Club Officers and Open Positions President John Juras* 761.7021 Vice President Russ Herring Secretary/Treasurer Frank LaLiberty* *corporate board members Membership Coordinator Sharee Yeagley 453.8702 Publicity Coordinator Beth Jones 236.5930 Ride Master Open Webmaster Marc Stergionis 452.0653 Newsletter Editor Open

Thanks for your interest in the Great Falls Bicycle Club.

Great Falls is becoming more bicycle-friendly and we’re glad that you want to be involved. Don’t forget that any club is only as strong as its members. Please get involved in attending rides, arranging events, being a bicycle advocate, and just having fun on your bike. We especially need people to lead rides during the months of April and May. If you have a favorite ride, fill out the enclosed Scheduled Ride Form and drop it off at Central Bike, Knicker Biker, or Bighorn Wilderness. See you on the road!

Benefits of Club Membership

At the February membership meeting, club President John Juras discussed some of the benefits of membership in the Great Falls Bicycle Club. These benefits include:

• Discounts at sponsoring merchants: The Knicker Biker, Central Bike and Bighorn Wilderness Equipment have all generously agreed to give a 10 percent discount on bike accessories to all paid club members.
• Organized group rides geared (pardon the pun) towards persons of all skill and interest levels.
• A newsletter (like this!) that includes the ride schedule as well as interest articles, stories, etc.
• The opportunity to provide input into the city’s transportation plan, and to help make Great Falls a more “bicycle friendly” town!
• The chance to meet and become friends with other people who share your interests!
• Social events such as an annual club picnic.
• The chance to get involved in racing – either as a competitor or a volunteer helper!

To join, go to membership application.

Club Committees

The club has organized three committees to help coordinate events in various areas of interest. If you are interested in joining a committee, feel free to contact any of the club officers or any member of the committee you want to be a part of.

Recreation Rides Committee

Chaired by Robin Young, this committee is responsible for scheduling non-competitive rides for riders of all levels. Each ride will have a rating and a pre-designated “Ride Leader” who will be responsible for ensuring that all riders are club members, have helmets, etc. The committee is looking for a mountain biker to help them plan some fat-tire fun – if interested in joining the committee, or in leading a ride, contact Robin at: 452-3433.

Competitive Events Committee

As the name implies, this committee will plan the competitive events sponsored by the club. The Echelon Cycling Club is the Great Falls Bicycle Club’s racing group (but we’re one big happy family!). Some of the events already planned are the Fairfield Road Race on May 10th, and a weekly Time Trial series every other Tuesday evening beginning in March. This committee is also seeking an interested party to help plan a mountain bike race sometime in the summer. If interested, contact John Juras at: 761-7021.

Transportation Advocacy Committee

This committee is involved with helping the City of Great Falls become more “bicycle friendly” by providing input into the city’s revised master transportation plan. The next city meeting regarding the transportation plan is coming up soon! If interested, contact John Juras.

Ideas Wanted!

Also at the February meeting, the club brainstormed ideas for activities. Some of the ideas that were raised included

• A two-day overnight ride.
• A family campout with rides, club picnic.
• Charity events.
• Weekend “breakfast” rides.
• Clinics for new riders.
• A system for classifying the difficulty of rides.

Do you have an idea for an activity or way to make the club better? Don’t hesitate to suggest it to the ride committee or any of the club officers! Remember this is your club and will be as good as you make it!

Facebook page

The Great Falls Bicycle Club has a Facebook page! However, we currently have few fans. Please add yourself as a fan. You should be able to find it by searching for "Great Falls Bicycle Club." Also, feel free to add photos, videos and post info about upcoming events.

Important: read a letter from the City of Great Falls about construction of mountain-bike trails on city-owned property.

Great Falls Bicycle Club