Hi Everyone,

Tuesday, April 23^rd will mark the beginning of the 11^th year of Slow ‘n Easy West rides.  Time passes quickly when you are having fun.  One of the Onondaga Cycling Club’s most popular rides, SnEW will be starting its 2019 ride season that evening…hope it’s a pleasant evening for a ride!

Mike Lyon and myself began leading this ride back in 2008 when the club had feedback from our members that they were looking a ride that would suit most everyone’s abilities and not leave riders behind.  The first year we rode on Thursday evenings and changed over to Tuesdays in the second year. We have used the canal paths and area roadways to come up with a number of different rides…from “easy” to “challenging” and we usually have a choice of four different rides…with different ability levels.

Our easy rides are “no drop” rides so that no one is left behind.  Our challenging ride is not a “no drop” ride but there are route maps on the website so that people can find their way if they lose the main group.

Some nights in the beginning when we started the rides, it was just Mike and I who showed up to ride, but slowly over time members tried it, like it, and got hooked on the fun and diversity of the rides we offered.  We started with two rides and grew to three and then four different options. They were just fun rides that had something for pretty much everyone.  In recent years we have had over 50 members and guests per evening turn out to ride one of the 4 rides we offered.  The early season and late season rides are shorter in distance because the day light is shorter but they get longer as we get longer periods of daylight.  Rides usually are 10 to 20 miles in length give or take.

Here are the details in summary:

                  Where:  Reed Webster Park, Camillus, NY located on Warners Rd (Rt 173) (lot on west end near tennis courts)

                                        When:    Ride(s) leaves at 6:00 PM sharp;  sign-in starts at ~5:30 PM

                                        Bring:     Your bike, an approved helmet, water bottle and a strong desire to ride;

   Dress:    Whatever you are comfortable wearing on a bike… the weather will help dictate this.  Be sure to have an approved helmet to ride.  No helmet…no ride.  Our insurance requires this.

If you have never tried this ride, do yourself a favor and give it a spin…you’ll be glad you did. 

If you have not renewed you membership as yet you can do it on line at our website.  If you are new to riding come on out and tell us your interests and we will work with you.  Guests are welcome to ride with us and try the ride but our insurance only permits a guest to ride once during the year.  If you like riding and the camaraderie of other riders, join the club and have fun while you build your riding skills and ability.  We look forward to seeing you.

If you have yet to ride this season, be sure to check out your bike…tire pressures, shifters, brakes etc.  If you can’t do it yourself, take it to your favorite bike shop and get it done.  Beat the rush when everyone is getting their bikes done.

Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the 23^rd of April and be sure to come out to ride the first SnEW ride of 2019.  In the meantime, if you are riding, stay safe,

Mike and Tony