Kathy Helmuth and I have just received confirmation that our ACE approved Parkinson's Indoor Cycling Coaching program has been accepted by the SilverSneakers organization!
Now, Parkinson's Cycling Coaches will now receive reimbursement directly from SilverSneakers, through their FLEX Instructor Program.
I am planning an interview with the SilverSneakers National Program director that will explain exactly how the FLEX program works.
My short description: a FLEX Instructor can walk into any studio and teach a SilverSneakers approved class and it's free to SilverSneakers members. SilverSneakers then compensates the Instructor directly.
To become a SilverSneakers group exercise class instructor, one must:
Be at least 18 years of age.
Maintain current CPR certification.
Hold a two or four year degree in health, exercise science, recreation or physical activity related field or maintain a nationally recognized certification (for example, ACE, AFAA, YMCA).
Attend a SilverSneakers instructor training workshop for the specific SilverSneakers class one would like to teach.
SilverSneakers classes are available in 12,000 locations and the FLEX Instructor program allows you to easily (and at no cost) add SilverSneakers classes to your studio 🙂
I woke up on August 19 to read that indoor cycling enthusiast and specialized mechanic Jeff Wimmer was dead. Some of us have been in the business a long time and should expect that people around us will die; it’s part of growing old. Still, when someone as notable as Jeff Wimmer leaves us early, the enormous gap can’t be filled.
Jeff was what the cycling world calls a “wrench”. He fixed bikes, specifically indoor cycles. He taught for a while but, like a few other talented instructors, gravitated toward cycle construction, design and repair.
Jeff performed work for ICG and for me on several occasions, and I encouraged his employment in years-long contracts when I worked for Club One and Frog’s Fitness. Anyone who has taught indoor cycling classes long-term knows that the industry had much to learn in the early years about maintenance of a group fitness product. Until we rode indoor cycles, no group exercise equipment beyond the stereo and the microphone ever had to be maintained. Suddenly, we had bikes that needed servicing and quickly deteriorated if your club didn’t employ a wrench.
Jeff made a lot of us happy with well-tuned bikes that felt great — not to mention the many member complaints from which he spared us. If Jeff worked on the bikes, we knew every day we taught that the ride would be as smooth as new blacktop.
Jeff did far more than repair bikes; he refurbished them. I guess that’s called “green” these days. He created a business, Studio Cycles, for restoring and reselling indoor cycles, which enabled many customers to purchase top brands at a discount. Unlike top manufacturers, though, Jeff did all his own installations. He never shipped a bike and let someone else put it together. Those of us on the product side of the business know the importance of a quality installation. No matter how good the manufacturing is, if someone who doesn’t care about the bikes puts them together, there’s a good chance they’ll break down prematurely.
I feel the greatest contribution Jeff made to indoor cycling was what he did online. In all our industry, there’s no more prolific a blogger than Jeff was. The Internet features dozens of videos of Jeff discussing bike design and maintenance. He had a reputation for being merciless — but fair — in his evaluation of indoor cycles, and his positive endorsement could always be counted on to help promote bike sales.
The last contract I hired Jeff for involved an evaluation of a customer’s bikes that were in disrepair. True to his nature, Jeff was so upset with the obvious lack of maintenance that he sounded off to the customer onsite, creating a difficult situation for my colleagues, the customer and me. The thing is Jeff was right. The customer did need to be set straight about taking care of the equipment.
Jeff was passionate about bikes.
Riding the road can be dangerous, particularly if the equipment isn’t properly tuned. Obviously, danger is considerably reduced with indoor cycles. But the good feel of an indoor cycle is the main factor that enables us to share our passion for riding bikes with our students.
Jeff embodied the point I made in last week’s post. He was an artist. The maintenance and refurbishment of indoor cycles was more than his craft. You could tell from the way he spoke about Studio Cycles and his work. He approached every bike he fixed as a work of art. View his videos on YouTube; you’ll find them educational. Even more, they’re the legacy he created.
On a personal level, I didn’t know Jeff Wimmer well, but I will miss him. I’ll miss having him pop up at tradeshows to give me his opinion about… well, everything. I’ll miss hearing him tell me that we should have him review every one of our new bike designs before we ever bring a bike to market.
All of us at ICG® honor and respect what Jeff did for indoor cycling and will miss his passion, his blogs, his videos — and, mostly, his drive to help us create the perfect ride for our students.
Rest in peace, Jeff Wimmer. You were as authentic as it gets.
John's Note: sadly, this will be Jim's last post here at ICI/PRO. I heard from Joan Kent that Jim died Sunday of a heart attack. I'm not sure how to respond other than give everyone the chance to hear Jim Karanas one last time. What follows is my very first interview with Jim.
ICG® believes the brand Be Your Own Hero® represents a way of liberating ourselves and raising our quality of life through service. It’s possible for everyone to be heroic. To live life as a hero — and view yourself as doing so — is not ego. It’s a personal commitment to helping others with your unique talents, day in and day out, while making an occasional statement that commands attention on their behalf.
Anna Mei is an Italian schoolteacher in her 40s, married and helping to raise two children with her husband Stefano. She lives her life heroically. Her talent is ultra-distance cycling. On top of family and job, Anna chooses to ride her bike incredibly long distances, day in and day out, to support, and raise money for, the Butterfly Children — children who suffer with Epidermolysis Bullosa.
This is how she shares and helps others, using what she was given at birth. That’s being a hero, and it’s not always easy. Anna gets tired, hurt and injured like everyone else. Her life has ups and downs. Being Her Own Hero simply means she reminds herself every day that living life as a hero obliges her to get on her bike and call attention to the Butterfly Children.
Early this year, Anna set a new world record for miles ridden on a track by a woman — 441.55 miles in 24 hours. Riding in circles. When you speak with Anna, she rarely mentions the record. Instead, she talks about the Butterfly Children.
This past weekend, ICG® sponsored Anna in the 24-Hour World Road Championships in Coachella Valley, CA. I was her crew chief and honored to be part of her team. It was a tremendous display of heroism on Anna’s part.
The event began at 6:00 p.m. The cyclists would race through the night and then the next day in the blistering desert heat near Palm Springs. Starting at night means you’ve already been up for 12 hours prior to the race start, making the final 12 hours during the day even more challenging.
The race started with great promise. Anna was racing alongside legendary ultra-cyclist Seana Hogan, who had surpassed Anna’s 24-hour world record in June by riding 445 miles. Six hours into the race, Anna suffered a crash during a handoff. For a handoff, the rider must ride dangerously close to the support vehicle to take fluids and food while riding. The lacerations on Anna’s legs were extreme, but she had no broken bones, and the bike was not damaged.
Any cyclist who has crashed and gotten back on the bike understands the pain of riding with road rash. Only an ultra-cyclist can understand what it means to have to do it for 18 more hours.
After dawn the route changed, and support vehicles were no longer allowed to follow the riders. We had to remain at the Start/Finish line as Anna repeated a 30-km loop. We saw her every 55 minutes or so. During her third lap, Anna called me. She had been driven off the road by a car and crashed into a ditch of sharp stones and broken glass. We raced to the scene and saw that the lacerations on her arm were more extreme than those from her earlier crash. These would require stitches. Again, no broken bones, and the bike was still ride-able.
Stefano, an ER nurse, cleaned the wound and applied temporary bandages. Without hesitation, Anna got back on her bike. She had 6 more hours to ride in near 100-degree heat.
Anna finished the race, totaling 349.2 miles, enough for 3rd place. She’d put in an incredibly brave 24 hours. What was most heroic about Anna was that, after the finish, there was no thought of how well she might have done if she’d had a better day and hadn’t suffered two crashes. This race was a cry for people to pay attention to the Butterfly Children. That’s all.
Living life heroically is a quiet, personal experience. There’s no want. It’s a simple choice to use attributes you were born with, or developed in life, to help others and occasionally to make a statement that draws some attention.
If you tell Anna she’s an inspiration, she’ll thank you. But that’s not what she’s after. She’d prefer that you support the cause to which she has dedicated herself. That’s why she heroically rides her bike every day.
Living life as a hero has a personal cost. Stefano’s anguish and fear as his wife got back on the bike after her second crash made that clear. He understands, though, that this raises his wife’s quality of life — and, through her efforts, that of others.
Anna is truly a hero from within. She wouldn’t be happy living life any other way.
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To learn more about Epidermolysis Bullosa, “the worst disease you've never heard of”, and help the Butterfly Children, please click here.
Here in America we celebrate all those who have died in the service of our country.
For all of you active duty Instructors, regardless of which country you serve, we offer a complimentary six-month membership to ICI/PRO with our thanks for your service 🙂
You can use the contact form on the right or drop me a note john@indoorcycleinstructor.com and we'll get you all set up.
If you know an enlisted Instructor please forward this to them and thank them for their service.
What are you doing this day?
The weather looks like it's going to be fabulous and my normal Monday morning class has been canceled. So watch for Amy and myself out on The Bus – our red Trek Tandem. We'll be putting in some much needed mileage, in preparation for this years MS 150 that happens next month.
I would really appreciate it if you would donate! Please click the MS banner at the top of the page 🙂
Randy Erwin promoting MS150 participation at our club
I'm not sure about where you live [wlm_firstname], but we are having a glorious spring here in Minneapolis… and suffering the consequences 🙁
Last Sunday, of my typical 40 indoor participants, 25 or so decided they would rather enjoy the sunshine and ride outside. I can't say I blame them and I was actually a bit jealous being stuck inside. Based on how nice it is supposed to be the rest of the week, I'm guessing that this coming Sunday will be more of the same.
So what to do?
Might I suggest finding a way to keep connected with them, outside?
As a followup to Christine Nielsen's two excellent posts about planning and training to ride the 183 mile Cabot Trail, I thought I should share how we have created a team to participate in a local MS150 ride.
Did I say “we have created”? I should have said “he has created”
He; as in Randy Erwin, a good friend of Amy and mine who's also our MS150 team captain!
Amy and I first met Randy as a rider in our class a bunch of years ago. The cycling bug bit Randy quite late in life and now his passion for indoor and outdoor cycling knows no bounds.
Sensing Randy's excitement for riding outdoors, Amy had originally invited Randy to join our earlier MS150 team The Psycholers and he was hooked! Fast forward a few years and chronic knee problems forced the original captain to quit and dissolve the team.
Enter Randy – he was having too much fun every year not to jump in as the new team captain. But Randy wasn't content to just continue this as things were, he (if you knew him you would understand this part) wanted bigger = we needed a sponsor. And Randy found us one in the form of a local bike shop FreeWheel Bikes.
The actual sponsorship was a bit unique; FreeWheel provided a Chef for the weekend, his assistant, and most importantly transportation of our bikes from Minneapolis to Duluth where the ride begins. In exchange for their sponsorship FreeWheel was on display all weekend in the form of a very fast (and long) paceline lead by your's truly, my very strong Tandem Stoker Amy and Randy tucked tightly behind – with another 40 or so close person friends making up the rest of the train.
Bigger for Randy is a fluid thing. What was cool and impressive last year became so 2011 this year. Bigger this year equals starting an official Life Time Fitness MS150 team. His goal (bigger is better) is to have the largest team on the ride this year, which will need to be over 250 riders. I'll keep you updated.
Keeping connected with your class this summer doesn't necessarily mean it will only come as a result from your efforts. You're class has a few Randy's. Next class pick up your head and ask who would be willing to help you put a team together.
