We wish at this time to express our deep gratitude to all of the groups and individuals that made Velocipede & Tweed Indeed – The Kansas City Tweed Ride a success. Given the state of our feeble memory and absolute lack of written reference materials, we hope that we do not fail recognize any who played a part in this endeavor. These are in no specific order, only listed as they come to mind. Please do not hesitate to inform us should you know of anyone deserving accolade who is not here mentioned.
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We shall begin with the venerable Calvert Guthrie of Kansas City Center for Ink & Paper Arts. He’s the gent that created our wonderful poster art on quite short notice. It was also he who also applied his numerous years of training to embellish the contest winner certificates with his exquisite calligraphy. If ever you are in need of instruction in the art of relief printing we urge you to patronize his studio. We can imagine no other facility in the city with the range of equipment available at such reasonable rates. We also wish to thank Calvert for making the presentation on behalf of Bike Shack owner Chris Smedley regarding his ongoing battle with cancer.
It was at Calvert’s studio where we first laid eyes on the beautiful sash that was worn by our Grand Marshal. This item was the handiwork of the talented seamstress Michelle Davis. Being the resourceful lass that she is, she conjured up our ornamental garb from recycled fabrics. Upon close inspection one can ascertain that in has been constructed from no less than eight silk neckties. Bravo! The embroidery was provided by Mr. Mark Horn of Paragon Creations.
The sash was proudly worn by our Grand Marshal, Mr. Eric Rogers of BikeWalkKC. It is to him that we give credit for our most appropriate venue and pleasantly scenic route. When he first proposed it we knew at once that Cliff Drive and the surrounding neighborhood were the ideal location for our event. It’s historical significance, architectural icons, and unmatched beauty made for the perfect setting.
Eric brought with him the staff from BikeWalkKC which included Sarah Shipley, the smiling face that assisted you at the registration table. Sarah was also one of our contest judges. She along with Nancy McDonald of Re-Velo and Malenda Shahane, an advocate for the North East Neighborhood, were our judges for our costume and mustache contests. These young ladies rendered us an invaluable service by selecting the winners from amongst so many qualified contestants. Their counterpart as the judge of the bicycles and apparatus was none other than last years Grand Marshal, Bill Poindexter. This was a daunting task considering the vast array and quality of vehicles presented.
The fore mentioned Malenda Shahane (who was introduced to us by the fore mentioned Eric Rogers) played a much larger role in the facilitation of Velocipede & Tweed Indeed by putting us in contact with two other individuals who also champion the causes of the area where we held our ride. Adam Schieber , president of Cliff Drive Corridor Management Committee, and Christopher Leitch, director of Kansas City Museum at Corinthian Hall.
Adam was able to procure, from an anonymous source, the funds required to secure the park facilities. He also worked with Shannon Dooley, Marketing and Events Administrator for Kansas City Parks & Recreation, to see that all was in order the day of our celebration.
Christopher Leitch graciously allowed us access to the front of the museum for our group photo. Had it not been for the major renovation currently underway of the property he could have afforded us greater access. On behalf of the museum, he has expressed an eagerness for increased involvement in the future.
Reflecting back to the registration table, assistance was also provided by the Sister-In-Law/Brother-In-Law team of Theresa Rainey and David Rainey. As is his custom, David also provided the “Sweeper” services at the tail of the parade and is quite grateful that we ride bicycles, not horses.
Also at the registration table were the beautiful prints by local artist Kevin Nierman. Kevin graciously donated these to the event. We consider ourselves fortunate to make them available, and presented the proceeds from them to BikeWalkKC. The donations from the prints raised over $350 which, through a matching grant program, will be doubled to over $700.
Having mentioned art, there were also in our midst several among us who were capturing images by means of the photographic devices. In fact, at the time of this writing there are no less than twenty links to albums on the blog post entitled “Camera Obscura“. We are indeed grateful for the sharing of your handiwork. It is always such a delight to view the images and reminisce upon the good times had.
Not surprisingly the most often photographed subjects were the participants in the costume contests. The amount of effort and attention to detail put into the clothing was quite remarkable and astounding. We do indeed thank all of you who participated for you truly made it a memorable event. All were worthy of mention, but, alas, only one can emerge victorious. Our contest winners were as follows:
Best Girls Costume – Logan Lasswell
Best Boys Costume – Parker Lasswell
Most Flattering Female Finery – Jana Lasswell
Most Dashing & Debonair Male – Jeff Gibbs
Most Delicate Mustache (Fictitiously Female) – Sue Spade
Most Handsome Mustache (Masculinely Male) – Brian Lasswell
“Bicyclette du jour” – James McKenzie
Most Clever Contraption for Picnic Portage – Jeff Gibbs
We would be terribly remiss if we did not mention the very generous donors to our event. To the best of our recollection they are as follows:
The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art by way of John Young
Re-Velo owned by Nancy McDonald
Walz Caps courtesy of Bill Poindexter
Taddinogg Cycling Caps by Thad Carson
Coco’s Photos by Angie “Coco” Colian
Chamois Butt’r by Paceline Products
Bike America of Overland Park
Most of all we, Groody Bros. Bicycle Restoration Project, wish to thank you, the participants of the event. It was your presence that made this a truly memorable occasion. We enjoyed your smiles, laughter and “esprit de corps”. It is indeed heartwarming to see a group of good-natured folk come together for the simple pleasure of riding their bicycles. It is truly amazing to see complete strangers gather in one place and enjoy each others company. We hope that during the course of the ride you were able to make a new friend or catch up with an old acquaintance. Most of all we hope that you enjoyed yourself and that our paths cross again in the not to distant future. Cheers!
Mark, the Groody Boys, & the crew from BikeWalkKC have a right to be proud of what they pulled together and pulled off.
I had a dEElightful time.
I only wish I’d seized more moments to explore some photo comps (with all the outstanding vintage bicycles & garb) to apply to subsequent posters. Good job, cyclists!
BTW: we gathered $101 for Chris Smedley.
Thanks much!