Upcoming events

It is with great sadness that we note the passing of our friend and longtime VCM member, Doug Shankle. Doug could always be found in front of the grill at the summer picnic, and we counted on him every year to pull a volunteer shift at the Sea Otter Gran Fondo. But most of all he was just a terrifically nice guy and we will miss him.

May Recap

The May Monthly Metric Century ride was held Sunday, May 3. The ride started in Santa Cruz. The small group, led by Rhiana Henry, rode up to Pescadero and back.

The Memorial Day Pie Ride was, no surprise, on Memorial Day. The weather was good, the turnout was excellent, and the pie was, as always, delicious.

The Velo Club unveiled a new kit design and you can purchase items now through June 15. Don’t miss out. Get your orders in early. Use this link

https://teamstore.pactimo.com/fe/stores/velo_club_monterey/show

Upcoming Club Activities

On June 17, from 7-9 p.m., we will hold a strength training circuit class designed specifically for cyclists at Balance Yoga and Wellness (318 Grand Ave., Pacific Grove). Every level of exerciser is welcome. There will be a social hour following the class with beer and wine provided. Please bring small bites to share. Space is limited so make sure to RSVP.

Save the date. The annual VCM summer picnic will be Sunday, August 9. Mark K. has once again agreed to host at the Coniglio Valley House. Details and a separate invitation will be sent in July.

VCM Marketplace

The new VCM Marketplace page is available for the local biking community to independently list biking items for sale. 

Upcoming Regional Events (Let us know if we missed something.)

6/6/26 – Gold Country Challenge – Grass Valley, CA

https://www.rotarygoldcountrychallenge.com/

6/7/26 – America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride – State Line, NV (Lake Tahoe)

https://pages.lls.org/events/home/ambbr2026

6/20/26 – Climb to Kaiser – Clovis, CA

https://fresnocycling.com/Climb-to-Kaiser/

6/27/26 – Giro Bello – Sebastopol, CA

https://girobello.com/

7/11/26 – Death Ride – Markleeville, CA

https://deathride.com/

8/1/26 – Marin Century – Novato, CA

https://marincentury.com/?_gl=1*w4t2j4*_ga*MTAxODkwMDI0My4xNzc3NjI1Njkz*_ga_ZCGNZSJTMB*czE3Nzc2MjU2OTIkbzEkZzAkdDE3Nzc2MjU2OTIkajYwJGwwJGgw

8/2/26 – Octennial Civilized Century – Redwood Shores, CA

https://www.civilizedcentury.com/

9/5/26 – Tour de Fuzz – Santa Rosa, CA

https://www.tourdefuzz.org/

9/12/26 – Mammoth Gran Fondo – Mammoth Lakes, CA

https://mammothgranfondo.com/

9/12/26 – The Bay Ride – San Francisco, CA

https://www.thebayride.com/

9/19/26 – Bike MS: Waves to Wine – Rohnert Park, CA

https://events.nationalmssociety.org/2722

9/26/26 – Bradley Bulldog Bicycle Bonanza – Bradley, CA

https://bradleybulldogbicyclebonanza.com/

9/26/26 – Lighthouse Century – Morro Bay, CA

https://www.slobc.org/lighthouse/

9/26/26 to 10/3/26– California Coast Classic – San Francisco to Los Angeles, CA

https://events.arthritis.org/californiacoastclassic?rp=%2Fcaliforniacoastclassic

MEMORIAL DAY PIE RIDE

MONDAY, MAY 25 

MEET AT DUST BOWL BREWERY PARKING LOT AT 8 A.M. OR PARK AT PEZZINI FARMS AND JOIN THE GROUP AS THEY PASS BY AROUND 9:00 A.M. 

Out and back route, 77 miles. https://ridewithgps.com/trips/86426887

Optional Mt. Madonna/Manresa Loop 100 miles.

https://ridewithgps.com/trips/81326882

The April Monthly Metric Century ride was held Sunday, April 5. More than 20 riders took on the hilly route on a beautiful day.

• VCM staffed the first two rest stops for the Sea Otter Classic’s Carmelo Gran Fondo on Saturday April 18. The weather was amazing, the riders were grateful, and Lou Zabala provided an excellent BBQ afterwards. THANKS LOU!

• Several VCM members provided bike marshals support for the Big Sur Marathon, Sunday April 26.

• Sunday, April 26, VCM sponsored an afternoon of games at Tipsy Putt in Cannery Row. Turnout was sparse. The board is interested in feedback as to why folks did not find this event appealing—venue, activity, time, day of the week, etc.?

Upcoming Club Activities

• The May Monthly Metric Century Ride will be Sunday, May 3. We are leaving for the peninsula for the start and heading up to Santa Cruz. The start time will be 9:30 a.m.  Rhiana Henry has graciously agreed to be ride leader. Meet her in the Safeway parking lot off Mission St. before 9:30. Here is the Ride with GPS route map: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/33034270

• Memorial Day Pie Ride will be Monday May 25. You will receive a sep

• The March Monthly Metric Century ride was held Sunday, March 1. The ride left from The Crossroads parking lot in Carmel, went out Carmel Valley Road to Cahoon Summit and back. The weather cooperated and riders made it back before the wind picked up.

• On March 17, several volunteers helped clean the bike path sponsored by VCM. Thanks to all those who participated.

• One missed item from February, huge thanks to Mark Chaffey for rounding up seven used bikes for donation to the Greenfield Science Workshop’s Bike Repair program. These bikes will be refurbished and provided to the community. This will be an ongoing effort so let Mark or Melvin know if you have a bike or bike parts to donate.

• Rain forced the cancelation of the annual New Year’s Day ride up to Cahoon summit, but most of the rest of January gave us spectacular riding weather.

• On January 10, VCM provided bike marshals for the Carmel-by-the Sea 5K. The 5K raised money for Girls on the Run.

• The VCM board met on January 14 to review 2025 and plan for 2026. The end of year financials showed a 2025 net operating income of $2331 due in large part to lower than anticipated expenses for the holiday party.

Upcoming Club Activities

• Tuesday, February 10, we will conduct our quarterly bike path cleanup. You will receive a separate email with details.

• The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am will run from February 12-15. This will force us to use alternate routes for the Saturday 2/14 rides. The rides will start in the usual locations and do a version of the Tuesday ride.

• Tuesday, February 17, we will have a movie night at Mad Dogs and Englishman bike shop in Carmel by the Sea. The movie will be 2 Seconds, the story of a professional downhill racer.

The December Monthly Metric Century ride was held December 7. The ride started at El Estero/Dennis the Menace Park, went out to Laguna Seca via Canyon del Rey Blvd., up the steps, down Barloy, out to Watkins Gate working our way back to the rec trail via Normandy and Coe. Once back in Monterey, riders headed around the water through Pebble all the way to Carmel River Beach, then back through Carmel, back into Pebble via the Hwy 1 Gate, up Huckleberry, out and back to Monterey.

The annual VCM Holiday Party at the Monterey Peninsula Yacht Club was a huge success. In addition to the food and dancing, donations for the Monterey Food Bank, and clothing for Friends of Al were collected. It was gratifying to see the generosity of VCM members.

Despite some iffy weather, the Santa ride took place on December 20. After a trip through Cannery Row and down the rec trail into Pacific Grove, riders made their way to Rich Cambell’s house for some light refreshments. Thanks Rich! From there we did a lap through downtown PG, back to the rec trail, back through Cannery Row, finishing at Dust Bowl Brewing. We raised $480 for Gathering for Women.

In early December, Mark Chaffey collected unwanted bicycles and bicycle parts to donate to the Greenfield Science Center for their Bike Education Lab/Bike Repair Workshop. He ended up with a van full of bikes and parts for this terrific program.

Unfortunately, the annual New’ Year’s Day ride up to Cahoon summit had to be canceled due to the weather.

The November Monthly Metric was held Sunday, November 2, taking the Carmel to Pezzini's via Pebble Beach route.

For the October Monthly Metric Century several riders tackled the Big Loop starting in Carmel Valley Village, over Laureles Grade, out River Road, and over Cahoon Summit. The route covered 87.1 miles with 5065 feet of climbing. The weather was excellent.

The Mad Dogs and Englishmen bike shop in Carmel-by-the-Sea hosted us for a fun filled Trivia Night. The competition was heated with a sudden death tie breaker required.

October 20/21 a large group headed down to Big Sur for riding and camping. There was a gravel ride Monday morning, a potluck dinner and pumpkin carving Monday evening, and a road ride Tuesday morning.

Thanks to all the volunteers who turned out for our regular bike path cleanup. We will do it again in January.

The annual Labor Day Pie Ride to Gizdich Ranch took place September 1 with an excellent turnout. Sorry, no pictures.

The annual VCM Summer Picnic and Ride was held Sunday, August 10. Fourteen riders tackled the Big Loop, and many others, including a large group of Juniors, rode up Cahoon Summit. A good time was had by all. Thanks again to Mark K. for hosting.

VCM members continued exploring the world on their bikes this summer. Kevin Cooper shared this photo of he and his wife Nancy biking through Denmark.