Originally Posted by
Hibonite
I commute most days by bike from Bellbrook to Area B via Gate 19B, all on roads ~26 mi. RT to my job in AFRL/RX. I vary my way home and usually ride the Creekside Trail for a couple of miles to avoid some traffic. Depending on how comfortable you are riding the roads, the area east of I-675 is very easy to navigate by bike. Easy commuting to the base and great riding on country roads and the paved rail-trails on weekends. As others have mentioned if you want to stick mainly to trails you are better off living in Dayton and toward Oakwood so that you can ride the Great Miami River and Mad River Trails. If you are ok on the roads, Beavercreek, Kettering, and Bellbrook are all good options. I'm not familar with the roads in Fairborn so can't comment on commuting from there or out in Yellow Springs. There are only two convenient ways to get to Area B from the communities south of I-675, Grange Hall Rd. and the new bike bridge about a mile east of Grange Hall. I'm happy to help with specific questions on potential routes and communities.
Living in Yellow Springs takes a certain mind-set. Not only is it a village far removed from the rest of Dayton, Springfield and Columbus, but it is also relatively expensive here. The cycling though is second to none, IMO.
The village itself is on the trail which runs North-South, either up to Bellefontaine or down to Xenia, where all trails meet, as it is the hub to go East into Dayton, West to Columbus, South to Cincinnati, or now Southeast toward Chillicothe. Also, one can easily ride the country road from YS to the next town over, Fairborn, and avoid Xenia altogether by hooking up directly to the Dayton trail system there, which takes me about a half an hour.