Dear New England Classic Rider:

Planning is already well underway for the 2009 New England Classic and your American Diabetes Association and the planning committee is committed to making this the best year ever.

The websites are open, you can copy and paste the following link into your web browser to register for the 2009 New England Classic.

http://tour.diabetes.org/site/TR/TourdeCure/TDC005008030?pg=entry&fr_id=5560

I also have some other news to report.  Faith Linsky, the long-time staff partner on the New England Classic is no longer with the American Diabetes Association.  The American Diabetes Association, like many other organizations both for profit and not-for-profit, had to undergo staffing reductions in order to protect our ability to deliver our mission during these tough economic times.  Faith was instrumental in bringing the Classic to where it is today.  I know many of you looked forward to seeing her each year in Woburn and communicating with her as you registered and raised your contributions.

Faith’s knowledge is hard to replace but I want you to know we are committed to maintaining the Classic’s reputation as a fun, safe and well-produced ride.  That said, I am pleased to announce that Ryan Williams has accepted the position as the new Tour de Cure Manager for the New England Classic.  Ryan has worked for the ADA for the past year on the Step Out: Walk to Fight Diabetes events in Maine and has done a great job recruiting teams and getting participants invested in the Mission.  Ryan will be based out of the Portland, Maine office.  He can be reached at rwilliams{at}diabetes.org or at (207) 774-7717 x3456. Feel free to contact Ryan with any questions.  His first day will be Monday, February 2nd.

In the meantime,  please register now!  We are excited for another great year and look forward to seeing you there.

Chris Boynton
Executive Director

Today, May 1, starts National Bike Month.

Let’s all hope the weather finally makes a turn for the better. MassBike has a whole slew of things to do this month, something almost every day, no matter where you live.

Don’t miss the 12th annual Par-tay at Redbones on Monday, May 19 (benefits MassBike and NEMBA). Barbecue, beer and bikes: what’s not to like? Ride your bike, they have free valet parking for bikes. Or take the T (Davis Sq, red line). If you’re in a car, you’re on your own.

But one of the best things you can do to celebrate Bike Month is register for the New England Classic.

Photo © Knox Gardner

Hello All, As many already know, there will be a Memorial Service for Sheldon this coming Sunday, March 2 at 1:30pm. It will be at the First Unitarian Society of Newton, across the street from Harris Cyclery.

Details and a map link are at www.harriscyclery.com

Prior to the service there will be a memorial ride starting and ending at the shop:

Meet at 10:45 AM in the parking lot behind Harris Cyclery for an informal memorial ride before the service. Departure will be at 11:00. Distance: approximately 25 miles, pace slow to moderate. The ride will go by way of Weston to Water Row in Sudbury (water level permitting!), one of Sheldon’s favorite places to ride, and will return by way of Lincoln.

Fixed gears, hub gears, whatever you’ve got, are all welcome.

Please pass the word.

Elton Pope-Lance Sudbury, MA

If anyone is interested, I’ll be leaving from the Copley Square area around 9:00. Harris is an 11 mile ride from there. Please RSVP so I can know how many to wait for. It should be around 40 degrees, cloudy, and dry.

Riding into Boston may not hold much appeal for back country cyclists, but for city dwellers there’s nothing like cruising around town. And now there’s some hope that in the future, urban cyclists may face a lower risk of life and limb when pedaling the streets of the Hub.

The city’s Boston Bikes program has announced plans to add 5-foot-wide bike lanes on Commonwealth Avenue between Kenmore Square and the BU Bridge. The bike lanes are being added this summer as part of a planned reconstruction of Commonwealth through the Boston University campus.

It’s not a long stretch but it’s a start, and it’s an area notoriously dangerous to navigate for cyclists, many of whom roll out from the surrounding universities.

Jim Gillooly, deputy commissioner of the Boston Transportation Department, told the Boston Herald the Commonwealth Avenue project provides an opportunity for a first step. “It will be an evolution,’’ he said. “We certainly want to take the bike accommodations and build upon them.”

Once completed the Commonwealth Avenue lanes alone won’t eliminate the troubles faced by city cyclists. But like the crocuses we hope to soon see poking out in gardens around New England, bike lanes on Commonwealth Avenue could be a harbinger of better days to come.

Quickrelease.tv talks to the pros. Pro thieves. And they come up with 10 tips for protecting your bike.

via Fritz

Yield to Life is a new initiative founded by world class racer and cycling funny man Dave Zabriskie.

“Yield to Life is a non-profit organization devoted to creating a safer environment for cyclists and, by so doing, encouraging more people to ride for their own health, the good of the environment and the well being of society.

“By making cycling safer and promoting the activity as a responsible means of transportation and a healthy means of recreation, Yield to Life can contribute to tackling some of today’s major concerns—from such issues as pollution and global warming to obesity and diabetes. In this way, Yield to Life can play a role in increasing the quality of life not only for cyclists, but for everyone—for our generation and those to come.

…

“Yield to Life will engage in a vigorous awareness campaign to promote positive attitudes toward cyclists and replace any hostility that exists between motorists and cyclists with understanding, respect, and appreciation for all life on the road. Safety for every cyclist is the top priority of Yield to Life.”

Yay for awareness!

To that end, here are 10 tips for cyclists.

And 10 tips for motorists.

We at NEC are always touting safety. It is our number 1 concern on the ride. Only good things can come from this.

DZ is is currently with Team Slipstream, was formerly with CSC and US Postal, is 2006 National ITT champion, and stage winner of Tour de France (and a terrible crash), Giro d’Italia, and Vuelta a España. He’s really, really good. Super good.