Things Worth Saving (Monday, Wednesday and beyond)

1) SAVE YOURSELF

Triple-digit heat and news feeds full of horrible things made the last couple of days lousy ones to spend indoors or out. It also would have made it easy to miss hearing about a Milford, CT Driver's depraved vehicular assault on a cyclist. This past week, 20-year-old Louis A. Melfi III, having reportedly verbally threatened and knocked down a bicyclist with his car, then reversing toward the man again, crushing his bicycle, was arrested and slapped on the wrist with a paltry $500 bail and evading responsibility and reckless driving charges.

Think about that.

From a minimal blurb about this case, I'm hearing an assault using deadly force, multiple counts of threatening by TWO people including a death threat, violation of the three-foot passing law and destruction of property. From the charges and the paltry fire-sale bail, it sounds more like a lousy driver who pulled a stupid and took off. That sounds astoundingly and irresponsibly inadequate. Would someone who deliberately fired a gun at someone's head TWICE but merely grazed their ear be let off so easily? Would the person who shouted, "FIRE!" to the shooter face no repercussions whatsoever? If so, remind me to stay the hell out of Milford. I feel safer in Hartford. It sounds like the Milford Police consider a person to be less than a person when they climb on a bicycle. Shameful. If this angers you, one of the things you can do is support Bike Walk Connecticut's efforts to protect vulnerable users. Advocacy is the more positive and attainable goal than, say, crushing Mr. Melfi's car with a monster truck (though, in theory, if you did so without being reckless or fleeing the scene, Milford Police might not charge you at all!)

2) SAVE THE FERRIES


The historic Rocky Hill-Glastonbury Ferry, hobbled by reduced hours of operation, is being dangled over the chopping block by Governor Malloy along with the Chester-Hadlyme ferry. The ferry is the nicest way I know for a bicyclist to get across the Connecticut River, and it connects two especially nice areas to ride to boot. The threatened Aug. 25 closing of the ferries would be a sad day, indeed. If you'd like to get involved and informed, there will be a Save The Ferry Roundtable this very Monday, July 25th at 7 PM at the Welles Turner Memorial Library, 2407 Main Street, Glastonbury, CT.

3) SAVE CEDAR MOUNTAIN

As mentioned previously in this space, Cedar Mountain in Newington is threatened by the Toll Brothers' desire to replace natural settings with shoddily-built McMansions and condos. Your next opportunity to speak your mind about this affront is this coming Wednesday, July 27. The turnout at last week's Conservation Committee meeting was weak, so please take some time this Wednesday evening to be seen (I seem to recall organizers suggesting that supporters wear green) and heard. Newington Town Hall is at 131 Cedar Street, Newington, CT. Meeting is called to order at 7 PM. Read more!

Route 3 bike / ped crossing momentum?

They' re holding another public info session on the Rt. 3 bridge on Aug 10th (Wed) at the Glastonbury Riverfront Community Center.  300 Welles St.    7pm.  If you can't make it you can email Tim Fields (Timothy.Fields@ct.gov).  Spread the word!

This seems to be getting a good bit of DOT attention.  The Glastonbury Bike Walk Committee is one of the reason this didn't simply slip by without consideration. 

I'll be there with bells on.

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Please be careful

It would seem we've reached the part of summer when everyone has lost their minds, because the accidents in the Courant keep getting more nuts. Things seem especially dangerous if you're on a bike. Two people have died and one is very injured. Here, here and here. One involves a train and details are vague, but it's sad that a guy got killed riding near train tracks. The other two involve a crazy person in Manchester and a hit and run in Stamford.

All the while, of course, ESPN, based in Bristol, is making light of cyclists getting hit by cars. So, you should probably stay inside for the remainder of the summer.

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Why do we need stories like this?

I have a New York Times alert for things about bikes because I'm a dork. Lately, it's about been about a bike race in France. For awhile, it was about the crack down in New York and how evil Janette Sadik-Khan is.

Today, I see this:

U.S.: Bike Lane Plans Move to San Francisco's Fell and Oak
Streets
By SCOTT JAMES
Plans to provide bike lanes on Fell and Oak Streets in San
Francisco, two rare east-west thoroughfares, could result

in traffic backups or eliminate parking.

Now, they've gone all the way to San Francisco to write about what a terrible idea bike lanes are there. I've only been to San Francisco twice. It has a lot of traffic and not that many bike lanes. I've been in cars, on a bike, in public transportation and foot there. Car was the most difficult. I think it's safe to say that the traffic will remain status quo.

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Documents

Most cyclists like to keep track of many statistics associated with their riding. I don't have a cyclocomputer, SRM or GPS. I have a GPS in my phone, but if I ride further than 15 miles, it seems to kill the battery. I'm not really interested in speed or wattage, but I am interested in how far I rode. So, I use mapmyride and gmap-pedometer. You've probably noticed that I'll link to those sites periodically. Recently, due to twitter, I signed up for dailymile. Pursuant to its name, I attempted to post every bit of distance. After a couple of months, I started to feel enslaved, so I've decided to stop using it. Sometimes, that's how I feel about this blog. There's no reason to write about what I do on bike. Maybe I should get better at photography or something. Read more!

It is hot

Dario-distorion

It is hot, but I still like to ride a bike. So, I go slow. It seems to work out well. I rode around in a cotton tshirt this evening and I didn't even sweat through it.

And, I had soup for breakfast.

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Putnam update

Semi-apropos to my post earlier, since I rode under the Putnam Bridge on my way to the ferry. That fellow at the DOT wrote back to those of us who emailed him. It adds a glimmer of hope for those who want to ride across the Putnam Bridge legally.

Hi Mr. Mahoney. Thanks for the e-mail. The Department is in the process of evaluating widening the Putnam Bridge to include a pedestrian crossing. At this point, there are many issues to overcome to make this a viable option. First, we need to further evaluate the bridge to determine how wide a sidewalk we can put on. I'm not sure at this point we can obtain a "bikeway". We are looking at a walkway in the area of +/- 6 feet on one side of the bridge. The cost of modifications to the bridge in order to support a walkway is in the area of $7 to $10 million. We have not identified this funding.

The other issue is the cost of developing the approaches. This cost is not included in the above figure. There are a multitude of issues with developing the approaches, including funding, access for those with disabilities (ADA), wetlands, and others.

The Department has reached out to the Towns of Glastonbury and Wethersfield to coordinate a stakeholder meeting in the near future to discuss access for pedestrians and cyclists.

Thanks again for your e-mail.

Scott

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Out of shape

I don't know if it's the heat or what, but I went for a ride out to Willimantic yesterday and felt terrible. I guess I hadn't really been on a ride longer than 50 or so miles in almost a month. With D2R2 not that far away and all these other long riding things I want to do, I guess I better start riding my bike again.

It was a pretty day, though, and it was nice to be in the shade of the airline and hopbrook trails, even if I got a chapped butt (see? I'm truly out of shape).

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Car Free in CT - Summer Report

I've enjoyed nine full months of being car free in CT.  It has been some time since the last Car Free article, and there is much to share.  The last week has been marked by a rash of flat tires, which aligns with my state of mind these days.  Slogging along in a bit of purgatory, dealing with manageable, yet irritating flat tires.  I imagine that my active transportation choices help me cope with life's flat tires.

Before we talk about sunburns and swampy shorts, let's take a retrospective look at our friend Winter.  The 2010/2011 winter was passed reveling in snowy Connecticut roads more passable to my humble bicycle (with studded Nokians) than the four wheeled tanks that purport to serve rugged utility.  Although the CT snow was a welcome challenge, I sorely missed the camaraderie of the hardy winter bikers that swizzled the flat streets of Chambana, IL.  The almost negligible bike mode share in CT drops beyond negligible to negative for four lonely months of bicycle hibernation.  That said, my first winter car free was a suitable proof test* of car free life.

Spring seemed particularly short, as the 90 degree days started early.  Before things warmed up, I snuck down to Pittsburgh to kick off a week long bike trek to Washington DC along the Great Allegheny Passage and C&O Canal trails.  Although the third week of April may not have been the best choice for weather, the ride still took pole position in my limited list of tours.  I gush about the ride and route to anyone willing to tolerate my vociferous adulation.  If I get inspired, you may see a stand alone article on this memorable ride.

Oh yeah, and my cuddly trail mate Valerie.  She was golden on the Pitt to DC ride.  The photo of Valerie is on the not quite finished portion between Pittsburgh and McKeesport.   In true free riding fashion we connected developed segments with rail corridors, a bit of light trespassing, and only a little bush whacking.   Aside from that short 15 mile segment the rest of the ride was on well marked, and relatively smooth trails.

Back to car free in CT, Connecticut is a marvel of beautiful and epic bike rides.  Despite the culture, music, bike scene, kick ass bike coop, and generally awesome folks, I always felt like something was missing in Chambana.  It was the hills, the forests, and the rivers.  Fortunately CT has these natural features in spades, which somewhat makes up for shortfalls in the other categories.  I rarely looked forward to recreational rides in Chambana, whereas exploring CT on bike (and foot)  gets me all bubbly and excited.  I've logged three epic CT rides this summer thus far:
     - Salem's Detour de CT
     - A solo ride to NYC and back, with a detour to Massachusetts.
     - Another solo ride to Boston and back.

All three of these rides could warrant its own article, but I doubt the articles will be written, because I'll be too busy riding.  One notable skill that I've been picking up is ' stealth camping' - unofficial camping in a convenient park or roadside wooded area.  This handy touring tool saves money while resulting in very memorable camp spots.  The photo of the powerlines sunset was a stealth camp on my way back from Boston. 

My short two mile commute to P&W is so easy that I occasionally walk to mix things up and get an even more intimate view of the neighborhood.  Some coworkers living nearby experience the same door-to-door commute time in their cars.  

It appears that rising gas prices and perhaps even rational thought have started to convert more to bike commuting - as you can see in the overloaded bike rack near my office.  Several motivated souls also created the P&W Bicycling Club, replete with an intranet website for sharing bike commute tips.

Non-work commuting has also been an elementary exercise.  I'm two miles from several groceries and my panniers or baskets hold more than enough.  Larger or ackward loads can go in my trailer (shown in photo), which can ferry as much as the trunk of a small car.  Passing shiny F150s stuck in traffic with empty truck beds engenders a special smug internal glow.   Yes.  Bike commuters are smug.

In summary car free life is running just fine.  My commute is fun, it keeps me fit without conscious effort, and my cost of living is clearly lower.  I even turned down a job offer this Spring, otherwise very attractive, because it would have been unworkable car free.  Car free has graduated from a nice to have, to must have in my life. 

*In engineering speak a 'proof test' is when a component is stressed beyond all expected operating levels before being put in service. 

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Sorry for all the bike advocacy posts but,

Congress is in a budget cutting mood.  If you think bike / ped dedicated infrastructure funding is too important to cut, you can tell our CT Representatives and Senators. 

It's easy.

Biking to the Riverfest fireworks this evening.  Perhaps I'll see you out there.

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Making some noise about Putnam Bridge

There was a recent public info session held by the CTDOT with regards to the planned new deck for the Putnam Bridge.  This is the Route 3 highway connection between Glastonbury and Wethersfield.  The bridge connects two important residential, employment, and shopping centers. 

Wouldn't it be grand if there was a bike / ped crossing like CT-190?  If you agree, now is your last chance to contact the DOT (scott.hill@ct.gov) and your elected officials.  My note to the DOT is included below.  Feel free to steal. 

<<<
Date: Jul 2, 2011 3:41 PM
Subject: Fwd: Putnam Bridge
To:  scott.hill@ct.gov

Scott Hill,

I am a car free bicycle commuter in CT.  I recommend the studying of adding a cantilevered bike / ped crossing to the Putnam Bridge. 

This is a particularly important transportation and recreation link for non-motorized travel.  It becomes even more important with the reduced hours of the ferry.

CT recently climbed from 40th to 21st in bike friendly state rankings.  Bike / ped  rankings will continue to climb if infrastructure projects make every effort to encourage human powered travel.

Thanks for your consideration.

Tony C
East Hartford, CT
>>>

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CT ranked 21st. Huzzah!

Just noticed on the Bike Walk CT website that CT vaulted forward in national bike friendliness rankings.  We moved from an embarrassing 40th to a middling 21st.  Much props to the folks over at Bike Walk for driving important legislation, supporting local bike / ped committees, and banging the drum with the CT DOT.

This ranking means something to environmentally concious young professionals.  Moving up from 40th removes a, ' Why would I live in such a backward state?' stigma.  Going further and getting into the top ten would actively draw folks looking for sustainable transportation and recreation to CT.

Taking CT to the next level will take more than new bike lanes and legislative policy.  Connecticut needs to show real progress in increasing bike, ped, and transit mode share.  Get on your bikes and Ride!

PS - I'm riding up to Boston this weekend (and back).  Should be hella fun.

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Mountain biking popularity

I think in the 1990s, 117% of all bikes sold in the US were mountain bikes. Everybody was mountain biking and therefore not everyone mountain biking was great at it. Being not great at mountain seem to make you much harder on trails. Trails got beat up and then got closed. Then mountain biking got less popular and trails started to heal. However, the Salem-theory of full suspension is that the learning curve for mountain biking is now much shorter. With the ubiquity now of those kind of bikes, people can ride on trails much more easily that before. So, I guess popularity is increased. To that end, the trails at the West Hartford reservoir are beat to hell this year, but I hadn't noticed because I haven't been riding much there. I did yesterday: The braiding is worse than I've ever seen it, like it's so bad that it's tough to tell what the original trail is, so braids get worn deeper. The cheater lines have cheater lines. The trails that have steep ascents don't even seem to be ridden anymore because they're too hard to get up. Puddled areas are so wide, they've become quintuple track.

I'm not trying to be holier than thou. I'm happy that popularity is increasing in the sport, but the poor and worn down reservoir probably can't sustain this. I know there have always been complaints about lack of NEMBA presence in West Hartford, but there desperately needs to be some trail maintenance. I don't know anything about trail building, but I'd be willing to learn. Either that, or I could just stop riding there. Maybe Salem's got something in his revulsion of the place.

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Winds

The CT siting council approved the windfarms in Colebrook and everyone is upset. People are really upset about Capewind, too. The wilds are the North East Kingdom have big, tall hills, so people want to put turbines there, too, and there are two sets of turbines showing up within 25 of Johanna's place in Vermont. There's also sorts of NIMBYism there like here. I had always wondered where the Sheffield one was going and I finally figured it out. Sheffield has the highest point on I-91 and this cool road called New Duck Pond Road parallels it. They're going there. I rode my bike there this weekend. It'll look kinda cool from I-91. What did you do this weekend?

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Bike size and ground hogs

I am a pretty terrible mechanic, but one thing I have figured out how to do is adjust the parts of the bike that involve how I fit on the bike. I also kind of understand now that if I'm not comfortable on my bike, there are a bunch thing I could try adjusting. I'm not expert and Salem thinks all my bikes fit me wrong, but I can sit on my bike for eight hours and it doesn't hurt too bad.

I'm also a big advocate of used bikes. While I think bike companies are fine, there many bikes out there with many miles left that don't belong in the dump. So, when people ask me about buying a bike, much like buying a car, I tell them to go used. The problem of course being that while standover height of a bike is really easy to figure out, more picayune things like fore/aft saddle adjustment or saddle tilt aren't. So, people buy a bike for that for all intents and purpose fits, but is just uncomfortable enough that s/he won't want to ride for longer than 45 minutes.

Anyway, I bring this up because two friends of mine bought used bikes lately that were just slightly off. Once fixed, the bikes were comfortable and nice again. I'm not sure where I'm going with this diatribe, other than to say that your bike is probably not as messed up as you think it is. Five minutes of loosening a few bolts, adjusting and retightening can go along and even the inept like me can do it. Move the saddle forward 2cm can go a very long way.

Also, you may recall that I ran over a groundhog a few years ago. Interestingly, on Tuesday I saw a man with a bmw wagon stopped on the side of the road down by the meadows releasing a groundhog. I'm not sure how he caught the groundhog and what the groundhog was doing that caused him to take it to the meadow, but I like to think it was a positive thing.

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Break from routine

I've ridden out to Canton and New Hartford like a million times and I get kinda set in my ways. I reserve exploration for when I get all the way out to Hartland or Barkhamsted, because I assume I know all the good roads to get out there. Well, I was wrong in addition to finding a cool seasonal road in New Hartford (Beney Road), I discovered Breezy Hill Road and how it gets up Ratlum Mountain. It's steep, partially paved and awesome. I don't know why I never rode it before. There appear to be a bunch of Canton Land Trust trails and old fire roads that require me to return. It must be cool living where my uncle lives.

Perhaps the Detour can go west of the river someday.

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Quite a Day

The beer tasting festival at Martin Park offered oodles of local and not so local brews.  Still wondering how I almost managed to miss this.  CT event publicity leaves a bit to be desired.

Post festival I rolled over to the East Hartford transfer station to review the scrap dumpsters for fine pickings, and several fine pickings were had.  New in box (circa 1973) Coleman stove and lantern, and a sterno fuel mount were premium picks.  Also stashed a bench vise and Sturmey-Archer 3-spd bike that I will return for today. 

The evening was capped with a flamboyantly illuminated, and remarkably well attended, sur-Real Ride, put on by the creative folks at Real Art Ways.  A little nervous about so many (> 100) riders, many inexperienced, on the mean streets, but thankfully no one managed to off themselves.  The ride entertained curious downtown denizens and revelers.  Many asking, ' What is this?'  I was asking the same question.  Is this the tip of a bike culture iceberg in Hartford?  Where are these cyclists the rest of the time?  All in all a spectacular, firework punctuated party.  Hopefully the success of Real Ride is a signal that bike commuting may eventually garner something more than an embarrassing less than one percent in metro Hartford. 

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Free Bicycle!

Remember those old home security commercials featuring a "burglar" who brags that he can pick most locks with a credit card? No tools at all required to snag this bike. Read more!

Beer and Bike Party

Got quite a weekend coming up.

Burnside Craft Brew Festival during the day Saturday. 1-5PM in East Hartford's Martin Park. After sampling I'll stop by the transfer station for some tipsy dumpster diving.

Then it's time to wobble over to Hartford's Real Art Ways, Real Ride. Deck your bike out and yourself, ride and party. Shake and roll.

See ya'll out there. - Tony C

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hot CATALOGUE

It's been awhile since there's been art to look at on Arbor, but it's coming back. See here:

By then we will have passed into Summer, and we will celebrate.

Come to CATALOGUE!: Saturday, June 25th, Matt LaFleur, WOOD AND PAINT

8pm, 56 Arbor Street, Hartford, CT, Suite# forthcoming

If you know Matt, and you graduated from the Hartford Art School, then you've probably been influenced by his work at some point or another. He's the guy who did the work that hit you in those juried Goldfarb shows as being sort of perfect. If you currently attend HAS, you're probably affected by him and don't know it. He's in the walls. Matt LaFleur is an incredible artist who values purity and deconvolutional ya know, straight talk, materials like sleek varnish, construction paper, wood, paint of course, log cabins, wood-burning stoves, pencils, and foam core. Matt is a chimney sweep who loves race cars and lives with his wife in Taborton, NY on a lake and is a storybook character or something. I am absolutely pleased, and honored in a way, to present Matt LaFleur in our June CATALOGUE.

Come round, from Boston, New Haven, wherever you be. Check out Matt's site, woodandpaint.com. And CATALOGUE on Facebook and at CATALOGUEprojects.com. CATALOGUE is a venue for events, a network for artists, and a workshop for ideas. It is a collaboration between artist, curator, community, and space.

Joe Saphire

Nick Rice

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Spoke quest

As you know, I've been breaking a lot of spokes lately. As cool as the 31 spoke pattern is, I want my rear wheels to stay burritos and not tacos. So, while eating pho yesterday, Dario and I decided that we should buy new spokes in Berlin. So, we rode down to Berlin Bike yesterday on two of my 63 spoked mountain bikes. Berlin Bike is a good bike shop, because they take the time to sell you the correct length spoke even if you're going to lace it yourself. I really appreciate that.

Vietnamese car cats

Greatest veggie burger ever made

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Foul play and otherwise

There was an article in the Courant today about a body found in the Rocky Hill sandpit. Dario and I were riding there last week, as I was showing him some trails in Dividend Park. This is part of a not-so-pleasant trend of bodies turning up where we ride our bikes. The obviously joke to make is that because we live in Hartford, that's bound to happen, but it's not the case for the most part. It's the suburbs. From Dario's email, to wit:

Dario to me

Show details 4:47 PM (13 minutes ago)

Don't know about Sheffield, VT. I've never ridden up there, except for maybe D2R2.

Here is "the list":

Wintergreen Woods (man, no foul play)

Colt Park (man, probably lots of foul play)

Rocky Hill Sand Pit (likely a child or perhaps female or both, don't know yet,but probably foul play)

Hop River Trail (man, no foul play)

North Hartford train tracks (woman, accident)

Rocky Hill Cemetery (male police officer, apparent suicide)

Rocky Hill (woman near Dividend Park, don't remember what was cause of death).

Unless you were riding in all of these places when the events occurred, you're alright. Might not be so good for your political career though. You got bad karma.

Seriously though, consider where we rode the other day, right in and out of pretty densely populated areas. Great drop zones. Not very automobile accessible, though. Maybe they're bringing them in on bicycles?

d

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More alley cats

Just when you thought it safe to sell your fixed gear, take a year off and become a full time randonneur, there's another alley cat in Hartford. Here's a flyer:

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City hall singletrack

When I bring my bike into work through the side door and into the basement. Often, I'll do a lap of the basement hall, with its two little ramps and cabinets to dodge. Today, I decided to ride the elevator up to the fourth floor, which is used for storage. It's way more technical. Four sets of stairs and a ramp that's in a really tight corner.

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Is there a google group?

So when I lived in Champaign-Urbana there was a google group of  similar interest riders who used the list to set up impromptu rides.  Is something like that already in existence for Hartford area Beat Blog-type riders? 

Just thinking it would have been nice to toss out a couple of my recent rides as an opportunity to a larger audience.  For example,  I'd like to ride to Boston and back over a long weekend.  Anyone want in on that?

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Going South, by the Water

I randomly headed south from East Hartford with the intent of logging a longish ride, between 60 to 80 miles.  Stayed close to the Connecticut River and see what there was to see.  I hadn't been much past Portland along the river and was clueless on routes and features of interest.  The roads picked with the help of google maps and a personal bias for hills, low traffic, and dirt roads ended up creating a new favorite 60ish mile loop.

I started out heading South on Rt 17 and hit the mandatory Old Maids warmup hill.   Crossing the river into Middletown, I continued South on Saybrook Road, taking a left on Brooks Road and heading up into the hills.  A rewarding reservoir view was the bonus at the pinnacle of the steep winding climb.  Crossing Aircraft Road near the gates of my illustrious employer's Middletown location, I turned onto bone rattling River Road.  Until now I'd never seen a gravel road laid with railroad grade stones, but don't worry, it got better.

Higganum had a small grocery where I picked up a grinder and some Ben & Jerry's, a guaranteed calorie bomb.  I stashed the nosh in my small trunk bag.  A couple miles further down Saybrook Road was Haddam Meadows State Park where I dined overlooking the swollen waterway. 

Continuing South I came to the swing bridge adjacent to the Goodspeed Opera House.  While stopping at Eagles Landing State Park to take in the view I found a group organized in protest of a land swap (www.landswap.org) that would give private developers access to 17 acres of protected riverfront in Haddam, an interesting issue that I'll now read up on.

The massive bridge rotated open to allow the passing sailboats and sizable yachts to pass.  I've always wanted to see one in action.  Unfortunately my phone decided to fail on photos today, the reason for a photo free missive. 

After waiting for the bridge traffic to clear, I headed across and started picking my way North.  Near Moodus I took a left into Macimoodus State Park and rode one of the dirt roads to a river view and a potential future stealth camping haven.  From Leesville Road I turned right onto Wopowog Road and the promise of more dirt.  A right onto Tortia Road plus a couple other swizzles dropped me onto the Airline Trail.  I was back into familiar territory, recently traversed on Salem's DeTour.  A pass through Mesh SP brought me back to South Glastonbury.

Looking back on the route, I've already thought about improvements and potential variants.   I'll probably head down next time with the intention of hiking a couple of hours.  The parks I visited were particularly lightly utilized.  This is fine for me personally, but limits the number of folks motivated to fight a land swap.  I worry sometimes that the coming Virtual generation will value wilderness and our environment even less than my Suburban generation, if that's possible.  Not sure what to do about that, other than enjoy the wilderness while it lasts.

I'm toying with a future tour from Sound to Source (in Canada) and have scouted from Haddam to Springfield.  A ride to Saybrook will be forthcoming, and I will explore a bit further North than Springfield a couple times this summer.  Others with adventurous leanings are welcome to tag along.

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Passat own risk

My Passat was a car to be reckoned with. It had five gears, four cylinders, a turbo charger, leather seats, an aluminum skid plate that could withstand nasty rocks, almost entire soda bottle of displacement and some other stuff. While I might write about riding my bike all the time, when I do drive, I really enjoy it. The Passat was already to go up to Vermont on Friday with a bike, a cat and two ladies, but it wasn't meant to be. Turning on to Trout Brook, the suspension broke and the car ostensibly ceased to be.

This trail will improve when it dries on in the summer. Some parts were a tiny bit muddy.

After regrouping and traumatizing the cat, we eventually made it to Vermont, whereupon I explored the Craftbury Outdoors Center. Nice people over there. They let me ride their singletrack and I bought a cliff bar. I tried to find some roads that didn't exist. I almost repeated the same thing a day later, but by inadvertently trespassing. After some course correction, I found a pretty cool ATV trail over Dunn Mountain.

The famous Bayley-Hazen Military Road near Craftsbury Outdoor center.

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Save Cedar Mountain!

I stand corrected. I thought because the trees were still standing on Cedar Mountain this spring, the spooky mountain was safe. If you saw the front page of the Courant today, you know that the woods aren't so safe from the Toll Brothers (who made lots of money destroying our economy with the subprime mortgage crisis). Like any stupid plan to develop the woods and restrict public access, there's a thoughtful, organized and right opposition.

Anyway, if you enjoy Cedar Mountain, you should go to the public hearing tonight at 7pm in Newington at Town Hall, 171 Cedar Street. I can't make it, so I'm submitting written testimony.

May 25, 2011

Members of the Planning and Zoning Commission,

I write to you today to express my opposition to residential development on Cedar Mountain. For decades, residents of south Hartford, Wethersfield and Newington have been blessed with several hundred acres of woodland on Cedar Mountain. This area is one of the few large forests remaining in close proximity to the core of capital region and it benefits the area’s residents immeasurably. I understand Newington’s desire to increase its grand list, but there is no reason to destroy forest when there are redevelopment opportunities right downtown. West Hartford’s Blue Back Square, for example, redeveloped the town’s center and increased the tax base without negatively impacting the town’s balance of open space. Developing Cedar Mountain is akin to West Hartford having left the old car dealership in the center vacant and building houses in Westmoor Park.

As an avid mountain biker and hiker, I know that my opinion on this matter is somewhat self-serving, but I know that many others directly benefit from recreating on Cedar Mountain or indirectly benefit from having the exhaust from Berlin Turnpike cleansed by the trees in its forest. A few years ago, the City of Hartford turned down a proposal to develop a 200 acre equestrian facility in the middle of Keney Park. Hartford made the right decision in preserving its northern forest. I hope that Newington makes the right decision and preserves Cedar Mountain.

I understand that as Newington officials, you will probably take the opinion of a non-resident without much weight, but I hope that my writing impresses upon you that the destruction of Cedar Mountain would have a regional impact.

Thank you,

Brendan Mahoney

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When there's something to blog...

...I'm usually too busy to blog. Definitely too busy busy to take pictures, so this post will be attended by the inky blackness of night.

To begin, I moved to Manchester and have already found some new trails that I hope to integrate into some future ridiculous ride. Speaking of which, some people actually showed up for the second (and first advertised) Detour de Connecticut, and some are even still on speaking terms with me, so another success in my book.

I also broke a frame. Being the piss-ant little thing that I am, that is a pretty rare happening, as I tend not to stress things much, but with nary a noise, the back end of my mountain bike started feeling wobbly. Turns out I had put a crack clean through the rear dropout. I walked out of the woods and finished the ride with a piece of roadside-found-leash helping hold everything together. Sort of felt like riding a rear suspension bike.

With the move, I've also been working on the digs, and highlights of bike-transported materials include a 8 foot pine plank and and a 40"x32" mirror (luckily I avoided the hex of 7 years bad luck). I am, however, going to whuss out on the washing machine and enlist the help of a friend with his pickup truck. A small portion of the move has happened by bike though. Yippee.

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Brendan and Class 4 Roads

I doubt that anyone reads this blog closely enough to recall my last foray up Mt. Hor. Willoughby State Forest is a big old state forest next to Lake Willoughby. It's got some trails and forest roads that are very awesome. For awhile, I've been trying to figure out how to get into the forest from the north. I finally figured it out (Big Valley Lane). I have a mediocre map of the forest and the late, great Dave Blumenthal did some mapping through there as part of XVT, but I kept taking some wrong turn and ending up back on RT 16. Once in the state forest, I ended up deviating from the road and riding/walking all the way to the Mt. Hor summit. Descending from Mt. Hor back to the CCC road was pretty exciting on a 'cross bike.

I also did some exploration closer to Shadow Lake and found an awesome descent down from the Sheffield Square area on Quarry Road back to RT 16, which led me to a climb that brought me through the Black Hills and right back to Shadow Lake. That was quite a find, but the final descent back to the lake was super muddy and kind of ruined my bike.

Anyway, it was a weekend of yard work and class 4 roads (I believe I was on a few that had been reclassified with trail status).

I got a new camera, what do you think of the image quality?

Next week I plan to explore Dunn Mountain.

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