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Is the Club sponsored by anyone?

No, and we aren't seeking sponsors.  We feel that it is best for us to remain independent.  Bicycle racing clubs are typically sponsored, but that is a different situation.

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What is the history of the Club?

We wish that we knew the answer to this question better ourselves.  If someone reading this page knows something about the Club from the 1980s, then please send us a note.  We know that the Club dates back to at least 1980; there is some evidence that it started in 1979.  We know that the Club has engaged in a variety of activities over the years.  It appears that the Club used to be both programs-oriented and rides-oriented in its distant past, while now the rides orientation is foremost and meetings are more functional in nature.  As of late, there has been an increased interest in advocacy-related items, but the riding orientation still remains foremost.  Of course, with growth or increased interest, we could have more of both.

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How are the officers and the board elected?

The board is elected by all the members present at the Annual Meeting of the Club held in November. (There are other Club meetings, but the elections are conducted at a meeting in November that is specifically held for this purpose.) The board then elects the Club's officers.

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The Club has regular rides. How are these rides chosen?

We have a webpage specifically addressing this question. Please read this page if there are specific rides or types of rides that you would like to see. 

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What are the rides like?

We have another webpage that describes our rides.

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Is this a social group, or is it just bike riding?

We're a social group that likes to ride.  We're also an eating group, with eating stops on almost every ride, which forces us to ride a lot to keep off the pounds.  Some members have mastered this better than others.

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Does the Club have trail rides?

If by "trail," you mean the MoPac Trail or other crushed limestone rail trails, then the answer is a resounding "yes." A ride out and back from the 84th Street trailhead is one of our favorites.  We also have rides that include the Oak Creek Trail (Valparaiso to Brainard), the Steamboat Trace Trail (starting near Nebraska City) and the Wabash Trace Nature Trail (starting in Council Bluffs).  If by "trail," you mean the dirt trails in Wilderness Park or Branched Oak Lake, then the current answer appears to be "no," but we've done those rides in the past and would do them again in the future if at least a few riders were interested.  If by "trails," you mean the nice bike paths around Lincoln, then the answer is "not much," but that bears some explaining.

We're primarily road riders.  That is, most of our rides start somewhere in Lincoln, then we head out of town, eat someplace, and then return.  Many (30%? 40%?) of our rides will start at the Children's Zoo and then follow one or more of Lincoln's "bike paths" (more properly referred to as "multi-use trails"), but just as a convenient routes to get out of town.  We're just as likely to take the streets.  Only a few of our short social rides with a strong family orientation (usually "ice cream rides") will be largely restricted to the bike paths inside the city.

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If I'm thinking about joining, can I just tag along on a ride or two to see if I "fit in"?

Please do.  It would probably be helpful, especially if you don't know anyone, to first check our ride list, find out the "ride leader," and contact him/her beforehand. That way, we'll know to look for you and you'll know whom to look for at the start (if the ride starts someplace like the MoPac trailhead or the Children's Zoo, where other bicyclists may congregate). We also suggest reading the webpage that describes what our rides are like.

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Does the Club have anything at all to do with bicycle racing?

While it's possible that the Club could expand in this direction if there was membership interest, the current answer is no.  Check out our webpage about bicycle racing.

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What minimum responsibilities do Club members have?

Club members don't have any responsibilities aside from payment of the annual membership fee ($10 singles or $15 family).  Members aren't required to attend meetings, show up for rides or become a board member.  Of course, we'd like to see members come on rides and get involved in Club activities, but we appreciate those that simply want to receive the Chain Gang or to support our activities.

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What kind of advocacy or political activities is the Club involved in?

A couple of years ago, the answer to that would have been nothing.  That isn't the case anymore, however.  Several members of the board regularly attend public meetings of importance to bicyclists and the Club's board has sometimes been involved with matters of specific concern to bicyclists.  Any board member would be aware of these activities; feel free to contact us should you have questions in this regard

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What sort of fundraising is the Club involved in?

We have customarily donated a share of our proceeds from the annual Spring Fling and Heatstroke 100 rides to some charity, usually local and usually bicycle-related (although the proceeds from one ride went to help victims of Hurricane Katrina that hit New Orleans in 2005).  To date, most of the larger dollar bicycle-related fundraising in the Lincoln area has been trails-related, and the organization that has done that is the Great Plains Trails Network. If you have a strong interest in supporting trails development in and around Lincoln, we recommend that you join the Great Plains Trails Network in addition to us.  (Please note that, while the Great Plains Trails Network's name is similar to ours, we are unrelated organizations.)

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What kind of services does the Club provide (bike rodeos, instruction, etc.)?

At the current time, the Club supports a schedule of rides, publishes the Chain Gang newsletter, and maintains this website.  We have meetings about 6 times per year. Out of those, the website is the only "public service" that we currently provide.

At one time, the Club started to provide bike rodeos, but the work involved was more than we had volunteers to handle.  At one time even longer ago, the Club had adopted a couple of miles of highway, but interest in that faded.  It's simply a matter of what our members are interested in doing.  We don't want members or potential members to feel pressured to get involved in activities in which they have little interest, simply because they are a member of the Club.

The Club can serve as a mechanism for people to undertake services like bike rodeos or adopting a stretch of highway, but someone proposing such an activity will need to find and demonstrate that there are members that want to undertake the work on a sufficiently long-term basis that it would be suitable for the Club to associate its name with an otherwise worthwhile activity. We certainly don't want to promise that we'll do such and such, only to fail after a short time to keep up the work.

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What kind of meetings does the Club have?  How often?

The only constitutionally required meeting is the Annual Meeting of the Club, which is held in November. The board of directors is selected at that meeting. In recent years, the practice has been to have a board meeting about once every one to two months.  During the season, a primary purpose of these meetings has been to schedule rides and plan the Spring Fling and Heatstroke 100 rides, but the board can (and often does) consider other matters at these meetings.  While only board members may vote at board meetings (versus the Annual Meeting where the board is elected by a vote of all members present), any member may attend any meeting and participate in discussions.

These meetings are informal. Of course, folks will say that all kinds of meetings are "informal," but these really are. We'll have snacks, some people will have a few beers after business has been completed, and we'll always engage in a bull session. We'd love to have any interested member attend. Heck, you're welcome to attend even if you aren't interested.

In addition, although they certainly couldn't be called "meetings," the Club invariably has a bull session with every ride at its meal stop.  The board members are invariably also among the most regular riders, so it is common for Club activities and/or concerns to be discussed at meal stops and between riders on rides.

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What kinds of social events does the Club have?

Over the years, various things have been done, but the only social event that appears to be an annual tradition is a Christmas Party, and that has been a persistent and enjoyable event primarily owing to the graciousness of the couple that has hosted it year after year. During the months when the days are long, we have had occasional informal coffee shop gatherings on a weekday evening at the downtown Mill or Mo Java in University Place. Most people will ride their bikes there, although the ride part of it isn't organized in any fashion. Of course, if someone were to take the initiative, our "regulars" are such a sociable group that they'd probably come to almost anything.  In addition, we're trying a picnic in 2006.

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Who can I send questions to?

Our contact list shows club officers and which officer might be a good target for various types of questions.

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What are the Spring Fling and the Heatstroke 100? How can I sign up?

These are annual "open to the public" rides sponsored by the Club. The Spring Fling is usually in late April, while the Heatstroke 100 is in late August.  In exchange for an entry fee, participants get a route map and t-shirt (or similar graft), and support is provided along the route. There are break stations with snacks and drinks provided, and there will be several roving support vehicles to assist riders with problems. Each year, once the date has been set, you will find links to sign up information on this website's home page.

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How can I join the Club?

It's easy. We have a page with contact information and a form that you can use.

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What does my membership fee get me?

You will receive the Chain Gang, the Club's newsletter; you will be able to go on Club rides, and you will be able to attend and participate in Club events (meetings and social gatherings). We can't say that your membership fee gets you access to this website, because anyone with an Internet connection has access to the website, although it is possible that we may have a members-only area on the website at some time in the future.

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Does the Club have jerseys or t-shirts or other merchandise?

We have provided t-shirts to participants in the Spring Fling and Heat Stroke 100, and we sold Club jerseys in the spring of 2006.  So, if you want some kind of Club t-shirt, keep your eye posted for registration for the Spring Fling or Heat Stroke 100.  (We won't necessarily have t-shirts for both rides every year, but they're the most common thing that we do.  We've talked about club water bottles; one year we did coffee cups.)

The place that we ordered Club jerseys from had a minimum order requirement of 25 jerseys.  If members like these and there appears to be enough interest, we can do a re-order.  If you have an interest, please e-mail any board member that you know or the Club's webmaster, indicating your likely interest.  In that fashion, once we have some people expressing an interest, we can get back to them and do a serious poll of Club members.

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What new and different activities or services does the Club have planned for the future?

Nothing "new or different" is planned, but that could change if the Club were to grow in terms of its active members. The Club isn't trying to recruit new or current members to get them involved in activities in which they have no interest. We'd be very happy to just be able to add more active riders so that more people would be on our rides, which could also allow us to add more rides.  In addition, as more people and more active riders are added, it would be likely that some percentage of the new members would also be interested in additional bicycling-related activities -- social, service or political. The point to be stressed is that we are a Club that is open to change, but we don't see ourselves as striving to change, except perhaps to grow.  We aren't trying to recruit people to do anything, except perhaps to ride their bicycle more.

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