It’s time to ride fat bikes again with some snow on the way. We’ve been blessed with a donation from League of Michigan Bicyclist that will provide a season of fat tire riding for our community. Our first ride for 2023 will be January 21 2023. All spots are taken and we’re excited to ride with or without snow.
Interested in joining us? We’ll be at Riley trails at 1030am ready to do some laps!
En nombre de Vivela, Michigan Gravel Racing Series (MGRS) esta ofreciendo un descuento de $20 para la comunidad latina hacia el costo de registracion de Barry-Rubaix mediante el uso de un código de cupón. MGRS está ansioso por apoyar a las comunidades latinas y brindar más oportunidades de participar en este evento famoso. Estamos agradecidos por su apoyo en el cumplimiento de nuestra declaración de visión-
Vívela edifica un puente con bicicletas sin barreras donde todos pertenecen
Para recibir su codigo, mandanos un email- inlandesign@gmail.com
Gracias a Matt, Jenny y el equipo de MGRS
On behalf of Vivela, Michigan Gravel Racing Series is offering a $20 discount for the Latino cycling community towards the Barry-Rubaix registration fee by using a coupon code.
MGRS is eager to support the Latino and minority communities by providing more opportunities to participate in this legendary event. We are grateful for their support in fulfilling our vision statement-
Vívela builds a bridge with bikes that’s barrier-free where all belong
Special Thanks to Matt, Jenny and the MGRS Team
Local cyclocross race series, KissCross, is currently running a great race event that our team is participating in. It’s our first time doing cyclocross races, so there was a learning curve, but it was fast as we joining the B group to get our bearing on how to get around the challenging course. Imagine 40 minutes of racing and we only covered 6 miles! It was awesome to see our guys taking podiums. Maybe we’ll tackle A group next year!
Recruitment for Team Vivela has begun and we’re excited to have three new riders joining the team. To join a rider has to demonstrate a minimum capability and commit to a year of membership. It’s been great to see the energy and interest from these guys. The official season for race events will begin in March for the 2023 racing season. Until then we have plenty of gravel and winter riding to do. Vivela is a start up nonprofit which is off to a great start. The addition of our these riders is a fabulous start to many great seasons to come. Our first goal is to equip five local cyclists with the goals of increasing participation each year until we hit our larger goals.
With all the crazy weather we’ve been having, we’ve all been wondering what Barry will provide this year. I’ve heard the stories of hypothermia from years past where the toughest riders I know withered from the cold and terrible riding conditions. Thanks to RWAM RECON SCOUT MN, we have the latest on images from the 36 Thriller.
RECON SCOUT provided the scoop on the dirt for barry roads saying, “it’s not in bad shape at all with some pot holes holding water, but mostly damp/solid”. Now I rode gravel yesterday in Ottawa County and it was a muddy mess with a ton of moisture from the constant rain and sleet. This looks better than what I rode yesterday for about 25 miles. I suspect with the overnight rain and light snow fall over night/morning it could get messier. I asked about shaded tree areas and it was the same report, damp, but solid. This is good news for racers given the week of rain preceding the big day.
By the looks of it, conditions could hold up for a solid surface to for fast rolling tires. I imagine it will be a little sticky and the shoulders could be soft and slow rolling.
So what tires are you running? A brief survey from our seasoned riders provided some insight on tire selection and proves it really doesn’t matter unless your under 38mm. Some are rolling 38,40, 42, 45 and our fatty friends will surely give us some muddy waters to drink from their 4.0s+.
What about SAGER RD?
100 mile Psycho riders (I think that’s a good name for it) will benefit from a nice deviation from the route on Hart Rd. as a more “rustic” approach is taken, sparing feet from a cold mud bath.
RECON SCOUT said “first 1/3 of Sager is perfect with some puddles, but they are being drained. Pre-riders mentioned is was in good shape”. We asked RECON SCOUT if he could put a tarp on it (good suggestion SH). but that won’t be happening as the rain falls this evening into the night.
SAGER rd looks like it might be ready to absorb some rain and light snow. These aren’t the muddy conditions we all imagined! But that can change.
COLD and FUN
Weather looks like wind and light snow thanks to report from SM on the morning conditions.
This will be my first official Barry Rubaix and it’s gonna be a blast. It’s cool to present VIVELA as we launch this effort and hope to encourage many other new riders to one day rip through these roads. If you see a dude with LONG black hair on the course, shout out VIVELA!.
Carlos Esquivel
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We had our first ride event which was a success! We have special guest from local non profits and new friends that have never ridden fat tire backs in the snow. Both Directors from Escape Ministries and LAUP (Latin Americans United for Progress) were with us. It’s great to have Johnny and Todd with us as they are leading organizations that serve the populations that VIVELA is focused on.
Here are some pictures from the event.
