Merry Christmas 2018

Merry Christmas from the Windbreakers - Ride On!

Windbreakers Holiday Palooza 2018

December 9, 2018.  

The spirit of Christmas and the holiday season was in the air as the Windbreaker family gathered for the annual holiday season get-together at the Andrews home.  Plenty of food and drink (including the always popular "man-candy" courtesy of Christine Lowe), good conversation, and of course games to round out the evening.  It is a busy time of year, of course, so not all were able to attend and of course we missed our fellow Windbreakers who weren't able to join the fun

Man Candy!

LCR!

A great group of friends sharing good times to celebrate 2018.  Ride On!

Ride Report: El Tour de Tucson 2018

November 17, 2018.  Chris, Tom and yours truly returned recently from participating in the 2018 edition of the El Tour de Tucson www.perimeterbicycling.com, held annually in Tucson, Arizona. El Tour is one of the largest road bicycling events in the U.S., attracting between 7,000 and 10,000 participants.  Tucson is consistent ranked by several journals as one of the "most bikeable large U.S. cities" and "top ten best bike towns". This year the 102-mile century ride included over 2,500 participants alone, including 3 stalwarts from the Windbreaker Bicycle Club.

Chilly 7:00 am start in Downtown Tucson

After arriving on Friday afternoon and checking in at the rider expo, we were joined by our wonderful hosts for the weekend, Fred and Sandra Luckau, friends of Chris and Teri Carlson.  We headed to Barrio Brewing Co. for dinner and a cold beverage before heading to their beautiful home in the Tanque Verde area just outside of Tucson.  

Rising early the next morning, and heading to the start in Downtown Tucson, we joined the other riders on a cold, crisp roll-out following a counter-clockwise route southeast of Tucson toward the Cienega Creek Natural Preserve, then north along Old Spanish Trail and at the western edge of Saguaro National Park.  

Top of the climb, mile 30. Warming up!

As the weather warmed we continued along the foothills of the Catalina Mountains through Oro Valley, Tortolita and Marana before returning to Downtown Tucson and the finish line party.  A great effort by the Windbreakers!

At the Marana, AZ Rotary Club rest stop, mile 80

In addition to representing our club, I was proud to represent the Ontario-Montclair Rotary Club in the companion event, the Ride to End Polio, which is held in conjunction with El Tour.  Many thanks to my fellow club members who supported this effort.  And finally, and big Windbreaker "thank you" to Fred and Sandra Luckau, our wonderful hosts during our stay in Tucson.  Ride On!

L to R, Chris, Tom, John, Teri, and our hosts, Fred and Sandra

Seen on the Road

One in an occasional series - a two-wheeler parked at Golden
Road Brewing in the Midtown District of Downtown Sacramento.
Ride On! 

Congrats Team Heron - MS 150 Bay to Bay

Congratulations and a big RIDE ON! to Windbreaker Steve and daughter and NextGen member Stephanie on their recent completion of the 2-day, MS 150 Bay to Bay bike ride from Irvine to San Diego.  They joined over 2,500 other participants raising important funds to make a difference in lives of people living with MS.  Great ride and a great cause!

September Hilly Dilly

Rabbit and Map Boy at the Saddle

September 29, 2018.  Some of the lads took on the hills of "Windbreaker Country" with a spirited ascent of Glendora Mountain Road (known locally as GMR) to Horse Canyon Saddle.  A beautiful fall morning ride.  Ride On!

Next Gen Ride Report

August 13, 2018.  A big Windbreaker "shout out" to two of our Next Gen, Griffin and Cullen Easter, who yesterday completed the 6-stage Tour of Utah www.tourofutah.com.  

Competing as members of the 303 Project professional cycling team, both lads posted extremely impressive results among some of the best professional cyclists in the world.  Griff was awarded the red jersey following Stage 2 as the day's most aggressive rider.  Ride On!