The Williamsburg Area Bicyclists first published a "route book" titled "Williamsburg Area Bike Rides" in 2005.  It was subsequently updated in 2009.  We are now in the process of updating it again.  This is considered a fairly major revision since we are re-visiting each route to determine "keep/change/delete" and for those we are not removing, we re-creating the routes on Ride With GPS.  As these routes are revised, they are being uploaded to the Cue Sheet library, in the "WAB Route Book" category. 

In order to get member input on the new revised Cue Sheets, as well as to offer our members some additional riding opportunities, a series of Ride the Route Book rides will be organized over the next several months.   Note, these will normally be very casual rides since we want to focus on checking the Cue Sheets and Maps.  In fact, if you see any good photo opportunities, it would be helpful to take pictures as well, since we will also be updating the photos in the Route Book.  

3/7/2019

Intent of these guidelines: 

1. Clarify the purpose of the Message Board so members know what is and isn’t appropriate to post
2. Minimize unwanted or unnecessary e-Mails to members
3. Discourage any postings that members may find offensive, off-topic or irrelevant

Purpose of Message Board:

The timely communication of information to WAB membership related to the following topics:

1. WAB sponsored events (Regular or Special rides, Meetings, etc.)
2. Changes to such events as a result of weather or other conditions
3. Bicycle advocacy related topics if judged to be of general interest to the membership
4. Requests for volunteers for upcoming bicycling events
5. Other bicycling related topics as judged to be of general interest to the WAB membership

Good posting practices:

1. Be concise and clear.  Make sure to include Start location, date, time, expected distance, expected pace if posting information about an upcoming ride
2. Include links to more information where helpful, such as cue sheets or external website addresses.
3. Provide your phone number and/or e-Mail address to enable members to contact you if needed.

Replying to a post:

If you have a reply which is of general interest to the membership, login to the website, go to the specific Message Board post and click on "Reply Topic".  Note that a replyi sent in this manner will be seen by all members.  If you have a personal reply or a reply that would not be of general interest, then send an eMail to the poster.  In many cases, the poster may have included their eMail address in the post.  If not, then you can send a personal eMail to any member by logging into the website, locate the member under the Member Directory (in the Members Only menu), click on the member name and then click on "Send Email".

In any case, do not reply to the eMail notification of the message board post, since that is only meant to be a read-only notification. 

Practices to be avoided:

1. Posting on topics not listed above (Purpose of Message Board).  Examples:
   • Advancing a personal agenda
   •  Non-bicycling related topics
   • Announcing local non-WAB rides such as bike shop rides
   • Marketing or product solicitation
   • Topics related to religion or politics
   • Jokes
2. Posting a specific question or comment as a reply to a post that is not of general interest. (Exp: “Thanks – see you there”).
3. Topics that solicit or prompt a discussion. The Message Board is intended to communicate information, not to be a discussion board.
4. Posts containing profanity or sexual content or are otherwise offensive. Such posts will be removed and offending members subject to loss of website privileges.

Bicycle Rides are the heart of what we do!  

Without bicycle rides, we would have no club and without members willing to lead rides, we would have no rides!  We are proud of our leaders and grateful for those that step forward and volunteer.   We have regularly scheduled rides on Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays year round (weather permitting) and that is awesome.   We also have other "special" rides offered throughout the year as well.   But there are plenty of "open slots" for more rides and we are striving to make the process to lead a ride as easy as 1 - 2  - 3!

 1 - Plan Your Ride

The obvious first step is to plan your ride.  This involves:

1. Select a date.  Look at our ride calendar and find a day when your ride would not conflict with another ride in the same classification already on the schedule.  Most Saturdays and Sundays are open at this time.  If you schedule the ride far enough in advance, it will be included in the Flying Wheel newsletter.  To get in the newsletter, your ride will need to be scheduled by the 15th of the prior month.
2. Decide on a pace and distance.  The pace and distance will probably be the pace you are most comfortable with - after all - you are the leader!   
3. Develop or pick a route.  We are starting to establish a library of Cue Sheets and over time we hope this will become a valuable resource for our leaders and members.  You can pick a route from the library, develop your own route or use a route you've done before.  
4. Get acquainted with our Ride Leader Guidelines.  Most of these are common sense, but if you haven't yet led a ride, you should familiarize yourself with these guidelines.
5. Review the Accident Report Forms and related instructions.
6. Print off one or two copies of the Ride Sign-in Sheet.  Make sure you bring this along to the ride for members to sign-in.  This is important for insurance purposes.

 2 - Propose Your Ride

We have developed a simple web page for you to enter the relevant information related to your ride.  On this page you will enter the following:

1. Name of the ride
2. Ride Date
3. Ride Time
4. Start Location
5. Leader's Name
6. Description of the Ride

In addition, on this screen you can either select a Cue Sheet from the library or provide a link to a Cue Sheet on an external website.  The inclusion of the Cue Sheet is helpful but not required.

After you click on the Submit button, your proposal will be forwarded to the WAB Ride Coordinator who will review your proposal.  As soon as the Ride Coordinator approves your ride, it will be added to the club calendar.  You will be notified via e-Mail when approved.

 3 - Post Your Ride

As mentioned above, your ride will be added to the Ride Calendar when approved.  However, in order to further communicate and promote your ride, we recommend you post your ride to the Message Board.  Most members receive a daily digest of message board posts via e-Mail so this is the best way to "get the word out".   The Message Board is also the best way to communicate any changes, such as weather related cancellations.

That's all there is to it!  If you have any questions please contact the club ride coordinator at ridecoordinator@wabonline.org.

Leading a ride not only helps the club but can be a very rewarding experience for you as the leader as well.  Our members truly appreciate you!

Thanks for leading!

Planning Your Ride is the first step in the process of creating and leading a club ride.

This involves:

1. Select a date.  Look at our club calendar and find a day when your ride would not conflict with another ride in the same classification already on the schedule.  Most Saturdays and Sundays are open at this time.  If you schedule the ride far enough in advance, it will be included in the Flying Wheel newsletter.  To get in the newsletter, your ride will need to be scheduled by the 15th of the prior month.
2. Decide on a pace and distance.  The pace and distance will probably be the pace you are most comfortable with - after all - you are the leader!   
3. Develop or pick a route.  We are starting to establish a library of Cue Sheets and over time we hope this will become a valuable resource for our leaders and members.  You can pick a route from the library, develop your own route or use a route you've done before.   If you have a Cue Sheet you would like to add to the Cue Sheet Library you can do that on the  library of Cue Sheets page.  If you prefer, you can also e-Mail the Cue Sheet to webmaster@wabonline.org and it will be added to the library for you.
4. Get acquainted with our Ride Leader Guidelines.  Most of these are common sense, but if you haven't yet led a ride, you should familiarize yourself with these guidelines.
5. Review the Accident Report Forms and related instructions.
6. Print off one or two copies of the Ride Sign-in Sheet.  Make sure you bring this along to the ride for members to sign-in.  This is important for insurance purposes.

Click on the images below to download the Sign-in Sheet and Accident Forms

Sign-in Sheet

Accident Forms

Photo courtesy of Mary Turnbull