# Maryland Riders



## tikitorchfriday

I didn't see any posts for any riders here in MD so I thought I'd start the ball rolling.

Name is Rob and ride a 2006 Giant OCR C2 (blue) . I ride mostly around the Arbutus, Catonsville and
Howard Co. near the Patapsco Avalon area of the state park. When not road riding, I'll be on the trails at Avalon.  

I don't know of any group rides in the area for road rides, so if you know of any I would appreciate the info.

So, how about a roll call!!

Seeya on the road,

Rob


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## boyd2

*Elkridge here*

Hey Rob,

John here. I live right on the other side of the river in Elkridge. I ride all around Ellicott City, Hanover and Catonsville. Red Epic road bike, red stumpjumper and a silver Vista Aerocourse fixed gear. If you MTB Avalon you have likely ridden right near my house on Belmont Woods Road.

Work has been tough the last couple of months and riding has suffered, but I have taken the next week off. If it does not rain too bad I plan to go for a ride tomorrow after I drop the kids off at school. Let me know if you are interested.

JB


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## tikitorchfriday

*I know...*



boyd2 said:


> Hey Rob,
> 
> John here. I live right on the other side of the river in Elkridge. I ride all around Ellicott City, Hanover and Catonsville. Red Epic road bike, red stumpjumper and a silver Vista Aerocourse fixed gear. If you MTB Avalon you have likely ridden right near my house on Belmont Woods Road.
> 
> Work has been tough the last couple of months and riding has suffered, but I have taken the next week off. If it does not rain too bad I plan to go for a ride tomorrow after I drop the kids off at school. Let me know if you are interested.
> 
> JB


exactly where Belmont woods road is. I've been riding those trails for about 9 years now. I can remember when it was not so crowded as it is today and the trails were a lot narrower.

Yeah, I'm a mountain biker who just started getting into road riding. This is only my second season on the road. So far I've done only two century's. The Civil War and the Seagull. I have a friend from work whom I ride with when we can. He lives in PA. We do a lot of riding around the Pretty Boy dam area. Other then that I'm riding solo in the the local area. When I'm on the trail, I'll be on a black Yeti ASR 575. If you see one stop and say hi. I only know of one guy locally who has one the same color. His name is Nick.

I never thought I would like the road as much as I do. I really got bitten by the bug. I now enjoy both worlds of cycling.  

I will not be able to ride on Friday and I really not sure how my weekend will play out as of yet. We'll get a ride though sometime

Rob


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## asciibaron

i live in Millersville and ride out to Elkridge frequently. i'm the fat guy on a silver Cannondale looking like he's going to die


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## foggypeake

*I live in Ashton near the Howard County line...*

..and ride periodically around the Brighton Dam area and western Howard County past Clarksville. Previously I lived in Burtonsville and rode quite a bit out toward Laurel and Ellicott City. 

If you see a short fat guy in cardiac arrest on either a Merckx, Litespeed or (puke) green Scapin, chances are that it's me. Having a job, a wife, and three kids have just about destroyed my time to ride.

Maybe I'll start commuting to work, but that's in Bethesda (about 15 miles away), and I've got to be "on the job" at 7:30 sharp. While I have the requisite lights, etc., it makes for an incredibly early start for someone who takes a little while to wake up fully.


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## MarkS

*There are lots of us around here*



tikitorchfriday said:


> I didn't see any posts for any riders here in MD so I thought I'd start the ball rolling.


There are lots of us RBRers all over Maryland. I commute from Owings Mills to Downtown Baltimore several days per week and ride in northern Baltimore County and Carroll County on the weekends. I occasionally venture into your area -- one of my routes is to go from my house to Old Frederick Road (MD ) via Old Court/Woodstock or Marriottsville and then head towards Mt. Airy and return home via Westminster. Prettyboy is a favorite of mine -- I don't do it as often as I should; a round trip from my house that includes a circuit of Prettyboy is a good 50-60 mile, hilly ride.


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## enki42ea

I'm in the Pikesville area and ride a blue Lemond. I try to bike commute to the inner harbor area when the weather is good enough and there is enough light but haven't done as much as I want. 

I usually just ride with the Baltimore Bike Club rides on the weekends.


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## tikitorchfriday

*Nice weather*



MarkS said:


> There are lots of us RBRers all over Maryland.
> 
> Yeah I do know there are a lot of bikers in MD. I just didn't see too much activity for our state in the postings for the mid Atlantic area.
> 
> Just got finished a 45 mile run from my house to Patapsco and then headed toward the B&A trail. I didn't get to Annapolis in fear of getting too dark. I could have called my wife to ask her to pick me up, "Honey, could you please get my as$ up?". She might have not been too happy.


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## avalonracing

tikitorchfriday said:


> I didn't see any posts for any riders here in MD so I thought I'd start the ball rolling.
> 
> Name is Rob and ride a 2006 Giant OCR C1 (blue) . I ride mostly around the Arbutus, Catonsville and
> Howard Co. near the Patapsco Avalon area of the state park. When not road riding, I'll be on the trails at Avalon.
> 
> I don't know of any group rides in the area for road rides, so if you know of any I would appreciate the info.
> 
> So, how about a roll call!!
> 
> Seeya on the road,
> 
> Rob


Hey there another Robb here (but with an extra "B"). You'll see me in the Ellicott City/Elkridge area a few times a week as it is my usual training loop, not to mention MTBing down in Avalon (hence the Avalon Racing screen name- I used to run the road & mtb team "Avalon Racing" with a buddy) You'll see me in an red & black Avalon Racing kit or a green & blue Team Snow Valley kit (soon to be the green & blue Latitude kit for 2007).

I just hopped on the RBR forums as I'm trying to get jazzed up for training and racing again. I had to take off a few years as selling houses was keeping me a little too busy to train. Now with the market back to normal I can get back to some regular riding.

Say hello if you see me out there.


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## charlie brown

Greetings fellow Maryland riders. 

I live in Northwest Baltimore, and often ride around Falls Road and in Owings Mills. I also ride in Catonsville, Arbutus, Dulaney Valley and the BWI airport loop. The ride location depends how I feel and where I need to be later that day.


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## tikitorchfriday

avalonracing said:


> Hey there another Robb here (but with an extra "B"). You'll see me in the Ellicott City/Elkridge area a few times a week as it is my usual training loop, not to mention MTBing down in Avalon (hence the Avalon Racing screen name- I used to run the road & mtb team "Avalon Racing" with a buddy) You'll see me in an red & black Avalon Racing kit or a green & blue Team Snow Valley kit (soon to be the green & blue Latitude kit for 2007).
> 
> I just hopped on the RBR forums as I'm trying to get jazzed up for training and racing again. I had to take off a few years as selling houses was keeping me a little too busy to train. Now with the market back to normal I can get back to some regular riding.
> 
> Say hello if you see me out there.


Robb, yeah I do remember seeing those jerseys(Avalon Racing). It's going back a number a years, but I do remember. I would see you guys on Landing Rd. when I was heading into the park to MTB (morning Choice trail) near Rockburn Park. You need to post up a pic of the jersey.

Good luck on your training and if I see the above mentioned jerseys, I'll shout at ya!

Rob


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## tikitorchfriday

charlie brown said:


> Greetings fellow Maryland riders.
> 
> I live in Northwest Baltimore, and often ride around Falls Road and in Owings Mills. I also ride in Catonsville, Arbutus, Dulaney Valley and the BWI airport loop. The ride location depends how I feel and where I need to be later that day.


Hey there!

I was in the area of Parkton/White Hall and the such just today for my day off. Rode around Pretty Boy, Mt. Carmel Rd. etc., for a 50 mile loop. The weather was great. A little damp, but all good! 

The COLD Will start to move in this week. :cryin:


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## MarkS

tikitorchfriday said:


> Hey there!
> 
> I was in the area of Parkton/White Hall and the such just today for my day off. Rode around Pretty Boy, Mt. Carmel Rd. etc., for a 50 mile loop. The weather was great. A little damp, but all good!
> 
> The COLD Will start to move in this week. :cryin:


Riding around Pretty Boy is a favorite of mine. Unfortunately, I spend the "holiday" yesterday in the office.


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## zeytin

Hello,

Zeytin here, I live in NE Baltimore City and ride the BWI and B&A trails after work when the days are longer on a 99 Postal Trek. This summer I'll be back out around Oregon Ridge on the postal. I also ride in the city on a single speed, grey, 81 Trek Sport tourer.
You'll find more MD posting in Commuting and Touring. 
For group rides I've joined BBC and enjoyed the rides I've done with them.


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## fabsroman

It doesn't look like there is a single post from anybody in Montgomery County in this thread. Am I the only person in Montgomery County that has survived the traffic.

I live in Germantown and my usual ride takes me up 27 to 108. Usually go from Damascus to Sunshine, and then home again, which gives me close to 40 miles. That ride has some decent rolling hills on it. If I really feel like climbing, I ride over to Sugarloaf mountain and climb it. I just head up 355 and take a left on Comus Road. Sugarloaf mountain was my nemesis when I was racing as a junior. I climbed it on two different occassions and I thought I was going to die each time. Felt the same way this August, but have started to get used to it now.

When I lived with my parents I lived in Silver Spring and my standard training ride was 650 (New Hampshire Avenue) out to Sunshine and then 97 (Georgia Avenue) north to I-70. I used to do that ride almost every day after school. If I were to try it today, I seriously doubt I would live through it. The amount of traffic and development out that way is insane.

Every once in a while I take the car over to my parents' place in Silver Spring and I hit Beach Drive for some flat road where I can mix a hill or two in. That was the first traning route I ever had because my parents initially lived in Kensington. I would hit Beach Drive at its end, take it to the Mormon Temple, climb that hill and another hill over there that we called the wall, and then I would head back home. Depending on how I felt, I would do the Temple - home loop two or three times in a day.

Other than those training rides above, I used to ride all over the place. My training buddy lived by Brighton Dam, so we headed out to Columbia a lot. One time we took route 29 from Ellicott City to New Hampshire Avenue and then took New Hampshire Avenue to College Park where our sponsor, College Park Bicycles was located. Talk about rolling hills. Talk about a difference in traffic too. To try that ride today would be asking to get hit by a car.

This spring/summer, I am hoping to get out to the Frederick and Howard County areas, and maybe even head up to the Catoctin Mountains to do some serious climbing. I am trying to get back into racing this spring at the age of 35, and I have no idea how that will go.

My rode ride is a 2006 Colnago Cristallo in silver and red, with 2007 Campy Record and Campy box type rims from the 80's. I am also in the process of building a Colnago Arte frame that is brushed aluminum main triangle and naked carbon fiber on the fork and rear triangle.

If any of you guys want to get together for a ride this spring, let me know.


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## avalonracing

tikitorchfriday said:


> Robb, yeah I do remember seeing those jerseys(Avalon Racing). It's going back a number a years, but I do remember. I would see you guys on Landing Rd. when I was heading into the park to MTB (morning Choice trail) near Rockburn Park. You need to post up a pic of the jersey.
> 
> Good luck on your training and if I see the above mentioned jerseys, I'll shout at ya!
> 
> Rob


I'll post a pick of the Avalon Racing jersey just as soon as I can sum up the energy to go through the multi-step process of putting one up. Hopefully, it won't accidentally end up on the ugliest jersey thread. The new Latitude/ABRT (formerly Team Snow Valley) jerseys should look pretty good too (again I hope) you should be seeing them around the area within a month or so.
See you out there,
-Robb


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## fabsroman

Robb,

What happened to Team Snow Valley? I was researching teams over the fall and came across their website. I book marked it thinking that I would re-evaluate the situation in the spring, and now they do not have a website anymore. Does the Latitude/ABRT team, f/k/a Team Snow Valley, have a new website up? If so, could you give me the web address.

Thanks


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## avalonracing

fabsroman said:


> Robb,
> 
> What happened to Team Snow Valley? I was researching teams over the fall and came across their website. I book marked it thinking that I would re-evaluate the situation in the spring, and now they do not have a website anymore. Does the Latitude/ABRT team, f/k/a Team Snow Valley, have a new website up? If so, could you give me the web address.
> 
> Thanks


I think the website is still being built but you can find the link and contact info at:
www.abrtcycling.com
I know that the uniform order went in pretty early this year but I would think that there should be some provisions for late comers if you are considering the team.
You used to ride for College Park a few years ago? I went to a good number of the Greenbelt training races from 99-01. They were a blast.


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## fabsroman

I road for College Park Bicycles in 1985 and 1986. After that, I road for the Baltimore Juniors team in 1987 & 1988. I went to the Greenbelt race plenty of times and won the B Category race a bunch of times as a junior. The A category race was a different ball game. I also had my first big wreck on that course. I'll probably race it again this year to see how well I can compete. I love the hill leading up to the finish. Races with hills are good because they tend to break the group up. Is the race still run clockwise, or does it go counter-clockwise?


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## avalonracing

*Greenbelt*



fabsroman said:


> I road for College Park Bicycles in 1985 and 1986. After that, I road for the Baltimore Juniors team in 1987 & 1988. I went to the Greenbelt race plenty of times and won the B Category race a bunch of times as a junior. The A category race was a different ball game. I also had my first big wreck on that course. I'll probably race it again this year to see how well I can compete. I love the hill leading up to the finish. Races with hills are good because they tend to break the group up. Is the race still run clockwise, or does it go counter-clockwise?


Last I was there it was clockwise and I hope that it will always be that way. I like that hill too. It can make for some fun attacks and is a great long wind up for a sprint. I started with the B race there too (until I, and a couple of my buddies each had a win) and then did the A races. I placed top five a few times but never won that. Fields of 50 or more racers in a 30+ mile Maryland training race can be tough challenge.

If they do the Greenbelt series again all of you Maryland, DC and NOVA guys should check it out. I still miss Druid Hill traing races.(Tuesday Night Championship of the World).


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## fabsroman

On one of the local team websites, I think I read that the Greenbelt series will start again come April of this year. Some of my racing buddies from the Baltimore junior team did the Druid Hill race. I never got the chance. However, I did make the McLean, VA points race on a few occassions, but I didn't like that race as much because it was completely flat and it only had one or two corners to slow the speed down to something that wouldn't cause the worst wreck ever. Speaking of wrecks, my worst one was at a race on the ellipse behind the White House. We were going so fast in that race that we were drafting the pace truck at 35+ mph for a lap or two at the beginning of the race. That was a painful wreck.


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## Red Sox Junkie

I'm in northern Mont. co and do a lot of riding in the Sugarloaf area. Not too many cars and a fair amount of hills. I also do a fair amount of riding over towards Poolesville. I used to live in Damascus and would ride on 27 and 108 a little, but never like those roads due to the amount of traffic. I think northwest Mont. co. is underated for road riding. This spring and summer, I'm going to try to head north a little more into Frederick.


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## fabsroman

Do you do any racing? The reason I am asking is because I need somebody as a training partner. It is tough to do interval and sprint training by myself, and while I don't mind riding by myself, it does get a little lonely at times unless I catch somebody on the road.


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## SalsaBiker

Carroll County (Eldersburg) here and always looking for someone slow enough to stay with me  Check out and sign up for the HoCoCyclists Yahoo group (go to groups.yahoo.com and search) as they do many group rides in Howard County. BBC is another good source for group rides.

Mike


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## Red Sox Junkie

fabsroman said:


> Do you do any racing? The reason I am asking is because I need somebody as a training partner. It is tough to do interval and sprint training by myself, and while I don't mind riding by myself, it does get a little lonely at times unless I catch somebody on the road.


Never done any racing, mostly riding by myself. I used to do more club rides before the kids came. Now, I just try to get out whenever I can, usually during naptime!


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## S-Works95

All I can say is WOW, I am sure i know some of you by your real name, and some of you by the bikes you ride. I live in the Randallstown-Owings Mills- Winands Road area. From there we go many diffrent ways cross over to the Falls Road Side, or up past the Baltimore Ravens Head Quaters to Main Street and Out to Butler Road, sometimes we head stright over into the Greenspring Valley and Upper Park Heights, or Out to Ripken Hill so many nice back roads from where we are, however the boom in new home constuction is quickly taking that from us. Bye the way Govenor O'Malley is you read this .....MAKE MARYLAND BIKE FRIENDLY!!!!!!!!!. c u guys soon.......

Ps; Everyonce in a while the Baltimore Bicycling club does a 50 miles that leaves from Owing Mills Newtown, it goes out to Oregon Ridge and back


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## enki42ea

SalsaBiker said:


> Carroll County (Eldersburg) here and always looking for someone slow enough to stay with me  Check out and sign up for the HoCoCyclists Yahoo group (go to groups.yahoo.com and search) as they do many group rides in Howard County. BBC is another good source for group rides.
> 
> Mike


Do any of the BBC Pancake rides? I always seem to be the slow one in the group.


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## AABCCX

*Ellicott City Ride*



fabsroman said:


> Do you do any racing? The reason I am asking is because I need somebody as a training partner. It is tough to do interval and sprint training by myself, and while I don't mind riding by myself, it does get a little lonely at times unless I catch somebody on the road.



For anyone interested, we have a group that does a ride from downtown historic Ellicott City on Sunday mornings at 9:00. This is predominantly a fixed gear ride, so if you're on a geared bike you'd be expected to stay in the small ring, though with all the hills we ride that's where you'll want to be anyway. 

This ride will continue through March, when the racing starts.

Here's a post from our club listserve with more info:

_
Sunday we will be leaving from the parking lot behind the Historic 
Ellicott City Post Office at 9:00 AM.

http://www.google.com/maps?hl=en&client=safari&rls=en&q=post+office&near=Ellicott+City, +MD&radius=0.0&latlng=39267222,-76798611,674810066712797145&sa=X&oi=loca 
l&ct=authority&cd=3

As we have done in the past, we will start with an approx. 2 hour 
rolling loop into Elkridge and back, hitting some good short hills. 
As we get back into town we'll then ride an assortment of hills all 
close to town. Since we'll be close to the parking lot at all times 
after the first 2 hour loop, riders can choose to do as many hills as 
they are comfortable with. Total ride time will be about 3 hours.

This is mainly a fixed gear ride but geared bikes are allowed as 
well, however, if you're found at the front of the group in your big 
ring pushing the pace you may not like what happens next! 

Hope to see you all out there.
_

Mike


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## SalsaBiker

enki42ea said:


> Do any of the BBC Pancake rides? I always seem to be the slow one in the group.


Sorry it has taken me forever to reply to this. Do you mean the one that leaves from South Carroll High? I haven't done it yet (too cold) but as soon as we get a day >45 degrees I plan on coming out for one.

Mike


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## enki42ea

SalsaBiker said:


> Sorry it has taken me forever to reply to this. Do you mean the one that leaves from South Carroll High? I haven't done it yet (too cold) but as soon as we get a day >45 degrees I plan on coming out for one.
> 
> Mike


Thats the one. I tend to go down to the low 40's so havn't done any rides for awhile but this sunday's pancake ride may work out well.


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## SalsaBiker

enki42ea said:


> Thats the one. I tend to go down to the low 40's so havn't done any rides for awhile but this sunday's pancake ride may work out well.


Yeah, I plan on giving it a go this weekend. It will be interesting to see if I can still ride after an all you can eat pancake breakfast  Hope to see you there.


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## enki42ea

SalsaBiker said:


> Yeah, I plan on giving it a go this weekend. It will be interesting to see if I can still ride after an all you can eat pancake breakfast  Hope to see you there.


Don't worry, I can't.... Well I'm much slower after the breakfast stop. But getting better at limiting myself to 3 plates so don't slow down too much


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## pedalista

*Hey Zeytin*

I'm ready for Oregon Ridge on a Saturday in April. You've got my number. Pick up the phone and let's get it on the schedule.
Ciao a presto!
pedalista rotolandosud


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## zeytin

*Hey Pedalista!*



pedalista said:


> I'm ready for Oregon Ridge on a Saturday in April. You've got my number. Pick up the phone and let's get it on the schedule.
> Ciao a presto!
> pedalista rotolandosud



Alright alright fine but let's tie one leg behind your back so I can keep up Mr.-training-in-Italy-with-Lello!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## pedalista

*Awesome circuit riding at Andrews AFB*

Right now I've got it all to myself but mixing it up with some other road-types would kick the training up a notch. Weekdays at Andrews around the airfield...


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## fabsroman

Isn't the airfield mostly flat? I did a race like that up in Allentown and that thing was about as boring as can be with no hills and no real corners, not to mention a huge crash because somebody became careless. I got a broken spoke in my knee, but it wasn't as bad as it sounds.

Let me know if you guys ever get off the airfield, and if you ever want to get together for a ride. Of course, sans snow.

Pedalista,

Parli Italiano? Io parlo un po. Mio parenti e Italiano, io anchora.

Forgive the punctuation, verb conjugation and spelling, but it is too late to think this hard about a foreign language.


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## dingster1

I'm in Germantown too! Just a noodler though.


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## fabsroman

Dingster,

Where do you ride around here? I either head up 27 to Damascus and then out on 108 or I head up 355 and make a left on Comus road and take it to Sugarloaf Mountain. Once in a blue moon, I will head up 28 or go through Boyds on 121 and its derivatives. Any good rides that I am missing?


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## pedalista

*Si, parlo Italiano.*

Ho vissuto due anni a Napoli e lasciavo un pezzo del mio cuore di la. Ritorno ogni anno e, come ho scritto, al febbraio scorso tornavo per allenamento in bici con un professionista, si chiama Raffaele Illiano, che he vinto la maglia azzura nel Giro d'Italia nell anno 2004.
Ci vediamo!
pedalista


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## fabsroman

Okay, you visited Naples for 2 years, and left a piece of your heart there. You return every year, and as you wrote me, last February you returned to train with a professional cyclist named Rafael Illano, who won the pink jersey in the Giro d'Italia in 2004.

I struggled for a little while with the cuore phrase, but remembered the word from playing cards with my dad and his Italian buddies. I visited Italy in 2001 for 3 weeks and that was one of the best vacations I have ever had. Only thing I wish I had done was ride a bike over there. You want to talk about climbing, my dad's little town is at the foot of the Alps almost an hour north of Venice and those mountains are insane. We went up to Cortina, where the Olympics were hosted in the 60's, and there was still snow up there in late May.

You have me beat on the Italian. We'll have to get together and ride some time. Problem is that I haven't won the pink jersey ever.


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## pedalista

*Azzurra = Blue*

Have we crossed the line between private and public posts? And, as well, between lounge-appropriate content and Mid-Atlantic forum?
Slap my wrist! 
Azzurra means blue - maglia rosa is pink jersey.
Your Italian is good - 
Il Cattivo


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## wheelsucker

Another Ellicott City rider here. I ride a yellow Cannondale or a red Felt TT bike on md rt 99 west from the Hollifield station elementary school/ race pace bicycles area. Lots of rolling roads, wide shoulders, and courteous drivers.


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## TeacherStu

Hey folks. I'm in Reisterstown, and really just starting out. I will be looking for rides, partners and wisdom.


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## fabsroman

I ended up riding with Pedalista a couple of days ago, and man did he take it to me. I think he dropped me on the very first hill we came to and it only got worse after that. I was struggling to keep up and just hoping that I would be able to make it home without the help of an ambulance.

Yep, Azzurra means blue and I have no idea how I overlooked that. Probably because I associate the maglia rosa with the pink jersey in the Giro and just didn't even bother to read the azzurra part. I mean everybody knows the Italian national soccer team that won the World Cup against France this past summer is called the Azzurre because of their blue jerseys. I'll have to pay attention to my Italian translations from now on.


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## pedalista

*Naples Spring training secret weapon*

Ciao fabs -
Anyone with the advantage of Spring training in the volcanic topography Naples, Italy, would have done as well and better than I.
Don't be hard on yourself - just get out there and ride, man, ride!
Thanks for the invite and for motivating me to enjoy the beautiful weather and the bucolic splendor of upper Montgomery Co. and Sugarloaf.
Ci vediamo a presto!
Pedalista


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## [email protected]

Hello. Dan here. I live in Ellicott City. I just started road biking recently. I commute between Ellicott City and the BWI area on a Jamis Aurora. You may see me riding the back roads around Ellicotty City & out to Marriottsville/Woodstock areas. On the weekends I am more likely to be riding the trails in the Frederick Watershed, Gambrill State Park or the Avalon section of Patapsco.


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## crashtestdummy

*harford county*

anybody ride in harford county. I usually take a quick up and back on rt23 or ride 23 to 165 to 136 to rt 1 back to my house. Any good rides I'm missing?


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## tikitorchfriday

Hey, anybody doing the Tour De Carroll? It'll be the first time doing this particular ride.
Here's the link if interested : http://www.tourdecarroll.com/

I did the Icycle metric out of Delaware last month and that was a decent route. It was colder than I expected. A lot of the route passed through the Fairhill section of MD and I started longing for that twisting single tract and the miles of trails it offers. If you ridden the trails at Fairhill, you know what I mean.

AAARGH! Rain go away!


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## bas

Red Sox Junkie said:


> I'm in northern Mont. co and do a lot of riding in the Sugarloaf area. Not too many cars and a fair amount of hills. I also do a fair amount of riding over towards Poolesville. I used to live in Damascus and would ride on 27 and 108 a little, but never like those roads due to the amount of traffic. I think northwest Mont. co. is underated for road riding. This spring and summer, I'm going to try to head north a little more into Frederick.



Is sugarload mountain tough? There was a pptc ride yesterday (i'm assuming it was cancelled) that was supposed to go up it.


I also found some montgomery county bicycle group online too.


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## bas

www.bikepptc.org 

they have md/va rides




tikitorchfriday said:


> I didn't see any posts for any riders here in MD so I thought I'd start the ball rolling.
> 
> Name is Rob and ride a 2006 Giant OCR C2 (blue) . I ride mostly around the Arbutus, Catonsville and
> Howard Co. near the Patapsco Avalon area of the state park. When not road riding, I'll be on the trails at Avalon.
> 
> I don't know of any group rides in the area for road rides, so if you know of any I would appreciate the info.
> 
> So, how about a roll call!!
> 
> Seeya on the road,
> 
> Rob


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## fabsroman

Bas,

Sugarloaf is a 600 foot climb with portions of it in the 10% grade category. It isn't too terrible. Lately, I have been doing it in either a 39x21 or 39x19. When I tried to do it the first time last summer on my steel bike that had a 42x18 as the smallest gear, I had to stop twice, but I was really out of shape then. Towards the end of last season I was doing it in a 42x17. It kills me that on this new bike that is 7 pounds lighter than my old bike with better gearing that I cannot do it in something like a 39x17.

If you ever want to take a ride up Sugarloaf and want company, let me know. It is a 25 mile round trip ride from my place. Just won't be able to do it this week because my wife is going to have a baby at some point this week, either on her own or induced.


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## tikitorchfriday

Thanks Bas, I'll look into it.

I saw your other post for that double metric and I've seen that before. I may look into that one also. Me and a friend are doing the Blood Sweat and Gears ride in Boone, NC in July
http://www.bloodsweatandgears.org/

Thanks again!


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## zeytin

fabsroman said:


> Bas,Just won't be able to do it this week because my wife is going to have a baby at some point this week, either on her own or induced.



Congrats!! I hope you'll post the news!:thumbsup:


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## fabsroman

Well, my daughter Arianna was born on 4/17/2007 at 11:35 in the morning. She was 7 pounds 14 ounces and 21 1/4 inches long at birth. My wife actually went into labor on her own and it lasted for 7 hours before the baby was born. Mother and daughter were released from the hospital on Thursday morning. The hospital wouldn't let me sleep in the room, so it was painful to go home on Tuesday and Wednesday night. Here are some pics from Tuesday and Wednesday. The first is with my wife and daughter obviously, and my two brothers and two sisters.


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## TeacherStu

Outstanding!


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## L_Johnny

Congratulations Fabs! She is beautiful.


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## fabsroman

Thanks guys. We just took her for a car ride to my parents. It was the first time she has been to their house since she got home. Man, I thought I was a careful driver before she was born, but now I am really cautious. Sweeping turns and off/on ramps I used to take pretty quickly, I now crawl around to make sure that she has as smooth a ride as possible. People are right, having a kid does change a lot of things.


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## foggypeake

*Congratulations!*

Having a child was THE defining moment in my life. I'm sure that you will experience as much happiness as I have had with mine.

On a lighter note, kids are great until they start to crawl. Once they are mobile, the easy life is over. No more setting them in the little carrier for everyone to admire as they sit still and smile. Of course, I am jaded because our litter is now up to three, and two of those came at the same time (yes, twins!).

That looks a lot like Shady Grove Adventist Hospital, by the way. But then again, I'm sure that most maternity wards look that way.

In all seriousness, enjoy and savor every second.


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## fabsroman

Correct on it being Shady Grove. It is about a 10 minute drive from our place without traffic. The new private birthing suites were supposed to be completed by now, but of course that wasn't the case. They'll be done by this December, so we'll have one for the next kid. Our first set of roommates were horrible. They were cussing up a storm, some of the visitors came drunk, and the mother was 16.

Right now, I am pretty fortunate because Arianna cannot crawl and my wife has 3 months off to take care of the baby while I work. After that, I'll let you guys know how it goes.


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## dingster1

Hey! I work for Shady Grove!! Not in maternity though!! How cool


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## fabsroman

The internet and the airplane have made the world small. Isn't it kind of ironic how we don't even know our own neighbors. 100 years ago, I bet most people knew their neighbors.

Dingster,

Tell them they did a great job with my wife and child, but they had better get a move on with the new birth recovery rooms. On the other hand, our birthing room was really nice, and that is what the private recovery rooms are supposed to look like by the end of this year. I have lived in this area my entire life and can remember 15 years ago when Shady Grove used to be a very small hospital and Holy Cross was the place to be. How times change. Where I live now used to be a cow pasture 10 years ago.


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## Red Sox Junkie

I had my first daughter there 3 years ago. Everything was great except the shared room arrangements sucked! My wife was on the side closest to the door. As people came in to see the other person, they would open her curtain and look in. Half the time she was breastfeeding and it was kind of akward! Also her roomate had to go into her section to get to the bathroom. We had our second daughter at Montgomery General. Private rooms, very quiet, and a very attentive staff. Man, your life is gonna change!!!


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## fabsroman

Red Sox,

We had the same issue as you and your wife regarding the shared rooms. Our first roommate and her guests were utterly horrible. They made us want to leave the hospital ASAP. By the end of this year, Shady Grove is supposed to have all private birth receovery rooms, which should make the experience much better.

As far as your handle is concerned, my wife is from Long Island and she is a diehard Yankees fan. Looks like we can't be friends. LOL


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## Red Sox Junkie

Not with the Yankees getting their @sses kicked as of late!


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## fabsroman

Yeah, they have been doing pretty poorly. If I am not mistaken, they lost like 6 or 7 straight and almost lost 6 in a row to Boston. The only reason I know this is because my in-laws were here for 10 days and her dad watched every game on TV. Me, I don't start watching baseball until the playoffs. Same goes for basketball. Even then, sometimes I don't watch them at all. Lately, I am just really disappointed with pofessional sports. I know I am going to be sick when Bonds breaks the record. I cannot think of a more deserving person. LOL


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## Red Sox Junkie

same here. Bonds breaking the record is going to be a sad day. If he breaks it, I hope ARod will end up passing him. I check the standings most days but that's about it. I'll tune in to baseball more in August when the penant races heat up. The season is too damn long to get into it right now. Plus, I'd rather spend time on my bike than sitting on the couch and watching TV.


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## pedalista

*Tanti auguri!*

Hey Fabrizio -

Just in for a few hours of liberty to do laundry, check email and snail mail and then back to Quantico later this pm to finish AT. Should be home 11 May.

Congratulations again on your new arrival. I can't believe I haven't made it up there yet to see her - hope to soon! Regards to the wife.
Again, tanti auguri dal tuo amico e ciao a presto!
K
PS Watching the cyclists on the roads of MCB with envy as I get transported around by bus to the ranges and training sites. I am saving up in I... to get a beautiful bike!


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## fabsroman

Sorry I haven't gotten back to you recently. A client from Florida has been here all week and I haven't ridden since last Wednesday, which showed during today's race when I got dropped. There were a lot of reasons for me getting dropped today. I have barely slept all week and didn't even get 6 hours last night. There was a terrible 2 mile gravel road as part of the course where there were only two spots that were clean from car tires pushing the gravel out of the way. In the gravel section I got stuck behind a guy that let a huge gap open up and I blew everything I had trying to close that gap. I have also come to realize that I am nowhere near as aggresive of a rider as I was 20 years ago. Within the first 3 miles, we almost had 3 wrecks and the course was completely straight. The "almost" wrecks occurred on downhills where people would cost up to the guy in front of them and then slam on the brakes. I saw people in front of me locking up their rear wheel. That probably had me pretty psyched out.

Anyway, shoot me an e-mail when you are headed back here and we can get some riding in. I know I need to put in some miles after today's terrible performance.


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## mikeman

avalonracing said:


> Hey there another Robb here (but with an extra "B"). You'll see me in the Ellicott City/Elkridge area a few times a week as it is my usual training loop, not to mention MTBing down in Avalon (hence the Avalon Racing screen name- I used to run the road & mtb team "Avalon Racing" with a buddy) You'll see me in an red & black Avalon Racing kit or a green & blue Team Snow Valley kit (soon to be the green & blue Latitude kit for 2007).
> 
> I just hopped on the RBR forums as I'm trying to get jazzed up for training and racing again. I had to take off a few years as selling houses was keeping me a little too busy to train. Now with the market back to normal I can get back to some regular riding.
> 
> Say hello if you see me out there.


Is it ok for me to say hi Robb? Dave T here. Are you riding again? Sorry had to give arch a pull up Bonnie Branch. Lars thought that was funny the way he "dropped" you.

Give me a shout or glom on our Tues/Thurs thing at 6am. We ride by your house about 6:12 when we use Glen Road.

Dave


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## mikeman

Tiki:

If you read the Post there was an article about our regular Tuesday/Thursday before work ride. There are a group of us who meet every Tues/Thurs (sometimes MWF too) at 6am at the Childtime Daycare center on 103 and 104. We do a 24 mile loop from there usually New Cut/Oella/Westchester/Frederick/Edmondson/Rolling/144/Rolling/PVSP/LawyersHill/Montgomery Road/Kerger/Ilchester/Bonnie Branch/103. Send a message to me with your email and I can get you on our listserver. We call the group TMR (themorningride). Its about 1,500 feet of climbing in 24 miles.

Dave T


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## avalonracing

mikeman said:


> Tiki:
> 
> If you read the Post there was an article about our regular Tuesday/Thursday before work ride. There are a group of us who meet every Tues/Thurs (sometimes MWF too) at 6am at the Childtime Daycare center on 103 and 104. We do a 24 mile loop from there usually New Cut/Oella/Westchester/Frederick/Edmondson/Rolling/144/Rolling/PVSP/LawyersHill/Montgomery Road/Kerger/Ilchester/Bonnie Branch/103. Send a message to me with your email and I can get you on our listserver. We call the group TMR (themorningride). Its about 1,500 feet of climbing in 24 miles.
> 
> Dave T


How about TER? ( the eveningride) Or the even TMOTDR (themiddleofthedayride) I mean six am??? To paraphrase Bart Simpson "There's a 6 in the morning?" A 6:00AM ride would require me to get up at say... The time I like to go to bed.


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## avalonracing

*the whole story*



mikeman said:


> Is it ok for me to say hi Robb? Dave T here. Are you riding again? Sorry had to give arch a pull up Bonnie Branch. Lars thought that was funny the way he "dropped" you.
> 
> Give me a shout or glom on our Tues/Thurs thing at 6am. We ride by your house about 6:12 when we use Glen Road.
> 
> Dave


Hey this is a public forum! You could have mentioned the details... You were driving a car, Lars was the passenger and Arch was holding on the the window frame! Jeez, you made it should like you guys formed a pace line (that included your ten year old son) and dropped me! Maybe in December but not in April ; )


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## mikeman

avalonracing said:


> Hey this is a public forum! You could have mentioned the details... You were driving a car, Lars was the passenger and Arch was holding on the the window frame! Jeez, you made it should like you guys formed a pace line (that included your ten year old son) and dropped me! Maybe in December but not in April ; )


Cmon Robb, no one would ever think that, now would they?


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## mikeman

avalonracing said:


> How about TER? ( the eveningride) Or the even TMOTDR (themiddleofthedayride) I mean six am??? To paraphrase Bart Simpson "There's a 6 in the morning?" A 6:00AM ride would require me to get up at say... The time I like to go to bed.


Robb:

Just think you can get back home in time for a zesty session and still get to work. Hit two of your favorite activities all before 8am. Now thats what I call achievement!


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## tikitorchfriday

mikeman said:


> Tiki:
> 
> If you read the Post there was an article about our regular Tuesday/Thursday before work ride. There are a group of us who meet every Tues/Thurs (sometimes MWF too) at 6am at the Childtime Daycare center on 103 and 104. We do a 24 mile loop from there usually New Cut/Oella/Westchester/Frederick/Edmondson/Rolling/144/Rolling/PVSP/LawyersHill/Montgomery Road/Kerger/Ilchester/Bonnie Branch/103. Send a message to me with your email and I can get you on our listserver. We call the group TMR (themorningride). Its about 1,500 feet of climbing in 24 miles.
> 
> Dave T


Sorry for the delay, I haven't checked the forums in a while. The morning ride sounds great, but I have to be on the job dressed and ready for work at 7:30am. I don't think I can beat that time. If there are any evening rides or something on the weekends let me know.

Rob


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## zeytin

Fabs, Congrats! The schoolyear is winding down and so I've not been able to check in very much. She is beautiful! 
I hear sleep is far and between in the beginning. Hopefully things will even out soon.


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## jedflip23

Sorry for bringing the old thread back. lol But I lived in Baltimore for a good 5 years and moved to CA and been here for a year now. Its where I got into cycling because its really big up here. So moving on, I will be visiting my girl in MD for 11days on my spring break and I will be bringing my roadie with me to train also for 3 century rides that I will be joining this summer and one is the killer TOC Alps death ride which is my 1st time to join and I think its about 20,000ft of climbing or more. So I'm looking for a good route which is not too busy with cars, a good decent climb, and also some long flats to get my legs spinning. I used to live in Owings Mills area then moved to Catonsville but I will be staying at Rosedale when I get there. Anyway, if anyone can tour me around your training ground on your free time and you are close around then that would be great too. Thanks in advance.

Jed


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## MarkS

jedflip23 said:


> Sorry for bringing the old thread back. lol But I lived in Baltimore for a good 5 years and moved to CA and been here for a year now. Its where I got into cycling because its really big up here. So moving on, I will be visiting my girl in MD for 11days on my spring break and I will be bringing my roadie with me to train also for 3 century rides that I will be joining this summer and one is the killer TOC Alps death ride which is my 1st time to join and I think its about 20,000ft of climbing or more. So I'm looking for a good route which is not too busy with cars, a good decent climb, and also some long flats to get my legs spinning. I used to live in Owings Mills area then moved to Catonsville but I will be staying at Rosedale when I get there. Anyway, if anyone can tour me around your training ground on your free time and you are close around then that would be great too. Thanks in advance.
> 
> Jed


Will you have access to a car or will you be riding from Rosedale? The reason that I ask is that the best climbing is to the west of where you will be; it is relatively flat in Eastern Baltimore County. The riding near Owings Mills is pretty good. There are plenty of short, but steep climbs in Nolrthern Baltimore County. If you want sustained climbs, you will have to travel further west to Frederick and Washington Counties where you can climb South Mountain. 

Mark


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## fabsroman

I will second Mark's recommendation. South Mountain and the Thurmont area are where the best climbs are. I do Sugarloaf right along the Montgomery/Frederick border and it is only 500 feet. Granted, on Saturday it felt like the longest 500 feet ever. I was seriously hurting but tax season has me out of shape.


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## cayuga

real climbs are near Frederick..


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## charlie brown

Jed,

When is your Spring break? I often ride in Owings Mills or the Falls Road area. If our schedules permit, I will meet you and head for the climbs.


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## jedflip23

Well I have a car to use so no problem but the I'm not really familiar around Frederick and Washington Counties. What Route would you suggest Mark? I just want to do a lot of spinning but if there is a good 20+mile climb then that would be perfect but then again like you guys mentioned I might look at West VA area. Anyway how is Loc Raven Loop from White Marsh area? or White Marsh to Westminster? what do you guys think?


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## fabsroman

You are looking for a 20+ mile climb in Maryland, and you say you have lived here before? If there is a 20+ mile climb in Maryland, the average grade would have to be below 1%. If anybody knows of a 20 mile climb in Maryland, I too would love to hear about it.


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## jedflip23

I know that!!! duhhhh lol thats why I said I might have to look at W VA area. Anyway any route suggestion... whats a good loc raven loop....? anybody ride around that area?


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## RayWhitney

fabsroman said:


> I will second Mark's recommendation. South Mountain and the Thurmont area are where the best climbs are. I do Sugarloaf right along the Montgomery/Frederick border and it is only 500 feet. Granted, on Saturday it felt like the longest 500 feet ever. I was seriously hurting but tax season has me out of shape.


Newbie here...

fabsroman, where do you park, and what route do you ride out there?

I live in Howard County and I am trying to find some different weekend rides.

Thanks in advance!


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## fabsroman

Ray,

You can park almost anywhere you like out there. Find a back road and just park on the side of the road. I did that in several places in 2007 when I got back into racing and wanted to pre-ride courses. Parking at Mount Saint Mary's college is also an option, as is Catoctin State Park. There is also a public school right off of 15 on the way up there that my team uses when we get together to climb High Rock.

Once tax season is over I am probably going to try that loop that was posted above. I did Sugarloaf on Saturday and had to do most of it in a 39x23 which is unheard of for me. Usually, I do that climb in a 39x17 with a little time in the 39x19. Needless to say, I wasn't very happy to have to use the 23. If you are interested in doing some riding out there together, let me know and I'll PM you after the 15th.


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## ehuber1

Hey Rob,

There is a group ride that leaves from the Bike Dr. of Linthicum shop every Saturday morning between 8-8:30. We ride the roads around the Avalon section of the park.
It's a good bunch of guys. They usually drop me around mile 30+-.

Eric.


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## mynamesrob

Hi, I'm Rob (part three). If you ever want to feel good about yourself, come ride with me! My average speed going downhill with a sail up and steady wind is about is painfully slow. But I like the joy of being out on two wheels. I won't kill myself for a ride and I like to snap pictures along the way.

You can find me on a brown Cross Check just plugging along. I'm off of Route 1 in Elkridge.

-Rob


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## LostViking

Easton - The roads around here are great for cycling - no real hills though.
My most frequent rides are to Oxford and back or from Easton up through St. Michaels and as far past it as I can stand on any given day. Plan on riding 309 from Easton through Cordova until it hits 404, where I'll turn around.
Anyone else from my neck of the woods?

Anyone riding the Soft Shell out of Crisfield in late May? I'm gonna go for my first metric. century


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