In case you haven’t seen the skies just open up, tonight’s Level 2 ride is canceled.

It’s looking like a great week for cycling! Lots of heat and sunshine, almost no rain. Note that the Monday ride has a slightly earlier start time than usual. The 50km Thursday and Sunday rides are a new route that we’ll try, from Sylvan Glen and heading up to Garden Hill for a change.

Monday July 27th: Level 1 Ride
Ride Leader: Maria Siemiazsko
*Note that there is an earlier start time for this Monday’s ride.*
Start time: 6:00pm
Start location: Wicklow Beach Parking lot

Tuesday July 28th: Level 2 Ride
Ride leader: Geoffrey Honey
Start time: 6:00pm
Start location: 210 Wilmott St., (The old Coke plant)

Wednesday July 29th: Level 3 Ride
Ride leader: Lee Shooter
*A nice little loop with plenty of climbs, all around Baltimore.*
Start time: 6:30pm
Start location: Donegan Park
Route (38km): Printable route map here, or link to it on Ride with GPS

Thursday July 30th: Level 3/4 combined Morning Ride
Ride coordinator: Anita Macklin
*If you want to bike over to the start point, adding an additional 28km round trip, meet at the Canadian Tire parking lot at 8:15 and bike to the start point via Port Hope. Leave a comment to let others know if you’ll leave from Canadian Tire*
Start time: 9:00am (8:15 if you plan to bike to the start point from Cobourg)
Start location: Sylvan Glen Conservation Area
Route map (50km): Printable route map here, or link to it on Ride with GPS

Thursday July 30th: Level 4 Evening Ride
Ride Coordinator: George Hussey
Start time: 6:30pm 
Start location: Canadian Tire Parking lot, Cobourg
Route: To be determined

Sunday August 2nd: Level 3/4 combined Morning Ride
Ride Coordinator: Anita Macklin
*If you want to bike over to the start point, adding an additional 28km round trip, meet at the Canadian Tire parking lot at 8:15 and bike to the start point via Port Hope. Let others know if you are going to depart from Canadian Tire, by leaving a comment.*
Start time: 9:00am (8:15 if you plan to bike over from Cobourg)
Start location: Sylvan Glen Conservation Area
Route map (50km): Printable route map here, or link to it on Ride with GPS

Are you an early morning riser? If so, we have a Saturday morning 60k Level 3 ride for you.

Start time: 8am
Start location: Donegan Park
Route map: View route on Ride with GPS
Ride coordinator: Lee Shooter

Please let Lee know if you plan to ride by leaving a comment.

**This event has been postponed**

Message from Sue Throop regarding the Trailblazer Tandem Cycling Club:

Dear NHCC members
On Saturday August 22, my friend Warren & I, along with Cycle Transitions, will be co-hosting a ride for the Trailblazer Tandem Cycling Club.

The TTCC is a tandem bike club where a sighted Captain pilots the tandem bike (provided) with a blind or sight impaired rider on the back. The TTCC is asking if any CT members would be interested in being a Captain for the Cobourg ride. It involves a brief orientation featuring procedure and etiquette on guiding the blind and the operation of a tandem with a blind / sight impaired “Stoker”. We are planning a waterfront route of approx. 50 km. The orientation would start at 9:15 a.m. and the ride would launch at 10:00 a.m. The ride will also feature a BBQ lunch ($10.00 per person).

At this point we are inviting CT & NHCC members only as there is a limit to tandem bikes available & there will probably be some of the Captains from the club that may want to join us.

With that being said, anyone who would like to join in the ride on their own bikes are more than welcome to do so.

If you’re interested please respond to me with your name, height & weight…these are important for matching individuals, from there depending on how many interested, things will be organized on matching captains to a potential Stoker.

If you’re interested & already have a tandem bike, even better!

Sue Throop suethroop@gmail.com

We appreciate that a lot of rides are being posted resulting in possible email overload. So, we are going to try something new and include multiple rides in one single posting. This should significantly reduce the quantity of email notifications you receive. Starting next week, all rides from Monday to Sunday will be covered in one simple post. For now, we’ll cover this Thursday till Sunday:

Thursday July 23: Combined level 3/4 morning ride
Notes: This is a Ganaraska Freewheelers route, and always guaranteed to be a great one! It’s also self-guided group ride (no ride leader), so please be sure to prepare by having a map printed out, or accessible by cell-phone.
Start time: 9:00am. *PLEASE NOTE:   those who have replied to this post have decided to start at 10:00
Start location: Warkworth Main St. (See route map below). The group meeting at 10:00 is meeting at t Warkworth Conservation Area at. Mill St (#29) and Old Hastings Road
Route Map: “Trent River Truckin” printable route map here

Thursday July 23: Level 4 evening ride
Notes: Road bikes are required for the regular level 4 rides
Start time: 6:30pm
Start location: Canadian Tire parking lot, Cobourg
Route: To be determined
Ride coordinator: George Hussey

Sunday July 26: Combined level 3/4 morning ride
Note: Like Thursday rides, this is a self-guided group ride, without a designated ride leader
Start time: 9:00am
Start location: Warkworth Main St. (See route map below)
Route Map: “Trent River Truckin” printable route map here

The forecast for this week is pure sunshine all the way to Sunday, and even then it’s only a 30% chance of rain. Should  be a great week for cycling!

Before you head out for an evening ride this week, be aware that the Making Ontario Roads Safer Act, complete with steeper fines and demerit points takes effect on Tuesday. A few things of particular interest to cyclists are:

• One Metre rule: Drivers must maintain at least one metre of space between their vehicle and a cyclist where practicable
• “Dooring”: Drivers who open their doors in the path of a cyclist (“Dooring”) can be fined between $300-$1000
• Lights on bicycles: Bicyclists who do not use a light and reflectors or reflective material can now be fined between $60 and $500
• Cyclists will be allowed to use the paved shoulders on non-400 series provincial highways.

Monday August 31: Level 1 Ride
Ride Leader: Maria Siemiazsko
Start time: 6:00pm
Start location: Cycle Transitions parking lot, 739 D’Arcy St, across from the Cobourg Community Centre

Tuesday September 1: Level 2 Ride
Ride leader: Geoffrey Honey
Start time: 6:00pm
Start location: The industrial parking lot at 210 Wilmott Rd., Cobourg

Wednesday September 2: Level 3 Ride
Ride leader: Roberto Almeida
Start time: 6:00pm
Start location: Cobourg Memorial Arena, 206 Furnace St.

Thursday September 3: Level 3/4 combined Morning Ride
It will be a great opportunity to ride up to Bewdley and then coast home, mostly downhill. You gotta do the uphill first though!
Start time: 10:00am
Start location: Westwood Park on Carlisle St. between Ewing and Westwood
Ride leader: No ride leader assigned for this ride. Please bring route maps with you.
Route map (62k): Printable route map here or view it on Ride with GPS
Route map (72k): View it on Ride with GPS

Thursday September 3: Level 4 Evening Ride
Ride Coordinator: George Hussey
Start time: 6:00pm
Start location: Canadian Tire Parking Lot, Cobourg

Saturday September 5: All Levels Special Event in Hastings
Details to come

Sunday September 6: Level 3/4 combined Morning Ride
Ride leader: No ride leader assigned for this ride. Please bring route maps with you.
Start time: 10:00am
Start location: Westwood Park on Carlisle St. between Ewing and Westwood
Ride leader: No assigned ride leader. Please bring route maps with you.
Route map (62k): Printable route map here or view it on Ride with GPS
Route map (72k): View it on Ride with GPS

Okay….so here’s the deal—Despite a survey that indicated a slight preference for an earlier morning time start, we’re going to switch it back to 10:00am and see if that works out better.

By the way, in case you missed the info, next weekend is our second NHCC Cycle Tour to Presqu’ile Park. This one’s just a single overnighter where we bike to Presqu’ile, camp out and then return the next day. We’ll have a support vehicle to take along your gear, so no worries there. We had a blast on the last tour! There are still a few spots available so please fire us off a quick email if you want to participate.

Here are the regular rides for this week:

Monday August 3: Level 1 Ride
Ride leader: Dennis Benson
Start time: 6:00pm
Start location: Westwood Park (on Carlisle)

CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER:Tuesday August 4: Level 2 Ride
Ride leader: Roberto Almeida
Start time: 6:00pm
Start location: Cobourg Memorial Arena (Furnace St.)

Wednesday August 5: Level 3 Ride
Ride leader: Mike McLellan
Start time: 6:30pm
Route: “It’s all Downhill from Here (37km)” printable route map or link to it on Ride with GPS
Start location: Donegan Park

Thursday August 6: Level 3/4 combined Morning Ride
*This ride is self-led (no ride leader). All are expected to have a map and level 3s ride in group.
Start time: 10:00am
Route map: “To Harwood and Beyond”(55 or 63km) Printable route map, or link to it on Ride with GPS
Start location: Cobourg Memorial Arena (Furnace St.)

Thursday August 6:: Level 4 Evening Ride
Ride Leader: Jim Woperis
Start time: 6:30pm
Start location: Canadian Tire parking lot

Sunday August 9: Level 3/4 combined Morning Ride
*This ride is self-led (no ride leader). All are expected to have a map and level 3s ride in group.
Start time: 10:00am
Route map: “To Harwood and Beyond”(55 or 63km) Printable route map, or link to it on Ride with GPS
Start location: Cobourg Memorial Arena (Furnace St.)
 

We have been asked for our support in the first ever Bike Up Northumberland charity ride in support of both the Northumberland Hills and Campbellford Memorial Hospital Foundations.

This exciting new event will take place on Saturday, September 12 and will consist of distances for all cycling enthusiasts ranging from 5k, 10k, 25k, 50k and 100k rides along our Waterfront Trail. All rides will start and finish at Donegan Park in Cobourg where pre- and post-ride festivities will be held.

We are hoping a strong showing and financial support from the membership of the Northumberland Hills Cycling Club, the Cobourg Cycling Club, and as many friends and families as possible to establish a firm foundation for what will hopefully become an annual event. We’ll be participating in a sport we all love while assisting our two local county Hospitals.
Continue reading→

The route will include Shelter Valley, a pretty ride in either direction. For the Level 3 rides, there is no leader, and each rider is expected to have the route at hand. Please make sure that your bikes are equipped with lights as the days are getting a little shorter, and if it is overcast it’s always a good idea to have them turned on.

Date: Wednesday, July 22nd
Time: 6:30
Start Location: Donegan Park
Ride Difficulty: Level 3
Route: Printable Shelter Valley Loop route map, or link to it on Ride with GPS
Ride Coordinator: Lee Shooter

We hear Roberto did a fantastic job last week but he will be on holidays so Maria will lead the Level 2 ride Tuesday.

Date: Tuesday, July 21st
Time: 6:00
Start Location:  the arena on Furnace Street
Route: Cornish Hollow route
Ride Leader:  Maria Siemiaszko