APRIL 1988

• NEWSLETTER

Tacoma Wheeimen’s Club- ;
PO. Box 99555
Tacoma, WA 98499

oe

tion ae aoe Daugher Ve

me ve ad
favorite p

Riding their\M
they took a Cc:
through Northery_

veled 1100 miles and
into some snow.

-Rumor has it that these | two.

put on an outstanding show,

sO” come and share in tha fw
ie

752-8636 —

752-6028

<AREN WHITN! 565-2742
. PAULA NAPIER. 475-2131

“WILL THE TWBC HAVE A HOT LINE?
During 1987 the club voted £0 ap=

propriate sete to start a tele- _
i with |

: ary research
that COScS or a quality system 2
will quickly exceed that dollar
amount.

At the Feb. elon pabking TE gee
decided that the future of the
hot line would depend on you!!

‘The hot line will happen only if some members are willing to con- tinue the research. Jim Davis will continue to head up the ef- fort, so please call him at 759- 5616 and volunteer your services.. It's one thing to want it to hap= pen - it's a different mat- ter to want to help it happen!!

Workers are still needed to drive
the course to pick up stranded
riders, and to work some of the
checkpoints. If you are able to
help please call Steve Larson at
473-7136 or Greg Torfin 537250232

FOR SALE
Park PS-2 double arm bicycle repair

stand with base. Still in box $350.00
Bob Branson 848-3714.

. Bm rans seccton
LS ge Monn Pan

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\ Natomas bg z= bag —— Pee
Sante barman Steric “AS VEGA 29 ere Cay" Nata bang |
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Through the efforts of Endless Summer Tours of Michigan City, Ind., Amtrak is now allow-
ing bicycles as carry-on baggage on western Superliner trains. Formerly, Amtrak re-
quired that seats, handlebars, and pedals be removed. Cyclists could board only at
those stations offering checked baggage service and only during the hours when agents
were on duty.

The new policy only requires that bicycles be placed in an approved carry-bag and that cyclists inform the ticket agent that they are traveling with a bicycle. They may board at any station along the 10 western Superliner routes.

As early as 1979, Robert Harris, president of Endless Summer Tours, was involved in conducting tours that combined train and bicycle travel. When he formed Endless Summer Tours in 1985, he was approached by Amtrak to operate pilot tour programs to test the market and the feasibility of a revised bikes-on-trains policy. During the summers of 1986 and 1987 tours were operated on routes radiating from Chicago. This allowed a test of different types of Amtrak equipment, various station accommodations, and various railroad operating procedures.

As a result of these tests, Endless Summer Tours developed a new bicycle carry-bag that met the three requirements of a bag suitable for Amtrak travel: (a) it meets the con-— straints of Amfleet and Superliner luggage facilities;(b)it is capable of holding any full-sized bicycle; and(c)it can be compacted into a small stuff sack and easily car- ried by bicycle. The bag and a proposal for a carry-on policy were brought to the Amtrak staff in August 1987. On November 12 Amtrak officially made a policy change tha allows bicycles as carry-on luggage.

Amtrak is now studying a similar policy for its eastern routes. Perhaps American
cyclists will soon enjoy the ease of carrying bicycles on board trains that Europeans
have known for decades.

(Article from the Feb issue of Bicycle USA. Map-courtesy of Endless Summer Tours)

ERICK GRAY DAVID KRETSCHMAR
GREGORY POST RICHARD MOORE
TOM FORTT SUZANNE DIESEN

RHETT & JANE KIRK
CHRISTINE JESSUP

CHUCK VINCENT
JOYCE CLIFFORD

2?2DO0GGIE DETERRENT? ?
Do you remember those little paper
wads that exploded when thrown down

on the ground that we used to play
with as kids?

NOw appearing at your local fire- works stands are new versions of the best dog deterrents around. These little characters come in packets of forty or so for a quar- ter, packed in sawdust and about the right size to fit in the palm of your hamd.

I keep a packet in my jersey and when I see those mangy varmints war- ming up along the side of the road for a chase I reach back and grab. my stash. Just as they start to close in around the ankles I drop a couple -...-stops those critters in their tracks.

Also-- they're waterproof and somehow

Notice: no renumeration has been paid
to me by any Chinese fireworks com-
pany for the above endorsement.
Article by L.J. Goree
UTexas Computation center Austin,TX

TWBC rides are bringing out record
numbers every weekend! Organized club
rides give us all a chance to share

and enjoy the company and the safety

of riding together. It makes bicycling even more fun. There are some things we do need to remember when riding in groups. Smaller groups do pretty well at obeying the laws of the road and the rules of courtesy, but larger groups tend to get a little out of hand. We need to be very aware of our behavior as cyclists. We represent all cyclists every time we are on the road, and we

COACH’S
OREGON TRIE

Coach Jim Davis is planning another 11 day
bicycle tour this summer. This year Stan
Sanders has signed on as Jim's assistant
coach. We'll be starting in Portland;
riding thru the Willamette River valley to

Eugene; then heading for the coast at
Reedsport; riding the Oregon coast to
Lincoln City; and returning to Portland.
This will be a combination camping/motel
tour -- we'll camp as much as possible.
Although we are still working on the

specifics, the following will give you a

good idea of the general route:

Day Date Miles Destination
1 June 29 Wednesday z0 Portland to
Champoeg S.P.
2 June 30 Thursday 40 Albany
3 July 1 Friday(H) 40 Eugene
4 July 2 Saturday 20 Around Eug
5 July 3 Sunday 70 Reedsport
6 July 4 Monday(H) 20 Florence
7 July 5 Tuesday 20 Beachside S.P.
8 July 6 Wednesday 20 Newport
9 July 7 Thursday 20 Lincoln City
10 July 8 Friday 30 Sheridan
1) July 9 Saturday 30 Portland
330 approximate

The Oregon Tour coaching staff is looking
for a few slow and easy riders to join our
team. If you re interested, give Jim

(759-5616) or Stan (752-6028) a call.

We need to be very careful not to block the road by riding 4-5 abreast. This seems to be most difficult when riding up a hill. Some riders are much faster than others and need to pass to maintain their momentum and speed. !IPLEASE!! pass in such a way that there are only 2 riders abreast at any time. We are very poor examples of road courtesy when we string out across an entire lane and force cars to wait at a complete standstill or @ us by going in the lane for oncoming traffic. We all look forward to the

club continuing to grow and for the mem-
bers to increase their riding activity

so let us all remember we are not alone.

want to promote good will with motorists. We are sharing the road with others.

et stuffing, t-shirt organizing & other —
business to follow.
minute ideas or items to take care of
this would be a good time to do so!!
you there & thank you Steve & Phyllis for

Join us for a pot luck and pre-Daffodil
organizing party at Steve & Phyllis Lay's
t oneApril 15th at.6:30 at 1320 N.

Dinner will be at 6:30 with pack-—
If you have any last
See

letting us use your home. If you've any
questions please contact Steve Larson at
473-7163 or Steve Lay at 759-1816.

The Northwest Tandem Rally needs your
melp. = Several registrants have request=—

ed space for tent camping, but that is
not allowed at UPS. We'd like to acco-

-modate these requests with your help.
“A little back yard space, the use of a

bathroom, and a location within a mile
or two of UPS is all that's needed. If
you'd like to host a tent or two at your

house over Memorial Day weekend (May 28-

Lister at 752-8636.

30th), please call Diane or Harvey ~ SS
and let us know.
THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

Plan ahead tor the great TWBC Swapmeet,
scheduled for Saturday, May 14th, at
Diane and Harvey Lister's house. Bring
‘your surplus parts. gear, clothing,
accessories, even bikes, and sell,sell,
sell. Also bring your shopping list
and be prepared for some great buys.
Mark the date on your calendar now, and
check the May newsletter for more info!

Volunteers Needed

I need people to man check points dur- ing the Northwest Tandem Rally. Since the TWBC is a sponsor, it would be great to have club members involved. The dates are May 28-30th, Memorial weekend. I would need people for Sat afternoon at a checkpoint on Vashon Island and Sun at two different locations in the Kent Au- valley. You don't have to have a tendem to experience the rally excitement!

: Call me at home 878-5465 if you are inter-

ested, or I'll be searching you out!

Laurie Wohlhueter

' Mac Arrest

According to the Miami Herald, Robert L. Fox rode his
bike to a Fort Lauderdale McDonald's for a Big Mac and
fries but got a jailhouse breakfast instead. Near midnight
on January 13, Fox found the restaurant's doors closed, so

Big

he went to the still-open drive-up window. There, a

restaurant employee told him that the window serves only
motorists and that he had to leave.

“T felt they were discriminating against me as a bicy-
clist,” said Fox. He persisted, cars began stacking up, and
McDonald’s management called the police and had him
arrested for trespassing. After spending a night in the
Broward County Jail, Fox was released when friends
posted the $25 bail.

Fox may have the last laugh. After the Miami Herald ran
the story, it was picked up by the AP and UPI wire
services, and CNN made frequent announcements on the
issue through the weekend.

—BICYCLE USA News

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