Good sleep right out in lights. Bfast & a treat of a Sunday morn paper over a 2nd cup of cold brewed coffee. Left in time to arrive @ jamboree just after registration opening at 9:00AM. I scored a front row parking spot.

It turned out that I did not fall back last night & I was an hour early. Somehow I was introduced to the club pres, the club founder, and a skilled 63 year old rider who was to be my ride leader. I learned a few things from each of them.

Big parking lot filled up. Lots of riders in the hundreds to ride on this big former Dupont estate. First time for me to participate in a big non race party ride. Rode with like 21 riders at start until group split out, still group was about 13. Different riding styles depending upon whom I was behind. Silly riders on hard tail 29ers: their lines are forced, a rear suspension carves a tighter and more varied line. Great trails, tread mostly smooth and added in some interesting tight trails. Shared with horse riders. Chilly w/ brisk wind. Riding in forest crunching the fallen leaves. Like 20 miles in 2 1/2 hours and almost 2000′ vert. The climbs are all short and almost constant: little knibbers up and downs.

Was given some future ride ideas. Founding pres, Ken, winters in FL and he gave me several ride suggestions.

Plan was to ride Patapsco outside Baltimore on Monday. Needed to figure out a road intersection to plug into the GPS. Sort of succeeded. Incredible route: I picked shortest route and I saw scenery that only the locals know about. Nuts on also.

Found a quiet office building parking lot, parked beside a large box truck. Nice to be off main highway for no traffic noise. Parked last row away from building. In Am cars started filling the rows closest the bldg. Needed to time my departure to cync with ebbing commute traffic. Re located Patapsco ride location & plugged it into GPS and headed out. Again, what a route and right on.

The park visitor center was closed so a park map was not obtainable. I decide to bag the ride and drive further to Frederick, MD to ride the watershed. I found a bike shop address and plugged it in to gps. Arrived right at doorstep. Listened to a shop person describe a ride and I bought the map.

Drove up a mountain to about 1200′ on a rocky ridge. I was told that the ride would be rocky. Yes, there were rocks and then there were rock gardens and then there was a hike a bike rock garden. I failed my first garden. Using clipless pedals and being clipped in does allow for a panic foot plant to prevent a body fall slam so I usually chicken out before I might have been able to finesse the move. Getting better at it. Practice track stands and riding in slow tight circles to develop balance and confidence. Some rocks I ride up to and compress the fork that stops forward momentum but the momentum overcomes the compression and I move forward. I still lack the snap for an uphill power stroke. 10.35 miles in 1 3/4 hours.

Plan then was to camp at Grambill Camp Ground (XG) and take a shower. Darn, it was closed, put a hole in my plans. Parked in a grocery store and did internet research for WVA rides. Parking spot looked like I might have been able to pull off a successful sleep but decided that I could find a better one further West where I was heading anyway. Drove into Hagerstown following GPS directions to hospital looking for a dr’s parking lot. Found an unnamed lot near the hospital across the street from a local watering hole. Might get loud tonight.

Shortened daylight hours make finding a spot to crash earlier in the day. The trick is to wait for the business to close, slide in, fix dinner, do internet stuff, sleep, fix bfast, clean up and dash before the business opens. And not get rousted.

Tomorrow is West Virginia: Country Roads Take Me Home.

Drove by Antietam Creek and Harper’s Ferry road.

No pictures taken as the forests appear the same.

Last night I chose an office bldg parking lot, adjacent was a medical office. The medical was opened today but the office was quiet. What luck.

Set up GPS last night. This AM I searched for grocery stores and it guided me to one just across the street. Hot damn. Figured out intersection of mansion TH and it navigated me right to it. Sold on it. Letting go of challenging thinking & reasoning is hard to give up to a device that does all the thinking. Will learn how to make it pick my roads.

Beautiful day and very warm. Ben & Greg from Hershey, PA drove into parking lot & we struck up a conversation, and true to form, I globbed onto their ride. They had the same better trail map that the Susans had making decision making more informed. Shorts but knee warmers for good measure.

Wandered around, great riding, trails are mostly smooth but twisty & lots of little ups & downs. trail construction created loose dirt so it was piled on trail to make small humps that I could launch off for some air. Regrowth forest of lots of beech. No pictures when ride with others and the trails look like other broadleaf forests.

Plan after ride was to score a shower and fill the propane. No GPS work here, just blind groping. Hit gas station to ask for phone book. Attendant told me of propane down the street. I wrote info on 2 XGs & headed down street. Passed fitness & racket club. Bought shower for $10. I am now enjoyably clean.

Roads here don’t permit left turns so the driver finds an intersection and U turn around. What a chore to drive into gas station w/ propane. 4.5 gallons in a week. Used heater all night several times. Cold weather refill every maybe 10 days.

Temp hit 71. Somewhat sweaty after shower.

Drove to Fair Hill Natural Area, Maryland where tomorrow’s ride will be. No camping. Drove a bit further down highway to newly opened bank building right alongside highway. parked under parking lot lights, just out in the open. May I have a peaceful night.

14.36 miles & 1400′. Liked the ride so much I did it a second time and still did not ride all trails. More people both riders & hikers today. Rode a section to trail that had the dirt mounds as a downhill. We passed a lesser skilled group of riders before the whoops. I know I had some launching and recovery fun. We stopped alongside trail after the whoops and listened to the hooting of those riders. You think they were celebrating 8 seconds on a bronco.

Oh, Postville, IA is in the news again, this time the son of the founder is in jail for harboring illegal aliens for financial gain. Something about it all. The author wrote about his knowledge of operation & published back in like ’06. Took till summer of ’08 for feds to move in.

Uneventful sleep, traffic abated late at night & picked up for AM commute. Slept w/o heat, bit chilly. Suspect the down blanket doubled up will require heat for comfort. Need to buy propane soon to learn of consumption.

Found local bike shop about 5 blocks from where I slept. Waited until they opened and used their Pedros grease gun to lube bushings. Randy, 1 bushing wouldn’t take any and several others grudging accepted some. And you say that you are continually greasing the bushings? I will buy the gun from Turner.

Drove out to Brandywine Creek just a little ways away. In DE you are never far from something in state.

Beautiful day: short fingered gloves, short jersey and no knee warmers. Wandered around, Not many miles, leaves still are on and floor is still dark.

Last night I started researching auto GPS units. I have made some navigation errors and have been frustrated upon occasion trying to decipher small scale rand mcnally. Today on drive to somewhere I retraced my AM route to a Best Buy for hands on shopping. I spent maybe an hour learning & quizzing 2 knowledeable salesman. Finally bought a Garmin nuvi 205, their basic unit but it still speaks instructions in a pleasant female voice. I can shut her off, however.

Searched out an office complex just behind bike shop. Quieter off highway further & some partial bldg blockage.

No shower for day 2, didn’t try to find one.

Wed shower at Cal’s I noticed like a scab hanging from my belly. It moved and felt like it was an attached scab and if I pulled it loose I would have a good bleed. How a wound got there escaped my recall. And no further exam was performed. Today when I changed into riding clothes I looked w/ my glasses on and discovered it was a tick buried into my slack belly skin, probably not much blood supply. I had been a host to a tick for like 3 days. The site is red and worried, I hope all the mouth parts came out. Just small details.

Set up gps and loaded in a destination. Looks like it will work. Trick is to make it think like I do for driving back roads.

Halloween. No trick or treaters.

Made some log climb over moves and bested a small rock garden; Platform / clipless pedals would instill confidence to know i can bail with a foot down before a clipped in clipless fall smacks down.