On Sunday, I rode with Balto Charlie to the Schooley Mill Cross race. Charlie had designed a route to the race making use of the Columbia trial system. I rode the CrossCheck and packed it with a u-lock, cable lock, and a bunch of other supplies that I didn’t need. Hey, ya never know. I have platform pedals on the CrossCheck now. I knew I would be walking around the park and didn’t want to do that with Speedplay cleats.
I woke up at 6 and was out the door by 7:00. I meet Charlie at his house at 7:45 and we’re off to Schooley Mill by 8:00. It was about 45 degrees outside and the wool ramble jerseys were a perfect fit. It was a peaceful ride down Thistle and up Bonnie Branch. Most of the leaves were gone, but there was a good bit of color left on the younger trees.
On Columbia Road, we encountered the 36[SUP]th[/SUP] annual Howard County Striders Metric Running Festival. The runners were coming toward us on the right; we were riding with the car traffic on the left. We didn’t expect to see them, and they probably didn’t expect to see us.
Before long we reached the Columbia trail system. It was difficult to spot where the trail began in some places. It is narrower than the BWI or Annapolis trails. The curves are sharp and one can be easily taken aback by short steep inclines. No switchbacks here. There was little pedestrian traffic on Sunday morning, but I imagine that later in the day more people would have been using the trails which would have made navigation more difficult, if not impossible. We lost a good bit of time on the trial. We made frequent stops to make sure that we were heading in the right direction. The trail forks in many places; if you know which side of the lake you’re supposed to be on you’ll be ok, but the constant route checking became tedious.
We reached the Columbia town center and decided to forgo the trail riding for the surface streets. The trail was taking too much time and we wanted to see the races and meet up with GB and Dave2. We put on our game faces and hit the road. Little Patuxent to Broken Land Pkwy to Guilford Rd. The traffic was very light. The shops at the mall must not have been open yet.
We made it to Schooley Mill Park in time for the 11:00 a.m. race, where we met up with GB and Dave2. By this point the temps were in the 60s and the sun was shining. I actually got a little sunburn. Natty Bos were selling for $2 and I couldn’t resist, even if it was before noon. I had a couple. Great hanging out with those guys, as always. Charlie and I were starving, so we headed off the crepe stand for much needed food. We had to wait a bit, but the crepes hit the spot, at least mine did. I did wonder whether it would be enough to carry through the rest of the ride. Water was surprisingly difficult to find, but we made do, and after saying good-bye to GB and Dave2, we headed off back to Catonsville. My iPhone battery was already dead, which was really annoying because I couldn’t take anymore pictures. I was glad Charlie had a phone just in case we ran into trouble.
Charlie charted our course home, which took us on Triadelphia Road through Glen Elg. Charlie was setting a very brisk pace at this point and I had to work hard to catch up. Traffic was again very light, which Charlie suspected was due to the Ravens game. He had planned a longer route, but I was getting tired and starting to feel the effects of a) my 2 Natty Bos b) too little food and c) my ride up Falls Road on Saturday. Also, I wanted to make sure I was home before dark. We ended up taking Triadelphia Road to Frederick Road, which we followed all the way back to Catonsville. Once through Ellicott City, Charlie gave me the option of continuing along Frederick Road or using Trolley Line #9. I now know why Trolley Line #9 is such a popular choice. When we arrived in Catonsville, Charlie invited me in for some much needed snacks and a couple of his home brews. Great conversation, too. I was also able to charge up the iPhone. Thank you Charlie for designing the route and for the hospitality. Much appreciated. It was a great adventure.
My wife had emailed me and asked that I pick up some Crisco for apple pie. At first I resisted, but the thought of homemade apple pie had me racing to the Giant in Hampden. I headed out Frederick and then north up Fulton Ave., onto Parkwood past the shiny Jesus house, through the alleys and Druid Hill Park and up to Hampden. As I was heading out the store I noticed a familiar bicycle, turned around and saw Dave2. What were the chances of that? Anyway, I had a great day in the saddle. About 82 miles. My Cyclemeter recorded 3179 of climbing feet through 56 miles before it stopped recording.