Women Specific Road Ride - June 29th

Wahoo! Today is going to be a beautiful day! Only 20% chance of rain! That means we are definitely going for a ride tonight! Sorry for all the exclamations, but honestly, this is super exciting that it isn't raining on a Wednesday.

We are going to stick to the route I posted last week. You can check it out here.

I'm really looking forward to catching up with you all tonight! See you soon!

jen

Route 66 Race Series - 19th Ever West Hill Shop Mountain Bike Race

This past Sunday the Competitive Edge Cycling Race Team brought a serious force to the 19th Ever West Hill Shop Mountain Bike Race. With 7 racers including 6 men and 1 woman, they climbed those hills, charged through the woods, climbed those hills, hammered into the mud, walked those hills, climbed those hills, and then they CLIMBED THOSE HILLS! Here are a couple shots that Nathan Orie (Cat 2 Single Speed Racer) captured that day:

Nathan's bike after the race. She was taking him to a strong 3rd possibly 2nd place finish until the tire washed out on a super muddy descent. So happy to hear you are safe, Nathan! (says his very concerned wife)

Christin Christoph's first race in Cat 1 after upgrading because of her incredible performance in Cat 2. 2nd place in Cat 1 12-34 goes to this super awesome lady!

Jeff Landry after receiving 2nd place in Cat 2 40-49. Watch out for this guy, he just keeps getting faster and muddier.

Rick Hartman at his first mountain bike race this season taking 1st place in Single Speed Open!

Michael Bartlett Pro/Cat 1 Open 4th

Nathan Pepin Pro/Cat 1 Open 9th

Sean Kennedy Cat 1 19-29 1st

(if any of you have pictures from the race it would be awesome to post them)

Again, congratulations to all of you on your amazing performance! Keep it up and keep having fun!

If anyone is interested in participating in or watching a mountain or road race this season check out bikereg.com for details. You can go here as well for the Route 66 MTB Series Race schedule. It is so awesome to have the support of other club members and friends, so please, if you get the chance come and cheer on the CEC Race Team. One race in particular that would be great to put on the schedule would be the 16th Annual Hodges Village Dam MTB Race and MA State Championship in Oxford, MA.

cheers!

jen

Thursday Mountainbike ride

Hey boys and girls...hope you're all doing well! I feel like we should be getting out to the woods to do a semi epic mountain bike ride but also something new. So, here's the plan...this Thursday we are going to do the Case/Gay City loop. The ride will start at the Line St parking lot in Glastonbury, CT. Because I'm not as technically savy as Scott I can't post a click here type thing, but I can tell you that Line St is off Rt 83 (South Main St) from Manchester. It's exit 3 off 384. After you turn left onto Line st from South Main, look for a parking lot on the left about a mile up the road. Trust me, it will be obvious. The lot may be full, so just try and find a spot on the road side. The ride ends up being about 20 plus miles, fun, technical...for those who haven't been there, I'm sure you're gonna dig it! As usual, if we can plan on meeting by 5;30 and rolling as soon as possible, we will all benifit. Any questions, concerns, issues, whatever....call me, text me, email me...smoke signals...(860)989-6552 or jforlife3339@yahoo.com.

Can't wait, lets go have some fun,

J E F F

Tonight's Club Rides!

Morning Everyone! Hope you all had a great weekend!

Tonight's routes are posted on the ROUTES page. Check them out!

The A group route is going to take us out through East Longmeadow, into Hampden and up over Stafford Rd. and into Crystal Lake. We'll climb out of Crystal Lake and head into Ellington and work our way back. There is a good amount of climbing, but plenty of recovery in between. It's going to be an awesome ride!

The B group is going to head south as well, zigging and zagging through some rolling hills and smooth roads.

And finally, it looks as though the weather is going to be on our side this week. Thank God!!! I'm getting a little sick and tired of all the rain.

Hope to see everyone tonight! It's a perfect night for a ride!

-Scott

Women Specific Updates and Tonight's Ride

What a beautiful week we've had! It's certainly a gift to have incredible days like this to enjoy being outside, especially on the bike. Any new routes explored? How are the woods looking in your area?

Our friend, club and race team member Christin Christoph represented Competitive Edge Cycling this past Sunday at Pinnacle XII Mountain Bike Race in Newport, New Hampshire. Congratulations on your first place position in Sport, Christin! Keep it up!

Last Wednesday's ride was awesome! Joanne, Kristina, Pam and I ventured out on our planned route experiencing a few drops of rain early on. We continued with hopes that it was just a passing cloud, as there was plenty of blue sky around. As we found ourselves heading north on 4 Bridges Road we were faced with a large and ominous storm ahead. It was really amazing watching rain come down miles away, but we knew that very shortly that cloud would be above us. Thanks to Pam and Joanne's suggestion we went off route on Watchaug Road to circle back to the shop via Hampden center. We only had a few more drops on us before we returned with a total of 28.58 miles. Thanks ladies for pressing on and totally dodging that storm. Click here for the ride details. (For some reason the link isn't working properly right now, and if it doesn't soon I'll post with the new link)

On to tonight's ride! Right now the sky and radar are looking a little questionable. Please keep a watch on the radar as 5 o'clock approaches. We'll announce cancelation via email and/or blog, and you could also call the EL shop. Speaking of the shop, I'm excited to let you all know that I am now a full time employee of the East Longmeadow shop. Please stop in for a visit anytime! You can check out tonight's route here. Again, it's a no drop ride, and we'll determine the pace before we head out. Hope the skies clear and that we get a chance to ride tonight!

jen

RIDE RECAP!!!

What an amazing night and equally amazing rides we had last night!

Once again, both groups were huge and rode awesome. Even though the A Group ended up on a couple choppy roads & we had an epic DOUBLE FLAT, we couldn't have asked for a better route. Thanks to CEC Club Ambassador Steve Wallbridge for putting the route together.

I am changing things up a bit and instead of posting the recaps for the rides in the blog posts, I have created a page that will house all of the RIDE RECAPS for the entire season.

Thanks again to everyone that showed up last night! It was nothing short of awesome!
SUNDAY! It's another awesome Steve Wallbridge route. It's a 65-70 loop going across the river and around Congamond Lake. I have posted the ride in the ROUTES page. Check it out! We will be meeting at the East Longmeadow shop at 9:30ish and rolling out of the parking lot at 10AM. Hope to see a lot of you there. It's going to be an awesome ride!

And as usual, we'll have our lady's ride in East Longmeadow & our ride in Hadley tomorrow night.

See everyone soon!
-Scott

CEC Club Rides - Monday June 20th

Hi Everyone! We hope that you had a great weekend full of fun, nice weather and of course a little bit of pedaling! And to all of the father's out there...hope you had a great Father's Day!

For tonight's rides, we are going to take advantage of the fact that this week, we will have the most amount of sunlight that we will have all year. That being said, CEC Ambassador Steve Wallbridge put together an awesome 50 mile A Group ride. I routed a 42 mile B Group ride that matches some of the parts of Steve's route.

Both routes leave the shop on the same path, so we will leave the shop as one group and split somewhere within the first 5 miles. Hopefully (if my routing and timing are correct) both groups will reconnect with 5 or so miles from the shop on the way back.

We will be trying to squeeze as much as we can out of the daylight, so with that being said, please make sure that everyone is at the shop and ready to roll out PROMPTLY at 5:30. Also, please make sure that you all have safety lights (red/white blinkys) in case we get caught out past daylight.

I have posted the rides in the ROUTES section of the blog, so please check them out before we roll out tonight.

It's going to be an awesome night, so hopefully we'll see you all there!

-Scott

CEC Club Night - TONIGHT!!!

The day has finally arrived!!!! CEC Club Night!



The festivities start at 7PM on the dot. Hope to see everyone there!

-Scott

Women Specific Road Ride - Club Night, Recap and June 15th Ride

Happy Club Night! Jeff, I'm right there with you - 3 cheers for Scott! Thanks so much Scott for everything you've done to get this club going, and for designing such super cool kits. I can't wait to get out on my bike in one, and to not have to do as much laundry. It is going to be so great to get everyone together tonight at the E.L. shop to celebrate all the new and exciting things that have come into the shops this year like the club, kits, bikes and gear. I'm really looking forward to meeting more of you, especially the ladies out there. Tonight is a perfect opportunity if you have been considering the women's road ride to come in and chat with me and the other club members. We can let you know more about what the rides are like and help you get ready to join us on the road.

Even though we had some record breaking heat last week on our ride (93 degrees!), it didn't stop us from enjoying the night and putting in just about 24 miles! Thank you Cheryl, Mary Ann, and Kristina for coming out - awesome riding! Feel free to check out the ride details here.

Tomorrow night I've got a great loop planned that will take us on a couple new roads in CT. The route will be on the ROUTE page by tomorrow, but if you are eager to check it out, click here. Again, no matter if this is your 1st or 100th group ride everyone is welcome. It is a no drop ride that offers you the opportunity to get exercise, be outside, enjoy the company of new friends and learn more about cycling. How can you not want to be a part of that? Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions. Please come out and see what we're all about!

jen

PS - Happy Birthday to one of the greatest guys, biker and mechanic ever!!! Happy Birthday Timmy!

Monday, June 13th - Club Rides!

Hi everyone! Hope you all had an amazing weekend! Although the clouds were looming & it rained most of the day Saturday, I managed to get in a bunch of miles. Hopefully you all did the same.

Tonight's routes have been posted in the ROUTES section of the blog. Check them out! They are going to be pretty fun for sure. The A and B group routes are basically the same, however the A group has a few extra miles and a couple more hills.

We're going to plan on riding out as one group and hopefully, if my planning works out, we'll meet up at the end and all ride back together.

Now for the weather...it looks like mother nature is on our side, because the rain we were supposed to get isn't there anymore. But as usual, keep your eyes peeled to the Doppler and if you have any doubts, just shoot us an email.

I'm bummed that I missed out on last week's awesome ride, but I am totally looking forward to riding tonight!

Also, just a reminder that CEC Club night is tomorrow night @ 7PM at the East Longmeadow shop. Fun, food, drinks and of course, the debut of the new CEC Club apparel! We are also offering a ONE NIGHT ONLY discount on complete bikes. CEC Club members will get an additional discount on top of their 10% discount off any complete bike in stock(discounts will vary depending on brand/model). Don't miss it!!!!

See you all soon!
-Scott

R U Kidding!

WOW! I cant wait to see the group rocking the new kits!!! Scottie....you're awesome, cyclist extrodiniar, super model, and all around great guy! Got my fingers crossed that mother nature squeezes all the water out of them clouds tonight so you all can go rip it tomorrow!

Have Fun,

J E F F

CEC Club Ride - TOMORROW!!!!

As scheduled, we are still planning on heading out for a 70 mile jaunt from the HADLEY store. I have posted the loop in the ROUTES section of the blog.

We will be meeting at the store for 10AM so that everyone can make sure that they have food/drink/tubes/etc. We'll be leaving the store at 10:30 on the dot, so please be ready to roll at that time.

Our pace will be determined by the overall group, but I would plan on averaging somewhere between 17-19 mph.

The WEATHER for tomorrow is looking a little questionable, so please feel free to EMAIL US in the morning to find out if we are still riding.

Hopefully the rain will hold off and we'll be able to get the ride in. If not, there is plenty in store for the rest of the week, including our first official CEC Club Night on Tuesday at the East Longmeadow shop! Hope to see you all there!

-Scott

CEC Club Night!!!! - Tuesday, June 14th

Be there or be square! (Click on the image for a larger view)
-Scott

Women's Specific Road Ride - June 8th

Hi Ladies! So thankfully we won't have any terrible thunderstorms or tornadoes tonight, but we will have some heat and humidity. If you are preparing for tonight's ride please remember to drink lots of water before the ride, and bring at least one full bottle with you. We'll definitely take the heat into consideration on the ride, and plan to take more frequent stops to drink. If you have time before the ride, stop into the shop to look into electrolyte replacement tablets and powder that you can add to your water. It can be really nice to have a little something extra in your water on nights like tonight.

The route for tonight is posted on the route page. I'm really looking forward to seeing you all soon!

jen

THANK YOU FROM CEC!

Morning Everyone!

As you all know, Robinson was hit pretty hard by last week's tornado. It wasn't until we got into the woods that we realized how bad it actually was. So last night, a few of us went over to Robinson State Park to try and help out with a little trail maintenance.

To our surprise, the trails were in great shape! Here's why...

This past weekend, a group of folks put some blood, sweat and tears into cleaning up the mess. They spent Saturday & Sunday with chainsaws, rakes, etc. cutting out all the down trees & cleaning up the branches, sticks and the rest from the trails.

The Competitive Edge Cycling Club would like to extend the biggest THANK YOU to all that spent their time to clean up the trails.

Now, there is still some work left to do. I know that not all of you will be able to head out into the woods and work/clean trails, so here is what you should do...

Please click on the link below to either donate or sign up for a NEMBA membership. Those funds go to helping preserve and maintain the trail systems that we know and love.

SIGN UP FOR A NEMBA MEMBERSHIP!

To all those that helped clean up Robinson (you know who you are) & to the endless work that everyone does to keep our mountain bike trails in top notch shape...we can't thank you enough!

-Scott

RIDE RECAP...& MORE!

Morning! Although I wasn't able to head out on the ride with everyone last night, I heard that it was awesome! The crew went out as one group, managed to knock out 40 miles & looked like they had a great time!



Here's the recap straight outta the mouth of CEC Ambassador Steve Wallbridge:

"Despite (2) flats (one being a complete sidewall blowout) and a broken seat that sent Timmy (the mechanic) hobbling back to the shop, we had a GREAT ride. We decided collectively to all (22 people) go out together because everyone was in such a festive and social mood. However, we still did 40 miles and averaged around 18.7 mph – the “A” group people had a great time and the “B” group people were thrilled at what they had accomplished – they were awesome!

Nate from Hadley showed up as well – it was nice to see someone from that shop supporting the EL rides.

The only thing that could have made this ride better was if our fearless leader had been with us."
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Better late than never...here are some pics of the last Route66 Mountian bike race courtesy of CEC team rider Cristin. The race looked like a blast!









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Finally, here's what's in store for rest of the week:

TONIGHT:
Mountain Bike Ride & Trail Maintenance - Robinson State Park (meet at the nnormal spot)

WEDNESDAY:
CEC Club Ride - Hadley (departing the shop @ 5:30) Route TBD

THURSDAY:
Mountain Bike Ride - Earl's Trials (meet at the normal spot)

SUNDAY:
CEC Club Ride - Hadley (departing @ 10:30 AM) 60ish miles - Route TBD

Hope to see you all soon!
-Scott

Monday Night Club Ride:

Hi Everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend.

For tomorrow night's ride, we are going to plan on the same route that we had posted way back on May 16th. Can you believe that the last time we went out as a club was the May 9th?!?!? Crazy! Well, hopefully we won't see very much crummy weather and we'll be able to get out on a regular basis.

Anyway, here is the plan for tomorrow night's ride...

I re-posted the routes that we had mapped for the May 16th rides in the ROUTES section of the blog. Check them out. Please make sure that if you are planning on joining the A Group ride, you are well aware of the route as this is a "drop" ride. The B Group will still be the "no-drop" ride. As usual, we will be meeting between 5-5:30 and leaving the shop promptly at 5:30.

The weather for tomorrow looks decent. Right now it says that there is a 30% chance of rain, but I'm positive that it'll pass us & we'll be able to ride. Either way, keep your eyes peeled to the WEATHER and as usual, we will cancel the ride due to the weather by 4PM.

Hope to see you all there!
-Scott

Robinson clean up ride

Hello Comp Edgers, hope you all have been getting in your miles? Outside of our usual Monday ride from East Longmeadow, I would like to invite/ask anyone who can to join us in a clean up ride at Robinson State Park on Tuesday. The plan is to meet at the church parking lot at 5;30 and do as much trail clean up as we can. I know Steve Rossi and company have been working over this past weekend to cut up the "big stuff", but I'm sure there is plenty left to do. Depending on the amount of participants that can show up, we will come up with a plan of attack that evening. Thanks in advance to all who can make it.

On another note, we had another great showing of Comp Edge racers at the latest RT66 series mountain bike race at Domnarski Farm in Ware, MA. I have to say it sure lived up to its reputation! Lots of fun and a great challange. Congratulations to all who entered and thank you for making it such a great time! I urge anyone who is even slightly interested to attend one of these events, just to be a part of the good times and the memories that are created. Trust me, once you do, you'll get the itch to try it! (right Dan?)

Have fun'

J E F F

Tonight's Mountain Bike Ride: Shenipsit

We hope all of you made it tough last night's storm safe & sound. We're still planning on riding in the woods tonight, but due to the storm we are changing the location. We had planned on riding in Robinson, instead we are going to stay south and ride Shenipsit. The trails should be in good shape, but we will plan on doing a little trail maintenance along the way if needed.

Royce and Landry are putting together a great loop. Lots of climbing!

We will be meeting in the same spot as before (GULF RD)& rolling into the woods no later than 6PM. We'll have great weather and I hope we have a huge turnout.

Here's the map of where we are meeting:

View Larger Map

See you all there!
-Scott