Ride Leader Sharon Miller was joined by Mike and Regina Saizon and Jay Lewis.  It was a beautiful sunny day for a ride, with temperatures in the 70's and 80's, low humidity, and a cool breeze.  Eight miles into the ride, we met up with the group from Steve's 3-day History Tour at Cecil's Old Mill & General Store.  After lingering there a bit, the 2 groups rode the next 8 miles together to St. Mary's City Historical Park, where we said our goodbyes and proceeded to ride around the park and surrounding waterfront area.  (Steve's group stopped to tour on foot.) We rode at a leisurely pace, especially as we rode by St. Mary's college, St. Mary's City and some of the more picturesque areas by the water.  After a stop at St. James Deli (mi 22), we headed back toward Leonardtown, stopping at Russell's Store (mi 34).  At Mile 42, Mike, Regina, and Sharon opted to do the extra 10 mile out and back down Breton Beach Road, and Jay rode 2 more miles to finish.  Avg for the day was ~14 mph, a true B pace.  Thanks to those who joined me for the ride and to Steve Palinscar for providing the great route!

May 26 – Harwood High School – Express Train and Fast Train to Chesapeake Beach

Sat, May 26, 2012 9:30 AM | Nancy Avitabile (A) and Richard Edelman (B)

We had a great turnout of almost 200 riders with our combined Oxon Hill bike club and Potomac Peddlers bike club. We offered rides of 62, 47 and 41 miles and probably a third of the riders went on each ride. Richard had an injury so we requited another leader for the B ride and Richard rode the sag wagon and helped anyone who needed assistance.

The ride started out hot and got hotter. Fortunately, the ride was mostly shaded so we only really felt it when we stopped. Many of us were tempted to get rid of our bikes and jump into the beach at Chesapeake. (I certainly did.) It’s a really beautiful ride which we do every year and seem to get more riders each year.

I was able to introduce 4 new riders to the Oxon Hill club. They loved the ride and the camaraderie and we’ll hope they join us again. Best part of the day (other than the finish) was knowing that there were no problems on the road.

[Photo]

Leaders Jim and Jane Hudnall with Larry Peed, Randy and Jackie Schoch, Mike Bivens, Steve Palincsar, Michael and Regina Saizan, Richard Harrington, Joan Oppel, Lou Dallorso, Tom Roberson, Ken Meredith, Fred Warwick, Scott Buiman, Thomas Short, Jim and Louise McDermott, Sharon Miller and John Early.

With rain showers circling the area, there was doubt that the ride would go.  But, my alter ego, Weather Girl, studied the maps and assured me that there wasn't going to be any rain to spoil the ride.  And she was right.  Two members, Gary and Jennie Ann Swartz, joined me at the firehouse and Ron Leak caught up with us on Livingston Road.  We saw dark clouds north of us and across the river at the rest stop, but no rain was found on the route.  A nice ride for the few that dared the weather gods.

It was a good news/bad news morning for those who joined Ride Leader Mike Bivens (Steve Palincsar, Randy and Jackie Schock, Lou Dallorso, Larry Peed, Jay Lewis, Jim Hudnall, Richard Harrington, and Sharon Miller) for this 34 mile ride.  The good news: weather.com did not predict any rain until late afternoon; the bad news: weather.com apparently does not consider mist rain.  There was a light mist at the start which caused some to hesitate. The good news: no one needed sunblock; the bad news: tan lines turned to rust.  However, with four members from OHBTC Team 1 and one member from Team 2 needing miles for the National Bike Challenge we started.  Randy and Jackie, as usual deviated from the cue sheet, and there was some speculation they may have rode in their car.  The good news: once on the IHRT, the mist almost stopped; the bad news: going down Bumpy Oak the drops were bigger and faster.  Turning onto Middletown and Billingsley, the roads were dry and took as to the first rest stop at Wawa.  We continued on Billingsley and turned on Piney Church, past Regency Stadium (home of the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs baseball team), or Crustacean Nation.  We turned right on La Plata Road and then right on Radio Station Road back to Rosewick.  A left on Rosewick, left on Washington Ave, and right on Hawthorne, got us to the second rest stop at the Dash In at Hawthorne and 301.  The mist returned causing a deviation to the cue sheet.  For safety sake, we opted to come up Bumpy Oak rather than Pomfret since the former has a shoulder. The good news: the sun did come out and shine; the bad news: for a total of 3 minutes and 53 seconds.  The good news: everyone made it back safely with no incidents; the bad news: all bikes and rideres needed to be washed. 

Ride leader John Gorman. Well other than my wife, Diane, joining me, I guess today's ride was too far way for most OHBTC members, but the ride went on as posted.  This casual site seeing ride starts from the EastPort Library outside the gates of Quiet Waters Park (south of Annapolis). It provides 25 miles of touring through some older Chesapeake Bay communities as well as the stately beautiful manicured landscaped("the good life homes") of Arundel on the Bay/Bay Ridge sitting on the banks of the Severn River and the Bay, providing views of sailboats and the Bay Bridge. In between those roads the route takes you down to a narrow remote gravel road leading to a small natural park (Thomas Point), with panromic views of the Bay.  The ride was posted as 30 heading into the Quiet Waters Park for a bag picnic lunch, but we cut that short for a 20mile ride. I was attempting to offer something different today.

Ride leader Herman Young: 

May 19 was a perfect day for a bike ride. The following riders signed up to ride the 27 mi., CC pace with Bishop Mariann Budde, the Episcopal Bishop of Washington: the Bishop, Mariann Budde; Barbara Miles; Salli Hartman; Judy Mutty; Beverly White; Greg Drury; Herman Young; Becky Neal; Celeste Conyers; Calvin Coyners; Polly Choate; Chris H. Teves; Bob Howell; LaTasha Banks; Daniel Thompson; Jeanne Ulrich; Ruddy Elly; Jin Huan Chui; Michael Whitson; and Lew Baylor. The ride consisted of a mix of members of Oxon Hill Bike and Trail Club and guests who had heard of the ride through word of mouth, primarily through Episcopal Churches in the Washington Diocese.

The B riders who had started from the Northern Senior Center arrived at the CC ride starting location at Baggett Park in St. Mary’s Co. The Bishop blessed the bikes and cyclists, and then conducted a second blessing of bikes and riders when the A riders, who had also started from the Northern Senior Center, arrived a few minutes later. Once all bikes and cyclists had been blessed, the riders left Baggett Park to journey to Christ Church, in Chaptico, for the annual Strawberry Festival. The faster riders actually arrived before the official opening of the Strawberry Festival; but things were opened early, and the food and strawberry treats flowed! By the time the CC riders arrived, the festival was in full swing.

One of the CC riders, Salli Hartman, developed mechanical problems and couldn’t shift out of her granny gear; so the ride leader and one other rider, Mike Whitson, stayed with her to the Strawberry Festival. She caught a ride back to the start from Christ Church, and was planning to take her bike to the shop for repairs. The remaining riders made their way back to the start at Baggett Park at their own pace, with some riders leaving fairly soon after sampling treats, and others taking their time to eat and shop.

All in all, the ride was enjoyed by the participants. Reports from Christ Church are that the personnel at the Strawberry Festival enjoyed seeing and interacting with the cyclists and were impressed by the generosity of the cyclists in their support of the Strawberry Festival. Thanks to club members and guests alike for making the day such a successundefinedand a special thanks to Bishop Mariann Budde for her enthusiasm and support of the event.

It was a beautiful, sunny, low-humidity day. Twenty-six cyclists turned out to do the 46-mile route from the Northern Senior Center. Leaders Jim and Jane Hudnall with Larry Peed, Walter Carr, Ron Tucker, Ruth Anne Cumberland, Jay Lewis, Andres Valencia, Paul Bankerd, Jack Hammond, Kelvin Lewis, Jules Pinkney, Yvonne Hoyle, Henry Hoyle, Jay Mallin, Jay Everhart, Janice Tyndle, Reginald Stokes, Bill Loewe, Sheila Harrow, Dennis Benson, Sharon Miller, Jimmy Bartlett, Erik Peterson and John Early. Chandra arrived late and followed the cue sheet we had left for her on a windshield. Because of a special event at the Senior Center, cyclists were not allowed to use the restroom and had to move their cars before the ride started. Three cyclists took a short cut to Baggett Park. Paul and Andres returned to the start after only a few miles.  A minor crash occurred when a cyclist’s wheel hit the wheel in front of her and she stopped suddenly. Fortunately on one was hurt.

The first stop was at Baggett Park, where cyclists doing 62, 46, 27 or 5 miles met for a blessing of bikes and cyclists by the Episcopal Bishop of Washington, the Reverend Mariann Edgar Budde. The bishop joined the ride to the Strawberry Festival at Christ Church in Chaptico where barbeque, strawberry shortcake, fresh strawberries and arts and crafts were available for purchase. Following lunch, everyone rode back to the start. It was a pleasure to ride on the newly completed section of the three Notch Trail. 

Many thanks to Dan and Diana Donahue for arranging this event. Hope we can do it again next year!

Members Liam Healy, Cathy Wilson, John Kady, Jan Tucker, Al Manley, Richard Harrington, Bob Nunziata, John Choate, Kirk Saunders, Steve Cohen, Larry Green, Michie Sidwell and guests Darrel Watson, Keith Blackmon, and Fred Smoak joined co-leaders Blake Altman and Claire Chiamulera for the Strawberry Festival ride.  This was a big group and we may have missed a few names since some riders joined en route.

We had nearly perfect weather except for some wind.  We rode together as a group before splitting up about 10 miles into the ride. Claire led the front group to the midpoint at Baggett Park at Laurel Grove and Blake brought up the rear. The turn onto the Three Notch Trail from Route 5 was easy to miss; the front group almost passed it, while Blake and one rider blew by it for a couple miles, causing them to miss the Bishop’s blessing.  Claire and several concerned A-riders waited for them to rejoin at the park before riding on to the Strawberry Festival in Chaptico. The quiet backroads of St. Mary's County offered a nice tour through farms and Amish communities. 

We had a nice visit at the festival then rode back to the start. We had one flat on Mechanicsville Road that was changed in a flash. Once back, some of us got invited to have free lunch leftovers at the senior center, a nice and unexpected treat.

Blake had a 17.4 MPH average.  What a great ride!