Greetings La Grange Members,
Your September newsletter includes upcoming events; the LG Piuma Hillclimb and Annual Club Picnic, dates for September rides, recaps on the August LG 50, Womens ride, Santa Barbara Century Ride, Skills and Safety Course and a Member contributed feature. Not as on time as USPS but we’re still in the first week!
Ride safely,
Renée Fox, La Voix Editor
P.S. Have something else cycling-related you think would be interesting or beneficial to our members? Submit here to be considered for an upcoming newsletter.
Letter from the President
Hello La Grangers,
Recently, as I am going through a career change, a story keeps coming back into mind.
When I was much younger, and my sons were as well, I found myself out of work during the month of July. The boys would wake up with me and watch the tour. Trevor, who is the older of my boys had asked why I wasn’t going into work so much and I let him know that I was looking for something new to do for work. He then asked me if the cyclists we were watching on TV got paid. I told him yes. He then said well if I enjoy cycling so much I should do that (become a pro cyclist) as a job.
Well, I never was paid as a cyclist. The sport, lifestyle, and this club have made me a very wealthy man in the currency of smiles and friendships and adventures.
As we head into September and begin transitioning from summer to autumn, I wish you all plenty of each of those things.
Vive La Grange,
Larry
Club News
La Grange Piuma Hillclimb and Annual Picnic
The event that started back in 2000, the Piuma Hillclimb is located in the hills above Malibu off of Malibu Canyon Road. Piuma is a twisty, windy 5.4 miles of uphill nastiness. Max gradient approaches 8% in some areas. Elevation gain is just over 1700 feet. But wait, there’s more! The Hillclimb doesn’t end there. Once you’ve summited Piuma, you will descend the backside of Piuma towards Scheuren Road where you will negotiate a deceptively evil off-camber left turn onto Scheuren Road. From there, it’s another 1.8 miles and 544 feet of climbing to the finish line at Saddle Peak. The Hillclimb is a mass start similar to that of a marathon where riders will self-seed themselves based on their expected finishing time.
If you've never done this event before, you need to experience it!
The Piuma Hillclimb is just under four weeks from now on September 19th. Registration is now open and we do need everyone who is planning to participate to sign up. And please remember to choose your correct age category: Register HERE
The Annual LG Picnic will be at Rustic Canyon Park starting at 12:00 following the Piuma Climb. This year, our picnic will be catered by Wood Ranch BBQ. You must RSVP if you are planning to attend the picnic so we can get a proper food count. Guests are welcome. RSVP will be shared soon.
Club Events Recap
La Grange Skills and Safety Course
Photos by Lisa Goldfarb
The second edition of the La Grange Skills and Safety Course took place on Sunday, August 2nd from 8:00 am - 9:30 am on the Veterans Administration (VA) campus. Riders learned and practiced the finer specifics of riding in a paceline and peloton, rider’s responsibilities, teamwork vision and being a good wheel. Look out for Details, Date and Location for the next LG Skills and Safety Course, TBA!
LG Skills and safety Course sessions are a combination of bike handling drills and choreographed group riding. Focused instruction and practice in a simplified training environment. Easy pace, friendly, supportive.
This course is made for members and non members- everyone who rides in road cycling groups, and will focus on skills that riders at every level can learn and improve.
Be safe! Ride with Velo Club La Grange! Come participate in the Course!
2026 Edgar Burcksen Memorial Santa Barbara Century Recap
Photos by various contributors
This year’s ride, led by Rich Hirschinger, was a beautiful day of riding a controlled social pace with regular SAG stops to support the riders. As in past years, riders enjoyed beer and food at the Santa Barbara Biergarten and a lovely train ride back to the start in Van Nuys with views of the sunset over the coastline.
The ride happens each year In honor of long-time La Grange member and distance rider, Edgar Burcksen. Edgar passed away in April 2024 from injuries from a heart attack that occurred while doing what he loved, riding home from his regular Tuesday ride along San Vicente. In 2006 Edgar edited the documentary “The Gift” about club founder Raymond Fouquet and Velo Club La Grange's early days.
Enjoy the photos and join us next year!
August Women’s Ride
Led by Renée Fox
Recap By Cate Schmidt
Photos by various contributors
The August Women's ride demonstrated the heart of Velo Club La Grange - a genuine desire to share the love of the bike in the safest way possible.
If you ride a bike long enough, you are going to flat, and you are probably going to crash. Unfortunately for Lizzie, a guest rider from San Francisco, she did both. She rented a bike for her weekend in LA and within 5 miles, her back tire flatted. Immediately, the entire group stopped and regrouped at the side of the road. When it became apparent that she could use some help, everyone chipped in. There were no complaints, just a common focus on repairing the flat and resuming the ride.
And then the crash... a curve in a sandy bike path, mixed with pedestrians and fast oncoming traffic, Lizzie's wheel slipped out and she went down. Immediately, everyone stopped. When Lizzie was ready, the group helped her and her rental bike to safety. Everyone stuck together and waited until Lizzie had a plan to return safely home.
Special thanks to our ride leader, Renée Fox, who managed all of the unexpected, allowed each rider to contribute in their own way, and carried on despite the difficulties. The group successfully rode to Palos Verdes and back. They challenged each other on the climbs and celebrated the descents. Conversations about reducing risk and promoting safety continued throughout the ride, over food and drinks afterwards, and in the days following. One thing is for sure, the La Grange women are there for each other through the good times and the bad.
August LG 50
Led by Rich Hirschinger | SAG by Larry Goodman
Photos by various contributors
The August Edition of the LG 50 was an interesting route featuring Canyons, Climbs, Mulholland, the Valley, Old Topanga and a return on PCH. Word on the street is that the day was not as hot as expected.
Save the Date!
LG Women’s Ride: No Women’s Ride this month
LG50 Ride: Saturday September 26, 8am at Helen’s Cycles, route TBA
Piuma Hillclimb and Annual LG Picnic Sunday September 19 *Make sure to register!
Member Features
“MY NOTION IS THAT MANKIND WOULD BE BETTER MORTALS IF THEY ALL RODE BICYCLES.” Hans Ort
By Jonathan Weiss
If you’ve been inside Helen’s Cycles on Broadway in Santa Monica, you may have noticed the brass sign with the Hans Ort quote above the entrance to the lower showroom. The sign came from Hans Ohrt Lightweight Bicycles in Westwood, which operated from 1977 until Helen’s took over the location.
Hans Ohrt (1895–1960) was the 1915 national amateur cycling champion, a title that introduced him to Southern California’s cycling community and helped shape his later public profile. As his reputation grew, Ohrt became a familiar figure in Los Angeles society pages and moved easily within Hollywood circles, where he was known for outfitting actors and studio personnel with lightweight bicycles. His combination of competitive experience and social visibility led to his service on the cycling committee for the 1932 Los Angeles Olympic Games. Soon after, he opened Hans Ohrt Lightweight Bicycles in Beverly Hills. the shop that became a fixture of Westside cycling culture for decades.
Helen’s Cycles story begins in 1934, when Helen (Ray) Throckmorton (1908–2000) and her husband, Ted (1905–1990), opened a small repair shop in Venice Beach. Ted worked as a mechanic for Howard Hughes, whose disapproval of Ted’s moonlighting led the couple to put the business in Helen’s name — and “Helen’s Cycles” was born. The business has passed through only three owners since 1936, and Helen’s is one of the oldest continuously operating bicycle shops in Southern California.
After the Second World War, two French émigrés — Raymond Fouquet (1920–2013) and Alex Baum(1922–2015) — helped shape the next era of Westside cycling. Fouquet, who raced competitively in France, founded Velo Club La Grange out of his La Grange Restaurant in 1969. His mentoring helped produce riders who went on to race nationally and internationally. Today, Raymond Fouquet Square at Westwood and La Grange marks the starting point of the world‑famous Nichols ride, familiar to every La Granger.
Raymond’s friend Alex Baum came from soccer rather than cycling — he played for France’s national team after World War II. But like Raymond, Alex became a leader in Los Angeles’s cycling community. As a member of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee and helped expand Olympic cycling in 1984, including establishing the women’s road race. He also chaired the City of Los Angeles Bicycle Advisory Committee for decades, became the first American member of the Union Cycliste Internationale, and played a role in the early development of the Amgen Tour of California.
Raymond Fouquet’s Velo Club La Grange drew early support from Hans Ohrt Lightweight Bicycles, and Helen’s Cycles has now sponsored the club for generations. Together, these shops have anchored La Grange within the Westside’s cycling community, linking the club’s racing ambitions with the everyday riding culture that continues to shape cycling in Los Angeles.
By Jonathan Weiss. For more history — from the cycling fever of the 1890s to the Birthplace of BMX in 1969 — start on my website at www.cheviothillshistory.org/home/miscellany/westside-bicycling-history.
This picture is from Raymond’s 90th Birthday Dec 2010: Raymond Fouquet, Marco Fantone, Alex Baum, Claude Innocenti (from our website https://www.lagrange.org/blog/2021/1/13/la-voix-tribute-to-claude-innocenti)
Members:
Please take a moment to ensure your contact information is up to date. Visit https://www.lagrange.org/member-dashboard#myaccount to confirm that your phone number is current, and double check that your emergency contact name and phone number are accurate. This helps La Grange improve vendor access to membership verification and ensures that, in case of an emergency during a ride, a board member can quickly notify your emergency contact. If you have any questions or concerns, reach out to us at membership@lagrange.org.
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