Sunday road ride and another reindeer ride!

Hope everyone is getting a chance to carve out some time for themselves this holiday season. To that end, we've got a few things in the works for you.

• This Sunday, December 18, BJ will lead an easy (but probably chilly!) 1.5 to 2 hour road ride. Leaving from Silas Condict Park, rolling through the 4 Corners area, etc. Be ready to roll by 10 a.m. 

• Monday, December 26 - many of you have the day off. Maybe you'll want to take the day off! Maybe you think Santa is going to bring you a new bike or some new gear! Either way, we're doing a second edition of our NYC Reindeer ride! Meet us Monday, December 26 at 8:30 a.m. at KC's Bagels on Route 23. We'll drive into the city, park by Grant's Tomb, and do a short but festive ride in Manhattan. If you need antlers, RSVP to us ASAP so we can reserve you a pair. If you are already antler equipped - come on out and wear 'em proudly! Rain or snow will cancel. 

As always, any questions - info@teamtowncycle.com

Sunday, December 11 - mountain bike ride in the cold!!!

Yes, it's going to be cold - so what? It's on - mountain bike ride Sunday morning. We'll meet at 9 a.m. at the parking lot at the top of Skyline Drive in Ringwood. We'll hit the Cannonball and a few other trails. Expect to ride 3 hours, some technical stuff, lots of fun. Wear all of your winter gear - it's going to be more than chilly! 

Questions - info@teamtowncycle.com . 

Firearm Season in NJ Dec. 5-10

Just a reminder to our mountain biking and hiking friends that it is Firearm season this week for both deer and bear in NJ State Parks. All of our area parks have at least portions of them that are open for hunting, so please take extra care, or avoid the areas all together until Sunday. Hunters are not permitted to hunt after dark, so if you're looking for some nature time, break out the headlamps and try a night hike! 

More info - http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/news/2011/sixday11.htm and http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/docs/Hunting%20Areas%202011-2012.pdf

Reindeer Road Ride in NYC on December 4th

For those who want a little Christmas spirit, join us for a NYC Reindeer Road ride on Sunday, December 4. We'll meet at KC's Bagels on Route 23 South in Pompton Plains at 10:30 a.m., and we'll go from there. Wear your most festive riding gear (break out those antlers!) and join us! 

We're back!

Hopefully everyone enjoyed a nice long weekend with friends and family, and are well on the way to enjoying the holidays in whatever form you celebrate them! We're catching up from a bit of a break ourselves - here's what we've been up to.

• Thanks to everyone who came out for our annual Thanksgiving morning ride at Waywayanda. Nothing like a good ride to get the body ready for the annual turkey overdose! Lots of people came out, lots of fun had by all. 
• This weekend is the last races of the NJ Cyclocross series, in Warren, NJ. If you've been thinking about trying cyclocross, this is a great place - a little bit of something for everyone! You can race cyclocross with your mountain bike (no bar ends), no special license required - and it's stupid fun! View all the details here . 
• If you raced in the Campmor H2H series this year, and wound up a podium finisher, don't forget that the Campmor H2H Awards Banquet is December 11 - and registration for the dinner closes on Friday, December 2! The black and yellow plaid of TTC will be well represented on the podium this year - very good year for us!
• Also on December 11, the New Jersey Conservation Foundation will be holding a deer drive at the Apshawa Preserve. Each year, they have volunteers help to "move" the deer out of the fenced in area of the preserve, in order to help save that area of forest. No harm comes to the deer, and the area of forest can continue to be restored through the efforts of the NJCF. More info here. 

Annual Thanksgiving Day Mountain Bike Ride!

Wow, it's hard to believe it's Thanksgiving week already! And if it is Thanksgiving, then it's time for our annual Thanksgiving morning mountain bike ride at Waywayanda. As usual, this is a highly informal deal. We'll meet at the boat launch parking lot between 8 and 8:30 - as groups are ready to go - they'll go! We know everyone has a tight schedule on Thursday, so you pick your ride length - there will definitely be others who have the same agenda as you. Bring your friends, bring your family - as of now, the weather forecast looks good (rain Wednesday, but clear Thursday). It's a great way to start off your day, and earn that extra big slice of pie for dessert! 

For those of you who are traveling this week - safe journey! 

Woohoo!

Good news for Jungle Habitat fans! It appears that there will be no Tennessee Gas Pipeline storage/staging in Jungle Habitat. 


Read this article in the Suburban Trends to find out more! 

Post Party Mountain Bike Ride 11/19

OK, we're partying on Friday night at the Team Town Cycle annual member dinner (we hope you are joining us!). So of course, we'll need to work it off on Saturday. Join us for a mountain bike ride down at Lewis Morris Park in Morristown at 12:30 p.m. We'll meet at the upper parking, next to the lake. Lewis Morris is a great park for all ability levels - something for everyone!

Info on the park, maps, etc. can be found here . Any questions, please let us know! 

6 Mile MTB Ride - Take Two!

Last time we tried to go to 6 Mile - well, it didn't work out so well - 19" of snow can put a damper on your biking plans! So we're trying again this Sunday. Details?

6-Mile Run park –  Sunday 11-20-2011  - meet at 10:30 am -  "Jersey Nights Soccer Field" located here:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=40.45638,+-74.514169&om=1

Info links:

http://www.mtbnj.com/wiki/Six_Mile_Run, and also here ... 

Note-  this is a different parking spot than we had posted last time when the ride got cancelled. This is a great place to ride for all ability levels - great for families too! Let us know if you have any questions - info@teamtowncycle.com .

Thanks to everyone who came to Cyclocross at The Hidden Valley Club

Thanks to everyone who came out and raced or cheered at the 3rd annual Cyclocross at The Hidden Valley Club yesterday. We had a wonderful turnout, a great crowd to cheer the racers on, and Mother Nature was very kind to us!


Who would have believed that just the week before, there was more than a foot of snow on that course??? David Kahl, Larry Towner, and all of the TTC volunteers did a great job of preparing the course under highly irregular conditions, and all of our racers did a great job of showing up, gearing up, and putting on a great show for the crowd.


Thanks again to all of you who came out - results can be found here. We're already looking forward to next year!

Road ride canceled!

Well, with the 19" of snow West Milford got, we're officially canceling the road ride today. 


Whoever angered the weather gods - please apologize!!! 

But wait - there's more!!

A few more last minute additions to the TTC weekend line-up - 

• Saturday, October 29 - 10 a.m., Gravity Vault on Rt. 17 North in Upper Saddle River. It might be snowing outside, but we can still go climbing inside! Check their website for prices, rental info, belaying info, etc. 
• Sunday, October 30 - TTC's own Jason will be leading a mountain bike ride at Waywayanda. Meet at 12:30 p.m. at the beach parking lot. He'll lead you on a good long ride, approximately 25 miles of singletrack, hitting a good portion of the BearScat 50 course, plus some other cool stuff! Plan on bring plenty of water and food with you. Got questions for Jason, or just want to let him know that you're psyched to join him? Drop him a line

OK - now we really have your weekend covered. Enjoy!

A cancellation and a new ride!

Unfortunately, due to the weather, we're going to cancel tomorrow's ride at 6 Mile - (aside - 3-6" of snow before Halloween - seriously?), but we'll definitely plan another trip there, so stay tuned. 

As for a different ride, our own BJ Kisch is planning a bit of an epic road ride on Sunday, October 30. Join him if you dare! He'll be leaving from the Walter Bergen School on Otterhole Road at 12 p.m. He's planning a mass start time trial (TT), with a catch - he'll explain more on Sunday! From there it'll be down to Pompton Plains, Montville, 4 Corners, Kinnelon and back. Looking to do about 50 miles at a moderate pace in total. Winner of TT will get a pat on the back and accusations of doping! If you want more info or to let BJ know that you will be attending, drop him a line. 

Road trip - 6 Mile Reservoir!

We're giving you a bit of advanced notice on this one, as it is a bit of a road trip - but totally worth it! 

Saturday, October 29, we're headed south with our mountain bikes to Six Mile Reservoir off of Route 27 in Somerset, NJ. A little more than 1 hour south of West Milford, Six Mile is a JORBA maintained area within the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park, with lots of flowing, fast, well groomed trails. Not a ton of climbing, not as technical as our parks up north here - a great chance to check out a completely different type of riding! The Delaware and Raritan Canal Rail Trail is part of this park - great for the kiddies - bring them along too!

 

We'll meet at 9:30 a.m. at parking lot on Canal Road, just south of intersection with Blackwells Mill Rd in Franklin Twp. We’ll be riding by 10 and done approximately 1:00 p.m.  There is not tons of parking, so please car pool if you can. 

Rain will cancel - check our blog, Facebook or Twitter page for updates! 

More info? Trail maps are here , JORBA info here, Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park info here, Google map here. JORBA just did one of their group rides there this past weekend, and all who attended thought it was a super fun place to ride! If you can't make it this weekend, we'll definitely plan another trip over the next few months - it'll be a good winter destination ride! 

We have 2 winners!

Thank you to everyone who bought one of our JORBA pump track fund raising raffle tickets. We are truly grateful for your support! Thanks to your efforts, we raised over $1,600 for our soon-to-be-built pump track in West Milford. And now, for the important part - our raffle winners ... 


The Trek Marlin 29'er singlespeed was won by Sammy Sujack of Tenafly, and the Trek Revel 0 was won by Kathleen Sinnott of Fair Lawn. Congratulations, Sammy and Kathleen! 


Much thanks again to Giant, Trek, and Michael Hoek of Town Cycle for their support of our pump track fundraising efforts - we couldn't have done it without you! 


And for those of you following our progress of the pump track, keep an eye on the upper left hand corner of this blog - we'll link you to updates there. Once again - thank you for your generosity and support! 

Weekend Party Plans!

Hey everyone - 

Well, the weather promises to clear up for the weekend - we hope you'll be able to join us for some fun and games this weekend!

• Saturday, October 15 - come party with us! We're celebrating Town Cycle's 25th year in business! We'll have a series of rides from the shop (mountain bike at 1 p.m., cyclocross, 1:30 p.m., road ride 1:30 p.m.), and afterwards, the kids (big and small!) can ride Pump the Magic Dragon, we'll have a little food, a little toast to Mike, and draw the raffle winners for our pump track bike raffle. Come stop by, buy a raffle ticket, go for a ride, and congratulate Mike on 25 years - no small feat!
• Women's Demo Day - Saturday, October 15 - 9-3 p.m. at Waywayanda - if you haven't RSVP'd, it's not too late! Join us to try out the latest in Trek's Women Specific Designs bicycles, and get some tips and tricks on improving your mountain biking skills.
• Sunday, October 16 - join us for a truly epic mountain bike ride! We'll leave the shop at 9 a.m., make our way south to Kanouse Mtn Rd, go along Echo Lake, cross Rt. 23, then up Copperas Ridge, down across Green Pond and up Craigmere cliffs, then down to Cozy Lake, Paradise, Clinton Reservoir, to Buckabear Pond across Clinton, up on Bearfort Ridge then back to shop......epic! Expect it to be 5-6 hours, 40-50 miles. This is not a beginner ride! You will need full camel backs, multiple tubes, chain tools, air, pump, plenty of food, money, etc. - be prepared! The weather is going to be perfect, the leaves are starting to turn color - it's going to be an awesome ride! 

Hope to see you out there - have a great weekend, everyone!

Jungle Habitat information

As an FYI to anyone who was thinking of riding at Jungle Habitat over the next 2 weekends, there are 2 events taking place there. On Sunday, October 16, the New York Adventure Race Association is holding their Ramapo Rampage race there. On Saturday and Sunday, Oct 22 and 23, the previously rained out and re-scheduled Greenwood Lake Air and Car Show is taking place. 

Both weekends, you will have access to the park, but if you were looking for a nice quiet ride in the woods - you may want to find a different place to ride!

As an aside - before the Greenwood Lake Airshow got rained out in August, several TTC members had a chance to go, and thoroughly enjoyed it!!!

Three quick reminders for this week!

Three reminders:

• Thanks to everyone who stopped by last night at Town Cycle and bought raffle tickets to benefit the pump track - there were a bunch of you! We'll be there again Thursday night from 5-8 p.m., and Saturday from 12-5 p.m. Please stop by, say hi, and help us build a most awesome pump track in West Milford!
• Our Ladies Mountain Bike Demo and Clinic, sponsored by Trek, is still on for Saturday, October 15th at Waywayanda! We'd love to have you come out - and bring a friend! Anyone can come - you don't need to be a Team Town Cycle member. Just RSVP to let us know you are coming so we can have a good head count for lunch, etc.
• Town Cycle is celebrating 25 years in business this month, and Team Town Cycle is throwing a little party to say congratulations and thank you! Join us at Saturday, Oct. 15th, from 1-5 p.m., at Town Cycle. We've scheduled a little bit of fun for everyone, so stop by and say congratulations to Mike! 

Thanks everyone - hope to see you all around this weekend!

Tuesday reminders!

Two quick reminders for today - 

• It's Tuesday, and it's not raining, so finally - Spooky Tuesday ride at Jungle Habitat is on! We'll be wheels down at 6 p.m. - bring your lights and your courage as we chase after the ghosts in Jungle Habitat!
• If you're coming to West Milford to ride, make sure you stop by Town Cycle and pick up your raffle tickets! Don't forget -we're raffling two bikes to benefit the construction of the new pump track in town - and we need your help! We'll be at Town Cycle tonight from 5-8 p.m., Thursday night from 5-8 p.m., and Saturday from 12-5 p.m selling tickets - please stop by and buy one (or two - or three!) - every penny goes toward the pump track!

Thanks everyone - have a great day!!

Raffle to benefit West Milford Pump Track!

As many of you have heard or read in the paper, West Milford is getting a pump track! JORBA, who built an awesome pump track in Alexandria, in partnership with us at Team Town Cycle, has worked hard these last few months, and finally - it's time to start work!

The location of the pump track will be at Farrell Field in West Milford - right down the street from Jungle Habitat, and centrally located in town. We are taking over one of the soccer fields there (behind the recycling center), and after talking to people this weekend at the Autumn Lights Festival, and receiving tons of enthusiastic feedback ("Cool!" and "Awesome!" were the two words we heard most!), we are more excited than ever to get started! If all goes well, we hope to be breaking ground by the end of this month!

Of course, starting work means we need money. We've got a few ideas in the hopper for that, but as our starting salvo, we're raffling off two bikes - a 2011 Trek Marlin 29er Single Speed, and a Giant Revel 0. Tickets are only $5, and we'll be holding the drawing on October 15, 2011 at Town Cycle's 25th anniversary party this weekend! Every penny of the proceeds will be going directly to construction of the pump track. 

Of course, you want to buy some tickets! What - you already have a bike? OK, buy a ticket for a friend, neighbor, co-worker - anyone! We'll be selling tickets this week at Town Cycle (1468 Union Valley Road, West Milford, NJ) on Tuesday night October 11 from 5-8 p.m., Thursday night, October 13 from 5-8p.m., and on Saturday, October 15 from 12-5 p.m. Winner need NOT be present during the drawing to win! 

This is going to be great for so many different groups in our area. Local businesses will see a benefit as people from out of town come in to ride the pump track. Cycling will become even more a part of everyday life in our community. And most important - the kids (and their families!) are going to love it! They'll get out more, ride their bikes more, have a great time being active with their friends - and what could be better than that! 

Thanks as always for your support. Please email us with any questions about the pump track or the raffle -info@teamtowncycle.com . 

Celebrating 25 years!

Do you remember 1986? OK, OK, yes, some of you were still in diapers. But for the rest of us - do you remember? Ronald Reagan was President, , the space shuttle Challenger exploded, Mike Tyson was the heavyweight champion of the world, the Chernobyl accident sparked fear in us all, we were listening to The Bangles "Walk Like an Egyptian" , Bon Jovi's "You Give Love a Bad Name", and "Rock Me Amadeus" by Falco, Arnold Schwarzenagger married Maria Shriver, Haley's Comet returned, we went to the movies to see Top Gun, Crocodile Dundee and Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and .... 

a young man named Michael Hoek opened a bicycle shop in West Milford called Town Cycle. Through many changes in both the world and in our little town, through good economies and bad, long snowy winters and rainy summers, Mike and his family have managed to grow and maintain a successful small business in a small town. That, as many people know firsthand, is no small feat! Mike has worked tirelessly to successfully provide a high quality shop with personal service. Without a doubt the cycling community in North Jersey is a better place because of the hard work, sweat and tears that Mike has put in over these last 25 years!


Many of us owe a debt of gratitude to Mike for many reasons - not the least of which is that so many of us met and became lifelong friends because of Town Cycle and our shared love of cycling. We have joyfully watched our families grow together along with Mike and his family. So we say to Mike, Anneke, Briana and Pieter - congratulations and thank you - for 25 years of friendship and success!


Now - 25 years in business calls for a party, right? We thought so too! So Saturday, October 15 - let's celebrate! Join Team Town Cycle as we throw a little shindig for Mike. Weather permitting, the festivities will start at 1 p.m. - at the shop, of course. We're going to host a series of rides right from the shop - 1 p.m. for a mountain bike ride, 1:30 p.m. for both a road ride or a cyclocross session. We'll ride for 1.5 to 2 hours, then back to the shop for a bit of a BBQ and snacks. Bring the kids by too - we'll have the famous Pump the Magic Dragon for them to try out, courtesy of our friend Art White. Also, we'll be selling raffle tickets for our JORBA West Milford pump track fundraiser - win a new Trek Marlin 29er SS or a Giant Revel 0! We'll wind up the festivities by pulling the winning ticket at 5 p.m., so don't miss out. 


Bring a friend, tell a friend - all are welcome. If you can't make it on the 15th, please stop by the shop when you have a chance and say congrats to Mike, won't you? And as always, email us at info@teamtowncycle.com with any questions. 

Ladies Mountain Bike Demo Day - October 15

Well, we told you to save the date - now it's time for the details!


Trek and Team Town Cycle are thrilled to be sponsoring a Ladies Mountain Bike Demo Day and Clinic on October 15, 2011. We'll meet at Waywayanda at 9:30 a.m., spending the morning talking bikes and skills, have a light lunch with general biking questions and a few bike maintenance tips, then off for a ride - wrapping up by 3:00 p.m.


Please bring your own mountain bike, as demo bikes will be first come, first served, and  there will not be enough demo bikes to go around. We will ride in a light rain, but anything heavier will cancel. We will be located in the boat launch parking lot, but please park in the main lot.


Everyone is welcome - you don't have to be from TTC to join us! Beginner to expert, we welcome everyone. We only ask for an RSVP so we can plan for lunch! Can only stay for part of the day? No problem, we're happy to have you for as long as you can stay! Want to bring a friend? Awesome - we love new people! Need a flyer - here you go!


Please RSVP to Heather  by Thursday, October 13 - heatherk@acdsecurity.com


Mid-October at Waywayanda promises to be perfect riding weather with beautiful leaf colors and a wonderful opportunity to try out some of the new Trek WSD bikes with a great bunch of women - we hope you can join us!

Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day was awesome!

Well, the weather gods smiled upon us, and it didn't rain on our 3rd annual Take A Kid Mountain Biking Day ride at Jungle Habitat this past Saturday. Some people were scared away because of the gray skies, but we're a hardy bunch - a few clouds didn't bother us!

We had a great turnout, with everyone trying out and succeeding at new skills! From our ghetto "skinnies" in the parking lot to the slippery logs in the deer pen, everyone tried their hand at something new! 


Thanks again to everyone who came out. More pictures can be found here. Special thanks to Jeff Lenosky who came out to ride with us, to Native Eyewear, for providing us with great swag, Clif Bar for our snacks, Oury Grips for the awesome grips and stickers, the volunteers who did trail work in the a.m. to "pay" for our day, and Tom Hennigan for putting on the red shirt and keeping us safe. 

First Weekend of October

Hey everyone, just a quick reminder of a few things for the weekend -

• Last day for 2011 PayDirt hours is tomorrow - and we've got the hours you need! Join us at Jungle Habitat from 9-1 - we'll put you to work, and make sure the PayDirt hours get to the PayDirt coordinator in time!
• Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day is also at Jungle Habitat tomorrow from 1-3 p.m. We're a hardy bunch, so we'll ride in a light rain or shower. Jeff Lenosky, world renowned trials and free rider, will be there to ride with us, so bust out your rain gear and join us! 
• Sunday is the final Campmor H2H race of the 2011 mountain biking season - and it's also the NJ State Championship! Come on out to Waywayanda State Park and join in the fun - or just come cheer the TTC plaid on! 
• UPDATED - we almost forgot our CX racers! Cyclocross racing season starts this weekend with the Hillbilly Hustle in Elmer NJ - good luck to our TTC guys and girls who are starting the CX season on Sunday! 

Stay tuned for more exciting news about rides and activities - we've got a bunch of fun stuff up our sleeves! 

JORBA + Team Town Cycle = good news!

Something awesome happened last month, but between earthquakes, hurricanes, tropical storms, back to school, races, plagues of locusts (ok, no locusts!) - well, we've been busy, is what we are trying to say. But we're very excited to announce that Team Town Cycle has officially become a chapter of Jersey Off Road Bicycle Association (JORBA)!  

For those of you who are unfamiliar with JORBA, they are a non-profit organization that works with land managers, state and local officials, and  many other organizations to make sure that the interests of mountain bikers are fairly represented. They volunteer thousands of hours each year building and maintaining sustainable multi-use trails in many state, county and local parks all over New Jersey. JORBA works closely with the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA), helping educate both riders and other trail users about low impact trail use, and encouraging cooperation among different trail user groups. If you've ever ridden in Jungle Habitat, Waywayanda, Ringwood, Wildcat, Kittatinny, Allamuchy or any number of other parks in NJ, you've got a JORBA chapter and large group of volunteers to thank! 


Team Town Cycle is most honored to be included in the great group of trail advocates. Much thanks to TTC's own Jeff Mergler (who also just happens to be JORBA Exec. Director) for nominating us. We're thrilled to be an official member of the JORBA family!


When you have a moment, please check out the JORBA site. There is a ton of great information about the parks they work in - every thing from maps to trail conditions and ride schedules. While you are there, please consider supporting their good work by becoming a member - the work they do is important to everyone who enjoys riding their bike in the woods, no matter where! 

September 24 NYC ride meeting time changed

Hey everyone - 

In order to let the rain finish up, and (hopefully!) have a little drying occur, we're going to push off our meeting time until 9 a.m. tomorrow. So, that's 9 a.m. at KC's Bagels on Rt. 23 in Pompton Plains. 

If our plans change, we will email as well as update our Twitter page, Facebook page and blog! 

Keep your fingers crossed! 

Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day, Oct. 1 - and a special guest!

It's time for Team Town Cycle's 3rd annual Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day! Saturday, October 1, from 1-3 p.m., at Jungle Habitat, in West Milford. We're excited to be partnering with IMBA again as they work to promote mountain biking among kids and families. Like past years, we'll have snacks and swag for all - it'll be a great time! All ages and abilities are welcome, as always.

This year, we'll have a special guest joining us - none other than Jeff Lenosky! You may know Jeff as a world class free ride and trials rider, but he is also an awesome mountain biker, and recently conquered the 2011 Rumble in the Jungle race course in impressive style! Jeff will lead one of many groups we hope to have riding through the Jungle, and maybe we can get him to share a few riding secrets with us too!

Need more info? Check out our flyer! And much thanks to IMBA for sponsoring the day, and to both Jeff and Native Eyewear, for their support!

RSVP for this weekend yet?

Just a little nudge for those of you who haven't already RSVP'd for our rides this weekend - what are you waiting for??? We've got 2 good ones in store:

• Saturday, September 24 - NYC ride, including a trip to Governor's Island. Meet us at KC's Bagels at 8 a.m. Rain will cancel. 
• Sunday, September 25 - Ladies Only ride to New Paltz. Meet at Town Cycle at 9 a.m., and let us know if you need a ride/can provide a ride home. 

If you've already RSVP'd, great! You're covered. If not, and you're going - drop us a line at info@teamtowncycle.com .

Thanks everyone - hope to see you out there!

Spooky Tuesday ride canceled for Sept. 20!

Spooky Tuesday night ride at Jungle Habitat canceled for Tuesday, September 20 - we'll try again next week!

Is it summer or fall?

OK, so it's actually starting to feel like fall a bit - is that good or bad? We'll let you decide that one ... in the meantime, here are some ride additions for everyone for the next 2 weeks. 

• Sunday, September 18 - it's the final King of the Mountain Ride for 2011 - and this one will not be for the faint of heart (or legs!). We'll leave the shop at 9 a.m. (don't be late!), ride up Warwick tpk then around UGL. We'll take Cascade Rd. to 17, then around the back of Bellvale and up Kane. After that, it's back down 17 to Rt. 94 and over to Barrett Mtn Road. Next, it's through Waywayanda, down Warwick Tpke to Clinton road, and over to Union Valley. We'll climb up on Gould (2 short punchy ones) to Macopin and back to the shop. There will be double points for Kane and Barrett Mtn., and a sprint point on Clinton. Awesome route, and the weather should be perfect! 
• Sunday, September 18 is also race #7 in the Campmor H2H series - Blue Mountain Reservation, Peekskill, NY. Good luck to all the TTC racers headed there - and don't forget to leave some extra travel time as there are still road closures over in the Seven Lakes area!
• Sunday, September 18 is also the re-scheduled date for the NJ Gran Fondo. Again, perfect weather for the day - good luck to everyone is riding!
• Jeff Mergler and JORBA and TTC are once again teaming up for their Spooky Tuesday rides at Jungle Habitat. Meet us at 5:30 p.m., and we'll roll out at 6 p.m. sharp! This is an intermediate, no drop social ride - bring your lights, as we'll start in the daylight, but finish in the dark. We'll ride for about 2 hours - a great way to unwind after work! 
• Saturday, September 24 - it's one of our famous NYC rides! We'll meet at KC's Bagels at 8 a.m. The route is still to be completely determined, but will include taking the free ferry to Governors Island. Governors Island is one of those hidden NYC gems, and this will be the last weekend it is open for the season, so come on out and see what it's all about! If we could get a rough head count by Thursday, September 22, it would help with the planning - info@teamtowncycle.com if you are in!
• Sunday, September 25 - reminder - it's our Ladies New Paltz ride! Sorry guys, this ride is not for you. Ladies, if you haven't already RSVP'd, please drop us a line at info@teamtowncycle.com by Thursday, September 22 and let us know if you will be needing a ride back, or if you can provide a ride back. 

As always, let us know if you have any questions - see you on the road!

Rumble in the Jungle 2011 Results

Thanks to everyone who came out to our annual Rumble in the Jungle - the weather cooperated, we had a great turnout, the course was in fantastic shape, and we are so thrilled that everyone came out! 


We're putting together the posted results with the times - please be patient, and check back on this post for updated postings! 

• Cat. 3 Results with times
• Cat. 2 Results with times
• Cat 1 Results with times

Remembering Dana Hannon

As many of you know, we are selling our Rumble in the Jungle race t-shirts this year in honor of and in memory of Dana Hannon, FDNY. Dana was the brother/brother-in-law of Team Town Cycle members Kyle and Kevin Bickford, and he was one of 343 firefighters who died saving lives on 9/11/01. Today, there is a wonderful article on northjersey dot com about Dana that everyone should read. 

Thanks to Kyle and Kevin for letting us help to remember Dana on this 10 year anniversary. We are thrilled to be giving the proceeds of the shirt sales to the Dana Hannon Scholarship fund, and even more thrilled to be able to help his name and memory live on. 

The end - for now!

Well, folks, it's time to draw down the curtain of another season of Wednesday and Friday night road rides on Clinton Road. Between the condition of the road, and the rapidly waning daylight, we're going to put this tradition in the books for 2011. Much thanks to everyone who has come out this year and joined us - it was great while it lasted, right?

Of course, this doesn't mean we won't be riding - no way! Stay tuned - we've got a bunch of big fall rides we'll announce next week. 

In the meantime, please keep all of your collective fingers crossed that Mother Nature smiles upon us on Sunday at Jungle Habitat for the 2011 Campmor H2H series Rumble in the Jungle race - we want everyone - our racers and our volunteers - to have a great day on Sunday, and a lack of rain would be helpful for that! 

Ladies Road Ride CANCELED for Wednesday, September 7

Unfortunately, Nancy's plans for an awesome Wednesday night Ladies night ride are once again getting rained upon - ugh! So once again we are cancelling our ride for tonight. We hope you are all staying dry and finding some other way to get out there and stretch your legs! 

I Dig Tuesday CANCELED for tonight, September 6

Well, the blasted rain has killed our last scheduled I Dig Tuesday for 2011 - sorry folks! JORBA and Team Town Cycle would like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who has come out this season and helped out. Irene notwithstanding, the trails at the Hab have never looked better, and we've made great progress on some new ones! 

For those of you who still need PayDirt hours, we have two Saturday work days scheduled at Jungle Habitat - Sat., Sept. 10, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m., and Sat., Oct. 1, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

Thanks again for all your hard work and sweat and willingness to be bitten by mosquitoes! 

Sunday, September 4th road ride

Rather than dodge unknown and closed roads, we're going to stick close to home this Sunday. Meet us at the bike shop at 9:30 a.m., and we'll mostly wing it! We've got a good handle on what roads are open in the area, so we'll figure out a route near/around/through GWL, etc. Figure on a moderate pace, 30-40 miles, no longer - we'll stop and re-group periodically. Bring 2 water bottles and some cash - we may stop for a snack somewhere along the way! 

Thanks for your patience while we figured all this out - even a week later, Hurricane Irene is still messing up our lives! 

Rumble in the Jungle Maps and GPS files

OK, you asked for it !
View Larger Map

Here's a link to the GPS file , and here's one for the Google Earth KML file. Much thanks to Tom Hennigan for his help with these files!

A few course facts:

• The lap is 5 miles long
• There is 2,180 feet of ascending/descending per lap
• Time per lap - a couple Cat. 1 racers do the lap in 46 mins at not quite a race pace. We estimate Cat. 3 beginners will do a lap in about an hour, Cat 2 racers between 40-50 minutes per lap, Cat. 1 racers between 35-45 minutes per lap.

Only one week left - get out there and check it out!

A little work, a little fun

Labor Day weekend - who doesn't love a good three day weekend?! We're doing a little work and some riding as well - 

• Trail clearing at Jungle Habitat, 8:30 a.m. Saturday, undoing the damage Irene has wrought! Breakfast is on us. Bring your clippers and loping shears and your bike - we'll ride afterwards, around noon or shortly thereafter. PayDirt hours for your time! 
• Still working on a road ride/route for Sunday. So many roads washed out, we'll probably stick close to home. Will update you with the info as soon as we have it.

Here's hoping you don't have too much of your own Irene debris to clean up - have a great weekend, everyone!

Irene is still messing with us!

Hope everyone has finished cleaning up all their downed branches and has their power back on! 

• Reminder - tonight's Ladies Night ride has been canceled due to flooding. Nancy Towner has re-scheduled for next week, Sept. 7. Details here .
• For those of you who want to go out for a road ride tonight, Anneke will be leading an easy paced ride around Greenwood Lake today, leaving Town Cycle at 6 p.m. Rumor has it that there are still branches down around the lake, but hopefully they've been cleared up today, and it'll be a good chance to clear the cobwebs out!
• As you have heard, Clinton Road is closed due to road washouts in two places. At some point, we may be able to ride there, but with the multitude of branches down, etc., we have decided to cancel this week's Friday night ride. If we re-schedule, we'll let you know!
• Don't forget we are doing trail clean up at Jungle Habitat on Saturday morning, meeting at 8:30 a.m. for bagels and bananas. We'll work from 9-12, cleaning up the mess Irene left behind. Ride afterwards, for all those who are interested! This is a PayDirt eligible work day, so get those hours in now!
• Still working out details for our Sunday road ride -stay tuned!

Thanks to everyone for their patience as we work our way through the messes that Irene has left behind!

Cancellations and confirmations - the Irene version!

• As of today, we are still on for I Dig Tuesday at Jungle Habitat tomorrow. Lots of clean up to do there, as you would expect!
•  Also, don't forget we will be doing a race course wide clean-up on Saturday, September 3rd - we'll buy bagels and bananas, you bring your best lopping shears, clippers, rakes and work gloves! Meet us at 8:30 a.m., we'll work until noon, then celebrate with a ride. This date is also eligible for PayDirt points, so if you need those hours, here's your chance!
• Unfortunately, due to the flooding in the Pompton Plains area, Nancy Towner is cancelling the Ladies Night ride leaving from her house on 8/31 and is re-scheduling for Wednesday, September 7. Same time and place, weather permitting - 6 p.m., 3 Redman Lane, Pompton Plains. 
• As you may have heard by now, Clinton Road is closed because of a bridge washout. We're checking out the situation, and we'll let you know!

Stay tuned - it's never dull here at Casa Team Town Cycle!

Race course prep - Jungle Habitat

Hope you are all done cleaning up the branches at your place - because we'll need a little help at our place! Saturday, September 3, we're going to gather for a morning of race course prep at Jungle Habitat. Meet us at 8:30 a.m., we'll bring bagels and bananas to start you off. Bring any hand tools you have - clippers, loppers, gloves, bug spray, and water, and we'll break up into groups and detail the race course - clip back the face slappers, remove any wayward small branches, rake up any big leaf piles, etc.

We'll work for about 3 hours, and afterwards, we can all go for a ride on our nicely detailed race course! If you can join us for any or all of it, we'd appreciate the help. We were going to have to do some detailing before the storm, but Irene means there is a little more work than planned!

As always, thank you for your time, and please email us with any questions - info@teamtowncycle.com.

Forget Irene - Labor Day weekend is coming!

We hope Irene didn't wreak too much havoc on your lives, and that you all made it through relatively unscathed. No word yet on when the state parks will re-open - we'll keep you updated. 

In the meantime, a ride for you to look forward to! Next weekend is Labor Day weekend - let's celebrate the 3 day weekend! We’re planning a Hudson Valley ride for Sunday Sept 4^th.  Route will be Newburgh area to Mid-Hudson Bridge. About 40 miles, hilly, but very scenic.We'll plan an early start (9am?), but details will follow in the next day or so.

So clean up those branches this week and join us for a great road ride! 

Notice - Park closures!

Please note that all Ringwood State Park properties (which includes Jungle Habitat) will be closed as of 6 p.m. TODAY, Friday, August 26th. They anticipate being able to re-open on Monday, August 29. 


We will keep you updated as to any other area park closures - check back on this post for any updates!

UPDATE - all NJ State Parks and recreation areas are closed as of 6 p.m. today, August 26. Check the NJ State Park website after the storm has ended before heading to any of the parks, just in case! We'll keep you updated as we hear any news. 

Go away Irene!

Well, like it or not, it looks like Irene is going to impact our weekend.

• For those of you who are riding the NJ Gran Fondo, it has been postponed until the weekend of Sept. 18. 
• The 4th race in the NY State Mountain Bike Series at Belleayre Mtn. has been canceled. No word yet on a make-up date. 
• Our advice - get out there today, and join us for our Friday night road ride on Clinton Road! 6 p.m., Rt. 23, Newfoundland, at the old Village Square Inn Parking lot. 

So stock up on batteries, beer, and snacks - and be safe!! 

Reminder for Ladies Night August 24

For all of you who are planning to join us tomorrow night at Kahl's for our ladies only bike maintenance clinic and potluck supper, please bring your road bike with you, if possible. This way you can learn how to fix flats and all manner of bike problems right on your own bike! 

If you plan on attending, but haven't RSVP'd, drop Heather a line and let her know you're coming, and what you can bring for potluck! Hope to see you there!

Weekday rides and fun!

Thanks to everyone who came out tonight to Jungle Habitat - a good time was had by all! Here's what we've got planned for the rest of this week. 

• Tuesday, August 23 - I Dig Tuesday trail maintenance at Jungle Habitat. I Dig Tuesday's are becoming an endangered species - there are only 3 left! Meet us at the gate no later than 6:00 p.m., and bring your gloves, water and bug spray. Don't forget - PayDirt hours must be completed by October 1st!
• Wednesday, August 24 - in place of our usual Ladies Road Ride on Clinton Road, don't forget we are having a bike maintenance clinic and potluck dinner. Learn about basic bike repairs (changing a flat on the road, tire pressure, fixing a brake rub, etc.), and tips and tricks to make your rides easier and better! We'll meet at the Kahl's at 6 p.m. - please RSVP to Heather and let her know what you can bring!
• Speaking of Wednesday night Ladies Rides, TTC's own Nancy Towner has offered to host the August 31 ride. Meet us at 3 Redman Road Pompton Plains, NJ at 6 p.m.. Larry will give us a brief "Paceline 101" instruction then we'll get to it. Mostly flats but we'll throw some hills in if you want! Bring a change of clothes because after there will be liquid refreshments, snacks and a viewing of the fabulous Fall line of Lia Sophia jewelry!! Ladies who can't make the ride are still welcome to join us for the rest of the fun around 8pm or so!! Call 973-835-2358 (home) or 973-727-3945 (cell) for directions or with questions.
• For those of you who are the wrong gender to join the Ladies Night ride, break out your mountain bikes and join us for a day-into-night ride. Wednesday, August 24, bring your lights, Camelbak, and lots of food - this will be an advanced ride! We'll get a grand tour of Wildcat WMA from Wildcat expert Norm Albrecht. Meet us at 49 Meridan Road in Rockaway at 5:15 p.m. , and we;ll have an epic ride! 
• And of course, it wouldn't be Friday without our usual Friday night soiree - 6 p.m., the old Village Square Inn parking lot on Route 23 in Newfoundland. We're losing the light these days, so don't be late!

Drop us a line at info@teamtowncycle.com with any questions - and we'll see you on the road!

Last minute Monday night ride at Jungle Habitat, and some Jungle news

Finally - the rain has stopped! Let's celebrate! We're going to do a completely fun, social, no drop mountain bike ride over at Jungle Habitat tonight. Meet us at the gate at 6 p.m. - we'll figure out what the group wants to do, and go from there. If you are late, and we've taken off - call Dave at 973-390-6915 and he'll let you know where we are headed. Come on out and ride - you can mow the lawn another night!


Also - a heads up for anyone planning on riding at Jungle Habitat this coming weekend. Just a reminder that the Greenwood Lake Air Show is Friday, August 26 through Sunday, August 28 (weather permitting). You will be able to access the park, but the air show does use the parking lot, there will be flying demonstrations all day, and lots and lots of people around. If you were planning a day in the area, and wanted to see the air show anyway, it'll be perfect for you! If you were looking for a peaceful, quiet ride in the woods, well ... you may want to check out one of our other lovely area parks instead. 


See you in the woods!

JORBA Fest follow-up

Did you attend this year's JORBA Fest in June? If so, JORBA wants you! They are preparing their quarterly newsletter (DIRT), and are looking for your story and photos. If you have some photos or a good story, please send them to Bonnie at bonnie@jorba.org by August 21. 

If you have never been to JORBA Fest, you don't know what you are missing! Make sure you look for the announcement for next year's Fest, and write it in your calendar in ink - you'll want to be there. In the meantime, we've got a few pictures from this years event. And if you haven't visited the JORBA website recently, check it out! It has a great new look, easy to use menus, great information and maps about all of the parks JORBA supports, and information about trail work and ride dates galore! 

Rides for the weekend!

OK, we've gotten that big block of heat behind us, now let's dodge a few rain showers and keep rolling down the road!

• Friday, August 19 - you know it, you love it - our Friday night Clinton Road ride! Meet us at 6 p.m. (don't dawdle - we're starting to lose light already!) and join us for the the best way to start your weekend - rolling down Clinton Road. All paces are acceptable - we're happy to accommodate everyone!
• Saturday, August 20 - the 2nd Annual Hilltop Grasshopper Kids Race! Geordie Smith and company put on a great race for kids K-8 last year, and this year promises to be just as fantastic. Check out the link for more info. It's only about a 30 minute ride from West Milford, and a lovely park to explore! 
• Sunday - it's King of the Mountain time! For those of you who are intimidated by the title "King of the Mountain" - don't be! This Sunday's version is a kinder, gentler version, designed to get everyone out there and try their hand at this event. The route will be the same as last month's  - up Warwick (climb #1). Around UGL. Down Clinton road SPRINT POINT at Van Orden. Down Van Orden to Union Valley. Right to Gould. Magee is KOM Peak 2. Stay on Gould. Macopin is KOM Peak 3. KOM leader BJ will go over route again at roll-off.  Meet at Town Cycle and be ready to roll by 9 a.m. - we won't wait for you if you are late!

Let us know if you have any special rides for this weekend - we'll post them up for you! Have a great weekend everyone!

Trail Work news and notes

Barring torrential downpour, we are a "go" for our I Dig Tuesday trailwork evening at Jungle Habitat tonight. Bring some water, gloves, and bug spray - we'll have the rest! 


Also, mark your calendars - Tuesday, September 6 will be our last I Dig Tuesday trail work night. We'll be losing the light by then, so we'll wrap up another great year of trail work that night. Don't despair though - we have a few Saturday builds scheduled as well.

• Saturday, September 10 - meet us at 8:45 a.m. with the usual supplies, and we'll be out working from 9 a.m. until about 1 p.m.
• Saturday, October 1 - same bad time, same bad channel! Meet us at 8:45 a.m., and we'll be working from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Also, for all of you H2H racers, Saturday, October 1 is the last day for PayDirt hours. Ask any of the racers out there - more than once, a championship or podium finish has been decided by PayDirt points. So don't regret not doing those hours - join us as we give back - and you'll definitely get something in return! 

As always, any questions - info@teamtowncycle.com . See you on the trail.

Mountain Bike Ride, Sunday, August 14

The weather is going to be awesome for our Friday night ride this week, so don't forget to join us for our usual Friday night road ride - 6 p.m., Clinton Road! 


Also, weather permitting, we will be having a moderate paced mountain bike ride at Lewis Morris Park on Sunday, August 14. Meet us by the ball field next to the lake at 1 p.m. Rain will cancel, so check in here, your email, or on our Twitter or Facebook for any cancellation news! 


Enjoy this weather - and have a great weekend!

I Dig Tuesday CANCELED for today, Tuesday August 9

Due to the rain, we're going to cancel our trail work night tonight - we'll try again next week! 

Thanks, everyone!

Kids ride at Jungle Habitat - Success!

We had a great day today at our Kids Mountain Bike Ride at Jungle Habitat! The weather held out for us, it wasn't too hot, and with parents and volunteers, we had over 40 riders join us!

Katie shows the boys how to do it!

Yes, the tongue does help you balance!

Concentrating!

Georgie almost got it!

Nailed it!

Ready to ride!

Hitching a ride from Dad!

More pictures can be found on our Flickr page - you have to see how Katie shows everyone how to ride the skinnies on a scooter bike and more!

Much thanks to Team Town Cycle member Tim Warchol for scoring great swag from sponsors Continental, Jagwire, Thomson, Rock Shox and more! Thanks also to all of our volunteers who came out to shepherd our riders through the woods, and of course, to all the parents, friends, aunts, uncles and neighbors who brought their kids out - we loved having you! 

Make sure you save the date of October 1 for our 3rd Annual Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day ride, in conjunction with IMBA - we promise to have more good snacks again! 

Have a great weekend - with us!

Don't forget about our weekend plans -

• Friday night ride, Clinton Road, 6 p.m.
• Trail Build, Saturday, 8:30 a.m - 1 p.m., Jungle Habitat
• Kids Mountain Bike ride and clinic - with snacks and swag! - 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. Saturday - Jungle Habitat
• Ride, Brunch, Ride - West Milford to Sugarloaf and back - 9 a.m., Sunday, Town Cycle
• Good luck to our Campmor H2H racers at the 909 on Sunday!

More info about all of these can be found at here, or email us at info@teamtowncycle.com. 

Have a great weekend!!!!

Campmor H2H series - schedule changes and successes!

Due to some scheduling snafu's, the Campmor H2H race at Blue Mountain that was supposed to be on the September 25th will now be on September 18. This is something that just came up, so please check your calendars and adjust accordingly!


Although most of the H2H regulars will have heard through the grapevine, for those who haven't, the 8th and final race in the H2H series which has been traditionally been held at Ringwood will instead be held at Waywayanda. This race will also be the NJ State Championship this year as well, so big news all around! So Sunday, October 2 - Waywayanda - NJ State Championship - be there!


Speaking of the Campmor H2H series, Team Town Cycle is seriously kicking butt out there this year! Last month, at the Bulldog Rump in Andover, our own Jess Reed came in third and Karen Bouloucon came in sixth in the Cat. 2 Women 19-39 class - way to go ladies! In the Cat. 1 Men 40-49, our own David Kahl came in first, with current overall class leader Jason Grossi coming in third - awesome!

TTC's own David Van Wart got his first win of the season in the Cat. 1 Singlespeed class - 

and Cat. 1 Men 15-18's Adam Vandenbos continued his domination of that category, taking 1st place, with Dillon Van Wart taking second - our junior racing dynamic duo strikes again!

Congratulations to all involved, podium finishes or not - it's awesome to see all of those Team Town Cycle plaid jersey's out there tearing it up on the race course.

Speaking of racing, our local BMX racers Jay and Ethan Huggins have been representing Team Town Cycle quite well this season up in New Paltz. Last month Ethan placed second and Jay took first in their respective classes - super job, buys! If you get a chance - go check the action out!