The Alto Velo Racing Club was founded in late 1992 and spun out of Garden City Cyclists, a team sponsored by Shaws' Lightweight Cycles in Santa Clara, CA. The “Garden City” name was an homage to the old days and to the original Garden City Velodrome (the Garden City Wheelmen, formed in the late 1800’s, were first cycling club in the US). John and Linda Elgart, who worked at the shop, left Shaw’s to become sales reps for Voler Cycling Apparel. A small group of cyclists that raced for GCC joined with John Elgart and Tim Kurreck to form Alto Velo. The goal was to broaden the mission and geographic focus of the club. Alto Velo also grew out of the noon training races at Mission College on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Having a midday criterium was a great learning tool and fit Alto Velo’s high tech demographic perfectly. Tim Kurreck was the first president and the original members included Linda Elgart, Karen Brems, Peter Tapscott, Jim Turner and Dave Stahl.

Alto Velo’s first shop sponsor was Palo Alto Bicycles. During the 1990’s, the club grew under various title sponsors, including Aleve, Xerox, and Quicken.com, eventually hitting 350 members in the early 2000’s.

Webcor became the title sponsor in 2001 and that sponsorship went until 2012, making it the club’s longest running sponsorship. Webcor also sponsored a professional men's team (2003-2005) and pro women's team (2004-2010) which Karen Brems managed along with Ted Huang and Dario Falquier (the founders of the men's team). The women's team sent 4 riders to the Olympics in 2004 and 2008 including Christine Thorburn (Ted Huang’s wife).

Alto Velo sent a women's team to the Idaho Women's Challenge in 2001, which was the biggest pro stage race for women in the US. The club also produced a number of masters national and world champions and a few Elite national champions (Jeff Solt, Jill Gainnetoni on the track) and Karen Brems as Elite world champion in 1994.

Alto Velo picked up the Egan Ride in the early 2000’s after it was dropped by Western Wheelers. Dirk Bergstrom led the Egan Ride from 2012-2018 and gave the ride much of its current structure and popularity (click here for more Egan history).

The first club ride was the Sunday A Ride. It was popular with the racing community and regularly drew 15-20 riders. The Saturday B Ride started in the late 1990s/early 2000s as a slower/shorter version of the A ride. Under the leadership of Steve Esswein, the B Ride eventually became the main weekend ride it is today.

Alto Velo started the Pescadero Road Race in 2000 and has put it on every year until 2020 when COVID temporarily shut down racing. It is being resumed in 2022.

All cyclists understand the risks associated with riding and racing on open roads amidst car traffic. Even while following safety rules, sometimes events can occur outside a cyclist’s control. Unfortunately the club has had several members succumb to tragic incidents involving motor vehicles. Alto Velo will forever honor the memory of John Peckham (1975-2006) and Allen Brumm (1958-2015), each of whom had many friends in the club and the broader cycling community. Rest in peace John and Allen.

Thanks to Karen Brems, John Elgart and Greg Bollella for providing the information for the above material.