Legs

Photo credit to someone who actually ran the marathon.

This weekend was Columbus Day weekend as well as the running of the Hartford Marathon. It also was a weekend of beautiful weather. I'm sure the marathon runners loved that. My neighbor, Val, ran the half marathon. I think that's pretty impressive, as I have no idea how to run 13 miles, let alone 26. Some how that morning, Johanna convinced me that I should go running. I'm not sure how that happened. I hate running and I always have, but next thing I knew we were at Sports Authority buying running shoes and before long we were at the Reservoir. I've been the reservoir a million times, but I've never actually run around it. Now, I have. It wasn't so bad while I was doing it, but man I was unhappy the next morning.


Also, yesterday afternoon, as I had the day off, I went over to Case Mountain. I was having a good time and didn't get lost for once. On my way back I ran into these two kids who were partially lost and it was starting to get dark. I told them to go back the way they went, as it was the easiest return trip for them. I also told them to follow me, but realized I was going a lot faster. So, I kept on ahead and returned to my car to get my headlamp. When I got there, I ran into the father of one of the kids and told him that I was going to go retrieve them with my headlamp. I went back and found them. Things were going ok, until I was riding slowing down a drop and did a nasty endo. I temporarily got that I-bashed-my-knee-so-hard-I-feel-like-I'm-going-to-puke feeling, but I persevered and didn't want to look like a wuss. We made and it back just fine until the gate a very end, where I almost did the exact same thing and managed to tear my shorts but not crash. I'm uncertain as to how I tore my shorts. But, everything turned out ok. Also, I managed to grow another knee cap on top of my old one.

In the event of this much water, the race'll probably be canceled.

Also, on Saturday, Johanna and I rode The Eel. I think it's going to be a sweet race. Two laps shouldn't be a big deal and hopefully no one gets scared of 20 miles. I need to figure out how to make a map of it so people don't get lost while racing. Maybe I could spray paint arrows... Read more!

Sandpit Con't

You know, if you do a google image search of "sand pit of death", the first picture is of a cyclocross race.

On my way to work this morning I noticed that our feared sand pit behind the Armory was creeping back as of late. But lo! I saw a man with a broom this morning stem the tied of silicon danger. Praise be to those who work at the Armory.

----

Also, you may have noticed "THE EEL" on the right hand column. I've never thrown a race before, so please help me by racing in it. I think it's just going to be cash prizes, because sponsorship seems like too much work and I'm bad at begging. None the less, I think it'll promise to be awesome. We don't have races around here that leave the road very often, so this will bring variety. I'm going to work on a flyer today.

----

Oh, and gay marriage is now legal in Connecticut. :)

Read more!

Pure Autumnal Joy

Saturday, Oct. 4 was a day of special events for the writers on this blog. Not only did many of us lend a hand to the greatness of the Source-to-Sea cleanup of the Park/Connecticut confluence, but that evening we all kicked back and enjoyed our own celebration of the season: a fun, fall-filled festival of frothy frivolity. An event that became dubbed:

Beat Biketoberfest 2008!

Or Beat Bike-to-beer-fest! Or Beet Bike-tuber-fest, only neither of those vegetables were actually present.

Our concept of what Beat Biketoberfest should be, other than avoid trademark infringement on something else called "Biketoberfest (tm)" (which involves loud, annoying combustion engines), was an Oktoberfest-themed apartment bike crawl where we could enjoy each others' company as well a sampling of the tasty brews of the season. Since we all live in the Hartford/West Hartford corridor, it wasn't very difficult to plan a route, and there was only one part of the ride that had any type of distance to it at all. Each host was kind enough to supply the hardy revelers with a case of beer and some snacks along the way!

I'm not sure who has photos they'd like to post, but I know I only remembered to take 3 lame photos, and I saw various flashes going off all evening. So maybe we'll continue our 2-post tradition of events where one person describes it, and one person dumps the pics. I'm obviously here to do the former.

photo credit: WTIC

Just about everybody but Brendan got to the meeting point under the Founders Bridge near downtown Hartford quite a bit late. But this was actually a good thing because as the sun went down, we got to see the Bulkeley Bridge light to life! Last week, the bridge was lit with new-fangled colored LEDs in order to mark its 100th anniversary. We got to see it change from red to blue before we headed out on the tour. The weather was simply perfect as we climbed the stairs to start the party! The stops were as follows:

1) My place first, where the group got a chance to look at the city from a different angle whilst enjoying an assortment of beer I brought from exotic Upstate NY. We also got creative in the elevator when we had to return a utility cart back to the lobby. As we were unlocking our bikes from the front fence of my building, we had the unfortunate opportunity to hear the words "spike" and "testicles" in the same sentence. Thanks for that, Shoupy.

2) A quick ride through Bushnell Park got us to ChillWill's pad in Frog Hollow. It was very chill of course, and various swag was handed off to people as chillwill was just dumping his crap on us prior to his move. There were also festive tatoos that worked well to give most of us some rockin' street cred. I don't think anyone used them on their knuckles. There was also the first harvest of delicious candy corn.

3) A hop over the tracks and highway got us to Krash's apartment, where we had to actually go in the front door, due to the fact that his back porch had just been whitewashed. Probably by ol' Tom Sawyer himself. We kicked back with some Harpoons and gorged on what was either Cheez Itz or Nips. I think Itz.

4) The shortest ride of the night got us to Joel's, where he provided us not only with some Sam Oktoberfests and fun-sized Cheetos, but also luxurious bike parking in his historic carriage house. Luckily, Joel was also proactive at providing the party some toilet paper, courtesy of stop #2.

5, 6) Finally a ride! A real ride. The overall Beat Biketoberfest peloton split up into several groups, with some of them even knowing where El Prez lived. The Karma krew split off to pick up some more party supplies, and eventually we all arrived at El Presidente's manor in West Hartford. By the end of the this leg, you could really feel the chill of the fall night starting to settle in. The master of the house himself greeted us with a hot grill already cooking up some delicious chow. The Magic Hat was cold, and the various meat and veggie products were hot. The hit of the evening was the squash soup! Absolutely delicious. Karma biked in the final beer-stop of the night (finally, the beer biked to us! What a scrumptious turn of events!), where I finally got to enjoy my first bottle of Smuttynose Pumpkin Ale. Yum!

What a fantastic night! Thanks to all who were able to ride, drink beer, and enjoy the city. Special thanks to my fellow bloggers for opening up your homes. I'd also like to thank some form of a higher being for making bikes, beer, and fall. It was probably Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Edison who invented all three, so praise be to him. This was truly one of the most enjoyable nights I've had here in the 'Beat. Not only would I like to try to put this on the calendar again in 2009, but I think this has laid the groundwork for a casual series of bike pub crawls coming up in the future. Advance notices for them will appear on this blog.

Sure, go ahead and Read More.

El Prez's house was the end of the official Beat Biketoberfest, and as we basked in the glory of full gullets and good times, an overwhelming tiredness seemed to smack just about everyone in the face simultaneously. The friendly buzz of the beer, taste of soupy-goodness, and smiles on our faces made everyone realize how good that night's sleep would feel. Slowly, we all trickled out in spurts. Brendan & Johanna were first to sneak out. ChillWill's posse left next. The bulk of the group still remaining saddled up not long after. I wiped a nice, fresh layer of dew off my seat and as we hit the road to head home, it was absolutely striking to me how starkly empty the streets of West Hartford were. No cars to be seen, as about a half-dozen of us completely owned the road. The only sounds I could hear were the cranking of our own gears, the whoosh of that welcome autumn air, and our own laughter as we spread out across the lane.

Karma and Meg peeled off first, and the few remaining pedaled on and hit the Hartford city limits in no time at all. Joel was next to veer off to his place, and soon I was saying my good nights to Shoupy. All alone, with a big, stupid grin on my face, I rode on silently into the night. Into Fall.

Read more!

Bike Benefits in Bailout Bill?

So while some of us are tried to follow the political maneuvering related to the $700 billion bailout, or rescue package recently passed, many of us (myself included) were equally confused as to the many legislative implications of the bill. In researching the legislation in an attempt to educate myself I came across a little bit of pork patched into the bill that aroused some curiosity for my bike-commuting self.

While im neither a fan of the bill, nor am I of pork (literal or legislative), Sec. 211 of the bill (H.R. 1424) has interesting potential for individuals who regularly ride their bike to work.

Sec. 211 is an amendment to previous transportation fringe benefits found in Section 132(f) of the tax code. The bill allegedly attempts to spread the benefits received by bus and train commuters from Sec. 132(f)(these include supplementing payment for bus and train passes and for parking fees) onto bike commuters. Supposedly the individual who regularly uses their bike to get to and from work would be eligible for $20 in monthly compensation from their employees (if they participate) up to a total of $240 per year. This would include as the bill states,

"reasonable expenses incurred by the employee during such calendar year for the purchase of a bicycle and bicycle improvements, repair, and storage."

So we as bike commuters would be able to write off (or perhaps charge our employers for) tubes, tires, lube, chains, perhaps even portions of the cost of new bikes if we ride to work regularly. As far as my research shows, the expenses would be a tax write-off for participating companies although im not sure if it would be a direct financial benefit to employees, or simply a deduction from their pre-tax earnings. I'd be curious to see how you all read into it, particularly the lawyer types among you. While some arguments ive read have stated that this benefit only equates to $1 per day, or $0.50 each way, and as such is not much of an incentive to commute by bike. My argument, as someone who rides regardless, is that this is $20 in maintainance I might potentially not have to pay for.

While I have read numerous discussions regarding the application of this legislation, its intended effects, and the probable benefits to be had by commuters, im still left largely confused. The funny thing is this bill was added to the bailout to appeal to a Representative Earl Blumenauer from Oregon who voted against the bill its first time around. The hope was this addition would bring him on board to support the bill. While the bill passed Blumenauer failed to approve its second ride around!

If you want to read up a bit more check here, here, and here.

For you law junkies ive included the transcript of Sec. 211 after the break!!





SEC. 211. TRANSPORTATION FRINGE BENEFIT TO BICYCLE COMMUTERS.

(a) In General- Paragraph (1) of section 132(f) is amended by adding at the end the following:

`(D) Any qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement.'.

(b) Limitation on Exclusion- Paragraph (2) of section 132(f) is amended by striking `and' at the end of subparagraph (A), by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (B) and inserting `, and', and by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:

`(C) the applicable annual limitation in the case of any qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement.'.

(c) Definitions- Paragraph (5) of section 132(f) is amended by adding at the end the following:

`(F) DEFINITIONS RELATED TO BICYCLE COMMUTING REIMBURSEMENT-

`(i) QUALIFIED BICYCLE COMMUTING REIMBURSEMENT- The term `qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement' means, with respect to any calendar year, any employer reimbursement during the 15-month period beginning with the first day of such calendar year for reasonable expenses incurred by the employee during such calendar year for the purchase of a bicycle and bicycle improvements, repair, and storage, if such bicycle is regularly used for travel between the employee's residence and place of employment.

`(ii) APPLICABLE ANNUAL LIMITATION- The term `applicable annual limitation' means, with respect to any employee for any calendar year, the product of $20 multiplied by the number of qualified bicycle commuting months during such year.

`(iii) QUALIFIED BICYCLE COMMUTING MONTH- The term `qualified bicycle commuting month' means, with respect to any employee, any month during which such employee--

`(I) regularly uses the bicycle for a substantial portion of the travel between the employee's residence and place of employment, and

`(II) does not receive any benefit described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (1).'.

(d) Constructive Receipt of Benefit- Paragraph (4) of section 132(f) is amended by inserting `(other than a qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement)' after `qualified transportation fringe'.

(e) Effective Date- The amendments made by this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2008.

Read more!

Confluence V 2.0

We rode through the Park Rd. parade on the way to the river and saw this sweet bus!!

Brendan has already summed up our clean-up of the confluence of the Park and Connecticut Rivers this last Saturday so I won't add to that but I thought I'd post a few more pictures, because everyone loves pictures!!

Hit them up after the break!




Here is the culvert from whence the mighty Park River flows into the Connecticut. From here volunteers spread North and South along the river cleaning a stretch of about half a mile. Plenty of good bike parking spots here along the railing.


Up the hill everyone is loading up Joel's truck as we finish up.


Joel's truck filled to the brim with our finds. As you can see we managed to haul in quite a catch. If you look carefully you can see the red fiberglass canoe that Brendan alludes to in his blog.


My proudest find, too bad it was a XXXL. Im hoping someone nabbed it off the pile we left for DPW.


The crew picking up the pile.


Joel showing us his best trucker's face.


Oh glorious pile, anyone missing a bumper?


Afterwards some of us grabbed a late lunch at the Hook and Ladder. Not a bad joint, beer selection isn't great (sadly what is in the Beat), but the food was quite good. Brendan even scored one of their rare CBS-branded onion rings!

And finally...

...our beautiful Capitol on a beautiful day!

Thanks to everyone who came out and to those who did not, we shall see you next year.

Read more!

Confluence

The Connecticut could be worse.

I've been carrying on about the Source to Sea Cleanup for a long time now. Those of you who know me, know that I carry on about a great many things, but do not do them. This on the other hand actually took place.

I'm not actually drinking this.

We had 17 people show up at the Connecticut and Park's confluence. Some arrived by truck, some by car, some by bike, and some on foot. We were supposed to have some by boat, but they got injured or discouraged. We started at 10 and cleaned right on until 2:30 or so. I would say it was an unmitigated success. We cleaned the entire area we set out to do, unearthing a ton of trash. Maybe slightly more than a ton? I don't know, I'm not a scale. 

Some trash is dangerous!

We found dangerous a hunting knife, syringes, a canoe, a bumper, and 40 million pieces of styrofoam. 

Isamu Noguchi rules!

Andy Hart gets photo credits on the second two river pictures.

Read more!

"Our Country is Full of Crazy People"

I might be crazy, but I have been using my powers of empathy recently to understand why, exactly, without fail, I see people cycling on the left side of the road, going against traffic. Haven't they the privilege to spend valuable time surfing the web and stumbling upon this essay? Haven't they seen the dozens of bloody wrong-way bicycle accidents that happen every day in Hartford? Okay, maybe there aren't dozens in Hartford, but here's one in Norwich.

Ken Kifer clearly isn't crazy (amazing!), and he thoroughly discusses why cycling on the left side of the road is much more dangerous than cycling on the right side of the road, although I wonder where he got his charts from (No citation or explanation Ken!). If you don't want to link to the page, here's his summary of the dangers:

"when cycling on the wrong side, the chances of not being seen by motorists who are turning or pulling out increases, the number of passing vehicles increases, the time needed to avoid an on-coming vehicle decreases, the chance of finding a safe place to pull off the road decreases, the speed of impact increases, the braking distance decreases, and the liability lies with the cyclist."

As with our chances of electing somebody sane for president, the problem, as my crazy friend Joe Barber puts it, is that "Unfortunately Joel, our country is full of crazy people".

My understanding increased dramatically in one conversation with a crazy young man who used to be in my care at a 24-hour supervision youth facility. I ran into him recently, five years after our respective stints in "the joint".

I was excited to hear him say that he had been bicycling everywhere to get around, "on account of not being able to drive a car." I excitedly told him about critical mass, thinking he would love the feel of solidarity with other crazy cyclists...

I was mildly disappointed with his blank look, thinking perhaps I hadn't explained it well enough.

"No, no, Joel, I get it," he replied slowly. "I just could never do that because I ride on the other side of the road."

I reacted dramatically: "On the LEFT side?! Why do you do that?! That's super-dangerous man!" Obvious unspoken subtext: "As a cyclist on the right side of the road, you are entitled to all the rights and responsibilities of a motorist! Isn't that glorious!"

He replied again with his quiet, deliberate manner of speaking: "Well, yeah, but you know, I have a small problem with people sneaking up behind me. I get totally freaked out."

Completely understandable. What do you tell somebody who has this problem and chooses to bicycle anyway?

Don't feel bad, my man, even powerful British politicians, obviously sane, love breaking laws on their bike and getting caught on camera! Read more!

Bike Racks on Metro-North!

OK, so technically, this photo isn't such a good illustration for this post, because the post has to do with taking full-sized bikes on Metro-North during peak hours, while this is, of course, my beloved Xootr Swift Folder, which is allowed at all times (because it folds - hence the name), but you know what? The post also isn't about Hartford, because the Beat is still under the cruel tyranny of Amtrak rail service, so back up off me, OK? It's a picture of a bike at a Metro-North station, and that's good enough.

Clearly, my frequent exhortations to the powers that be, in which I sing the praises of multi-modal commuting and the need for Metro-North to become more bicycle friendly, have swayed M. Jodi Rell and Metro-North's Grand High Vice-Chancellor (whoever that may be): They're actually going to put some bike racks on some trains on the New Haven Line. As you may know, bicycles are currently not allowed on peak trains (on the theory (I suppose) that they don't even let bike commuters live in Darien anyway), forcing commuters to drive to the stations and park there, or (God forbid) take the bus to the train station (and bus riding is another activity forbidden by Darien and Westport municipal ordinances for being too declasse). The new plan is to put bike racks on some peak trains as a pilot program, without removing seats. I can't find any specific info on how they plan to do this, aside from one story saying they might put make bikes share space with the handicapped seating area (which doesn't seem so bad until you have to ride your bike home from Harlem to Bridgeport because a guy in a wheelchair got onto the last Connecticut-bound train at 125th Street). I don't understand why they can't use some of the bar cars for this purpose (except that I do understand because all those alcoholics will go absolutely crazy if some nerdy bike commuters are the reason they can't numb the pain of their suburban ennui with anything stronger than a tallboy of Budweiser), but whatever, a pilot program is better than no program. So, thanks, Metro-North, for taking a good first step.

Now I'm going to start ranting on this blog about the perennial crappiness of schools in Connecticut's cities and see how long it takes M. Jodi and the state legislature to abolish town control of education and move to countywide school boards. Expect good news on that front within months. Read more!

Carl's Bike

This isn't actually Carl's bike. But this is what it looks like.

I work with a guy named Carl.

He's a great guy. I think he's in his early 70s. He is past the normal retirement age, but he doesn't want to retire. And I know our company doesn't want him to retire. As another coworker once told me, "we're here because of Carl." He's a senior scientist, and is, to put it succinctly, a genius. He never wanted fame, or fortune, or any type of crazy stock-riddled compensation. No. Carl likes to do what he does.

He's one of the most gentle people I've ever known. All he wants to do is tinker in his corner in the lab, where he comes up with lots of brilliant new ideas and solutions to a lot of tough problems at my engineering company. When they force him to take vacation, I think he just likes to work on his bikes in his garage in East Hartford. Oh yeah, Carl is a cyclist.

We have our office in East Hartford so Carl can bike to work from his home on Forbes St. Carl has told me how he finds bikes on the side of the road and fixes them up. You see, Carl was one of the chief inspirations when I decided to buy a bike to start commuting to work in the first place. He bikes to work just about every day. Heat or rain. Mud or snow. Carl bikes in on his trusty 1960s era Raleigh 3-speed with a Brooks saddle. When I got my bike he came out to the warehouse which was the only place we could store things like bikes in our old building and gave it a real look-over. We talked about bikes and accessories for the better part of an hour. I told him I was committed to bike in year-round too. I like to think we bonded over that. Comments soon came at me from other coworkers: "You rode in today? Who do you think you are...Carl?" "But it's snowing out! You aren't becoming another Carl, are you??" Before I started, it was just kooky ol' Carl riding his bike in like some sort of eccentric. When I started and gas prices went up...well, maybe Carl wasn't so kooky after all.

Thursday, Carl's bike was stolen.



It was stolen right from in front of my office building. We have 2 buildings, a couple blocks away from each other in the Prestige Park industrial park in East Hartford. When Carl has to go between them, he usually rides over. My building has a set of stairs at the entrance, so there's no easy way to get a bike inside, and since it's set back from the road a bit, it's a corporate park and he's not there very often, Carl usually just sets his Raleigh 3-speed on its kickstand out front by the bushes and takes it back to his building when he's goes back. Thursday around 5 pm, I was at a workstation in my lab and Carl came up holding his vintage helmet. He asked me where my bike was. I told him I keep it in my office. Then he told me his was gone. They left his helmet that had been hanging on the handlebars on the ground.

If you've never been heartbroken before, the look on Carl's face would've fixed that. Whatever anger you have for any geopolitical situation you have wouldn't match the personal anger that hit me at that point. I couldn't believe it. I immediately in my anger ran outside looking for anything in my field of view that resembled a bike, or anyone who might still be riding it in the neighborhood. Of course that was futile. I checked the bushes. I checked the dumpster. I even ran over to the side street to look. We determined from talking to people entering and leaving the building that the theft occurred between 3 and 4 pm. I guess some school kids cross through the tech park, but who would steal an older gentleman's bike?

I don't often wish other people ill-will no matter what my disagreement with them. But whatever lowlife stole Carl's bike in East Hartford on Thursday afternoon: I hope you get head cancer and die.

This story has a happy ending.

On my way home Thursday, I took many detours. Scouring the neighborhood. Looking for any bikes. I wasn't alone. My coworker Mike took his motorcycle and did the same thing. Miraculously, he happened by a service station on Burnside Ave. and saw a bike abandoned on the side. It was Carl's Raleigh 3-speed with the Brooks saddle. Being on a motorcycle, he couldn't take it himself. He called back to the office and told our lab-guy Dave the situation. Dave gave Carl a ride over. Carl somehow got his bike back.
Read more!

Bike Everywhere

I've been biking everywhere lately, just as the CCBA is telling us to. I've been doing all my riding on my Raleigh Grand Sport,
and I've been in love with the Bontrager HardCase Racelite tires that I recently put on. I just don't get flats anymore.

I rode down through the floodplain in Wethersfield and Rocky Hill on Wednesday, entering on the Goff Brook Road off of Middletown Ave and exiting at the Rocky Hill Boat Ramp/Ferry terminal. This floodplain, a lot of it owned by a local turf farm, is gorgeous. There was some good birding down there, but mostly I was mostly scouting for places to park my new home: my pick up truck with a slide-in camper. If you live within 10 miles of Hartford and you are interested in hosting me on your property, contact me by email by clicking on my profile. I'll pay "rent".

On Thursday, I made my first ride to New Britain, which is actually a pleasant, easy ride as long as you avoid the Berlin Turnpike. I rode to Chesley Park, where the Connecticut Ultimate Club is holding fall league games under the lights. The ride back at 9:30 pm was nicer than the ride during rush hour.

What's stopping you from biking everywhere? If it's within ten miles, most non-health-related excuses are weak. Any money spent on bike gear like lights, tires, reflectors, tools, warm clothes, etc, is money well spent. Bicycling is the most efficient form of transportation known to man. It is much better than piling money into your car, which is the worst investment you can make.

Biking everywhere doesn't make you a saint. Even if it did, I wouldn't be one. I drive to Maine once a month. Sometimes in the winter I break down and hop in my truck to drive a mile and half to work. I don't beat myself up about it either.

One thing I like about biking everywhere is that I can scarf junk food with abandon and chalk it up to "fuel costs". Have I mentioned this before?

There's no more to read. Read more!

Shared Parking/Bike Lanes

I would totally ride this drunk.

A co-worker and fellow cyclist, Jennifer, brought something to my attention today. She is an Asylum Hill resident and frequent user of Asylum Ave. As some of you may know, Asylum Ave has grown some new lines. Instead of being a four lane road with overheard arrows and x's to cause motorists to get confused on crash, they've made it a two lane road with a center turn lane to confuse motorists and make them crash. They're also added shared bike/parking/death lanes on the side. Some drivers (whom I'm pretty sure are all from West Hartford) have been outraged and the City is considering scrapping the new lanes going back to how it was. Jennifer thought I might be interested in fighting that decision because the street now includes a bike lane.

It's an interesting situation for the small segment of the population that thinks about this. We all (well, a number of us) don't like these shared lanes. They're far from the ideal and create a number of problems. So, the question is: "Would we rather have no bike lanes or bad bike lanes?" Personally, I vote no bike lanes over bad bike lanes. But what do others think?

As an aside, I also like that Asylum Ave has become the most dangerous road around. There was the guy inexplicably tried to run me off the road last month and then the nine car pile up the next week. It finally lives up to its name as a crazy road for crazy people.

###

Also, remember that we're cleaning the river this weekend. A guy emailed me and he's bringing a canoe. I love canoes! Oct 4 11am - 2pm (or 10am if you're super gung ho) @ the confluence of the Park and Connecticut Rivers. Wear pants!

Read more!

From the Times

The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/28/nyregion/connecticut/28bikect.html?ref=connecticut

September 28, 2008
Recreation
Road Bumps for an 84-Mile Canal Trail
By GREGORY B. HLADKY

SIMSBURY

MARK Lander, a bicycling enthusiast, calls this section of the Farmington Canal Heritage Greenway “my favorite ride in Connecticut,” and he hopes someday to be able to bicycle all 84 miles of the proposed recreational trail.

“I can’t wait ’til they get more of this done,” the Old Lyme resident said earlier this month as he and his son took a break from bicycling.

But at age 66, Mr. Lander isn’t sure he’ll still be pedaling by the time the entire stretch of the New Haven-to-Northampton, Mass., path is finally finished. “I suspect it’s going to take a while,” he said.

It has been 17 years since federal financing was allocated for the ambitious recreational trail, and key elements of the project have hit some snags:

In Plainville, activists are struggling to work out a deal with a still-active railway to use a portion of the line’s right of way. A stopgap measure of an on-road route to link completed sections of the trail in Farmington to the north and Southington to the south is under consideration.

In New Haven, the federal government has filled in a portion of an old rail tunnel that could have taken the bike trail under the city’s downtown. For security reasons, the F.B.I. didn’t like the idea of a tunnel running under its New Haven headquarters. A study is under way to plan an aboveground detour.

In East Granby, a long-awaited project to rehabilitate a 300-foot railway trestle to carry the trail over the Salmon Brook just got under way and won’t be completed until 2009. The state-designed work is expected to cost about $800,000 — a figure supporters of the bike path say is unnecessarily high. State officials insist the bridge must have a new concrete deck to carry emergency vehicles.

The Farmington Canal project in Connecticut has cost about $28.5 million since federal funds became available in 1991, state officials say. In this state, federal funds cover 80 percent of the cost and local communities put up the rest. In Massachusetts, the state finances the 20 percent local share.

“It’s been enormously successful,” said R. Bruce Donald, president of the Farmington Valley Trails Council.

He said a computerized laser counter on the trail in Simsbury logged 114,000 individual visits by walkers and bikers between November 2006 and November 2007.

“This year, the number is looking more like 190,000,” Mr. Donald said. He believes the big increase is due in part to more people using the trail to commute to work, especially since the price of gasoline has skyrocketed. “This isn’t just recreation — it’s alternative transportation,” he said.

The path follows roughly the same trail as the Farmington Canal, which opened in 1835. Boats carrying agricultural and industrial goods were able to travel with ease from New Haven all the way to the Connecticut River in Northampton.

Dreamers originally envisioned extending the canal all the way to the Canadian border. But flood damage and opposition from farmers pushed maintenance costs so high that expenses far outpaced toll revenue.

The canal was effectively closed down by 1843, just as railroads were beginning to take over as the prime method of transportation. The Farmington Canal had a much longer second life as a ready-made railroad route, one that remained in use until the 1980s.

The effort to give the Farmington Canal a third incarnation as a multi-use trail has had its greatest success in northern Connecticut.

Once the bridge over the Salmon Brook is completed, there will be a continuous 21.5-mile path from Farmington north to Massachusetts.

“What’s neat about all this is that it’s one of the first times I know of where you can use a multi-use trail like this for commuting, shopping, as well as just recreation,” said Mr. Donald.

The southern section of the Greenway, from Plainville to New Haven, will eventually cover 30.2 miles and is the primary focus of the Farmington Canal Rail-to-Trail Association.

Norman A. Thetford, the group’s executive director, said just 13.1 miles of the trail have been completed in Southington, Cheshire, Hamden and New Haven. He said many members of the group ask him when they will be able to use the trail to commute to New Haven.

Robert B. Rakowski, a state transportation supervising engineer, estimated it would take an additional $8 million to $9 million over five years to finish the New Haven pathway. “It’s one of the most difficult sections,” he said. “It’s going to have a lot of different agencies involved.”

---

I can't understand why the FBI wouldn't want a tunnel under them.

Read more!

World in Crisis: Electoral Edition

Just below this post, Brendan speculates (more cogently than he gives himself credit for) on how the impending financial apocalypse will trickle down to the two-wheeled set. Naturally, everything that happens will depend, at least to a certain degree, on whom we elect as our next president. The winner of the election has been a matter of considerable speculation of late, and I am glad to say the need for conjecture is over. Just remember the old slogan, "As goes the sale of candidate-specific coffee cups at the 7-11 on Prospect and Park, so goes the nation," then feast your eyes on the following irrefutable photographic proof of Barack Obama's coming victory:


Read more!

The World in Crisis

Yeah, it's a Homestar Runner picture. Don't make fun of me.

I don't like Maureen Dowd very much, but I seem to read her columns without fail. Today she was writing about some problem with Bush being emasculated and having to put the presidential seal on his mountain bike. Throughout the column there's some more stuff about him riding his bike as some kind of escapism. I'm not sure if she's talking about the bike stuff because bikes exist in the popular consciousness as puerile and she's calling Bush a child with no sense of leadership because he rides a bike; she probably is and she sucks. Anyway, I'm digressing. I don't like Bush either, but I do like mountain biking. So, I'm kind of torn, because she's using the mountain bike to make fun of him that pisses me off. I'm also pissed because Bush gives mountain biking a bad name. Couldn't he ride a recumbent and continue to give that a bad name? Ok, I'm digressing again

The point of this poorly conceived post was what does the international financial crisis have to do with bicycles? There must be some effects. I heard a piece on NPR the other day about Service Master (they own Terminex, among other things) and how they're being affected. They're having problems because the credit markets that allow them to get loans as they wait for customers' checks to clean are suddenly tight and its complicating their operating ledger.

So, are times getting more difficult for messengers because crumbling financial giants have no more documents to send around town? Are bike paths becoming more crowded during work hours because newly unemployed financial workers are finally getting around to riding those $7000 Pinarellos they bought on a whim? Is bike theft on the rise because of the high cost of scrap metal? (I think that one is actually true.) What do you think?

Argh!

Read more!

Ah, Fall

(It's hard to follow a sobering pair of posts like those below with something lighthearted, but, well, here I go anyway.)

I rode to Middletown last night at 9:30 on one of my periodic car-retrieval missions, and for the first time, it felt unmistakably like autumn: Crisp, cool air; that particular sound that seems at first to be the slight movement and breathing of one person very closeby, but turns out to be many many dry leaves farther away; and the actual need for long sleeves and gloves. It was marvelous - much better than today's wet iteration of the season, which I also rode in, although not so happily.

The highlight came in Wethersfield, when I came upon some crazy person with her car stopped perpendicular to traffic, totally blocking the lane, with the engine running and bright headlights shining into an empty field. "What is this moron doing?" I thought to myself. Then I looked where her headlights were shining and saw a deer, frozen like, well, a deer in headlights. There were three of them there, not more than twenty feet from me, just chillaxing and being wild. Even after all the deer I have seen in my life (which are numerous), it is still neat to see them up close.

After a few minutes, I headed on down the road and all three deer started to gallop after me (perhaps mesmerized by my red blinky light or the goofy awesomeness of the Xootr). They followed me for about a block, which was just long enough for me to start entertaining notions of leading a crazy deer stampede all the way to Middletown (or all the way to Washington, to demand a redress of deer grievances from the government), then veered off into some wooded area. Here's a picture I took of the deer in headlights, which, while blurry, is worth clicking on to get a larger view:

Read more!

Bad news

Bicyclist Struck In West Hartford
By CHRISTINE DEMPSEY | Courant Staff Writer
9:49 AM EDT, September 26, 2008

WEST HARTFORD - A bicyclist and vehicle collided at Boulevard and Whiting Lane this morning. The accident was reported shortly after 8 a.m., police said.

The extent of the injuries of the male bicyclist -- an adult -- was not clear. According to a report from the scene, the bicyclist was conscious but dazed.

Police were continuing their investigation.

---

Is this anyone we know?

Read more!

Bicyclist Down

(Disclaimer: This is not a photo from the accident, nor is it from West Hartford)

The Courant reported this morning that a bicyclist was struck by a car along Boulevard in West Hartford and although in a "dazed" state was otherwise not seriously injured. These types of incidents are always disconcerting, however, the fact that the accident took place two blocks from my house and along my daily commuter route makes it all the more unsettling. I know we cannot take more from the incident until more details come out but as I travel this route daily and as it is a major thoroughfare for bike commuters I can personally attest as to the need for 'real' bike lanes on this central artery connecting West Hartford and the Beat. Cars move far too quickly along this road and while there is a nice wide shoulder and decent road quality throughout the route the fact that parked cars and bikers share the same portion of this infrastructure it leads to a dangerous tendency for bikers to move between the road and the shoulder according to whether parked cars are in their way. I know this is one of the biggest taboos of bike commuting and a very dangerous practice, however, the road is too busy with auto traffic in both directions to take the lane all the time. This increases the propensity for the rider to constantly move from the road to the shoulder to allow drivers to move past at their rapid pace in order to decrease the likelihood of pissing them off and inciting an altercation. I have found myself many times frantically looking over my shoulder to check the lane while coming up upon a car parked in the parking shoulder... oh I mean bike lane... in order that I might take the lane without getting run over or hitting the parked car. This makes for a dangerous situation and an unstable bicycling experience. I have been fortunate thus far not to have been hit, to run into a parked car, or to simply dump it as I was glancing over my shoulder, but it seems someone this morning was not. Lets just hope they are ok and that the driver was not on their cell phone. Read more!

I knew higher gas prices were good for something!

Every blog post deserves a photo, but sometimes it's hard to find something appropriate (and a picture of a Metro-North train or of the governor would have been too predictable). So here's a picture I took one time of a yellow car called "Fury I," which is surely sort of fitting for a post about mass transit, right?

Governor M. Jodi Rell (or "M.," as her friends call her), announced the addition of more Metro-North trains in Connecticut yesterday, effective October 1. As a frequent Metro-North patron, I was happy to hear this, especially the following (from the Ridgefield Press): According to M., ridership on the New Haven line through August is up 5% compared to last year and intrastate ridership (i.e., trips that begin and end, like all of mine, in the Nutmeg State) is up 16% for the same period!

Could it be that car-loving Connecticut is finally getting wise to the glories of mass transit? (Maybe.) Is there an ever-growing army of folding-bike-toting, multi-modal commuters plying the railways? (Almost certainly not, but when there is, I will lead that army into battle.) This might just be what they call a teaching moment, and smart manufacturers of bicycles would be well advised to devise clever advertising and promotions that sell suburbanites on the glories of functional (rather than strictly recreational) two-wheeled travel (folding bike companies, I'm especially looking at you. Xootr, as we know, is staffed by clever geniuses who understand the real deal, but Dahon? Hello? This is the moment for you to hit the big time). Read more!

How Difficult Would It Be . . .

. . . to hijack a truck? Not that I would ever do such a thing, but, you know, sometimes I get tempted:



(Is this post bike-related? No, it is not.) Read more!

Your bike picture of the day

Nothing so exciting, really. Just a bike route sign in West Haven because we hadn't had a bike picture of the day in a while. Read more!

To Middletown!

The sun sets behind the Arrigoni Bridge as we pedal toward Middletown.

On Friday, it was that same old story: Car in Middletown, self in Hartford, so I put the word out to the extended BBB family that I would be making the pilgrimage by bike at quitting time and sought riding companions (promising to drive people and their bikes back in my capacious Corolla). Considering the splendid early autumn weather (and my not insignificant interpersonal skills), you would think a great internet clamor would have arisen over who would claim the limited spaces in my car. But in fact, only Bianca stepped up.

Just as well, really - I wasn't sure exactly how I was going to fit two full-sized bikes and two people (and me and my Xootr) in the whip. In any event, it was an absolutely marvelous, leisurely ride. We took the East Hartford-Glastonbury-Portland route, and we took pictures. You can see them after the jump.



So long, Hartford!


Hello, East Hartford, you mighty industrial powerhouse on the banks of the Connecticut River!


Because I take bicycling seriously, but not too seriously, I dressed in business casual attire (it was Friday, after all).


Bianca, in contrast, showed a complete lack of respect for the austere and sober art of velocipede piloting.


In Glastonbury, we got on Route 17. I had forgotten that this road has an elevated, fast-highway-type section. It was a little alarming to be there on bikes, but kinda nice.


Luckily, Route 17 soon narrowed to a smaller (and actually more dangerous) two-lane road.


Had we not been racing (and raging) against the dying of the light, we might have stopped at one of the many enticing farm stands lining Route 17.


Instead, we stopped at a pumpkin patch, which featured a real-life farmer driving a real-life tractor, hearkening back to our state's agrarian roots.


This sign in Portland encapsulates what we all know so well: Old Maids = Bulky Waste.




Sunsets make for pretty scenery.


In Portland, the corn was as high as an elephant's eye.


Finally, with darkness falling, we reached the good old Arrigoni Bridge, which took us from Portland to Middletown.


Irrefutable photographic evidence that we crossed the river at 6:57 p.m.


Nous sommes arrivee!
Read more!