paulhus@euclid.DEC (Chris Paulhus 223-6871 MLO8-3/T13) (12/03/84)
ADVANCED NOTICE: NEAR '85 Aug. 8 to 11, 1985 UMass, Amherst, MA NEAR (New England Area Rally) is a bicycle rally modeled after the LAW GEAR rallies. A very successful NEAR rally was held in 1983 at Worcester, MA (ask anyone who attended - about 700 bikers). Due to burn-outs among many of the committee, we didn't have one in 1984. Since we just about filled up the Worcester site, we have moved the '85 rally to UMass-Amherst which can accommodate thousands. The Franklin-Hampshire Freewheelers are the host club with much work to be done by: AYH - Boston Council, The Charles River Wheelmen, The Granite State Wheelmen, The Nashoba Valley Pedalers, and the Seven Hills Wheelmen, in support of F-H F. Other area clubs will be asked to assist during the rally weekend. There will be: Workshops on various bicycle related topics Exhibits of " " " items Well over 500 miles of rides for all capabilities from 5 mile around-the-campus to centuries. Good food and parties, movies, etc. Dorm type housing (singles, doubles), bikes in room. I'll post the address for registration forms and a phone number for inquiries when I get them. There will be a menu of choices from 3 1/2 days of food and housing to one day walk-ins. We haven't got the prices nailed down yet but the range will top out at about $110 to 120. If anyone would like to give a workshop or knows of a commercial exibitor that hasn't been contacted already, let me know. I'll forward to the proper committee. So, if you live in the North Eastern part of the US or in Eastern Canada, or are planning a vacation in New England next August, put Aug. 8 to 11 on your calendar - NEAR! Second Topic: RECUMBENTS I'm the former director of the Avatar Owners Club, an international club for riders of the Avatar 2000 recumbent bicycle. I've given workshops on recumbents at NEAR '83 and GEAR-UP "84. I'd be pleased to answer questions of recumbent riding. Here's the answers to the most asked questions: They are about 7% faster on the flat (20% less drag, but you are working on a quadratic curve of drag vs. speed). I'm middle aged and in only fair shape but I did TFCE (Tiverton RI century) in 6:58 in '82. They do not use the big muscles that you sit on as efficiently as a diamond frame bike so they are less efficient sprinting and climbing hills (efficiency delta increases as power output increases - from 1% or less when cruising to over 10% at max effort - training decreases the delta). They are incredibly comfortable - the upper body is totally relaxed and breathing is not constricted. Safety is debatable - your sure are noticed so this offsets the lower position/reduced sight-line over a hill effect. Since a very small portion of bike accidents are hit-from-the-rear, I'm not concerned - I just watch my mirror! They will outbrake anything. If you like to meet people, it's one of the best conversation pieces in existence! The Avatar is still the Mercedes of the lot, but at $2400, few buy it now-a-days. It's seat is superior to the others. The Infinity is a square aluminum tubed bike from Indy. Good outfit, decent product. The Easy racer is a high-handlebar recumbent from Calif. Many beginners prefer the familiar feel of this bike. The DeFilece is another Indy bike - it the one I'd recommend if the Avatar is too $$. Round steel tubing, otherwise similar to Infinity. All but the Avatar have models in to $700 to $1000 range. If a major manufacturer puts one into mass production, expect the prices the range from $200 on up (same as diamond frame bikes). Again, I'll be glad to answer mail on recumbents, NEAR, IHPVA, and other topics on the fringe of bicycling. N. Chris Paulhus DEC-Maynard (617) 493-6871 decwrl!euclid!paulhus