Nebraska Cycling News

Overwhelming Success!

A little over a week has passed since the February 11th screening of Pure Sweet Hell at Lincoln¹s Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center. Time flies, right?

The brisk, but humid evening served as the Midwest premiere of Pure Sweet Hell, and was also the jumping-off point for filmmaker Brian Vernor¹s Midwest tour, which over the course of the last ten days, has seen him showing this hour-long cyclocross documentary to passionately packed houses in St. Louis, Madison, Chicago, and Minneapolis. The Lincoln showing was an overwhelming success by anyone¹s definition, selling out the 250-seat theater at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center a full two days before the showing, and attracting a long list of supporters in the form of local businesses, moviegoers, hardcore cyclists, sympathetic friends and family, as well as every single Lincoln bike shop the later of which enthusiastically handled PSH ticket sales with all the competence and effectiveness you¹d expect from a group with over 120 years of bike-shop history.

On the evening of the Pure Sweet Hell screening thanks to the generous donations from Lincoln Bicycle Company, Monkey Wrench Cycles, Cycle Works, Blues Bike and Fitness, Footloose and Fancy, Bricktop, Bike Pedalers, The Mill, Hunter Cycles, and Santa Cruz Skateboards a raffle was held and close to 800 tickets were quickly sold for a chance to win complete bikes from LeMond and Bianchi, a complete skateboard from Santa Cruz Skateboards, helmets from Giro and Bell, cycling clothing from Hunter, Nike, Hypnotic Designs, Cars R Coffins, and Pearl Izumi, as well as gift certificates for coffee, spring bike tune-ups, and other random cycling products. Raffle winners were announced just before bluegrass torch carriers, The Flatwater Boys, took the stage at the post-screening celebration at Bricktop a gathering that more than a few smiling folks referred to as the ³biggest cycling-related event Lincoln has ever seen.² Š truly a testament to the strength and generosity of this all-inclusive community that¹s lucky enough to call Lincoln home.

After all was said and doneincluding ticket sales, sponsor¹s donations, and raffle tickets close to $2300 was raised in the name of The GreatPlains Trails Network and the Becca Wilkins Wellness Fund. Give yourselves a big pat on the back next time you see each other.

A very special thanks goes out to Pure Sweet Hell's Brian Vernor, Willy K. Bullion, and Rick Hunter, to Erin at NHS, to Danny Ladley and all the good people at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center, to Matt and Jane Stricker at Footloose and Fancy, to Nate Woodman at Monkey Wrench Cycles, to Rich Rodenburg at Bike Pedalers, to Jay Thomas and Matt and Jill Tillinghast at The Lincoln Bicycle Company, to Kris Sondrup and Jeff Avey at Cycle Works, to Jim Carveth and Dave Kosark at Blues Bike and Fitness, to Dan, Dale, and Ken at The Mill, to Marco Vasquez of Team Kaos, Sue Quambusch at A to Z Printing, to Sandhills Publishing, to the Bricktop, and to CVO, CH, and all Nebraska cyclists.

Don¹t forget to support your local bike shops and other local business they're supporting you.