With the cycling season at the half-way point, it’s time for an anonymous Mid-season Members Survey. Our fantastic team of volunteers work tirelessly to steer the club in the right direction but we also welcome opportunities for improvement.  That’s where you come in—we want your constructive input too, so let’s all pitch in and fill out this quick little survey! It’s just 10 questions and honestly, you can complete it faster than you can ride that bike of yours around the block! 

What do we do with the results?

We look at each and every survey to explore how we can best respond to your suggestions. We’ll implement as much as possible for the second half of our 2021 cycling season, to bring you even more grooviness!. 

It’s Anonymous—That’s because we anticipate that some might be a little shy. We have no way of tracking you down! Click here to take the Survey!

For those not planning to take part in the PEC Wine Tour on Sunday and would just like to stay local, Jim Breckenridge will be leading a Level 1 group from Donegan Park and out along Lakeshore towards Nawautin. It’s a gorgeously flat route, and the sanctuary at Nawautin has sun, shade, water, and wildlife!

Sunday August 1st: (Level 1) Easy Ride to Nawautin with Jim
Start time: 10:00am
Ride Planner: Jim Breckenridge
Length: 1.5-2 hours
Terrain: A
Pace: Slow (Level 1)
Type of ride: Group
Start location: Donegan Park on D’Arcy St.

RSVP: We need to know how many to expect. You can RSVP two different ways.

• The easiest way! Visit the NHCC Ride Calendar, click on the ride you are interested in, then click RSVP or,
• Leave a comment right on the website to say you are coming!

There was a discrepancy in the start time for tomorrow’s Level 3 Ride from Bewdley. The correct start time is 10:00am

Wine! Food! Ice Cream! This is a fabulous wine tour for those who like visit the wineries of Prince Edward County by bicycle! Wayne will take us along a route that passes by at least 20 wineries (all on the map). We can decide as we go which ones to venture into. We’ll have a planned stop in Wellington at the halfway point to get a bite to eat if people wish. For something a little extra, there’s an optional stop at the Lavender farm early on in the tour. Actually, ALL the stops are optional—you could just blast past ’em all, but what would be the point? The plan is to ride together in a group, but if numbers permit, we may break into more than one. Take note that it’s an 11:00 start. Bring a little $$ for optionals that might include wine tastings, food, or ice cream! 

Sunday August 1st: (Tourist Pace Ride!) Prince Edward County Wineries
Start time: 11:00am
Ride Planner: Wayne Pearce
Length of Ride: 50km. Time-wise, who knows? Likely all afternoon!
Terrain: A
Pace: Tourist pace (That means casual, likely leisurely)
Type of ride: Group or ReGroup, depending on numbers
Start location: Corner of Salem Rd. and Loyalist Parkway (park at the side of the road)

RSVP: We need to know how many to expect. You can RSVP two different ways.

• The easiest way! Visit the NHCC Ride Calendar, click on the ride you are interested in, then click RSVP or,
• Leave a comment right on the website to say you are coming!

This week’s forecast is looking unpredictable, but we’ll forge ahead and plan rides, subject to weather changes of course!

Sunrise, Sunset and Lights on Bikes:
It’s important to note that the days are getting shorter, fast! We are losing almost a minute a day now and in fact, have already lost around 20 minutes of daylight over the past few weeks! Given the earlier sunsets, it’s important for evening rides that you have appropriate lights on both the front and back of your bike. The law requires cyclists have lights on between 30 minutes before sunset until 30 minutes after sunrise.  So, if sunset is at 8:38pm on Thursday night’s ride, lights would be required at 8:08pm.  There are two kinds of lights: Running Lights, and Lights to See With (just like in your car!).  Most bike shops have a selection of lights available in every price range.  For more guidance on selecting some lights, check out this from MEC.  

FYI, you can lookup each day’s official sunset time on the NHCC website in the right hand column! 

Here are the rides for the week of July 26-30th (so far!):

1. Monday July 26th: (Level 2/3) Exploring Port Hope from Mastwoods Rd.
Start time: 6:00pm
Ride Planner: Wayne Pearce
Length of Ride: 1.5 – 2 hours (No route provided)
Terrain: C
Pace: In between Leisurely (Level 2) and Moderate (Level 3)
Type of ride: Group
Start location: 4857 Mastwoods Rd., Port Hope

2. Tuesday July 27th: (Level 2) Dennis’ Casual Evening Ride
Start time: 6:00pm
Ride Planner:  Dennis Benson
Length: 1.5-2 hours
Terrain: B
Pace: Leisurely (Level 2)
Type of ride: Group
Start location: St. Marys Church parking lot in Grafton (103 Lyle St. South, Grafton)

3. Wednesday July 28th: (Level 3) Bewdley to Harwood and Back
Start time: 10:00am
Ride Planner: Wayne Pearce
Distance: 36km + (add 30km more distance for a total of 66km by riding to the start point from Hamilton Township Offices at 9am!)
Terrain: C 
Pace: Moderate (Level3)
Type of ride: Re-Group
Start location: Bewdley Waterfront on Rice Lake

4. Thursday July 29th: (Level 2) Dennis’ Casual Evening Ride
Start time: 6:00pm
Ride Planner: Dennis Benson
Length of Ride: 1.5-2 hours
Terrain: B
Pace: Easy (Level 2)
Type of ride: Group
Start location: Donegan Park, D’Arcy St., Cobourg

5. Friday July 30th: (Level 3, or 4) Friday Floater, “Waterfront Trail Clarington to the ‘Shwa”
Start time: 10:00am
Ride Planner: Randy Albon
Distance: choice of 63km 
Terrain: B
Pace: Mixed Levels
Type of ride: Re-Group
Start location: Bond Head Parkette, Boulten St. in Newcastle

RSVP: We need to know how many to expect (COVID gathering limits apply) You can RSVP two different ways.

• The easiest way! Visit the NHCC Ride Calendar, click on the ride you are interested in, then click RSVP or,
• Leave a comment right on the website to say you are coming!

There really was something for everyone today! Friday Floater Ride—The “Rock & Lock & Roll Route”—featuring amazing people to ride with, a mammoth size boulder, great flat trail, wildflowers everywhere, cottages, waterfront, and a totally summer-feeling at Redleys on Oak Lake where they have THE BEST FRIES, onion rings and ice cream! What more could we ask for, honestly!

Ride Cancellation Notice: Environment Canada has issued Severe Weather Warnings, and the forecast shows an 80% chance of rain all evening.  With that, the NHCC is cancelling tonight’s Level 3 ride (July 20).

We have another ride added to the calendar for this week! A very easy Level 1 ride starting at Peace Park in Cobourg. Jim will take the group on a flat ride around town, going down quiet side streets, exploring our local neighborhoods.

Wednesday July 21st: (Level 1) Easy Tour of Cobourg
Start time: 6:00pm
Ride Planner: Jim Breckenridge
Length of Ride: 1.5-2 hours
Terrain: A
Pace: Easy (Level 1)
Type of ride: Group
Start location: Peace Park on Forth St., in Cobourg

RSVP: We need to know how many to expect (COVID gathering limits apply) You can RSVP two different ways.

• The easiest way! Visit the NHCC Ride Calendar, click on the ride you are interested in, then click RSVP or,
• Leave a comment right on the website to say you are coming!

We have six rides on the schedule for this week so far. Of particular interest is the Friday Floater Ride, the “Rock and Lock and Roll Route” which re-scheduled from a few weeks ago.  It’s a route that just about anyone in the club can enjoy with the first half being almost dead flat off-road trail.  You can go as far as you’d like then turn around and come back, making it whatever distance you want (up to 34km), or do the whole route (50km) for a mix of trail and road. 

1. Tuesday July 20th: (Level 3/4) Camborne to Bewdley
Start time: 6:00pm
Ride Planner: Anita Macklin
Distance: 46km
Terrain: C
Pace: Moderate (Level3), or Fast (Level 4)
Type of ride: Re-Group
Start location: Hamilton Township Municipal Offices

2. Tuesday July 20th: (Level 2) Donegan Park to Grafton
Start time: 9:30am
Ride Planner:  Dennis Benson
Length: 1.5-2 hours
Terrain: B
Pace: Leisurely (Level 2)
Type of ride: Group
Start location: Donegan Park, D’Arcy Street in Cobourg

3. Wednesday July 21st: (Level 3/4) Evening Ride for Distance
Start time: 6:00pm
Ride Planner: Debbie Parks
Distance: 46km
Terrain: C 
Pace: Moderate (Level3), or Fast (Level 4)
Type of ride: Re-Group
Start location: Sylvan Glen, on Sylvan Glen Road in Port Hope

4. Wednesday July 21st: (Level 1) Easy Tour of Cobourg
Start time: 6:00pm
Ride Planner: Jim Breckenridge
Length of Ride: 1.5-2 hours
Terrain: A
Pace: Easy (Level 1)
Type of ride: Group
Start location: Peace Park on Forth St., in Cobourg

5. Thursday July 22nd: (Level 2) Evening Ride, in and around Cobourg
Start time: 6:00pm
Ride Planner: Dennis Benson
Length of time: 1.5 – 2 hours
Terrain: B
Pace: Leisurely (Level 2)
Type of ride: Group
Start location: Westwood Park, on Carlisle between Westwood and Ewing

6. Friday July 23rd: (Level 2, 3, or 4) Friday Floater Ride, “The Rock and Lock and Roll Route”
Start time: 10:00am
Ride Planner: Randy Albon
Distance: choice of 34 or 50km 
Terrain: B
Pace: Mixed Levels
Type of ride: Re-Group
Start location: Lower Trent Trail Parking lot, 70 Lock Rd, Trenton

RSVP: We need to know how many to expect (COVID gathering limits apply) You can RSVP two different ways.

• The easiest way! Visit the NHCC Ride Calendar, click on the ride you are interested in, then click RSVP or,
• Leave a comment right on the website to say you are coming!