BTCNJ Attorney Bob Zeller
What did the BTCNJ attorney recently advise the Executive Committee? Most members probably do not know that BTCNJ has a club attorney who volunteers his time and talents to assist the club with legal issues. Our attorney is Bob Zeller. Bob has been a member of BTCNJ since 1981 and our club attorney for at least 20 years. An “A” level rider during his first twenty of so years in the club (the “Riding with Nate Days”), Bob no longer has the desire to or sees the need to go that fast. He now does “B” rides and almost exclusively on his unusual looking Jones Plus bike, with 60 mm wide 29er tires.
Most of us use 23 or 25mm tires. Bob says the Jones is very comfortable, stable, well made and designed, much more efficient than its appearance may suggest and is a blast to ride. He is an admitted Jones convert and welcomes requests to take the bike for a spin after club rides. You’ll find Bob riding at the back of the pack enjoying the scenery and avoiding mid-pack risks and congestion.
A couple of years ago Bob helped the Executive Committee update the club’s Waivers and Releases. We now have a waiver and release of liability, assumption of risk, authorization to use name and likeness, acknowledgement of intellectual property rights, and authorization of use of submissions. In this world today these waivers and releases are required to protect the club. Bob has protected the club.
Bob has helped the BTCNJ president resolve several issues over the last few years. Bob’s advice was right-on and greatly appreciated. Bill Telgheder stated, “Even though Bob may feel he did not do that much, just having him available gave me the confidence that I would be able to handle any difficult situations that arose.”
Bob will be volunteering his time to assist with BTCNJ’s pilot Rider Training Program (RTP) scheduled for this spring. BTCNJ awards Bob Zeller Volunteer of the Year for volunteering his time and talents to BTCNJ. Thank you, Bob, for your wisdom and guidance. So, what did the BTCNJ attorney recently advise the Executive Committee? He advised BTCNJ to institute effective ride leader training and educate BTCNJ members on group riding skills for 2018.
He believes being a good group rider involves much more than being able to keep up the pace. Bob advocates that safe group riding in the congested type A personality New York metropolitan area demands a higher level of attention to driver and cyclist arrogance, situational awareness, group protocol and hazardous road conditions. He urges all of us to realize that the Law of Physics can have as great or greater an impact (pun intended) on bicycle rider safety than motor vehicle laws.