Twin Rivers Cyclists - a brief history

RIP Twin Rivers Cyclists 1986 - 2017

Twin Rivers Cyclists, Inc. was born 10 Dec 1986 when the nine member initial board with Russ Morgan as the president approved the by-laws and submitted them to the Idaho Secretary of State for approval. It might be argued that this was a reorganization of the 1890's Lewiston Bicycle Club. Other than this photo and an article on Ed Arant republished in a 2002 club newsletter, we weren’t able to dig up much on the earlier version of the club.

ORIGINAL CAPTION:   The sport of the day was bicycle riding and most people had one even though bicycles were expensive at $100.00 to $125.00.  A bicycle club was organized.  The 50 members enjoyed short local trips for picnics.  Some heartier riders often ventured to Lake Waha, a 22-mile, four-hour ride (and push).  The trip back was more fun and took only one and one-half hours.

The Lewiston Morning Tribune in their historic edition of 31 Oct 1999 stated this photo was taken at Asotin Creek in 1902, but that date doesn’t agree with Nezperce Historical Society estimates, and the historical society is unsure of the place the photo was taken.

I didn’t join the club until 1996 when my employer moved me to Cottonwood, but in 1997 I was transferred to Lewiston and became active in this club of over 100 members, with a 20 some member race team, and the loosely affiliated Crazy Ladies of about the same number. The Moscow-Pullman cycling club had just broken up and had just transferred its remaining funds and a few of its members to the club. That first year of my active participation saw TRC sending over 100 people (members and friends) to Tour des Lacs. What fun, all those people were well organized and had most of an Italian restaurant reserved in CDA where the overnight was, but we stayed in various CDA  motels. The club had weekly Thursday night Time Trials (with attendance typically in the 20's), Wednesday ice cream rides, and generally a longer ride on Saturday and a shorter one on Sunday afternoons in addition to the rides the race team did which other fast members were welcome to join. It also annually sponsored a local century, Pomeroy Pump Up the Pulse, the Devil’s Slide Mountain Bike Race, and an annual BBQ ride. About 1999 the Winchester Days Association asked the club to take over the “Bite the Bullet” citizen’s ride up the Old Winchester Grade from Culdesac to Winchester it had been sponsoring. In 2003 there were 53 paid Bite the Bullet riders. In 1997 the club started its annual ride to Wallowa Lake started as a Columbus Day weekend ride with an overnight at the lodge. The club’s biggest event, however, was the Twin Rivers Classic, an event that brought in over 200 racers from throughout the Northwest. Main Street was closed for the criterium, and other races were up the Old Winchester Grade in a route close to what we call the “Winchester Century”, Time Trials, and more that required support from most club members and various Lewiston area civil clubs and which was enthusiastically provided.

1999 TRC board members Kathy, John, Steve, Rep Duane Sommers, Nicki, and Debbie riding with Rep Sommers demonstrating the rumble strip quality of hwy 12's shoulder. With the Rep's assistance WA DOT would eventually roll out this shoulder which they had turned into a virtual rumble strip

1999 - 8 TRC members on Cycle Oregon, Mike, Steve, Nicki, Mike, Carol, Jill, Bill, and Kathy on a cold morning in Joseph Oregon

There was no Twin Rivers Classic Race in 1998 as the sponsor withdrew its considerable support and by the 1999 racing year, the TRC race team had broken up. Most of those young riders moved away, and the rest dropped out of the club. The club converted “Pump Up the Pulse” from a fee ride with a T shirt to a free ride which seemed to reduce participation, and that ride soon ended. The Winchester Day’s Association changed the day of Winchester Days without informing the club, and thereafter local support and ridership in that annual event began to fall. It eventually morphed into a no fee club ride from Lapwai to Winchester, but without fliers, fees, and “T” shirts  it lost the participation of non club members, and the local communities were oblivious to it, and it went the way of Pump Up the Pulse.

TRC 2000 annual Hiawatha Ride

Crazy Ladies Halloween ride 2003.  Sheila, Ted, Sandy, and  not identified, and Kathy - Gentlemen were always welcome to join the Crazy Ladies

In my early days in the club, the annual February business meeting was made more pleasant by making it the “Ice Cream Social” where board member were elected over ice cream sundaes, the event that kicked off the early cycling season. After the board organized itself and set the spring schedule of rides, the annual “membership drive” was held in March with presentation of the annual awards, a spaghetti fed, and potluck. Both events were held at Morgan’s Alley which Russ Morgan continue to allow us to use though he was no longer active in the club. Founding member and club president at the time, Jim Kleeburg, was a particularly entertaining M.C. at the annual membership drive and awards. He’s moved on to become the the mayor of Lewiston.

TRC's 2007 Joseph century ride - photo by Chandler Priebe

Pete Beall started a web page for the club long before that was the norm, and we soon moved into the electronic age unfortunately losing a few low-tech members on the way.  The last paper newsletter was sent out in January of 2004.   I moved back to Boise in 2005, so my knowledge thereafter is largely hearsay, but Corrie Rosetti took over as web master giving TRC a website to be proud of.   However, the club was shrinking as its largely baby-boom membership was augmented with few Gen X-ers or Millennials. The excellent website was largely displaced by FB by 2013.

2013 TRC Secesh Summit Ride with the Riddles: back: not identified, Sean, not identified, Corrie  front: Steve, Christy, Carol, Linda, Nicki, & Mike

TRC mountain bike ride circa 2014 on Craig Mountain - photo by Nicki Riddle

Crazy Ladies circa 2014 or 2015: unidentified, unidentified, Carol, Linda, Nicki, unidentified - photo by Nicki Riddle

2015 TRC has 6 members on Ride Idaho, Linda, Tom, Jennifer, Corrie, Steve, and Laurence

2015 TRC Jacques Spur Ride: Corrie, Jennifer, Carol, Sean, Nicki, Bill, Roger, and Christy

In Feb of 2017 when it was time for the annual business meeting, there was little interest in serving on the board, and less in the business meeting which wasn’t held, so as the board members’ terms expired, so did the club. Former members of the club continue riding together and use the name of the defunct corporation. A few significant rides are posted to their Google Calendar, but most rides are last minute invites on Facebook.

This is just a brief obituary of the club written from my perspective supported by the very few photos I have plus a few former members contributed photos added to the Facebook post, and those photos are added here, but unfortunately its weighted heavily to the time after 2004 or 2005 when digital cameras became standard.  I asked some of the founding members to fill in some details and add some photos so we have a better history of Twin Rivers Cyclists but no information or photos have been forthcoming.   I’d be happy to add some old group photos to this brief history or expand it with additional info from the founding members!

Happy cycling for fun, fitness, and transportation,

Steve Largent

originally posted on TRC's Facebook page on 6 April 2017