Bicycle Touring & More. Other outdoor activity

Stuck for a last-minute gift for a fellow bicycling enthusiast? Socks are always nice, but you can only have so many pairs of gloves, rear blinkers and water bottles.

My recommendation is that people give memberships to national bicycling associations or local bicycle clubs this year. These are the folks who do all the heavy lifting when it comes to creating bike routes, building trails or advocating on our part in the halls of Congress or down at City Hall.

And since most have a nonprofit status, a portion of those memberships are tax deductible; always a consideration at the end of the year.

Here are what I'd consider the four best memberships you could give ...