Leader:  Ron Altemus

Members:  Holly Carr, Joan Oppel

Route:   Advertised as https://ridewithgps.com/routes/9123875  Bumpy Oak/Rose Hill outbound; Mason Spring/Livingston for the return.  At Welcome, Joan/Ron opted for roads less traveled and revised our routing, taking W. Hilltop/Annapolis Woods/Poorhouse/Stuckey to rejoin the route on Mason Spring.  That stretch was much quieter!

Weather:   Overcast with just an occasional peek of sun; E/ESE breeze of 3-5 mph; temp range of 41-46.

AMS:   somewheres in the mid 12s (which just means that we got to enjoy the ride longer than the A/B minions).

Report:  After two washouts, the third time was a charm for another pleasant ride in SW Charles County.  Holly signed in with us but actually rode inbetween the two groups along with Bob Howell (who has 3000 miles in sight for the year).  Joan is still learning the intricacies of her new Garmin 1000 which leads to an occasion chuckle as to its directions, such as the "Get Off Road" admonition she was getting on Mason Spring.

It was not too windy and it was about 34 degrees at the ride start.  The sun came out a bit.  Ron, Tom, Bruce, Jean and Chris joined Sherwood and me for the ride.  We were mostly comfortable, a few cold parts here and there.  There no mechanicals. For me it was a personal low!

Leader: Barbara Haney

Members: Larry Peed, Lou Dallorso, Holly Carr, Janell Saunders, Tom Short, Sam Perry, Tom Roberts

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/16826867 Croom Rollers to the Five Points, a 36 mile route going south almost to Hughesville and back, stopping at Moreland Market

Weather: low to mid 40s, mostly overcast, not windy

AMS: 15.7 for leader

Report: Eight of us rode out of North Keys this AM despite damp roads and grey skies. We soon forgot about the weather, though, except for using extra caution on wet downhills and curves, since within a couple of miles we were on the Croom Rollers, and other rollers, which kept us occupied almost until our stop at Moreland Market, at which point Janell turned back to take a shorter route home. After that most of the hills were behind us, except for a couple (one very steep) on Celestial, where Sam stopped to walk off leg cramps; Holly was riding with him, alerted the ride leader, but fortunately all was resolved and they were shortly back riding. They finished the ride without incident, as did the rest of us, and we reached the parking lot within a few minutes of each other. Thanks to all for riding today!

Usually it turns out to be too cold or too something to do a birthday ride.  But this year the weather was cooperative.  It was a little cool and breezy, but made for very comfortable riding.  I was joined by Alan, Sherwood, Charles, Tom and Lou.  The new route (72k) was mostly excellent, especially due to Sherwood's tweaking the cue sheet by adding info. about tracks, dangerous intersections etc.    Special thanks to Larry Peed who clued me in about the dirt road I had originally included. We rode at a comfortable pace, stopping to regroup now and then.  Tom had a flat, but quickly caught up with the group.  Donuts too.

Members: Me, Myself and I
Guests: The voices in my head (singing the song that was playing on my car stereo when I arrived at Wayson's Corner)
Ride leader: Debby Bowman
Route: 30.5 miles as cued, 28.1 as ridden, about 1300 feet of climbing, https://ridewithgps.com/routes/17938168
Average speed: 13.7 mph at the back, 13.7 mph at the front.
Weather: Not bad for winter. Temps rising from 48 to 54 during the ride, no wind, gray clouds but the sun did manage to come out and cast a few shadows during the last 10 miles.
Mishaps and mechanicals: None
Farm animal roll call: Horses, sheep, a couple of cows.
New saddle test verdict: Not sure yet.

Every time I plan to lead a ride, I expect no one else to show up. I usually have a backup plan in mind, such as a shortcut or extra food and drinks so I won't have to go into a store and leave my bike unattended at the break. Today was the first time I actually had to put my backup plan into effect.

The day started with a trip to the LBS to have a new saddle put on the bike -- a Bontrager Yatra to replace the Affinity which is showing signs of wear. So today was the first test ride in the 30-day comfort guarantee period. With the new saddle ready to go I headed to Wayson's Corner. At 1:00 sharp I stuck a couple of cue sheets under the windshield wiper of my car's rear window and rolled out. I had two possible short cuts in mind and decided to take the first one right at the start. The route was a counter-clockwise loop starting with a trip down Pindell and Lower Pindell Rd to Fisher's Station and Bay Front, but I opted to turn left from Plummer to Wrighton Rd instead of going straight onto Pindell. This sent me through the part of Bay Front Rd where road work is currently going on, so I knew I might have to turn around and backtrack if conditions were bad. They turned out to be passable, with a brief closure of the shoulder which would have been okay were it not for the two impatient drivers behind me who were extremely eager to get on Route 4 going north. But hey, if it makes you feel better to lean on your horn, go ahead, I can take it.

After that the ride was downright uneventful. I took Bay Front east to Rt 2, where I turned left, stopped at St James Church to read a historical marker, then took a right onto Old Ridge Path Lane and Nutwell Rd. Then I went north on Nutwell-Sudley/Sudley/Owensville-Sudley to Harwood Rd and a stop at the convenient store. After a quick snack I decided to add another layer, so I put on the wind vest that I had tucked into my bike bag just in case.

The last part of the ride offered another chance for a small shortcut, but I decided to stay on the planned route. So from Harwood Rd I turned right onto Wayson Rd, then went left on Queen Anne Bridge and left again on Patuxent River Rd, then right on Sands, past the two county parks and three trailer parks, and back to Wayson's Corner.

After the ride I was thinking that the new saddle failed the test; in some ways it was more comfortable than the Affinity but in others it was worse. But then I noticed that it was slightly skewed to the left, which might explain the discomfort. So I will straighten it and try it again. (This always seems to happens to new saddles on my bike -- you'd think I'd have learned to pay more attention before trying them out!)

All in all it was a good ride. I'll keep the cue sheets and post it again sometime.

Post

Class: AA/3
Category: Sport
Description: A cup of coffee and a fun spin
Speed Limit Imposed: None
Start: 1130
Location: Manokeek Village Center

Course

Distance: 42.0 miles
Gain: 1112ft
Rest Stops: Ollie’s
Max Grade: 5.9%

Ride

Ride Leader: Scott Walker
Riders:  Blake Altman, Steve Koegle, Pete Czapiewski, Michael Blaine, Robert Golding
Weather: Overcast, 42 degrees w/winds from the WNW at 4mph
Moving Time: 1:58:45
AMS: 21.1 mph
Mechanicals/Mishaps: None
Report:  Chatting with Sherwood in Starbucks before Barbara's A/B departs, I was anticipating a kicked-back ride for the AAs.  Well, not so much.  Blake led a ride yesterday but the rest of us were pretty fresh and I guess that was the catalyst for a lively outing and off-pace AMS.  Blake and Michael rode to the start and both circled back towards home after the stop at Ollie's.  The remaining four romped back to Manokeek actually ticking-up the average another tenth in the process.  Thanks gents, it was fun!  See the clip

Leader: Barbara Haney

Members: Ron Haney, Ken Meredith, Wesley Meredith, Majesta Hartley, Sherwood Byers, Linda Bankerd, Jean Wright, Chris Fairhall, Kelly Bikowski, Brian Dixon, Tom Roberts, Nancy Avitabile, Richard Edelman

Guests: Laura Clauser

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/12367107 a fairly flat route which took us briefly east of 301 into La Plata and then back west via Hawthorne, Chickamuxen and Livingston. 

Weather: The same all day, low to mid 40s, little or no sun, but thankfully no wind.

AMS: 15.8 for sweep, higher (17 or so) in front

Report: We had a great turnout today; despite the grey skies and temps in the 40s, it was agreed to be good riding weather. We did the same route as Scott W's posted AA ride, but we left about 1/2 hour before them. The first incline on Rt 228 broke us into two groups, and we rode that way pretty much until the stop at Ollies, where we regrouped and met up briefly with the AAs. By then about half of our A/B group was ready to leave because it was too cold to hang around outdoors. The rest of us followed after a few minutes, meeting the other half of the group back at Manokeek, where some of us took advantage of Starbucks to warm up and chat. An uneventful ride, but as usual a fun day out in good company. Thanks to everyone who came out to ride today!

We held our Sunday morning mountain bike ride at Rosaryville, we were able to get the ride started around 10:00. We picked up the course and rode counter clockwise. At the inner loop we followed the inner loop backwards. After the inner loop we were ale to pick up the main trail and complete the ride. Riders included Barry and Randy.

Barry Howard

Ride Leader

Ride Leader:  Blake Altman

Date: December 3, 2016

Ride Name:  Laurel Springs - Amish Return

Ride Distance: 38 Miles

Average Speed of the Ride:  18.1

Ride Class:  AA/3 Sport

Mechanical Issues: None

Mishaps: None

Weather:  Upper low to mid 40’s, sunny, windy

Guest Riders:  None

Member Riders:  Brad Francisco

Ride Report:

We saw a lot of Amish buggies and wagons today.  Other than that it was windy.  I’m glad Brad joined me to help with the wind and for the company.  Perhaps we are crazy – I see a lot of other rides were canceled for the day.  I will say it never felt like the conditions were unsafe; it was just difficult riding against or across the wind.  I’ll put this ride in the win column for winter rides but I was ready to be done once we finished.

Leader: Barbara Haney

Members: Ron Haney, Alan Kurzweil, Jan Tucker, Dave Schnirel, Tom Roberts, Holly Carr, Sam Perry, Linda Bankerd, Chantal Briere, Bob Thompson, Jim Hudnall, Lou Dallorso

Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/17899268, a route designed by Joan O taking us over many of the roads from the Rural Legacy Ride, past rolling farmland and woods, stopping at Jug Bay Pavilion. 

Weather: low 50s to start, maybe warming up a little but chilly again at the end, breezy with a little sun at times

AMS: 15.9 for leader

Report: We had 13 riders, more than expected on a somewhat windy first day of December, but after the previous cold &/or rainy spell, people were eager to ride again. It was a tricky day to dress for; some people had overdressed at the start at windy North Keys Park, then had to shed layers at the rest stop, only to need them again as the sun went away and it felt chillier later on. Other than that, it was an uneventful ride, despite (or maybe because of) warnings from the ride leaders pre-ride about possibly treacherous wet leaves, and also about poor road conditions and visibility on Cross Road Trail: thus advised, we were all very vigilant. As usually happens on rolling terrain, we split into smaller groups, but all met up at Jug Bay to enjoy the sun for a while; back on the road we confronted the remaining miles and hills, arriving back at NK glad to have had the chance to spend a few hours enjoying the crisp fall air and good company. Thanks to all who came out today!

Special note: We welcomed the return of Lou Dallorso for his first time out since his broken collarbone in September: in good form, on a new bike, and his usual energetic self, it was great to have him back riding with us. 

Photos