circa 2010

Don Rosser, a founding member, past president for many years, and lifetime member of Summit Cycling Club reminisces about the start of, and early days of, Summit Cycling.

"Sometime in the mid 1960s (1966 probably), I saw a notice in the Burlington County Times for a Sunday group ride from Medford to Batso. Great idea, I thought. I took my trusty three-speed to the start and successfully completed the 40-mile round trip. I was hooked.

The group was a newly formed club of folks in the Willingboro area (like me) called the Rancocas Valley Wheel Cranks. I became a Crank and regularly went on their Sunday tours.

Shortly thereafter, a gent named Bert Nixdorf started the Outdoor Club of South Jersey. Every Saturday, he and his wife led an event -- a hike, mountain climb, river tubing, or bike ride. I also joined this group.

One Saturday, on a Nixdorf ride, we were passed by a pace line of young men with tubular wheels. I got on the end of their line and, when they made a stop, got acquainted. They were all seniors from Haddonfield H.S. They took weekend training rides and gave their group a name.

As they were starting their jaunts in 1967, an event of world-wide significance was taking place in New Jersey. President Lyndon Johnson met Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin at Glassboro State College. It was a Summit Meeting. The Haddonfield kids decided to name their group the Summit Cycling Club.

Don Rosser, Circa 1970's

The Wheel Cranks were dwindling in number. So I and three other Cranks -- Bill Nee of Mt. Holly, Ray O'Brien of Riverside, and Joey Brennan, a high school kid from Willingboro -- started riding with the Summit kids. I'm hazy about the first few rides, but soon (if not from the beginning) we left Sunday mornings from the Friendly/Wawa lot in Moorestown.     

The Sunday Summit ride standardized into a loop from Moorestown, around the Hill Course, and back to Moorestown -- about 40 miles. It was laid out by Bill Nee, originally with mile markers painted on the pavement. The club also ran a weeknight 10-mile time trial, conducted by the Haddonfield bike shop. Each year from 1978 to 1982, Summit also ran four South Jersey centuries, awarding patches designed by Bill's wife, Kay Nee. Compared to other cycling groups in the area, Summit was the Big Leagues.

The Haddonfield kids soon graduated and went away. Meanwhile, other cyclists had joined the Summit Club. The early members -- besides Rosser, Nee, O’Brien and Brennan -- included Paul Miraglia, Lou Ruvolo, Charlie Spano, Walter Zimmerman, Lyle, and our European member, Andre, the French-speaking native of Belgium. Joe Vitale of D&Q was a friend of Summiteers from the beginning. Werner Paulus joined the club in the early 1980 after he married my daughter.

Yes, I was president of the club for several years in the late 70s and early 80s and (probably nobody remembers) was voted a life member. I did the Sunday ride until I retired in 1985 and the Saturday ride occasionally for a few years thereafter. At age 83, I now ride solely with the Outdoor Club. You have many times passed my group on Saturday morning on Church Road.

The original Summit Jersey was dark green with white trim.  The letters S U M M I T were spread across the chest in white capital letters. It was 100 percent wool, with no logo or other advertising. (Photo Upper Right)

 Don  circa 2010                

The club held an evening membership meet once a month. The original meeting site was Haddonfield High School. Later, the meetings were in the old Cherry Hill Library."

                                                                                                                                             -Don Rosser