TOSRV 2008  –  47^th Annual
Final Report

2,554 riders and by all accounts, this was a good Tour over all. Sunny skies, warm weather, and even a tail wind on Saturday gave everyone a boost.  Sunday was a bit more typical of past years’ Tours and the best thing we can say about it was that there was still a bit of a tail wind.  The weather forecast was grim and lines of cars with bikes on roofs were heading north on Saturday evening and on Sunday morning.  Still, the volunteers of TOSRV made the operation that feeds, houses, transports baggage, protects, and administers the Tour look easy.

An Army of Volunteers

More than 300 volunteers spent the weeks preceding the Tour and Mother's Day weekend preparing for and supporting TOSRV. Phyllis and Alan South were again in charge of recruiting this army of volunteers. Registration processing was again held at the House of Pace and ran very smoothly under the leadership of Jim Redpath, Neil Ludban, and Terry Bradley. Friday Registration and Day Before the Ride Registration was under the able direction of my Assistant Tour Director Rick Hoechstetter and his assistant Terry Bradley. Saturday Morning Registration was again under the direction of Glenn Beachy, and Eve Holland and Greg Forst directed Sunday Check-in. Bill Duemmel managed the on-line registration process. We certainly appreciate the talented efforts of these fine folks.

Friday Night Registration

The Hyatt on Capital Square was our official host hotel for the tenth year, accommodating Registration on both Friday and Saturday, and Check-in on Sunday. Packet and merchandise distribution went very smoothly except for a long line of people who either did not remember to bring their confirmation letter or wanted a DBR application. Keith Mayton did his usual great job as our Vendor Coordinator. The popular "leftover table" did a brisk business in previous year's merchandise.  We always have some left over pre-ordered merchandise. If you did not pick up your merchandise this year, please send $3.25 to cover postage and we will send it to you.

The 2,554 registered riders included 1222 web registrations. We continue to see increases in riders who use the electronic option.  The PayPal feature we set up last year to allow someone registering through the website to pay for the registration with a credit card even if they are not a member of PayPal was very popular.  We were able to keep the website registration open past the April 14th deadline (April 29th) because the electronic records may be integrated with the current database with a command, where the mail-in applications must still be entered manually.

The Tour Route

TOSRV followed the same route as last year departing High Street at Dering and following Rohr and Pontius Pike to follow Walnut Creek Pike all the way into Circleville.  The detour at Post Road just before the turn onto Pontius worked as well as could be expected turning left onto London-Groveport Road and the stretch of Rohr under repair will be completed long before next year.

Safety

We would like to extend our deepest sympathies to the family of Dr. Crowley, who was killed in a bike-auto accident on U.S. 23 just south of Piketon on Sunday.   Safety is our biggest concern, which is why we implore riders to follow the Tour route and stay off of U.S. 23.

As always, we had the support of the Franklin, Pickaway, Ross, Pike, and Scioto County Sheriff's Departments, as well as the Ohio State Highway Patrol. The Highway Patrol asked ODOT to place the flashing signs at key locations again this year, alerting motorists to the presence of bicyclists. Law enforcement officials maintained a radio link with the Central Ohio Amateur Radio Emergency Services and the American Red Cross First Aid Service Corps, who make up our Emergency Response Teams. We are extremely grateful to these folks who dedicated their Mother's Day weekend to the safety of the Tour.

HAM Radio and American Red Cross Service Corps

The Central Ohio Amateur Radio Emergency Service (COARES) and the American Red Cross Service Corps worked as a team to respond to all emergency situations along the TOSRV route. COARES was under the direction of Rich Jordan assisted by Dick D'Auteil. Eighty HAM radio operators, which included communicators from both the Portsmouth area and Chillicothe, used a network of repeaters covering the entire 100 miles of the Tour route. Communicators were spaced at 2-mile intervals and rotated forward to follow the cyclists. Net Control was stationed at the Federal Emergency Management Administration facility in Columbus. We thank FEMA for the use of this facility, which is critical to the safety of the TOSRV riders. The American Red Cross Service Corps, under the direction of Margot Alloway, had 5 units on the road ready to respond to all emergency calls. Many of the members of the Red Cross Service Corps are also HAM radio operators.

Our Sponsors

We are very grateful for the support of our title sponsors, Huntington Banks and the Southern Ohio Medical Center. In addition to sponsorship, Huntington provided personnel to assist at the Chillicothe lunch stop. The Southern Ohio Medical Center provides overnight sleeping bag space at their Life Center in addition to their role as a sponsor. Thanks to both of these great institutions. New in the sponsor category is Mount Carmel Rehab Services.  We are very pleased to have these fine folks as a new sponsor of our event.  They had a fine booth at the Hyatt on Friday.  They also have a link on TOSRV.org

Police Support in Columbus

We again closed High Street between Broad and State Streets for the start of the Tour and we had an officer at the intersection of High and Dering, where the riders turned left connecting to Lockbourne Rd and points south.  We did not use arrow signs after Ted Lewis Park but did have the usual double arrows on the road.  I am sorry if some of the riders missed that turn.

Bike Repair Services

Century Cycles, Baer Wheels, and Breakaway Bike Shop were back again to provide the all-important mechanical support. We appreciate their dedicated service and hope you will think of them when looking for a new bicycle or repair services during the coming year.

Half Tour

The Half Tour again proved very popular and was coordinated by De and Ron Morrissey. Everything worked out very well this year.  The Chillicothe Parks and Recreation Department had asked us to move the Half Tour Overflow Parking over to a ball diamond this year.  We are pleased to have had the Consider Biking group manage the traffic control for this operation.

Luggage

Again this year the City Center not only provided a fairly reasonable parking deal for the riders but also provided a very convenient luggage drop off location on Sunday. We sincerely appreciate their support.  There was a special rate provided to Tour riders but many riders did not pick up the coupon at check-in.  We will redouble efforts to advertize this option next year.

Central YMCA

The Central YMCA again offered sleeping bag space on Friday night and shower facilities on Sunday. We appreciate very much having the use of their facility.

TOSRV Staff

We were pleased to again return to Ted Lewis Park in Circleville this year for our first rest stop south of Columbus. Brad Lutz was in charge for the fifth year and he and his able staff had things under complete control.

At Chillicothe we were again at Yoctangee Park and everything was in fantastic shape. Tom Lester and his very able staff ran the operation very smoothly. Delbert Bochard, Community Bank President of Huntington Bank Chillicothe Operations, and twelve of his folks from the Chillicothe office of the Huntington National Bank assisted Tom. The Huntington staff were much appreciated. We again also owe our thanks to Cathy Primer, Director of Chillicothe Parks & Recreation, for the management of this great facility. Special thanks also go to Jeff Stevens and John Gideon and their crew of Consider Biking who took care of traffic control for the Half Tour parking.

Frank Seebode coordinated the Lake White food stop and did a great job, assisted by family members and friends. They did a great job with the afternoon snack on Saturday and the morning snack stop on Sunday. The Park Staff at Lake White was most helpful to both the riders and our staff and we greatly appreciate their support.  Frank added a special filter on the water supply that made the water more presentable.  Good job, Frank.

Portsmouth coordinator Kim Bauer and her husband, Greg, did a fantastic job welcoming the riders to Tracy Park where riders found music, hot dogs and soda (provided by TOSRV), and served by the River Days Beauty Queen contestants.  What a wonderful welcome after a long ride. Of special note was the dedication of the new panel on the floodwall, which was dedicated to TOSRV.  Tim Taylor and Michael Jones, the new owners of Crispie Crème Donuts, provided the Sunday morning hot chocolate and donuts. For those with more appetite, Chris Cakes, the famous pancake flipper, was set up at All Saints Episcopal Church. No one left town hungry. Bob Haverberg directed Boy Scout Troop 37, who ran the "water hole” and rest stop at Hoover YMCA Park on the return leg of the Tour midway between Circleville and Columbus.

Portsmouth Overnights

Kim Bauer also did her usual fine job of coordinating all Portsmouth Overnight facilities, arranging for all the Portsmouth City School buildings, Spartan Stadium for campers, Life Center, Friends’ Center, and the Old Portsmouth High (in substitution for Shawnee State, which is under renovations this year). Thanks to Kim for a great job.  The Portsmouth facilities worked out very well once more.

Luggage Crew

For the ninth year, Kathy Crandall and the Eastern Kiwanis handled the luggage operation. The funds that the Eastern Kiwanis earn from their efforts providing the luggage service are used for their Christmas program, which donates food and toys to the needy families of Whitehall, Ohio. Thanks to Kathy and her crew for their fine work.

Sag Routes

We hope everyone is using the sag route that we recommend, and for which we provide maps at Registration. Please continue to do so. There are plenty of rider support services along the Tour route as well as HAM radio communicators every two miles, so there should be no reason to bring personal sag on the Tour route. We have had many comments that the sag traffic on the route is far less than in past years.  We would like to thank the TOSRV sag support for avoiding the Tour route.

Merchandise and Certificates

We still have both 2008 t-shirts and jerseys (except medium) available. Please check the TOSRV website for ordering instructions.

If you did not pick up your certificate on Sunday or did not obtain your merchandise, please let us know and we will send it to you. In the case of merchandise, please include $3.25 to cover postage with your request. There is no cost in sending certificates. Please indicate whether you rode the 200 miles, completed the Half Tour, or just participated in the Tour. We still have most years' patches available for $2.00 each.

TOSRV Co-founder and Historian

We would like to recognize the contributions of Greg Siple, who founded TOSRV with his father in 1962. Greg has produced most of the TOSRV printed materials over the years, and maintains a TOSRV history archive that includes hundreds of photos going back to the 1960s.

My Essential Assistant

Finally, thanks to my Assistant Tour Director, Rick Hoechstetter, who as always attends to the many details in the months before the Tour that keep things running well. Rick also covers the TOSRV Hot Line when I am in Tucson. He may be reached at  

Looking Ahead to TOSRV2009

Entry forms will be sent out to all registered riders from TOSRV2008 on the 15th of January, 2009. On-line registration will also be available by the 15th of January. We will again offer the Half-TOSRV in 2009 for those who want a shorter ride.

Sincerely,

Charles H, Pace, TOSRV Director
 

TOSRV Hotline: (614) 461-6648
TOSRV, P.O. Box 16003, Columbus, OH 43216-6003
www.tosrv.org

TOSRV2008 BY THE NUMBERS

Of the 2,554 riders registered this year, 2,242 signed up for a full TOSRV, 312 for the Half Tour. 1959 riders were male and 595 were female (30.37%). 567 riders were COP members. 2026 riders were from Ohio and 528 riders were from out-of-state including: IL: 21, IN: 63, KY: 35, MD: 17, MI: 124, NC: 22, NY: 18, PA: 74, VA: 18, WV: 27, and Canada: 9.

Donations this year totaled $1,596.00. These funds will be used to improve the cycling experience in Ohio.  We thank you for your thoughtfulness.

Age range of riders (of those who listed their age): (2-10 years old; 9) (11-20; 147) (21-30; 166) (31-40; 331) (41-50; 655) (51-60; 723) (61-70; 230) (71-80; 30) (81-90; 7). The senior male finisher was Paul Braun, 79, from Reynoldsburg, Ohio; and the senior female finisher was Jean Kennerly, 74, from Rockford, IL.

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