Bike U
The Twin Cities Bicycling Club Bike U program provides quality and timely educational programs about bicycling throughout the year. The programs will be announced on this page and through our TCBC publications and Forum. They will be recorded through Zoom with links to both the program time and date followed by the recordings on our TCBC YouTube site. This way if you missed the program, you could watch it later at your convenience.
Edward Eroe is the coordinator of Bike U and you can e-mail him at BikeU@BikeTCBC.org.
Latest Posts
TCBC Bike U: Ride With GPS
TCBC Bike University Program: Ride With GPS – Alex Gay, Relationship Manager at Ride With GPS – Thursday, April 20, 2023, at 07:00 pm
Alex Gay is an avid bike commuter, road and gravel cyclist, and sometimes mountain biker. He gravitates towards steep hills and quiet forested roads in Oregon. Alex has been with the company since 2018 and works with clubs, events, tour companies, and tourism destinations all around the world to make cycling easy and accessible using the Ride with GPS website and app.
This is what will be covered during the session:
- A short introduction about Ride with GPS, myself, and how the club uses the account.
- Benefits of the club account. What you get and what you don’t get. Why you may want your own personal subscription.
- If a club has routes linked on its website or calendar, show how to access them there.
- How to access and use the club on our website.
- Viewing a route on our website. How to pin to sync to a device, change map style, and use the elevation profile.
- How to access and use the club membership on our app.
- Viewing, downloading, and pinning a route on our app.
- Navigating a route on our app.
- Questions and answers
After Program Information:
Edward Eroe, the Council of Regents Chair, welcomed everyone and provided some information on past programs as well as thanked our regents, John Benda, Mike Beadles, Tim Rand, and Dan Miller for all their work in making our TCBC Bike U possible. He then introduced Alex Gay, Relationship Manager with Ride with GPS.
Alex provided a short introduction about himself and the Ride with GPS program, including viewing and pulling up rides. All TCBC Members are eligible to use the Ride with GPS TCBC Club account, whether they are paid Ride with GPS members or not. Follow the directions in the link below to signup.
Alex provided information on viewing and using routes, including modifying and saving them. He then provided detailed information on route planning. If you are a paid Ride with GPS account holder and/or a TCBC Ride Leader, there are some advanced features that a non-paid member does not have access to, such as heat maps, for example.
Ride Leaders need to make sure all routes or edits to routes are saved in the club account so that they are available to users.
There were a number of questions.
How does a member sign up for the TCBC Ride with GPS account? The link below was shown.
Is there another way to sync routes from Ride with GPS to your device? Alex provided information on how to use Connected Services to do that. It is done through your personal account under your profile, then settings, and, then Connected Services.
Can you use hearing aids with Ride with GPS to hear verbal directions? Yes, you can by connecting your hearing aids via Bluetooth to the Ride with GPS app.
Can non-paid Ride with GPS users navigate routes that they have saved? They cannot navigate on the Ride with GPS app unless they are paid members. Garmin or Wahoo members can navigate the route.
Are heatmaps available in Europe? Yes, they are, and Alex showed how a user can use them. He also showed how to convert another language into English if the route is, for example, in French.
One user, who does not have cell coverage, had issues with stopping and syncing the Ride with GPS app once they got in the car. Alex did not know why this was happening but showed how you can later cut off sections of a ride through editing. This is a paid subscription feature, however.
Several websites were mentioned, the links are here:
Ride with GPS Home Page: https://ridewithgps.com/
Signing Up for TCBC Ride with GPS Account: https://biketcbc.org/ride-with-gps-club-account/
Connect your Garmin Device: https://ridewithgps.com/help iq/
Connect your Wahoo Device: https://support.ridewithgps.com/hc/en-us/articles/4415457158555
Please follow the link below to the Zoom recording of the session on the TCBC YouTube Channel:
TCBC Bike U: Minneapolis Public Schools Bike Education Program
TCBC Bike University Program: Minneapolis Public Schools Bike Education Program – Jenny Bordon, Active Living Coordinator for the Minneapolis Public Schools & Martha Grimes, Bicycling Instructor, and Physical Education Teacher at the Lyndale Community School – Thursday, March 16, 2023, at 07:00 pm
A former high school language arts teacher, Jenny Bordon has been the Active Living Coordinator in Minneapolis Public Schools since 2011, leading Safe Routes to School efforts and launching innovative bicycle and walk programs in the district. She feels privileged to work every day with star staff and star partners at the intersection of youth and active transportation, and believes the small steps of children can change the world.
Martha Grimes has been in the Minneapolis Public School district for over 20 years. Since 2015, she has taught physical education at Lyndale Community School in south Minneapolis. A League Cycling Instructor, Ms. Grimes has implemented bike education with her Lyndale students and served on the advisory committee for the statewide safety curriculum, Walk! Bike! Fun! She earned a B.S. in physical education from Bowling Green State University, a master’s in developmental adapted physical education (DAPE) from the University of Minnesota, and a health license from Bethel University. She also has a total of 23 years of service between the Army Reserves in Ohio and the Air Force Reserves in Minnesota. Furthermore, she has a strong passion for physical education and emphasizes fitness, physical and social development, and fun in her teaching.
Come to this session of TCBC Bike U to hear an overview of bicycle education in the Minneapolis Public Schools, where there is a goal of bike education for every fourth and fifth-grade student during the school day. Find out how well they are doing on that goal.
There will also be a discussion of volunteer opportunities within the Bike Education Program. MPS teachers lead the students in bike education, but they need support. Hear firsthand why bike education matters and how TCBC volunteers can help.
After Program Information:
The Council of Regents chair, Edward Eroe, started out the evening by introducing our newest Bike U regent, Dan Miller, and the topic for the evening, learning about Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) bike education program and volunteer opportunities for TCBC club members.
Dan brought the idea of having representatives from the MPS come and talk with us, so he spoke next. He gave a bit of a history lesson, taking us back to 2005 when he had heard former long time U.S. Representative Jim Oberstar from northeast Minnesota speak in Duluth about his dream to create a program to get children safely walking and biking to school. The program, which continues to this day, is called Safe Routes to School. Thanks to Representative Oberstar the program was awarded $612 million dollars that year to launch the program which included educational and infrastructure programs and Safe Routes to Schools coordinators in all 50 states. Today’s MPS Bike Education Program is the part of that same initiative.
Dan introduced two key contributors to the program in Minneapolis, who were the speakers tonight. Jenny Bordon is the district’s Active Living Coordinator, and Martha (Marty) Grimes is a Bicycling Instructor and Physical Education Teacher at Lyndale Community School. Both were incredibly enthusiastic and joyful about how much the students love the bike program in Minneapolis schools. Jenny explained the history of how MPS started with its first small fleet of 12 bikes in 2012 and gradually worked its way up to four fleets of 40–45 bikes (including adaptive bikes) that travel from school to school for two week stints. Several schools also own their own fleets of bikes, and a number of teachers have completed League Cycling Instructor (LCI) training. All 4th and 5th graders in the district receive training.
Marty explained the importance of volunteers to the program. Volunteers are caring adults that just help out. She noted that they could not run the program without volunteers. Many of the students are new to the country and are thrilled to learn how to ride on site as well as on bike paths. Volunteers build relationships with students and teachers and share their joy of biking. Lots of memories are created as the students learn to bike and get places on their bikes.
There are a number of different volunteer opportunities available. Volunteers can connect with a school and volunteer one or several times, or for an entire two-week period as the curriculum is delivered. Volunteers are also needed who can assist with bike maintenance (the district only gets $500 per year for maintenance, so volunteers are very important). Volunteers can also participate in the district’s two big rides, one will be on May 3rd and the other on June 1st this year. For more information, feel free to contact any Bike U Board of Regents member. Additionally, there is a form where you can volunteer for the Bike Education program. See below in the website links.
PowerPoint Presentation: https://ftp.eroe.com/TCBCBikeU/MinneapolisPublicSchoolsBikeEducationProgramTCBCBikeUPresentation230316.pdf
Several websites were mentioned, the links are here:
Volunteer for Bike Education at MPS – https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScTf96u-zgGFT6EPb0Lk4h-gBKJAVa64kdrP59FwMbDWHnAnQ/viewform
Volunteer in MPS Safe Routes to School – https://cws.mpls.k12.mn.us/srtsvolunteer
Let’s Roll MPS: Wednesday, May 3, 2023 – https://cws.mpls.k12.mn.us/let_s_roll_mps
The Whole Carrot Newsletter of – https://cws.mpls.k12.mn.us/wellness
E-Mail Addresses:
Jennifer Bordon – Jennifer.Bordon@mpls.k12.mn.us
Martha Grimes – Marty.Grimes@mpls.k12.mn.us
Please follow the link below to the Zoom recording of the session on the TCBC YouTube Channel:
TCBC Bike U: Fat Bikes
TCBC Bike University Program: Fat Bikes – Ryan Saathoff, NOW Bikes Service Manager – Thursday, February 16, 2023, at 07:00pm
Ryan Saathoff is the Service Manager of Now Bikes in Arden Hills, Minnesota. He has been in the bicycle industry for over 20 years. Over those 20-plus years, Ryan has attended the Barnett Bicycle Institute taught by John Barnett and has completed the Bill Woodul Race Mechanic Clinic by USA Cycling. He has completed a multitude of online and in-person training courses by Shimano, SRAM, Park Tool, QBP Brands, RockShox and FOX, and is BOSCH and S-Tec certified. Ryan is a dedicated bicycle mechanic and enjoys leading Fat Bike rides for Now Bikes all year.
Come to this session of TCBC Bike U to learn all about Fat Bikes. Topics will include: A Brief History of Fat Bikes, Fat Biking in Minnesota, Beginners Fat Biking, Local Fat Biking Events, Fat Bike Gear Selection, and Tire Pressure to name a few.
After Program Information:
Ryan presented a great overview and details about everything Fat Bike related. This included the following:
A History of Fat Bikes, including that the first one was a home-made out of Side by Side Two-Inch Tires and Rims to the one Four Inches wide Tire and Rim. That the Surly Pugsley was the first true commercial Fat Bike, and today the choices we see are either 26-inch or 27.5-inch rims.
That Fat Bikes frames are made of steel, titanium, and carbon and come in many different weights and price ranges, including an e-bike option. He said that while Fat Bikes are mainly used in the winter, many, including himself, ride one year around.
Ryan talked about the proper gear and especially how to dress properly for winter riding and what to expect in different conditions. He said that there are now specific winter bicycle helmets that look more like Downhill Skiing helmets but have ventilation. Using Pogies and winter boots is also important to keep your hands and feet warm in colder conditions.
Tire Pressure was also discussed. With snow the optimal PSI is between 3 and 10 PSI, on dirt from 7 to 12 PSI, and on pavement from 12 to 20 PSI. Many times, just by sitting on the bike to see how much the tires deform properly to grip the conditions is a good starting point. It is better to start with a higher pressure as it’s easier to let air out, rather than put more air in when riding. He also noted that tires do lose pressure in lower temps once you go outside and that if you are bouncing around when pedaling, it probably means too low of a PSI and if sliding around and / or digging in, it means too high of a PSI.
It was interesting to learn that Fat Bikes have gone to one-by (only one crank up front) group sets to allow for even wider tire sizes.
Many good questions were asked during the Q&A session including where to get information on trails to ride on, is it legal to ride on snow mobile trails, use of tubeless tires, taking a tube with you even if you are using tubeless tires, caring for E-Bike batteries in the winter, the best pumps to take with you on a ride, types of pedals from flat, to clip-in, to dual sided,
NOW Bikes also has weekly year-round Fat Bike Demo rides, and they are posted on their website. Call the shop ahead of time to reserve your spot and a fat bike in your size. The Demo Rides are Free, and NOW does rent Fat Bikes at other times.
Several websites were mentioned, the links are here:
MN Bike Trail Navigator – https://mnbiketrailnavigator.blogspot.com/
Minnesota Off-Road Cyclists – https://www.morcmtb.org/
Explore Minnesota Winter Fat Biking in Minnesota – https://www.exploreminnesota.com/article/winter-fat-biking-minnesota
Lezyne Pumps – https://ride.lezyne.com/collections/hand-pumps
NOW Bikes – https://www.nowbikes-fitness.com/
Please follow the link below to the Zoom recording of the session on the TCBC YouTube Channel:
TCBC Bike U: Winter Bicycling
TCBC Bike University Program: Winter Bicycling – Scott Larson, Mike Beadles, and John Benda – Thursday, December 1, 2022, at 07:00pm
TCBC Bike University will be featuring our own members, Scott Larson, Mike Beadles, and John Benda who will be presenting on Winter Bicycling! All three are avid year-round bicyclists and will provide their wisdom on a number of things you need to consider when riding your bicycle in the winter. Some but not all the topics will include:
- Types of Bicycles Used
- Tires & Use of Studs
- Tire Pressure
- Tubeless Tires
- Fenders
- Clothing
- Boots
- Gloves & Pogies
- Goggles
- Fleece
- Layering
- Masks
- Hydration
- Trails and Roads
- The Peddling Pastor
- The University of Minnesota Research on Bicycling
No matter if you’re an experienced winter cyclist or want to try it for the first time, this will be a great session to learn new things and to stay safe and warm!
After Program Information:
Scott, Mike, and John provided a comprehensive overview of everything you need to consider when bicycling in the winter. They covered all the items listed above and had excellent discussions of their individual preferences on tire pressure, the use of studs, where they bike, and the types of clothing used.
Travis Norvell, the Pedaling Pastor, also talked about what he uses for winter cycling as he commutes every day. Travis is known to provide updates on bicycling conditions in the Twin Cities using the Twitter hashtags #mspcyclecast #mspbikecommute. His Twitter Account is https://twitter.com/pedalingpastor.
John talked about the University of Minnesota’s research on transportation and happiness. That link is at https://farstaractionfund.org/community-power/?fbclid=IwAR0p5nRzlF1CGArA841lB7dWOHQZv77tx7HotSaOezr2KlIliwCyig9pp8I which also includes a Happiness Map at https://maps.umn.edu/transportation-happiness/. John also provided a link on trail plowing status in Minneapolis. That link is https://snow-event-requester-minneapolisparks.hub.arcgis.com/.
TCBC Bike U: Midtown Greenway Coalition – An Update with Soren Jensen, Executive Director
TCBC Bike University Program: Midtown Greenway Coalition – An Update with Executive Director, Soren Jensen – October 6, 2022, at 07:00pm
TCBC Bike University is excited to feature Soren Jensen, Executive Director of the Midtown Greenway Coalition, who will provide the history of the coalition as well as an update on current activities. Soren has served in this position since 2011. Previously, he held positions with Target Corporation, The American Red Cross, and the National Parks Conservation Association. He holds a Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management from Hamline University and a B.A. from the University of Iowa.
This will be a very special opportunity to get your questions answered about our beloved Greenway Trail. There are many, such as:
-How is it going with that bridge?
-How will the trail link between the bridge and the Ayd Mill Trail in St. Paul?
-When are they going to fix the botched repaving job from last year?
-What’s going on with these art murals? Will there ever be more murals rather than graffiti? What’s this we hear about light sculptures?
-How’s it going with safety initiatives, homelessness, and crime around the trail?
-Are they ever going to reopen the Bike Center? Does the Coalition even have an office anymore?
These are just a few questions that come to mind. Bring your own issues about almost anything to do with the Greenway Trail!
Special thanks to Tim Rand for organizing this session of Bike U!
After Program Information:
TCBC BikeU: Understanding Electric Bikes with Stuart from Powerbikes
TCBC Bike University Program – Understanding Electric Bikes with Stuart from Powerbikes – April 28, 2022, at 06:30pm
Electric bikes are poised to revolutionize transportation across the United States, and rapid adoption in Europe and Asia has reduced car dependency along with corresponding fossil fuel consumption and environmental harm. We share a future where light electric vehicles increase our mobility, sustainability, and health, and electronic bikes are positioned to greatly impact how our community travels, exercises, and recharges.
Our speaker will be Stuart Deets, Rental Manager, from Powerbikes in St. Louis Park. He will discuss the use cases of electric bikes, contrast electronic biking to mechanical bike riding, discuss the local and federal regulatory environment, and look ahead at trends in electric bike adoption globally, nationally, and locally.
After Program Information:
Stuart provided a wealth of information about the different types of electric bikes, batteries, the different drives and classes of electric bikes, misconceptions about these bikes, comparisons to regular bikes, and how to choose one.
The TCBC YouTube Recording of this session can be found below and on the TCBC YouTube Channel.
TCBC Bike U – Stamina Racing Collective: Equity in Bicycling with Erin Ayala
The Stamina Racing Collective is a competitive cycling team formed in July 2020 with the mission to diversify cycling via mentorship, community development, and accessibility.
Approximately 15% of licensed racers in USA Cycling are those in the women’s field, and approximately 10% of racers are people of color. Stamina members are working to change these statistics through increased representation in the sport.
In addition to regular racing, Stamina members volunteer in the community, host community group rides and events, and direct resources toward BIPOC, trans, and non-binary cyclists in the community. As a 501(c)3, Stamina relies on grants and donations from community members to make its mission come to life.
Stamina has 13 members on its roster for the 2022 racing season. They plan to compete in road, gravel, fat biking, and mountain biking races for the upcoming season. Target races include Leadville 100, Rooted Vermont, Tour of America’s Dairyland, Unbound Gravel, and more.
Erin is pictured on the far left in the picture.
To learn more about Stamina and to see our 2022 race calendar, go to: www.staminaracingcollective.com.
After Program Information:
The panel provided advice to people who are trying to make cycling more inclusive. Some things mentioned were using preferred pronouns (she/her, he/him, they/them) and not touching someone else without their permission. These might seem like little things, but they make a difference. One panelist, Mel, said it’s important to consider the invisible needs of others, such as whether someone has a hearing or vision limitation. It was also mentioned that it’s important to be open to feedback and criticism, even if it is not delivered very smoothly. One final response, given by Christina, was to do some research; search the web on how to talk to a trans person or person of color.
Overall, it was a very positive presentation that gave us viewers a lot to think about. They have entertaining bios of their team members at the site, as well as blogs and more about team members. You can read about their efforts to volunteer, mentor others that might be race curious, take action in the community and diversify cycling overall. They also have some entertaining posts on their Instagram page.
The TCBC YouTube Recording of this session can be found below and on the TCBC YouTube Channel.
TCBC Bike U: Bike to the Past: TCBC History Since the 1980s
TCBC Bike University Program – March 3, 2022, at 07:00pm
Bike to the Past: TCBC History Since the 1980s
Our speaker will be our own, Doug Nelson. Doug has long been active with American Youth Hostels, which became Hosteling International, which the Twin Cities Bicycle Club spun off from in 1993. He has been editor of the “Hosteler”, later the “TCBC NEWS”, since 1979.
Doug has been a witness to much of our TCBC history by attending most of the IronMan, Watermelon, Weekend On Wheels, and All-Club rides that were held. He has also biked more than 1000 club miles a year for 40 years. Doug has been called the club’s unofficial historian, due to his role as the long-term editor of “TCBC News”. He has, what he calls, is “a pretty good sense of our history” and so Doug will work to present it in an informative way. He will use a few quotes from newsletter articles as needed, and will try to distinguish between historical facts and his opinions. Many members have been around for some or much of TCBC history, and you will have your own recollections and interpretations, and that’s great. Let’s go back to the past for a little while, and see how the club developed.
After Program Information: The TCBC YouTube Recording of this session can be found at this link:
TCBC Bike U: Simple Steps to a Cooler Climate: Taking Action from Your Bike Seat
TCBC Bike University Program – January 25, 2022, at 06:30 pm CST
Simple Steps to a Cooler Climate: Taking Action from Your Bike Seat
Our speakers will be Mindy Ahler and Paul Thompson, the Co-Directors of Cool Planet https://coolplanetmn.org/, where together they work with families, students, and community members to engage all in neighborhood fun and action for the planet. Mindy and Paul are from Edina, Minnesota.
Mindy also serves as the Regional Coordinator for Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) www.citizensclimatelobby.org, creating the political will for a livable world. In this role, Mindy works with volunteers across 5 states as they work on national policy to address climate change.
In 2016, Mindy completed a nearly 4,000,-mile LowCarbonCrossings https://lowcarboncrossings.wordpress.com/ cross-country bike journey to engage people in conversation and action on climate solutions. This journey combined with her work has provided many opportunities to build common ground with those who think differently from herself and given her insight into many perspectives to address climate change.
Mindy’s concern for the environment and climate change stems from her social justice background and involvement with people around the world. She has experienced the kindness and generosity of strangers in many situations that has built her deep-seated belief that all human beings are good at heart and share the common value of caring for one another and future generations.
Paul, was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Malaysia from 1971-73 where he taught biology, health science and learned about being a world citizen. Paul, a retired elementary school teacher, is a now a full time climate solutions volunteer with his wife Mindy Ahler with Citizens’ Climate Lobby and co directs Cool Planet, our Edina based non-profit working to connect outdoor lovers with protecting their sport/ activity from our rapidly degrading climate.
He serves, with Edward Eroe, as a board member of the Birchleggings Club to inspire the American Birkebeiner and the Loppet to act on climate to preserve winter and build strong support from the cross country ski community on climate solutions.
Paul joined Mindy on her 79-day Low Carbon Crossing journey across the country in 2016 with Ryan Hall (see photo). A lifelong bike rider, biking over 800 miles with Mindy and Ryan was a highlight in my bike riding life. “Having seen what a biking culture can look like in Copenhagen and Amsterdam, it belongs as a major action step in all climate action plans.”
Presentation Description
Join Mindy and Paul to engage in an open conversation about the need for building a diverse and inclusive climate solutions movement and the role bike enthusiasts can play in that movement. Come prepared with your questions and ideas for engaging the people in your family, community to get off the sidelines and take meaningful action on the things you believe in.
The meeting will be via Zoom. To register, follow the directions below.
You are invited to a Zoom meeting.
When: Jan 25, 2022 06:30 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Register in advance for this meeting: click here
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
After Program Information:
The TCBC YouTube Recording of this session can be found at this link:
Information with links from Cool Planet: To download this handout below, go to this link:
https://ftp.eroe.com/TCBCBikeU/CoolPlanetSimpleSteps.pdf
TCBC Bike University Council of Regents
So far we have programs on the topics of the Environment and Biking in January, TCBC History in March, and Biking 101 in May. We are working on other topics including Equity in Bicycling, The Greenway, and Bike Shop presentations. Specific information will be posted here and on the TCBC Calendar, as soon as all the details have been worked out.
All programs will be via Zoom and will be recorded and placed on the TCBC YouTube Site for future reference and for those not able to make the program.
Be watching for updates!
Edward Eroe
TCBC Bike U Chair