Middle Aged Fat Guy Family Tree
A Chronology of who invited who to join
our fun group of like minded and spirited guys
A Chronology of who invited who to join
our fun group of like minded and spirited guys
Chronological List of Fat Guy Host and who they invited to join us MAFG's
Alphabetical List of Fat Guys
with their memory of how they became a MAFG
Anderson, Jim - Attached above is a scan of a photo of the MAFG riders on Ride 1, Day 1, September, 1996. We had just arrived in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island, WA. on the high speed ferry from Seattle. The ferry is in the back ground. Kent had invited this group because: it was the only guys he could get to come, they each had a bicycle, and did not gripe, too much. Other than the few blocks ride from the hotel to the ferry dock, we had not started what would turn out to be the first of 40 rides, with over 50 different guys . This was our first and only ride with paniers and no sag wagon.
Pictured from left to right are: Norris Elswick, Geoff Inge, Jim Atherton, Kent Taylor, Carl Ulrick, Neal Gray, Jim Anderson, Bob O’Neal, unknown, and John Sullivan. (Kent – please provide the name of the guy, I forgot)
I learned two things that day: 1) don’t stand between two tall guys for the photo and 2) don’t wear pink.
This year’s ride ( Spring 2020 ) will be notable for the flu pandemic, but it is not the first ride to take place during notable national and world events. Including:
2001, we were in Napa Valley, CA on 9-11;
2002, the MAFGs were in Washington D.C. during the D.C. sniper attacks;
2005, we were on the Natchez Trace in southern Mississippi during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrine,
2008, MAFG were back in Washington D.C. for the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers and the start of the great recession, and
Rides during any number of Florida hurricanes, including: Frances, Ivan, Ophelia, Humberto,
Hanna, and Irma.
Submitted by Jim Anderson
Black, Julan - Bob O’Neal and I were scheduled to do some simulator training together and a little bit later, we flew a rotation together. At this time Bob was putting together a MAFG’s bike trip going up to Boston and doing the “Paul Revere Trail” and then we moved on up to Maine and did the Acadia National Park. He knew I did just some biking and he ask me to go with them on this trip so I accepted and was then part of the MAFG’s team.I teamed up with Neal Gray (note: I do not see him on the list). He was going to drive his nice RV up for the ride and invited me to ride with him and I jumped right on that deal. I had worked with him some at Delta and knew a lot of his friends that were in the navy reserves with him at Dobbins. In fact, Bob O’Neal may have been in his unit.
I always rented a bike on these trips. For some reason, I just never bought my own bike which means I never really bought into biking. I guess I could list a lot of reasons but I was involved with my kids coaching and other things plus Dunwoody was a busy place and not bike friendly so I would have had to haul the bike somewhere to start my ride, etc, etc!
I really had some great trips with the MAFG’s over the years and everything was going well for me until we were doing the beautiful Teton/Yellowstone National Park ride. We had a beautiful evening looking at a large herd of elk grazing around Mammoth Hot Springs. The next morning Ned Sundermann and I were ready to go so we pulled out about 10 minutes ahead of everyone else. We were on a straight road, no traffic and riding side by side just talking away and the next thing I know I am laying on the payment with a crushed helmet and a hurt shoulder. I became a sure helmet believer. I believe Jim Anderson was driving the Sag Wagon and he pulled up in about 5 minutes. He took me back to Mammoth Hot Springs, they had a healthcare facility. The doctor told me I had a separated shoulder, put me in a sling and told me to see the doctor back in Atlanta. Jim Anderson gave me the keys to the wagon and said to be careful so that was my job for the rest of the trip.
Thanks to all you guys that rode with me and took care of me over the years!
Julian Black
Blamire, Gary
Bloom, Marty
Charron, Emmanuel - I joined in 2017 along with Alan Port and following conversations with Norris and Paul. I am part of the Palma Sola peloton group like them and hence was attentive to the discussions about the MAFG group. In the end, one thing lead to another and I think the reason for them asking me to join was they desperately needed some international membership…..Not sure about that, but for me I welcomed the discovery of biking in other states and the occasion of making new friends around the country. I am grateful to the group for giving me this opportunity. My first ride was the Redneck Riviera which I had never heard about except for the Riviera part that sounded familiar. It was a tough ride with winds always pointing at my face every day. Also doing 80 miles a day was a new experience for me and my bum. On a subsequent ride, I did my first ever 100 miles with the group. I can say that being part of this group made me a better biker on and off the saddle. It was a good move. Thank you MAFG .Subitted by Emmanuel
Devereaux, Mike - I think I am the latest of late comers! I was introduced to MAFGs by Luther Stevens. My first planned ride with the group was the Cleveland to Cincinnati ride several years ago. Unfortunately about 6 weeks before the ride I herniated a disc in my low back with resultant pain and some weakness in my right lower extremity. My sole involvement for the ride was hosting Luther at my house and then delivering him (and his bike) to the downtown hotel where his fellow riders were staying. My brother in law Bill Earle and I joined the group for the recent Maryland and Colorado rides. We remain impressed with how many really good cyclists are in the group! Since I am still working and presently on the front lines of the pandemic at University Hospital Cleveland I missed the current Dakota ride. Thanks for allowing Bill and I to be a part of the group.
Drummey, Paul
Earle, Bill - I was introduced to the MAFGs through my brother-in-law Mike Devereaux. We attended both rides in 2019 and enjoyed both the rides themselves and getting to know the other riders. Since then I have enjoyed wearing my awesome MAFG bike jersey. I often receive comments on it, the last one accusing me of having purloined said jersey (since I have passed middle age and am skinny rather than fat). William G. Earle
Earnest, Mike
Elliott, Michael - the other Mike Elliott, aka beemanmike. I became acquainted with the MAFG through Larry Garrard. It's a long story between Larry, me, the bees and bikes. I originally met Larry to investigate keeping honeybees many years ago on his property in Roswell, Georgia. I ended up keeping bees there for several years and he and his family would occasionally wave to me as I was working with the bees as they drove by, but they never ventured close to the bees. I paid Larry with honey as sort of a "rent" for keeping the bees at his place and eventually got him hooked on the honey from his property.
After keeping bees there for a year or so, my older son and I were getting ready to do the Bicycle Ride Across Georgia and I tried to talk him into getting a road bike and joining us. I think it took a couple of years before he finally agreed to do the ride and now you see what a monster I created.
Five or six years ago we moved from Georgia to the mountains of western North Carolina and I moved my bees from Larry's to my new home. Larry missed the honey so much that he decided that he needed to get into beekeeping and have bees of his own. And now we have yet another monster who is now selling his honey in the local area!
So, Larry had been encouraging me to join this great group of cycling guys known as The Middle Aged Fat Guys for a couple of years, and I finally relented and rode the Kentucky ride this past spring. As I have told several of you, this was without a doubt, the best group of guys and most fun I have had on a multiday ride. I hope to be able to join many more.
Elliott, Mike - I have been riding road bikes for almost 10 years. In 2015 we bought a retirement condo in Cortez, Florida. There were 78 units and there was a group of bikers that rode together 3 days per week, the Palma Sola Peleton (PSP). In that group are 5 MAFG’s; Norris Elswick, Alan Port, Wally Gaer, Emmanuel Charron and Paul Drummey.
We all rode together for almost 2 years in the PSP. On one particular ride they were all discussing the upcoming Across Ohio Ride. I began asking questions and that was the end of it.
Later on, the Maryland Ride was upcoming and their discussions began again. I made a few comments and Norris said “Why don’t you come along. You seem interested?” The other 4 MAFG’s agreed, and as they say, that was that. I call it the Immaculate Conception of the MAFG. My father is Norris (I think).
Then, on the Maryland Ride, I roomed with Larry Garrard, best roommate of all time!!
That’s it!! Pretty compelling, eh!?
Mike Elliott
Elswick, Norris - I was invited for the Day 1 ride around Peugot Sound by Kent. He was working as a consultant to Tropicana and knew I road bikes. Truth was he probably wanted the consultant fees to continue so asked me to come. That trip taught us panniers were a pain in the butt. From then on we used a sag wagon. We have visited wonderful parts of the country that I probably would never have seen without the MAFG group. I have gone back to many of them with my wife to enjoy a second time. Its been a great and ever changing group over the years. The common love of cycling and 60 miles per day on the rides keeps down the riffraff. People who love cycling are generally nice folks.
Fairbank, Robert - The culprit who introduced me to the fat guys was Jim Harper. Jim (one of the many fat guy Jims) and I went to high school together in Jacksonville Florida. Jim knew that I had a bike and knew how to ride it and invited me on a few rides. I declined, thinking that I would be Mr. slow and everybody would be leaving the SAG stops just when I would be arriving. My first ride with the fat guys was the Jacksonville Beach to Fort Myers ride in 2013. My thinking was, Florida, no hills, maybe I could do this. Mid morning on day 4 of that ride I was separated from the group due to a flat and when attempting to catch the pack took a wrong turn. My cell phone, flip variety, was out of battery and I did not have the ride map with me. I knew I was about to have an adventure. My method of navigation was asking people on the side of the road if they had seen a bunch guys in tight clothes on bicycles ride by. Once I knew I was on the right road, I waved down a pick up, going in the opposite direction, pulling a large trailer with empty orange crates in it. The driver spoke little English but said he had seen the pack a few miles down the road. I asked if he would give me a ride to catch up, he agreed, turned around and I (with my bike) got in the trailer. At each curve in the road the empty orange crates shifted and I had visions of dismemberment by orange crate. We caught the pack at a SAG stop. I offered to pay the driver, but he declined my offer. After exiting the trailer I was expecting lots of questions about what happened, where had I been and the like. Didn't happen, I realized no one even knew that I had been missing in action.
For reasons that defy logic, I came back for more, the Michigan ride in 2014, the Tallahassee to Ponte Vedra ride and the Big Sur ride both in 2015. No good reason I haven't ridden since, my legs, heart, and lungs are functional so who knows, maybe I'll be on the next ride.
Cheers,
Robert Fairbank
Friedman, Karl
Inge, Geoff
Gaer, Wally - Listened longingly to Palma Sola Peloton riders talk about wonderful, mystical multi-day rides. Wanted to ride but had doubts I could measure up. Norris invited me. I accepted. Have loved every experience especially when I won the dice game twice in one night.
Submited by Wally Gaer
Garrard, Larry - Mike Gowland and I randomly met on a Spring Tuneup ride down here in Georgia. We were both going to do the Century Option on a cool spring day and after a few times of us passing each other, we started to ride together and continued the entire 100 miles. After a few years later Mike invited me to go to the ride up in Vermont of 2017 and that is how I became a Middle Aged Fat Guy.
Gowland, Mike - John Rall and I met as fellow engineering trainees at Southern Railway in July 1979. After the training program was over John accepted a job in the real estate department while I accepted one in the construction department. Our paths occasionally crossed during our careers for the next thirty years or so before John retired. After about 15 years of coaching youth sports ⚾️🏀🏈, and my youngest deciding he was retiring from sports, I had a crazy idea to start a four year plan to complete an Ironman 70.3 triathlon in September 2012 which got me interested in riding a bike, running and swimming again after many, many years of ignoring the sports. For training, I decided to do the Bike Ride across Georgia (BRAG) in 2011 and it was there John & I re-met. We ended up hanging out together since we both signed up to do the week long ride solo. We met some people wearing RAGBRAI jerseys and decided to ride it ourselves in 2012. Once we did it, we loved it and we made it an annual event together. Over time John told me stories of this cycling club he joined that did two rides a year and I was excited to join immediately after my retirement in 2016. The Outer Banks trip was my first experience with the MAFG’s. I love the concept, comradeship and hope to be active for a long time to come. Submitted by Mike Gowland
Groves, Tom - I've only done 1 MAFG tour, but it was a dandy -- the Selkirk Loop out of Sand Point, Idaho, in 2012. Following that "week" I moseyed over to Kalispell and spent a week biking (HeartCycle trip) about Glacier NP and its sister park, Waterton in Canada. Wonderful memories. I was invited by Karl Friedman who I've known for a dozen or so years. Thanks to you and Jim A (who organized the Selkirk trip) and Karl and all the good guys I met on that trip. Cheers, Tom Groves
Haden, Jim
Harper, Jim - I must blame Kent for my joining MAFG. Our wives (mine is ex now) were high school classmates in Florida. So, we’ve been acquainted awhile. On a visit to us by Kent and the queen in Atlanta in the early 2000’s, my running days were ending due to a bad knee. Kent suggested we take my bikes out for a ride and along the way we talked about the MAFG rides and he said I should give it a go. Well, I think they were not sure about me so I had a trial ride, the 2004 Bike Ride Across Georgia, BRAG. I went on the ride and even organized the hotels for a small group of MAFG’ers,, even though this was not a MAFG ride. I must have done ok because I joined the group for my first MAFG ride in 2005 for the Natchez Trace Ride from just west of Nashville to Natchez and the Mississippi river. ( Group picture attached and more if you want them) I was hooked.
I have missed a few along the way and all of the past few since early 2018 due to conflicts. However, Yellowstone in September will be my 20th MAFG ride. They have all been great. It is really hard to pick a favorite. All are memorable. Great guys, great fellowship and great scenery.
Jim Harper
with their memory of how they became a MAFG
Anderson, Jim - Attached above is a scan of a photo of the MAFG riders on Ride 1, Day 1, September, 1996. We had just arrived in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island, WA. on the high speed ferry from Seattle. The ferry is in the back ground. Kent had invited this group because: it was the only guys he could get to come, they each had a bicycle, and did not gripe, too much. Other than the few blocks ride from the hotel to the ferry dock, we had not started what would turn out to be the first of 40 rides, with over 50 different guys . This was our first and only ride with paniers and no sag wagon.
Pictured from left to right are: Norris Elswick, Geoff Inge, Jim Atherton, Kent Taylor, Carl Ulrick, Neal Gray, Jim Anderson, Bob O’Neal, unknown, and John Sullivan. (Kent – please provide the name of the guy, I forgot)
I learned two things that day: 1) don’t stand between two tall guys for the photo and 2) don’t wear pink.
This year’s ride ( Spring 2020 ) will be notable for the flu pandemic, but it is not the first ride to take place during notable national and world events. Including:
2001, we were in Napa Valley, CA on 9-11;
2002, the MAFGs were in Washington D.C. during the D.C. sniper attacks;
2005, we were on the Natchez Trace in southern Mississippi during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrine,
2008, MAFG were back in Washington D.C. for the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers and the start of the great recession, and
Rides during any number of Florida hurricanes, including: Frances, Ivan, Ophelia, Humberto,
Hanna, and Irma.
Submitted by Jim Anderson
Black, Julan - Bob O’Neal and I were scheduled to do some simulator training together and a little bit later, we flew a rotation together. At this time Bob was putting together a MAFG’s bike trip going up to Boston and doing the “Paul Revere Trail” and then we moved on up to Maine and did the Acadia National Park. He knew I did just some biking and he ask me to go with them on this trip so I accepted and was then part of the MAFG’s team.I teamed up with Neal Gray (note: I do not see him on the list). He was going to drive his nice RV up for the ride and invited me to ride with him and I jumped right on that deal. I had worked with him some at Delta and knew a lot of his friends that were in the navy reserves with him at Dobbins. In fact, Bob O’Neal may have been in his unit.
I always rented a bike on these trips. For some reason, I just never bought my own bike which means I never really bought into biking. I guess I could list a lot of reasons but I was involved with my kids coaching and other things plus Dunwoody was a busy place and not bike friendly so I would have had to haul the bike somewhere to start my ride, etc, etc!
I really had some great trips with the MAFG’s over the years and everything was going well for me until we were doing the beautiful Teton/Yellowstone National Park ride. We had a beautiful evening looking at a large herd of elk grazing around Mammoth Hot Springs. The next morning Ned Sundermann and I were ready to go so we pulled out about 10 minutes ahead of everyone else. We were on a straight road, no traffic and riding side by side just talking away and the next thing I know I am laying on the payment with a crushed helmet and a hurt shoulder. I became a sure helmet believer. I believe Jim Anderson was driving the Sag Wagon and he pulled up in about 5 minutes. He took me back to Mammoth Hot Springs, they had a healthcare facility. The doctor told me I had a separated shoulder, put me in a sling and told me to see the doctor back in Atlanta. Jim Anderson gave me the keys to the wagon and said to be careful so that was my job for the rest of the trip.
Thanks to all you guys that rode with me and took care of me over the years!
Julian Black
Blamire, Gary
Bloom, Marty
Charron, Emmanuel - I joined in 2017 along with Alan Port and following conversations with Norris and Paul. I am part of the Palma Sola peloton group like them and hence was attentive to the discussions about the MAFG group. In the end, one thing lead to another and I think the reason for them asking me to join was they desperately needed some international membership…..Not sure about that, but for me I welcomed the discovery of biking in other states and the occasion of making new friends around the country. I am grateful to the group for giving me this opportunity. My first ride was the Redneck Riviera which I had never heard about except for the Riviera part that sounded familiar. It was a tough ride with winds always pointing at my face every day. Also doing 80 miles a day was a new experience for me and my bum. On a subsequent ride, I did my first ever 100 miles with the group. I can say that being part of this group made me a better biker on and off the saddle. It was a good move. Thank you MAFG .Subitted by Emmanuel
Devereaux, Mike - I think I am the latest of late comers! I was introduced to MAFGs by Luther Stevens. My first planned ride with the group was the Cleveland to Cincinnati ride several years ago. Unfortunately about 6 weeks before the ride I herniated a disc in my low back with resultant pain and some weakness in my right lower extremity. My sole involvement for the ride was hosting Luther at my house and then delivering him (and his bike) to the downtown hotel where his fellow riders were staying. My brother in law Bill Earle and I joined the group for the recent Maryland and Colorado rides. We remain impressed with how many really good cyclists are in the group! Since I am still working and presently on the front lines of the pandemic at University Hospital Cleveland I missed the current Dakota ride. Thanks for allowing Bill and I to be a part of the group.
Drummey, Paul
Earle, Bill - I was introduced to the MAFGs through my brother-in-law Mike Devereaux. We attended both rides in 2019 and enjoyed both the rides themselves and getting to know the other riders. Since then I have enjoyed wearing my awesome MAFG bike jersey. I often receive comments on it, the last one accusing me of having purloined said jersey (since I have passed middle age and am skinny rather than fat). William G. Earle
Earnest, Mike
Elliott, Michael - the other Mike Elliott, aka beemanmike. I became acquainted with the MAFG through Larry Garrard. It's a long story between Larry, me, the bees and bikes. I originally met Larry to investigate keeping honeybees many years ago on his property in Roswell, Georgia. I ended up keeping bees there for several years and he and his family would occasionally wave to me as I was working with the bees as they drove by, but they never ventured close to the bees. I paid Larry with honey as sort of a "rent" for keeping the bees at his place and eventually got him hooked on the honey from his property.
After keeping bees there for a year or so, my older son and I were getting ready to do the Bicycle Ride Across Georgia and I tried to talk him into getting a road bike and joining us. I think it took a couple of years before he finally agreed to do the ride and now you see what a monster I created.
Five or six years ago we moved from Georgia to the mountains of western North Carolina and I moved my bees from Larry's to my new home. Larry missed the honey so much that he decided that he needed to get into beekeeping and have bees of his own. And now we have yet another monster who is now selling his honey in the local area!
So, Larry had been encouraging me to join this great group of cycling guys known as The Middle Aged Fat Guys for a couple of years, and I finally relented and rode the Kentucky ride this past spring. As I have told several of you, this was without a doubt, the best group of guys and most fun I have had on a multiday ride. I hope to be able to join many more.
Elliott, Mike - I have been riding road bikes for almost 10 years. In 2015 we bought a retirement condo in Cortez, Florida. There were 78 units and there was a group of bikers that rode together 3 days per week, the Palma Sola Peleton (PSP). In that group are 5 MAFG’s; Norris Elswick, Alan Port, Wally Gaer, Emmanuel Charron and Paul Drummey.
We all rode together for almost 2 years in the PSP. On one particular ride they were all discussing the upcoming Across Ohio Ride. I began asking questions and that was the end of it.
Later on, the Maryland Ride was upcoming and their discussions began again. I made a few comments and Norris said “Why don’t you come along. You seem interested?” The other 4 MAFG’s agreed, and as they say, that was that. I call it the Immaculate Conception of the MAFG. My father is Norris (I think).
Then, on the Maryland Ride, I roomed with Larry Garrard, best roommate of all time!!
That’s it!! Pretty compelling, eh!?
Mike Elliott
Elswick, Norris - I was invited for the Day 1 ride around Peugot Sound by Kent. He was working as a consultant to Tropicana and knew I road bikes. Truth was he probably wanted the consultant fees to continue so asked me to come. That trip taught us panniers were a pain in the butt. From then on we used a sag wagon. We have visited wonderful parts of the country that I probably would never have seen without the MAFG group. I have gone back to many of them with my wife to enjoy a second time. Its been a great and ever changing group over the years. The common love of cycling and 60 miles per day on the rides keeps down the riffraff. People who love cycling are generally nice folks.
Fairbank, Robert - The culprit who introduced me to the fat guys was Jim Harper. Jim (one of the many fat guy Jims) and I went to high school together in Jacksonville Florida. Jim knew that I had a bike and knew how to ride it and invited me on a few rides. I declined, thinking that I would be Mr. slow and everybody would be leaving the SAG stops just when I would be arriving. My first ride with the fat guys was the Jacksonville Beach to Fort Myers ride in 2013. My thinking was, Florida, no hills, maybe I could do this. Mid morning on day 4 of that ride I was separated from the group due to a flat and when attempting to catch the pack took a wrong turn. My cell phone, flip variety, was out of battery and I did not have the ride map with me. I knew I was about to have an adventure. My method of navigation was asking people on the side of the road if they had seen a bunch guys in tight clothes on bicycles ride by. Once I knew I was on the right road, I waved down a pick up, going in the opposite direction, pulling a large trailer with empty orange crates in it. The driver spoke little English but said he had seen the pack a few miles down the road. I asked if he would give me a ride to catch up, he agreed, turned around and I (with my bike) got in the trailer. At each curve in the road the empty orange crates shifted and I had visions of dismemberment by orange crate. We caught the pack at a SAG stop. I offered to pay the driver, but he declined my offer. After exiting the trailer I was expecting lots of questions about what happened, where had I been and the like. Didn't happen, I realized no one even knew that I had been missing in action.
For reasons that defy logic, I came back for more, the Michigan ride in 2014, the Tallahassee to Ponte Vedra ride and the Big Sur ride both in 2015. No good reason I haven't ridden since, my legs, heart, and lungs are functional so who knows, maybe I'll be on the next ride.
Cheers,
Robert Fairbank
Friedman, Karl
Inge, Geoff
Gaer, Wally - Listened longingly to Palma Sola Peloton riders talk about wonderful, mystical multi-day rides. Wanted to ride but had doubts I could measure up. Norris invited me. I accepted. Have loved every experience especially when I won the dice game twice in one night.
Submited by Wally Gaer
Garrard, Larry - Mike Gowland and I randomly met on a Spring Tuneup ride down here in Georgia. We were both going to do the Century Option on a cool spring day and after a few times of us passing each other, we started to ride together and continued the entire 100 miles. After a few years later Mike invited me to go to the ride up in Vermont of 2017 and that is how I became a Middle Aged Fat Guy.
Gowland, Mike - John Rall and I met as fellow engineering trainees at Southern Railway in July 1979. After the training program was over John accepted a job in the real estate department while I accepted one in the construction department. Our paths occasionally crossed during our careers for the next thirty years or so before John retired. After about 15 years of coaching youth sports ⚾️🏀🏈, and my youngest deciding he was retiring from sports, I had a crazy idea to start a four year plan to complete an Ironman 70.3 triathlon in September 2012 which got me interested in riding a bike, running and swimming again after many, many years of ignoring the sports. For training, I decided to do the Bike Ride across Georgia (BRAG) in 2011 and it was there John & I re-met. We ended up hanging out together since we both signed up to do the week long ride solo. We met some people wearing RAGBRAI jerseys and decided to ride it ourselves in 2012. Once we did it, we loved it and we made it an annual event together. Over time John told me stories of this cycling club he joined that did two rides a year and I was excited to join immediately after my retirement in 2016. The Outer Banks trip was my first experience with the MAFG’s. I love the concept, comradeship and hope to be active for a long time to come. Submitted by Mike Gowland
Groves, Tom - I've only done 1 MAFG tour, but it was a dandy -- the Selkirk Loop out of Sand Point, Idaho, in 2012. Following that "week" I moseyed over to Kalispell and spent a week biking (HeartCycle trip) about Glacier NP and its sister park, Waterton in Canada. Wonderful memories. I was invited by Karl Friedman who I've known for a dozen or so years. Thanks to you and Jim A (who organized the Selkirk trip) and Karl and all the good guys I met on that trip. Cheers, Tom Groves
Haden, Jim
Harper, Jim - I must blame Kent for my joining MAFG. Our wives (mine is ex now) were high school classmates in Florida. So, we’ve been acquainted awhile. On a visit to us by Kent and the queen in Atlanta in the early 2000’s, my running days were ending due to a bad knee. Kent suggested we take my bikes out for a ride and along the way we talked about the MAFG rides and he said I should give it a go. Well, I think they were not sure about me so I had a trial ride, the 2004 Bike Ride Across Georgia, BRAG. I went on the ride and even organized the hotels for a small group of MAFG’ers,, even though this was not a MAFG ride. I must have done ok because I joined the group for my first MAFG ride in 2005 for the Natchez Trace Ride from just west of Nashville to Natchez and the Mississippi river. ( Group picture attached and more if you want them) I was hooked.
I have missed a few along the way and all of the past few since early 2018 due to conflicts. However, Yellowstone in September will be my 20th MAFG ride. They have all been great. It is really hard to pick a favorite. All are memorable. Great guys, great fellowship and great scenery.
Jim Harper
Haushildt, Kevin - My initiation into the exploits of the MAFG’s began with stories from John Rall, Mike Gowland, and Paul Drummey. I had worked with John and Mike at the railroad and they convinced me to do RAGBRAI with them in 2014. Paul I believe joined us in 2016. Pretty soon these guys started talking about these other fantastic bike trips they were taking with a group called the Middle Aged Fat Guys. I finally got the opportunity to come on my first MAFG ride in 2018 when we did the Cleveland to Cincinnati ride on the Ohio to Erie Trail. I’ve never met such a great bunch of guys that made me feel at home immediately. I think they liked me because I brought a little credibility to the MAFG name, being one of the few wearing a XXL jersey. I also thought these guys are not Middle Aged, unless they plan to live to be 140 years old. After riding with them for a week I think they all have a shot at living that long. I’m looking forward to my second ride with the group in South Dakota and hope there’s many more in the future. Kevin G. Hauschildt, PE
Horn, Dan
Lineberger, Dick - I am the proud invitee of none other than the most prolific invitee amongst us, Sir Norris Elswick. He was the ride organizer for my first ride which we affectionately refer to as the Napa ride. It was in 2001. We experienced 9/11 together while on that memorable ride. We started in Calistoga rode up to Mendocino and then down the PCH to San Fran! I’ll forever be indebted to my dear friend, Norris. Submitted by Dick Lineberger
Miller, Phil
Murphy, Bob
Myers, Tom
Osborn, Charles - I started out as a marginally successful bike racer in the late 70s. Years of group rides followed and over time I became more interested in building and fixing bikes than riding them. Then I ran into Jim Anderson (my cousin Cindy’s husband) at a family affair and he told me about the MAFGs and the upcoming Death Valley ride. I thought this would be about as much fun as a burning pointed stick in the eye but it turned out to be a great and memorable ride (except for the last day in the headwind). This got me back into riding which I still enjoy but I don’t really qualify for the MAFGs anymore. I meet (and exceed) the fat requirement but have aged beyond middle aged. Thanks for some great memories. Charlie Osborn
O'Neal, Bob - Kent Taylor and I go back over 52 years as of this writing. We met in Jan. 1968 in Pensacola, FL where we started Naval Aviation OCS together. After 12 weeks with lots of PT, marching, classroom, harassment and BS we were commissioned as Ensigns. We then spent the next 15 months in flight training that included Primary, jet transition, instrument, formation, carrier qual in 2 different aircraft, air to air gunnery, navigation, etc. Our training took us from P-cola to Meridian, Ms, back to P-cola and finally to S. TX. Sometimes we lived together, other times we were just doing similar training, sometimes in the same flight. We both got our wings in early fall, 1969 followed by orders to our first real assignments. Things were winding down in Viet Nam by this time – I was sent back to Meridian to teach formation flying and Kent went off to Maintenance Officer School in Memphis. Even the newest MAFG knows that Kent is a “promoter”. I have experienced this a number of times over the years. Being a slow learner, I generally go along with Kent’s “vision”. A few examples… In Dec. 1969 I went to Memphis at his request and was Best Man in his wedding, a few years later I joined his Oceana “O”s softball team while we were both stationed in Va Beach. Some time later I joined a limited real estate partnership that Kent and a number of senior officers were in. This lasted 10+ years and Kent kept the books for the group for all those years. By the mid 70’s we had both left active duty, were pursuing real careers – Kent in CO and I was in GA. We both continued to fly with the Naval Reserves. By the 80’s careers, family, Naval Reserves plus some biking and other PT were keeping us busy. My biking was getting a little more serious and included doing BRAG a few times in the late 80’s and early 90’s with my family. By the mid 90’s Kent and I considered ourselves pretty serious cyclist – as I look back now it is amazing how much has changed and what rookies we really were. I was delighted to join Kent in 1996 on the first MAFG ride and invited a Delta friend, Neal Grey to come along. Since then I have participated in 36 of the 40 rides so far and had a number of friends including my brother join the MAFG for at least one ride. All have been great experiences shared with many great guys. You remember the high “highs” and the low “lows” with much in between forgotten but they all provide great stories. Seeing America by bicycle as we have done has been fabulous and I’m so grateful to my “promoter” buddy Kent Taylor for his creation. I have been the Grey Eagle (oldest guy) on the last few rides. I hope to do another 40 rides before I “retire” (some say we may need to step up the pace to 1 per month for this to happen). My final bike may be an E trike complete with a drool cup and possibly a side car for my caregiver – time will tell! Thanks Kent for all the memories!
My MAFG Pedigree by Bob O'Neal
O'Neal, Dave
Perlitz, Chris
Peterson, Hank
Port, Alan - Since my retirement in 2012, I have been riding regularly with a Florida group called the Palma Sola (the street where the rides start) Peloton. Norris Elswick and Paul Drummey are regular riders with that group. During 2016 I picked up bits and pieces of conversations involving Norris and Paul, which suggested that they were somehow involved in a secret society that took multiday bike rides. As the snatches of conversation were given context with the occasional appearance of a MAFG jersey, I began to be interested in the prospect of joining such a secret society. At this point it is not clear to me whether Norris noticed my interest in the MAFG or whether I actually invited myself. Nonetheless, I first joined the group for the spring 2017 Red Neck Riviera ride. After riding into a head wind for six straight days on that trip, it was clear to me that, although painful, riding with the MAFG could be a lot of fun.
Rabins, Pete
Rall, John - Bob O’Neal, at some point, invited Woody Woodruff to join the group. Woody rode with us for several years and eventually stopped showing-up. However, in 2013, Woody invited John Rall to join the group for a ride in the Adirondacks. Woody cancelled but John decided to participate anyway. So, John shows-up knowing no one. I suspect there are very few people who would attend a week-long bicycle ride with a bunch of strangers. Impressive.John is certainly someone I would not want my mother to know I was associating with. On the other hand, his Brooks saddle and seat pack were a big hit. It became clear he was a real keeper when he started regaling us with railroad history. Submitted by Kent
Woody threw me into this wild hornets nest and then abandoned me. 😊 Submitted by John Rall
Reese, Ben
Skalet, John
Stevens, Lou
Stewart, Bill
Sullivan, John
Sundermann, Ned - Yes, Julian, I remember your perfect endo at Yellowstone very well. Same trip when we all believed you had crushed your ugly fingers in a car door, and then you as SAG driver trying to schlep everyones' luggage with your injured shoulder- good job! Also when you were pre-flighting Kent's Ford Explorer and discovered the recaps peeling off the tires (actually recalled Firestones) right before it was time to haul a load of Fat Guys back to Colorado. Mere road bumps on a great trip. Julian, if it's any consolation, I broke my collarbone last June while biking in B.C.
Anyway that was my MAFG initiation, after invites from friends Jim Anderson and Karl Friedman. After that came Lake Champlain and Jacksonville to Ft Myers, where I met a former neighbor from Cincinnati (Paul Drummey) for the first time; you still alive, dude?After a while, I got tired of the 5 to 1 rule and just decided it was easier to do many of these trips with my wife who enjoys the same activities, only with better accommodations and privileges, eg. just spent the month of Feb. biking in NZ.
Have missed the group and seems like there's a lot of guys I need to catch up with after all these years. Do I get to vote retroactively on which of the new guys are keepers?
cheers, Ned Sundermann
Taylor, Kent - Here is the full narrative as I remember.
My first exposure to week-long rides was indeed the tour I took in 1985 in the Cotswolds, west of Oxford, England. I really liked it. Then in 1987 several of my friends and I took a four day ride from my house in Boulder over Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park to Winter Park and back to Boulder. In 1988 four of us took a self-contained trip in Puget Sound. We used panniers and, with the help of ferries, toured the San Juan Islands, Vancouver Island, Whidbey Island, and the Olympic Range. In the meantime, Bob O’Neal and I took a couple of BRAG rides.
In 1996, I cobbled together ten guys to ride the Puget Sound trip again, with a different itinerary but still in Puget Sound. The one common thread for the group was that they were all people I knew and liked.
The participants:
Jim Anderson
Bob O’Neal
Geoff Inge – a Boulder friend and fellow employee at KTM; still an MAFG but scheduling has made it tough for him to participate all the time.
John Sullivan – a Boulder lawyer: he also has trouble with consistency but still participates when he can.
Norris Elswick
Neal Gray – retired Delta pilot from Atlanta
Glenn Scotland – a New Jersey lawyer with whom I had been involved on energy projects.
Jim Atherton – a Boulder IT guy who worked with my wife at the DA’s office.
Carl Ulrich – a Washington lawyer with whom I had been involved on energy projects (now deceased)
and myself, Kent Taylor.
Prior to the trip I wanted to provide the participants with something to commemorate the trip. So I bought the closest thing I could find to biking caps and had them embroidered with the initials MAFGPSBT. See the attachment. Hence the name.
Norris and I were recently reminiscing about that first trip and he said, “ I showed up with a tee shirt, Bermuda shorts, tennis shoes, and a pack of Winstons.” Now, I ask you, what is better than that?
As I have told Mike and John, it really tickles me that the group will probably continue into the future after us old guys are drooling into a cup. The particular form of biking subculture the MAFG’s occupy is unique and I really love it.
Respectively submitted by Kent Taylor
Tharp, Jim - Jim Anderson has been a friend since our kids were little. Cindy and Caroline exchange play dates etc. Probably around 2004 Jim learned I was biking and asked me to join MAFG. My first trip was the Crater Lake trip in Oregon. We did a loop from Eugene-Bend-Eugene. The first day we had to go over a range via some logging roads and I pretty sure we had grades of 12%. We also got kind of lost in the network of roads. I quickly learned the cadence of the rides. I'd be trying to organize my equipment during one of the rest stops when I looked up and everyone was gone except the sag driver. I quickly learned to always keep an eye on Jim Anderson-when he gets on his bike everyone follows suits. It may have been the next day that we had a long climb to Crater Lake when a snowstorm hit. I just figured I'd pedal in the 3" of snow when fortunately the van came by and picked a few of us up-wet bikes everywhere including our laps. The next day was so beautiful-clear sky with snow on the peaks but fortunately not much snow on the roads. That Crater trip is still one of my favorites but it's hard to choose with so many great times.
Sent from my iPad - Jim Tharp
Woodruff, Woody - ...and I was invited by Bob O’Neal in 2003-2004
-Woody Woodruff iPad
Bob O’Neal, at some point, invited Woody Woodruff to join the group. Woody rode with us for several years and eventually stopped showing-up. However, in 2013, Woody invited John Rall to join the group for a ride in the Adirondacks. Woody cancelled but John decided to participate anyway. So, John shows-up knowing no one. I suspect there are very few people who would attend a week-long bicycle ride with a bunch of strangers. Impressive.
John is certainly someone I would not want my mother to know I was associating with. On the other hand, his Brooks saddle and seat pack were a big hit. It became clear he was a real keeper when he started regaling us with railroad history. Submitted by Kent
Woody threw me into this wild hornets nest and then abandoned me. 😊 Submitted by John Rall
Zammuto, Mark - I was invited to ride with the MAFG by Kent Taylor. Kent's wife, Robin, and I worked together for many years in Boulder. In the early 2000s, Kent went on a couple mountain bike trips in Utah that my wife and I planned. When I retired, Kent convinced me that I should come on a trip with the MAFG. My first trip was the Texas Hill Country trip in Spring 2010. It was an adventure for me because I had not done much road bike riding since the 90's. The trip reignited my interest in road riding. When I got back from the trip, I went out and bought a bike just like Kent's. The Texas trip was great fun. We had excellent weather. The highlight of the trip was a Harley rally/concert in Luckenbach, Texas. The guys with MAFG jerseys were a popular photo-op attraction. Attached is a photo from the trip. Mark Zammuto
Horn, Dan
Lineberger, Dick - I am the proud invitee of none other than the most prolific invitee amongst us, Sir Norris Elswick. He was the ride organizer for my first ride which we affectionately refer to as the Napa ride. It was in 2001. We experienced 9/11 together while on that memorable ride. We started in Calistoga rode up to Mendocino and then down the PCH to San Fran! I’ll forever be indebted to my dear friend, Norris. Submitted by Dick Lineberger
Miller, Phil
Murphy, Bob
Myers, Tom
Osborn, Charles - I started out as a marginally successful bike racer in the late 70s. Years of group rides followed and over time I became more interested in building and fixing bikes than riding them. Then I ran into Jim Anderson (my cousin Cindy’s husband) at a family affair and he told me about the MAFGs and the upcoming Death Valley ride. I thought this would be about as much fun as a burning pointed stick in the eye but it turned out to be a great and memorable ride (except for the last day in the headwind). This got me back into riding which I still enjoy but I don’t really qualify for the MAFGs anymore. I meet (and exceed) the fat requirement but have aged beyond middle aged. Thanks for some great memories. Charlie Osborn
O'Neal, Bob - Kent Taylor and I go back over 52 years as of this writing. We met in Jan. 1968 in Pensacola, FL where we started Naval Aviation OCS together. After 12 weeks with lots of PT, marching, classroom, harassment and BS we were commissioned as Ensigns. We then spent the next 15 months in flight training that included Primary, jet transition, instrument, formation, carrier qual in 2 different aircraft, air to air gunnery, navigation, etc. Our training took us from P-cola to Meridian, Ms, back to P-cola and finally to S. TX. Sometimes we lived together, other times we were just doing similar training, sometimes in the same flight. We both got our wings in early fall, 1969 followed by orders to our first real assignments. Things were winding down in Viet Nam by this time – I was sent back to Meridian to teach formation flying and Kent went off to Maintenance Officer School in Memphis. Even the newest MAFG knows that Kent is a “promoter”. I have experienced this a number of times over the years. Being a slow learner, I generally go along with Kent’s “vision”. A few examples… In Dec. 1969 I went to Memphis at his request and was Best Man in his wedding, a few years later I joined his Oceana “O”s softball team while we were both stationed in Va Beach. Some time later I joined a limited real estate partnership that Kent and a number of senior officers were in. This lasted 10+ years and Kent kept the books for the group for all those years. By the mid 70’s we had both left active duty, were pursuing real careers – Kent in CO and I was in GA. We both continued to fly with the Naval Reserves. By the 80’s careers, family, Naval Reserves plus some biking and other PT were keeping us busy. My biking was getting a little more serious and included doing BRAG a few times in the late 80’s and early 90’s with my family. By the mid 90’s Kent and I considered ourselves pretty serious cyclist – as I look back now it is amazing how much has changed and what rookies we really were. I was delighted to join Kent in 1996 on the first MAFG ride and invited a Delta friend, Neal Grey to come along. Since then I have participated in 36 of the 40 rides so far and had a number of friends including my brother join the MAFG for at least one ride. All have been great experiences shared with many great guys. You remember the high “highs” and the low “lows” with much in between forgotten but they all provide great stories. Seeing America by bicycle as we have done has been fabulous and I’m so grateful to my “promoter” buddy Kent Taylor for his creation. I have been the Grey Eagle (oldest guy) on the last few rides. I hope to do another 40 rides before I “retire” (some say we may need to step up the pace to 1 per month for this to happen). My final bike may be an E trike complete with a drool cup and possibly a side car for my caregiver – time will tell! Thanks Kent for all the memories!
My MAFG Pedigree by Bob O'Neal
O'Neal, Dave
Perlitz, Chris
Peterson, Hank
Port, Alan - Since my retirement in 2012, I have been riding regularly with a Florida group called the Palma Sola (the street where the rides start) Peloton. Norris Elswick and Paul Drummey are regular riders with that group. During 2016 I picked up bits and pieces of conversations involving Norris and Paul, which suggested that they were somehow involved in a secret society that took multiday bike rides. As the snatches of conversation were given context with the occasional appearance of a MAFG jersey, I began to be interested in the prospect of joining such a secret society. At this point it is not clear to me whether Norris noticed my interest in the MAFG or whether I actually invited myself. Nonetheless, I first joined the group for the spring 2017 Red Neck Riviera ride. After riding into a head wind for six straight days on that trip, it was clear to me that, although painful, riding with the MAFG could be a lot of fun.
Rabins, Pete
Rall, John - Bob O’Neal, at some point, invited Woody Woodruff to join the group. Woody rode with us for several years and eventually stopped showing-up. However, in 2013, Woody invited John Rall to join the group for a ride in the Adirondacks. Woody cancelled but John decided to participate anyway. So, John shows-up knowing no one. I suspect there are very few people who would attend a week-long bicycle ride with a bunch of strangers. Impressive.John is certainly someone I would not want my mother to know I was associating with. On the other hand, his Brooks saddle and seat pack were a big hit. It became clear he was a real keeper when he started regaling us with railroad history. Submitted by Kent
Woody threw me into this wild hornets nest and then abandoned me. 😊 Submitted by John Rall
Reese, Ben
Skalet, John
Stevens, Lou
Stewart, Bill
Sullivan, John
Sundermann, Ned - Yes, Julian, I remember your perfect endo at Yellowstone very well. Same trip when we all believed you had crushed your ugly fingers in a car door, and then you as SAG driver trying to schlep everyones' luggage with your injured shoulder- good job! Also when you were pre-flighting Kent's Ford Explorer and discovered the recaps peeling off the tires (actually recalled Firestones) right before it was time to haul a load of Fat Guys back to Colorado. Mere road bumps on a great trip. Julian, if it's any consolation, I broke my collarbone last June while biking in B.C.
Anyway that was my MAFG initiation, after invites from friends Jim Anderson and Karl Friedman. After that came Lake Champlain and Jacksonville to Ft Myers, where I met a former neighbor from Cincinnati (Paul Drummey) for the first time; you still alive, dude?After a while, I got tired of the 5 to 1 rule and just decided it was easier to do many of these trips with my wife who enjoys the same activities, only with better accommodations and privileges, eg. just spent the month of Feb. biking in NZ.
Have missed the group and seems like there's a lot of guys I need to catch up with after all these years. Do I get to vote retroactively on which of the new guys are keepers?
cheers, Ned Sundermann
Taylor, Kent - Here is the full narrative as I remember.
My first exposure to week-long rides was indeed the tour I took in 1985 in the Cotswolds, west of Oxford, England. I really liked it. Then in 1987 several of my friends and I took a four day ride from my house in Boulder over Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park to Winter Park and back to Boulder. In 1988 four of us took a self-contained trip in Puget Sound. We used panniers and, with the help of ferries, toured the San Juan Islands, Vancouver Island, Whidbey Island, and the Olympic Range. In the meantime, Bob O’Neal and I took a couple of BRAG rides.
In 1996, I cobbled together ten guys to ride the Puget Sound trip again, with a different itinerary but still in Puget Sound. The one common thread for the group was that they were all people I knew and liked.
The participants:
Jim Anderson
Bob O’Neal
Geoff Inge – a Boulder friend and fellow employee at KTM; still an MAFG but scheduling has made it tough for him to participate all the time.
John Sullivan – a Boulder lawyer: he also has trouble with consistency but still participates when he can.
Norris Elswick
Neal Gray – retired Delta pilot from Atlanta
Glenn Scotland – a New Jersey lawyer with whom I had been involved on energy projects.
Jim Atherton – a Boulder IT guy who worked with my wife at the DA’s office.
Carl Ulrich – a Washington lawyer with whom I had been involved on energy projects (now deceased)
and myself, Kent Taylor.
Prior to the trip I wanted to provide the participants with something to commemorate the trip. So I bought the closest thing I could find to biking caps and had them embroidered with the initials MAFGPSBT. See the attachment. Hence the name.
Norris and I were recently reminiscing about that first trip and he said, “ I showed up with a tee shirt, Bermuda shorts, tennis shoes, and a pack of Winstons.” Now, I ask you, what is better than that?
As I have told Mike and John, it really tickles me that the group will probably continue into the future after us old guys are drooling into a cup. The particular form of biking subculture the MAFG’s occupy is unique and I really love it.
Respectively submitted by Kent Taylor
Tharp, Jim - Jim Anderson has been a friend since our kids were little. Cindy and Caroline exchange play dates etc. Probably around 2004 Jim learned I was biking and asked me to join MAFG. My first trip was the Crater Lake trip in Oregon. We did a loop from Eugene-Bend-Eugene. The first day we had to go over a range via some logging roads and I pretty sure we had grades of 12%. We also got kind of lost in the network of roads. I quickly learned the cadence of the rides. I'd be trying to organize my equipment during one of the rest stops when I looked up and everyone was gone except the sag driver. I quickly learned to always keep an eye on Jim Anderson-when he gets on his bike everyone follows suits. It may have been the next day that we had a long climb to Crater Lake when a snowstorm hit. I just figured I'd pedal in the 3" of snow when fortunately the van came by and picked a few of us up-wet bikes everywhere including our laps. The next day was so beautiful-clear sky with snow on the peaks but fortunately not much snow on the roads. That Crater trip is still one of my favorites but it's hard to choose with so many great times.
Sent from my iPad - Jim Tharp
Woodruff, Woody - ...and I was invited by Bob O’Neal in 2003-2004
-Woody Woodruff iPad
Bob O’Neal, at some point, invited Woody Woodruff to join the group. Woody rode with us for several years and eventually stopped showing-up. However, in 2013, Woody invited John Rall to join the group for a ride in the Adirondacks. Woody cancelled but John decided to participate anyway. So, John shows-up knowing no one. I suspect there are very few people who would attend a week-long bicycle ride with a bunch of strangers. Impressive.
John is certainly someone I would not want my mother to know I was associating with. On the other hand, his Brooks saddle and seat pack were a big hit. It became clear he was a real keeper when he started regaling us with railroad history. Submitted by Kent
Woody threw me into this wild hornets nest and then abandoned me. 😊 Submitted by John Rall
Zammuto, Mark - I was invited to ride with the MAFG by Kent Taylor. Kent's wife, Robin, and I worked together for many years in Boulder. In the early 2000s, Kent went on a couple mountain bike trips in Utah that my wife and I planned. When I retired, Kent convinced me that I should come on a trip with the MAFG. My first trip was the Texas Hill Country trip in Spring 2010. It was an adventure for me because I had not done much road bike riding since the 90's. The trip reignited my interest in road riding. When I got back from the trip, I went out and bought a bike just like Kent's. The Texas trip was great fun. We had excellent weather. The highlight of the trip was a Harley rally/concert in Luckenbach, Texas. The guys with MAFG jerseys were a popular photo-op attraction. Attached is a photo from the trip. Mark Zammuto
