Bennington Cycle Club: News

No More TT Racing This Year

There will be no TT up Woodford on Tuesday, September 14th. You are invited to join the Club on Sunday, October 31st, in hosting the Wicked Creepy Cyclocross Race at Willow Park, All assistance is welcome.

Results from last TT of the season

The Bennington Cycle Club held its last time trial of the season on Tuesday evening under very warm and humid conditions. Tim Payne posted a 29:10 followed by Tim Schroeder (31:06), Bob Butterfield (31:53), Miles Yucht (33:08) and John Wade (33:23). Race support was provided by Laura Hain and the series will return in June 2011. The Bennington Cycle Club will next host the Wicked Creepy Cyclocross Race on Sunday, October 31^st, at Willow Park. All riders and spectators are welcome.

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School -- Presentation

The four boys who completed the Montreal Bike Trip, a Won Hwa Do Seminar and the Equinox Hill Climb (still to come, but they will do so Saturday morning) would like to invite you to a community presentation about their experiences. They will be sharing photos and personal stories at the UU Meetinghouse on School Street (red building behind The Lucky Dragon) on August 15th at 7:00 pm.

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School -- Presentation

Airport TT #2 in the bank

Despite a light drizzle and 100% humidity, eight riders took to the airport loop for a battle with the clock. Thank you Laura for the following results ....

Tim Schroeder : 30:58
Tim Payne: 30:05
Marie Litowinsky: 42:45
Julie McKenzie: 31:51
Mike Spangenberg: 25:13 *
Colin Wentworth: 35:23 My mistake before it wasnt 35:07 he started @ 6:07:19 finished 6:42:42
Miles Yucht: 31:40
Bob Butterfield: 32:00

A reminder that the TT series continues in 2 weeks with a race from Woodford to Prospect starting at 6pm. See you on the road - Tim

Airport TT Up Next

The Airport time trial is scheduled for Tuesday, August 3rd, at 6pm. Riders should meet at the airport entrance at 5:45 so we can draft a start list and send the first rider off at 6pm. The course is two laps of the loop and a helmet is required. Riders of all abilities are welcome to join us.

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School -- Arrival Plans

In case we do not have internet access tonight, we want to let everyone know we plan to arrive at the high school between 2:00 and 2:30 tomorrow afternoon (Sunday). We'd love to see you all there!!!!!!!!!

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School Friday, July 23

Though we were in a college dorm, we awoke to what most college students don’t. It was an early morning which we all love, right? What fun it was to see those who have trouble waking up early get up slowly except for the regular early risers: Anya, Story, John, and I. The reason for getting up was an eight o’clock tour at Vermont Technical College. It is a nice campus and school, but most of us do not plan to go in to technical fields. Dianne, who works in the admissions office, gave us some idea of what we would want to look for in schools. After the viewing the college we set off on our adventure for the day. From the beginning of the ride we were met with massive climbs up to six miles long and treacherous dirt roads that left our tires spinning. As we rode up towards the top before the drop down in to Barnard, John and I came across two young boys who were selling freshly baked rolls and chocolate cake. Both were delicious and all of us ended up eating something from their stand. What magic it was to run into someone selling such delicious food on the top of a ridge.

In Woodstock we enjoyed cold cut sandwiches and leftover pasta salad. After we ate we headed to Gillingham’s General Store which has a little bit of everything from cleaning products, weird shaped guitars, to toys and delicious treats. Josh found a thin guitar to play while the rest of us joined in with harmonicas and penny whistles. From there we went to get ice cream at the Mountain Creamery. This was a delicious treat, and we got multiple things such as strawberry smoothies, maple walnut ice cream in a waffle bowl, and milkshakes. We then said goodbye to Woodstock and pedaled off towards Springfield. There was one more gigantic hill to go up which we all made and the rest of the ride was fairly easy. Close to Springfield we stopped at Seedhouse Café where we were offered more ice cream and some blueberry pie. Unfortunately, we had to turn down the offer since there was already enough sugar coursing through our veins, but we really appreciated their warm bathrooms.

The rain picked up for the last fifteen miles of the day’s 58-mile ride and made us rush to the showers when we reached the campground. We were given a pavilion to set up our tents under. The dinner plan was some delicious stir-fry with a large assortment of vegetables, tofu and chicken. While waiting for dinner, Owen crafted some guacamole (including garlic grown by Mikala in Quebec) for us to eat with chips and carrots. We all made dinner together and it certainly felt like we were a family as we sat around the picnic table. We only have one family dinner left after tonight, and we are all upset that the trip is almost over. As the sun sets we will study and play games to pass the time, all while wanting the trip to never end. We are already planning our first reunion!!

By Mike Sigsbury

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School--Monday and Tuesday 7/19 & 7/20

The 79 mile ride out of Montreal to Frelighsburg, Quebec, was our longest so far, but thankfully it was flat. It was great to get back on the bikes even though no one wanted to leave the city.

We rode a bike path for almost 50 miles and roads for the remaining distance. The back group had to fight the setting sun for the last 20 miles. In the end it was probably the most physically, mentally, and emotionally draining thing any of us had done. We stayed with a woman who was so generous and welcoming that we all felt pampered and at home. She had a delicious dinner ready when we arrived and we all had mattresses to sleep on. Josh and I followed her tradition and played guitar while the others did the dishes.

The next day’s ride was 10 miles shorter but full of some of the most challenging hills we have faced so far. There were a lot of ups and downs both literally and metaphorically. The day started with an interesting border crossing. We weren’t allowed to bring our tomatoes, oranges or apples into the US so everyone pitched in to eat them before we crossed. It ended up looking more like a hot dog eating contest than anything.

Realizing that everyone was feeling differently after the last ride, we split into groups of one student and one adult. We each went at our own pace and got a chance to stop at some interesting local markets for snacks along the way. One place had the best peaches I have ever had. We took a road into Irasburg that had hills so long and so steep I lost my balance three times trying to climb them. The downhills were a great reward for all the hard work. Everyone struggled and everyone hit their walls, but we all made it to Hardwick one way or another. We have to send a huge shout out to the good folks who graciously gave us rides to and from Irasburg. The house we are staying at seems like heaven: great view, shower, grilled chicken for dinner, plenty of space to sleep, and an endless supply of ice cream. We’re catching up on some reading, writing, and going for a swim in the morning.

Written by Danny Risatti

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School--Thursday 7/22

After some fun in the sun at Caspian Lake the group went back to Story’s aunt’s house to get ready for a ride to a horse farm. Right when we were about to depart we could hear some thunder rumbling in the distance. The rain came pouring down seconds later. We planned on just waiting it out in the house and doing some reading. It was becoming too late to ride and the rain was not letting up so we all decided to stay another night in Hardwick. We spent the evening reading, playing cards, and having some deep discussions. Dinner was some delicious homemade macaroni and cheese prepared by Martha. We all sat around a television and watched Seabiscuit as we ate our dinner. We figured if we can’t see horses we might as well watch a movie about them.

Wake up this morning was earlier than it had been lately. The morning was full of sleepless faces packing the car. We headed down the monstrous hill as the rain poured down upon us (no thunder this morning), and we were covered in mud by the time we reached the bottom. Before we knew it, we were in Montpelier in front of the glorious capital building and we had time for a tour even though we thought we had missed it. We met gubernatorial candidate Matt Dunne and then headed into the Senate chamber with Mike Doyle, state house tour guide extraordinaire. The tour was short, but entertaining. The ride to VT Tech was hilly, but it went by quickly and everyone’s spirits were high after a 59 mile ride. We’re staying at the Nutting Dorm and hanging out in Danny and Owen’s room writing this article having a grand old time. For dinner we kept with the college experience and ate pizza and probably we’ll eat some cold slices for breakfast. Tomorrow we head for Springfield, only three days left, but it feels like it’s ending too soon.

Owen’s quote for the day: “It seems like all we do in Vermont is go UP!!”

Written by Owen Kenyon, Danny Risatti, Josh Reed, Mike Sigsbury, & Martha Cornwell (The Fab Five)

Uphill TT #2 Results

Almost perfect conditions brought out a big field of 17 riders to test their legs on the climb to Prospect. A check of the archives showed lots of folks set new PRs tonight.

Special thanks to Laura, queen of all that is race support, as we have all been to paid events that don't meet her standard of courtesy and professionalism. Also, make sure you support the Banner as Zach was once again on the hill to take pictures and get quotes.

A reminder that the next TT is at the airport loop on August 3rd, look for details in the Banner. You will find your times posted below...

Melissa Rowe: 20:38
Meg Campell: 24:11
Keith Rodney: 24:33
Bob Butterfield: 23:17
Tom Dockum: 20:32
Tim Payne: 19:23
Art Haytko: 19:07
? Lew Fisher: 16:47
Dukes Love: 15:46
Craig Robertson: 17:57
Dave Delano: 23:59
Jon Rowe: 15:18
Steve Vargo: 15:34
Mikes Yucht: 19:17
Julie Mckenzie: 20:19
Brian Vargo: 18:08
Jeff Johnson: 15:11*

Green Mountain Girls - A Band of Sisters

Good luck to the Green Mountain Girls at the Vermont Sun Triathlon Series and with their ongoing training. You go Girls!

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School

We are writing from Saint Phillippe, Quebec. Our bikes are holding up great. We really want to thank Dan and Faith of Roads and Trails for supporting us in endless ways.

After rising at 6am a majority of the group took a jog around the campground and down to the beach. There, we did some stretching to get our muscles ready for the day’s ride. Everything was going smoothly with an excellent tail wind for the first hour but then the weather took a little turn for the worse. It began to rain pretty hard for about a half hour or so. The first group arrived at the resting point before it even began to rain; they peddled at an average speed of 25MPH! Unfortunately, the last group got soaked, completely drenched. After some coffee at the Vermont Welcome Center in Alburgh we headed off to the border. Once at the border, the group was filled with ecstasy as our paperwork got checked by the border patrol and we saw our first glimpses of Canada. The rest of the ride went by perfectly through the farm lands of southern Quebec. We stopped at a tiny horse farm whose friendly owners are hosting us for the night. The scenery is extremely beautiful and so are the three horses. Martha, Anja, and Owen immediately befriended them. The gelding named Big got pretty up close and personal with Owen and was licking his face and neck. The rest of the group got their clothing nibbled on as well. Everyone decided that we wanted to show our appreciation to these gracious and generous people. So, we are putting ourselves on manure duty. The rest of the night will be filled with reading, writing, studying French and a swim in the pool.

Written by Byron Adams, Owen Kenyon, Josh Reed and Mike Sigsbury

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School

Summary of Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday

This is being written by the whole group from Grand Isle State Park at the end of Day 4.

First of all, please let us thank the Bennington Cycling Club for their amazing support. It is so wonderful to know that people are believing in us and this program.

On Tuesday morning, we left our first camp at Lake St. Catherine State Park. After Owen’s rain covered pancakes, we rode to Green Mountain College and had a wonderful tour by Emily. We loved how eco-friendly and hands-on the school was. From there, we rode to Castleton where Mr. Ulrich did a stunt over his handlebars and less than a minute later, Matt involuntarily followed his example. Castleton was quite a contrast to the earlier college experience. Byron and Matt preferred their facilities and lesser tuition.

The ride from Poultney to Lake Dunmore proved to be the biggest challenge so far. A series of events tested everybody’s patience and physical condition to the limit. Damionne ended up having to walk the last four miles due to a bike malfunction. Thanks to Chip’s generous offer, we were able to escape the rain and rest overnight inside his family’s cabin. The very reason why we are on this trip came out in the evening discussion that lasted late into the night.

Although Wednesday’s ride was even longer and physically more trying, we did better than on Tuesday and really came together as a group. Even after the departure of a strong member of our team, we managed to push through the very challenging sixty plus miles. Byron decided to take a detour off Swift Road to Fletcher Hospital in Burlington. And now, he is Martha’s very valued GPS.

Today was a ‘piece of cake’ in many ways: Ms. Pfeffer finally gave into trying Dunkin Donut’s Coffee Coolatta, and Owen’s Mocha Milkshake. Everybody else also had some tasty sweet treats after several days of only healthy foods. Right now, as we are writing this, we are drinking Sarsaparilla from Mach’s General Store in Pawlet. For dinner tonight, everybody had some raw milk from the Green Mountain College Farm.

The breathtaking scenery of Lake Champlain distracted from the very few hills and the passage of the miles. We learned that the marble that was used to build the Causeway originally came from the West Rutland area in the 1890’s. The ferry ride was fun and a welcomed break. The afternoon offered a great opportunity to rest and swim before setting up camp and preparing for an evening of academics. Most excitingly, we are only 26 miles from the Canadian border.

MAUHS Won Hwa Summer School

What an eventful two days we've had!!! Tuesday morning our WonHwaDo workout was interrupted by a downpour. All our tents and supplies were still out! I guess that's what camping is all about. By the time we left for Poultney it had stopped. We had a great visit at Green Mountain College. The boys were really impressed with the dining hall and so much more. We also toured Castleton State before biking to Chip's parents camp near Lake Dunmore. The real difficulties started AFTER the ride when 4 students informed us that they were done and wanted to leave the trip. Long story short, we had a very meaningful group discussion until late at night, but still lost one this morning. There was no changing his mind. It took most of the morning to get all four boys set--who was going,who was staying. A late start led to a VERY long day!! The first part of the group arrived in Burlington around 7:00. The last pulled in after 8:00. Byron and I still haven't made it to the campsite. We are on a slight detour at the ER. Byron now looks at his over the handle bars trip as a little "fender bender with a little road rash." But we are having his arm x-rayed to be sure it isn't more than a beautiful red tattoo. He is being a trooper given that lunch was 8 hours ago and our last shower was who knows when!!! We hope to get back to having kids be able to write tomorrow!! ---Story

MAUHS Won Hwa Bike Trip 2010 Day 1

Bike Club

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “I can’t believe I am camping, I mean like, REAL camping! I had to set up a tent!” by Owen Kenyon who usually considers camping something you do in an RV... “I need to experience more things in life.”

STRUGGLES OF THE DAY:

Sore legs and rear ends

Numb hands

Vomiting and having to keep going

Short showers

TRIUMPHS OF THE DAY:

Not giving up on one of the last hills

Not having a cigarette

Refreshing feeling after showering or swimming

Staying together

Today we rode 49 miles which was the farthest ride that Owen, Garrett, and Byron have ever done in one stretch. For the most part, everyone was surprised at how well they did today. The mood this evening is pretty calm and relaxing. Today there were three light falls; everyone got up with smiles and no scratches. The back half of the group was fortunate to see a bear and two deer on East Road. Our first long stop was at the Quarries in Dorset. Most of the group had fun and was jumping off ledges into the water; one student though wasn’t feeling very well. Before we began to ride again the group had a 15 minute reflection time to write in a personal journal. After leaving the quarries we had two more briefs stops before we hit our final destination. One of the stops was at the Pawlet General Store. Inside the store there was an amazing view of a waterfall through the floor in the middle of the store; it was really cool!

Once at the campsites everyone got in a circle and did some stretches. Martha had never done any of the WonHwaDo stretches and entertained the rest of us with her attempts at kicks. After, the group had to set up their tents. One of the groups had a tough time with it, and it was fun to watch. Dinner tonight was a group effort; everyone helped out in one way or another. Danny learned how to peel carrots and cut up an avocado. Currently the group has some down time to relax and have some fun. A group of them went to play some basketball on a court at the campground; some others went for a swim in Lake St. Catherine. Shortly the group will be doing some reading and writing, after that it’s shower and bed time!

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We will be heading off in just over two hours and cannot wait to begin this portion of our amazing adventure. Before we even get on our bikes we want to thank the entire Bennington Cycle Club for your amazing donation and support.

Just one addition to Jim's posting from yesterday. There is one more adult who is donating so much of her time and energy to the program. Martha Cornwell will be driving our support vehicle for the entire two weeks of her vacation this summer. Furthermore, she has been instrumental in fundraising and planning for the past couple months. In the fall Martha will begin her student teaching in social studies at Mount Anthony. We are lucky to have her!!

Thanks again, everyone!! We look forward to meeting many of you in the weeks and months to come.

Story and Anja

BCC Supports MAUHS Alternative Summer School Program

An important part of BCC's mission is to give back to area programs that stand out in positively affecting the lives of people within our community. To that end, the BCC has made a significant contribution to the MAUHS Alternative Summer School Program.

The objective of this program is to address the struggles of at-risk area youth and combine academic tutoring and mentoring with an exploration of Vermont's post-graduate opportunities. The program has been offered to six students who have shown a great desire to better themselves, raise their level of school success and a desire to explore the world beyond Bennington County. The strides these students have made during the school year have been immense and it is imperative that they continue this momentum through the summer.

Two other students who are not considered 'at-risk' but are highly involved with this group will also participate. They too are about to embark on an incredible journey of self-discovery and learning as they learn to relate to and work with others.

The program is centered on a two-week, 600 mile bike trip from Bennington to Montreal and back. During this trip, these students will explore the back roads, towns and cultural centers of Vermont and Quebec with a number of goals in mind:

- Visiting colleges, meeting with admissions officers and/or current students

- Studying with the teacher chaperones and working towards difficult individual goals that have been set before the trip

- Traveling to another country to explore a different culture and language

- Developing conflict resolution skills

- Continuation of the study of Won Hwa Do (Won-Hwa-Do is known as the path of the harmonious circle. It's a way of life spiritually as well as physically. In addition to traditional combat elements it includes a moral sense of what should or what shouldn't be done. Through Won-Hwa-Do one can achieve a feeling of harmony with the environment and other people.)

Prior to the trip the students have been training, researching, planning and fund-raising. Upon their return they will be making presentations about their experiences and take part in a 4-day WHD seminar. Also, their training on the bike will be continuing as one of the group's goals is to do the Mt. Equinox Hill Climb this summer.

This program offers terrific experiences that will broaden the horizons for a group of dedicated students and show them the positive opportunities that are available to them. We commend Story Graves (Head of Academic Mentoring Program at MAUHS), Anja Pfeffer (Won Hwa Do and Foreign Language Teacher at MAUHS), John Ulrich (North Bennington Elementary School Teacher), and Chip Watson (SVSU Technology Supervisor) for all their time and effort in driving this program.

As part of their commitment to the BCC, the students will be posting a daily report of their experiences during the trip on this web site, starting tomorrow (Monday). Please check back here daily to stay up with their progress.

Tomorrow morning the group will be gathering at the circle at MAUHS at 7:30, preparing for an 8:00 departure. If any of you could stop by the school and wish them well on their journey, it would mean the world to them. I hope that you can spare 15 or 20 minutes to do so.

When the students return they have been invited to join in on BCC group rides Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings. It will be a good chance to listen to their adventures, and more importantly, to show them that people in the community really do care about them.

The BCC is proud to be supporting this endeavor. We look forward to the daily reports and the presentation at the trip's conclusion.

Volunteer bike handlers needed

Volunteer bike handlers needed!!!

MASS MoCA is looking for volunteer bike handlers during Wilco’s Solid Sound Festival (www.solidsoundfestival.com) August 13 – 15. Volunteers trade eight hours of “bike check” duty (2 four-hour shifts) for admission to the three-day Solid Sound festival (that’ll save you 100 bucks!), featuring Wilco, Mavis Staples, Wilco band members’ side projects, and local favorites like Vetiver and Mountain Man.

MASS MoCA’s bike check will run like a coat check for bicycles. The free service will be available for posted hours each day of the festival, to provide a secure spot for festival-goers to park their bikes while they catch the shows. Bike check staff will work in pairs to park bikes, hand out pick-up tickets, and watch over the fleet. Bikes will be parked by the security guard house at the museum’s front entrance, and the check in table will be comfortably placed beneath two nearby shade trees. All volunteers get a free festival t-shirt.

Lots of non-bike volunteer opportunities are available as well, so tell all your friends about this great way to get in free to the festival, even if they don’t ride. Eager to express your interest? Contact Jodi Joseph: jjoseph@massmoca.org; 413.884.4633

Summer Time Trial Series Begins!

The Bennington Cycle Club hosts its annual summer time trial series with the first race on Tuesday, June 22nd. Racers will ride from Woodford town hall to the Prospect ski area parking lot. Registration starts at 5:45pm with the first rider off at 6:00pm. A helmet must be worn and all ability levels are welcome to participate.