Inside this Issue

  • Letter from the Prez

  • PORC Email

  • Upcoming Events

  • Trail Blurb – San Felasco, Florida

  • Spin Zone – Carl’s Spin Class Adventure

Letter from the Prez

Two years since the creation of Pensacola Off-Road Cyclists and we’re already closing in on 1000 trail maintenance hours. When I say "we", I mean PORC members as well as the many others that have contributed their time to the local trails. The UWF Mountain Bike Club members have helped get that number as high as it has gotten, as have the local riders who aren’t affiliated with either club but who are a part of nearly every trail day. And most recently a group of Gulf Power employees and their families spent their Saturday helping us get the trails in shape. Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to improving our local riding over the last two years. If the idea of giving back to the trails you’re riding appeals to you, or you just want an excuse to get out of the house, check our calendar at www.porc.org for the next scheduled trail day. Or sign up for our e-mailing list through the site to be kept up on all the PORC news and events. You don’t need to be a member to help out at trail maintenance; we can use all the help we can get to keep the trails in as a good condition as they can be.

Thanks to everyone that supported the excellent race put on in March by the UWF Mountain Bike Club. Let’s hope it will be the first of many local events so our local off-road riding scene will keep getting bigger and better.

See you on the trail,

Ed

PORC EMAIL 

PORC RENEWAL
Hi There,

I would like to join PORC but have a question on the renewal dates. If I join at this time and pay the $20 fee will I need to pay another $20 in march? Please advise.

Thanks Chucky

Chucky, I was able to get up with our busy Treasurer, Dale, and he assured me that your membership to PORC is good for 12 months, regardless of the time you joined. If you would like more information, feel free to contact us at membership@porc.org or contact Dale directly at shredderboy@enron.com

-------------------------------------------------------

LEAVING THE MECCA
It was great to find your website showing mountain biking in Florida! I live in the Colorado Front Range, and may be moving to the Florida panhandle within the year.

I was scared at first to leave this area of mountains and altitude to Florida, where I incorrectly assumed that there would be no off-road cycling, but it seems like you have a great group of biking enthusiasts that I would be glad to be a part of. Thanks for the website and your devotion to the sport.

Mike

Mike, thanks for the props. Hope to meet you once you move over & down.

-------------------------------------------------------

HIKING OR ROAD BIKE CLUB?
I am new to Pensacola and I am looking for an on road bike club and a hiking or walking club. I would appreciate any suggestion. Thanks, Shari.

Shari, I have seen hikers out on the trails before, but I am unaware of any club activity with them. You may want to contact the UWF Recreational Department's Erin Rausch at (850) 857-6178. As for the road bike club, that's an easy one. The club to contact would be the West Florida Wheelman. Check out their website at www.wfw-pensacola.com

-------------------------------------------------------

Got a question, suggestion, gripe, or comment?
Feel free to drop us an email anytime at
newsletter@porc.org

UPCOMING
EVENTS
check out the message board and calendar at
www.porc.org
for the most up-to-date info!!

South Eastern Regional Championship series
(S.E.R.C.)

#1 REDDICK, FL (Razorback MTB Park) 5/19-02
#2 COLUMBIA, SC (Harbison State Forest) / AMBC 5/26/02
#3 FONTANA, NC (Fontana Village) / AMBC /UCI + Downhill event 6/16/02
#4 ANNISTON, AL (Cheaha Mountain) / NEABC (North Eastern Alabama Bicycle Club) - CHEAHA MOUNTAIN EXPRESS / AMBC 7/21/02
#5 HELEN, GA (Unicoi State Park) / AMBC 8/4/02
#6 CHATTANOOGA, TN (Ocoee Whitewater Center) / TBRA (Tennessee Bicycle Racing Association) points race #9 / AMBC 9/1/02.

.CHECK OUT
WWW.GONERIDING.COM
FOR MORE INFO

-------------------------------------------------------

BUMP & Grind
Birmingham Al - - June 2, 2002
This year will be cross country only (no down-hill event). The park will be open Saturday June 1st for registration and pre-riding.

Check out
www.bump.org
for more info

-------------------------------------------------------

HELEN FAT TIRE FESTIVAL
HELEN, GA - The Southern Off-Road Bicycle Association (SORBA) announces the return of the Helen Fat Tire Festival. Slated for May 10-11-12, 2002, the event will be held at the beloved Unicoi State Lodge Park, located two miles from Alpine Helen, Georgia, site of the former Grundig World Cup
Email:
woodysmtb@alltel.net
for more info

 

 
TRAIL BLURBSAN FELASCO, FLORIDA 

TRAIL FACTS : Alachua (Gainesville)| 12 miles long | 330 Miles east or 5 hrs from Pensacola |

Quick Description: We rode this trail only 2 days after it opened. This State sponsored trail is very scenic and fun to ride. Difficulty is relative, however, and the hills are not as big as they are here in Pensacola, but considering what part of the State these trails are in I'd say that the layout made the most of the topography.

There are a number of log obstacles which were fun to hop and I also liked the way the trail traveled in and out of thick vegetation with huge oaks into open grassy fields where you could see for miles.

The trail signs are as good as one could want, there is no way to get lost on this trail.

If you ever make it out to this trail, be sure to check out the two other great trails nearby, Santos and Razorback.

For more information, visit the following websites:

http://community.webshots.com/album/11902730ljmtiQhkPt - pictures

http://members.aol.com/cyclerog/page4.html - info on this trail, maps, pictures. info on other trails too.

http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Florida/SanFelascoHammockStatePark.html - read the ratings for this trail.

http://www.dep.state.fl.us/parks/district2/sanfelasco/index.asp - official State information about this park.

Other contact information:
4732 Millhopper Road
Gainesville, 32653
(352) 955-2008

The Spin Zone by Carl D.

I started doing spin class for 3 reasons: 1) my new couch, 2) my new favorite beer and 3) It gets dark at 5:00pm.

Barbara had been after me to go to a spin class with her for several years and I always had a handy excuse. Spin class is for girls, I’ve got 2 perfectly good bikes already, my toenails need trimming, etc. Finally after getting dropped by Scott Grubbs on a Sunday ride, I figured it was time to fork over some cash and join the YMCA.

Spin class, for those of you that don’t know, is a dark room full of stationary bikes, ambient music, sweating bodies and an instructor. It starts with a warm-up and leads either to a strength workout, an endurance workout or an interval workout. There are various standing and sitting climbs, sprints, long smooth runs, sitting and standing combinations, etc. It’s pretty much at your own pace with guidance from the instructor. It’s never easy. I went to my first class knowing it would be brutal. And for 45 minutes it was. I stayed with it until the last sprint and the last climb. I left the class soaking wet and shaking.

I went again the next week and paced myself a little better and completed the class, but I was still soaking wet and shaking. I’ve been going at least twice a week since middle January doing all the variations of the class with several different instructors. Some are better than others and some have better music but all leave me soaking wet and shaking. I never fail to get a good aerobic or anaerobic workout. And for an extra heavy-duty workout, Friday at 5:30 is Maria’s class. Spinning with Maria is like trying to ride with Dave Howell or Mike Hurley. It’s fortunate they are stationary bikes because after the warm up she would be gone. Just when you think you are finally at the top of your uphill, seated sprint and the end of your endurance, she asks for more resistance and a standing sprint. Then she tells you to sit without dropping the resistance. And then you stand one last time. Brutal. And all to a decent soundtrack.

Soon we will return to daylight savings time and I can ride in the real outdoors. Scott Grubbs will still drop me (he’s been spinning, also). I will probably only do 1 class per week until fall just for something different. Spinning is no substitute for being outside. Spinning is not really like riding a bike, but it’s more like riding a bike than sitting on the couch drinking beer.

Interested in supporting PORC?

Many of the trail improvements you may have noticed are a direct result of volunteers’ hard work and our member’s support. Individual membership starts at only $20. By joining, not only do you help to improve the trails, but you also get special benefits, such as member discounts at participating bike shops. Check out www.porc.org for more information, or write us at

1708 David Street - 32514.