Typewriters are a passion for me. What began as a simple desire to have a typewriter or two to remind me how writers who came before did things became a bit of an addiction. There is much to love about those old machines, and many of my newest friends share a love for typewriters. Here are a few books for those interested in the machines that help change the world.
14 ABES took to the street to spin their way around town. We were joined by BC ABE (Abbotsford Bike Enthusiast) Jerry Loeppky and longtime missing ABES Curt T and Mike G.
After a ride around town we found our way to the headquarters for my birthday dog/chip-fest. We were joined by Paul B and David S. Swatter had awoke from his nap too late to ride but just in time for the drinking and eating - classic. Jerry had a beautiful slow-motion crash - he forgot he was riding a fixed or that he had to clips - either way - hilarious. Thanks for helping me celebrate my 39 birthday boys. I'll be in BC for the next 2 weeks but will check in via our blog. JS
Thursday night ride. Meet at ABES headquarters at 9. Ride around town. Races at the track. Dogs/fire at my place. BYOB. Word. JS
Looking for a volunteer to construct 6 barriers for Southern Cross. Anybody have the skills or the inclination? It would make the race extra special - The ABES six-pack!
Cyclocross season is approaching and its time to start gearing up for the bestest race series. Part mountain bike, part road bike, all pain. The Winnipeg crowd is revving up the action with this poster/postcard...
The picture comes from one of the best series of cyclocross pictures ever (you are awesome Brad), found here...
Altona has put on the biggest (and best) cyclocross race in the province for the last two years. We are expecting 100+ riders this year. It's going to be bigger and better than ever now that ABES is on the scene.
David's oh canada! alleycat race was finally run and it was worth the wait. 10 ABES took part in a race that featured Canadian trivia, Canadian Idol singing Canadian songs, a honky-tonkin' country paintball ambush, and the usual scurrying about to complete the manifest. All prize money went to Bruce's MS fundraiser. That’s not to say there wasn’t shwag. If fact the shwag was deluxe. Dswat went the extra mile and delivered homemade ABES shirts featuring our newly elected logo. James Doell took home two shirts - the yellow jersey (shirt) for his first place finish and for his singing/dance moves of April Wine. Myron and Lorne took the DFL honors and Johnny S got a shirt because it has a picture of Pamela Anderson riding a bike on the back. Highlights/lowlights included - a Johnny S wipe-out, a thin-skinned Duker swearing in agony as he was pelted with paintballs, Charles taking a header as he negotiated his own country trail, Giles loosing a chain during his venture throught the paintball field, and Bruce, Shawn and Derrick not knowing where the finish line was. We eventually found our way to the ABES clubhouse for tea and dainties. Great race Daved. Photos are posted (yaa) but are in reverse (oh). JS
tomorrow's the day for the next installment of the ABES alleycat race series. check out the post below for pertinent information but also remember theres a $5 entry fee per racer. see ya'll at jonny's. don't be late.
2. post-race festivities will begin at the finish line and then move on to the regular hangout for refreshments. if you feel confident in your abilities and feel as though there may be a significant gap between your astounding finishing time and that of the last place finishers you may choose to bring a beverage or two for consumption during that time.
3. there will be a vehicle available to transport any items needed from the start to the finish (i.e. aforementioned beverages, backpacks, ladies undergarments, etc.)
as your race coordinator i hope you can all attend for what i believe will be a delightful evening of bicycling enthusiasm.
Brandon seems to have a good thing going with the Brandon Bike Club. They put on races, like to goof around, and have bike related fun - sounds familiar? Follow all the BBC goodness on the Friends of ABE's link. JS
The WhitesHELL ride/race did not go as planned. I was a part of a group riding the Ingolf trail that was flagging the course the day before the race. At the halfway point of the trail I noticed my front wheel wobbling when I braked. I stopped to check the tire when I saw the problem - the left side of my fork had snapped off the frame. I was forced to walk my bike the remaining 7 kilometers back to the car. I made it about 2 km's before the other side of the fork snapped off too. I strapped the wheel to my pack and walked my bike out. I do not recommend hiking in bike shoes. On the bright side, I now had a great excuse for not riding the enduro race (105 km's). The camping, company and weather was great. I brought my road bike and enjoyed a ride on the rolling roads instead. Go to the Fort Garry Bike Club for the full race report.
I was inspired (and discouraged) by an 8 year old kid who rocked the ingolf trail and the 50+ year old riders who were schooling me.
Anybody interested in riding the Birch Enduro race? We can enter teams so it would be more of a day of riding and hanging around bikes and friends. Birch trails are private and can usually only be ridden by Manitoba Cycling Association members. These trails were used for mountain bike races when Manitoba hosted the Pan Am games in 1999. It is is a great opportunity to sample some fun and challenging local trails. The date is set for August 16 (thanks Huebie). I'll post more information when it becomes available. JS
Great night for a ride in Rocktona. ABES riders included - Dan (sporting his sweet new cyclocross bike), DSwat (cruising on his newly aquired road bike), Myron (and his sweet racing hat), Albert, Albert Jr., Charles, Paul K, James and JS. There was a sprint on the new race strip - Jeaner and his tree trunk legs took the win over a spinny/fixed Paul K. Dan took us to the hill to test his new ride, and we became a bunch of looky-loo's at an abandoned grader on a country road. We were joined at the clubhouse by more ABES - Steve, Paul B, Lorne, and Tom made our table complete. Drinks, smokes and BS pervailed. Discussions included weekend rides, vacations, folk fest, logos, jerseys, MS/Bruce Penner fundraiser, and racist neighbours. David was promising a life changing alley cat race next week. The extra week of planning should guarantee an extra dose of awesomeness - I think Davey is going to plan a great race. Paul K is planning the August race and Tom agreed to plan the September race. Good times. JS
Hello. Elexis and I are going on the MS Bike Tour in September. We want to fundraise for it. To make it more fun for you, and us, we want to have all of you over at our house for a BBQ and Bike Race.
Now before some of you talk yourself out of coming, hear me out! If you can eat and don't race, you're still invited. Your entertainment will be watching some of us ride for our supper.
Date. Thursday, August 6. This will accommodate the ABEs. The more ABEs the merrier. If you haven't yet met an ABE, You'll have to come down to find out who these people are.
Supper will be at 6:00, racing time will yet be determined. This will accommodate those with small kids and may not ride. Oh yeah, this is a family event. There will also be a kids race.
The fundraising part will be laid out on a table and we ask that you fill out a pledge form or donate to the MS Event.
Cost. There is no cost to eat. To ride it will cost you $ 2.00. The winner will get half and the other half will go into the coffers of the ABEs.
Due to the rain yesterday (and forecasts of rain for today and tomorrow) the OH CANADA! alleycat race scheduled for Thursday July16th has been postponed until Thursday July 23rd.
Weather permitting there will still be a regular cruise tomorrow so feel free to swing by Johnny's at 9 PM for a ride and refreshments.
This is what we at the FGBC call an off-the-grid race. It is unsanctioned, unsponsored, and unsupported. No bureaucracy. No commercial interests. No insurance. There is no entry fee. And there will be no prizes. It is all about the good times. And perhaps the not-so-good times. It's about pushing yourself. And being pushed. But the important point to emphasize here is that you will be entirely on your own. Bring whatever you think you will need to get yourself through the race. And maybe a bit more. We will pass through the campground at about the half-way point of the race. You can leave food, drinks, and supplies for yourself there. The course will also pass by several convenience stores where you can purchase more food and drink if necessary.
As for the course, it will begin at West Hawk Lake campground. It will head to Ingolf, probably on the road, and do a lap of the Ingolf trail. From there, it will head back to WHL and proceed via the Trans Canada Trail to Falcon Lake. It continues, via the road, around the lake to the Falcon Lake trails for more climbing and tricky stuff. Then we head back to WHL for the finish and post-race conviviality.
There will be a sizeable group of us are camping at the West Hawk Lake campground, section F. Some of us will even be there already on Friday night. I don't know if there are any more sites left. But the smart thing to do is book a site. The pre-race party on Saturday night promises to be a highlight of the weekend.
I'm (JS) bringing the family for the weekend but will only ride the first leg of the race. Fortunately, my sister is flying in from BC and we have family plans. Half a race will be enough suffering for me. It should be good times - the trails are great.
Look for upcoming details on an 8 hour race at Birch Hill in August. Before you roll your eyes, they have team events - ABES should submit a team or two. Looks like fun. JS
The Tour de France might be dominating the race world these days but back in 2008 a little known event called THE OLYMPICS saw Canada's Sammy Cools competing in the Women's BMX. Sweet looking course. Might be another idea for a race sometime?
Delovely night for a ride. A small gathering of ABES managed to keep it real in Rocktona. El Pee was testing another potential new road ride. That guy loves collecting bikes. We sniffed out the usual roads and checked in on some of the ABE'S summer projects including Dukes garage, and James Doell's new acre lot of wildflowers. Post ride giggles at the clubhouse.
Time to vote. The finalists for the ABES logos have been whittled down to three great submissions. Cast your ballot for your favorite ABES logo. Voting is available in the side column. The finalists are...
I'm at the Winnipeg Folk Festival starting Thursday night but still want to ride my bike with a bunch of ABE's. If anybody is interested in a Wednesday night ride, show up at my place at 9:00. We'll ride bike, have fun, loose some calories, then drink the calories back (we're a not-for-profit club). JS
Canadians are known for their inventive nature. Alexander Graham Bell anyone? So its no surprise that we're at the forefront of innovative bicycle technology. Feeling like a bike ride? But trying to train for next year's marathon? No problem! Canadian company Bicycle Forest has designed this little beauty - the Treadmill Bicycle. Check out their website for details as well as some sweet video of some dude ramping this baby. Nice.
I have road bike for those of normal size that get their nuts caught on the XXL's that seem to be in abundance. It is a medium Devinci Silverstone sl 4. This is a sweet ride. comes with shamano spd pedals. It is a 2007. Full specs athttp://www.d4m.com/axion/devinci/web/document/2007/en/silverstone_sl_4_ang.pdf I am selling it form my sister who is pregnant and just bought a house. It has been used for two summers. She would like $700 for it (retail is $1400) It can be seen/ridden at my house.
What's more Canadian than Anne Shirley on a bike? The Thursday July 16th alleycat race, thats what! (no offense to Julia T.)
The last MCA mountain bike race was the Birch Bring a Friend Event. Sometime ABES riders Curt Falk finish 6th in sport class. Curt is climbing the ranks of sport and is poised to crack the podium before the end of the year. Jeffreak Elias finish 2nd in his first race after being bumped up to Comp. Jeff, you are so slow. Ride faster! Well done boys. Sunday's Bring a Friend results here. I thought the race was going to be cancelled after all that rain on Saturday - what were the conditions like? ABES would love a race report. Please post. JS
The Canada Day eve road ride saw Dan, Ben and me ride to Rosetown and back - a lovely night for a ride. Last nights efforts meant Dan reached his goal of riding 1000 km's in the month of June. Dan gets the workhorse award and a big ABE's ATTABOY. Well done Dan. Post ride chips at the HQ included Paul B, Steve and David. Used/new bikes were discussed with XXL bikes selling for deals that are hard for any Menno to resist.
If anybody is interested in setting bike goals, check it out...Tour for Life - Arvid Loewen Arvid is riding 457 km's a day for 23 consecutive days. He also rode the Race Across America last year in 11 days. He is not ABES material. JS
Every year the Cross season has gotten better. The organization, the courses, and the participation goes up a notch every year. The season wind-up/provincial championships were held at The Forks (super cool), and Rocktona had its share of cycling enthusiasts: Thomas, Mia, Kate, Loch, Coen, Henry, Nelson and Leo were in the kid race, Albert, Steven, Cheryl, Lisa, Joanne and I watched Gavin and DB race away in a field of 79 riders, Kris had to endure a 60 minute race (vs. 20 minutes +1), and three Giesbrecht brothers were in the Open race where Evan got a flat tire on the last lap surrendering third place to his younger brother Jared. There are a gaggle of pictures floating around the interwebs and an interview on CTV with Even Giesbercha.
Cross may be over but another cycling opportunity is a’knockin'. Everybody is invited to ride or race a 40’ish km course starting at Colert Beach. Riders will go along trails and rolling country roads and conclude with bbq hot-dogs. Even if you don’t feel like “racing”, come out for a 40 k bike ride with friends - AND eat hot dogs! Be ready to ride by 2pm at Colert beach. Steven, Albert and I are confirmed. Register here – it’s free.
Best (only) ABES Halloween Ride ever! We rode to Tom's for a quick hydration fix then moseyed our way to Pole Vaulters...
Cyclocross provincial championships take place this Sunday at The Forks. Cool. There's an Open Category and all kids can race for free so everybody has a chance to take part in this historic event. Not to be missed - watch it or race it y'all!
Here is an invite to a little "iron cross" event called Country Cross. It will be a 40km+ one lap "ride" involving single track and gravel roads in and around Morden. The ride starts at Colert Beach at 2:00PM on Saturday, November 9th. There are two bike categories: cross and everything else. Please register at this site: http://www.webscorer.com/register?pid=1&raceid=15112.