Steam N Wheels

Steam N Wheels
Saturday March 15, 2008
Abilene, Texas



Saturday March 15, 2008, three riders from SABA received honors by placing in their categories in the Abilene Steam N Wheels 48 mile Race-Tour. Rick and Velma Ogan were second place in the Tandem Bike category and Christine Jones was third in the women’s 45+ category.



One of the great things about their accomplishment was that they were “touring” rather than starting at the front to race the whole distance. Also to their credit, it was a chilly 55 degrees at the start with a north wind. For almost the entire last half of the course there was a 12-14 MPH wind straight in the face.



Steam N Wheels is an annual Race-Tour sponsored by the City of Abilene Recreation Division and the Abilene Bicycling Club.



It features a kid ride, 21 mile, 32 mile, and a 48 mile race or tour route. Awards were given for the first three places in each division of the men’s, women, and tandem bike categories. The Abilene Reporter-News stated that almost 200 attended and attracted world-class riders. The course was rolling hill country with some flat roads. Personal observation, due to the wind direction, the wind was at the backs during the flat portion; of course not the hilly parts. Excellent traffic control support was provided by police, and the rest stations were stocked with drinks, bananas, cookies and friendly volunteers.

As the event is within easy driving distance from San Angelo, it is hoped that next year a good turn out from SABA will occur and a few more mugs from Abilene will be brought home.

Note: The above was a review of last year's event. This year Steam N Wheels will be held Saturday March 21. Registration form may be obtained by calling 325-676-6431, or emailing susan.gerred@abilenetx.com. Pre-registration deadline is March 13, 2009. Pre-registration fee is $20.00 and late registration fee is $25.00. Start time is 10:00 a.m. Last year we decided to attend at the last moment so we arrived a little early and easily registered at the site.

The 48 mile race/tour mentioned is just one of the choices. Steam N Wheels also has a 32 and 21 mile fun ride. Christine is trying to get together new comers to cycling and ride the 21 mile to expose newer bikers to the fun and excitement of organized tours.