newsminer.com

From hammerheads to slowpokes, road riders to mountain bikers, men, women or children, the Fairbanks Cycle Club has a ride for you.

The local bike club offers a variety of training or recreational rides geared toward different groups of cyclists, from those looking to get a workout to those just looking to get out of the house.

The FCC hosts different group rides on five days or nights of the week.

Helmets are required on all FCC-sanctioned rides, as is a membership in the club, which costs $30 for individuals and $45 for families. Riders can also pay a $5 per ride fee if they don’t want a season membership.

A full list of rides and races can be found on the club’s Web site at www.fairbankscycleclub.org.

Here’s a rundown of the rides offered during the week:

Hit the Trail

Officially known as the Tuesday Night Mountain Bike Rides but sometimes referred to as “Doug Rides” in honor of founder Doug Burnside, these trail rides are strictly for mountain bikers. The group rides a different trail each week, typically ranging from two to four hours in length. The emphasis is on fun more than fitness, though a low level of the latter is necessary if you want to have fun.

“You never know what’s going to happen on a Tuesday night ride,” Tom Clark, one of the ride coordinators, said.

Last week, for example, the group was riding down Rosie Creek Road when someone decided it would be fun to try something new by turning down a new trail.

“It turned into a mud slog and everybody thought it was hilarious and stupid,” said Clark, who is 45. “We were going downhill pedaling through the mud and working up a sweat.”

The group ranges from as few as five riders to as many as 35, depending on the ride, Clark said. The group generally sticks together or splits into different factions. Hard-core riders are welcome but they are in the minority, he said.

“If you want to be a hammerhead, fine, have fun up there,” Clark said, summing up the philosophy of the rides. “The mosquitoes are going to eat you alive when you have to stop and wait for everybody else to catch up. There’s a lot of stopping, regrouping and chatting.”

The Tuesday night rides begin at 7 p.m. A schedule and description of each ride, complete with elevation gain and difficulty rating, can be found on the Fairbanks club’s Web site. Some of the rides can be physically demanding and require technical skills. Even after nine years of participating in the rides, Clark can’t pick a favorite.

“Each has it’s own personality,” Clark said. “I like them all.”

The Tuesday night rides also offer riders new to the area a chance to explore new trails, he said.

Contact: Tom Clark, 479-3496.

Women on Wheels

They are not hammerheads but the women who generally show up on Wednesday nights for “Women on Wheels” road rides are looking for something more than a casual pedal around the block, coordinator Roselynn Ressa said.

“In the past we’ve always had just one group of women cyclists,” coordinator Roselynn Ressa said. “Last year was the first year we split it into two groups, a faster group and a slower group.”

Women on Wheels is the faster of the two.

“It’s a group that typically likes to push themselves a little more to see what their limit is,” Ressa said.

The Women on Wheels rides begin each Wednesday from the University of Alaska Fairbanks Patty Center at 6 p.m.

There are 12 rides on the schedule and they range between 20 and 30 miles, Ressa said.

“My goal is for everyone to feel comfortable and make sure they’re having fun and also provide an impetus to push everyone a little bit,” she said.

Riding in a group allows people to feed off each other, both in terms of speed and knowledge. The riders work on drafting and riding in pace lines to maximize speed. About a dozen riders showed up for the first few rides of the season and Ressa is hoping that number grows over the summer.

“You can always go faster in a group,” Ressa said. “There’s more to be learned by sharing experiences and how to handle certain road situations.”

The group atmosphere also allows women to meet other riding partners who have similar goals, she said.

Ressa would like to see more women enter races around Fairbanks. As it is, only a few women participate in FCC races.

“It seems to me the majority of women have not participated in (racing) too much and need encouragement, myself included,” said Ressa, who is 50 and has been riding with other women in Fairbanks since 1985. “I’m just hoping that people feel more comfortable being on bikes and getting on the road,

Contact: Roselynn Ressa, 452-1410

Leisure Ladies

More mellow than Women on Wheels with an occasional mountain bike ride mixed in to break up the monotony of riding on the road, the Leisure Ladies rides are just what the name implies.

Sheryl Reily, who coordinates the Leisure Ladies rides, said the group doesn’t focus on speed as much as just getting out and riding.

“The leisure rides are more recreation and less training; it’s definitely a social group,” Reily said. “It’s kind of an opening point for women to build their confidence and riding skills from the ground up.”

The Leisure Ladies generally meet at 6 p.m. each Thursday at the UAF Patty Center, though there are a few mountain bike rides mixed into the schedule that have different start points. Most of the rides are geared toward road bikes.

The group had 22 women show up for its first ride of the season on May 1. Riders typically stick together in several small groups and the route depends on the make-up of the group that turns out.

“People can peel off at certain points if they’ve had enough and others that want more can keep going,” said Reily, 49.

Contact: Sheryl Reily, 479-0049

Pedaling Punks

Based on the Nordic Ski Club of Fairbanks’ Junior Nordics program, the FCC’s youth trail rides have become a popular activity for junior cyclists in Fairbanks.

Started three years ago, the rides usually attract between 30-50 young riders each week. The rides are held each Friday night from 7-8 p.m. on the ski trails at either Birch Hill Recreation Area or the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

There is no minimum age to sign up and riders as young as 5 or 6 can be found on the trails each week, said founder Rick Johnson.

“It’s geared to youngsters who can ride on their own without training wheels up through high school,” Johnson said. “They just need to be able to ride independently.”

They’ll also need a mountain bike, since all the rides are held on trails, he said.

Riders are split into groups based on ability, not age, and each group has two or three coaches to supervise and offer instruction, Johnson said. Kids develop more skills and confidence with some coaching, he said.

“Kids learn how to shift gears, when to shift gears, how to handle obstacles and stuff like that,” Johnson said, adding that all riders receive a T-shirt and water bottle.

The first ride of the season is May 23 at Birch Hill. Riders and parents should show up at 6:30 p.m. to register if they haven’t already. Riders may also register during the season.

The club is always looking for coaches, too, for anyone interested.

Contact: Rick Johnson, 455-6950.

Road Warriors

If you don’t mind getting up early on Saturday and you’re willing to put the pedal to the metal, so to speak, join Joel Buth and Co. at Goldstream Sports each Saturday at 8 a.m. for a 30-mile training road ride. No slackers allowed, though. The group typically averages 18-22 mph.

“It’s a training ride, that’s how I would term it,” Buth said. “It sort of turns into a hammer fest.

The group, which typically ranges from six to 12 riders, follows the same 30-mile loop each Saturday, starting at Buth’s shop on Sheep Creek Road. The loop is mostly flat or downhill and is geared toward speed. Most socializing takes place before and after the rides, the 38-year-old Buth said.

Buth is hoping to get a “mellower” training ride started up on Tuesdays for people who aren’t up to those kinds of speeds but so far has not been able to find a ride leader that wants to show up every week.

The early start to the Saturday rides is designed to let people get a good ride in and still have the rest of the day to do other things, said the 38-year-old Buth, who has a shop to run.

“This way you’ve got your whole day,” Buth said.

Contact: Joel Buth, 455-6520

Sunday Slowpokes

No discrimination allowed on this ride. Man or woman. Mountain bike or road bike. Fast or slow. Just show up at 9 a.m. each Sunday at the UAF Patty Center.

“The Sunday ride is strictly recreation,” ride coordinator Michelle Kissleman said. “We go 10 to 12 mph or slower if somebody can’t keep that pace.

Kissleman started the coed rides this year as an alternative to the Women on Wheels and Leisure Ladies rides.

“I’m a really slow rider and my husband is slower than me,” she said. “We figured there must be other people who want to ride and feel intimidated by some of the groups so we figured, why don’t we start a coed group for slow people?”

The group has held two rides so far this season and a half dozen riders showed up last Sunday. Kissleman is hoping the group will grow larger as more people find out about it.

“You get to meet other people that have the same abilities as you,” said the 43-year-old Kissleman.