FOS annual Pizza Party

November 17, 2022

Our annual pizza party was held at Aurelio’s in Frankfort again this year.  Everyone enjoyed the buffet with all the pizza you could possibly want, with salad and soft serve ice cream for dessert. Forty-six members came together to reflect, elect officers, vote on T-shirt and website designs for Spring Fling and for the web site banner.

The weather wasn’t too bad.  There was no snow which always helps, but it was bitterly cold. Many members took the opportunity to renew their memberships, and some brought guests too.

Next to the T-shirt designs there was a table display of free biking paraphernalia, courtesy of Barb. And there were several club pictures for the members to view, they spanned several years of the clubs’ history.

After socializing and eating, the evenings’ business began. Jo Dell started the business portion of the party with the confirmation of the new board. The 2023 FOS board members are:

President: Jo Dell Albi

Vice-President: Jerry Dagenais

Treasurer: John Victor

Secretary: Sally Kleinschmidt

Members at Large: Lau Chung, Kathy McElligott

Next up was the approval of raising dues for 2023 members. The new rate will be $20 for individuals, $30 family. Also approved was to have 2023 General Meetings on a quarterly basis.

Larry and Jo Dell announced all the winners of the mileage awards, complete with trophies this year! Lastly, voting took place for the T-shirt design and the website design. Jo Dell won for the website and Sally won for the T-shirt design.

Thank you all for another great year!

End of Season Potluck/Rides/Hike 

Our annual end of season potluck held at Goodenow Grove in Crete, IL, was a great success.  There were two separate rides.  JoDell let one at 9:30 a.m. and Jim T. went out at 10:30.   Hikers left at 10:00.  Everyone came back hungry and smiling.

This year we welcomed members of the Major Taylor Bike Club.  They participated in the 9:30 ride and several stayed to grill hot dogs, sausage or burgers.  We had salads, chips and desserts to share.  Noone left hungry.

We can never predict weather and outside events can be tricky.  This year was no different.  The wind was incredible!  No problem for hikers in the woods, but cyclists had their work cut out for them!  On the bright side, it was really warm so we were grateful for that!

Not too much in the way of pictures this year.  We were all busy holding on to our plates!

Tour of the Joliet State Prison

October 5th, 2022

                 
This unique social was the brainchild of Bernie. Usually, Bernie is known for his hikes, but he switched it up this time and announced a tour of the Old Joliet State Prison. It was a sunny fall day, perfect for being outdoors to tour the ruins of the prison that has been around since 1858.

Although the buildings are in disrepair from fires, vandalism and neglect, there are still some available to walk thru, most notably some of the prison cells and the solitary confinement cells. They were pretty horrible, especially knowing that some of them used to house 3 men at a time in a 7’ by 4’ cell with only a slop bucket for bodily functions. Some of the inmates were kids as young as 10.

The prison did have a prison yard that was added in the early 1900’s to provide exercise for the men. It got a lot of sunlight, and there was some equipment & hoops available. The prison had its own laundry, which was considered a plum assignment for the inmates. Inmates were expected to work, and assignments once included the industrial shop, the cafeteria and even a mattress factory!

Our self-guided tour ended with an informative discussion with one of the historians, who knew the prison inside & out. Her husband had been a guard there and she was able to tell us some very interesting stories.

Joliet State Prison was featured in the film “The Blues Brothers”, when John Belushi famously exited with his clothing in his arms.  The original mess hall is also shown in the film “White Heat,” 

This trip was very eye opening and depressing, yet we learned a lot and were exposed to something most of us probably never think about.  Afterwards, we had a very enjoyable lunch in Lockport, a short ride from the prison.

Next, Steve Soderborg, who came to speak about the game Pickleball. After learning the basic details for playing, Steve took the group to the Pickleball court that he set up in the parking lot to play. At first, hilarity ensued as our enthusiastic members were hitting pickleballs all over the place. But after a few rounds, everyone was getting the hang of it. It’s a sport that is easy to get better at, and very social too due to the down time waiting for one’s turn to go in. 

Yes, everyone thought that Pickle ball was fun to learn about and play, but biking will always, always be our first love. 😊

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