A Thank-you Note…

A thank-you note from a fellow Houston Chronicle employee…

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Team Chronicle,

I would like to personally extend to each and every one of you my heartfelt thank you for sacrificing your mind, body and soul this weekend to ride for a cure for MS. I am quite sure that most of you are riding in honor of a relative or friend, so you already know what the ride means to those of us who live with this disease.

I experienced my very first major exacerbation in November and Monday was my first day back to work full-time. It is very challenging, but as the saying goes…”I have MS, but MS doesn’t have me.” It took 3+ years to have my first “big one” so I cannot complain.

I am disappointed that I cannot join you all this year, but I do plan to try again next year. So you all ride safe, have fun and take lots of pictures to share! =)

Peace,
Pam Bowerman

Week 5 Update

Good Afternoon Team Chronicle!

Anyone notice the absense of a note last week?  It was one of those weeks!  To make it up to ya’ll, I’ll make sure to make this note extra long… just kidding!

Anywho, on to it…

Fundraising – Ya’ll are rockin’ on the fundraising front.  So far, Team Chronicle has raised $22,849!  We have 8 people who have already met the $400 minimum (including 4 who have turned in more than one thousand dollars!)  So far 22 folks have turned in funds.  Way to go gang! Total fundraising for the MS 150 to date: $2,905,906.37

Team Chronicle Rider Release Form – I’ve received many more release forms over the past two weeks, but I’m still missing several.  If you have not turned in a signed release form, please do so ASAP!  You can fax it my way (713/362-2860), or snail mail it:
James Hahn
1307 Wentworth Ct.
Houston, TX 77055

If you fax the form, please shoot me an email so I’ll know to check the fax (it’s a shared machine).  We MUST have a form from all riders, and you will NOT get your jersey until we have a form from you!

CoP Training Series – Calling all volunteers!!!  We need you!  Part of our agreement with ConocoPhillips for participation in the training series is that we need to provide volunteers to a couple of the rides.  We provided help on 1/26 and 2/9 (thanks to those who helped out!), but we have one more ride we need to work.  We need to provide at least 3 volunteers for the March 8th ride in Columbus.  Volunteers can either work at a breakpoint or drive a SAG wagon (SAG wagon drivers are given $15 to help cover gas costs).  If you would like to help out and work the CoP ride on 3/8, please let me know.  This is not limited to people participating in the training series, ANYONE can volunteer!

Reminder: If you are taking part in the CoP rides, you MUST carpool!  The locations we meet at do not have enough space to accomodate 1,000+ cars.  I know that Steve Moskowitz is mulling over different ways of handling those that choose not to carpool if it continues to be a problem.  Let’s not let it come to that!  PLEASE, review the Team Chronicle location map or check out the carpool forum on the CoP website .

Weekend Rides – There are two organized rides this weekend, The Bulldog Bike Ride and Wild West End Ride.

The Bulldog Bike Ride – Ride begins at 8:30 am on Saturday at Waller Junior High (directions to start are on the site). Available distances are 25, 32, and 50 miles.  For the most part, it’s a fairly flat ride, but weather may be an issue – keep an eye on this weekend’s forecast!  After you finish riding, be sure to stick around for a pancake breakfast complete with coffee and juice served by Waller Junior High students!

Wild West End Ride – Ride begins at 8 am on Sunday at Foster High School in Fort Bend County.  Distances are 20, 36, 53, and 63 miles.  Again, this is a flat route, but weather may be an issue – double-check this weekend’s weather forecast!  Team Chronicle has been formally invited to participate in this event, as the ride director is the wife of Jerome Baumeister! (Wild West End Ride Registration)

Random Thought – The past two weeks, I’ve seen several people at the ride starts who were WAY overdressed.  At the CoP ride in Pattison, I saw some people in the kind of coats you would expect to see on the ski slopes!  Keep in mind, if you feel nice and warm while waiting for a ride to begin, you are overdressed!  Don’t worry about being a little chilly while waiting at the starting line.  Once you being riding, your body will warm up!

I’m going on vacation tomorrow so I won’t be in town this weekend, but Rick may be at the Bulldog Ride (weather permitting).  If you spot him, give him a big “Howdy!”.

Enjoy the weekend!

James

Team Chronicle by Location

Week 3 Note

Good Morning Team Chronicle!

I hope everyone was able to take advantage of the dry weekend and put on some miles! Except for a bit of a chill Saturday morning, the weekend was great for riding.

This weekend, take advantage of the available rides to burn off extra calories. That way, you can enjoy your Super Bowl parties more without feeling guilty about eating all that not-so-healthy food!

Anywho, onto the notes…

Website – I forgot to mention this last week, but a big thanks goes out to Team Chronicle member Carlos Tiangco. He put the site together for us. As for updates, if you have any pictures from any of the training rides, send them to myself or Rick Stein (rick.stein@chron.com). We’ll make sure the pics make it on the site. If you have any other info you’d like to share (ride hints/tips, good deals on bikes and gear), send them our way and we’ll put it on the site.

Fundraising – As of 8 AM this morning, we’ve passed 20K! Team Chronicle is currently sitting at $20,410. Good job guys! Let’s keep it up!

Release Forms – So far I’ve received a little less than half of the rider release forms. If you haven’t signed one of these and returned it yet, please do so. Print the attached form (Team Chronicle Rider Release Form), sign it, and fax it to me at: 713/362-2860. Or you can mail it to:

James Hahn
1307 Wentworth Ct.
Houston, TX 77055

Weekend Rides – There is only 1 recommended ride this weekend (besides the CoP ride). Bike Through the Forest is on Saturday. It’s a shorter ride (long route is 33 miles), and it’s about 70 miles north of downtown Houston.

With the shortage of available rides this weekend, this would be a great opportunity to take advantage of the free Saturday morning rides from Zube Park. It’s a large group of people that breaks up into groups based on speed and distance (anywhere from 20 to 60 miles). The Zube Park rides are NOT supported, so make sure to pack plenty of drinks, snacks, and some cash if you want to make a convenience store stop. Also make sure your tires are in good shape. For more Zube Park info: http://northwestcyclingclub.com./

CoP Training Series – This Thursday (1/31) is the absolute last day to register for the CoP training series. The price has gone up another $10, but with 10 rides left at $110 total cost; this is still a very good deal! This link will come down at midnight on the 31^st, so if you wish to participate in this, sign up now! Registration: http://www.zoomerang.com/survey.zgi?p=WEB2273KPFDA6G

If you haven’t been carpooling to the CoP rides the past 2 weeks, now is the time to start. Saturday’s ride starts from Royal Middle School, and parking WILL BE LIMITED! Approximately 550 riders showed up to last week’s ride, and more will be there this weekend. The group cannot fit into the parking lot if everyone shows up to the ride one car, one rider. Check out the carpool forum on the CoP website. Also refer to the map Rick made to see if any other Team Chronicle riders live in your general area. Keep in mind, if you do not arrive early this week, you will likely have to park far away from the ride start, so be sure to show up early!

Random Weekly Thought – While I was on SAG wagon duty this past Saturday, I helped several people who were not carrying a spare tube or any tools to fix a flat. These are things EVERY rider needs to carry on EVERY ride!

The tools are cheap, and do not take up very much space. Below are what EVERY rider needs to have on EVERY ride:

• Spare tube – Carry at least 1. 2 would be better. Make sure you have the correct size tube, not all tires are the same size!
• Tire levers – These are plastic levers used to pry the tire in and out of the rim. Tire levers are very cheap and can be purchased at any bike shop (packs of 3 are less than $5 at Bike Barn).
• Pump – There are 2 ways to go with a pump. You can go the traditional route and get a small hand pump or go with a CO2 pump. The CO2 pump is smaller and fills a tire faster, but you need CO2 cartridges (about $2 a piece).
• Saddle bag – You need a way to carry all this stuff so that it’s always on the bike with you!

There are many variations of all the tools I listed. Go to any bike shop and you’ll see dozens of different tire levers, pumps, and saddle bags. If you don’t have these items on your bike, go shopping at a bike store and get these items BEFORE your next ride!

Other items that are good to carry with you while riding:

• cash
• credit card
• ID
• Cell phone (but please doesn’t make or take calls while you’re on the bike!)

In addition to carrying a spare tube and tools, it’s very important to know how to fix a flat. Many people are intimidated by flat tires (especially the back wheel), but it’s really very easy to take care of. Later in the season, many shops offer free flat fixing clinics. Once these clinics are scheduled, I’ll pass along the dates/times/locations.

The weather on Saturday looks good (and much warmer than last weekend), so take advantage and hit the roads. Strive for a longer distance on Saturday and then take things easy on Sunday and enjoy the game!

James

Welcome!

Welcome to the Team Chronicle site. Here you’ll find information, news and events that pertain to our team. Also, there are training tips and some photos from rides. So, feel free to take a look around. Keep ‘em rollin’!