Fifty Plus (50+) - Any excuse for a ride.

Here's the first 6 paragraphs of the story condensed. Block watch, multiple breakins, suspected illegal camp sites etc.

Went on a doodling ride today, wandering up and down side trails in the woods within a few miles of the neighborhood. Didn't find anything at all. If fact after a while I sort of stopped any serious looking. It was just a lot of fun to be out in the woods away from all on a georgeous weather day. Some of the trails petered out within a 100 yards and some turned out to be treasures to be explored more in the future. My average speed must have been zip point nothing but I didn't care.

I even found an old stone bridge abutment across a small river where the maps have no record of a road ever existing. I wonder if some old time farmer built it to get from field to field?

Great ride, best of the summer so far. Who needs aerobars or pacelines for this sort of doodling.

That kind of ride once in a while can be real inspiring, to dawdle along and simply take time to think and be at the same time. then again just be-ing at times is enough without the thinking.

Oh man that's my favorite kind. Good one Maxx.

A ride of my dreams. Your story took me away.

Yep, a golden moment. It doesn't need to always be about speed or distance or how many calories you burn. Sometimes just fun should be enough.

Thanks for sharing this inspirational ride

Good show, Maxx. I've pretty much devoted the rest of my life to doodling, on the bike or off.

Oh, and faffing. When I'm not doodling, I'm faffing.

I take it this was a mountain bike ride? Sounds wonderful.

Wouldn't mind finding some sedate trails to ride. Perhaps I'll have to take some time to look around for such beasts.

Now I have another excuse for a doodle. I didn't take the camera with me yesterday. Usually the MTB rides are harsh for the camera, but doodling seems safer.

Maybe pics today, still on an enforced biking vacation. Oh, please, please brear fox, don't throw me out into the woods.

Last time I went exploring the trails I got lost. 80 mile ride turned out to be 115. Thought I was taking a shortcut- but I was already on that.

http://home.comcast.net/~avzander/site/

Welcome to my web site. Click on the photo's page and below the 5 various paintings you will find 6 photo's from today's ride. Sorry about the quality, the camere was broken by the time I got home and appears to have been malfunctioning during the ride.


The first photo is the trail down from my house 1/2 mile back 300 feet up and you are looking at the good part. We will not go home this way.

The second is from a part of the trail crossing a swamp/pond that I call toruista land. It is like a dirt superhighway and is often crowded.

Third is an old factory abandoned in the woods. There is a road somewhere back along that power line.

4th photo is the old bridge abutment that I found yesterday. I'm not sure where that led.

The 5th photo is an impression of the secondary trails near tourista land. Many of the unwashed masses begin to balk here. Someday I'll take you farther along this line to show you what 18mph downhill on traprock might mean to your tires...:)

The last photo is a banked dirt circle track about 200 yards off the trail. Its been there for at least 15 years and it once was in better shape than this. Nascar crazies on dirt bikes???

The paintings above the pictures are just something that I play at in my spare time.

Nice pictures, but where are the pictures of the bike that took you there?

I think I was sitting on it when I took the pictures. It was Dormouse, still with a flat bar. I'm just afraid to give up my X.9 control group.

I think I was sitting on it when I took the pictures. It was Dormouse, still with a flat bar. I'm just afraid to give up my X.9 control group.

SRAM has bar ends now, but they aren't cheap. (and you'd have to go 10 speed)

You're a pretty frickin good painter.

You're a pretty frickin good painter.

Before you go overboard with the praise.....................I must confess, those are simulated paintings made from some of my photographs.........:D I don't have enough skill with a brush.

I will claim to be a moderately good photoshopper. A lot of art electives (which p***ed by engineering advisors off) helped with the composition and color. The prime rule however is that it has to be one of my photographs, no cheating.

If anyone would like, someday I will post a series of bicycle trail photographs/paintings on my web page that I have always intended to use in a calendar. They can be copied and saved from the webpage.

Loved the pictures. What a great place to ride.

I'm not sure I could find anything like that around here as it's probably too populated and many places are posted "No Trespassing":(

The main trails are part of a linear park that may someday with enough funding run the length of the east coast. (so the ad copy claims). This portion is the Air Line Trail, named for the original railroad that provided the right away. Although there are areas off to the sides that are posted no trespassing, there are others that allow for a little wandering sideways. The secondary trails are local town added routes (still on old rail lines) that have yet to recieve enough time and money for general improvements. Sometimes I prefer this less improved form of trail to the paved variety of multi use path.

The pathway up toward my house is actually a road..:roflmao2:..at least that's what the map says. Because of the steepness, it has turned into the equivalend of a dry stream bed.

Surprisingly, none of these pictures are more than a couple of miles (sometimes much less) from general civilization. Except for the style of forresting and ground cover, you could find (I hope) an equivalent area in most of the midwest. Much of CT is still rooted in rural farm country even though its less than 100 miles to NY City or Boston. That's why the yuppies like it out here so much...............