1989 - Arnie Baker

The club is hot. Cyclo-Vets opens 1989 with 172 members. There will be 300 members by the end of the year. The club will close the year with more than $10,000 in the bank. A promissory note from City of San Diego will be worth $100,000 in grants to promote Masters Nationals, Road and Track, for 1990 and 1991.

Meetings and Policies

Meetings continue to be Member meetings with an hour for business and an hour for refreshments and a seminar. Much time is spent formulating a bid and planning for the club’s promotion of both Road and Track Masters Nationals for 1990 and 1991. No organization has ever before attempted this double.

Training Rides

Club training rides are available every day of the week. Some days have multiple workouts from which to choose. There is a year-long weekly intraclub race series of roughly 20 events.

Race Promotion

The club promotes five races: Neiman Tech Criterium, Pacific Corp Center Criterium, Pacific Corp Center Circuit Race, and the District Championship Time Trial and Road Race.

Race and Event Results

For the first time, the club sends teams to both road and track nationals. Club members win 13 National Championships. Gordy Shields sets the Men 70+ record at Moriarty in 31:37:91. Pete Penseyres crosses the country in a record-setting 5 days, 1 hour, and 8 minutes. It is 2,920 miles with a HPV team of four.

The club wins 39 district medals and crowns 15 district champions. Cyclo-Vets all, Dan Wulbert, Ralph Myatt, Gary deVoss, and Pete Penseyres cross the Masters Road Race finish line together in an arranged dead heat, and, in a special ceremony, are awarded 4 Golds. In the time trial, Cyclo-Vets women sweep Women 35, Women 40, Women 45, and Women 50. Due to traffic congestion on the Lakeside course, the time trial moves to Buckman Springs. The January event is cancelled when temperature hits 20 degrees. All time trial records are owned by Cyclo-Vets.

Cyclo-Vet Tisha Whitney rides the hardest Women’s stage race ever promoted: Ore-Ida and goes on to win the Masters World Championships in St. Johann, Austria. Gordy Shields wins four Golds at the Senior Olympics. Arnie Baker medals in every District championship event: Time Trial, Road Race Track Kilo, Points Race Pursuit and Sprints, as well as all events at the California State Games. It is the club’s 4th Mexicali-San Felipe event. We have a total of 69 participants, including 14 tandems. Cyclo-Vets take 17 of first 20 places. Again, an end-on-the line party is sponsored by Mike and Judy Schnorr.

Newsletter

By May, the club newsletter lists the results of the first eight intraclub races. Roughly 70 riders participate in the events. Dan Wulbert continues to publish a race-analysis column in the newsletter, and David Nichols is still writing his Blow off the Back column. Arnie Baker publishes a column on stationary trainer workouts.

Sponsorship Brochure

The club assembles an 11-page sponsorship brochure.

Training Book

The club publishes a book on pacelines, interval and sprint training, hill climb, and riding etiquette. Mike McCollum, Dean Waldman, Jim Pea, and Norberto Caceres contribute.

Equipment

Cannondale sponsors a tandem team. Roughly half of its first year tandem production goes to the club. Clark Rasmussen offers his newly branded VeloMax wheels to fellow Cyclo-Vets at a discount. The cost is between $100 and $150 for two wheels. Years later, Easton buys the brand.

The Local Cycling Scene

Cyclo-Vet Forresta Von Kurt is still riding fixed-gear without a helmet on non-club rides. Fast
forward to 2007: Forresta is still riding without a helmet.

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