Road Group Ride Safety

Group Road Cycling:

Support your group! Riding in a group is different than riding alone. Your riding behavior affects those riding around you. You are now part of a group relying on each other. YOU will, at one time or another, become the “eyes and ears” of the GROUP. As you want to be safe, please keep your group safe. Be compassionate to fellow riders and users of the road. Don’t get self-absorbed. You are more than a rider. You are an ambassador, defender and leader in your own right.

Our Main Points:

1. RIDE SAFELY
2. OBEY THE LAW
3. RIDE RESPONSIBLY
4. INTERACT WITH TRAFFIC POSITIVELY

Safety Essentials:

• HELMETS ARE REQUIRED FOR ALL GROUP RIDES. You will be asked to not participate in the group if you are not wearing a helmet.
• Bring a bike that is ready to ride. Schedule a tune up at the shop if you’re not certain of your bike’s road-worthiness.
• Bring appropriate clothing, food and liquids. It is also recommended you bring some money for a store stop and a cell phone for emergencies.

The Law:

• Observe all vehicular traffic laws. A bicycle is a vehicle with the same privileges and restrictions as a car.
• As a courtesy to motorists, ride to the right of the road. Do not cross the yellow line.
• Stop at all stop signals and stop signs.
• Use appropriate hand signals to indicate turning and stopping.
• If you have any questions, please ask the ride leader.

Responsible Cycling:

• ‘Call out’ all road hazards & point to them as they come.
• Ride single file when a vehicle approaches from the rear.
• Call out “car back” to signal to the group to assume single file formation. This is especially important on extended climbs.
• Wait your turn in traffic as a group. Do NOT create your own curb lane by passing on the right of stopped traffic. If a light turns yellow on approach, call out “light!” & “braking”, bringing the group to a safe stop. Otherwise, a rider further behind in the group will feel urged to run a now red light. This is a dangerous and illegal maneuver.
• Unless you are all the way in the back of the pack, do not abruptly grab your brakes. Call out “Braking!”, then brake slowly.
• When overtaking riders, call “passing on your left” and then pass.
• Be safe. Don’t ride over your ability.
• Do not litter.

Interacting with Traffic:

• Be aware. A moment of inattention can result in an accident. Make others aware of what you see.
• Be predictable. Show your intentions by signaling and saying what you intend to do then slowly and deliberately make your move.
• Be nice! You determine how drivers and other cyclists will interact in the future. Yes, confused drivers may make bad decisions. Please take their confusion into consideration before you respond.
• Cyclists, as well, will also make what seem to be bad decisions. Show wisdom.

Please read our Group Riding Philosophy for more inspiration!

Thank You for reading & Enjoy Your Ride!

-Chad Schoenauer: Asheville Ride Leader

Alexander Park is just outside Asheville, NC

I know blogs are more interesting with photos. I know this, MAAANNNN. But I’ve never been good with taking them. The best period for me with taking photographs of the outdoors was when I was a backcountry hike fan and took pictures with a Canon 35-105 camera with a broken viewing lens. The best photographs I ever took were with this camera, mostly due to the fact that I was forced to only look at color and space (remember, slightly left of center! Thanks to my 11th grade art teacher for that one) and couldn’t think too far beyond that. Sure, a few items were out of focus, but if I look at the pictures I have framed around the house, they are mostly thanks to that camera.

So I have no pictures of the riding today at Alexander Park, located conveniently off of River Road (State Highway 251) just north of Alexander bridge (1/2 mile, maybe?) 15 minutes outside of Asheville. Todd Branham (Todd if you see this I’d love a website to link) and Long Cane Trail Building Group Incorporated (a guess at the name - I know the first two words are correct…), WNC bike dealers association, and SORBA spent the last year or so refurbishing and rerouting the existing trails and some singletrack Woody Keen and Trail Dynamics helped build in the area prior to that. I don’t want to point fingers, but much of the Trail Dynamics area (which I helped build) was followed by Buncombe County Waste Management to get to a clay deposit for the city landfill, which put a huge delay on these trails being finished for the general public. But that is past, and I say let bygones be bygones in order to move forward and help create some solid access for the North Asheville crowd. Continue reading Alexander Park is just outside Asheville, NC…

Oh, the weather outside is…

Oh, the snow is back again.  I haven’t seen you in years, it would seem.  I thought snow was a thing of books and Christmas songs.  Winter, IT’S been a long time coming.

 So why not combine the love of freshly fallen snow with the love of grinding knobby tires through adverse conditions?

 The last time I rode my bike with snow on the ground was 2004.  Seriously.  2004.

 Before that it was probably delivering newspapers when I was at the tender age of 11 years old.  Those were the days.  Slogging my Murray through the snow banks of Southern Michigan to deliver my 26 newspapers on my appointed rounds at 7 o’clock in the morning every weekend.  God, I hated that.  Continue reading Oh, the weather outside is……

Great rates w/ a friend to Ireland!

Our friend Dominic is offering some great rates on guided one-week bike tours in Ireland! BioWheels customers can get $100-400 off per person depending on the number of people in your party. All you have to do is mention BioWheels when booking.

For a schedule and rates check - King Of The Road Bike Tours.com

King of the Road

Our good friend Dominic King is starting a bike tour company in Ireland. Dom is a great guy who loves to ride, and more importantly loves people! I can’t imagine a better UK vacation than pedaling around Ireland and sharing pints with Dom and a host of other like minded pedalers.

Be sure to check out King of the Road Bike Tours.

Got some time to kill?

Head on over to YouTube for some BioWheels action!

Wow!

Warning…..If you are stuck in a cubicle right now the following pic may force you to get up and go ride!

This picture is too good to not share!  This pretty much sums up why so many people ride the dirt.  We have to admit this is Central California, and not North Carolina, but a great view is a great view!

Autumn Comes to the Mountains

Something deep inside my soul stirs once Autumnal Equinox passes. Chilly nightsare back , and mountain bike soul riding season is just beginning. Remember riding for 4 hours with hardly a bead of sweat… How about cool mountain breezes conditioning your chamois?

Well those days are here. The trails are in perfect shape. If you are like me, Autumn marks the end of the racing season, and time to build up a long travel trail bike. This season, the Maverick ML8 will be my off season choice. Even if I did not have access to wicked downhills & technical terrain, the climbing abilities & all out comfort of the ML8 rock my world. On a 2 hour ascent up Heartbreak Ridge, my new 28.5 lb Maverick, “Beefy”, was amazing. Picking up 4 lbs on my racing bike was easy to adjust to with the control & traction the Maverick delivers. It is easy to enjoy the scenery when you have such a stable bicycle underneath.

Follow this picture to a slideshow…Enjoy!

BioWheels on Mont Ventoux

BioWheels Race team member, John Godts, recently returned from the trip of a lifetime in both splendor & difficulty. There is a challenge organized by a French bicycle club (actually, a brotherhood) next to Mount Ventoux. They say, “It is normal for a bike rider to try to climb Mont Ventoux at least once in a lifetime, but you are crazy if you do it again.”

There are 3 different routes you can use to go to the top of Mont Ventoux.
If you can climb all the routes in one day (starting from Bedoin, Malaucene and Sault), between sunrise and sunset, you are declared “Nut of Mont Ventoux” and you receive a plastic medal from the brotherhood. Putting all that in perspective, to accomplish this feat you will ride about 40 miles and climb 14550 feet - the descending at 55 or 60 MPH is another story.

The challenge can be done any time during the year - alone or with other riders. The rider must call the brotherhood in advance and then receives a road sheet which needs to be stamped by a local store in all 3 villages where the starts take place (Bedoin, Malaucene and Sault) as well as on the top of Mont Ventoux to confirm that you have been there.

So far, 26 Americans have done it including 5 people from Asheville. If you speak French, visit their web site www.clubcinglesventoux.org. If you don’t speak French and you’re still interested, e-mail John at jgodts@charter.net

John loved his Look KG461 for it’s lightweight climbing ability, stable descending and all-day comfort. Check out his great photos…

Grab the kids and head to Hot Springs, NC

The family headed out to Hot Springs the other day with our 8-year old daughter and our 13-year old nephew. We were in search of family friendly trails, and we wanted to share with you what treasures we found.

First of all, I just love the town of Hot Springs; quaint, friendly & a river runs through it. Very nice indeed, and the perfect place to grab a bite either before or after your ride. The trails that we found were on the southern end of town, making them an easy, honest 40-minute drive from Asheville.

Laurel River Trail: (3.6 miles one-way, about 5-miles from Hot Springs) Begins near the junction of NC 208 and 25/70 on a dirt road that turns into the trail. Single track on an old railroad grade to the Ghost Town of Runion where the Laurel empties into the French Broad River.

This trail is a beauty. You may feel like you are on the wrong trail as you pass by a few homes, but the trail runs right through their yards, just keep going. This is a great place to take your children that have already built up some skill on the smooth trail. It is a rocky bit of Earth, perfect for introducing the kids to some truly technical riding. The trail runs along the river, so it is also generally very flat. Check out the Ghost Lumber Town of Runion. In our young group, no one got frustrated because they were tired, even as we got all the way to the mighty French Broad River. The trail ends at the French Broad River, if you have never seen the river in Hot Springs, it is worth the scramble up over the railroad tracks to take a peek, it is a sight to see. Everyone had the energy to try out their skills and have a good time. We will be back time and time again. With a total of 7-miles, and some swimming under our belts, we decided we had enough energy and time to check out another trail.

Mill Ridge Bike Trail: (4 mile loop, about 3.5 miles from Hot Springs) This is a moderate loop on old forest roads with a short section of single track to connect the loop. The fields and wildlife openings of Mill Ridge provide huge mountain vistas.

This was the perfect trail to follow up what we had just accomplished. The ride starts out on a gravel road, downhill. The kids were having an effortless blast, which was a good thing because we wanted them to enjoy their experience. Two miles later, the terrain changed and the trail heads uphill on singletrack. Probably the steepest climb either of the kids had ever done. They were hot and tired, but they also were relieved to finish and proud that they had done so. There were lots of berries and open meadow and we saw a big bear footprint.

Our one-day in Hot Springs was filled with fun on one trail that was technical and flat and another trail that taught endurance and effort, all within reach of our two young riders.

We highly recommend both Hot Springs trails to folks looking to teach their kids mountain biking. Check out the pictures linked from this thumbnail. If anyone gets to tired, you can always just take a dip in the river!