Meet Our Board Members

Alan Apel

• Places lived: Topeka, and Monmouth and Joliet, Illinois.
• Bikes: My first 10-speed was a Schwinn Varsity. Moved up to a Schwinn Continental and then a Motobecane Grand Touring. I then custom-built a bike using a Cannondale frame (currently using as my commuter bike). Had a Specialized S-Works Roubaix (sold it!) and I am currently riding a Giant Defy Advanced 1.
• Upcoming rides: Signed up for Cabin Fever, Pasta 58, and MS Bike Ride. Helping with Capitol Classic and Cottonwood 200. Planning on riding Tour of Topeka and Firecracker 100 or Lizard Under the Skillet. I also try to make the Fairlawn Starter and lead the Sunday morning ride.
• Best time on a bike: Back in the '70s me and a friend rode our bikes from Topeka to Salina in two days. We took 24 Hwy from Topeka to Junction City and then back roads from Junction City to Salina. We were going to Salina for a week-long bike camp that went to Lincoln, Wilson, Great Bend, Ellsworth, and back to Salina.
• Why I'm a KVBC Board member: I wanted to know what was going on with the bicycle community and was then asked if I wanted to be Treasurer around 1995. I said yes and nobody has kicked me off.

Mike Baker

• Places lived: I was born in Wichita and have lived in Oklahoma, Missouri, & Kansas (twice).
• Bikes: I own four bikes. Two road bikes--one carbon and the other good old steel. I have two mountain bikes, one a hard tail and the other full suspension.
• Upcoming rides: No major upcoming rides planned, but I am helping with SAGs for the Capitol Classic and the Cottonwood 200.
• Best time on a bike: I love riding with friends. The most difficult ride that I have done is the Triple Bypass in 2004.
• Why I'm a KVBC Board member: I became a Board member to help with the direction of the club. Also, at the time I was leading mountain bike rides on the grounds of the Governor's mansion.

Erin Chamberlain

• Places lived: Utah, Indiana, Ohio, Oklahoma and Kansas.
• Bikes: 1997 Trek 1220, 2006 Trek Pilot 5.0 and a 2011 Trek Fuel EX 5.
• Upcoming rides: Horsey Hundred (Kentucky), Biking Across Kansas (Kansas), RAGBRAI (Iowa), and Hilly Hundred (Indiana).
• Best time on a bike: BAK is the best week of the year. Every day I meet great people, learn the history of small-town Kansas, and there are little moments each day that take me by surprise and become lasting memories. I've made some great friends on BAK.
• Why I'm a KVBC Board member: I've only lived in Kansas since 2008, so it began as a way to meet other cyclists in Topeka. I do also enjoy working to strengthen biking in our community.

Steve Ficke

• Places lived: After growing up in Wichita, next stop was Manhattan. Four years later, I graduated from KSU in '67. Viet Nam interrupted graduate school and resulted in my wife Jan and I living on Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean for two and a half years where I listened to the Israelis as a Hebrew interpreter for the U.S. Navy. Thank goodness, didn't get near Nam. After grad school in Emporia we settled in Clay Center, Kansas for 33 years before moving to Topeka in '07. We're now halfway between our kids and four grandkids (Wamego and Kansas City).
• Upcoming rides: GRABAAWR along the Wisconsin River in June, and I'll also do the Firecracker 100 in Ottawa and the Lizard in July. Then Jan and I will head to Colorado for the one-day Copper Triangle ride near Dillon on August 4th. Should be a challenge since I won't have any time to acclimate to altitude. Just after Labor Day I'm planning to fly to Seattle with Brian and join some folks for a ride down the coast to San Diego. I'll probably wrap up the season with Octoginta.
• Best time on a bike: Best time on a bike was definitely on June 30, 2009 when two fellow riders and I pulled into Virginia Beach, Virginia, having left the Golden Gate Bridge 60 days before. Dipping our wheels in the Atlantic was extremely gratifying. The one segment I will never, ever ride again was U.S. 50 across Nevada. We rode supported by a truck with our gear--all motels and restaurants. I'm proud to say I never SAGged!
• Why I'm a KVBC Board member: I joined the KVBC board due to Bill Lucero's pleading and begging. Seriously, I wanted to make some sort of contribution to the area cycling effort as I feel it is very misunderstood by the general public both at the local level and as a professional sport. I try to be an ambassador wherever I am to further the cause. Taking on the treasurer's job is still an experiment, but I hope I can stick it out with Alan Apel's help.

Heath Glenn

• Places lived: Wichita (growing up); Manhattan, Kansas (college); Providence, Rhode Island; Dyersburg, Tennessee; Topeka (post-college).
• Bikes: Trek Madone, Trek mountain bike, Co-Motion tandem, and a '76 Schwinn Scrambler BMX in restoration.
• Upcoming rides: Capitol Classic, Cottonwood 200, Bike Across Kansas, and the Mudwater and Prairie Punisher duathlons.
• Best time on a bike: Anytime I get to ride with my family. This year we will get to ride three generations for a few days on BAK. Also, I enjoy the rush of racing.
• Why I'm a KVBC Board member: I enjoy working with the other board members and the community to promote all forms of bicycling and a healthier lifestyle.

Bill Lucero

• Places lived: Born in Madison, Wisconsin; grew up in Seattle, Washington; lived in Topeka since 1970.
• Bikes: Trek Madone road and Trek 940 mountain.
• Upcoming rides: Cottonwood 200 and every Ol' Phogey Ride that I can make.
• Best time on a bike: Every time that I don't crash or flat. Even though I prefer road biking, the memories linger on rails-to-trails beauty. Probably the most spectacular location I've biked is the Mickelson Trail through the Black Hills of South Dakota. But I'm also fond of many spots on the Katy and Flint Hills Nature trails.
• Why I'm a KVBC Board member: I joined the Board five years ago to pursue advocacy issues for the club. I've hung around because working with KVBC Board members is almost as much fun as cycling.

Rebecca Martin

• Places lived: I’m a lifelong Kansan except for two years when I lived in Iowa.
• Bikes: My road bike (and my favorite ride) is a Sweetpea Little Black Dress with a powder-blue frame and bamboo fenders in damp weather. I commute on a Felt Cafe cruiser, and also have a Specialized Rockhopper 29er mountain bike.
• Upcoming rides: The club’s rides--Cottonwood 200, Capitol Classic, and Bruce Whaley Spirit Ride--are always my favorites. My husband and I try to bicycle on every vacation, and in the summer of 2012 we rode on the Erie Canalway Trail, the Burlington (Vermont) bike path, and the Niagara River Recreation Trail to Niagara Falls, where he took this photo (right).
• Best time on a bike: It’s hard to choose just one ride from so many great ones, but I’d have to say my favorite trips are commuting to work while watching Kansas’ great sunrises.
• Why I'm a KVBC Board member: One of the officers approached me after several years of club membership. I believe in volunteerism and was flattered to be asked to help with the club’s advocacy efforts. That’s the reason I joined. The reason I stayed is because I believe, as another Board member has often stated, that one person can make a difference. Our Board is full of directors who know they can make a difference, and that makes volunteering for the club an exciting ride.

Eric Nordgren

• Places lived: I’m a native Topekan, graduating from Topeka High in 1972 and K-State in 1976.
• Bikes: I’m riding a 2012 Trek Madone, a warranty replacement by Trek for my 2007 Madone which fell apart at 55,000 miles.
• Upcoming rides: I’ll be riding the Cottonwood 200 with my fourth son, Hans; and Biking Across Kansas with my first son Kjell and two-year-old granddaughter, Karis (who will ride in a child seat on the back of my 1991 Trek 2300).
• Best time on a bike: I’ve done an annual cancer support ride over the past seven years. Each year, I pick a local cancer patient and ride in support of that patient--usually between 250 and 340 miles in a single staged ride. I also lead a local bike group of 90 members called Topeka Road Riders (TRR).

Kevin Rice

• Places lived: I'm 55 years old and have lived in Topeka most of my life. I've worked for Hallmark cards for 37 years.
• Best time on a bike: I love to ride with my grand kids every Saturday morning. One of my favorite rides was when a friend and I did a wind ride from Oklahoma to Nebraska in three days. Staying active is very important to me.
• Why I'm a KVBC Board member: The reason I wanted to join the board was to try and get more youth involved in biking.

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Kaw Valley Bicycle Club, P.O. Box 4474, Topeka KS 66604
© 2011 KVBC