Member Discounts Gearing Up
All new and returning HCC members should soon be receiving one of these snazzy HCC membership cards in the mail. Membership has its privileges, and we want to make sure that HCC riders get their due.
So, what is it good for, other than impressing friends and relatives, you ask? Well, check out the great list of HCC member discounts we are lining up at bike shops across the greater Hamilton area.
Thanks to the amazing cycling community for helping support our club - and our bike-buying habits! One last thing: this is NOT a replacement to your OCA card or your racing licence.
Joyride 150 Bikepark Offers OCA Members a Discount
Joyride 150 and the Ontario Cycling Association are partnering to offer all affiliated club and OCA members at 10% discount on Fridays. Please show your club or OCA licence to receive the discount.
The indoor riding park in Markham will also offer 10 per cent off on Tuesdays if you bring an XC bike and OCA membership. At Joyride, Tuesday night is a great night for all XC riders to get together and have some fun.
HCC youth have been visiting Joyride 150 - and it's a great opportunity for riders. The park has 90,000 square feet of space, with sections, trails, lines and jumps catering to beginners to experts.
Hamilton’s Velodrome Needs You
At 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 18, a report with huge implications for Hamilton cyclists is going before the City of Hamilton's Committee of the Whole. The Pan Am Games report is an important one for the velodrome project.
Andrew A. Iler, president of the National Cycling Centre Hamilton, will be addressing COW as the only cycling-related representative. He wants to hear your response on the city report. He calls the velodrome project "probably the most important potential development in Canadian cycling in the last 35 years."
It's still early days for the velodrome project, and he wants people to weigh in early so things are done right at City Hall. If you have not already, join the Hamilton Velodrome Community page on Facebook, where membership is now at 1,214. It has increased from 427 members about a week ago!
Tell your "fellow cyclists to join this group and help build a strong voice to advocate for a PERMANENT, world-class, international standard indoor velodrome as part of the 2015 Pan Am Games. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity that cannot be lost," he explains. If you can attend the meeting to show support, it runs at 9:30 a.m., Thursday, Feb. 18 in the Albion Room of the Hamilton Convention Centre, Summers Lane.
Big News at HCC Exec Meeting
HCC welcomes MTB reps Jeff Landry and Marc Risdale to the executive. Both were elected into their positions at the recent H.C.C.-MTB meeting at the Coach and Lantern. Marc is the representative for MTB advocacy, and Jeff is the general MTB representative. Look for their mug shots on our contact page soon.
We are in need of volunteers for the Good Friday Road Race. Please contact Henry at squirreltruck@hotmail.com if you wish to volunteer. Contact Dave at bamboo744@hotmail.com if you want to be a driver for our races (fuel cost will be covered).
Finally... the HCC is proud to announce that we are adding a retro twist, as an option at all of our time trials. We will now have an Eddy Merckx Category at club time trials, which include 15km, 20km and 40km events. New this year, the category will have it's own set of awards for all age categories - and the winners will be determined by the best results over three TT events. How do you ride like Eddy Merckx? Well, you do your TTs with NO aero equipment: on a regular road bike, with regular wheels and rims, and a road helmet. No deep-rim wheels, no aero bars or bikes, no aero helmets.
How do you train like Eddy? Eddy says: "Ride lots."
The Good Friday Road Race Needs You!
Have you ever watched pro cycling and wondered, 'Hmmm, wouldn't it be cool to be in the cars amidst the riders, watching the break, seeing the action for more than the split-second that roadside spectators do?' Well, here is your chance.
Hamilton Cycling Club is looking for a few good drivers as it prepares for the April 2, 2010 edition of the Good Friday Road Race in Flamborough. If you have nerves of steel, and a steady hand on the wheel, please contact HCC treasurer Dave Wooley at bamboo744@hotmail.com.
And, for those of you who want to help in other ways, we are certainly accepting volunteers to help run the Good Friday RR - the opening road race of the acclaimed Ontario Cup series. General volunteers, please contact HCC racing secretary Henry Dudko at squirreltruck@hotmail.com.
HCC-MTB Meeting
We invite anyone interested to attend a meeting between the Hamilton Cycling Club and area mountain bike riders, scheduled for 7 pm Wednesday, Feb. 3 in the Upper Room of the Coach and Lantern Pub (384 Wilson St. E., Ancaster).
The agenda includes:
1. Elect/designate two new board members representing mountain biking within the HCC
2. Form a sub-committee for trail advocacy who will be responsible for communicating between the HCC and various organizations such as the City of Hamilton's cycling committee, RBG, Hamilton Conservation Authority, etc. Schedule regular meetings open to all members to update progress.
3. Discussion of rides/events/clinics to be scheduled for the club for the 2010 season.
4. Drink beer... if not already done.
All members are encouraged to attend. Those who cannot are encouraged to email their comments to Jeff Landry at landryjc@mcmaster.ca or post within the HCC forum.
New Courses, New Events in 2010 HCC Schedule
The Hamilton Cycling Club is excited to share a revamped and reinvented 2010 calendar of club events -- with new time trial courses, new hill climbs and the kind of variety local cyclists will love.
You can now find every event scheduled -- except for the Valley Park Cyclocross and HCC AGM (for which dates are TBA) - on the HCC Calendar. Also, you can use this hot-off-the-press Word document of the dates. H.C.C. ROAD SCHEDULE 2010
New HCC Forum! Let the debates begin
The Hamilton Cycling Club is happy to offer a forum to registered users here. It's easy to use, and if you are keen you can even use a Daffy cartoon character for your avatar, as Henry D. has.
A few things to remember:
1. This is a club site, so stay cool. If you wouldn't say it in person, well.. 'nuff said.
2. You should be emailed a login password, in case registration is confusing.
3. Have fun!
A few uses:
1. Organizing group rides.
2. Buying and selling bike stuff.
3. Giving the club feedback.
4. Debating the Lance-versus-Contador odds.
A Call for Sponsored Riders
The Hamilton Cycling club invites interested athletes to apply for sponsorship for the 2010 race season. Athletes must submit their application by Feb 1, 2010 to Membership Secretary Carl Clarke at dclarke65@cogeco.ca
Athletes requesting sponsorship must:
1. Be full HCC members in good standing.
2. Submit a race resume including results from the 2009 season.
3. Submit in writing what you plan to use the sponsorship dollars for and how it will benefit the club.
4. Be at least 16 years old on December 31, 2010.
5. Be willing to sign a contract including but not limited to stipulations on number of races entered, use of HCC kit, etc.
See full details in the sponsorship criteria form HCC sponsorship criteria 2010.
Go Tell on the Mountain (Bikers)
The Hamilton Cycling Club executive has taken a significant step forward in building its mountain bike initiatives, with a Jan. 13 decision to join the International Mountain Bicycling Association and to add two MTB reps to its executive ranks.
Both motions were voted on at this week's executive meeting, and received unanimous support from the executive members present. It comes amid discussions between area mountain bikers and HCC about building its MTB work.
At the meeting, the HCC executive considered the IMBA membership and the addition of two executive members as first steps, if the club is to augment its MTB wing. The directors agreed that the future of HCC will include more MTB events, trail-building and advocacy for access to public land.
"There is a perception out there that the club is only for roadies," explained racing secretary Henry Dudko. "And that is just not true, because so many of us are also riding mountain bikes because it's a lot fun."
The decision left mountain bike racer Marc Risdale, who attended the meeting, pleased: "Hamilton has always stood out in southern Ontario for lacking a mountain bike club and we’re really excited that the Hamilton Cycling Club has taken these significant steps towards welcoming a whole new group of riders. We have ambitious plans and we look forward to working with all members in bringing them to fruition.”
There is another meeting between HCC and MTBers coming up at 7 p.m. Jan. 20 at the Winchester Arms pub in Dundas.
