Sunday, August 31, 2008

Illinois Great Rivers Ride

If you live in Southwestern or Southern Illinois, you may have seen this sign up on a bunch of roads.

If you're wondering what the sign is about, it's the route marker for the Illinois Great Rivers Ride. The seven-day ride begins next Sunday, Sept. 7, at the Lewis and Clark State Historic Site near Hartford, and the loop ride ends there Saturday, Sept. 13.

As a resident of the metro-east counties of the St. Louis metropolitan area, I welcome the cyclists who are touring our region.

I am, however, concerned about the impression you'll get of our region based upon the first day of riding. Some of what you'll see will fit into the negative stereotypes that many people have of our region.

Next Sunday's route begins at Lewis and Clark site, which has a nice museum that you should visit. The museum is located near the junction of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. Meriwether Lewis, William Clark and their Corps of Discovery spent the winter of 1803-04 near the museum before they took off on May 14, 1804.

Unfortunately, one of the prominent things you'll see near the site is a now-closed chemical plant which isn't very pretty at all.

The route then heads down Madison County Transit's Confluence Trail down to Chain of Rocks Road. Watch out for gravel on the trail and the road that links the trail with Chain of Rocks Road. When you get to the road, I encourage you to turn west and head to the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge, which is now a bicycle and pedestrian bridge over the Mississippi River that links Chouteau Island and the city of St. Louis. The smaller bridge you'll cross goes over the Chain of Rocks Canal, which detours barge traffic past the dangerous rocks in the river.

Going east on Chain of Rocks Road, you will be on historic old Route 66. You'll be going through a commercial/semi-industrial area before turning onto Maryville Road into Granite City. For the most part, you'll be going through good, solid working-class neighborhoods.

Unfortunately, the route goes on Mockingbird Lane, which is truly one of the most wretched stretches of road I've ever seen. There's plenty of big bumps and potholes, and they're hard to avoid unless you go out toward the center of the road.

You get a reprieve when you hop on MCT's Schoolhouse Trail. Included are some nice views of Horseshoe Lake, a former oxbow of the Mississippi River. You'll probably also see a few crops that don't look like corn or soybeans. The odds are those are horseradish plants. The soil conditions near Collinsville make the region one of the best in the world for growing horseradish.

You'll turn off the trail on the west edge of Collinsville and then take Fairmont Avenue and Black Lane into the community of State Park Place. When you reach Collinsville Road, a four-lane highway, I recommend you make a side trip to the Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site. Visit the museum that explains the history of the Mississipian people that inhabited the region, and if you have enough energy, walk the stairs to the top of Monks Mound.

The route continues on Black Lane to Bunkum Road. Unfortunately, the St. Clair County Highway Department saw fit to put fresh oil and chip on the road last week, and the surface was extremely nasty last week, even for cars. I hope the oil and chip is smashed down enough by next Sunday for safe passage of the cyclists.

More fresh oil-and-chip awaits you as you travel on 79th and 81st Streets in East St. Louis. When you see the words East St. Louis, you most often think of poverty and crime. Fortunately, the eastern part of the city is generally safe. Frankly, I think the fresh oil-and-chip street surfaces will be a much bigger problem while traveling through East St. Louis that day than anything else.

You'll turn left onto State Street and start heading toward a big hill. Don't worry, you won't climb the hill. If you make a mistake and start climbing the hill, you'll be on Main Street in Belleville. Instead, the route turns right onto Illinois 157 toward Centreville. Illinois 157 isn't very scenic, and it narrows from four lanes to two with a narrow shoulder.

A big hill, however, does await you. You'll turn left onto Illinois 15 and climb a big hill to the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. It's a worthwhile trip, especially if you're Catholic and understand the symbolism behind much of the features at the shrine. You'll go back down the hill to Illinois 157 and head into Centreville.

On your left, you'll see a sign for the Hwy 157 Spa. If you're expecting mudpacks, massages, facials and soothing New Age music, the Hwy 157 Spa isn't your place. Some of its neighbors include PT's and Boxers 'n Briefs, two adult nightclubs. I think you get the picture.

(Fortunately, Traverse City, Mich.-area massage therapist Michelle Kuffer will be accompanying the cyclists on their trek. I first met Michelle on the 2006 BubbaFest and got a massage from her on the 2007 West Shoreline Tour. She is very good and surprisingly strong!)

Further into Centreville, you'll turn right onto Illinois 163 and start a climb into more rural parts of St. Clair County, then you'll turn right onto Imbs Station Road and get a nice bit of downhill. But when you turn left onto Wagner Road, get ready for a twisty climb that's a nice challenge. The Wagner Road hill is part of the course for Millstadt Biathlon, which also will be run next Sunday. I suspect, however, that Great River Ride participants will get to the hill well after the biathlon is done.

The route rolls on Wagner and Bluffside roads into Columbia, the Day One destination. If you want a nice view, stop by the cemetery at the top of the hill before heading down the hill toward downtown Columbia. Once in Columbia, there appears to be an additional loop that takes you into the Mississippi River valley before returning to Columbia.

On Day Two, you'll travel on scenic Bluff Road toward Valmeyer. It's a popular St. Louis-area cycling route because it's flat and because of the towering bluffs that overlook the Mississippi River. The popularity also made Monroe County a battleground between cyclists and the natives.

Cyclists were partly to blame because they often did not obey traffic signs and often rode two or more abreast on the road and refused to move over for passing motorists on a relatively busy country road. The locals, however, were guilty of over-reaction. About a decade ago, the county attempted to force group rides of five or more people to get a permit to ride through the county. Thanks to the work of cycling advocates, that policy was modified to groups of 50 or more.

You'll see signs that say "Bicycles ride to the right and share the road," much different than the "Share the Road" signs you're familiar with. To some, the signs are indictative of the attitude Monroe County residents have toward cyclists. My advice is to ride single-file on Bluff Road to minimize problems with the locals.

You'll climb up Woodland Ridge to the "new" Valmeyer. Before the 1993 flood, the village was located on the bottom land just below the bluff and was devastated by that flood. The village, for the most part, decided to move up the bluff so that it would not be destroyed by future floods.

After Valmeyer, you'll ride on rolling to flat roads to the Fort de Chartres State Historic Site. The fort was built in the 1750s by the French, and it was abandoned in 1771. Parts of the fort have been reconstructed. Nearby is the community of Prairie du Rocher, which was founded by French settlers in the 1720s.

On Day Three, the route heads south to Grand Tower. On Days Four and Five, cyclists will encounter their hilliest days, ending in Vienna (pronounced Vy-enna in Southern Illinois) and Giant City State Park near Makanda respectively. On Sept. 12, the ride heads north to Sparta and the World Shooting and Recreational Complex. On Sept. 13, the ride concludes with a trek from Sparta back to the Lewis and Clark Historic Site.

I haven't had a chance to scout the route from Sparta to Hartford, but I suspect it will give you a more favorable opinion of Southwestern Illinois than you might have developed after the first day. I do know that you'll be going through the city of Edwardsville, probably on more MCT trails, and taking New Poag Road to the Lewis and Clark site.

I hope all of you doing the Illinois Great Rivers Ride have a safe and enjoyable trip. I think this year's route will give you a surprising picture of Illinois, especially for those of you who are only familiar with the Chicago area.

Labels: bicycle rides, Illinois

Roger 1 comments 7:51 PM

Friday, August 29, 2008

Cyclists win a battle in Iowa

The Des Moines Register reports today that Iowa county roads will stay open to group bicycle rides, and a big reason for that is the newspaper itself.

The Register, of course, is the driving force behind RAGBRAI -- the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. A fatality and lawsuit tied to the 2004 edition ride prompted Crawford County to ban large group bicycle rides and the Iowa State Association of Counties to seek state legislation and county ordinances aimed at regulating group rides.

David Vestal, the association's lawyer, told the Register that concessions by the newspaper addressed the issue. RAGBRAI officials will rewrite waivers signed by bicycle rider and will purchase liability insurance that covers counties along the statewide route, he said. The Register story did not say how much insurance coverage will be provided to the counties.

The fallout from the lawsuit also had led to these actions:

• The association lobbied for state legislation that would have barred bicycle riders from collecting damages from counties and cities for most accidents. It failed to win approval.
• The association then urged county officials statewide to adopt tough ordinances to regulate organized bicycle rides. The sample draft ordinance that the association wrote would require the sponsors of any qualified bicycle event to purchase a $1 million policy that also covers the county. Violators would face fines of at least $750.
• In Hardin County, the Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance in July that declared the county's roads were not designed for bicycles. Groups of 10 or more bicyclists must obtain at least $1 million in liability insurance, and they can be fined $750 for first-time offenses.
• The Dallas County Board of Supervisors considered a similar proposal in June, but it was shelved amid stiff opposition from bicyclists.
  

Hardin County board members will meet at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Hardin County Courthouse in Eldora to consider repealing its ordinance. Supervisor Jim Johnson acknowledged that the ordinance has been unpopular with bicycle riders, but he said county officials were concerned about protecting county taxpayers.

"If RAGBRAI has this covered, then we are satisfied," Johnson told the Register.

It's good to see the counties association back down from the harsh stand. Had more counties passed the ordinance, it would have been somewhat crippling for RAGBRAI but catastrophic for smaller bicycle clubs and other organizations that hold group rides.

The Register, which is owned by the Gannett newspaper chain, probably would have had deep enough pockets to afford the insurance, even with the shaky economic state of the newspaper industry. But lots of smaller groups wouldn't have been able to afford the policies.

Labels: advocacy, bicycle rides, Iowa

Roger 0 comments 1:48 PM

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Vande Velde joins Tour of Missouri field

The Tour of Missouri got a big boost with announcement today that Tour de France fifth-place finisher Christian Vande Velde will be part of this year's field.

Vande Velde, a native of the Chicago suburb of Lemont, is giving the Tour of Missouri a boost in much the same way the addition of 2007 Tour de France winner Alberto Contador and 2007 third-place finisher Levi Leipheimer gave the inaugural race a boost last year. I would think Chicago-area cycling fans would want to come down to Missouri to see their hero sometime over the course of the race. Vande Velde rides for the American Garmin-Chipotle cycling team.

The 32-year-old Vande Velde, one American cycling’s big revelations in the post-Lance Armstrong era, surprised the world by finishing less than a couple minutes out of the podium at this year’s Tour de France. Known as a top trialist most of his career, Vande Velde showed amazing climbing skills and has matured into one of the world’s best all-around riders. Earlier in the year, he finished 3rd overall in the Amgen Tour of California and last year finished second overall at the Tour de Georgia, two of North America’s biggest races. He finished 17th overall in the road race at the Olympic Games two weeks ago.

Vande Velde will be joined by Garmin-Chipotle teammates that include U.S. Olympic team member David Zabriskie, Tour de France team member Danny Pate and Will Frischkorn, who finished second overall at last year’s Tour of Missouri and narrowly missed winning a Tour de France stage last month.

Zabriskie is the only American to ever win a stage of all three of professional cycling’s Grand Tours (France, Italy, and Spain), and is a two-time time trial champion and former Tour de France race leader. Pate won Stage 5 of last year’s Tour of Missouri, breaking away to win into St. Charles. Pate is a former Under-23 world champion.

Also joining the field is 2008 Tour of Switzerland champion Roman Kreuzinger.

The Tour of Missouri opens Sept. 8 with a stage from St. Joseph to Kansas City and closes Sept. 14 with a circuit race in St. Louis.

Labels: cycling, racing, Tour of Missouri

Roger 2 comments 8:50 AM

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Little Traverse Wheelway closer to completion

If you've read the accounts of my multiday rides in the United States and Canada, you know that Michigan is one of my favoring cycling destinations.

There's a variety of reasons for that, ranging from the amazing scenery along Lake Michigan to my desire to beat the heat that's usually present in the St. Louis area this time of year.

That's why I read with interest an account from the Harbor Light Newspaper about that fact a key link of the Little Traverse Wheelway between Magnus Park and East Bay Park in Petoskey is nearing completion. (The photo also is from the Harbor Light Newspaper.) If this excerpt from the story doesn't entice you to want to ride the trail, I don't know what will:

About three-quarters of a mile to the west of Petoskey’s Magnus Park, looking over Little Traverse Bay from a distance of roughly 50 feet, the view is nothing short of spectacular.

The water is crystal clear, and most of the shoreline running from Goodhart to Bay Harbor is visible. In the distance, the Petoskey light house looks like a tiny speck, jutting out into the lake.

Typically a Northern Michigan view like this can only be read about in a real estate listing for a million dollar cottage on the lake. However, come September, this view will be available for anyone. ...

When the 26-mile trail is completed, it will connect the lakeshore communities of Charlevoix and Harbor Springs. The trail is completed between Charlevoix and East Bay Park as well as from Magnus Park to the intersection of Beach Road and M-119 north of Petoskey. The West Shoreline Tour uses nearly all of the trail during its annual jaunt up the Lake Michigan shoreline.

A stretch of trail along M-119 to the Harbor Springs Airport is slated to completed in 2009. My hunch, though, is that the West Shoreline Tour will continue to use Beach Road, a beautiful road lined with trees and some of those gorgeous $1 million-plus summer homes near Harbor Springs.

The completion of the trail will be a wonderful thing for northern Michigan cyclists because it gives them a safe alternative to riding on busy U.S. 31 and M-119, which are thick with traffic during tourist season.

My one hope for the trail, based upon my travels on it in, is that signage on the trail is improved in Petoskey. I found it difficult to navigate the trail in the community, especially in the Waterfront Park section.

Labels: Michigan, trails

Roger 0 comments 1:05 PM

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

East St. Louis native Dawn Harper wins gold medal

Yes, I know Dawn Harper isn't a cyclist, but she's a hometown hero!

Harper, who grew up in East St. Louis and was a track star at East St. Louis High School and UCLA, was the surprise gold-medal winner in the 100 women's hurdles. Harper won the event with a personal best time of 12.54 seconds, a tenth of a second ahead of silver medalist Sally McLellan of Australia.

American Lolo Jones was the favorite to win the event, but she clipped a hurdle, opening the door for her teammate. Teammate Damu Cherry, who defeated Harper in a semifinal Monday, finished fourth in the finals. Jones finished seventh.

Not surprisingly, Harper has close ties to another East St. Louis Olympic champion, Jackie Joyner-Kersee. Harper's coach is JJK's husband, Bob Kersee.

Harper barely made it to the Beijing Olympics. Harper qualified for Beijing by placing third in the 100m with a time of 12.62 at Olympic Trials in Eugene. She crossed just .007 seconds in front of Nichole Denby for the final spot in the event.

"I honestly did not know if I finished third or not," Harper told the Belleville News-Democrat after the trials. "I was able to get out of the (starting) blocks well, but then I hit the seventh and eighth hurdles and I saw my dream maybe ending. I just leaned at the finish line as far as I could."

Labels: Illinois, Olympics

Roger 0 comments 9:50 AM

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

It's Moonlight Ramble time again!

St. Louis' original nighttime cycling party, the Moonlight Ramble, takes place this weekend. Cyclists will begin taking off from the Soldiers Memorial Plaza at 12:01 a.m. Sunday.

The Moonlight Ramble has been a St. Louis fixture since 1964, when Dick Leary took off on his own for a midnight ride through St. Louis. It is the major fundraiser for the Gateway Council of Hostelling International, one of the two largest organizers of group rides in the St. Louis.

How big is it? Anywhere from 10,000 to 15,000 take place in the ride each. By comparison, the Gateway Council's second largest ride of the year, the Tour de Stooges, draws about 550 to 700 people a year.

Mark Cockson, the group's executive direct calls the event "the best party on wheels." Registration and a pre-ride celebration begins at 8 p.m. After the ride, the Gateway Council will have an after-ride party featuring Fat Tire beer, ice cream from Crown Candy Kitchens, Fitz's root beer and "sliders for riders" — White Castle burgers.

Most years, the Ramble heads toward the city's Central West End or toward South St. Louis. This year's ride will head into North St. Louis, near the site of the council's proposed 89-bed hostel. The council recently moved into new offices at 2810 N. 14th St., just across the street from Crown Candy Kitchens.

"There's the incredible sense of achievement you feel when you first learn to ride, when you push those boundaries your parents set and start exploring other neighborhoods and places. The Moonlight Ramble brings back those same feelings," Mark told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

The cost of the ride is $25 for adults and $10 for children. As of Wednesday afternoon, online registration is still open for the Moonlight Ramble. Otherwise, you can sign up the day of the ride. Some St. Louis-area bike shops also are selling tickets.

The Post also mentioned several other rides in the region, and I was happy to see the Belleville Area Bicycling and Eating Society was included among them.

Labels: bicycle rides, Moonlight Ramble, St. Louis

Roger 0 comments 2:23 PM

Distracted Drivers Task Force Report

Earlier this month, the Illinois Distracted Drivers Task Force made its recommendations (PDF file) to curb accidents causes by distracted drivers, including cell phone users.

The task force was created, at least in part, because of the 2006 death of Urbana cyclist Matt Wilhelm, who was killed when he was struck by a car driven by a woman downloading a cell phone ring tone.

Legislators have been attempting to toughen distracted driving laws after Champaign County State's Attorney Julia Rietz was unable to charge the driver with anything more than a traffic offense. Rietz had considered reckless homicide charges against the driver, but she determined that the offense did not fit the "willful and wanton" definition of reckless homicide as now defined by state law.

Here's a summary of the task force's recommendations:

• Making it unlawful for a driver to operate a motor vehicle while engaging in either creating, sending or reading a text message. The only exception to this law would be in the case of an emergency situation.
• Establishment of the offense of Negligent Vehicular Operation. This law would provide that a person commits the offense if the person’s negligent operation of a motor vehicle is the proximate cause of a crash (without inflicting bodily harm). A person acts negligently within the meaning of the provision if he or she fails to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk of death or injury to others, and that failure constitutes a substantial deviation from the standard of care that a reasonable person would exercise under the circumstances. First-time offenders would receive a standard, points assigned, moving violation ticket.
• Establishment of the offense of Aggravated Negligent Vehicular Operation. This law would provide that a person commits the offense if the person’s negligent operation of a motor vehicle is the proximate cause of a personal injury to an individual or property damage exceeds $500. A person acts negligently within the meaning of the provision if he fails to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk of death or injury to others, and that failure constitutes a substantial deviation from the standard of care that a reasonable person would exercise under the circumstances. This offense will be classified as a Class A misdemeanor and may be subject to a jail sentence of 0-12 months, up to a $2,500 fine and a one-year revocation of driving privileges.
• Establishment of the offense of Negligent Vehicular Homicide. This law would provide that a person commits the offense if the person’s negligent operation of a motor vehicle is the proximate cause of the death of another person. A person acts negligently within the meaning of the provision if he fails to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk of death or injury to others, and that failure constitutes a substantial deviation from the standard of care that a reasonable person would exercise under the circumstances. This offense will be classified as a Class 4 felony and will subject the individual to a jail sentence of 1 to 3 years, up to a $25,000 fine and revocation of driving privileges for no less than one year.
• House Joint Resolution 10 (HJR 10), currently under consideration by the Illinois General Assembly, requires that police reports include an indication as to whether an automobile crash involved the use of a cellular phone and directs the Illinois Department of Transportation to compile statistics from state, county, and municipal law enforcement agencies related to cellular phone use and automobile crashes. The Distracted Drivers Task Force recommends the passage of HJR 10 and that the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) publish crash statistics regarding the relationship between the use of cell phones and other methods of distracted driving and motor vehicle crashes for two calendar years (rather than one) based on the statistical analysis of this report. The Distracted Drivers Task Force further recommends that the statistics be compiled and reported by IDOT to the members of the Illinois General Assembly, the Office of the Governor and the Office of the Secretary of State within three months of the completion of the study. The study would be reviewed by the above entities in order to identify any trends, positive or negative, in consideration of further legislation regarding the use of cellular phones and the operation of a motor vehicle.

The recommendation of the new offenses did get some opposition from one member of the task force. Ed Maloney, representing the Illinois State Bar Association, was concerned about the definition of negligence being used by the task force. He simply wants the current Illinois reckless driving statute to be updated to include specific wording about the use of electronic devices, a stand the Chicago Tribune agreed with in a recent editorial.

I know there are some folks out there who think laws like these would be creating a "nanny state", but I'm of the mindset that people need to punished when they engage in careless driving that kills or injures another user of the roads, whether it be a cyclist, motorist or pedestrian.

Labels: advocacy, Illinois, safety

Roger 0 comments 11:44 AM

Kristin Armstrong wins gold medal

Veteran American cyclist Kristin Armstrong became only the second American woman to win a gold medal in an Olympic road racing event by winning the women's time trial today.

Kristin Armstrong -- no relation to 7-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong and not to confused with Lance Armstrong's ex-wife of the same name -- won the 14.6-mile time trial in 34 minutes, 51.72 seconds — 24.29 seconds better than Emma Pooley of Great Britain. Switzerland's Karin Thuerig was third, almost a minute behind the time set by Armstrong. American Christine Thorburn finished fifth.

In fourth place was France's Jeannie Longo-Ciprelli, who is 49 years ago. I personally remember seeing Longo win the women's road race in the 1986 World Championhips in Colorado Springs, Colo. Somewhere hidden in my slide archive, I have a picture of Longo being interviewed after her victory. It truly is amazing how an athlete can stay at the top of her game for so long.

Armstrong, who turned 35 on Monday, cried tears of happiness as "The Star-Spangled Banner" played during the awards ceremony. The only other American woman to have won a gold medal in a road event is Connie Carpenter, who won the inaugural women's road race in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

UPDATE: Later today, American Levi Leipheimer took the bronze medal in the men's time trial. Fabian Cancellara of Switzerland won the gold by riding the 47.3-kilometer circuit in 1 hour, 2 minute, 11.43 seconds. Gustav Larsson of Sweden was 33.36 seconds behind Cancellara, while Leipheimer was 1:09.68 behind. American David Zabriskie was 12th, more than 3 minutes behind Cancellara

Labels: cycling, Olympics, racing

Roger 0 comments 12:20 AM

Saturday, August 09, 2008

Olympic Men's Road Race medalists

Stop reading this post if you want to wait until you see NBC's coverage later this morning to find out the medalists in the Men's Road Race.

Gold: Samuel Sanchez (Spain), 6 hours, 23 minutes, 49 seconds
Silver: David Rebellin (Italy), same time
Bronze: Fabian Cancellara (Switzerland), same time.

Levi Leipheimer was the top American finisher in 11th place, 20 seconds behind Sanchez. Christian Vande Velde finished in 19th, 30 seconds behind Sanchez.

That's all from here. I really need to get to sleep, and I really don't know how many more nights I can spend watching online coverage during this Olympiad.

Labels: cycling, Olympics, racing

Roger 0 comments 4:28 AM

Online coverage of Olympic men's road race: A quick review

Some quick observations about the online coverage of the Olympic men's cycling race:

• If you haven't already done so, the first time you click on the video for Olympic coverage, you will have to download Microsoft Silverlight. If you run a PC on XP or Vista, you should have no problems. If you run a Mac, you'll be OK if you have an Intel processor. If you have any other kind of Mac, forget it. Although I run OS X at work, my G5 does not have an Intel processor, so I couldn't watch the race.
• I am impressed with the video quality -- the sharpness is wonderful compared to some other streaming video pictures I've seen, and the color saturation is superb for online video.
• You will be watching a feed with no audio commentary; you'll have to wait until the race is broadcast on NBC or its sister networks to hear it. NBC's commentary team consists of Pat Parnell, play-by-play; Craig Hummer, play-by-play; Kenan Harkin, analyst; Paul Sherwin, analyst; and Marty Snider, reporter.
• The Live Commentary feature is similar to commentary features seen on other online video sites such as that for the Tour of California. Be sure to click the "More" tab from time to time. The Live Commentary did not report that American David Zabriskie has dropped out halfway through the race, but a story under the "More" tab did.
  
• The Play-by-Play feature was broken during the men's road race. Hopefully, it can be fixed before future races.

Have fun watching Olympic cycling!

Labels: cycling, Olympics, racing, technology, television

Roger 0 comments 1:47 AM

Friday, August 08, 2008

Olympic cycling TV times

Here's the list of TV coverage planned by NBC and its sister stations for the St. Louis area (all times Central Time Zone). You also may want to check NBCOlympics.com for your community because the coverage times may vary. In most cases, the cycling coverage will be included among coverage of other sports, and times are subject to change:

Saturday, Aug. 9
9:00-9:30 a.m, 11:30 a.m.-noon, 1:30-2:30 p.m.: Men's road race (NBC)

Sunday, Aug. 10
Noon-5 p.m.: Women's road race (NBC)

Wednesday, Aug. 13
4-10 a.m.: Men's time trial (MSNBC)
7-9 p.m.: Women's time trila (NBC)

Friday, Aug. 15
9-11 a.m.: Track events (USA)

Saturday, Aug. 16
1 a.m.-1 p.m.: Track events (USA)
11 a.m.-noon: Men's individual pursuit (NBC)

Sunday, Aug. 17
1 a.m.-1 p.m.: Track events (USA)
11 a.m.-1 p.m.: Women's individual pursuit (NBC)

Monday, Aug. 18
4-11 a.m.: Men's team pursuit final (MSNBC)

Tuesday, Aug. 19
1-7 a.m.: Track events (USA)
9-11 p.m., 11:30 p.m.-1 a.m.: Men's BMX (NBC)

Wednesday, Aug. 20
7-10 p.m.: Men's and Women's BMX (NBC)

Friday, Aug. 22
4-9:30 a.m.: Women's mountain bike (MSNBC)

Saturday, Aug. 23
11:30 p.m.-4 a.m.: Men's mountain bike(NBC)

Labels: cycling, Olympics, racing, television

Roger 0 comments 7:31 PM

Thursday, August 07, 2008

Olympic cycling online

My blogging buddies on the West Coast, Cyclelicious and BikingBis, already have posted times to watch Olympic cycling online at NBCOlympics.com in the Pacific Time Zone. I'm doing the same for those of us who live in the Central Time Zone:

• Friday, Aug. 8: Men's Road Race, 10 p.m.-4:30 a.m. Saturday (UPDATED AUG. 8)
  
• Sunday, Aug. 10: Women's Road Race, 1:30-4 a.m.
• Tuesday, Aug. 12: Women's Time Trial, 10:30 p.m.-12:05 a.m.
• Wednesday, Aug. 13: Men's Time Trial, 12:30-4:10 a.m.
• Friday, Aug. 15: Men's and women's track individual pursuit; men's team sprint, 3:30-6 a.m.
• Saturday, Aug. 16: Women's individual pursuit first round; men's kerin, points race, and 4000m individual pursuit finals, 3:30-6:45 a.m.
• Saturday, Aug. 16: Men's team pursuit; men's and women's sprint qualifying rounds, 9-10:45 p.m.
• Sunday, Aug. 17: Women's 3000m individual pursuit final; men's & women's sprint round of 16 and round of 8, 3:30-5:45 a.m.
• Monday, Aug. 18: Women's points race; men's and women's sprint quarterfinals, 3:30-6 a.m.
• Tuesday, Aug. 19: Men's madison; men's and women's sprint classifications, semifinals and finals, 3:30-6:50 a.m.
• Friday, Aug. 22: Women's Mountain Bike Race, 2-4:15 a.m.
• Saturday, Aug. 23: Men's Mountain Bike Race: 2-4:45 a.m.

Even someone with weird work hours like me is going to be hard-pressed to stay up for the online coverage, so I will post those in the next day or two. Meanwhile, you can find listings at NBCOlympics.com.

Labels: cycling, Olympics, racing

Roger 1 comments 1:54 PM

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Registration open for Gateway Cup

The Tour of Missouri isn't the only big bicycle racing event taking in the next few weeks in the St. Louis area. The annual Gateway Cup series of criterium races takes place Labor Day weekend (Aug. 29-Sept. 1)

Details are a bit skimpy on the Gateway Cup's new Web site, but you can sign for individual races or the entire series at 2WheelTech. The cost for men is $40 per race or $130 for the entire series. For women, the cost is $25 per race or $80 for the entire series.

For detailed information about the four days, you can download a PDF flier through USA Cycling. Once again, races for everyone from kids to Pro, Cat 1 and Cat 2 are available.

The Gilded Age Tour de Lafayette takes place the evening of Friday, Aug. 29, in St. Louis' Lafayette neighborhood. On Saturday, Aug. 30, the Gateway Cup moves to downtown St. Louis for the Midwest Testing Tour of Washington Avenue, an afternoon and early evening event.

The Giro Della Montagna takes place the afternoon of Sunday, Aug. 30, on The Hill, St. Louis' Italian neighborhood. Trailnet's Bicycle Fun Club also will have a ride on The Hill that morning.

The Gateway Cup closes the morning and afternoon of Labor Day (Sept. 1) with the Emerson Motor Loop Bicycle Race in University City's Loop business district.

It should be an exciting weekend of bicycle racing, and it will definitely whet you appetite for the Tour of Missouri, which ends in St. Louis on Sept. 14.

Labels: cycling, racing, St. Louis

Roger 0 comments 4:20 PM

More revealing photos of the World Naked Bike Ride

Leave it to The Riverfront Times, St. Louis' leading alternative weekly newspaper, to show more of the St. Louis World Naked Bike Ride than any other media outlet. You can see video and a slideshow of the event. You should be warned: The video and many of the photos in the slideshow are not workplace friendly!

Labels: advocacy, bicycle rides, St. Louis

Roger 0 comments 1:47 AM

Monday, August 04, 2008

Garmin-Chipotle to race in Tour of Missouri

Tour of Missouri organizers announced today that the Garmin-Chipotle team will return to ride this year.

Garmin-Chipotle, known last year as Team Slipstream, won the inaugural event's team title. The press release did not say whether Illinois native Christian Vande Velde, who finished fifth in this year's Tour de France, would be part of the Tour of Missouri roster, but my hunch is that he will in much the same way Alberto Contador and Levi Leipheimer were persuaded to ride for Discovery Channel in last year's race.

Will Frischkorn, who finished second to George Hincapie, and stage winner Danny Pate also are part of the Garmin-Chipotle squad.

“We will be back to win,” Jonathan Vaughters, director of the Garmin-Chipotle team, said in a press release. “This is not an end-of-the-season fun race for us. This is a serious objective for our team. It’s a major event.”

The top U.S. teams will participate in this year's Tour of Missouri and will be joined by international teams such as Liquigas and Rabobank. Here's a full list of the teams:

Columbia (USA)
Liquigas (Italy)
Rabobank (Netherlands, developmental team)
Garmin-Chipotle (USA)
BMC (USA)
Sparkasse (Germany)
Tecos (Mexico)
Symmetrics (Canada)
Health Net presented by MAXXIS (USA)
Toyota-United (USA)
Rock Racing (USA)
Colavita Sutter Home presented by Cooking Light (USA)
Bissell (USA)
Kelly Benefit Strategies - Medifast (USA)
Jelly Belly (USA)

For more details about the race, see the press release.

Labels: cycling, racing, Tour of Missouri

Roger 0 comments 7:39 PM

Tour of Missouri seeks your help

Michael Grote of the Tour of Missouri Breakaway Club just sent out this note to bicycle clubs in Missouri and nearby state:

As you may already know the Tour of Missouri will be taking place September 8th through the 14th. The Tour of Missouri is a seven day professional cycling event featuring elite international men’s teams with stages across Missouri.

Additionally, the Tour of Missouri will host an invitational pro-am women’s race taking place on Monday, September 8, in Kansas City, Missouri. This event builds on the great success of last year’s inaugural Tour of Missouri that inspired cyclists throughout the state and attracted many new fans to the sport.

In order to continue to make this event successful while, exposing Missourians and mid-westerns alike to this great sport, we need your help. As you can imagine a professional bike race through the state takes tremendous resources to guarantee that the event is challenging but safe for the riders, enjoyable for the spectators and supports the race’s continued development in Missouri.

I am asking you to support cycling in Missouri by joining the Tour of Missouri Breakaway Club. The Breakaway Club is an individual donor program that supports the race and ensures its success in 2008 and beyond. More importantly though, it provides great opportunities for you, as a sponsor, to be intimately involved in the action of the Tour of Missouri.

I hope that you will consider this request to support the sport of cycling and the Tour of Missouri this year.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at your convenience at 573-424-5120 or at tourofmissouri@ga2.us.

Thank you for your consideration of this request and your support of the Tour of Missouri.

A $5,000 Champion's Level, a $500 Podium Level ($400 for couples), a $75 Peloton Level ($100 for couples) and Patrol levels for individual levels. The benefits include jerseys at the higher levels and discounts for the lower levels. For those of you who sign up by Aug. 7, your names also will appear i n the Tour of Missouri program.

You can find out more benefits and download forms at the Breakaway Club's page.

Labels: cycling, racing, Tour of Missouri

Roger 1 comments 12:31 PM

Sunday, August 03, 2008

Modest coverage for World Naked Bike Ride

Well, there was more news than normal on St. Louis TV channels Saturday, meaning that the World Naked Bike Ride got modest coverage rather than maximum exposure. Still, the ride got coverage, which is what organizers Stephanie Co and Mariah Pittman sought.

KMOV-TV, Channel 4, posted a story and video ofthe event. The KMOV cameras were aimed strategically so you couldn't see those who dared to bare. I know I'm a little biased here, but I have to say one of the more modestly dressed cyclists shown on the video was really stylin'! He was wearing the 2008 Tour de Stooges T-shirt!

KSDK-TV, Channel 5, also posted a brief story. KSDK also says it has video of the event, but I was unable to view the video tonight.

Neither KTVI-TV, Channel 2, nor KPLR-TV, Channel 11, had coverage available online tonight. since I was working Saturday night, I did not see either of their newscasts.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch also wrote a story, but as of this writing, had not posted any photos. But Beth, the author of the Verbosity VeloCity blog, wrote about her experiences on the ride and posted pictures at her Picasa site. Beth warns that some of the photos may not be suitable for the workplace.

Finally, a video from the ride showed up on YouTube on Sunday. I include it below (Note: The video may not be appropriate for some workplaces):

Labels: advocacy, bicycle rides, St. Louis

Roger 1 comments 12:25 AM

Saturday, August 02, 2008

World Naked Bike Ride reveals more details

In case you're thinking about riding tonight in the St. Louis World Naked Bike Ride, organizers have unveiled more details about at the ride's blog.

The biggest change is that the ride won't start at Tower Grove Park's pool pavilion. Instead, the ride will begin at 9 p.m. at the park's Stupp Center and Memorial Garden near Grand and Arsenal streets. The body painting, scheduled to begin at 7 p.m., will start at the Stupp Center and Memorial Garden as well.

Also, people who are using cars to bring their bikes to the ride are being asked not to park in Tower Grove Park because the park closes at 10 p.m. Instead, they should park on nearby streets.

(I'm sure you can argue that taking a car to the World Naked Bike Ride runs counter to the goal of protesting dependency on oil, but I guess that's a concession that some people are willing to make to avoid overexposure to errant motorists, among other things.)

And, of course, organizers officially are telling people to cover up their private parts -- defined by the city of St. Louis as being the genitals, buttocks, vulva, pubic hair or the female breast below a point immediately above the top of the areola -- but to go for maximum exposure. People who decide to ride au natural will be told there could be consequences.

In another concession to some body coverage, organizers also recommend you wear a helmet. Lights also are recommended, and cyclists are being told to obey the rules of the road, including stopping at stop lights.

In case you need more exposure to the ride, KMOX-TV, Channel 4, aired a preview of the event Friday night. You can watch the segment there as well as an extended interview with organizers Stephanie Co and Mariah Pittman.

I won't be there because I have to work, but I'm sure St. Louis TV stations will give the ride "maximum exposure" because Saturday historically is a slow news day for TV stations.

Labels: advocacy, bicycle rides, St. Louis

Roger 1 comments 11:20 AM