In This Issue
The content of this April 2020 Pedaler edition is dedicated to information relevant to club updates, activities, group rides, and member safety recommendations during the coronavirus pandemic.
SPRING FLING 2020 Spring Fling was set to occur the weekend of April 24-26, at Gettysburg. However, the event dates will be rescheduled to occur in May, presuming Pennsylvania's governor removes the "stay at home" restrictions now in effect. Additional details will be shared by program director, Sandra Mannon, nearer to the expected time; she will also respond to any questions from members who registered for the April dates. Sandra's contact information can be located on page 2 of this newsletter.
Tour de Red Rose Update: The event, as of now, is still slated for the summer. Registration for the event will open in May with more details to be announced.
Lancaster Covered Bridge update: The LCBC is still scheduled for August, though the Trifecta may be canceled or modified since the Hershey ride is hosted by Penn State Health at their Hershey campus.
Lead From the Back:
by Dave Stauffer
As I write this on Sunday, March 29, 2020, I am aware that we, the members of the Lancaster Bike Club, are unable to ride as a group, at the least, through the month of April. The decision to cancel the group rides and other club activities was a painful one, but we all know that now we have much greater issues of concern – our personal health and safety.
We cannot continue to promote group riding while our county and state are shut down.
However, you may be outside, and you are permitted and encouraged to get out and ride.
Currently, the League of American Bicyclists and People for Bikes are lobbying to have riding a bike included in the list of “Essential” activities. This allows us to continue riding under Shelter in Place Orders even though we will not be posting club rides.
I hope you are all able to continue riding but please be responsible regarding social distancing. Check your temperature each day, ride solo if you can, or limit your riding to one or two people whom you know will ride as carefully as you. To avoid contaminated air or respiration droplets from another rider, ride side by side when possible.
I do not recommend riding the trails, since they are reported to be very busy with pedestrians. The Stay at Home order and closure of non-essential businesses has pushed more people outside to walk or ride quiet neighborhood streets with their families. Meanwhile, the roads are quiet in a strange way - a nice trade-off from the normal traffic.
As for me, my last club ride was on March 14th. I continue to ride to work (I work in the food industry -an essential business) and do solo rides on the weekend.
The board did conduct an impromptu online meeting on Saturday to discuss the next couple months of club activity. Initially, we had been optimistic that we could have some April activities but that all changed with the federal guidelines now extended through April.
For the future, we are planning club activities to begin in May. We are working on a May ride schedule, and I hope we can still host the Bike 2-30k. We are planning for the Tour de RedRose to begin on June 27. When registration for the TdRR opens, Mike White, the TdRR director, will send out a Google Group message.
The Lancaster Covered Bridge ride is still planned to occur, and the event website continues to accept registrations. To date, we have over 900 registrants. The volunteer sign-up positions are posted under the Volunteer menu on our club’s website. Please continue to plan for these events.
Be safe, keep riding if you can do it safely. See you when this all clears up.
Dave Stauffer
