Helena Hunt | Hometown Bicycles

A Bike Shop Within a Bike Shop + Young Women’s Event TUESDAY!

Posted on March 7, 2019 by Shaun

BIG News! (Drum roll, please…)
It was announced at our Where to Ride in Michigan clinic this past weekend, and now we can share our exciting news with everyone!

Hometown Bicycles has partnered with Midwest Bike & Tandem!

Pictured above is Joel Hakken, owner of Midwest Bike & Tandem, which will now be located HERE, with our fearless leader, Shaun. A bike shop within a bike shop?? This much excitement means it’s gotta be Hometown!

How our partnership with Midwest Bike & Tandem benefits YOU!

Enjoy exploring fresh new products and bicycles!
Draw from the deep expertise of industry master, Joel Hakken! Joel will be a regular addition to our shop, where you can tap his ocean of bike know-how.
We’re becoming your Midwest resource for all things tandem!
Know that YOUR BIKE SHOP is GROWING!! In an industry that’s facing weighty challenges and stiff online competition, you can be PROUD that you’re part of a bike shop that’s evolved beyond “just a business” – and has grown into a COMMUNITY.

Stay tuned for a feature on Joel in next week’s newsletter!

Young Women’s Entrepreneurship Clinic

NEXT TUESDAY (3/12) from 6-7:30PM!

Join us for an amazing guest speaker, Q&A panel, refreshments and GIRL POWER!

We are super stoked to announce our guest speaker for this event: Jennifer Matras, Owner and Head Skating Coach at Competitive Edge Skating. With over 25 years of skating and training experience, Jennifer is a highly sought after skill development instructor AND a fabulous female business owner. All attendees will receive a complimentary PDF copy of Jennifer’s book, Building an Uncommon Champion.

Guest panelists include Samantha Brish of Element Chiropractic & Wellness, Phaedra McGaffey of Sea of Myth Entertainment, and Kelly Cieslak of Keepers by Kelly Photography. These ladies, along with Jennifer, will share their journeys and answer your questions about female entrepreneurship and how to turn your dreams into reality.

Sign up HERE!

Our Female Entrepreneurship series is brought to you by your Hometown women, Dawn and Leslie, who are both business owners and big proponents of girl power!

Where to Ride in Michigan Clinic Recap!

Wow, wow and WOW! What a fantastic turnout on Sunday evening at our Potluck Party! Over 90 people attended to learn about the best trails, rides, cycling websites and organizations locally and throughout our beautiful state. We had a mouth-watering smorgasbord of tasty treats and lots of high energy crowd camaraderie.

New and returning Team Hometown Bicycles members gathered to kick off the spring season, and we couldn’t be happier to have seen all of you there.

Huge thanks to ALL of our guest speakers and participants:

Jim Plaunt with Bike Tour Vacations
Sarah Vano with MiSCA
Nick Proctor and Jacob Andrews with Tour de Livingston
Tom Hermann of Team Hometown
Team Captains Mike Dyer & Joe Ostervik
Helena Hunt with Make-a-Wish

At the event, we also handed out our official 2019 Spring/Summer Shop Rides schedule, BUT
by popular demand, there has been an addition since then:

Ladies Beginner Road Ride
Thursdays at 5:15pm, Beginning in April
This will be a comfortably-paced, fitness road ride with your fellow Hometown women. It’s about skill-building and socializing, not speed. No drop ride!

Make sure to print or pick up your Shop Ride copy!

You did WHAT?!?!
Crossing Lake Huron… by bike!!

What started out as a bucket-list item turned into a CHECK mark for two Team Hometown riders. Andrew Miller (one of our Hometown Crew!) and wife, Kristen Kendall-Miller, made the trip to the UP and rode what may be one of the most epic rides ever!

The intrepid duo loaded up their fat bikes and drove up to St. Ignace, just

across the Mackinac Bridge, where their adventure began. Andy had been watching weather data and local info about what is known as “The Ice Bridge”. This is actually a frozen portion of Lake Huron connecting the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to Mackinac Island.

“It’s a lot like Fight Club when it comes to getting reports on the condition of the route. Nobody will go on any kind of record as to what is happening with it other than it is being used,” Andy said.

The couple definitely got a few strange looks when they talked with the ice golfers at the edge of the Great Lake.

Then it happened; they rode the 3.8 miles across water that is usually crossed by ferries, and were treated to a standing ovation by a group of about 10 snowmobilers who were waiting to purchase their ride permits for the island.

“The ranger instructed them, and us, that we did not have to purchase these… and that the DNR should be paying US for riding over to enjoy the island on bikes,” Kristen mentioned.

After an 8.2 mile loop around the island, it was time to call it a day and get back across the ice before dark.

The ride back had the added feature of a 15-20 mph northwest breeze, which slowed the pair down but didn’t stop them from completing a unique Michigan adventure… riding The Ice Bridge!

Hometown’s Business Incubator Rental Space!

We have a major project going on in Hometown’s back room – a buildout that includes a new business incubator rental space!

What is a business incubator? Business incubators are organizations that offer startups shared operation space. In short, they offer fledgling young companies a warm, safe place to grow and prosper.

Our incubator will be ideal for:

Business meetings
Networking groups
Fitness classes
Startup churches
Kids programs
Arts/crafts programs and classes

Hometown’s business incubator will be available for hourly rentals. If you would like to learn more, contact Dawn at office@myhometownbicycles.com.

Grand Opening coming SOON!

FITNESS CLASSES AT HOMETOWN BICYCLES

Cardio Drumming | Wednesdays 6 PM
$5 drop-in / $5 equipment rental – With Martha Soraruf |Click to learn more

Power 30 | Wednesdays 7 PM
$5 drop in – With Martha Soraruf | Click to learn more

Zumba | Mondays 6 PM & Thursdays 9:30 AM
$8 drop in or “10 classes for $60” punch card – With Leslie Barrett | Click to learn more

Zumba GOLD | Fridays 9:30 AM
$8 drop in or “10 classes for $50” punch card – With Tresa O’Rourke | Click to learn more

intenSati | Sundays 10 AM
$10 drop in – With Dawn Gaden | Click to learn more

Filed under: Hometown Bicycles | Tagged: Andrew Miller, Andy Miller, best bicycle repair, best bicycle service, best bike repair, best bike service, bicycle clinics, bicycle rentals, bicycle repair, bicycle service, bicycle shop, bicycles, bike clinics, bike rentals, bike repair, bike rides, bike service, bike shop, Bike Tour Vacations, bikes, Brighton, Cardio Drumming, Competitive Edge Skating, cycling, cyclists, Dawn Gaden, Element Chiropractic and Wellness, fat bikes, fat tire bikes, Female Entrepreneurship, fitness classes, group rides, Helena Hunt, Hometown Bicycles, Hometown Bikes, Hometown Business Incubator, Hometownies, intenSati, Jacob Andrews, Jennifer Matras, Jim Plaunt, joe ostervik, Joel Hakken, Keepers by Kelly Photography, Kelly Cieslak, Kristen Kendall-Miller, Lake Huron, Leslie Barrett, livingston county, Mackinac Island, Make-A-Wish Michigan, Martha Soraruf, Michigan, Midwest Bike and Tandem, mike dyer, misca, Nick Proctor, Phaedre McGaffey, Samantha Brish, Sarah Vano, Sea of Myth Entertainment, shop ride schedule, shop rides, Team Hometown Bicycles, The Ice Bridge, Tom Hermann, Tour de Livingston, Tresa O’Rourke, where to ride in michigan, zumba, Zumba Gold | Leave a comment »

Birthday Photos, Barry Results, and Earth Day Activities

Posted on April 27, 2018 by Shaun

A VISUAL HAYRIDE THROUGH HOMETOWN’S 8TH BIRTHDAY PARTY
Last Sunday’s BIG Hometown birthday bash was a thing of beauty… full-out Spring and over 100 in attendance! It was a sight to be seen, so I’ve pulled together a few photo highlights to give you a flavor for the fun that was had! (Special thanks to Team member, Paula Zimmer, for good-naturedly stepping into the role of event photographer!)

ABOVE: The day kicked off with birthday gifts, games, and prizes for all of the loyal Hometownies who came to celebrate with us!

ABOVE: No Hometown party would be complete without a birthday bike ride! This one was hopping with eager beavers who’d been just itching for warm weather to hit.

ABOVE: Grill Master Mike worked his behind-the-grill wizardry yet again, serving up a delicious stream of hot dog after burger after hot dog to a whole lotta hungry Hometownies. Birthday cake added a sweet finale to a perfect party picnic.

ABOVE: Helena was a personable and welcome addition to our family event, spreading the word and answering questions about Make-A-Wish’s famous Wish-A-Mile charitable bike tour. We also had a Hometown first, courtesy of the Andres family – first baby tooth to fall out at one of our events! (Hope the tooth fairy was generous!)

ABOVE: The best part of any Hometown event is the friendships forged and memories shared.

Hometownies, I told you presents weren’t necessary, but you went ahead and gave us a tidal wave of loyalty, love, and other heart-warming sentiments to remind us of why we do what we’re doing and who we’re doing it for anyway. Thanks so much for coming out to celebrate with us. Happy 8th Birthday, Hometown Bicycles!

DAWN GETS TO THINKIN’…

If you’ve been a regular reader of these newsletters, you know that, every now and then, I get bit by the contemplation bug. Turns out, eight years of awesome makes your newsletter correspondent reflective…

I’ve been thinking – vanity or not, I’m button-busting proud of our shop. Intensely proud. Hometown is unmatched for loyalty. We may be “small”, but we’re resourceful. We may be young, but we’re hard-core committed. We may be boat-rockers, but we’re changing the landscape of what customers should and do expect from their bike shop. We’re fake-free, we operate with integrity, and we roll with a strong belief in karma.

I consider it a reality of Hometown that for every ounce of pride I feel, YOU should carry it in equal measure. We are, to a large degree, a reflection of you! Shaun and I and the Crew can give it all we’ve got, but Hometown doesn’t amount to diddly without you giving it wheels to roll on.

Every time you tell a friend to shop here, share our fliers, and bring someone along on a shop ride, you’re literally growing Hometown… AND your ownership in it. Every time you spend a dollar here, you’re making an investment in developing a resource – YOUR resource – for all things cycling. You’re basically telling the world what kind of shop you deserve, and building it along the way!

I really believe that’s the coolest thing about Hometown – in so many ways, its a by-the-people-for-the-people type thing. You’re “the people”. You’re HOMETOWN people. And that is definitely something you can be proud of.

Thanks again for supporting us eight year’s strong, Hometownies… here’s to the next eight!

(A few of the happy Hometownies who enjoyed the great weather at this year’s Barry Roubaix!)

TEAM NEWS: HAVING A “BARRY” GOOD TIME

An extraordinary 28 Team Hometown riders (that’s over a quarter of our Team! WOW!) raced last Saturday at the world’s largest gravel road bike race, Barry-Roubaix. They left their mark on the course, and I’m not just talking about tire tracks in the “plush”, freshly graded roadways!

Seven times, our Team took the podium. Congratulations go to Meghan Terbush and Jordan Richter, placing 2nd and 4th consecutively in their division; Roger Pelkey nabbed 5th place in his age group; Colin Chisholm owned his age group’s 3rd place position; Jack Riddle and Joe Ostervik killed it with 1st and 2nd in their division; and Jack Riddle podiumed again in 4th place OVERALL, thanks to his 5 minute lead!

We are “Barry” proud of you, Team! (Ok, ok – I’ll stop!) Be sure to check out the race photos on our Facebook page. Now, it’s on to Mud, Sweat & Beers – tally-ho!

HOMETOWN HELPS WITH MiSCA LEADERSHIP TRAINING

We’d also like to give a shout out to avid Team Hometownie and cyclist, Jean Steinberg, who gave up the chance to party hearty with us last weekend, so that she could advance the future of youth cycling!

Jean worked with about 20 MiSCA coaches on Ride Leading and Teaching MTB Skills as part of the new 2018 Coach Training program, which was held in a small local park in East Grand Rapids. Way to support the future of our sport, Jean!

HOMETOWN DOES EARTH DAY AT THE MILLPOND

With the weather creeping back towards lovable, last Saturday’s Downtown Brighton Earth Day expo found Hometown Service Tech Joe running Tire Toss in a t-shirt at this environmental awareness event. Our thanks to Dave Richardson and the Greater Brighton Area Chamber Environmental Council, for the opportunity to participate!

(Between kayaking the Millpond with Heavner Canoe & Kayak Rental, eating flowers – no joke! – with Stone Coop Farm, meeting the green folk at Whatever It Takes Sanctuary, and admiring the owl and fowl brought by Howell Nature Center, the kids and I had an absolute blast!)

WE’RE HIRING – STOP IN AND APPLY!
Creating the magic of Hometown is no small thing, and we don’t hire lightly, but we do offer positions that are meaningful and make a real difference in the lives of customers, our community, and the cycling industry. We currently have openings for:

Part-Time Social Media Specialist
Helps market and share the Hometown culture on social media. Must be social media savvy, highly organized, an excellent writer, and skilled in photography. Graphic design skills a plus.

Part-Time Events Coordinator
Coordinates and manages on- and off-premises shop events of all types. Must be highly organized, creative, detail-oriented, an excellent communicator, sociable, and enthusiastic.

Full- and Part-Time Service Techs
Provides reliably outstanding technical bike service. Some technical knowledge preferred. Must be self-motivated, detail-oriented, focused, and a quick learner.

Full- and Part-Time Sales Associates
Provides reliably outstanding customer service, including sales, cashiering, and shop organization and cleanliness. Must be self-motivated, detail-oriented, sociable, enthusiastic, and a quick study.

Drop by our shop, introduce yourself, and pick up an application. You’ll never know unless you try!

THIS WEEK’S SHOP RIDES

Pop-Up Mountain Bike Ride – Intermediate/Advanced
SATURDAY, APR 28 | 10AM (MEET BY 9:45AM) | FROM JANOWSKI FIELD TRAILHEAD
Join us as we explore some brand new trail in Proud Lake, riding a new connector around the campground that links Proud Lake to Hickory Glen. We will also head into the hidden gem of Milford Trail. Plan for ~15-20 miles. Meet at Janowski Field Trailhead, 301 Peters Rd., Milford (between GM and Commerce Roads). Check Facebook for Ride confirmation and changes!

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Hartland Gravel Grinder – Intermediate/Advanced
SUNDAY, APR 29 | 9:00AM (MEET BY 8:45AM) | FROM HARTLAND TWP HALL
Come enjoy beautiful, HILLY country roads and wonderful ride company. Expect several TOUGH, LONG CLIMBS, at an average 14 – 15 MPH pace for all 28.2 miles. The group may split into 2, with the front pack averaging > 15 mph. (Check out Dan’s Gravel Grinding 101 ride for a less grueling option.) Cross/Gravel, Mountain and Fat bikes are welcome. Meet in the Hartland Twp. Hall lower parking lot (turn right once in the drive) at 2655 Clark Rd. Check Facebook for ride confirmation and changes!

***Rent a Fat Bike at the shop!***

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Beginner Friendly Road Ride
MONDAY, APR 30 | 6:00PM (MEET BY 5:45PM) | FROM HOMETOWN
This one’s for the beginner rider who wants to increase mileage and speed. We’ll ride the well-known “to-the-Green-Dumpster-and-back” loop (~12-15 miles), or more for those who are ready. A and B groups will average 10-15+ mph. Road bikes only! Please have some experience on your bike, along with basic shifting and braking skills for the safety of the group. Beyond that, we’ll share some tips to make the hills easier and the flats faster! Check Facebook for ride confirmation and changes!

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Advanced Skills & Drills
TUESDAY, MAY 1 | 6:00PM (MEET BY 5:45PM) | FROM HOMETOWN
Want to learn to ride with a peloton? This ADVANCED, road warrior training is led by our Team racers! You’ll learn and practice: draft lines, hill repeats and intervals. Come ready to work hard. Bring a cadence sensor, speed sensor, and heart rate monitor. No Drop! Check Facebook for ride confirmation and changes!

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Ladies’ Road Ride
TUESDAY, MAY 1 | 6:30PM (MEET BY 6:15PM) | FROM HOMETOWN
Ladies, this one’s just for you! This weekly, road ride is for gals of all ability levels. We’ll ride the well-known “green dumpster” loop at Island Lake (~14 miles) at a conversational, 10mph pace. All bikes welcome, NO DROP RIDE. Afterward, relax, connect, and rehydrate with your new biking friends. BYOB!Check Facebook for ride confirmation and changes!

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Gravel Grinding 101
WEDNESDAY, MAY 2 | 6:00PM (MEET BY 5:45PM) | FROM HOMETOWN
Ride with your Hometown bike guru, CycloDan Tribble! Front and rear light required, as we end at dusk. This ride weaves through and around Island Lake, covering 13+ miles of pavement, dirt trails and gravel roads (a few hills just for fun!) at an average 12-13 mph. Expect a “puddle” or two of sand and a few face slappers on the trails this time of year. Nothing our gravel, adventure or mountain/fat bikes can’t easily handle. Skinny tire bikes will NOT work for this ride. All levels welcome – NO DROP RIDE. Check Facebook for ride confirmation and changes!

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Ladies Only Beginner Mountain Bike Ride
THURSDAY, MAY 3 | 6:30PM (MEET BY 6:15PM) | FROM HOMETOWN
Ladies, come learn beginning mountain bike skills! We’ll tackle the trails in manageable bites, with the empowering support of skilled and supportive Hometown women. We’ll ride together to Island Lake Recreation Area, and focus on taking the fear and uncertainty out of riding the trails! No Drop. Check Facebook for ride confirmation and changes!

CLICK HERE for our 2018 Spring/Summer Daily Shop Rides Schedule!

FITNESS CLASSES AT HOMETOWN BICYCLES

Many of you are familiar with the rockin’ beats and great cardio that take place weekly on our showroom floor. But for those who haven’t yet experienced fitness classes at Hometown, or simply want a high-energy pick-me-up, here are a few classes you’ll absolutely want to try!

CARDIO DRUMMING | Wednesdays at 6:00PM
$5 drop in / $5 equipment rental – With Martha Soraruf
Click to learn more

ZUMBA | Mondays at 6:00PM & Thursdays at 9:30AM
$8 drop in or “10 classes for $50” punch card – With Leslie Barrett
Click to learn more

I have a thing for tools. (So do we, Tim!)

~ Tim Allen
Be sure to check out the limited edition Home Improvement bike on loan from Bruce & Betsy of Advanced Metal Alloy when you drop your bike off for a tune-up. One of only 201 in the world!