Northeast - Where are the MD people's

Yes, there is some GREAT riding in Washington Co.....and it is becoming more and more cycling friendly.
There are two pretty good century rides in August that will definitely work some muscles you "Seagullers" don't regularly use :) (just kidding)
I've done the Seagull and LOVE the fast pacelines!

Check out the C.V.C.C. website (http://www.bikecvcc.com/)

There is a nice section of Rails to Trails that run from Big Spring to above Hancock...around 22 miles....this is a pleasure to ride! ....we also have the C&O Canal to ride on.

Well I had a fun week last week. I thought it might be fun to ride out for the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Alleghany Highland Trail on Thursday. Since I decided to do this at the last minute and I had 24 hours to get there on time. Well 150 miles and 10,000 feet in climbing later with full touring gear I was 3 hours late and missed the ribbon cutting but I had one fun adventure trying to get there.

This is the route I took: (which will be modified if I do it again.)
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Baltimore-Cumberland

On Sunday I road out for the Fells Point ride with a Pikesville member of the BBC and eventually meet up with NoRacer at the rest stop. It was fun meeting him and riding with him for a bit though it looks like we took turns being in the front or escorting a slower rider.

Barndoor: Next time I’m up that way I’ll drop you a line. If you happen to know Dick Cushwa (CVCC Pres) tell him that Barry says hi.

Well I had a fun week last week. I thought it might be fun to ride out for the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Alleghany Highland Trail on Thursday. Since I decided to do this at the last minute and I had 24 hours to get there on time. Well 150 miles and 10,000 feet in climbing later with full touring gear I was 3 hours late and missed the ribbon cutting but I had one fun adventure trying to get there.

This is the route I took: (which will be modified if I do it again.)
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Baltimore-Cumberland
...


_Very_ nice. What main things would you do differently? How did you like the western-most parts of 40?

Also, does the ribbon cutting mean it is now possible for someone to do DC to Pittsburgh (Mckeesport) all on trail?

Nice ride Barry. Did you do that ride in 2 days or 1? Charlie

... 150 miles and 10,000 feet in climbing ...


Yeah! Nice.

This Spring or Summer, I'd like to do more long climbs.

Things I would do different:
1) Pick a different route through Frederick
2) I took the wrong 40 coming out of Frederick which was a real nice bike route (signed and shoulders, and NoRacer the climb here was a nice long steady climb.) The route I took to get back on track had multiple 100 foot walls that I had to use my lowest gear on (walking) so that’s out for next time and the other 40 wasn’t as nice (narrow lane) so I’m not sure what I’ll try next time, possibly take the good 40 into Hagerstown and pick up 11.
3) Take 144 out of Hancock (the bit on 70 was kind of hairy but it was low traffic at the time so no big deal.)
4) The section of 68 outside of Hancock bikes are prohibited (oops) but I might do again as I could see no reason why and the long 6% grades were kind of fun if you don’t mind getting totally bonked after riding them (see the last four peeks in the elevation graph.)
a) I think next time I might try and follow the roads closer to the river to see if I can avoid some of the hills and save some time that way.
5) Don’t try and follow the Bike Route signs in Cumberland.
6) Go in a season where I would not have to carry so much water. (Note to self; carrying dehydrated food and the water to cook it in does not work well. :o )

Overall the trip was real pleasant I especially enjoyed this route to Mt Airy/Fredrick over taking 144 which I would have previously done. The only uncomfortable traffic conditions was on 40 starting around US 15 [in Frederick] for about a 1.6 miles.

I slept for 6 hours on the C&O outside Williamsport but getting up early did no good as the fog was really thick and I could only go at a snails pace.

And Yes I believe the trail is now complete between DC and Pittsburg.
http://www.atatrail.org/

And getting to the Alleghany Highland Trail is real easy from the C&O just look for the Do Not Enter sign by the railroad tracks across Baltimore Street and it’s back there somewhere.

Barndoor: Next time I’m up that way I’ll drop you a line. If you happen to know Dick Cushwa (CVCC Pres) tell him that Barry says hi.

I know him well! I most certainly will tell him.

Merry Christmas!

I'm off from work until the 4th of January. Maybe I'll see some of you folks out on the road sometime before then.

Sweet. I need to get some riding in this week. I was gonna go today but a tree fell on my house. Good excuse I guess.

:-)

Sweet. I need to get some riding in this week. I was gonna go today but a tree fell on my house. Good excuse I guess.

:-)

Ummmmm... was it a big tree? Sounds like, from your post, that no one got hurt--"a good thing".

Ummmmm... was it a big tree? Sounds like, from your post, that no one got hurt--"a good thing".

Very large Oak. At least 80 feet tall. If it had fallen 5 feet to the right my 8 month old son would likely have been badly hurt or killed in his crib.

Luckily that didnt happen though

http://holoski.homeip.net:88/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=tree-house

Very large Oak. At least 80 feet tall. If it had fallen 5 feet to the right my 8 month old son would likely have been badly hurt or killed in his crib.

Luckily that didnt happen though

http://holoski.homeip.net:88/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=tree-house


WoW! That last shot (2006122440051.jpg) is very scary! Glad he's unharmed.

WoW! That last shot (2006122440051.jpg) is very scary! Glad he's unharmed.


Me too, especially since Uncle Jon bought us one of THESE (http://www.kentbicycles.com/bikeacc_wee_kangaroo.html) which is already installed and gonna get tested as soon as the weather clears.

All kidding aside, we really dodged a bullet on this one.

-D

Merry Christmas all. i have been soooo busy w/ all kinds of stuff not biking related. Only 11 miles last week.

derath: That's some scary stuff.
ride on folks. post your end of year miles next week. Charlie

Yesterday's ride:

http://www.routeslip.com/map.php?map=17253 [~73 miles @ 2,357 ft of climbing]

Sorry, gents... this time, went East and North.

I need 122 more miles for 10,000 miles by years end.

EDIT: Oh, btw, tomorrow will probably be my next ride. I plan to get another huge chunk of mileage completed. Derath? Human Car? Any one else? Ideas?

That is one nice climb there. Is it me or has routeslip been buggy and slow lately.

I wanted to ride today, but instead I spent all day with the chainsaw cutting up a large tree. They want $3000 to cut it up and haul it away! Insurance covers 100% towards removing a tree from your house, but only $500 towards hauling it away. So I am gonna cut it up myself and I know several people who heat via wood and will come over and take it. It was a good workout though.

Really want to get out there tomorrow, but I have to hang around the house from 8-12 for the insurance adjuster.

-D

That is one nice climb there. Is it me or has routeslip been buggy and slow lately.

-D

After several attempts to contact the guy running RouteSlip, he finally fixed the problem with elevation assignments.

But, I still map the rides in GMAP-PEDOMETER, first, then export it as a GPX file. Then I import it into RouteSlip--less headaches that way.

The owner of the site recently changed hosting server. The new server seems faster and more reliable, but a lot of the computational stuff is being done "client side", so it's highly dependent on what's going on with your PC.

I'm thinking about doing one of these two rides, tomorrow:

http://www.routeslip.com/map.php?map=14009 [112.84 mi. 6237.90 ft. of climbing]

http://www.routeslip.com/map.php?map=17261 [102.46 mi. 4381.90 ft. of climbing]

It all depends on how I'm feeling and the weather that I'll have to contend with.

Both routes look nice. I wish I had the time to do a century. But I think tomorrow I will have another date with one of these:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8f/Chainsaw.arp.750pix.jpg/250px-Chainsaw.arp.750pix.jpg

And with the phone to say things like "so what the heck is the ETA on my replacement heat pump"

So on that first route, do you ride the NCR trail on your TCR? The sections of that trail that I have been on, which are unpaved, seems a bit harsh for a road bike. I have done it on my mountain bike with slicks, but not on a road bike.

If I have time I may take my baby boy out for a ride in his new weeride seat.

-D

So on that first route, do you ride the NCR trail on your TCR? The sections of that trail that I have been on, which are unpaved, seems a bit harsh for a road bike. I have done it on my mountain bike with slicks, but not on a road bike.

-D

Yes, the one other time that I did this ride, I did it on my TCR--I just have to keep the speed down. The crushed gravel is not nearly as bad as a road that has been graded in prep for fresh tarmac.

After several attempts to contact the guy running RouteSlip, he finally fixed the problem with elevation assignments.

But, I still map the rides in GMAP-PEDOMETER, first, then export it as a GPX file. Then I import it into RouteSlip--less headaches that way.

The owner of the site recently changed hosting server. The new server seems faster and more reliable, but a lot of the computational stuff is being done "client side", so it's highly dependent on what's going on with your PC.

I'm thinking about doing one of these two rides, tomorrow:

http://www.routeslip.com/map.php?map=14009 [112.84 mi. 6237.90 ft. of climbing]

http://www.routeslip.com/map.php?map=17261 [102.46 mi. 4381.90 ft. of climbing]

It all depends on how I'm feeling and the weather that I'll have to contend with.
Nice rides. I ride many of the same roads often. I live off of Loch Raven Blvd. just below Joppa Rd.

I wonder about the climbing figures that routeslip generates. When folks list figures for climbing is that what they typically use? I always counted manually from the graph and only counted the extended sections of climb and not each little jag in the graph. That seems to yield a number about 1/3 to 1/2 at most of what routeslip reports for these rides. Are routeslip's numbers overinflated or is my count WAY low compared to what most folks use?

I did a little checking on routeslip and I see that my rides are way less jagged in the elevation graph even for the same roads. I assume that is because you have far more data points. Are you generating these routes manually or using a gps?

I did a little checking on routeslip and I see that my rides are way less jagged in the elevation graph even for the same roads. I assume that is because you have far more data points. Are you generating these routes manually or using a gps?



I still map the rides in GMAP-PEDOMETER, first, then export it as a GPX file. Then I import it into RouteSlip--less headaches that way.

I'm quoting myself from the earlier post.

I wonder about the climbing figures that routeslip generates.

I usually use the climbing data from my Garmin. It is arguable whether it is more accurate. But my gut says that overall GPS+Barometric altimeter should be closer.

BBC She Got Bike Route that my wife did. I mapped it out on Routeslip

http://www.routeslip.com/map.php?map=9937
1703ft of climbing

Later I rode the route for fun.

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/episode/view.mb?episodePk.pkValue=1644584
3063ft of climbing
Changing to MB Gravity yields
2428 Feet of climb (uses MB elevation data similar to how routeslip would calculate).

I have been told that I should use the 305 data as it is overall more accurate than MB gravity. But either way you can see there is quite a discrepancy.

Another comparison. This is a route I mapped out from my house in Routeslip.

http://www.routeslip.com/map.php?map=13443
1843ft of climbing.

And when I did the ride. (I have done this route twice) I got 2608 and 2656 ft of climbing on the 2 rides.

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/episode/view.mb?episodePk.pkValue=1758580

On that ride, if I use MB gravity I get 2604ft. Pretty close to my garmin data.

Either way, I tend to find that Routeslip is usually off on elevation, and usually it underestimates the data.


As far as my trouble with routeslip. I generally seem to have an issue when I am loading a route, or loading the map to create a route. It seems to generally hang and I have to F5 to refresh the page, which will then bring it up. Probably something with my browser.

I really need to play on the computer less and get out to ride more. :D

I thought routeslip was high as were all of the other methods you used.

My rational...
I thought it only reasonable to count actual climbing not every tiny undulation.

If there are many data points (like if you use the track file from a gps) every little variation gets counted whether real or just variations in the accuracy of the data. Often the graphs seem to show little jagged ups and downs in what I remember as a continuous uphill. I don't think all those little jags should count.

Obviously the following is an exaggeration, but I think it kind of illustrates what I mean:
Assume a flat road with 1/4" surface bumps every 4". Is that 3/4" of climbing every foot traveled (something like 330' of climbing per mile)? I think we probably agree that it isn't.

To me it seems reasonable to count only actual climbs. Sections of road that roll up and down a little, but you never would feel that you climbed a hill would count as being flat.

For this route:

BBC She Got Bike Route that my wife did. I mapped it out on Routeslip

http://www.routeslip.com/map.php?map=9937
1703ft of climbing

Later I rode the route for fun.

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/e...kValue=1644584
3063ft of climbing
Changing to MB Gravity yields
2428 Feet of climb (uses MB elevation data similar to how routeslip would calculate).
I would have said 1200' or maybe 1300' tops. Am I way out of line with the way others count their climbs? Specifically I am concerned with how most organized rides calculate this. I know that I avoided some centuries this fall based on assumptions about the amount of climbing they listed. Some of them were much less hilly than my normal routes if they counted the same way you did.

Maybe I am a better climber than I thought :)

You can count your climbs any way you like. Since we aren't competing then it doesn't really matter. Generally I would guess most people count based off of data like routeslip. Why? Probably the same reason I do.

I'm a busy guy. Work, family, etc. When I get back from a ride and want to analyze my data I use the Data from my edge. I believe the GPS+Barometric altimeter to be pretty accurate. I have several routes that I have ridden many times and they all have very small variances. The GPS data also does get smoothed, to flatten out the small undulations. The main reason I use this data is simply. I don't have the time or inclination to manually try and calculate based off the graph each time.

Maybe my data overestimates how much climbing I did, but the important thing to me is that it is consistent. That way I can track my own progress over time.

Yes you are probably a better climber than you thought. Pat yourself on the back.

-D

Maybe my data overestimates how much climbing I did, but the important thing to me is that it is consistent.
Agreed. Consistency is what it is all about. Your method is probably more common and more consistent than mine.

I probably cheated myself out of some nice rides this Fall because of the way I counted my climbs. I assumed some rides were harder than they probably were. When evaluating a potential ride I guess, if in doubt, the best thing is to ask how they arrived at the numbers.

Agreed. Consistency is what it is all about. Your method is probably more common and more consistent than mine.

I probably cheated myself out of some nice rides this Fall because of the way I counted my climbs. I assumed some rides were harder than they probably were. When evaluating a potential ride I guess, if in doubt, the best thing is to ask how they arrived at the numbers.


Which rides? In general I have found most organized rides to be a bit more difficult than I expected. But then again I am still not in the shape I would like to be.

-D

Which rides? In general I have found most organized rides to be a bit more difficult than I expected. But then again I am still not in the shape I would like to be.
I forget the exact rides. I think one was in central Virginia and one in the Philly area (Schuykill? sp?). Both were after the Seagull.

During my Cumberland ride I got a chance to watch the altimeter and the total climbing on my GPS quite a bit. :) On the level fluctuations of 2-3 ft did not register but once the hill got underway the total climbing just clicked away. So I have I lot of confidence in the GPS unit. I will also note that the accuracy is in the number of data points. I noticed that my track logs average about 0.2 of a mile apart with some points in the 0.5-0.9 range. When this is plotted on some mapping site the odds that a point will fall exactly in a trough or on a peek are fairly slim so you’ll get some rounding off of the extremes so I suspect that the mapping sites will under report the total climbing.

On a side note I was reviewing the elevation plot on one of my rides and noticed that it had my starting elevation at 200 ft when it should have been 450 ft. I suspect that it takes awhile for the GPS to calibrate the altimeter so if you turn off the unit when the air pressure is low and then back on when the air pressure is high you could get a few hundred feet of climbing in with no work at all. I have not verified if the altimeter recalibration affects the total climbing but this could explain why doing the same route twice does not yield the same amount of climbing.

On a side note I was reviewing the elevation plot on one of my rides and noticed that it had my starting elevation at 200 ft when it should have been 450 ft. I suspect that it takes awhile for the GPS to calibrate the altimeter so if you turn off the unit when the air pressure is low and then back on when the air pressure is high you could get a few hundred feet of climbing in with no work at all. I have not verified if the altimeter recalibration affects the total climbing but this could explain why doing the same route twice does not yield the same amount of climbing.

The baro in the iBike does that, too, but it doesn't seem to count it as climbing. It seems to just count it as baseline.

Both GMAP and RouteSlip get their data from the USGS. The climbing numbers they present are highly dependent on the number of data points you place in the map.

==========
Well, I attempted the ride from Essex to Glen Rock, but I ran out of time on the road. I was afraid that I'd get caught out with no headlights, so I stopped at the big 'Welcome to New Freedom' sign on the outskirts of New Freedon, PA. [mile 54.5 according to my CatEye Double Wireless--battery died in the iBike...grrrr!]

It was pretty slow going on the trail. Maybe I wasn't recovered from the 70+ miler two days ago, but I found that the rolling resistance of the trail surface started getting on my nerves. I was thankful to be off of it once I got back to Paper Mill Rd.

On the way home, the climb starting at Warren Rd up Bosley Avenue looked ominous, but I was over it in better shape than the last time I rode over it. It was a slow grind (I was in a carb-depleted cloud, but I think my speed was 4-6 MPH). I'm sure that repacking the bottom bracket bearings and replacing my wheel bearings with ceramics contributed to the feeling of less effort for this climb and all of the climbs I've been doing since making those changes.

Average speed was pretty slow, but considering that I was dressed for mid-40s F weather and that a good deal of the riding was on a crushed gravel trail, I think I did ok.

Final tallies--2 x 8 oz cups of coffee, 1 bowl of oatmeal, 2 x 20 oz bottles of Gatorade, 1.5 CliffBars, and 1 x 20 oz bottle of water yielded 106 miles in 6:54 @ 15.3 MPH avg speed with 3,594 feet of climbing.

I have 16 more miles to do to reach 10,000 for the year.

EDIT - To add:

Here's the route that I took for this ride. I'm adding it after the fact because it takes Bikely about 24 hours to complete the elevation profile:

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Solo-Century-Ride-Thursday-20061228

RouteSlip choked on the GPX file that I imported, so I imported it to Bikely instead.

It was pretty slow going on the trail. Maybe I wasn't recovered from the 70+ miler two days ago, but I found that the rolling resistance of the trail surface started getting on my nerves. I was thankful to be off of it once I got back to Paper Mill Rd.
What tires are you using? I find that with my skinny road tires it is very slow, but better on my touring bike with 27X1-1/4.

The time you did was very good considering the route, time of year, etc.

I plan to do a similar ride, but starting in Parkville and going to York. I would be delighted if my time is anywhere near yours, but doubt it will be.

That's a long day. The NCR can get on your nerves real fast. With me, its the monotony of the grade and the fact that you are stuck in a valley. The view barely changes. Once you have cycled that trail it's a bore. Plus, all that seated pedaling gets to my bum after a while. I much prefer climbing in and out of the Gunpowder valley or riding the roads on along the parallel ridges (Old York/Troyer and even the shoulder of Rt 23 east of the river are nice).

Me and my buds have a route through southern PA that is 85 miles and takes us 4.5 hours with water stops. With four good riders it's a ball and relatively flat. The only real bad climb is Coon Club just southwest of Hampstead. We take the standard way out of Towson - up Park Heights, over to Dover and north into the outskirts of Hampstead, then we continue on 'till we pop out on Rt 27 and take the shoulder east to Manchester. We stop at the Sheetz store, then go north for a bit and then east on Lineborough which just cuts into PA. Lineborough Rd. is a hoot because there is almost always a tail wind and it's flatish. From there we head south west on 851 through New Freedom and pick up Old York for a hammer session all the way in to Rt. 23. By then somebody is blown and we will have to slow. From there it's south through Loch Raven and home on Providence Rd.



The baro in the iBike does that, too, but it doesn't seem to count it as climbing. It seems to just count it as baseline.

Both GMAP and RouteSlip get their data from the USGS. The climbing numbers they present are highly dependent on the number of data points you place in the map.

==========
Well, I attempted the ride from Essex to Glen Rock, but I ran out of time on the road. I was afraid that I'd get caught out with no headlights, so I stopped at the big 'Welcome to New Freedom' sign on the outskirts of New Freedon, PA. [mile 54.5 according to my CatEye Double Wireless--battery died in the iBike...grrrr!]

It was pretty slow going on the trail. Maybe I wasn't recovered from the 70+ miler two days ago, but I found that the rolling resistance of the trail surface started getting on my nerves. I was thankful to be off of it once I got back to Paper Mill Rd.

On the way home, the climb starting at Warren Rd up Bosley Avenue looked ominous, but I was over it in better shape than the last time I rode over it. It was a slow grind (I was in a carb-depleted cloud, but I think my speed was 4-6 MPH). I'm sure that repacking the bottom bracket bearings and replacing my wheel bearings with ceramics contributed to the feeling of less effort for this climb and all of the climbs I've been doing since making those changes.

Average speed was pretty slow, but considering that I was dressed for mid-40s F weather and that a good deal of the riding was on a crushed gravel trail, I think I did ok.

Final tallies--2 x 8 oz cups of coffee, 1 bowl of oatmeal, 2 x 20 oz bottles of Gatorade, 1.5 CliffBars, and 1 x 20 oz bottle of water yielded 106 miles in 6:54 @ 15.3 MPH avg speed. I don't know what the climbing is, but it shouldn't be too far off from the RouteSlip number of ~6,237 feet (with consideration given to the recent thread of discussion) minus about 6 feet from the sign to the highest point on my map for New Freedom. It's all downhill from there to Glen Rock.

I have 16 more miles to do to reach 10,000 for the year.

The only real bad climb is Coon Club just southwest of Hampstead

So Coon club is considered a decent climb? That makes me feel better.

-D

We take the standard way out of Towson - up Park Heights
I'm confused. I didn't think Park Heights went any where near Towson.

I'm confused. I didn't think Park Heights went any where near Towson.

I think galen means that you can get to Park Heights (its northern-most part) by taking Joppa all the way west to Falls rd then its pretty much a straight shot west using either Greenspring or Hillside rd (one of my faves).

Here, I mapped roughly what Galen was talking about. (http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=606822)

Yeah, its going to be a long day at work.

Thanks for the clarification. Now that I read his original post again it makes sense. I had no idea what "the standard way out of Towson" was since I never start in Towson, hence the confusion.

What tires are you using? I find that with my skinny road tires it is very slow, but better on my touring bike with 27X1-1/4.

The time you did was very good considering the route, time of year, etc.

I plan to do a similar ride, but starting in Parkville and going to York. I would be delighted if my time is anywhere near yours, but doubt it will be.

I'm riding Tufo tires that are suppose to be 21s, but they fit more like 23s. I can't get much fatter than 23s with the TCR.

That sounds like a nice ride. I may have to join you guys one of these days.



Me and my buds have a route through southern PA that is 85 miles and takes us 4.5 hours with water stops. With four good riders it's a ball and relatively flat. The only real bad climb is Coon Club just southwest of Hampstead. We take the standard way out of Towson - up Park Heights, over to Dover and north into the outskirts of Hampstead, then we continue on 'till we pop out on Rt 27 and take the shoulder east to Manchester. We stop at the Sheetz store, then go north for a bit and then east on Lineborough which just cuts into PA. Lineborough Rd. is a hoot because there is almost always a tail wind and it's flatish. From there we head south west on 851 through New Freedom and pick up Old York for a hammer session all the way in to Rt. 23. By then somebody is blown and we will have to slow. From there it's south through Loch Raven and home on Providence Rd.

Possibly my last ride of 2006 was done today resulting in a total of 10,021 miles for the year.

The ride was a low-traffic/low-stress ride on the Baltimore & Annapolis Trail. I drove to the airport and started on the BWI Trail at the observation parking on Dorsey Rd. I followed the B&A Trail to Annapolis crossing the US Naval Academy Bridge and pulling over at Perry Circle, staying just long enough to gulp a few ounces of water before heading back.

It was a nice day and I'm glad that I reached my goal of 10,000 miles for the year.

Anyone else ride?

Possibly my last ride of 2006 was done today resulting in a total of 10,021 miles for the year.

The ride was a low-traffic/low-stress ride on the Baltimore & Annapolis Trail. I drove to the airport and started on the BWI Trail at the observation parking on Dorsey Rd. I followed the B&A Trail to Annapolis crossing the US Naval Academy Bridge and pulling over at Perry Circle, staying just long enough to gulp a few ounces of water before heading back.

It was a nice day and I'm glad that I reached my goal of 10,000 miles for the year.

Anyone else ride?

Nice ride. I have been on the BWI trail and B&A more than I can count. My parents live near annapolis and I have friends about 2 miles from the BWI trail.

I didn't get to ride. But I did almost finish cutting up the tree. I think I filled up the chain saw with gas 5-6 times. I am extremely sore and tired.

Honestly contrats. I dunno how you do it. I mean 10000 is like 27 miles a day. Between the little children (3 and under 1), my job, the house, wife etc I am happy to get 27 miles a week. I think I did about 1200 miles this year, well since I bought my bike around March.

Maybe once the rugrats get older...

-D

happy New year folks. I got out on Friday for a quick 30 miler to bring my years total to 4722. It's the most I have ever ridden. Seems low when I look at No Racer. 10,000 is very impressive. Today looks like a a no-bike day. I don't know if I can ever reach 5000/year but that is my 007 goal. Hope to ride with some of you this year. Charlie

happy New year folks. I got out on Friday for a quick 30 miler to bring my years total to 4722. It's the most I have ever ridden. Seems low when I look at No Racer. 10,000 is very impressive. Today looks like a a no-bike day. I don't know if I can ever reach 5000/year but that is my 007 goal. Hope to ride with some of you this year. Charlie

Happy New Year to all... and, Happy Birthday to me! :rolleyes:

I got 15 more miles in yesterday, but I agree, charlie, it's a no-bike day today.

But, I'm already going stir-crazy being pent up inside. :(

For New Year's weekend my girlfriend and I spent the weekend in Ocean City at the Clarion - a package deal. Saturday we drove down to the boardwalk and rented a side-by-side tandem tricycle and rode it up and down the boardwalk for about 45 minutes, dodging kids on those low-rider tricycle things that turn by leaning. Surprised how crowded OC was! Sunday we went back and rented a Kent 'real' tandem. It was cool out and having no cycling stuff, I stopped at the convenience store and bought some gardening gloves. The front seat on the tandem would not go up anywhere close to high enough, but the back seat fit my girl OK. The gear shifting was really bad - if you wanted 4th gear on the freewheel, you had to shift past 4th in either direction, then shift back the other way. Once I got the hang of it, it was no big deal. The rental place (Wobbly Wheel) was on 7th street I think and we rode up to the end of the boardwalk, then went out on the road and over to the bay side. We rode all over lower OC and finally headed back south on the road to the other end of the boardwalk and back to Wobbly Wheel.

It was lots of fun riding in street cloths, no helmets or any other cycling accountrements, just noodling around fast enough to keep warm but not too warm.

The ride was a low-traffic/low-stress ride on the Baltimore & Annapolis Trail. I drove to the airport and started on the BWI Trail at the observation parking on Dorsey Rd. I followed the B&A Trail to Annapolis crossing the US Naval Academy Bridge and pulling over at Perry Circle, staying just long enough to gulp a few ounces of water before heading back.

Nice ride (& Happy Birthday). I try and ride the B&A/BWI Trails almost every weekend during the Spring/Summer/Fall seasons, although I start at the Annapolis end. I have a BikeForums kit on order, hope to see you on the trail soon.

We rode all over lower OC and finally headed back south on the road to the other end of the boardwalk and back to Wobbly Wheel.

It was lots of fun riding in street cloths, no helmets or any other cycling accountrements, just noodling around fast enough to keep warm but not too warm.

Wobbly Wheel--sounds befitting, eh?

So, you didn't hazard the trip up to Delaware. Someday, I'm going to bike up to the ferry and take it over to New Jersey, bike Jersey for awhile and come back.

Nice ride (& Happy Birthday). I try and ride the B&A/BWI Trails almost every weekend during the Spring/Summer/Fall seasons, although I start at the Annapolis end. I have a BikeForums kit on order, hope to see you on the trail soon.

Thanks. I didn't do a damned thing except sit around and get bored. No, that's not 100% true. I did see the new Superman movie on Comcast.

Anyway, I made up for yesterday by biking today from Essex to Rock State Park using this route:

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Essex-to-Rock-State-Park-Out-Back

It was slow getting there with a headwind out of the north and west. But, it was pretty cool biking up the closed road that leads to the picnic area on top where the "King and Queens Seat" rock outcrop is located. The climb was an 11-13 percent grade.

On the top, I followed some guy on a mountain bike down to the outcrop. He joined a couple of other guys who were rock climbing the south face with ropes and all.

It was slippery getting back to the parking lot. The 21mm tires were not thick enough to get a good grip on the leaf and gravel cover in a few places and I thought that I may need to walk the bike back up, but I was successful getting back without stepping off of the bike.

I topped off the earlier climb with a quick but cautious decent hitting just over 40 MPH back down. If I would have pressed the speed, I'm sure I could have gotten another 8-10 MPH more out of it, but I wanted to remain cautious...this time.

The ride back to Essex was uneventful but quicker averaging 2 MPH faster than the outbound direction. The one remarkable attribute of the ride back was that I got caught out with no headlight. By the time I got back to Essex, dusk had passed, and the only thing that kept me from getting in trouble with motor vehicle traffic was that I did have a taillight, reflective piping on my wind breaker, and reflective ankle rings.

Tomorrow is my last day away from work. I need a 'recovery' ride so, it's back to the B&A Trail.

EDIT - My CatEye computer says I got 93 miles during the ride. I always use the CatEye for logging my mileage. But, Bikely shows 91 miles.

Dang NoRacer you a tough dude! I ride through Rock State Park all the time but have never ridden up the hill to the King & Queen Seat.



I made up for yesterday by biking today from Essex to Rock State Park using this route:

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Essex-to-Rock-State-Park-Out-Back

It was slow getting there with a headwind out of the north and west. But, it was pretty cool biking up the closed road that leads to the picnic area on top where the "King and Queens Seat" rock outcrop is located. The climb was an 11-13 percent grade.

..
Anyway, I made up for yesterday by biking today from Essex to Rock State Park using this route:
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Essex-to-Rock-State-Park-Out-Back
...

Cool.

I notice your route goes though a wooded area starting at Martin State Airport that goes from Eastern blvd to rt 40. Is there a trail of some kind in there?

it was pretty cool biking up the closed road that leads to the picnic area on top where the "King and Queens Seat" rock outcrop is located. The climb was an 11-13 percent grade.

On the top, I followed some guy on a mountain bike down to the outcrop. He joined a couple of other guys who were rock climbing the south face with ropes and all.



happy b-day, I rock climb there as well. Was the guy riding the bike named Steve?? I've climbed RSP w/ a BF member that also bikes up there. That ride to the PL is a steep one. Did you watch them climb? Climbing and biking are excellent sports to combine. One works the upper muscles the other the lower muscles.
Most of the relatives are gone(2 sons still home for the rest of the week) so back on the bike. Cold but felt good today. Back into the daily commute. As I grow old, routine feels right. Charlie

Cool.

I notice your route goes though a wooded area starting at Martin State Airport that goes from Eastern blvd to rt 40. Is there a trail of some kind in there?

Looks like NoRacer is riding the shoulder of newly opened MD Rt 43.