​Hi all,


Saturday morning looks pretty good for a ride. It will be cool'ish but sunny. Theresa and I will be at the corner of Tower rd and Hwy 1 at the old Tourist information booth parking lot. It's right opposite the CTV station. There's some parking there or you could always park at the Husky and ride there, or just leave the car at home!

We have a simple loop that we do that is about 42 km out to Balgonie via Hwy 46. A little bit of climbing but pretty easy overall. T & I will probably carry on a bit further than the loop by heading south to do something like 60km or so..not sure yet, depends on the wine consumption on Fri night!!

Anyway, all are welcome. This isn't a supported ride so make sure you've got all you need. If you have a Garmin computer you can download the route file attached but it's pretty simple.  Call  me if you have questions..306 540 8110.

Mark.

Hi all,

Welcome to Spoke n'Hot 2019! 

Monday night. Dutch Cycle 6pm to 8pm.

Monday night will be our Annual Tech night hosted by Freddy Vandelinden from Dutch Cycle. Exclusive to registered Spoke riders this is your opportunity to learn a little more about your bike, particularly how to fix a flat tire. 
Freddy has been teaching Spoke riders how to do this every year and you will be amazed at how simple it is to change a tire AND how much more confident you will feel about hitting the road. It's a must do for new riders! It is also mandatory that you carry the equipment that you need to change a tire when you ride. Freddy can supply everything you need on Monday night.

The format is very much hands on. Please bring your front wheel  with you. After a demo on helmet fit and tire changing by Freddy we will split into small groups of two or three and, led by one of our Ride Leaders, you'll fix your own wheel. It's fun and occasionally frustrating but you'll have a good time and laugh quite a bit. You'll leave Dutch with the confidence of knowing that you can look after yourself on the road and you'll have made a couple more friends

Dress casually, you'll be sitting on the floor unless you bring a stool or cushion.

Hi all,

Tomorrow night is our Registration Celebration, starting at 6pm at Dutch Cycle. It's a casual way to meet the Ride Leaders, renew friendships from last year and maybe win a $200 Gift Certificate! Freddy and the staff are keeping the store open just for us, we can have a visit with each other and shop at the same time! 

We're excited about this year. We have a lot more riding options and we're going to make the best of them, including  exclusive access to our new ByPass before it opens to the general public! Over on the east side of Regina we're going to take advantage of the great new service roads and the options to ride through Emerald Park, White City and Balgonie.
Add the gravel option and we're confident that you'll have a fun season on two wheeeeeels!! 

See you tomorrow,
​Mark and Theresa.


​

Good evening all,

Well that was a tough couple of months as we exited Winter! But it's done with. mostly, and we can look forward to getting back on our bikes and getting outside again.

We're excited about 2019, there's a couple of new aspects to Spoke n'Hot that we think will make being a member even more fun! But first, some of the old stuff!

Ride Leaders.
We're thrilled that all the Ride Leaders are returning to Spoke n'Hot this year. It's been a long term goal of ours to increase the number of women Ride Leaders and we are now in a position where we have strong experienced women cyclists teaching women. Paul, Terry, Alan and I hope you'll keep us around though!
The roads last year were challenging...
As you know, we had very limited options on where to ride last year and it was getting boring.So it's a huge relief to see the improvements over winter. We will definitely be mixing up the rides with new destinations and experiences. Expect to see less of Condie and Hwy 734.

And now the exciting new stuff!

Gravel riding.
Theresa and the Ride Leaders have been really enjoying getting out on some of the gravel roads, and we have a lot of them. There's a huge  buzz in the cycling world about gravel and the choices it gives riders. So, we want you to be a part of that, if you so choose! We will have a couple of introductory gravel rides so you can see what it's like and we'll give you tips on how to ride and where to go. Please note that you can use a mountain bike for this. Then we will be offering a Gravel option on some of the Mondays to those who are interested which will be led by Maria. As always, if you have questions, call us!
Saturday morning ride.
Saturday mornings, we'll be hosting a Spoke n'Hot/Spokesmen ride. Mixed Groups, no drop, fun ride that will end in coffee somewhere!.We really want you to have another option to ride.
Social media.
I'm not very good at this aspect of Spoke. I can update the blog and let you all know what's going on but I'm fairly useless at sharing our stories. Theresa and Erin have volunteered to take over this aspect of our Club. Follow us on Instagram@Spokenhot and watch our Facebook page for more.

​Registration is now open and we will be having our Annual Registration Celebration at Dutch Cycle on Monday April 8. 6:00. Come out and meet fellow riders, the Ride Leaders and our incredible sponsor ( and occasional Ride Leader) Freddy Vandelinden!

​Hi all,


It looks like it will be a good night for a ride. For a change, and to avoid any remnants of the Country Thunder party, we will be starting from the Turvey Centre. Ride up Hwy 6 and we'll see how the 734 is looking for traffic.

Meet at 6'ish. Ride briefing at 6:20 and on the road by 6:30.

See you then,

M&T.

​Hi all,


Finally, a weather forecast that looks like summer!
We were super lucky this morning for the Spoke n' Hot Womens triathlon, no real wind and great temperatures made for 150 happy triathletes! Theresa and her crew from the RMC really put on a great event and it was wonderful seeing so many Spokies out  there competing. Quite a few of you volunteered AND raced!!
There might be a few sore legs tomorrow so we'll take it easy on you with another Group ride from Condie. Meet at 6'ish, ride briefing at 6:20 and on the road by 6:30.

Don't forget your rear blinky lights. Also you should all have your jerseys now so please wear them. We ride as a team, and look like one!

As always I will monitor the weather. If anything appears weird I'll send out a Go/ NO Go at 4pm otherwise assume we are riding.

See you tomorrow,

M&T.

​

Might not make sense but it sounded cool..


Hi all,

We've not been to Condie yet so we're looking forward to showing some of you just how pretty the ride is. 

We will meet at the Condie Nature preserve and ride into Lumsden. The road is beautiful and fairly quiet. Meet at 6'ish, ride briefing at 6:20 and on the road by 6:30.

To get to Condie you just take Hwy 11 to Saskatoon. You turn left at Exit A, Hwy 734, following the signs for Condie. After about 1.5 km you'll see the sign for Condie, turn left onto the gravel road, then another 500 m into the park. Follow the road into the big car park.

I'm watching this weather again..it's been a challenge over the last week. Last Monday was quite stressful as Paul and I were watching the radar, looking at tea leaves and generally trying to figure out what was happening. In that case we cancelled, the weather went to crap and I knew we'd made the right choice.
Kinda got burned on Thursday though, it really was iffy and the radar was all over the place. I ended up cancelling the Spokesmen ride but it turned out to be an ok night. Not my worst decision, but annoying nonetheless.

So, I'll watch it and post updates as necessary with a Go No Go at 4pm. Keep your fingers crossed!

​Mark.

Hi all,


Twice a year we do a Time Trial. at the beginning and end of the season. The idea is to see just how fast you are over 10 km and if you improve over the season.
We spend a lot of time teaching how to safely ride in a Group environment and we know that some of you are a lot quicker than the Groups you are currently in. Hopefully you're learning lots and are thinking about going up a Group or two?  You might be happy where you are, and that's completely fine by the way.
Well, the Time Trial will help you, and us, figure out where you are capable of going. 

We'll ride out to the Brandt house on the 734 and start the TT there. Starting at Group One we will line you up, give you a number  and then every 15 seconds we will send you down the 734 for 5 KM, turnaround and come back as fast as you can. That's it! No paceline, no group riding, just you and your bike!

Some of you are going to be very surprised with just how fast you can be. Last year we had a Group 2 rider finish in the top three! 
So get ready to let your inner speed demon loose! The weather looks pretty good, a bit hot, but light winds.

Meet at the Turvey Centre. Ride briefing at 6:20 and on the road by 6:30. I will monitor the weather and if at all doubtful I will post a Go/ No Go at 4pm.

​

​Hi all,


The weather looks fabulous for tomorrow. We will be returning to the Turvey Centre and using Hwy 6 and the 734 to continue learning how to ride together. 

At the Icebreaker triathlon last weekend I was horrified at the poor cornering skills demonstrated by the competitors. I stood by a traffic cone at the turnaround and out of the 100 or so cyclists I saw 2 that were able to corner correctly. So I'm bringing traffic cones with me tomorrow and we'll have you do some drills as you ride.

YouTube is your friend. This one is about general cornering. The one thing I want you to remember above all else is to " Look where you want to go" ,keep your head up and don't look at your wheels, trust me you'll know if they are not there!

Ride briefing at 6:20, riding by 6:30.Remember your blinkies!