Leader:   Ron Altemus

Members:   Mary Scala, Theresa Rowell, Pat Colvin, Dave VanAmeyden, with Pat's new Ride1Up Racer1 E-bike in front.



Route:   Starting at Gunston School, we did an out and back on Belmont Blvd, then used Mason Neck trail, with a short diversion on Springfield, to High Point Rd into Mason Neck State Park for a rest stop.  Retracing out of the park, we took Gunston Road east to tour Hallowing Point, then heading back, visited Gunston Manor, Gunston Hall, Pohick Bay park, and the Pohick Bay golf course.   https://ridewithgps.com/routes/40798783  27.6 miles, 738' elevation change

Weather:   Nicest day of the weekend with temps starting in the low 50s, rising to the upper 50s, 6-7 mph air movement out of the SW, mixture of sun and clouds

AMS:  mid 11s

Mechanicals/Mishaps:   none

Report:  As pictured above, Pat has a new eBike which is quite the looker.  This was only her second ride on it but she was all smiles from beginning to end, enjoying the bike's geometry and its pedal assist.

Mason Neck was a busy place for cycling as we saw a number of other groups, including a fast one riding out of Rats Cycles in Fort Belvoir.  There were also quite a number of individual or pairs of cyclists on the roads, too. 

A first time visit to Mason Neck for Pat and Theresa, and with many trees now devoid of leaves, there were great views of the waterways that surround the neck.  As Dave noted, Mason Neck shows different views for every season.

Leader: Donaro Gardner

Members: Oswald Martin,Linda Bankerd

Guests: 0

Route: North Keys 32 miles 10:00am

Weather: 53 degrees F

AMS: 12.5

Mechanicals/Mishaps: The ride leader had a soft tire at start of ride that held up until 1/3 into the ride It finally had to be changed.

It was a exciting ride.It was sunny but very windy Merkle was closed for renovation.We.saw deer and had a school bus driver that was very reckless and almost caused a accident.Thanks to the rider who was riding defensively and prevented it.Thanks to the the riders that accompanied me!

Picture IMG_20241121_113353011.jpg

Leader:  Joan Oppel

Members:  Anonymous user, Linda Bankerd, Barbara Butcher, Sherwood Byers, Lou Dall'Orso, Donaro Gardner, Robin Garnett, Darrell Meyer, Tom Short, Esther Steward and Pat Walthers

Route; https://ridewithgps.com/routes/49087127

Weather: Cloudy, temperatures in the 50's, almost no wind - still good riding weather

Report: Luckily we had former military officers with us, because everyone including the ride leader was facing the wrong way for the start and when "ABOUT FACE" was called, we all complied - immediately.

The group split up by pace but everyone gathered on the Goose Bay porch, where we were welcomed by the manager and where we spread out on the comfy chairs. When it was time to leave, I noticed a small wheel from a child's bike sitting on a chair with a flat tube and a box with a new tube. Lou said "I can fix that."

We went in to ask if that was ok and the manager was delighted. The bike belongs to the marina owner's daughter (about 4 or 5). Lou set out to fix the flat, noticed the rim strip was torn so so I got out my fix-it kit, got the 3 feet of emergency duct tape and with Pat Walthers assistance we added a new rim strip. Anonymous user also assisted and Linda Bankerd lent a pump. Everyone hung around while all this was going on to lend moral support.

The marina owner also showed up and watched. We have thanked him  whenever we see him for his hospitality to us, we have tried in the past to offer him a small donation for our use of the facilities but he has refused. So this small repair will be part of our thanks.  

Leader: Rita Zeidner

Members: Joan Oppel, Harold Datz, Greg Acs, Anne Wittenberg, Patricia Walthers, Rita Zeidner

Guests (from PPTC): Carol Linden and Bob Ichord

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/49036275

Weather: Delightful, especially for November. 60s, partially sunny

AMS: 11-13

Mechanicals/Mishaps: Nothing that needs mentioning

Report: This was the second of two rides I led out of Frederick County this weekend. Really nice group and everyone seemed to like the route -- which was new to most people. We pretty much stayed together, although more than half of this group rode ebikes. Everyone brought snacks, so no need to visit a store. We took one major rest at Point of Rocks, and a few short breathers.

This is a really excellent route and Urbana District Park is a good place to start. If you're looking for something new, try this route.

Ride leaders: Lisa Petersen & Rick Hagen

Members: Rick Hagen, Ray Luckenbach, Susan Luckenbach, Lisa Petersen, Patricia Sanders

RWGPS Route:  https://ridewithgps.com/routes/49051680

Weather: mostly sunny with a few clouds, low 50s at the start, almost 60 at the end, light & variable winds weren’t noticeable

AMS: 12.4 mph

Mechanicals/Mishaps: none

Report: Our route took us from Waysons Corner Park & Ride eastward on the service road and Route 258 to the quiet roads of Little and Brooks Woods. Then south on noisy Route 2 to a backroad toward the bay. We stopped at the 1949 plane crash site and continued down Leitch Rd. to Fairhaven for a photo op of the bay. We went up Fairhaven Rd and down Friendship Road to a lunch stop at Chesapeake Market & Deli. They were still serving breakfast at 11:30 when we arrived! From there it’s flat riding around Holland Point to North Beach where we followed the bike path along the boardwalk. We climbed the hill up Route 260, then went north on Boyds Turn to Friendship Rd and westward through southern Anne Arundel Co. We had little trouble crossing the 4 lanes of Route 4, We finished the ride by wandering through the peaceful Pindells back to the cars. We saw lots of people on bikes in several different groups.

Wildlife: great blue heron, ducks

Leader: Rita Zeidner

Members: Harold Datz, Ellen Goodwin, Anna Banyai and a slew of folks from PPTC

Route: Folks had a choice of a longer and a shorter route. Anna took off with the fasties and was never seen again. We assume she did the long route. Harold, Ellen, our friend Chuck and I took the shorter route.

44 mile ride (+1746 feet of climbing) no restrooms: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/49036954

48 mile ride (+1829 feet of climbing) and has a restroom stop: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/49036941

Weather: Gorgeous. Low to mid 60s but pretty darn windy.

AMS: 11 ish

Mechanicals/Mishaps: None

Report: Super fun day, if the ride leader does say so herself. The four of us stuck together, with two of us (Harold and me) on e-bikes. Human-powered people were troopers dealing with the substantial wind. For anyone who has never done this ride, try it when you can. Not too difficult. The only problem is the shorter route has no restrooms or places to buy food or get water. I warned people about this and everyone came prepared. We took one longer rest stop at Sachs Bridge and a few breathers to let human-powered people catch their breath.

Leader:  Ron Altemus

Members:  Donaro Gardner, Oswald Martin, Darrell Meyer, Henry Hoyle



Route:   Indian Head Rail Trail from Livingston Rd parking lot east to White Plains trailhead; after a rest stop, return westward.

Weather:   overcast at start  improving to almost partly cloudy; temps in the mid 50s; airs out of the north

AMS:  11 mph for the RL; others faster or slower.

Mechanicals/Mishaps:   none

Report:   some much needed overnight rain left the trail wet but the Charles County Parks crew must have used their blowers late Thursday afternoon, because the surface was mostly free of leaves.  We only saw 3-4 other cyclists and a dozen or so walkers.  Just a few wildlife sightings:  squirrels, deer, lots of small brown something birds, and maybe a pair of White-breasted Nuthatches.

The aforementioned rain wasn't enough to get water flowing in the stream beds bisecting the IHRT.  Of note, though - the pond closest to White Plains (identified as Port Tobacco Creek) has had the breach in it repaired, presumably by Parks, since good size boulders have been placed into the opening (not the handiwork of beavers!).  There was more water in the pond than the previous two weeks.

Date-11/14/24

Ride Leader-Donaro Gardner

The ride started at 10:15am.

The route was very quiet the average moving speed was about 12.5.The temperature was about 50 degrees and slightly windy.

The riders were Oswald Martin,Robin Garnett,Esther Steward,, Darrell Meyer,Linda Bankerd and Ron Altemus.

A eagle and deer where seen on the route. At the rest stop a civil worker who took our picture.

It is a great feeling to help members of our club get in a quick and challenging ride!

Leader - Joan Oppel

Members -Ron Altemus, Darrell Meyer, Patricia Sanders, Mary Scala, Dave Van Ameyden

Route - https://ridewithgps.com/routes/49003930 in Leaving from Accokeek Firehouse, we headed to Bryan's Road via the back way (Gospel Union) and down Livingston to climb Mt Pisgah. Over to Poorhouse, Pisgah Marbury, Marbury Run, Chicamuxen and Hawthorne to a rest stop at the Dash In. Chapman's Landing took us back to Bryan's Rd, then down to Barry's Hill and the return.

Weather - Cloudy and 49 (leader's Garmin reading) = chilly start. Sunny and 55 (60 reading in car in parking lot) and feeling a lot more comfortable at the end.

Report - An uneventful ride, with a brief interlude to discuss an alternate to the Pisgah store (no bathroom) for a rest stop. Suggestion was for an Indoor opportunity for warmth as well as a bathroom, thus the change to the Dash In. All agreed - good to be out today but we hope it rains tonight to alleviate the drought. 

Leader - Joan Oppel

Members - Ron Altemus, Ellen Goodwin, Patricia Sanders, Pat Walthers

Route - https://ridewithgps.com/routes/49004783  Starting at Friendship Farm park, across Baptist Church to Bowie, then Poseytown, we climbed up Greenleek hill and then took Sandy Point to Riverside. An impromptu stop at the Nanjemoy Store, then all the way around Riverside to Rt 6. Up Holly Springs, to  then go down Maryland Point, a visit to King James, a run along Hancock Run and Adams Willett. And back along Baptist Church to the park. (Thanks to Randy S, whose route was the inspiration for this one.)

 Weather - At the start is was 53 degrees and at the end it was 55 degrees with bright blue, mostly cloudless skies.

Mechanicals - None

Report - Today, the "feels like" temperature was at least 10 degrees higher than whatever was recorded by devices. It was a delightful warm day. We made a quick bathroom stop at the Nanjemoy Store. Riverside from Sandy Point to Rt 6 was lovely and mostly lonely we actually rode the first 15 miles without a car passing us after the first mile. Then nearing Rt 6 and on 6 to Holly Springs, it seemed as if the local residents all left the house at the same time. Luckily the population is sparse and traffic was still light. Our planned stop at Oak Grove Baptist Church (many times a rest stop location for the Indian Head 100) was thwarted by a church event. 

A few went on to King James Church, two took an impromptu stop on Holly Springs - 

Among us, we spotted 4 eagles today on Riverside (or we spotted the same eagles more than once).