Sunday proved to be a perfect day to ride bikes and raise money for a great cause at the same time.  Six GVR riders ventured out at 7am Sunday morning for the Titletown Bike Tour to raise money for the Breast Cancer Family Foundation.

John Sommers, Jeff Gantz, Mark Schindel, Matt Becker, Nate Phelps, and Julie Phelps rolled out from the start line at United Healthcare for a 100k ride through Howard, Suamico, and points north (otherwise known as the Tuesday Tango route with some minor modifications).

The ride (not race) features several rest stops, and if you choose to take advantage and stop for them, you will meet some totally awesome volunteers who serve up everything from fruit, to sandwiches, to the most fantastic granola/peanut butter balls you will ever try, and if I can get a hold of the recipe, I will post it here.  I believe between Matt and John alone, about a pound of peanut butter was consumed.  🙂

I would encourage everyone who does this ride to stop at at least one or two rest stops.  If for nothing else, to thank the volunteers who stand out there all day to provide some righteous snacks.

The ride itself was incredibly fun.  We started out with a group of Go! riders but lost most of them at an early rest stop.  We saw hundreds of people on their bikes, were able to actually look around at the scenery we were riding through, and had some good conversation along the way.  We even hooked up with Jeff Wentworth (yes our very own JB Cycle & Sport Jeff) who was providing neutral support on the course, at the rest stops for some chat and photo opportunities.  Great to see him out there more than once – he made the rounds all day, likely putting some serious miles on his car.

We rolled through the finish a few hours later to some volunteers handing out cold, wet towels (quite refreshing!), had some great conversation with Kurt and Tyson Schwiesow who were providing neutral support at the start finish from Pete’s Garage, and even met Lauren Tamayo, an Olympic silver medalist who also happens to be (according to Nate) the women’s criterium national champion.  And no, even though she is a pro cyclist, she does not drive a Lamborghini, she drives a Jeep.  Post ride eats were top notch as well – yes, that is included in the entry fee.

If you have never done this event, I would highly recommend it.  It is extremely well organized, the volunteers are awesome and very thankful for all of the riders that come out for the ride, and really is a great time to ride with your friends.  The rest stops have plenty of good treats (real food!) that you do not need to stuff your pockets with anything other than your camera.  The post ride pasta/salad/bread/fruit/chocolate milk was a great way to end a great ride with friends.

Save the date for next year – Sunday, July 9, 2017 and let’s plan on this being a team event.  Let’s see if we can represent GVR, raise some money for a great cause, and participate in an event that benefits the community rather than your Strava account.  🙂

— By Julie Phelps