derath- you're the closest. It's to the NorthWest of Frederick, about a 2 miles outside of Boonsboro heading for Rt.67 towards Harpers Ferry. It's actually part of this tour except we started near Shepherdstown at a parking lot next to the C&O Canal-very nice route.
http://biketours.marylandmemories.org/southmt.html

Noracer- thanks for playing. Those routes for the ride are pretty awesome if you ever get a chance to ride them. Alot of climbing once we get out west past Seneca Rocks. I'll be on them in a couple of weeks.

Hey Harry... apologies for not seeing your post earlier.

I spoke to Crista and she mentioned that you spoke with her. It's too bad you didn't have the time.

Eight-thousand miles!? LOL! Not yet--as you can see from my sig at the bottom of my response--only 4,500 so far.

Thurmont is the hotspot.
BBC is staging the civil war century route this sunday. (not the event, just an unsupported BBC ride.)
and...
DCRand is also leaving from there a half hour earlier.


BBC:
15/17 and 18 - 8:30 am - 103 mi - Janet Goldstein 410-366-1466
START: Thurmont Community Park: 70W -> I5N -> SECOND Thurmont exit (Rt. 806). Right off ramp; left at light; park is 1/2 mi. on left. Please park in BACK parking lot.
Civil War Century. Get ready for Tour de Montes with Slow-Twitch Sally! Four major climbs in first 71 miles. Last 30 miles gently rolling. Rest stops at about 28, 43, and 73 miles.Mostly low-traffic roads through Fairfield, Keedysville, Antietam, Boonsboro, Sabillasville, and Gettysburg (not in that order).

DCRand:
"DOCTOR DISC'S CENTURY OF CENTURIES," starting from McDonald's in Thurmont, Maryland. ***MEETING TIME 8:00 am (1/2 hour later than usual)!*** This is one of our favorite good ol' rides, beginning with the pretty climb up MD550 to Blue Ridge Summit. We'll descend via Mentzer Gap, then visit "Ewetopia" as we continue west through the Cumberland Valley to our lunch stop at Al's in Mercersburg. After lunch we'll pass by Anderson's Mill and Homestead, ride through the Witherspoon "Red" Covered Bridge, and cross over the Hays double-arch stone bridge over Conococheague Creek. The scenery is lovely and the terrain moderate for a good part of the day, but keep in mind that the big climb up PenMar awaits us in the afternoon. We have to get back over the mountain one way or another, after all. We'll forgo an immediate descent to Thurmont by riding the length of scenic Foxville-Deerfield Road and then returning to Thurmont via the lovely swoopy descent on MD77, but if you're in a hurry to get back or just don't want to climb anymore, you can high-tail it down MD550 back to the parking lot. 100 miles, with many short options.

Sounds fun. I'm doing the CWC in Sept.. I'll be on Skyline Drive this weekend doing a training ride. From Front Royal to Thornton Gap. We are doing the "Outspoken Ride" in a couple of weeks and this is the closest terrain in this area to train on. Need to get my climbing legs on..
Try to get some pics if you can greaterbrown...

I'll be doing one of the two. I haven't made up my mind which one yet.

Have you decided which one, Bob?

I'm heading up with janet goldstein to do the BBC ride. I just found out she lives <1mi away.

But I just thought of a hilarious missed opportunity: Ask Crista for her cue sheet and attempt to lay the two routes on top of one another. It might be possible to jump from one group to the other at some point during the day. :p

I couldn't try it since I'd be messing with my ride home and that is not a good thing to do.

-GB

NoRacer, are you not racing this year? I'm surprised you aren't headed to Poolsville.

I raced three times this year--got my butt handed to me. :o

Man, it was like someone has thrown a switch--turn 50 years old and everything goes downhill. :cry:

So, I've returned to longer distance rides for now, but I am not ruling out some Fall races.

Anyone going to be riding in the Boyds/Poolsivlle area this weekend?

Saturday Ride: Dundalk to Aberdeen via Rt 40, 50 miles, 3 hours, not a single hill kicked my ass, I made it to the top of my slowest hill last week (6mph) at 10mph, I got to the top and was trying to convince myself that wasn't "that hill". Moving the cleats on my pedals made a huge difference in leg strengh/no fatigue at all, got done 50 and I felt like I could go 50 more. Started at 6am, weather good and it seemed like I had a good headwind on the way back and a crosswind on the way out. I'll probally do the same tommorow.

Good job, Josh! Glad the cleat thing is working for you. Give it a few more weeks just to be sure. Sometimes a change can take a while to manifest new problems, if any.

That'd be 'interesting' if I could pull it off, because all of the big climbs are in the first part of the BBC ride and the biggest climbs of the DC Randonnuer ride is during the second half.

Hell yeah!
Hope to see ya tomorrow morning... or at least at some intersection along the way.

-GB

I'll see you tomorrow morning at the park.

Anyone go to the CSC race over the weekend? First time I've ever seen a break lap the peloton :) Mangus is a monster.

Yep I went to it. I posted some pictures my friend took in the Road section under CSC Did u go? topic.

I finally got my new bike all setup with xtracycle and most of my commuter gear. Still a few odds and ends that need to be done but it's ridable, really ridable, I'm having fun so far.

Hi, I'm completely new to both BF and biking in general, live in PG county. I need advice for which bike to get: my plan is to train/get into shape by riding on the various trails we have around here. If I can work up to it, I'd eventually like to commute (about 11mi on back roads, from one suburb to another).

Most of my research says to get a hybrid, but then I'd be unable to take it on rougher trails. While I have no interest in technical downhill trails, it really depends on what's available in this area. Guys at the bike store have been telling me to get a comfort bike (Trek Navigator 3.0) but it really feels squirrely and heavy to me compared to the Trek 7200.

Any tips? Will I really be missing out on trails in this area if I get a hybrid? Are there enough paved/packed dirt trails to use within 1hr driving that aren't filled with pedestrians all the time?

Most Hybrids (the 7200 looks decent) can take pretty big tires. I think my dad runs 700x35 tires on his. You can ride some decent unpaved roads with a tire like that. I wouldn't take it on downhill singletrack, but stuff like the C&O canal towpath, the NCR trail etc. You will be able to take it on rougher paths than you think.

If you are concerned you could go with a Mtn bike, like an 820. It will probably be pretty similar to the 7200, except it will have 26in wheels. You can run road slicks most of the time, but would have the option for big fat knobbies if you wanted to go on really rough trails.

-D

Hello there, fellow Marylanders.

Well, after finding out that I was either seriously out of practice or severely dehydrated over the past couple of 60-mile bike rides (and either passing out or slowing way down), I just got back in from a very peaceful 71.5-mile ride to Salisbury, round trip from my home in Marion Station. I took it really slow (12mph on average) and hills are still giving me trouble, but it was really fun, so I don't mind those technicalities. =)

My behind's hating me for Salisbury's sidewalks, though. I seriously need a better saddle.

My goal at this point is to hopefully get myself back up to about 17mph, which is where I was last summer before I quit the necessary work commute.

Hello,I'm new here,I'm from Allegany County in western Maryland

I'll be sure to test ride an 820 for comparison then, none of the stores I'd visited so far had suggested mountain bikes (only comfort bikes). Thanks for pointing out that hybrids would be reasonable for the C&O and NCR trails, that was a lingering question I've had.

**WARNING** BALTIMORE AREA FOLKS

I've received two announcements (2 seperate incidents) from my bike club about motor vehicle break-ins when folks leave their motor vehicles in a public parkling lot. Apparently, these thieves are watching for their targets to go on a bike ride, run, hike, walk, ... and then breaking into the target's vehicles stealing and using credit cards and taking whatever else that has value. Don't leave valuables in your cars!

If you truly have *no* interest in technical mountain biking -- extremely rocky, rooty, steep terrain -- then you probably don't really need a mountain bike, and you may not want one. It's true that with slick tires in place of the knobbies, it will roll more smoothly on paved or relatively smooth dirt trails, but it's gonna be almighty heavy compared to a hybrid, and probably even compared to a "comfort" bike.

I have routinely ridden my cyclocross bike, with 32c tires, on dirt trails like the C&O and the NCR with no trouble (and much enjoyment.) (To most cycling newbies, a 'cross bike looks a lot like a "road" bike -- same sort of "racy"-looking frame, and those dropped/curved handlebars.) And that's a type of bike that is, in general, a bit less stable and "comfy" than a hybrid. For the type of riding you mostly want to do, I would think you should be perfectly fine on a hybrid.

Careful evening commuters. There's a really nasty looking front headed through B'more and environs.