Update on Chris Zach

For those of you who have not heard, brand new Team Town Cycle member Chris Zach suffered a serious training crash. The latest news that we have is that he broke his neck at the C5 disc. Fortunately, we understand there is no paralysis, and he has full-range of motion in all limbs. Stitches, bruises, temporary amnesia are the extent of injuries after 2 day stay in Suffern Hospital. 


Chris, we are thinking of you, and hoping for your full and speedy recovery!

Friday night ride canceled for April 1!

Sorry - it's not an April Fool's joke! With the impending snow/sleet/rain coming our way, we're obviously canceling our ride for tomorrow night. We're hardy, but even we have our limits! Hopefully next week will bring more seasonable weather, and we'll get back on track. 

Sunday April 3 - Road ride!

Yes, they are predicting snow for Thursday night, but we're thinking ahead - to Sunday and temps in the 50's! Our friend Larry will be leading a road ride from Town Cycle on Sunday, April 3rd at 9AM. It will be a steady paced ride with several climbs (regroup after any climbs). The total ride will be around 4 hours long, with a peel off option at 2.5-3 hours. 

As always, let us know if you have any questions - info@teamtowncycle.com. 

Good ride - and good news!

Thanks to everyone who came out to our ride down at Allaire State Park yesterday - it was a great group, and so much fun to ride some place completely different! Thanks to Frank Harms and our other local JORBA friends for showing up and showing us around. We'll definitely put Allaire on a more regular winter riding schedule for next year! 

Speaking of great rides, check out this - New Jersey is having its' own Gran Fondo! The routes - through Morristown, Long Valley, High Bridge, Round Valley, etc. - look fantastic! The dates are August 26-28 - right during prime biking season! Check out their site - they have all the routes listed already, complete with cue sheets. Looks like an amazing event - let us know if you are planning to do it. We'd love to hear your stories and see your pictures! 

Late notice - but we're heading south!

Well, we're determined to get off the road and ride, so we're packing up our mountain bikes and heading south tomorrow - to Allaire State Park. Located at exit 98 off the Garden State Parkway, in Wall Township, NJ, this is another park supported by one our fantastic JORBA chapters. Different conditions than what we are used to here - more sand, less rocks - tons of fun - and no snow!! We're planning on meeting at the parking lot on Hospital Road at 9 a.m. for anyone who cares to join us! 

The trail map of the area can be found here . Directions can be found here. 

Any questions, your ride leader for the day is Dave Van Wart - cell # 973-390-6915.  

It's official - Friday night Clinton Road rides are back!

Yes, it keeps snowing, and yes, it's cold - but we don't care - we're ready! We'll have to do early start times for a while still, until the light lasts a little longer. So let's officially start our Friday night Clinton Road rides tomorrow, March 25. We'll plan on being wheels down at 5 p.m., riding about 1.5-2 hours. This is a great place to learn or practice your group road riding skills! If you are new - or maybe a bit rusty - on the road bike, or a seasoned pro - we welcome everyone! 

As always, let us know if you have any questions - info@teamtowncycle.com . 

Another awesome night for Marty!

Thanks to everyone who came out to our Raise a Glass for Marty night on Wednesday! The music was great, the wine fantastic, and the company sublime! Everyone who attended was extraordinarily generous, and we were able to add over $1,400 to Marty's Fund! 

So many amazing people contributed to the success of the evening .... Special thanks to Pat Bianco and Mood Swing, as well as David Keyes for the wonderful music and their generosity. Thanks also to Deb Wiley and Heather Kahl for their help in organizing and telling Marty's story. And our most heartfelt thanks to Laura, her family, and the staff of Endless Vine for hosting such a wonderful evening. Every bit of money we raised will go toward helping Marty and his family as they battle his Cystic Fibrosis. We hope that the day will come soon when we won't have to work on beating the CF monster - but in the meantime, we're so very grateful for all the people who have Marty's back! 

Thank you again from all of us here at Team Town Cycle! 

Dust off your road bike - it's Clinton Road time!

OK, it'll be a few weeks before we start our regular schedule of riding Clinton Road on Friday nights, but this week, we'll sneak in preview ride! After all, it's going to be 70 degrees on Friday - how can we pass that up? So dust off your road bike, stretch out those legs, and join us! Because we don't have all the light we need just yet, we'll meet early - 5 p.m. Meet us in the parking lot of the old Village Square Inn on Route 23 in Newfoundland, and we'll roll off from there. 

If you haven't ridden in a bigger group ride on the road before, this is the absolute perfect way to start! We leave no one behind, and we'll teach you the right and wrong way to ride in a big group. A great starter ride for all abilities!

Questions? info@teamtowncycle.com , as usual!

Reminder - Raise a Glass for Marty is tomorrow!

Much thanks to Annie McBride at the Franklin Lakes Patch for the lovely article she wrote about Marty and our fundraiser at the Endless Vine. You can read it online here . 

And don't forget about tomorrow night at the Endless Vine - good music, good wine - and a chance to raise a few dollars for Marty's Fund! Info is here, or email us at info@teamtowncycle.com .  See you there!

Climbing tonight at Gravity Vault!

Quick reminder that we are climbing tonight at the Gravity Vault in Upper Saddle River! We'll be there at 6 - will you? 

24 hours of fun!

Team Town Cycle member Jason and his date Alyssa will be doing two 24 hour mountain bike races this summer that look like a ton of fun! The first is part of the Pat's Peak Mountain Bike Festival in Henniker, NH on June 11-12, 2011. You can find out more information about the festival and race here. They even have an option to do a 12 or 6 hour version of the race!

The second race is the 24 hours of Great Glen in Pinkham Notch, NH. It is also part of a weekend long festival on August 13-14, 2011. All the details of the race and the festival can be found here. Get some friends together, make a team, have a party, and have a great weekend of racing and fun! 

Late Notice - Saturday morning road ride!

Hey all - 

Late notice for a Saturday morning road ride - meeting at 9:30 a.m. at Town Cycle. Plan on about 2.5 hours, moderate pace. We'll try to avoid the big puddles!

Any questions, email us!

Branchbrook Park Spring Training Series

Hey everyone, don't forget that this Saturday is the 2nd of the Branchbrook Park Spring Training Series races! Online registration closes tonight at midnight, but you can register onsite on Saturday if you want - for an additional fee, of course. Great way to shake the cobwebs off and get rolling on a new season! Last week new Team Town Cycle race team member Ken Griffin hung with the the big boys and stayed with the lead group in the 45+ class - come check out how he and the rest of Team Town Cycle does this weekend!

Ken leading the way last week at Branchbrook!

Also don't forget that the Augusta Training Series starts on March 15th at the Augusta Fairgrounds - that's this Tuesday! Even if you are not a big road racer, this is a great training ride. It's every Tuesday from now until July 12th (see this page for exact times and info), and is a great way to get big group riding experience as well as a super workout in a really scenic location. 

Save the Date - Juniors in the Jungle is April 30th!

Well, you know spring really must be on the way when we start talking about our kids race at Jungle Habitat! This year will be the 3rd Annual Juniors in the Jungle race, and we're even more excited than ever to get our younger riders out in the woods! As in years past, we will have a race for everyone from kindergarten through 12th grade. For racers in grades K-5, here is your flyer with all the necessary info, and for grades 6-12, your details can be found here. All flyer links are also posted here on the left sidebar - for future reference! 

We're all about having fun with the kids, so we will try to get a pre-ride day in earlier in April. Stay tuned for more info!

Steve Porraro

Here is some sad news for those of you who knew Steve Porraro. Steve passed away this past Saturday. For anyone involved in mountain biking in New Jersey or New York in the last 25 years, you probably crossed paths with "Titanium Steve", as he was known in the early years. Steve was a great guy and will be missed by all who knew him. His obituary can be viewed here. Visiting will be at the Vander Plaat Funeral Home, 257 Godwin Ave. in Wyckoff, NJ. 

Team Town Cycle sends our sincerest condolences to Steve's family and friends. 

Hell of Hunterdon road race on March 26!

For those of you looking for an early season challenge, look no farther than the Hell of Hunterdon, March 26. The race consisted of 76 miles of mixed terrain roads - perfect warm-up for anyone planning on doing the Tour of the Battenkill! Find more details and online registration here at BikeReg. Pre-registration closes on March 12th. Late registration will be available for an additional $10 until field limit size is reached. 

Raise a glass for Marty!

We gave you a hint last week, but now we're ready to announce it - a night out to support Marty! Laura of the Endless Vine in Franklin Lakes has very generously offered to host an evening in honor of Marty. Join us as PAT BIANCO & MOOD SWING (Pete Levin, John Cariddi, Rich Crane) with DAVID J. KEYES play at the Endless Vine on Wednesday, March 16, at 8:30 p.m. Admission will be free, and in lieu of a tip jar, a donation jar will be set out for Marty's Fund. More info about the evening can be found here, and directions and info about the Endless Vine can be found here.

We're so unbelievably grateful to Laura and everyone at the Endless Vine for hosting this evening, to Pat Bianco and Mood Swing for playing for the evening, and to everyone else who has joined us along the way to help out Marty, Pete, and Kelly. We hope you can come out and join us for this fun mid-week break from the grind! Good music, good wine, good friends - for a good cause.... doesn't get any better than that, right? 

As always, please let us know if you have any questions - info@teamtowncycle.com. 

Bear Mountain Spring Classic Registration is open!

Registration for one of the "spring classics" in the Northeast, the Bear Mountain Spring Classic, is open on BikeReg. More info can be found at CRCA's website. This race fills up quickly, so if you are interested, register now! A number of club members have done this race in the past - if you want to know more about it, let us know - we'll hook you up! 

See, spring really is coming soon! 

A reminder and a teaser!

Just popping in for a quick reminder - tomorrow night is the Banff Mountain Film Festival in Suffern, NY - more details here. 

Also - reserve the evening of March 16 on your social calendar. Why? Here are a few hints - wine, good music, and Marty! Stay tuned - details coming soon!