balto charlie

Cute sign, NR

Did anyone see that this happened?
https://www.baltimorebrew.com/2010/09/20/parking-day-2/

Nice idea but never saw anything about it. Would have been nice to have some bikers visit.

balto charlie

just saw this on Baltimore Spokes
https://bikestravaganza.wordpress.com/
with this ride following:
https://www.meetup.com/Biking-in-Bmor...?a=socialmedia

Can't make this one but wish I could. Station North is a pretty unique up and coming neighborhood.
Anyone visit graffiti alley just north of North Ave? It's worth a visit,then stop over for a pizza @ Joe squared.

greaterbrown

The cotton ones work fine. When it's not too hot I use a coolmax beenie by "Headsweats"

greaterbrown

Great riding the Back Roads last Sunday. On a whim, I signed up for Tour du Port. Currently planning on riding down early and riding the long route.

balto charlie

Thanks GB

I'll be working the TDP but don't know where. I'll let ya know when I find out.

Next Thursday if you any of you guys are free(not certain I posted here, sorry if a repeat) there's a bike forum AT UB law. I am going and this place is only 3 blocks from Brewers Art. Coincidence...I think not, call it divine intervention. If any of you folks go let me know and we'll grab a few resurrection ales at the pub afterwards.
the scoop:
On Thursday evening , September 30th, “Cities for Cycling” partners with One Less Car and University of Baltimore to host a free 2 hour interactive forum, open to the public. It will include an array of bicycle infrastructure, advocacy initiatives and programs that have been successful in other cities with a Q&A session at the end. The “Road Show” combines with One Less Car’s “Fall Forum” at University of Baltimore’s Langsdale Auditorium at 7pm.

RSVP for Thursday’s event on SOCIALIZR
https://www.socializr.com/event/439969245

Beachrider

Hey All -

I live in Federal Hill and am looking for a safe route out and around the city. I road the Jones Falls "trail" which isnt much of a trail. Does anyone know of a shouldered road I can reach easily from the city? I'm looking to do 20-25 weeknights. The ride from Fed to even to get to Penn Station is a bit hairy. Guess I'm too used the wide shoulders out at the beach.

Also, anyone doing Larry's ride this weekend?

greaterbrown

hmmm.. Not sure where to start to help with riding in B'more. It's a good city to ride in, but it sure won't do you any favors. If you're looking for 25 fast miles, I think that you're stuck with laps around Lake Montebello or dropping down to BWI and the B&A trails. Otherwise you'll be beating traffic lights and traffic. How about Calvert st north all the way to a Left on University to a L on Roland thru Hampden. L on Falls, R on Maryland, becomes Sharp to Henrietta.

I'll be at the Larry B memorial, but only for a short while. then I've gotta work.

The Human Car

I'll note that I like Gay, Fallsway, Calvert but the rest of the route is good. I will also note, ride on the left side of the road on one way streets, it really seems to help.

I'm thinking of going to the Pettigrew Death Vigil on Friday and my daughter is in from NYC so I don't want to spend too much time away from family.

greaterbrown

Harry, Were you up at the Bensky ride? I slept through my alarm this morning and left late so I didn't get up there until 9:10AM
There were a lot of riders there and still arriving. I hung around for a bit, but the vibe didn't seem to be about Larry, advocacy or bike safety. Maybe I missed stuff earlier.
Anyway, I left after about 15 minutes and rode off to work. Nice day for riding though.

Barry, how was the Pettigrew vigil?

The Human Car

I did not get a chance to go but this is my coverage https://www.baltimorespokes.org/artic...00925174657585 and for those who want to see money spent on on-road cycling facilities (bike lanes, sharrows, WOL or shoulders) there is a bit in there on who to contact.

HC203

Hey GB-Yah, I did get up there,rode up with one friend, picked up his friend off of Park Heights. We got up there around 9:30, I talked with Tammi, his widow, for a while, great woman. Also talked with Larry's mom, sweet ol gal, great big family from what I can tell. Larry had seven brothers. Anyway, I don't think the ride needs to be a bike advocacy event, it's simply to raise funds for his daughters. I paid my reg and then just gave them whatever else I had, like 70.00 total. Least I could do. I thought it was a great turnout for first year event and hope it grows. I told Tammi to involve me next year for the graphics, jerseys etc.

We did the 20 mile route, lots of the same roads we took up, Longneccker, Old Hanover etc. We got back to the picnic which I thought was really well organized, well stocked, etc. I think it could be a great annual event.

Rode the 20 back, 69 for the day, nothing real tough but legs tired anyway.

I haven't signed up for tour du port but I think I'll be there.

HC203

"Can't make this one but wish I could. Station North is a pretty unique up and coming neighborhood.
Anyone visit graffiti alley just north of North Ave? It's worth a visit,then stop over for a pizza @ Joe squared"

Went down to try Joe Squared the other night, while looking for a parking spot I was rear ended by a handicapped guy in a passenger van. Wasn't a great night, looked for parking, and just got the F out of there. It may be "up and coming" but I still find North Ave to be one of the most depressing and unwelcoming places I know, was that way when I was a student, and is now-maybe more lighting. Reminds me of Newark in the 70s. Take a left on Calvert off of North-phew.

But I would like to get to Joe Squared, supposed to have some good bands.

The Human Car

In so many ways Larry's tragic death helped pass bike bills that we have been unable to pass for years. He's already done his advocacy bit as far as I am concerned. Here is WABA's summary: https://waba.org/blog/2010/09/changes...fective-oct-1/

NoRacer

Failed Mount Joy Ride:

By the time I got to Wrightsville, PA, I felt like I was out there too long already. I cut off the loop to Mount Joy from Columbia, PA, but it wasn't enough:

https://www.trimbleoutdoors.com/ViewTrip/906080

balto charlie

Hey folks:
@nr: I wouldn't call a hundred mile ride a failure. Just be thankful you have the cavalry:-)

@TDP riders: I'll be working it. GB, they used part of your route on Tinmill and Riverside(something like that) It will be my marshaling station. If you ride that route look for me. Be careful of the RR tracks, bad angle

@ Harry: Come on, if the city was squeaky clean it would have no "funk" and would be like Towson or Columbia. We wouldn't want that, would we???

Sad note: they are auctioning off the Marble Bar(Congress Hotel) That place use to rock back in the day. That place had some Funk!

"Cycling for Cities" this Thursday, 7:00PM, UB Law.

Hope to see some of you at TDP

HC203

If funk means murders, drugs, dirt etc etc. then we definitely live in a funky city. I've heard so many people do that, wear Baltimore's down and out status as a badge of honor. "we're gritty, tough, etc" You can have it.

As for Towson and Columbia, both have seen murders in recent years, not squeaky clen by a long shot, and neither would be on my list of places to live or visit.

Now, you may ask, "why don't you leave?"-----it's hard to uproot when you got family, house and lots of ****. But my patience is wearing thin. Ran by my neighbors house today and saw her running into her drive (she has been biking lately) I said"hey Colleen, no bike today?" her response "My bike was stolen!". We've been robbed so often here in recent months that we could certainly not be considered squeaky clean, and I'm getting fed up.

greaterbrown

That was my haunt for many years. You've been there? Are you a secret punk rocker Charlie? "Adolf Kowalski for Governor!"
You will see me there AND (more importantly) at the Brewers Art thereafter. Also, Teresa (Mrs. Greaterbrown) will be in attendance.

I will be there. Are you riding the official cued route out to your marshalling post? If so, I'd get up early and ride out there with you, maybe hang out for bit then finish the ride.

-GB

veloellen

We will be at TDP - rarely miss it. Will cycle down, do the 26 mile route and cycle home Husband and son on white Trek tandem, I will be on my Jamis city bike.

maxine

Hello, MD peeps! For those of you resisting the Facebook Borg I've posted the pics from my Eastern Shore bike camping tour on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/maxineb...7625056319786/

I hope that works. This was my first Flickr excursion, and I'm not overly impressed, I must say.

The basic details: Trap Pond State Park, DE, to Janes Island State Park, MD, and back. 36 pounds in the panniers. Trip down, via Salisbury and Princess Anne: 58.4 miles, ride time 5:50, total time about 8:00, average speed 9.9. Trip back, via Furnace Town and Pittsville: 70.5 miles, ride time 6:23, total time about 9:30, average speed 11.0.

The looooooooooooooong version:

I left work on Thursday and drove to Trap Pond State Park in Delaware. I had reserved a "walk-in" tent site, and that was pretty cool. No cars around, you have to park a bit away and schlep your stuff down the path and into the camp site. None of the other walk-in sites were occupied, so I had the entire section of woods to myself; nobody around, no artificial light, it was great! The moon was so full and bright that once it rose I was able to walk around without a flashlight.

The park office was closed when I arrived at 4:30, so the next morning, when the office opened, I got the parking pass for my car, which I had moved to an overflow lot. (I had made prior arrangements with the park rangers to leave my car there for the whole weekend.) I didn't set out until nearly 9:30, which was *much* later than I wanted to leave.

I wish I had those cool map applications you guys all use to show your routes. But my route was more or less Google's biking directions from Trap Pond State Park, Laurel, Delaware, to Janes Island State Park, Crisfield, MD. The route runs through Salisbury and Princess Anne. The longer return route is, again more or less, Googe's bike directions from Janes Island to Furnace Town, and from Furnace Town to Trap Pond, via Pittsville.

I got badly lost in Salisbury -- I was looking for a particular right turn that I never did see. I thought I'd be able to figure it out (I've done enough Seagull and MS150 rides down there), but I couldn't. Once I got close to the University, though, and saw Dogwood Avenue, I recalled that connecting to Camden Avenue, which was on my cue sheet. To be sure, though, since I happened to spy a bike shop right at that moment, I checked in with them. They confirmed the directions, and refilled my water bottles.

The temperature on Friday was running from 95 to 98 degrees. I don't know what the humidity level was, but it felt oppressive. I do not cope well at all with really hot weather riding, and I think the mental stress of getting so lost (and so behind on time, knowing that I was just dooming myself to more sun/heat exposure!) didn't help the physical matters at all. I had planned to be in Princess Anne by about lunch time; by the time I made it there at about 1:45 p.m., I was already feeling . . . not great. I probably should have eaten in Salisbury.

I got lost slightly in Princess Anne, too -- Google sent me down a campus sidewalk which dead-ended onto a street whose identity was a mystery. This time, though, instead of trying to figure it out myself, I happened very quickly to pedal past the campus police station, so I got them to set me straight. I had a big turkey sandwich and a bag of Sun Chips at a little cafe in Princess Anne. The waitress was amazed at my ride, and before I left filled both my water bottles with ice, topping them with a bit of water.

The rapid downward spiral really started in earnest after Princess Anne. I had headwinds for most of the trip, and the wind was getting stronger the further south I got. The heat was really getting to me; I started stopping very briefly at almost every tiny shady spot I passed (which weren't many, actually.) I was occasionally feeling lightheaded, and later on it seemed that I wasn't sweating very much any more, which really worried me. I doused my head, neck, and arms with water a few times. Towards the end I felt a few strong twinges in both calf muscles, but thankfully no real cramps ensued.

I was not 100% certain that I would actually make it to Janes Island, but as I was debating that point while pedaling along, I was also wondering what, exactly, I could do about it. Try to call a cab?? I just kept plodding along, hating life.

I did make it, though. As I was pulling up to the camp store to check in, a young park employee in a pickup truck asked me where I had come from. "Not all in one day?" "Yes, all in one day." He told me that he had spotted my Ortlieb panniers and knew that "you must be serious!" The ranger I checked in with told me that he was one of the camp naturalists, and had gone across the country on a bike.

Janes Island is a very nice state park, but unless you are into kayaking, canoeing, or small-boat fishing, there isn't much to do there. (It's also a convenient spot from which to take a boat ride to Smith or Tangier Island.) The majority of the park consists of the island, which is criss-crossed by a network of about 30 miles of marked water trails. The camp ground is actually on the mainland. My campsite was right on the canal to which some of the water trails connect, facing due west. Gorgeous sunsets!

There was a family setting up dinner at the site next to mine, and they did a slight double-take when I rolled up. The wife invited me over for spaghetti and tomato sauce, and though I was kind of craving one of my beef-based "boil in the bag" meals it was too gracious of her for me to say no! The husband was there to do the swim leg of the Cambridge Iron Man Triathlon on Saturday, and he and I fell to talking about biking. He was also signed up to do the Seagull Century this year, his first century ride (he said he was primarily a runner.) They had 4 kids, and the wife's mom and dad there, too, so it was a lively evening.

The wind was blowing strong all evening and night long. The sound of it in the trees reminded me a bit of hearing the ocean while camping on the beach at Assateague. The temperatures didn't drop to much below 70, I don't think, but I slept reasonably okay. I wasn't feeling well, despite the shower, meal, and slightly cooler temps. I had a low-grade headache that just wouldn't leave.

My friend Dave had wanted to do this trip with me, but he couldn't take off work on Friday. So he drove to Trap Pond Friday night, camped, and rode to Crisfield Saturday. His plan was for us to meet in downtown Crisfield (which is about 3 miles south of the state park) for lunch. I never really believed that he would make it there by noon. Dave is 10 years younger than me, and about a gazillion pounds lighter and in great shape, but I knew he would be battling the same headwinds I had (it was still howling Saturday morning.) Also, Dave's bike -- a Surly Cross Check -- was, literally, brand new to him. He had picked it up from the bike shop that Thursday evening, and had time for just one or two spins around the block. He was primarily a mountain biker, and fixie commuter (with a pretty short commute). This trip on the Cross Check was his first outing on a drop bar multi-geared bike, and he had never ridden more than about 30 miles on the road (and never while carrying a load.) So I packed my book, headed into Crisfield, did some tooling around -- they have a nice little museum there, I highly recommend it if you ever visit -- and then found a shady spot at the Somers Cove Marina to relax and wait.

After several apologetic text messages about being late, Dave finally rolled down Route 413 into Crisfield at about 1:45. A big lunch, followed by a slow ride back to Janes Island. We had originally thought about renting some kayaks at the park Saturday afternoon, but a ranger I spoke with earlier in the morning told me they wouldn't be letting any rental boats go out (if you had your own, you could go) because of the winds. Dave and I both eventually admitted to being relieved at that, because neither of us felt up to a paddle in those conditions, but neither of one of us was going to admit it if the other wanted to go!

The high temperature on Saturday in Crisfield was only about 85, so Dave had it a little easier than I did on the heat front. My head was still a bit achy, and I was worried about it still hurting for the ride back Sunday. But the slightly cooler temperatures, and a really cold shower Saturday night, seemed to help me finally cool down, and I started feeling better.

The wind shifted during the night -- of course! -- so Dave and I packed up and departed Sunday morning knowing that we weren't going to be able to ride any tailwinds after all on the return trip. (The boat ranger told me that the prevailing winds there are generally from the southwest -- which is what they had been while I was there -- which would have been great for our largely northeast-headed return route.) Instead, the wind was yet again in our faces for most the of the return. Despite that, and despite the longer length (and faster speed) of the return route, I felt really good. The temperature stayed at 70-75 degrees all day, and it was completely overcast. We caught a few raindrops near Pocomoke City, but that was all, though it had apparently rained pretty heavily before our arrival.

Dave and I agreed that he would stay behind me for a while, partly to give him a bit of a break (since he didn't have the rest day that I had had) and partly to keep him from heading out too fast in the beginning. After about 40 or 45 miles, though, he was mostly well in front of me.

The Google map route continued to present navigational challenges. At one point, it wanted us to make a right onto Corner House Road (I think that was it.) As we approached, we saw that it was sand. We debated for about two seconds, and decided to go for it. And failed! The sand was kind of deep. I tried a few times to maneuver toward what looked like harder patches just to get myself some momentum, but no go. I was thinking about NR, and how he would have made short work of this on his zippy little race bike -- surely I could do it on my fat-tired tourer!!! But noooooo. I guess the 36 pounds of crap was just too much of a handling challenge for those conditions. Twice I very nearly dumped the bike, barely managing to keep my feet. Dave finally did dump his, and at that point I declared defeat. Luckily, Dave's smart phone app gave us an alternate route.

We stopped for a bit at Furnace Town (around 35 miles into the ride) to refill water, eat some granola, and walk around the exhibits. As I was walking around the visitor center / gift shop, I nearly jumped out of my skin when what I had assumed was a plush toy turned out to be a real cat, who stood up, stretched, and returned to his nap atop a pile of small carpet pieces for sale. Going back outside, another Furnace Town cat was carefully checking out my bike, sniffing it from front to back, gently batting at it with her paws. When she showed some interest in a pannier strap, I shooed her away -- I was afraid she'd pull the bike over onto herself. And then I'd have to go back in to that really nice lady in the shop . . . "Ummmm, I kind of killed your cat, sorry about that."

We took off, heading for the Station 7 Restaurant in Pittsville, MD. This is a very cool place. It's in the old Pittsville fire house, and all the decor is made up of firefighter stuff -- unit patches, jackets, there was a hydrant mounted as a tap holder at one of the bars, the table lights are made out of fire helmets. The folks there were great, the young kid out back welcomed us and showed us a nice spot to tuck away the bikes. Dave and I were about ready to eat our own limbs, and the food at Station 7 was fantastic! It was kind of weird in a way, though -- we were the only people in the dining room. The Ravens game was on, and we could hear a big crowd upstairs. Never did get up there to see that area.

It was only about 11 miles back to Trap Pond from Pittsville, but we hadn't gotten to Pittsville until about 3:00, so I was afraid we'd be pushing daylight to get back, especially because the day was so overcast. (And especially if we had any other navigational issues.) I hadn't brought any headlights with me, but I had my helmet light mounted, so I turned that on, and my commuing tail light, which is permanently bolted to the rear rack, was obviously available, so I turned that on, too.

And we did have a few more issues! Google maps took us down another dirt/gravel road, this one a dead end. We quickly figured out what to do from the road signage. On another, it wasn't clear whether the road actually continued (at least in paved form) through the forest we were in, but we took a chance, and it did. And then, the near coup de grace, when we were so close to the end, and so tired, and so running out of daylight: "Road Closed to Thru Traffic." And a detour sign. And Dave's phone battery was dead, and my paper maps didn't cover the area. Quick debate. Decision: Go for it. We can probably (fingers crossed!) walk or somehow clamber through whatever construction is going on. And actually it turned out to be nothing much at all -- a road patching project that was only a few feet long, but stretched across the entire road. It took us about five seconds to walk the bikes through.

It started raining almost as soon as I was situated in the car and heading out of Trap Pond. It was pouring buckets right after I crossed the Bay Bridge. I was so grateful I hadn't had to ride through any of that!

Conclusions: (Or, as we govvies are insufferably fond of saying, "Lessons learned.") Overall, a fun trip. I want to go back to Janes Island with my own kayak. I yet again confirmed that I am a big FAIL when it comes to riding in extreme heat, and that I have to plan accordingly. (Although I really didn't anticipate such temps for the last weekend in September!) As they did on my first bike camping trip, the bike and bags performed flawlessly. I barely noticed the load, and bags were silent and rock-solid. I am going to have to break down and get a GPS or some sort of electronic mapping device. Dave's phone really saved our bacon a few times. (Although my paper maps did do the trick on one occasion, after his battery had died.)

Looking forward to the next trip!

greaterbrown

Holy crud Max. What a great trip report. Pics are great too. Thanx! -GB

greaterbrown

BTW. The next Ramble is Oct. 10th
https://randoramble.posterous.com/the...-to-point-ride

NoRacer

+1. We didn't get the long version on FB, so this report is new to me, too.

NoRacer

I see you did an update to the map on the 21st, so I downloaded the GPX file and imported it into www.bikeroutetoaster.com . Then, I laid in "course points" (turn left, turn right, go straight, etc.) for the entire route.

I wish someone would create a program that would import a GPX or TCX (Garmin Training file), rescan it and lay in course points automatically. Oh well.

NoRacer

An Edge 705 or 800 would do well for you as long as you got the maps, too. Then, you can lay in courses using a free internet tool like www.bikeroutetoaster.com (BRT)

I have the Edge 500. It shows a "bread crumb" route, but no maps. It does courses, so it will tell you left, right, straight, but you really should print out a cuesheet, too. If you draw the route by hand, BRT will lay in the course points automatically and create a cuesheet, automatically, too.

If I would have looked at the paper last Saturday, I wouldn't have gotten lost on the one section, not gotten demoralized, not run out of places to get drink. It would have been a much different outcome. Damned paper.

balto charlie

Been there a couple of times, 9:30 club and Madam Wongs(Chinatown, L.A., Ca). Enjoyed the punk scene but never join the mash pit nor wore the leather boots:-) Viewed from the sidelines. Always loved the political message.

Great! Are you biking or 'nova-ing'. I will be in Towson with a car and am debating bringing the bike so I don't have to drive downtown.

I plan to ride to my station. You're welcome to join me. We can talk about it on Thursday night.