While there is really no official definition, these days bikepacking tends to imply bicycle off-road touring, mostly on gravel or dirt surfaces, using bags that do not require racks like traditional panniers.

The new style bags are used to reduce weight, but more importantly to allow the use of mountain bikes (even full suspension), cyclocross bikes and gravel road bikes that often do not have braze-ons for traditional racks and panniers. The new seat bags, handlebar bags, frame bags and top tube bags are also designed to jiggle less than panniers so bikes are more stable riding offroad and on mountain bike trails.

Perhaps the most famous modern bike-

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packing route is the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route developed by Adventure Cycling in 1997. About 90% of the GDMBR is on unpaved roads and mountain bike trails and there is an annual race along the route.

Beginning in Banff, Canada the GDMBR follows the Continental Divide down 2,700 miles south to Antelope Wells, New Mexico. Since Dan Burden was one of the found-

My typical gear for a three day trip (except food) all fits in my Relevate bags. The very small and light Sea to Summit Specialist Duo tent, Big Agnes sleeping bag and Exped Synmat Hyperlite mattress help me keep the fully loaded bike (19lbs) at 35 lbs

Weekend Itinerary DAY ZERO: Thursday, Oct. 6thOptional pre-ride gathering and dinner at the Sawmill Saloon in Seeley. Riders can stay overnight so they are fresh and ready to roll by 9am on Friday morning. DAY ONE: Friday, Oct. 7th- Ride leaves at 9:00 AM from the Brick House in Cable.

Leave cars parked in the public lot at 43301 Randysek Road, behind the Brick House. Ride to Moose Lake Campground, 35 miles. DAY TWO: Saturday, Oct. 8th- Ride from Moose Lake Campground to East Twin Lake Campground, 42 miles.

DAY THREE: Sunday, Oct. 9th- Ride from Twin Lake Campground back to Cable for a finish party at The Rivers Eatery, 39 miles.

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THANK YOU FOR COMING!

G A L L E R Y contemporary fine art & craft global antiques & artifacts Books • cards • Smaller Gift Items professional custom frame service 10354 Main Street Boulder Junction, Wisconsin 54512 715.385.2082 w w w. m o o n d e e r g a l l e r y. c o m

Proud supporter of Ride Across Wisconsin!

Visit Beloit | visitbeloit.com WISCONSINBIKEFED.ORG | 608.365.4838 57

Can you hear the forest roads in the Northwoods are calling you? Pick up a new Fyxation Quiver Disc or carbon gravel bike and meet us in Cable! Or just throw some bags on your current rig and join us.

ers of Adventure Cycling, it is only fitting that Adventure Cycling continues to be integrally tied to bikepacking.

WHILE OUR TOUR DE CHEQUAMEGON MIGHT NOT BE QUITE AS IMPRESSIVE AS RACING THE GDMBR,

we think everyone who joins us will be challenged by our route and have a great time.

For our first year, we decided to keep our daily distances below 50 miles so we have time to bookend some socializing into the mornings and evenings at camp and enjoy the beautiful fall colors in the Northwoods.

Each afternoon, the crew from Fyxation will arrive at our campgrounds ahead of us with cold beverages and hot meals, so you only need to carry your fuel for the day’s ride. Fyxation will also have demo bikes to try as well as nightly music and cool raffle items to give away around the campfire.

In the morning Fyxation will have coffee, oatmeal, milk and fruit. The Bike Fed will also provide Bonk BreakerÂŽ performance nutrition bars, chews and their new Real Hydration electrolyte mix. Please make note of any special dietary needs when you register.

Thanks to Fyxation you will not need to cook on this trip, but this is a bikepacking weekend, so all riders are expected to carry their own clothes, camping gear, spares and tools to handle any mechanicals.

THE 411

Go to wisconsinbikefed.org/events/Tour-deChequamegon for more information, including a detailed downloadable route map and a link to registration. REGISTRATION: Limited to 40 people our first year, so sign up soon.

COST: $140 for Bike Fed members or $175 for non-members (includes a membership).

Price includes camping fees and all food on the bikepacking trip. The pre-ride dinner at the Sawmill and post-ride party at The Eatery are not included. THURSDAY NIGHT ACCOMMODATIONS: Lenroot Lodge, 13350 Town Hall Rd, Hayward, WI 54843 (715) 634-7007, seeley63@ hotmail.com www.seeleywis.com

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If you or someone you love is involved in a bike accident, you need someone on your side.

Call Hupy and Abraham, S.C. We can help.

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WISCONSINBIKEFED.ORG

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Wisconsin Bicycling Events September Sep. 17, Peninsula Century Fall Classic, WI, Sister Bay, Fun Ride,

peninsulacentury.com, jordanmburress@gmail.com, (920) 421-1518 Sep. 17, WEMS #8 Northern Kettles Fall Epic, New Fane Trails, WI , New

Fane, Off-Road Race, wemseries.com Sep. 17, Maywood Earth Ride, Maywood Environmental Park, WI, Sheboygan,

Ride, Maywood, Enjoy scenic rides through Sheboygan County on 12, 25, 50, 70, 100 or 112-mile routes. Continental breakfast, post-ride lunch, rest stops with beverages and snacks, rider goodie bags and full-color route maps, SAG support, and more. On-site camping available the night before. Proceeds of the event support environmental education programs at Maywood, gomaywood.org/earthride.htm, maywood@sheboyganwi.gov, (920) 459-3906 Sep. 17, Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival, Hayward / Cable, WI, Cable, Off-

Road Race, Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival, From the 27cyclists who lined up to ride the unknown trails of the Chequamegon at the first Festival in 1983 to the sold-out, limited field that is currently chosen by random lottery, the Festival is one of the nation’s greatest grassroots events. The rolling glacial terrain of the area's forests provides point-to-point courses that are as beautiful as they are challenging., cheqfattire.com, info@cable4fun.com Sep. 17, DAM Colon Cancer RIDE, Sauk Prairie, WI, Prairie du Sac,

Ride, DCCR, 3rd ANNUAL RIDE to raise funds for colon cancer research.

Enjoy beautiful Sauk Prairie, Baraboo Bluffs and the Colsac Ferry, info@ damcoloncancerride.com, (608) 370-6065 Sep. 17, Tyranena Oktoberfest Bike Ride, Tyranena Brewing Co., WI, Lake

Mills, Fun Ride, Tyranena Brewing Company, This charity fun ride begins & ends at Tyranena Brewing Co. in Lake Mills, WI. Support & rest areas with snacks, restrooms & refreshments provided. Each participant receives a T-shirt, 2 drinks & dinner. Free brewery tours & live music for all. Interest perked? Join the fun but register ASAP! The ride has a 1750 RIDER LIMIT & registration ends in late August OR as soon as the rider limit is met., oktoberfestbikeride.com, info@tyranena.com, (920) 648-8699 Sep. 17, Kickapoo Brave Ride, Stump Dodger Campground, WI, Gays Mills,

Ride, Brave the 8th Annual Kickapoo BRAVE (Bluffs, Rivers and Valley Event) Bicycle Ride starting and ending in Gays Mills, Wisconsin. Gays Mills is located along the Kickapoo River in Southwest Wisconsin, in the heart of the scenic Kickapoo Valley. All routes take cyclists through breathtaking scenery: secluded valley roads and ridge tops overlooking the Mississippi River Valley. , KickapooBraveRide.com, info@crawfordcountywi.com, (608) 326-6658 Sep. 17, Suds and Spirits Bike Tour, Machinery Row Bicycles, WI, Madison,

Fun Ride, Hop Head Tours, Join us for our Brewery Bike Tour starting at Machinery Row Bicycles and visiting Karben4, Old Sugar Distillery and One Barrel Brewing BY BICYCLE. There will also be Madison Beer History stops along the way visiting the former sites of Fauerbach Brewery and the Hess Cooperage., hopheadtours.com/bike_tours.php#ssbt, info@hopheadtours. com, (608) 467-5707 Sep. 18, Wisconsin High School Mtn Bike Race #2, Iola Winter Park, WI, Iola,

Off Road Race, wisconsinmtb.org Sep. 18, Marshfield Cranberry Bike Tour, BIKE TOUR FUNDRAISER FOR

Ronald McDonald House, WI, Marshfield, Ride, McDonalds of Central WI, The Marshfield Cranberry Century Bike Tour supports the Ronald McDonald House program in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Choose from 100 mile, 64 mile, 40 mile, or 20 mile routes. Fee includes a T-shirt, lunch and refreshments, cookies and homemade cranberry coffeecake, rmhc-marshfield.org, staff@ rmhcofmarshfield.org, (715) 387-5899

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Sep. 18, Pedal The Kettle, Waukesha Expo Center, WI, Waukesha, Special

Event, Spring City Spinners Bicycle Club, Pedal The Kettle is a fully supported bicycle ride exploring the back roads of scenic Waukesha and Jefferson Counties. Routes of 101, 67, 35 miles. To register go to the event web site at, springcityspinners.org/ptk.html, president@springcityspinners. org, (262) 607-2722

TEAM SPROCKET ROCKETS MS Gold Spokes Bike Team

Join us for the BEST DAM BIKE TOUR 2017 to benefit MS August 5th and 6th

Sep. 18, The Ride, Prairie Lakes, WI, Sun Prairie, Ride, Schwinn, The ride

benefit scancer research and is a celebration of life focused through the journey of cancer. Have you ever known someone with cancer? Have you ever wished to support a cancer patient and their family as they face the challenge of cancer? Engage, support, celebrate and participate in The Ride.The mission of THE RIDE is to advance state of the art cancer research and treatment to serve cancer patients and families in Wisconsin and beyond, theridewi.org, hello@theridewi.org Sep. 19, Mondays Around Monona, Capital City Trail & S. Fair Oaks Ave.,

WI, Madison, Ride, We Are All Mechanics, ~13 miles. Our leisurely Mondays Around Monona rides are for beginners and experts alike. Bring a friend. All genders welcome. Gather at a local pub for food and drinks after the ride, weareallmechanics.com/Events.html, info@WeAreAllMechanics.com, (608) 630-5791 Sep. 24, Bike the Barns Quilts, WI, Shawano, Fun Ride, Shawano Pathways,

4th annual BIKES THE BARN QUILTS and RUN/WALK the MINI QUILTS! Shawano County now has over 300 8x8' barn quilts and I have designed 9 bike routes from distances of 5 to 70 miles in length, shawanopathways. org, matty@frontiernet.net, (715) 304-9796

Pewaukee (WCTC)  Whitewater  Madison 50 – 75 – 100 mile options each day $300 minimum fundraising requirement All funds go to MS research No registration fee for first time riders (ask for rookie code) INCLUDES:

• Rest stops with water, snacks and restrooms every 12-15 mi.

• All meals on Sat. & Sun. • Overnight at UW- Whitewater in the dorms • Party tent on Sat. evening at Whitewater • SAG services

• All luggage transfers • Coach transfer from Madison back to Pewaukee (Moving van for your bike) • Join Team SPROCKET ROCKETS for special Gold Spokes team treatment • Complimentary Team SPROCKET ROCKETS jersey

Sep. 24, Fall Color Festival, John Muir Trails, WI, LaGrange, Off-Road Race,

Annual mountain bike event held at the John Muir trails that raises money for future trail development and trail maintenance. This is your day to give something back to the trails and the sport you love. Money raised benefits this trail system. Your trail. Your event., fallcolorfestival.org, jameswamser@ mac.com, (262) 617-8272

To learn more and join Team SPROCKET ROCKETS Go to www.sprocketrockets.org or Call Team Captain Dennis at 414-617-4002

Sep. 24 - Sep. 25, LAMBO-Rama, Clear Lake Picnic Area, WI, Woodruff,

Special Event, lamboriders.org, lamboridersemail@gmail.com Sep. 24, Maple Ride, Little Plover River Park, WI, Plover, Fun Ride, A colorful

fall day seeking out streets named “Maple”. Slow 8 mile loop bicycle ride on calm streets and non-motorized paths, Poky Pedaling Stevens Point, PokyPedalingStevensPoint.org Sep. 25, Wisconsin High School Mtn Bike Race #3, WI, Hayward, Off Road

Race, wisconsinmtb.org Sep. 25, "Ride with RENEW" Renewable Energy Bike Tour, Fond du Lac, WI,

Fond du Lac, Special Event, RENEW Wisconsin, Join us for a leisurely 25-30 mile bike tour as we visit and learn about renewable energy installations in the Fond du Lac area. Bike between solar, wind, and biomass facilities and learn from the homes, businesses, and farms that use these clean energy technologies. 2016 marks RENEW Wisconsin's 4th Annual event following awesome rides in Madison, Milwaukee, and Lake Geneva in past years., renewwisconsin.org/ridewithrenew.htm, tyler.huebner@renewwisconsin.org, (608) 255-4044 Sep. 26, Mondays Around Monona, Capital City Trail & S. Fair Oaks Ave.,

WI, Madison, Ride, We Are All Mechanics, ~13 miles. Our leisurely Mondays Around Monona rides are for beginners and experts alike. Bring a friend. All genders welcome. Gather at a local pub for food and drinks after the ride.

See our website for more information., weareallmechanics.com/Events. html, info@WeAreAllMechanics.com, (608) 630-5792 Sep. 30 - Oct. 02, Washburn Color Ride Series (Free), WI , Washburn,

Fun Ride, A series of guided rides over 3 days that are planned for road, mountain and fat riders , including family rides, for all ages and abilities, northcoastcycling.org

WISCONSINBIKEFED.ORG

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October Oct. 01, Fall Wheel Ride, WI, Kenosha, Fun Ride, kenoshacounty.org Oct. 01 - Oct. 02, Sheboygan MTB Challenge, Evergreen Park, WI,

Auto, Motorcycle, & Bicycle Injuries C A L L T O D AY:

1-(800)-662-5432 or visit

TlustyLaw.com

No fees unless we succeed Home and hospital visits available Free initial consultation

A LIMITED LIABILITY SERVICE CORPORATION

1155 Grand Avenue, P.O. Box 588, Schofield, WI 54476

Sheboygan, Off-Road Race, WORS , The finale of WORS 2016 (the Wisconsin Off Road Series), America's largest state mountain bike racing series.

Now in its 25th year, WORS continues to offer a great mountain biking experience for riders of all ages and abilities. Pre-ride on Saturday, race on Sunday. A free "Learn to Race Clinic" is open to all registered racers (riders under 12 years of age should be accompanied by an adult)., wors.org/, don@wors.org, (715) 592-5095 Oct. 01, Apple Affair Bike Tour, On the Square, WI, Galesville, Ride,

Communities Off n' Funning, Bikes, families, friends, orchards, great roads, and warm apple pie! Held in conjunction with the Apple Affair Celebration, this long standing event gives all bike enthusiasts a chance to finish out their biking season! With route options ranging from 6 75 miles (and great rest stops) you’ll find the perfect ride for any age and any ability! Youth 13 & under free!, appleaffairbiketour.com, info@offnfunning.com Oct. 01, Taking It To The Trails, In 2016, Milwaukee to Sheboygan, WI, Fox

Point, Ride, Wisconsin Women Cycling, Explore your parks and public lands by bicycle at the first ever Taking It To The Trails Ride. Bring your friends and family and join the celebration of the natural beauties in our beautiful state. Discover parks you've never been to before or experience your favorite parks in a new way. You can make it your own experience: ride one mile or one hundred miles; go with friends, family or join a group; bike on trails or roads. You can visit any type of public lands, whether it's a city, county or state park, monument or historic site, river or lakeshore, recreation area, preserve, forest, wildlife refuge, or parkway. We'll help you discover the bicycling opportunities in your backyard. All you have to do is pedal., WiWomenCycling, CindyPetted@gmail.com, (920) 901-1233 Oct. 01, Madison Brewery Bike Tour, Machinery Row Bicycles, WI, Madison,

S PIN YOUR WHEELS IN S T . G ERMAIN !

YOUR BIKE ADVENTURE BEGINS HERE! RIDE THE PAVED 45-MILE HEART OF VILAS CO BIKE TRAIL

Fun Ride, Hop Head Tours, Join us for our Brewery Bike Tour starting at Machinery Row Bicycles and visiting Karben4, Old Sugar Distillery and One Barrel Brewing BY BICYCLE. There will also be Madison Beer History stops along the way visiting the former sites of Fauerbach Brewery and the Hess Cooperage, hopheadtours.com, info@hopheadtours.com, (608) 467-5707 Oct. 02 - Oct. 02, WORS#10 Sheboygan MTB Challenge, Evergreen &

Quarryview Parks, WI , Sheboygan, Off-Road Race, wors.org Oct. 02 - Oct. 02, 27th Annual Pumpkin Pie Bicycle Ride, Ottawa

YMCA, IL, Ottawa, Ride, 25, 45, 63, 100 Road Routes mileage varies families encouraged. See web page for details and link to registration: starvedrockcycling.com or email: starvedrockcycling@yaoo.com, starvedrockcycling.com, starvedrockcycling@yahoo.com Oct. 08 - Oct. 08, WEMS #9 CHAMPIONSHIPS Thunderdown in the

Underdown, Underdown Rec Area, WI , Gleason, Off-Road Race, wemseries.com Oct. 08 - Oct. 14, Will to Ben Bike Tour, Fully supported ride, WI, Sparta,

Ride, WI Dept of Tourism, Gundersen Health System, Sparta Area Chamber of Commerce & WVIK Quad Cities, Starting from Port Byron, Illinois's Will B. Rolling statue and ending at the Ben Bikin' statue in Sparta, WI, Will B. Rolling to Ben Bikin' Bike Tour is the only bi-state bicycle tour through the driftless region in the beautiful colors of early fall and will be one of the most challenging in the Midwest. You'll cycle for 6 days and 300-miles, with additional routes available for up to 450-miles. Whether you are a recreational cyclist looking for a sense of accomplishment or an athlete looking to challenge yourself and improve your cycling skills, Will B. Rolling to Ben Bikin' Bike Tour has something for you. You'll gain a new level of satisfaction and self confidence as you ride with new friends along the way!, willtoben.com, info@bikesparta.com, (800) 354-2453 Oct. 08, Milwaukee Historic Brewery Bike Tour, Lakefront Brewery, WI,

715.477.2205 62

St-Germain.com

Madison, Fun Ride, Hop Head Tours, This bike tour around downtown Milwaukee will visit the current/former sites of Blatz, Schlitz, Pabst and Miller Brewing and focus on Milwaukee brewing heritage. Tours begin and

end at Lakefront Brewery (with their brewery tour included at the end of our tour) and also a stop at Milwaukee Ale House for a small sampling. This is NOT a Pub Crawl or a Party on Two Wheels., hopheadtours.com/bike_tours. php#mhbbt, info@hopheadtours.com, (608) 467-5707

Discover the trails of Whitewater

Oct. 09, Wisconsin High School Mtn Bike Race #4, Nordic Mtn, WI, Mt.

Morris, Off Road Race, wisconsinmtb.org Oct. 15, Suds and Spirits Bike Tour, Machinery Row Bicycles, WI, Madison,

Fun Ride, Hop Head Tours, Join us for our Brewery Bike Tour starting at Machinery Row Bicycles and visiting Karben4, Old Sugar Distillery and One Barrel Brewing BY BICYCLE. There will also be Madison Beer History stops along the way visiting the former sites of Fauerbach Brewery and the Hess Cooperage., hopheadtours.com/bike_tours.php#ssbt, info@hopheadtours. com, (608) 467-5707

Exceptional cycling on stunning scenic routes with over 30 miles of mountain bike trails and unlimited road miles throughout Wisconsin’s beautiful Kettle Moraine

Oct. 23, Wisconsin High School Mtn Bike Race #5, Cascade Mountain, WI,

Portage, Off Road Race, wisconsinmtb.org

November

Relax after a long ride… stay with us!

Baymont Inn & Suites • 262-472-9400 Hamilton House Bed & Breakfast • 262-473-1900 Super 8 • 262-472-0400 Victoria on Main • 262-473-8400

Nov. 4, The 2016 Saris Gala, Union South, WI, Madison, Fundraiser, Join

us for the 2016 Saris Gala with special guest, Gwen Jorgensen. Proceeds benefit the Wisconsin Bike Fed. SarisGala.org Nov. 10 - Nov. 12, IMBA World Summit, AK, Bentonville, Special Event, IMBA,

We would like to invite you to the seventh International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) World Summit in Bentonville, Arkansas. From Whistler, British Columbia in 2004 to Steamboat Springs, Colorado in 2014, IMBA’vs world summits always draw a worldwide audience. Each host community adds its distinct flavor, as leading representatives from mountain bike advocacy groups, land management agencies, and the bicycle industry gather to share success stories and plan the future of mountain biking., imba.com

Order your bike maps and Whitewater visitors guide today!

DiscoverWhitewater.org • 1-866-4WW-TOUR 150 W. Main St. in Downtown Whitewater facebook.com/whitewatertourism.council BTBQ_Bike_Fed_qtrPage_nl_Layout 1 6/1/2016 9:43 AM Page 1

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BAR MITTS Bicycle Handlebar Mittens Models to fit Road Bikes Mountain Bikes, and ATVs. www.BarMitts.com (755) 622-8048

bike the barn quilts

6/5/2014 1:

4th Annual

Saturday, September 24, 2016 Bike, Hike or Run Shawano County Wisconsin’s Barn Quilt Capital!

View the 8’x 8’ folk art quilt squares on rides from 5-70 miles and small quilts on the paved family friendly walk/run route.

Fun activities for kids • Proceeds benefit local charities Memorial Athletic Park corner of Lieg & Main Streets Shawano, WI Hosted by:

5-8 Mile Family Fun Ride 25 Mile Guided Tour Ride 16-70 Mile Routes NEW Walk/Run Option 3.7 or 6 mile routes

Ride includes maps, continental breakfast, sag wagon, lunch and incentives!!

Fun for ALL Ages and Skill Levels...

$25 Single/$60 Family (prior to 9/17/16)

For more information, visit our website:

www.shawanopathways.org

Registration

email: matty@frontiernet.net or call: 715-524-2139 WISCONSINBIKEFED.ORG

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MAKE WISCONSIN A BETTER PLACE TO RIDE A BIKE, GET COOL STUFF Becoming a Wisconsin Bike Fed member doesn’t just mean joining the biggest statewide bicycle advocacy group in the nation — it also means getting up to 20%

off at bike shops across the state, recieving this magazine at your door four times a year, and being a part of the movement to move

Wisconsin bicycling forward.

YES! I WANT TO MAKE WISCONSIN CYCLING BETTER

CONTACT INFORMATION

Join online at WISCONSINBIKEFED.ORG/JOIN or mail this completed form to the Wisconsin Bike Fed at: 3618 W. Pierce St., Suite 250, Milwaukee, WI 53215

NAME

CHOOSE YOUR MEMBERSHIP LEVEL $35 Individual Membership Includes discount card, 1-year Bike Fed Magazine subscription, + more

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The Wisconsin Bike Fed is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Your contribution is tax deductible minus the cost of your optional membership gift. MONTHLY CONTRIBUTION TERMS: I understand this charge to my credit card will remain in effect until I notify the Wisconsin Bike Fed that I wish to end this agreement. I agree to a minimum commitment of at least 12 monthly payments.

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