Papa Tom

Sitting on a moldy but shaded park bench in downtown Milford now. The ride along Pulaski, 25a, and backroads was somewhat mind-clearing, but not totally. I think I need a Greenport to Sag Harbor ride pretty soon.

GlennR

Headed out of Greenlawn on a group ride. About 5 miles out I hit a patch of rough road and my water bottle when flying. I left it and kept with the group. Later I notice that the bottom bolt that holds the cage snapped and the remainder was still in the bung.

On the way home I stopped by Brickwell in Syosset and Mark used a pick to remove it without damaging the bung or the carbon frame.

What looked like a problem was no problem at all.

Anyway.. it was damn hot today. I hope you all drank plenty of water.

snow_echo_NY

@oldnslow2 @Steve B. - thanks for the experienced tips! will try that and come back when i'm able to do it and post how it goes.

Papa Tom

I sure hope none of you guys were among the several dickish riders I came across on my ride out to Port Jeff this past weekend. In one case, a group of about 12 - all on expensive bikes with flawless team jerseys - flew around me as I was stopped at a red light in a busy intersection. These guys then blew right through the light as cross traffic started moving, startling drivers and causing a chorus of screeching brakes and elbow-on-the-horn honks as some riders swerved and swayed around bumpers, not missing the chance to give drivers the finger or spew curses at them in the process.

In general, none of the cyclists that passed going in the other direction gave a wave or a nod, something I always do in an attempt to make the world a better place. And the young, Lycra-clad kids that I happened to pass only because I had more momentum going than they did didn't even respond to my friendly teasing about "C'mon...you gonna let an old man pass ya?"

The friendliest guy I met was probably in his seventies, riding a classic Peugot ten-speed with cracking, rotted tires on the sidewalk. He looked like he had just gotten on the bike after a long time away from it and he seemed to be enviously watching me cruise down 25a with my bike loaded, singing along to country tunes coming from my handlebars. So I slowed down and we talked for about a quarter-mile. He told me he hoped to be able to ride all the way to the supermarket down the road someday and I told him I believed he would. We then agreed to meet at the same spot next year and ride all the way to the Port Jeff Ferry. It'll never happen, but it's a memory that we will both keep, and it's the reason I bicycle.

So which one of you is the guy on the Gary Fisher who told me I couldn't get back to 25a by making a left? It was not only to the left, but it was only 1/4 mile down the road!

Papa Tom

If it doesn't rain on Sunday 7/26, I'm training out to Pt. Jeff, where I ended my ride last weekend, and I am riding a 45-mile route to the Greenport LIRR station. I have modified the suggested Google Maps route to include all of North Country Road, Rocky Point Road, and Sound Avenue (instead of boring 25A). It will be a little hillier, but I think it will be a lot more scenic and peaceful. More details after the ride!

FOLLOWUP: Despite being caught in a torrential downpour at the very beginning and several showers afterward, this was a great ride of about 44 miles. I am posting details in a separate post entitled "Long Island: Port Jefferson to Greenport."

GlennR

Just completed a "soft pedal" 20 miles.

Its HOT, even at 7:00pm

Papa Tom

Hey, what's wrong with 20 miles? Where did you go? What did you see?

GlennR

Massapequa, rode up the bikeway where it was a easy 5-10* cooler. At the LIE I turned around and too Round Swamp back and passed through Farmingdale and stopped at Brickwell Multisport to see this:



New Trek Madone 9. To bad its only a 52cm, so no test ride for me.

GlennR

Massapequa to Oyster Bay and back. Still not at my best after having an intestinal virus last Sunday.

kaos joe

My default destination this summer, both solo and not, seems to have become Crab Meadow beach east of Northport. From home 55 miles door to door or 45 if I start from Bethpage. A very nice place to sit in the pavilion at the turnaround. Today, I only had time for a quickie so did the Tobay thing, 27 miles from home in spite of the big south wind.

GlennR

Great ride this morning.

My son and daughter-in-law are in for the weekend for a wedding. The 3 of us, along this is best friend and his friend's aunt and uncle headed to Tobay.

It was a 6 person group ride leaving from my front door...

We headed out at 6:00am, the weather was cool and the roads were empty.

Couldn't of been a nicer ride.

GlennR

Today must of been "A"hole day.

I headed north and on Stewart Ave, a wide road two lanes each way with no traffic and a wide shoulder, a SUV comes up behind and pushes me almost into the curb. There was no one in the left lane so it was obvious he did it on purpose.

A few miles later a car runs a stop sign and never looked. Luckily I saw it and missed it.

Heading south on Round Swamp I came to the triangle and signaled that I was following the flow and going left. Well, a car coming the other was, which has a yield sign, at first slowed down and then decided to beat me to the intersection.

Finally heading to Farmingdale I approached a red light with a car waiting. It turns green and the car doesn't move. I slow down but there's no signal and the brake light is still on. I decide to pass in the left turn lane and as i pass the car makes a left from the right lane.

Was it a full moon or something?

Anyway.. had a great ride. 30 miles @ 16.1mph into a 14mph headwind.

GlennR

Today was a much better day.

Headed out at 5:30am for Tobay. Made it from Massapequa to Tobay without stopping... made every light or the intersection was clear. The temp were cool and almost no wind... averaged 18.1mph all the way to Tobay. Took a break at Jones and headed home. 30 miles in less than 2 hours with a break.

AWESOME

kaos joe

It WAS a nice cool almost fall-like morning....I rode to REI in Carle Place to pick up some food items for an upcoming backpacking trip. 41 miles and not a bad ride except for the final 400 terrifying yards on Glen Cove Rd. I always bail onto the sidewalk there.

FIVE ONE SIX

you should watch this weeks episode of the Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, cause they had a story about Cars vs. Cyclists, and how it's going to do nothing but get worse than what it is today. they show some video footage of riders with cams that i personally couldn't believe happened. it was a pretty good story, check it out on demand...

that's a good idea, cause that whole section by the mall and the other side are an accident waiting to happen. believe it or not, the red-light cameras at the RF Mall intersection generate over $1.2 million dollars a year, and that's the only red-light camera intersection that actually generates more accidents with the cameras then without them. the county doesn't take the cameras down though, cause the accidents are not major accidents, and it's an extra $1.2 million in their pockets every year that goes to nothing that it's supposed to...

Steve B.

On the other hand, it's $1.2 million that would need to be be absorbed by all the taxpayers of Nassau. Instead it's fines paid by idiots with bad driving habits.

Thus I'm fine with these camera's and have no problem bringing back the school speed zone cameras.

FIVE ONE SIX

well, the point i was trying to make was that the purpose of a red-light camera is to make an intersection safer, which is what they have done in every other intersection they're used in except that one. with that said, it is proven fact that more accidents happen at that particular intersection now with the cameras than before without the cameras, so based on the fact that they're supposed to improve safety and they're not at that particular intersection the safe thing to do would be to remove them to make it a safer intersection. they're still there though, because the $1.2 million income every year is sadly more important then the drivers safety...

Steve B.

I understand what you are saying, but having just done a bunch of on-line browsing about this, I'm not seeing that more people are getting injured due to more rear-end accidents, though that might be the case. More accidents - yes, but injuries ?, not sure. So not sure of the safety factor.

Still, at some point after you introduce something new, it takes time for folks to get used to the idea. I think at this intersection people will NEVER get used to the concept of a red-light camera, if only because there are so many folks racing for a sale at the mall that they just drive stupid. If they tail gate somebody thru an intersection and that person in front hits the brakes, well we just trained another motorist to not tailgate. All good in my book.

The theory of the red-light camera's, as well as the school zone camera's is that it takes time to train motorists that they will get a ticket for running a red light and that the car in front of them may actually slow and stop on a yellow. What a concept. As well the speed limit in a school zone is enforced. Again, what a concept !. I was not surprised that any number of spineless politicians opted out of the school zone camera program, rather then simply admitting there were problems, refunding the fines and fixing the problems. The concept is a good one, as far as I'm concerned. Same with red-light camera's.

GlennR

Went on a group ride at Brickwell, Farmingdale. There were only 5 of use and we headed out on the LIE service road. 23 miles @ 16.5mph.... good ride, except we got caught int he rain for the last 5 miles..

kaos joe

We've been out in Montauk all week and have been riding the tandem every morning early, heading west into the Hamptons and doing around 40 on the back roads. Remarkably little traffic if you avoid 27. We get back 9ish and join rest of family for breakfast, and then the beach. Have also been fishing the surf with a perfectly unbroken failure to catch any fish.
Returning tomorrow and hurriedly packing for a very different sort of trip to the BearTooth Mountains in Montana, having traded bike for boots. Starting Sunday will not see any man made object for a week other than what we are carrying in our packs.

GlennR

Massapequa - Sagamore Hill - Massapequa... awesome ride.

GlennR

Rode out to Commack... that completed 201 miles for the week.

Papa Tom

WWhoa...Sagamore Hill is looking more like Howard Johnson's since the renovation, isn't it?

GlennR

The awnings are only out in the afternoon during the summer. The shade was much appreciated, along with the cold water at the ranger station.

sdivek

Where does the Bethpage Park bike path start?