Looking for a Rental (Road)

[Tim Kelley]

If no one takes you up on it, the City Hub rents Trek Madones for $85/day and Felts with electronic shifting for $110/day. (http://revolutioncycles.com/about/city-hub-central-pg642.htm)

There is also Bike and Roll, which has lower end Trek road bikes for $65/day. (http://www.bikeandroll.com/)

If you are just going to be riding for a few hours a day, both places offer cheaper hourly rates.

[thecyclingeconomist]

http://www.bigwheelbikes.com/rentals.htm

I used them when I visited for the same exact purpose…

MAKE SURE TO BRING YOUR OWN: cycling gear (helmet and kit)…but also bring your pedals and shoes! I can’t emphasize this enough.

[Nemisys]

First off. Thank you so much for the tips! Its always good to get some feedback when riding somewhere new.

I had planned on bringing all of my own stuff (light,watch,flat-fix,multi-tool). Some of the places advertise speed plays, I would rather not have to take off my pedals, but I could if I have to.

My goal is to put in about 60-70, I was looking at riding to Chesapeake Bay and back. That looks to be the right amount of distance.

Is this possible? Are their sufficient bike lanes?

Do you suggest an alternate ride of similar distance?

Thanks for the help thus far!

[Certifried]

@Nemisys 32339 wrote:

My goal is to put in about 60-70, I was looking at riding to Chesapeake Bay and back.

The Chesapeake Bay is massive, it is 200+ miles long. It starts up around the Susquehanna flats (North East, MD / Havre De Grace, MD and awesome fishing by the way!) and extends down past Norfolk / Virginia Beach. There’s definitely some great riding in the area, but we’ll need something a bit more specific

[dasgeh]

I think he means he wants to bike from the DC area to the Bay. I have no first-hand experience biking East of DC, but from following biking stuff around here, it seems like that’s the worst place in the area to ride. PG County, in particular, seems SCARY for bikes. I hope I’m wrong and someone who’s biked over there can give you a safe route.

There are lots of great rides of that distance that go west / northwest of DC, but they are VERY hilly. So if you were hoping for flat, I don’t think I can help you. But I think the ride to Sugarloaf Mountain (again, not flat) is about 70 rt and is popular.

[ShawnoftheDread]

DC to Purcellville on the W&OD is about 70-80 miles round trip, isn’t it? And mostly flat.

[PotomacCyclist]

The Washington & Old Dominion Trail (and park) is about 45 miles long, from Purcellville to south Arlington. You could easily connect that ride with other trails. The Four Mile Run Trail is just a block away from the trail head of the W&OD in Arlington. FMRT takes you east to the Potomac River (a couple miles, but not four miles exactly). From there, you could ride south or north on the Mt. Vernon Trail. It’s a very scenic path, although parts of it are narrow and crowded with bike commuters during morning/fall rush hour. The section in Old Town Alexandria is on calm, local streets. It’s actually very nice to ride through there during non-peak hours. A lot of history and sights to see there. (Many restaurants and bars too.)

If you ride north on the MVT, you could turn onto the George Mason Bridge/14th Street Bridge path and head over to East Potomac Park/Hains Point for a few loops. The best time to ride there is during the early spring when the cherry blossoms are in bloom, but it’s nice even in the fall. You might see some large tour buses on the low-speed road but in most off-peak hours, there aren’t too many cars on that road loop. Just a lot of other cyclists, runners and walkers.

You don’t have to ride on the W&OD all the way to Purcellville. Maybe take a shorter trip out in Northern Virginia, turn around, head back to FMRT, ride south on the MVT, turn around and ride north to the 14th St. Bridge and ride around Hains Point. You could also ride past some of the monuments on the National Mall, although there are a couple tricky intersections near the Jefferson Memorial. You can mix and match from these trails and roads to make up the desired number of miles while seeing many of the key historical and natural sights of the D.C. and Northern Virginia region.

[Certifried]

@dasgeh 32383 wrote:

I think he means he wants to bike from the DC area to the Bay. I have no first-hand experience biking East of DC, but from following biking stuff around here, it seems like that’s the worst place in the area to ride. PG County, in particular, seems SCARY for bikes. I hope I’m wrong and someone who’s biked over there can give you a safe route.

Greenbelt has a nice route that goes from College Park up to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor (on the Chesapeake Bay) which is, from what I hear, a very nice route. So if he’s intent on visiting “The Chesapeake Bay” and isn’t particular about which part of the bay that might be a good route to follow. If, however, he wishes to visit another part of the bay then it’s a different ballpark as you mention (PG county, etc).

Anyway, here’s Greenbelt’s College Park to Inner Harbor route:
https://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=9217+Baltimore+Avenue,+College+Park,+MD&daddr=39.02308,-76.90658+to:39.04753,-76.86639+to:39.18033,-76.73203+to:39.2224785,-76.6726104+to:W+Conway+St&hl=en&sll=39.056784,-76.8013&sspn=0.143696,0.265045&geocode=FQQxUwIdgiVq-ylJP0NNBcS3iTG9bY_VHrfVIA%3BFehxUwIdrH9q-yk_YTvQj8O3iTGoJw1KK5ErNA%3BFWrRUwIdqhxr-ylLTwKa4cK3iTFj-nT3zmzZNg%3BFSrYVQIdgilt-ymjGh-WKuK3iTEQ_xu58eLNxQ%3BFc58VgIdnhFu-ym5NMkOZR3IiTFiugA33hIwxQ%3BFY5tVwId8vNu-w&dirflg=b&mra=dpe&mrsp=2&sz=12&via=1,2,3,4&t=m&lci=bike&z=12

and he may have a ridewithgps or mapmyride route as well, hopefully he’ll see this and chime in. It’s a ~36 mile ride, so would be a bit longer from inside DC but the Metro options could shorten the ride either way and there are MARC trains if he runs in to an issue on the bike that would get him back to DC safely.

[PotomacCyclist]

The Inner Harbor is actually on the Patapsco River, not on Chesapeake Bay, although the bay is nearby.

[Terpfan]

@Nemisys 32339 wrote:

First off. Thank you so much for the tips! Its always good to get some feedback when riding somewhere new.

I had planned on bringing all of my own stuff (light,watch,flat-fix,multi-tool). Some of the places advertise speed plays, I would rather not have to take off my pedals, but I could if I have to.

My goal is to put in about 60-70, I was looking at riding to Chesapeake Bay and back. That looks to be the right amount of distance.

Is this possible? Are their sufficient bike lanes?

Do you suggest an alternate ride of similar distance?

Thanks for the help thus far!

It is doable, but I’m not necessarily sure I would classify it as bike-friendly (bikewashington.org has some of these routes). Essentially the routes take you through Prince George’s County and follow closely to Rt. 50, the main road to Annapolis/Chesapeake Bay Bridge (and onward all the way down the Eastern Shore to Ocean City). I have never tried this ride, but I have driven many of those roads and I’m not sure I would be too comfortable on a bike knowing the other cyclists.

Conversely, if you have the ability to get to somewhere by vehicle and then ride, well there are plenty of nice scenic type roads/trails along the Eastern Shore or even on this side down in Southern, MD that would let you see great scenery along safer routes. (I’m thinking some of the roads/trails in St. Mary’s County, over by Blackwater Wildlife Refuge, etc).

[creadinger]

If you want to see the Bay from DC, this is probably the best route… I’ve done it a few times and parts of it are very nice. However it does have areas of very poor road design with respect to cyclists. These are mostly around Bowie.
http://www.bikewashington.org/routes/greentobay/index.htm

It’s a decent ride, but definitely not the best in terms of scenery and pleasureableness. As other people mentioned the best bike routes in the area tend to be to the west past the outer suburbs, and usually the safest way to get there is via the W&OD trail toward Purcellville, VA or out to Poolsville, MD via River Rd.

[Greenbelt]

@Certifried 32430 wrote:

Greenbelt has a nice route that goes from College Park up to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor (on the Chesapeake Bay) which is, from what I hear, a very nice route. So if he’s intent on visiting “The Chesapeake Bay” and isn’t particular about which part of the bay that might be a good route to follow. If, however, he wishes to visit another part of the bay then it’s a different ballpark as you mention (PG county, etc).

Anyway, here’s Greenbelt’s College Park to Inner Harbor route:
https://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=9217+Baltimore+Avenue,+College+Park,+MD&daddr=39.02308,-76.90658+to:39.04753,-76.86639+to:39.18033,-76.73203+to:39.2224785,-76.6726104+to:W+Conway+St&hl=en&sll=39.056784,-76.8013&sspn=0.143696,0.265045&geocode=FQQxUwIdgiVq-ylJP0NNBcS3iTG9bY_VHrfVIA%3BFehxUwIdrH9q-yk_YTvQj8O3iTGoJw1KK5ErNA%3BFWrRUwIdqhxr-ylLTwKa4cK3iTFj-nT3zmzZNg%3BFSrYVQIdgilt-ymjGh-WKuK3iTEQ_xu58eLNxQ%3BFc58VgIdnhFu-ym5NMkOZR3IiTFiugA33hIwxQ%3BFY5tVwId8vNu-w&dirflg=b&mra=dpe&mrsp=2&sz=12&via=1,2,3,4&t=m&lci=bike&z=12

and he may have a ridewithgps or mapmyride route as well, hopefully he’ll see this and chime in. It’s a ~36 mile ride, so would be a bit longer from inside DC but the Metro options could shorten the ride either way and there are MARC trains if he runs in to an issue on the bike that would get him back to DC safely.

We’re doing the Baltimore ride this Sunday, leaving Proteus at 8am and heading to the Tour du Port festivities!

[Nemisys]

Hey Thanks for the great response! I’m a little shocked.

Let me be a little more specific about the ride. I’m primarily am looking for a training ride, but would like to get some scenery at the same time. Lets be honest, anything different than the desert I normally ride in will be awesome.

In Arizona, I use the canals as much as possible (they’re paved) and are dedicated to pedestrians. I try to avoid surface streets as much as possible an rarely ride non-bike-lane shoulders. I don’t want to become another statistic if you know what I mean.

Ok so I found a bike. Thanks Tim for the link to Revolution! I rented a Madone, and having only ridden my Scattante (ever), i’m pretty stoaked lol.

I’m picking it up in Crystal City, so I’m probably going to abandon the Chesapeake bay idea and head up into Virginia instead. I’m looking at the “Washington and Old Dominion Trail”, is this truly dedicated path? Completely Paved?

It looks like a good perimeter loop would be head up that from crystal city towards Leesburg and back down following the Potomac river. Is there a path along the river?? Maybe the “Chesapeake and Ohio Canal”?

The links to google maps is by far the most helpful, since I don’t know the area at all.

Thanks for the help so far. I wish we had this type of community in AZ.

[mstone]

@Nemisys 32637 wrote:

I’m picking it up in Crystal City, so I’m probably going to abandon the Chesapeake bay idea and head up into Virginia instead. I’m looking at the “Washington and Old Dominion Trail”, is this truly dedicated path? Completely Paved?

Yup. Can be crowded near the city, but go out far enough and the crowd thins out a lot and you get some nice hill country which should be quite a contrast from AZ.

[DismalScientist]

@Nemisys 32637 wrote:

It looks like a good perimeter loop would be head up that from crystal city towards Leesburg and back down following the Potomac river. Is there a path along the river?? Maybe the “Chesapeake and Ohio Canal”?

That would be the towpath along the canal. Definitely not paved, but flat. But you have a rental bike… Put some 32 mm tires on it and trash the hell out of it.:rolleyes:

[Author]

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