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Hello Free Wheelers,                                                                     February 2024

Since my last message to the membership, the calendar has turned from 2023 to 2024 and we are in the final few days of the current club fiscal year.  But before we close the book on 2023, I want to give you all a summary of some of our accomplishments this past year.

There were 1,279 reported rides for 2023 – 190 more than in 2022 - and the club rode a cumulative 346.200 miles, another record.  We had rides in every class from A+ to D+ and overall, 43 ride leaders qualified for jerseys (2 more than in 2022) and 62 members led at least one ride.  The number of rides over the past three years tower over the prior 20 years when viewed graphically below.

Before we get too far into 2024, I want to thank our VP-1, Christine Resnick, and all those who worked tirelessly alongside her to make our Annual Holiday Party at the Princeton Elks Lodge a success. She stepped into huge shoes taking over the social event chair from Andy Chen last year, and she did a tremendous job across all the events despite some weather challenges at the Spring Fling and Fall Picnic, and the heat on Independence Day.

We are but a few days away from the start of the next club fiscal year, and 2024-25 will bring some new faces to the Princeton Free Wheelers Board of Trustees as one of the five board members who have expiring terms has decided not to seek re-election.  Departing the Board after February 29 will be Ken Webber (Secretary).  The other four who are sought re-election are Mike Valazza (President), Sue Moser (VP-2/Ride Captain) and Mindy Newman (Member-at-Large), while Andy Abere (Member-at-Large) decided to run for vacant Secretary position.  Jeff D. Lippincott expressed interest in becoming a candidate for a Member-at-Large position.  With none of these five candidates facing opposition, there was no need for a formal election to held between Thursday, February 22 and Tuesday, February 27 and the new Board will be certified on Friday, March 1^st.

The Board of Trustees for the 2024-25 Club Year will be:

• President:  Michael Valazza pfwclubpresident@gmail.com
• VP-1/Social Events: Christine Resnick  christineresnickpfw@gmail.com
• VP-2/Ride Captain:Sue Moser  ngapdog@aol.com
• Secretary:Andy Abere  andrewabere@gmail.com
• Treasurer: Karen Baldino  pfwtreasurer@gmail.com
• Member-at-Large (Club Jerseys): Heddy Bartell  rxonly8904@gmail.com
• Member-at-Large (Advocacy): David Speis   therave17@verizon.net
• Member-at-Large (Human Relations): Mindy Newman  ebwein@comcast.net
• Member-at-Large (Insurance): Jeff Lippincott  jlippincott1@verizon.net

Also serving on the Board in appointed positions will be:

• Webmaster:Jim Brittain  pfweditor@gmail.com
• Membership Director:Marilyn Saywell  pfwmembership@gmail.com

I am also pleased to report that, although we will miss his insightfulness on the Board and thoroughness as Club Secretary, Ken Webber (pfwridesheets@gmail.com) will remain the collector and compiler of all the data from the Ride Rosters. 

Next, I want to mention some upcoming opportunities for us to get together.  The Annual General Membership Meeting will be held on March 4^th via Zoom.  Please be on the watch for a separate email for all the related details.

The speaker this year will be Joanna, representing the Dory Hotel in Italy.  Hotel Dory is a full-service bike hotel in the center of Riccione, just 80 meters from the Adriatic Sea. For over 25 years it has been a benchmark for cycling enthusiasts from all over the world who want to enjoy the unique beauty of Romagna and love trying local delicacies.  Hotel Dory offers programs to suit the needs of different types of cyclists: racing bikes, e-bikes, gravel bikes and mountain bikes. Multiple guided routes of varying difficulty are available for cyclists each day. Riders can switch between groups depending on the challenge they seek. You only need to take part in one of the picnics organized at the hotel’s country estate to really understand what it means to be in Romagna; a unique opportunity to discover traditions and combine a passion for cycling with a passion for great food. 

Several members of the Princeton Free Wheelers will be visiting the Dory in mid-May, coinciding with the Giro d'Italia bike race. The 13^th stage starts in Riccione on May 17^th and promises to be an exciting time at the hotel where you can become swept up in the energy of a world-class bicycle race. There may still be spaces available to sign up.  Consult the Ride Calendar or contact Dave Speis for more details about the PFW trip or visit the Dory Hotel website for general information: www.hoteldory.it.

In addition to the General Membership Meeting, there will be a Ride Leaders Information Meeting – for current ride leaders and anyone who is interested in considering becoming a Ride Leader.   This meeting will be held via ZOOM on March 25^th at 6:30 PM.  Our club can never have too many ride leaders.  Please consider attending if you are the slightest bit inclined to consider it. If you have a specific topic you want discussed or any question for this meeting, please send it to me at pfwclubpresident@gmail.com or to any of the board members.

Looking ahead, mark your calendars as the Spring Fling will be held on Saturday, April 27^th at Tall Cedars Picnic Grove in Hamilton.  There we will honor the 43 Ride Leaders who led 10 or more rides in 2023 with our latest Ride Leader Jersey, designed by Heddy Bartell.  We will also have arm warmers for the 13 Leaders who led 30 or more rides and for the 4 Sweeps that swept on 10 or more rides.

Without these Ride Leaders, the Princeton Free Wheelers would cease to have reason to exist!  My heartfelt thanks to each of the Ride Leaders and Sweeps.

Well, that’s “As I See It”.

Happy Pedaling!

Michael (Mike) Valazza

President of the Board of Trustees

pfwclubpresident@gmail.com