Spring is here, finally, and oh, it felt good to be out on the Surly on Wednesday, skirt waving in the wind, sun on my face! That whole rebirth-in-spring business isn’t just for bunny rabbits and Jesus Christ–it’s for bicyclists, too, even those of us who ride year round. I started my ride heading up the hill and to the right for a trip to the dentist before heading to Lake Montebello for a few laps with a slew of pedestrians and one very, very cute puppy: “He’s not as good as he looks–he already ate two pairs of shoes!” Continue reading
Lake Montebello
Geese Walking on Water on the South Side of Lake Montebello
It was a balmy winter day in Baltimore on Monday–almost 40 degrees–and Tuesday promised another cool down, so I had to get in a rare ride. I know, I know, I could ride on the freezing icy snow days–let a little air out of bigger tires, wrap my feet in plastic bags, take all the lanes. I see my downstairs neighbor Z. riding up to our door from his daily commute downtown, so I know it can be done, but I’ve decided to walk/catch a ride/take the train until the icy patches are gone and I can ride without my fingertips going numb. It’s a frustrating situation, though, so we’ll see how much longer it can last. Continue reading
Mother’s Garden in Clifton Park at 32nd & Harford Road
Monday was my last free day before the start of a new semester, so after finishing up some syllabi (syllabuses?) it was most assuredly time to take a bike ride. I headed north and east toward Lake Montebello to do some easy laps with the rest of the Mondays-off crowd. I rode through sprinklers and past geese having their afternoon snacks, followed the sign to Morgan State only to hit a dead end 45 seconds later (construction, always with the construction), and after a third lap got off the trail and onto the street to explore the neighborhood. Continue reading
Weaving Bee at Chase & Barclay
So today I decided to ride my bike somewhere out of traffic where I could just pedal for 15 or 20 miles to see how far I could go without stopping. My big charity ride is months away, but it’s 140 miles–I need to start racking up time in t he saddle now. The sun was shining, temps in the mid-40s, and aside from the pesky wind machine, it was an awfully good day for a bike ride. I hopped on and headed toward Lake Montebello for as many trips around the circle I could stand. Continue reading
View Down the Herring Run Park Trail Near Parkside & Harford Road
Today was just the perfect Sunday. I woke up early, did a little reading, and then took the Brompton to S.’s for a ride over to Patterson Park where we met friends for a walk. There were dogs, guys practicing football, loud noises coming from the ice rink, a trip down the slide, swinging, a round of knee-slap (S. invented this excellent game–ask her for a demo next time you see her), and then we found a basketball and discovered that C. is a good shot and S. can get significant air. Continue reading
Corner House at Mayfield & Kenly
Today’s ride took me over to Lake Montebello for an easy couple of laps around before heading to the frozen yogurt place. I was feeling rather out of sorts, and it took awhile for the ride to put me back in. Near the end of the first lap I got off the path and rode around the surrounding neighborhoods a bit. Continue reading
View From the East Side of Lake Montebello
I had a super long day at work, including a frustrating last hour and a half–it’s hard to advise students who haven’t been given the space to develop discernible interests–and the last thing I had the energy for was a bicycle ride. I had some errands I had to do, though, and they were all within a 2 mile radius, so there I was, on the bike–it’s just faster that way. Continue reading
What I Saw Riding My Bike Around Today 