Freezing Saddles: Winter Bike Challenge (sign up open)

[rcannon100]

Freezing Saddles: Winter Bike Challenge
Never Give an ELITE Cyclist an Even Break

Official Frozen Scoreboard

NOTE: Excluded activities: If you post an activity to Strava during the competition period which is not an outdoor bike ride, then it should have the string “#NoBAFS” in the activity name.

Freezing Saddles! The Epic Adventure of a band of ELITE Cyclists, facing the challenges of the wild wild wild bike paths. Confronting the darkest of evenings, the coldest of mornings, and the stupidest of Ninjas – these brave cyclists challenge each other because, if they didnt, they might have to actually do some work during the day.

The saga runs January 1 until the last day of Winter, March 20. It will conclude with a March Madness Playoff that someone will probably design. There will be a Happy Hour at the end with many pointless trophies.

Tribes (teams):

• Composed of ~5 riders or less
• For riders from the #bikedc, Washington DC Bike Forum general community (Washington DC greater metropolitan area)
• Volunteer Captains (captains will address any data problems, negotiate or cause confusion, and provide motivational seminars);
• This is a ten-gallon hat tournament. Riders will be randomly assigned to tribes based on self declared average weekly mileage and days cycled. Tribes will be created so that each tribes’s average weekly point score is roughly equal to everyone else’s. To achieve this, tribes may be composed of differing numbers of riders.
• No late sign ups.
• Interested cyclists must sign up by December 25 Midnight – Tribes will be announced within a couple days.

Scoring: Riders will receive 10 points for each day and 1 point for each mile ridden. Minimum ride is 1 mile. The tribe’s score will be the sum of the tribe members (indoor trainers do not count- you must be freezing in the saddle outside).

Backend: STRAVA (please sign up for an account, and join the “Bike Arlington” club on STRAVA – you should be able to enter data manually or automatically. Additional information will be posted here on the forum.)

This is a self organized group activity based on consensus. No one is in charge or running this thing. Participation is voluntary and entirely at your own risk.

Be Brave. Be Bold. Be…. questful! In the words of Hedley Lamarr:

Men, you are about to embark on a great crusade to stamp out runaway decency on the bike paths. Now you men will only be risking your lives, whilst I will be risking an almost certain Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

Here are the teams with the new subs

Team one
http://app.strava.com/athletes/126281
Matthew Whatley
Shawn Dread
443749
John Fisher – 608636

Team Two
Pete DeNitto – 768183
Steve Appel
James Hoofnagle
Jason Kyzer
Mega Beth – http://app.strava.com/athletes/136523
Joe Birkenstock – 1154396

Team Three
Trish Newberg
randy napiza 313677
Mark Blacknell
essigmw
obenlandk@gmail.com – http://www.strava.com/athletes/1564295

Team Four
EKR
Kel Moore
Chris Shue
Crystal Bae
Elizabeth MacGregor

Team Five
http://app.strava.com/athletes/benbhsu
307483 (Mark Williams)
Christopher Niebylski
vvill
Kevin Ulrich – http://www.strava.com/athletes/kevin_ulrich

Team Six
Arlingtonrider
sjclaeys
ejwillis@yahoo.com
http://app.strava.com/athletes/302448
feomike@gmail.com – http://www.strava.com/athletes/feomike

Team Seven
Henning Schulzrinne
klizotte
Brad Hancock
Ron Alford
Chris Randall

Team Eight
Ken Buja (1224809)
Kevin Williams, Strava # 580756, BA “GuyContinental”
Lena Varuolo
Hans Lellelid

Team Nine
Steve O
jopamora
Justin Antos (Strava 1473093)
http://app.strava.com/athletes/488016

Team Ten
certifried
strava name Karen Smith (forum poster acl)
Cyndi Janetzko
Rod Smith

Team Eleven (Freezing Saddles Team Mongo (11) on Strava)
Greg Ba
cptjohnc
rcannon100
mdevoll
Sarah Dots
Sean Chisham

Team Twelve
Calpike
BonzaiBuckaroo
Daniel Alexander
ochsendorf@gmail.com

Topic

[Rod Smith]

@KayakCyndi 42862 wrote:

Yep, well aware there is another month and a half to go, problem is I’ve got another two week out-of-country business trip starting Feb 10th and going through Feb 22nd. While I’m devising ways to get on a bike (watch Strava for some interesting locations) I don’t see how I’ll get to 500 miles in Feb.

Think we could convince the Gods of All things Freezing Saddles to allow for a pinch-hitter (or pinch-cyclist in this case)?

Perhaps Mark Nielsen will come out of retirement for the occasion. Enjoy your travels!

[Mikey]

This contest has been a great excuse to get out and ride. It’s also been a great way to make friends out there. Even though we are “competing” with each other, the fact that the prizes are pointless, I feel like it’s just a big excuse to get out there on the trails and make friends.

When I orignially suggested this back in November I was thinking about how many miles I wanted to do this year, then how much collectively we would all do together. I had no idea that we would be 28,000+ miles in one month. That’s amazing, I mean we could probably sell carbon credits for this.

This point came to heart for me this morning at Friday Coffee Club seing all of the regulars there, (about as many as spring time last year despite the freezing weather), dripping, coated with salt and mustachecicles. And smiles as wide as one end of the shop to the other.

[PeteD]

@essigmw 42953 wrote:

When I orignially suggested this back in November I was thinking about how many miles I wanted to do this year, then how much collectively we would all do together. I had no idea that we would be 28,000+ miles in one month. That’s amazing, I mean we could probably sell carbon credits for this.

I like how you’re thinking with this one. Environmentally sound process, and revenue generation as well.

[Subby]

I TORE IT UP Friday night with a hot shower and a commuter bike. I officially have a problem.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2380[/ATTACH]

[jopamora]

@Subby 42955 wrote:

I TORE IT UP Friday night with a hot shower and a commuter bike. I officially have a problem.

I heard Old Spice shower gel removes road gunk and adds swagger.

[dbb]

@Subby 42955 wrote:

I TORE IT UP Friday night with a hot shower and a commuter bike. I officially have a problem.

As the videocam on the bike, I ask (with significant trepidation) if video is available? This might have (modest) potential for a semi-risque “Bikes of Arlington” calendar.

[KelOnWheels]

@jopamora 42956 wrote:

I heard Old Spice shower gel removes road gunk and adds swagger.

Hello, ELITES, look at your bike, now back to me, now back at your bike, now back to me. Sadly, it isn’t pro, but if you stopped using ELITE scented bike wash and switched to Old Spice, it could smell like it’s pro. Look down, back up, where are you? You’re on a road with the bike your bike could smell like. What’s in your hand, back at me. I have it, it’s a bidon with two tickets to that bike thing you like. Look again, the tickets are now Di shifters. Anything is possible when your bike smells like Old Spice and not an ELITE. I’m on a horse.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2383[/ATTACH]

[ShawnoftheDread]

@KelOnWheels 42963 wrote:

Hello, ELITES, look at your bike, now back to me, now back at your bike, now back to me. Sadly, it isn’t pro, but if you stopped using ELITE scented bike wash and switched to Old Spice, it could smell like it’s pro. Look down, back up, where are you? You’re on a road with the bike your bike could smell like. What’s in your hand, back at me. I have it, it’s a bidon with two tickets to that bike thing you like. Look again, the tickets are now Di shifters. Anything is possible when your bike smells like Old Spice and not an ELITE. I’m on a SPACE Horse.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2383[/ATTACH]

1. That was awesome.
2. FIFY

[Subby]

@KelOnWheels 42963 wrote:

Hello, ELITES, look at your bike, now back to me, now back at your bike, now back to me. Sadly, it isn’t pro, but if you stopped using ELITE scented bike wash and switched to Old Spice, it could smell like it’s pro. Look down, back up, where are you? You’re on a road with the bike your bike could smell like. What’s in your hand, back at me. I have it, it’s a bidon with two tickets to that bike thing you like. Look again, the tickets are now Di shifters. Anything is possible when your bike smells like Old Spice and not an ELITE. I’m on a horse.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2383[/ATTACH]

Early entrant for best post of 2013.

[Subby]

@dbb 42959 wrote:

As the videocam on the bike, I ask (with significant trepidation) if video is available? This might have (modest) potential for a semi-risque “Bikes of Arlington” calendar.

The pic has been submitted for the calendar. The video will be available as part of the “Making of the Bikes of Arlington Calendar” pay per view event. RATED E FOR ELITE.

[KelOnWheels]

@ShawnoftheDread 42979 wrote:

1. That was awesome.
2. FIFY

Must be one of those left-side drivetrain horses.

There’s gonna be a forum conspiracy to make me get a Space Horse now, isn’t there? (O NOES.)

[crysb]

Thanks to Freezing Saddles, I rode 309 miles in January (with one week off for work travel). That same period last year, I rode maybe 10 miles total. Huge jump! Winter riding ain’t all that bad on most days.

That being said, can February be over already?

[rcannon100]

I motion that we rename the competition:

Frozen Toes

Nice ride home today from the Hybla Valley Lost Dog Rescue event. Took a wrong turn…. and bumped into Rootchopper!! Nice surprise…. biking down the road, paying attention to nothing and all of a sudden you hear: HEY BOB! What? Huh? Who the hell would recognize me down in Hybla Valley?? OH! It must be Rootchopper!

[KelOnWheels]

I had my first 100 mile week this week! Actually it was 108 miles!

(My weeks arbitrarily end on Sunday since Jan 1 was a Monday.)

[consularrider]

@KelOnWheels 43045 wrote:

I had my first 100 mile week this week! Actually it was 108 miles!

(My weeks arbitrarily end on Sunday since Jan 1 was a Monday.)

Uhh, Kel, January 1st was a Tuesday this year.

[Author]

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