With a nip in the air and a brisker wind than expected, four of us ventured out this morning for a 48 mile ride from Oak Ridge Park to Port Tobacco. The sun was bright though and I was in good company with Darin King, Blake Altman, and Scott Walker. We rode the first five miles at a “warm-up” pace, then Blake, who I don’t think could stand it any longer, leapfrogged to the front and elevated the pace. Off we went to Port Tobacco, pedaling along rolling terrain and climbing Rose Hill and Chapel Point, with brief stops at Murphy’s Store and St. Ignatius Church. We returned through Bel Alton, Newport, and Dentsville, with everyone taking turns at the front. Darin gave a strong pull out Chapel Point and up Bel Alton Road. Scott made us chase him along Rt. 6 and Cooksey Road. Then SuperBlake pulled us for 12 miles (!!), yielding to me for the last short stretch along Keech back to the park. I love a good winter ride! 17.6 AMS, 2014’ elevation

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It was just Larry Peed, Holly Carr and me today.  It was a brisk but sunny winter day, 35 when we left the Accokeek fire station, quickly warming to the mid-40s.  The sun was warm, the air cool - a pleasant contrast that perfectly fitted the winter landscapes along Van Brady and Molly Berry. 

Some weather forecasts called for gusty 25 mph winds, but although there was a wind -- cross winds with a major headwind vector for the last 15-20 miles -- and the final miles along Cedarville, McKendree and Accokeek Rd were tough going, a far cry from the easy flat finish intended, it wasn't gusty or anything like 25 mph.

40 miles, 1300 feet of climbing, AMS of 13.0, with rest stops at Cosca Park and the WaWa at Cedarville, and a quick bio-break at the park on North Keys.  The route is here: http://ridewithgps.com/routes/319829

No doubt about it, the new year brought us the True Polar Bear. It was sunny, in the low 30s with a breeze when we left, and no more than 37 when we finished the ride at quarter to two. The polar bears at play today included Mike Bivens, Darin King, Larry Peed, Loretta Troen, Joan Oppel, Richard Harrington, Phil Greer and leader Steve Palincsar.

The 34 mile route went to Patuxent River Park at Jug Bay via 301, Old Indian and Trumps Hill, returning along Croom, St. Thomas Church and Fenno past Merkle, then Nottingham and Croom over to Candy Hill, and back on Martin, North Keys and Gibbons Church. 1778 feet of climbing, or just over 52 feet per mile, with enough well-placed "thermal inclines" to insure that we were well warmed up and kept that way, with all major downhills occurring only after we were at operating temperature. The route can be found here: http://ridewithgps.com/routes/2035551

No AMS reading today, as the only "mechanical" of the day was the failure of the ride leader's computer, which managed to register only 8 miles for the day. It seemed like a weak battery in the wireless pickup, annoying in that the battery is only a month old. Darin took some photos which he posted on the OHBike Facebook site.

We held our annual New-years Day Hang Over Mountain Bike Ride at Rosaryville. Despite the cold air and the threat of snow, we held this yearly event. The park was crowded with a group heading out on the trails approximately 10 minutes before us. We followed the course counter clockwise, once we hit the technical section Doc lead us thru the trail in a figure 8 pattern. After the technical section, we were able to pickup the trail and finish up the ride. Riders included Matt, Doc and Barry

Rider Leader: John Gorman   Riders: Kenny Statom

Today's 1st ride of 2013 starting @ 12:30pm, had a cloudy, cool temp of 40degrees, but very low wind, & looking at the future extended colder forecast, made this a doable ride to start off the year. The ride is one I put together, to further expand my firsthand knowledge of the surrounding roads off the IHRT vs simply reviewing maps & Ridew/Gps.  I was pleasantly surprised that the route reflected exactly how RideW/Gps portrayed it to be.

The goal was to to offer a "K.I.S.S" winter-ride w/ 30ish miles, low elv,  without a lot of turns, and drama-free riding conditions. 

Starting from the IHRT (White Plains), made a L about mi 7.5- Bumpy Oak (s.) onto R(s) to Hawthorne, Ripley, Poorhouse to the 4-way stop @ Pisgah store (mile 17 / a quick 10min break), down 425/Mason Springs R to the TL 224/225, R back on the IHRT for the final 9miles to White Plains.

The pace ended up being much higher than the original projected (13-14ish), thanks in part to the low elvation and favorable "K.I.S.S" efficeint traveling conditions. This allowed the riders to ride faster than expected, providing a good winter-time cardio vibe @ the conclusion, and still having the remainder the day to attend to other life chores. 

Stats: 15.17 ams, riding time 2.06hrs, 31.76miles, 720ft elvation.

   

 

Our clubs traditional 1st ride of the New Year started off at 10:30 from the Oxon Hill P&R with Mike Bivens, Polly Choate, Pat Sanders (rode from Alexandria), Diane Harris (rode to the start), Calvin Conyers, Reggie Stokes, John Early and Leslie Tierstien.  Leslie rode up from the trail to inform us that Joan Oppel, Steve Palinscar, and 2 or 3 others were down there working on a busted chain. We rode down to meet them all and headed over to the Nat Harbor Christmas tree for our photo op. We then headed over the bridge(river) and down the trail to Washington DC we go!  (musical melody added here). Diane headed for laps at Hains Point, while the rest of us first over to the MLK Memorial for a couple photos before the PoPo (ranger) ran us off.  We had walked our bikes to our position for pictures and apparently, the bike sign with the big slash through it means we can't walk our bikes either.  I guess they're dangerous on the memorial grounds.  Anyway, we headed up to the White House when said earlier chain broke again.  A few of us stopped at the Cosi across from the Executive Office Bldg to wait for the repair.  After we all had a needed coffee break, we headed past the White House, oops, path was blocked due to the Inaugural viewing stand construction.  So, around Lafayette Park, and back down to Penn. Ave for a ride straight up to the Capitol bldg.  Then a turn to head back down the Mall to the Washington Monument and a turn on 15th st. to head back over past the Jefferson Memorial and to Hains Point for a lap or two.  Some folks broke off after a single lap to head home and the rest of us continued back down the Mt. Vernon trail.  The group got smaller as Steve and Tom (PPTC) headed home at Four Mile Run.  We headed back over the WW bridge and found Calvin had played a trick on us! He was feeling a bit spent, so took his time through Old Town and on the bridge.  Loretta had even offered a ride over the bridge as she had parked under it to meet Joan.  After we all got back up the hill to the Park and Ride with some concern for Calvin, here he comes....in his CAR!  He had called Celeste to move the car down the hill so he wouldn't have to ride up it!  That stinker!!!  Anyway, we had a lot of fun teasing and one-upping. I didn't get all of Joans riders names, so apologize if I left you off, but so glad all turned out and enjoyed the day!  

We met the Last Hurrah A group in the parking lot at Oak Ridge Park: Janell Saunders, Sarah Clement, Sharon Miller and I. We joined with the A's as Darin took a photo.

The A route went left from the park, and we went right, down Oaks Rd. to Keech and left on 6. Even though it was in the high 30s with a bit of wind, that first rise on Rt 6 had us all warmed up by the time we made the turn onto Dubois. Then it was up Dubois, down Old Sycamore, up Newport Church and as we turned right on Penns Hill, there were the A's.

We were at mile 12, they at mile 19. Tom Short and John Agazzi, who had left with the A's, joined us. Tom said the A group was really moving fast, and they must have been: we were averaging just under 14 all day, and to do half again as much mileage, they must have been averaging over 20.

The ups and downs continued: down Cooksey, up 6 to a break at the Cooksey store, where Tom left to finish the ride early; then (as we had cooled down and come off the boil) a rather chilling descent on Kentucky and Bowling, a pleasant jog on Allen's Fresh, and some racing heart rates deep and rapid breathing on Penn's Hill. (It's only 140 feet of elevation, hardly more than a speed bump, really; but you only have 0.2 mi to do it, and gets up to 11%.)

Most of us stopped at the EMS station on Rt 6 at Penns Hill (indoor plumbing!) and we all skipped the store at Olivers Shop Road. By the time we arrived at Oak Ridge Park, it was 2 pm, the A's had left, and the clouds were closing in.

A pleasant winter ride, a great group, and a fine way to close out 2012. Happy New Year to all!

Leader:  Darin King
Riders:  Jon Agazzi, Claire Chiamulera, Diane Harris, Scott Walker, Tom Short
Metrics:  http://ridewithgps.com/trips/1073657
Pictures:  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.583925138290153.148629.147336598615678&type=1&l=88860979f4

We met up with Steve's "Last Chance in 2012" group at Oak Ridge Park and set off at a pretty brisk pace (18+).  The conditions were pretty tolerable from a temperature, wind, and traffic perspective.  My computations indicated that we would cross paths with Steve's group a couple times.  So much for modern math (or my use of it)...we only saw Steve once at about 19.3mi.  We had been pushing the pace (I blame it on Scott!), so Tom and Jon opted to hook up with the B/CC group at that point.

Fortunately, Scott was wearing his new dayglo jacket and booties, so we were able to track him even as he disappeared over the hills!  After cresting Trinity Church Hill, we took a short refueling break.  The last half of the ride must have been a bit more sedate, as we finished up at just over 17 AMS.  We lingered a while after the finish, expecting Steve's group to surface.  I assumed they must have found an interesting distraction ( Idid see them safely navigating Olivers Shop Rd on my way home).

No medical or mechanical incidents to report, so I'll label it a successful closeout of 2012.

Windy.  Yes, it was very windy today, but 5 of us braved the winds to do a little climbing.  I had an average temperature of 39, but this did not seem to have any effect on the frisky riders out today.  Joining me were Richard Harrington, Ray Salvagnini, Scott Walker and Tyler "The Hammerer" Levesque.  We had quite an awesome tailwind on the way out, and I knew what to expect on the way home.  We had a nice rest at the St. Ignatius Church on Chapel Point.  A nice downhill on the Beast of Bel Alton was supplemented with the last of tailwinds we were to see today.  After climbing Rose Hill and Bumpy Oak like wild men, we all  got back safely to the Safeway parking lot with no issues whatsoever.

Ride leader had AMS of 14.2, elevation gain of 2247, and 42.6 miles.  Oh, did I mention the wind?

Once again, what a great idea to postpone! Today's weather was vastly better than the cold gray skies and fierce winds of Thursday: sunny to partly cloudy, temps in the low 30s at ride start, rapidly warming up to 44-45, and far less wind.

Taking me up on the rescheduling were Larry Peed (at least, briefly: he got a phone call around 6 miles into the ride and headed back to his car), Tom Roberson, Joan Oppel, Holly Carr, Susan Donney and guest Terry Kasey, Tom Short, Fred Tellexia, and joining us 5 miles from the end, John Early.

The route was an unusual variation on the theme of Malcolm and Truman Manor. I called it "Berry, Baden and Bassford" after the big swing on North Keys, Martin, Molly Berry, Baden Naylor and Baden Westwood before we rode Horsehead to the Five Points at Malcolm. From there, a jog left on Iowa and a jog right on Woodville took us to our break at the Moreland Market. And then the strange part.

Normally a route that stops at the Moreland Market will either go the length of Gallant Green or Dr. Mudd, but not today. This time we took Young down to Celestial, then Bassford up to Gallant Green, almost immediately turning back on Truman Manor to Celestial (in other words, the hard way coming and going).

By the time we made the turn on Truman Manor, we'd lost three of the group: Larry, who had turned back much earlier, and Holly and Fred, who continued on Gallant Green (because, we thought, Holly needed to cut it short in order to get back to work by 3, and Fred either wanted to keep her company, or couldn't bear to miss Gallant Green). When we arrived at the Five Points again, the group decided to skip the excursion along Covington and Croom, and stayed instead on Horsehead, then turned left on Brandywine. This shortened the ride a bit, and to make up for it most added little detours off Brandywine along Cedarville or Old Indian Head. We arrived at the parking lot having done around 35 miles (AMS near the back of the pack of 13.8) to find that Holly and Fred had not yet arrived.

Dark thoughts go through your mind when somebody's more than a half hour later than you'd expected and repeated calls to their cell go to voice mail. You start thinking about calling Jim in the Netherlands to see if he can locate them on that smart phone surveillance app he uses, and it even seems like a halfway sensible idea.

Tom and Joan decided to retrace part of the route to see if they could find Fred and Holly. (Of course, if they'd somehow gotten turned around, where would you look? Cedarville and Dent? Back along Brandywine & Aquasco?) And then there was Tom's van with Tom and Joan waving, saying they'd found the missing riders and they were OK. I sure hope Holly made it to work on time!

I once saw a PBS special on the Donner Party. One of the survivors wrote her memoirs of the journey. She concluded it with this advice: "Don't tarry, and never take no shortcuts."