Suggested Rides

[CCrew]

WMRT Trail, 23 miles of pavement, can be run as a loop with the C&O so it’s not just an out and back. Crossovers at various points so you can trim your ride distance to suit. Very quiet and mostly tree covered. High point is Hancock which is right in the middle of the trail. ( http://www.railstotrails.org/news/recurringfeatures/trailmonth/archives/0209.html )

GAP trail, starts in Cumberland and runs to Pittsburgh. 22 mile uphill out of Cumberland, which can be mitigated by picking it up in Frostburg or taking the steam train on weekends (they have rail cars for bikes). Highlight on the south end is the Big Savage Tunnel (mile long) and the Eastern Continental Divide. ( http://www.atatrail.org/ ). Very good, well groomed crushed limestone for most of the trail. We prefer the Confluence/Ohiopyle area for it’s scenery. It ties to the C&O in Cumberland so you can actually ride from just south of Pittsburgh all the way to Georgetown and never touch a street.

Greenbrier River Trail ( http://wordpress.greenbrierrivertrail.com/ ) Actually more scenic than even the nicer portions of the GAP, but the nicest parts of it are only the 35 miles out of Cass. After that it gets a little into the dogpatch areas of WV, and some of the south end is heavily chewed up by horses. Nice scenic railroad out of Cass.

This one’s next on my “bucket list” give me two weeks, shooting for this one next. http://www.visittiogapa.com/railtrail.html

http://www.railstotrails.org/news/recurringFeatures/trailMonth/archives/0907.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjTCy4w7vr4

If you want more info on any of them (and more) feel free to ask. It’s the type of cycling we do most as far as recreational and have done most in the area multiple times.

[CCrew]

Couple of cute shots from the ride yesterday. The horse is actually made from scrap bicycles.

[CCrew]

Forgot a good one for day tripping. This is one the kids will think is really cool also.

Breezewood PA – Pike to Bike Trail

It’s an abandoned 9 mile section of the PA turnpike. Neatest part of it is that it has two tunnels one of which is about 1 1/4 miles long. We’ve been in it in July and there was ice in the center. The movie “The Road” was primarily shot here. If you’re into urban exploring it’s just cool, since it has an almost apocalyptic sense to it. I don’t recommend a road bike as some of the pavement has started to break up, but a MTB is somewhat overkill. Cross bike or Hybrid would be perfect. Definitely an out of the ordinary bike trail.

http://www.thirdwave-websites.com/bike/PA-turnpike-bike-trail.cfm
http://www.abandonedturnpike.com/

[CCrew]

One you can miss…. Keep in mind these opinions on what I’m posting are subjective, your mileage may vary.

Allegheny Highlands Trail (Not to be confused with the Great Allegheny Passage!)

Did this trail two years ago, and in a nutshell would never go back. Barely maintained, grass almost as high as the bike. Imagine a scenic trail through the back yards of many of the trailer parks in WV and you’ll be right at home here. By far the most unimpressive rail-trail I’ve ever been on. Between the chasing dogs, bad trail conditions, and the almost total lack of maintenance definitely a “must miss” on my list.

http://www.traillink.com/trail/allegheny-highlands-trail-of-wv.aspx

http://www.highlandstrail.org/

[eminva]

Thanks very much; these are great! I think we need a month of Sundays, though. Thanks again.

Liz

[Mendoza99]

Has anyone done the airforce cycling amateur ride? Crystal cup I believe is the name. What is the group like? Can you ride fast like in a true time trial?

Thinking of doing this ride any advice would be appreciated.

Rodrigo

[consularrider]

The Crystal Cup is an amateur and pro criterim on Sunday afternoon, the Crystal Ride is an open ride on Sunday morning, both on June 10 this year. This will be my fourth year riding the Crystal Ride. The Crystal Ride has a group start so there is a lot of jockeying to be at the front and there will be a couple thousand riders. The first couple miles are slower, but after that you can really move, but it is not like a time trial. In the past the gold medal was for those completing 8 laps (averaging at least 17.75 mph for 62.14 miles over the 3.5 hours), the website this year indicates medals for 2, 4, and 6 laps, so it looks you don’t have to get 100 km in to get the gold. If the course remains 12.5 km, six laps is 75 km (46.6 miles), and your average speed only has to be 13.3 mph. This would also give riders a chance to get water without having to grab the bottles while riding past through the area. Just remember that the ride is open to anyone who wants to sign up so you are dealing with both novice riders on mountain bikes and hybrids and with fast pacelines. The route is fairly wide except that in 2011 there were a couple of places where there were sharp right turns on the south side of the Pentagon. I haven’t seen this year’s course map.

Here’ my 2011 GPS log.

[Tim Kelley]

Here’s my Strava segment from last year: http://app.strava.com/activities/1464249 I was in the front group from the start and ended up doing a 9th lap as a cool down.

It definitely has all skill/fitness levels there, including a guy on a penny farthing.

[Rootchopper]

Liz

Have you tried the Indian Head trail in Indian Head MD? I think it’s about 32 miles out and back. Paved the entire way. Not much in the way of services.

[eminva]

@Rootchopper 17844 wrote:

Liz

Have you tried the Indian Head trail in Indian Head MD? I think it’s about 32 miles out and back. Paved the entire way. Not much in the way of services.

Yes, we did! I posted a summary on a separate thread. We have to try more of these suggestions as the weather is getting nicer now.

Wow, that Crystal Ride sounds crazy! And frightening. To me, riding with cyclists of such varied speed and skill would be more frightening that riding in rush hour auto traffic. Will check the calendar and come down to watch, if possible.

Liz

[consularrider]

More on the Crystal Ride, I got an email from the event organizers last night and the pertinent part is:

“…On Sunday, June 10th, in partnership with the Crystal City Business improvement District (BID) cycling enthusiasts of all abilities will be able to ride in the Air Force Cycling Classic’s Crystal Ride. Cyclists can enjoy the car-free 15km course for up to 3 ½ hours. The course takes riders past the Air Force Memorial, the Pentagon and through Crystal City. Following this non-competitive ride, professionals will again entertain the region for a second day. Races move to Crystal City for the 6th year, showcasing the vibrant shops and restaurants of Crystal City. Saturday and Sunday’s races will again be part of the prestigious USA Cycling’s National Criterium Calendar.

Participants in the Air Force Cycling Classic Crystal Ride will again be able to earn a gold medal by completing six laps in less than 3 ½ hours. This year’s course has been lengthened over previous editions. A silver medal is earned by riding four laps, and a bronze for two laps in that timeframe. Registration for the Crystal Ride is now open through the events website: http://www.AirForceCyclingClassic.com…”

They also have a course map now.

Note that the course length has increased from 12.5 to 15 km, so riders wanting a bronze (30 vs 25 km) or silver (60 vs 50 km) medal will have to ride a little further while gold medal riders will ride slightly less (90 vs 100 km).

[vvill]

Nice, I recently registered for this year’s Crystal Ride… maybe I’ll have a chance at a gold! It’s just a bit over 16mph average speed (although yes I would like to stop to eat/drink). It’ll be my second big organized ride (I did the Backroads Century last year). I also signed up for the CASA River ride as that sounded interesting.

[Author]

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