The following website has all the details. Web based payment is preferred, but there is also an option to pay by check.

http://appreciation2012.eventbrite.com/

by Brian Chun, Committee Chair

Let’s Go to the Rally; Don’t Call Me Sally! As a member your are invited to join ACTC’s annual RRR. Advance reservation and payment is required. ACTC’s treasurer has reserved sites which may include spaces 109,109B and 110. RV reservations are not included. For directions, click Campground Map or www.casiniranch.com. Please park away from the campsites, perpendicular to the campsite road, pick a space for your sleep gear, and set up away from the RRR outdoor kitchen, fire rings and dining tables  which are centrally located near a  hose bib and a large tree. Hot coin- free showers and restrooms are a short walk from either end of our area. Picking your site within our  area will be first camper- first serve, but please be considerate to minimize your footprint, pick up after yourself, and observe quiet time after 10pm and before 7 am! Greet your fellow members (no nametags) and non ACTC neighbors and be courteous about mitigating annoyances, offering and asking for help. The Casini Family Ranch kiosk staff will have a list of all those registered for RRR and will issue a prepaid and conditional parking pass for members who drive in. Cars not displaying a pass on their dash are subject to tow.  Casini staff,  with approval by the Chair, may turn away or allow unregistered members entry, provided that they pay fees to both Casini and ACTC upon arrival, space permitting.  Day members may enter without paying ACTC but must be registered with ACTC, and on the list at the Casini kiosk.  To be clear, all RRR members must be registered to participate, campers, Key Volunteers (KVs) and non-campers alike.

Hours d’ Oeuvres: Camping for RRR opens on Friday at ~12 noon with some KVs available to host and prep the campsite for our group (please help them). Traffic, impromptu issues, and shopping sometimes affects RRR opening time. Anyone planning on arriving before this time may do so at their own time and expense separately from, but in conjunction with, RRR. (Casini, Monte Rio Inn, Bohemian Club, Armstrong Redwoods SP, Duncans Mills Camp, and other area hosts may  provide  non-RRR lodging options).  RRR closes and vacates Casini no later than 12 PM PST on Sunday.  Please write a comment on your registration if you are arranging lodging separately from RRR. A KV will inspect your area in the morning on Sunday, settle the Casini bill, and refill the propane tanks across from the Casini store, so please be prepared and organized for leaving RRR clean and neat.

Food Glorious Food! Your registration provides 4 RRR meals plus any surplus treats. Enjoy  Friday’s outdoor group dinner,  along with club supplies,  cooking gear and foods for two breakfasts and  two carryout lunchs on Saturday and Sunday.  These meals, along with some hot and cold beverages,  are served and supported by all members and KVs. Our dining venue is our club’s outdoor kitchen  which may include propane cooktops, Webers, Steele’s Chuck Wagon & contents, coolers, ice, provisions, utensils, dishware, and firewood, set up within our Casini group site with its’ picnic tables, fire rings, shade trees, and hose bibs.  Saturday dinner is a potluck with all members contributing a dish to share with four or more.Safeway in Guerneville is a handy source for RRR supplies and for shopping  for  potluck contributions.  There is no electricity or indoor plumbing at the RRR campsites.

Saturday morning breakfast will be served hot by our volunteers, starting as early as the sun rises. Members often pick blackberries earlier and bring them to share at breakfast, which may include hot pancakes, eggs, potatoes, sausage, cocoa, juices, seasonal fruits,  teas, and decaf.  Whenever possible, fresh scratch cooking will be emphasized with vegetarian items prepared separately and prior to meat containing items. Oil is Olive. There will be deli-style items if you wish to wrap a lunch to carry on your ride. Saturday night we have a potluck BBQ in camp. Please bring meat to grill for yourself, and a nice dish to share with  four or more for the Saturday potluck and fireside happy hour. Instructions on RRR protocol including  kitchen use and organization, charcoal  and firewood  support will be provided by KVs.  When in doubt, clean up, wash your hands, put on gloves when serving,  and clean and put things back after every use.  Ask a KV or someone  with more RRR experience whenever you need help.

Sunday morning, everyone helps assemble and cook breakfast, cleanup, pack and ride or rideshare home.  Early bird cyclists will be up before sunrise for breakfast and cycle back home. Many people ride into Occidental or Duncans Mills before packing up to go home. The campsites need to be cleared by everyone, with the KVs checking for lost and round items, before  noon. We ask that all campers be prepared to lend a hand with the housekeeping and cooking as needed. RRR is a cooperative member-only event afforded in part by our club, where everyone pitches in!

What Shall I Wear, Gear, Grin and Bear? Mark you name on your items and maximize your RRR experience with a tent, sleep gear, spending funds, bike lock, all day biking gear like Camelbacks, polar bottles and Bento boxes, maps, route sheets, thick tires, spare LDTR gear like tubes, tools and tire boot materials, cell phone, camera, Safeway card/phone number, pump, sun screen, bathing suit, socks, gloves, eye protection, first aid kit, musical instruments, hoola hoops, flip flops, medications and summer recreational items. RRR Rides do not have SAG support, so please buddy up and know in advance where you are going. It goes without saying that proper cycling etiquette and wearing a bicycle helmet during all cycling is mandatory. Practice Safety First, and set a good example for our club. Anything otherwise will be noted and subject the violator to immediate suspension! If you tend to get hot, carry a soakable bandana, and use extra ice and water.  If you tend to get cold, dress in  layers.  If you tend to get hungry, pack some compact high energy foods. The closest fire station is in Monte Rio, the closest trauma center is in Santa Rosa, and in case of emergency, dial ” 911″  from a land phone (or program a local Emergency phone number into your cell phone) and have your location (road marker/landmarks) and description ready. Mountain gearing is highly recommended

Many  members ride or rideshare to RRR, and bring a cooler for their own beverages, appetizers, and any other snacks and drinks for the weekend, since there is no refrigeration or electricity available at our campsites.  ACTC coolers are  packed with RRR beverages and foods, and thus any items stored within them will be appreciated as a contribution! Cell phone coverage is limited in the campground, or none at all. There may be free WiFi in some areas of the campground, but not where ACTC is camping.  Pets are allowed, but please be respectful of their natural behaviors and how this may affect other members and guests, and please bring all supplies and a leash to make your non human companions cooperative, clean, and comfortable.  Lost and found items may be returned to a KV for safekeeping, also check with the Casini staff upon departure. Leave expensive items at home!

Ride Sally Ride! The Russian River area offers a mixed bag of terrain and tourist activities like bucolic vineyards and the charm of  Fort Ross coastal towns. The area to the south generally has rolling coast ranges. Higher ridges are shaded with redwoods while the lower ones are grasslands. To the north, redwoods dominate and the hills are steeper. To the east, a large valley stretches from Healdsburg to Santa Rosa. There you will find rolling hills, apple orchards, and vineyards. You can do your own ride, or join others for a ride, or choose to not ride at all. Please sign up for rides at the rally and check your ride stats afterwards for any corrections.

This link is to a file of all the routes created by Don Axtel: RRR-routes . Please print out which routes you might be interested in and bring to the rally. To see the individual routes click here.  For a list of the current ACTC billy goats in the area, click here. Some club members will be listing rides  to and from the Russian River Rally. Please refer to the ACTC ride schedule and contact them directly if you are interested in joining. Also go to www.ACTC.org to view past photos under the Smug Mug “Camping” section.

Weather Whether Warm, Hot, Cold or Whatever! The Pacific Ocean dominates the climate of the Russian River area, and it is easy to pick the weather you want by moving up and down the river. Generally, the coast is foggy and cool in the mornings and late afternoon. Healdsburg, a major inland city, is usually fog free and 20 degrees warmer. If you want to sunbathe at 10AM, you need to head inland towards Healdsburg. If you’d like to swim at 4 PM, it may be a little too cool at Duncans Mills, but 5 miles to the east, in Guerneville, you can still get a sunburn. The coast also affects the winds. In the morning, the winds come in from the coast. By l0AM they’ve usually died down. By 2PM they have started up again. Plan your riding around the wind. Winds are the strongest in the afternoon where the sun is still strong with no fog. They’re less powerful after the fog has rolled in. So, if you’re pooped, stop and shop in a little town and wait for the wisps of fog, and then start riding. You’ll encounter less wind.

Rally: Birth, Growth and Now: Howard and Bev Saling founded the rally in 1978. The first site was at a campground near the Korbel Winery. The following year it moved to Monte Rio. The year after that, it moved to Duncans Mills. The campground eventually became private, and the rally was moved to Casini Ranch until 1998 when it moved to the Faerie Ring Campground, and returned to Casini Ranch in 1999, its current home. In 1985, the first ACTC tour book was produced. Nowadays we put the information on the website.  Casini Ranch is also a used for lodging by our club’s stupendous Sierra to the Sea Tour (STTS).

From Russia with Love: The river and nearby Fort Ross were named after the Russians, who settled the area in 1812 as fur hunters. They employed Native Americans, established a thriving community,  and traded goods with China, where sea otter fur was highly prized as a garment accessory and status symbol. The otters suffered near extinction when the hunters  withdrew in 1841. During the next 60 years the river and terrain kept the area isolated. Fort Ross Road, formerly a stage coach road , includes  steep ACTC billygoat(s).  It connects Healdsburg  to the east with Fort Ross to the west, which is now a spectacular State Park with docent tours, overlooking  the Pacific Ocean, at cliff’s edge.  Fort Ross Road was routinely washed out by 120″ rains during the winter, and the Russian River can suddenly flood, although flows are  now regulated by a dam system.

At the turn of the century, the redwoods brought railroads. The railroads in turn brought tourists. By the mid 1920′s, San Francisco’s resort of choice was the Russian River area. After the depression, wealthier San Franciscans went to Tahoe, and by the mid 1970s, the Russian River was in a deep depression. Most resorts were dilapidated until the 1980′s when the gay community of San Francisco came and revitalized the Russian River area, centering the town of Guerneville as their hub (just south of and adjacent to the billygoats of Armstrong Redwoods State Park). Cyclists and tourists may now enjoy vacationing here, within a community that takes pride in its’ tolerance, environmentalism, wineries, recreation, natural beauty, and social diversity.

Russian River Rally EZ Registration: Opens July 1st at 5:00 PM  PST until filled, with a standby list, prepaid, with no refunds after August 1st.  Day members not camping at RRR are free of charge but must still register and help!  All members  help prep, cook, serve and cleanup  for at least 30 minutes per day and as needed. All registrants  must have current membership and contact information.  Upon acceptance, you will be confirmed by email with shift assignment(s).  Key Volunteers are designated by the Chair and are eligible for reimbursement for qualified expenses. Ride sign up is during  RRR, the ride director is the Chair,  and you may contact www.actc.org “Russian River Area” or  the Chair via board@actc.org. Report all stats  directly  to the statistician.   Have a Safe and Sweet Russian River Rally!

Please register online, please click here.

Agenda

Same as BSO 2010. Beds are now reserved  for the first three willing to room share (and maybe more on the floor), using my current reservations (2 Cowboy Rooms), at the Hacienda Lodge, Fort Hunter Liggett.  Newbies are  especially invited, as well as veterans, so please start your Century Billy Goat training now.

Stories

Check the photos from BSO 2010 at actc.org, to get a peek at what to see. We don’t always have the great weather from these photos, however, with heavy clouds, wind and rain a possibility, especially along the stunning Big Sur Coast.

Cost

$50 for this trip with all of us helping with SAG, shared lodging, and scheduled meals/rest stops, per same plan as BSO 2010. Less if no SAG, or if you have your own reservations.  I will ask our web team to post on-line registration, with a section for your comments, starting after September 1, 2011, payments prepaid to BSO 2011 Ride Director: “Brian Chun”, and non refundable after October 22, 2011 5:00 PM PST.

Green Option: Home to home tour (start or merge from 707 Fremont Avenue, Los Altos McKenzie Park tennis courts) in conjuction with BSO 2011.

A very special guest will also be there. Master Sergeant Gil Magallanes served in both the Gulf War and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. Gil and his 11-man Green Beret unit were one of the first in Afghanistan after 9/11, as depicted in the book “The Only Thing Worth Dying For.” Everyone in his group sustained injuries and several lost their lives. Gil sustained a massive brain injury leading to vision and hearing loss. Gil’s recovery in itself is inspirational. He has had a second lease on life and has come back from an inability to feed himself to the point where he is racing in triathlon.

Ticket prices go up on February 11th, so get your tickets today.

To the non cyclists, they might think a Tour of California is something you do in your car. But we are talking about Cycling here and that means the Amgen Tour of California professional bicycle race. Even the non cyclists have probably heard of Lance Armstrong. Today we got to see him race up some of the hills we have often climbed.

Eric and Connie Jorgensen offered their home for a big ACTC party to watch stage 3 of the Tour. They live right on the route, on one of the steeper hills of the whole week. It has been raining every day and the pro cyclists have had to battle the elements in both the Prologue and the first two stages. Today was no exception.

With no parking on the Sierra Road due to the race, we were initially planning on biking from a nearby place but as we were driving up to San Jose it was really pouring. Yesterday we had gone out for a bike ride with all our rain gear on and we were ready to do the same. But we thought maybe we could park off the road if we got there early enough so we headed straight to Sierra Road. We were able to park in the neighbor’s driveway, which was great. The rain had stopped by now so we thought it was a good time to get on the tandem. We made the long climb up Sierra Road, rated as a Category 1 climb for the Tour of California. It was windy and cold at the top but we stopped long enough to take a couple of pictures. I had not brought my big camera up with me on the bike so the iPhone filled in.

Anne at top of Sierra Road

Franz at the top of Sierra Road

It would have been fun to stay at the top to watch the racers come up, but it was very windy so we decided to head back down towards the bottom and join the party. It was a good thing we went back down the hill because it started to rain again just as we arrived. It was not long before the racers came though. I now had my Nikon D300 camera, to capture the lead car.

Unlike last year, Sierra Road was at the beginning of the stage but even so, there was already a break away of 4 riders coming up the hill. You can easily see these guys were having fun!

Right on their tail was Mancebo, who was the race leader after the first stage, only to lose the lead yesterday.

Not far behind was the peleton. You can see Lance Armstrong in the middle of the group.

Everyone went by so fast, even though they were climbing. We did not have a chance to take many pictures.

The team cars were then following the riders up the hill.

After watching the racers come by we all went into Jorgensen’s house to watch the tour on theri TV.

It was a wet, but very fun day. Climbing up Sierra Road before the race, made it even more enjoyable. Unlike the riders, we were able to keep dry and get under an umbrella to watch them race up the hill. It looks like the weather will finally be nice tomorrow for Stage 4, something I am sure they will all much appreciate after four miserable days for the racers.

Did you ever want to Ride Longer, Pedal Stronger?  Then be sure to attend the February General Meeting on February 4th at 7:00 pm.

Santa Clara Cycling Team Coaches Jami North and Al Painter from Integrate Performance Fitness will talk about training in the Zone, breaking through training plateaus and training on and off of the bike.

The 26-member Team ACTC joined with nearly 600 other volunteers for the assembly of 2200 new bicycles on Saturday 12/13 in the South Hall of the San Jose Convention Center.  It was a lot of work but also a lot of fun.  Due to the limited amount of floor space we were allocated, as coordinator of the team, I had to limit the number of helpers.  I will try to get us more area next year.

A total of 34 checks for $2240 were received by Karl Laucher from club members.  With the club donation of $3000, our $5240 was the largest of any team and we became the first recipient of a rather large traveling trophy which I have and will bring to a club meeting.  We have to return it next December.

This has been a great program and kudos go to the club members who have donated their time, talents and treasures to help 2200 children enjoy new bicycles at Christmas.  Maybe one of them will be another Lance Armstrong.

By: Paul Metz, ACTC President

After checking the poll results (thanks, Franz!), we will try some new ideas for the format of the General Club Meeting.

Option 1: Guest Speaker First
If the guest speakers can make their presentation in 30 minutes or less, we will:
• Announce the speaker(s) and let them speak
• Thank the refreshment hosts and ask for new hosts
• Ask for new members to identify themselves
• Break for 15 minutes
• Hold the general meeting

Option 2: General Meeting First If the guest speaker needs more time, we will:
• Hold the general meeting
• Thank the hosts and ask for new hosts
• Ask for new members to identify themselves
• Break for 15 minutes
• Announce the speaker(s) and let them speak

People will be welcome to talk to the speaker(s) after their presentation, if the speaker is willing.
We will post the meeting schedule to the e-list during the week before the meeting.