Bicycling in Bloomington

 Not the Hilly Hundred weekend, of course. But I rode just about as far as the Hilly (96 miles total) on Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday, I rode the 60K version of the Hoosier Hills Tour. I chose the shorter ride because I was going to the IU football game at noon. My computer showed 40+ miles but it’s longer partially because I rode to and from the start at Jackson Creek Middle School.

I started fairly early. I might have left the school before 8. I ride the course regularly, so I knew it well. It seems that there weren’t many riders. I passed only a few before the first rest stop at Chapel Hill and 3 riders passed me. From the time I turned on Chapel Hill until I reached the school, I didn’t see another Tour rider.

The lunch stop was moved this year from the Monroe Lake overlook to an elementary school. I wasn’t paying attention, so I went to the old lunch stop. Surprised to see no one there. I was the first rider to reach the lunch stop at about 9:30 or so. It’s not lunch time at 9:30 so I didn’t eat much.

Overall, the day was pleasant (cool to start; warm at the end), the traffic relatively light although heavier than a Sunday morning, and I wished I had time to do the longer ride.

Sunday, I rode about 56 miles. I rode a typical course through the Morgan Monroe forest. It seems that a bike race was happening in the Forest sometime on Sunday but later than when I was there. After leaving the Forest, I crossed 37 and continued the typical route. At Denny Rd, I turned right to stay on Ditmore instead of going straight onto Denny (another place where the road takes a right turn). My map indicates that Ditmore would join Bottom, so it was an alternate way. I was curious.

However, I found myself on Buskirk Rd. Buskirk has a very steep hill that was unexpected. Then, I determined by the sun that I was going north instead of south. Eventually, I reached Burma Rd and became aware that I was riding the Sunday Hilly route backwards. I continued on the route using Salem and Paragon Rds to reach 37, crossed to Old 37 and climbed back up to the Forest entrance. Then, for the second time, I went down the hill and up to Hindustan (for the second time). From there I continued on Old 37 to Bethel Ln, turned onto the Griffey Lake Rd, up the hill from the Lake and home.

Like Saturday, the weather was pleasant. I don’t think I felt warm until after the Griffey climb. I saw some interesting animals, such as a lone turkey in a field. (I’ve always seen turkeys in groups before.) I saw chickens loose on Bethel Ln but that’s not unusual. Some deer on Anderson Rd. Traffic was light

Counting Thursday’s ride, I rode the following big hills over the weekend - Stipp, Mission Valley (the Alps), Ramp Creek, Bean Blossom, Hindustan (twice), Buskirk, two hills on Old 37, and the climb from Griffey. Buskirk seemed the most challenging but maybe it’s because it’s the first time I rode it.

I monitored my heart rate on the hills when I started and it seemed to be lower than previous rides. I also increased the gears a little. I rode the last mile of Bean Blossom in my “4″ gear which I’ve never used before on the hill. I rode up to Hindustan in the “3″ gear for the first time. On both climbs, my heart rate was lower than earlier in the summer despite the bigger gears. However, when I rode the hill to Hindustan a second time about 1.5 hours later, my heart rates was about 7-8 bpm faster but I used the same gear.

I saw many bicyclists going the opposite direction - I’d guess 50 overall with 2 larger packs. Very unusual to see so many. But, it’s not surprising. It was a nice day for “enjoying” the Monroe County hills.

A few different issues in this post.

Weekend Ride. This past weekend, I was in South Bend. On Sunday morning, I rode for 2 hours in southern Michigan. It’s not as hilly as Bloomington but there were some hills. The flats were a little intimidating because I didn’t know how hard to ride them. The traffic was a heavier than Bloomington and the cars passed at much faster speeds. The flat, relatively straight roads increase driving speeds. But overall, the traffic wasn’t frightening and the ride was a pleasant experience.  It made me appreciate riding in Bloomington even more even though my average speed was more than 1 mph faster than I usually ride.

New Dan Henrys. I confirmed with an organizer of the September Escapade that the new dan henrys reported in earlier posts were part of that ride. They make more sense. Those who do the ride are experienced bicyclists. If I were riding the September Escapade, I would appreciate many stop signs and traffic lights. Traffic control makes the ride easier than steady pedaling all day. And, the event is for fun, so it’s consistent with the goals.

I also heard from Bloomington Rec and Park (Hoosier Hills sponsor), that some TRIRI dan henrys will be repainted Friday after the TRIRI riders go through. That’s better than competing dan henrys.

Meeting with the Bicycle/Pedestrian Safety Commission. I attended the Commission meeting on Monday night to ask them to consider two issues. 1) I would like the commission to ask the city to substantially improve the Polly Grimshaw Trail. Second, I asked them to consider the road striping and its impact on bicycling when roads are designed or upgraded. I pointed out a part of my daily commute that is made more dangerous because the striping leads drivers to move closer to the right shoulder on a turn where it’s difficult to see bicyclists. They were very good listeners and I hope that they can successfully convince the city to improve the Trail.

Alternate Street for Commuting. During the meeting, the chair said that he travels on High Street because he thinks Sare Rd (part of my daily commute) is dangerous. The streets are parallel and about 1/3 mile apart. I think the opposite. So, on the ride home from the meeting, I rode on High St.

Actually, going south, it wasn’t too bad. While the road is narrow, it’s possible to ride fast enough to keep up with traffic. Traffic on High St travels at street speeds; traffic on Sare Rd travels at warp speeds. I see his point. But, I’m not sure if it’s a comfortable going north on High St because it’s generally uphill and maintaining traffic speed would be more difficult.

High St has a feel of a city street while Sare Rd has the feel of a country road. When I first arrived in Bloomington, Sare Rd was a narrow country road and not at all safe for bicyclists. Much of it was improved about 10-12 year ago and it made bicycling safer except for two spots. Before the improvements, I commuted on High St and didn’t think it was dangerous. My office has moved since then, so commuting on High St doesn’t make sense but if it did, I would try it for awhile.

I ran instead of riding Monday-Wednesday because of time constraints. Thursday, I rode a variation of the Hoosier Hills 20K ride. It was nice to get out for about an hour. I checked my computer and the ride is longer than 20K. Because of daylight saving time, sunrise is late and it makes it more difficult to get in an early morning ride.

Sorry for the unfocused post.

 On Tuesday morning, I rode a fairly typical ride for me - Old 446. But, I rode first to Jackson Creek School, the start of the Hoosier Hills, to see if the mysterious dan henrys might cause some confusion at the start of the Hoosier Hills. As of Tuesday, they will possibly cause problems because they indicate the route goes onto College Mall Rd instead of turning east towards 446.

When I got to the Old 446 portion of the ride (Knightbridge Rd), I noticed some dan henrys going in the other direction (north). They were along Old 446 to the south end. At the end, I saw one dan henry that had “TRIRI” painted with it.

It appears that the dan henrys that I’ve observed lately are possibly directions for the TRIRI September Escapade. It would explain the directions and my confusion. The dan henrys make more sense as part of point-to-point rides.

The September Escapade sounds like a fun week. It’s another example of the variety of good bicycling experiences available in the Bloomington area.

At the same time, there is often too much going on in the Bloomington area. On Tuesday, IU Athletics announced that the IU-Illinois game will start at noon on September 22; the day of the Hoosier Hills. I will have to start early and do the 60K ride instead of the 100K. I do the 60K fairly often around Monroe Lake, so it won’t be as much fun as the 100K ride.

 Sunday, I was not able to do a long ride because I was scheduled for repairs to my internet cable. They told me that I would have 30 minutes warning, so I thought that I should not be more than 8 miles from home at any point. I rode my commuter bike instead of my road bike.

I started first by following the dan henrys that followed a bizarre route that I mentioned in an earlier post. I followed them past Union, on 7^th St to Jordan, up to 10^th, onto Fee, and to the Bypass. From Sare / Rogers to the Bypass, the route passes through 9 traffic lights and 7 stop signs. Quite a few for 4 miles on a bike ride.

From there, the route went down to Lake Griffy and up to Bethel Lane. The commuter bike performs better on wet hills than my road bike so that the climb out of the Lake went smoothly. On my road bike, I tend to slide a lot while climbing steep hills when the road is wet. At Bethel Lane, the route turned towards 45, so I was able to follow it and stay within 8 miles. At Boltinghouse, an optional “hill climb” route was indicated on the road. At 45, the route turned left toward Unionville and I couldn’t follow because it would have taken me further from home. And, it started to rain harder.

I’ve often mentioned the Boltinghouse hill in previous posts. Here is a story (posted with permission from the Herald Times) of a unique ride on Boltinghouse Hill.

I decided to make a detour off 45 onto Russell Rd which intersects with 45 on both ends. I was surprised to find that it was very similar to the Lake Griffy road - a steep downhill and a long climb out.

Back on 45, I headed towards town and turned left on Smith Rd. I followed Smith (name changes to Rogers) to Snoddy where I picked up the route that I started to follow, but going in the other direction. I followed it backwards to Harrell and then Moffitt. However, at Moffit and Stipp, I could see that the Hoosier Hills dan henrys were down. And, they use the same pattern. So, I’m not sure what route I was following backwards.

I went down Moore’s Creek and up Swartz Ridge. I haven’t gone up Swartz Ridge in 15 years. It’s tough at the bottom. While on Swartz Ridge, I saw another “senior” rider who I met last winter on a ride in the same area. He rides a single-speed Little 5 bike. No idea how he climbs hills with it. We rode for a couple miles but parted at the point where Old 446 crosses 446. He went right, I went left. I then followed 446 to 46 to the east end of Bloomington.

My next goal was to check out the improvements to the bike / ped path that parallels 10^th and 3^rd Sts. A couple weeks ago, I sent some photos to the city streets department that showed some problems on the path and I wanted to see any improvements. On my way there, I saw a group doing tai ji in a park. I joined them for awhile.

The bike/ped path was improved on the east end. A few overhangs could hit bicyclists but the sides were relatively clear. The west end between Pete Ellis Dr and the Bypass needs more improvement. The path was muddy with overgrown weeds on the sides. Some overhangs are present. Overall, it’s not a good path for commuting in work clothes.

From there, I went home. The ride was almost 35 miles and with the number of hills, so not a bad ride constrained by a variety of choices and conditions. I rode in the big ring as much as possible. But, overall the ride was slow because of the disjointed activities. The roads were busier than I usually experience but none was uncomfortable or caused any problems for me or the drivers. Long rides are usually fun and give a sense of accomplishment. Sometimes, disjointed, unusual rides can be even more fun.

 This is the second post that describes the conditions of Monroe County roads outside of Bloomington. Other posts referenced in this post:

Monroe County Roads, Part 1

Bloomington Streets, Part 1

Bloomington Streets, Part 1a

Bloomington Streets, Part 2

Bloomington Streets, Part 3

County road surfaces range from very good (a small proportion) to rough and potholed (a much larger proportion). But, most would be considered as fair. I’ve noticed over the years that roads will deteriorate, get fixed, and slowly deteriorate again. Smooth roads are unusual but few are really difficult to ride. Usually, only short sections are serious problems for bicyclists.

Few roads are wide or have shoulders that bicyclists might use. They are generally narrow country roads. The landowners and the county road crews do not cut the weeds back from the roads, so during the summer, the weeds go over the roadway. On the recent rides, I was sometimes forced to ride farther from the shoulder than I normally would because of weeds.

Overall, the roads are relatively lightly traveled but there are no enforced speed limits. There are few posted speed limit signs and I have never seen any police enforcement on rural roads in the 20 years I’ve been riding in Monroe County. Drivers can choose any speed, so many drive too fast. However, except for a few drivers (SUV drivers mostly) they seem to be cautious and considerate.

The roads are relatively clean. I rarely see glass or other dangerous obstacles on the roads. Because the cars go at autobahn speeds, the roads are narrow, there are few shoulders and curbs, the hazards get blown off the roadway. The road sides are different. Hoosiers use road sides as part of their waste management system.

Perhaps the most challenging part of riding on the county roads is the lack of road signs with the road names. Bicyclists should assume that road signs are rare, random, and sometimes wrong. For example, on the recent Sunday ride, I had to guess where to turn off Popcorn Rd on to Rockport Rd. I did not see a sign for Rockport Rd until I turned off it about 10 miles later. I would guess that no more than 25% of intersections have signs for both roads and many intersections have no signs. Getting lost is easy.

Maps have little value. I often carry one when I’m riding in parts of the county that I don’t know well. I use the map as general guide to where I am, but not where I’m going. It usually takes a couple looks at the map to figure my location if I get lost. My advice - don’t ride far from town without an experienced rider.

The road naming is also confusing. Road names will often change without any indication or reason. For example, a road near my house goes for about five miles and has four different names. Roads can make right turns at intersections and have the same name. For example, Leonard Springs turns right and left at intersections. None are signed so a rider would think s/he is on Leonard Springs but actually on a different road. Northeast of Bloomington, Maple Grove Rd intersects with Maple Grove Rd. Many roads share names in different parts of the county, e.g., Ratliff Rd. Overall, the road naming is confusing and can create problems for bicyclists.

Dogs can be a problem on the county roads. Many residents allow their dogs to run loose. While the dogs might not necessarily bite, they often bark at and chase bicyclists. The dogs’ guardians will usually say something like “he won’t hurt you” but it’s not reassuring when the dog is snarling.

Some county roads are like Rockport Rd with many short, steep hills. These roads tend to be west of Bloomington. Sometimes I’m surprised to find myself on a road that I didn’t know was so hilly.

At the same time, the county roads have many attractive features. Bicyclists can ride through beautiful farmland and forests. There are many vistas west of Bloomington that are especially nice. On the east side, bike rides that go by Lake Lemon and Monroe Lake present attractive scenery.

One especially nice feature of the country roads is that is possible to find quiet. On Sunday’s ride going up to Kirksville on Rockport Rd, I really noticed how quiet it was. Because I was going slow, there was no riding noise, so neither the bike nor my ears created any sound. It was almost frightening that it was so quiet.

I’ve have also seen much wildlife on the rides. Deer are very common in both the county and the city. Wild turkeys will often cross the roads; I’ve seen them often by Monroe Lake. While coyotes are shy, I generally see a few each year. I saw one near the intersection of Vernal and Oard on Monday. I’ve seen some big birds with massive wingspans but I can’t identify them. The lakes and streams have herons, egrets, and many other birds I don’t recognize.

I’ve been riding these roads for 20 years and almost always find something pleasurable on each ride. The low traffic volume makes riding fun and the scenery is often very nice. The scenery changes by the season so there is always something new to appreciate. I sometimes choose routes during different seasons, e.g., the Kirksville ride in the winter, just to enjoy the scenery.

Overall, bicycling on the county roads is generally a pleasant experience, especially if you don’t get lost because of the poor signage.

 Based on the number and variety of “dan henrys” that I see on the roads, there are quite a few organized rides. However, I don’t know how they are publicized or where more information can be found. Many dan henrys follow the traditional pattern but some are different.

On my recent ride around the Lake and through Harrodsburg and Kirksville, I started seeing some dan henrys just below the Monroe Dam. They are white and have “MS” painted next to them. I followed them through Harrodsburg. It seemed they ended on Ketcham Rd at a shelter but I’m not sure. The paint was relatively fresh, so I assume it either just happened or will happen soon.

This morning, I observed a much more puzzling set of yellow dan henrys on my morning commute. Starting (for me) at the corner of Sare, Moore’s and College Mall, I saw a dan henry pointing north onto College Mall Rd. The dan henrys followed College Mall Rd and turned left (across 2 traffic lanes) into the Eastland Plaza shopping center parking lot. The route exited the parking lot at Woodcrest, turned right, crossed 3^rd St on to Hillsdale, and then left on 7^th St. At 7^th and Union, I had to turn to my office on Union but the last dan henry I observed pointed to continuing on 7^th. I will follow the route further on Saturday.

This is a strange route for an organized ride. College Mall Rd traffic travels at autobahn speeds and crossing two lanes to make a left turn is challenging for an experienced rider. I hope the road is closed during the ride. I often ride across the Eastland parking lot. It’s sorta fun to see which cars will put out in front of me. And, it has 2 stop signs that create more traffic confusion than traffic control. The light at 3^rd St and Woodcrest is tripped by a wire that is totally unresponsive to bicyclists. I know because I cross it every day. I hope the organizers realize the challenges of that part of the ride.

Other dan henrys that I see, mostly north and east of Bloomington, are green, white, orange/pink and mark many roads. One set (orange/pink) that I reported on earlier, is especially challenging. If anyone has more information on these rides, please post a comment.

In this post, I describe three rides. These rides are different from previous rides and they were done partially to gather current data on road conditions in Monroe County outside Bloomington. In the subsequent post, I describe the road conditions.

Sunday Ride

After 4 weeks, I was able to ride again on Sunday. I rode around Monroe Lake: S on 446, west on Chapel Hill; some unmarked roads to the dam. Instead of going north on Stain Ridge, I continued west, under 37, into Harrodsburg, Popcorn Rd, Rockport Rd, That Rd, to Clear Creek, Schacht Rd, Handy Rd, Stipp, Moore’s Creek, Rhorer, and Sare. It was a pleasant morning. The ride was a little slower than usual but I didn’t feel too bad after a month off. A flat on Moore’s Creek Rd took some fun out of the day. It was about 52 miles.

I started at first light and it was very cool, especially going down to the causeway. Climbing out from the causeway, I could smell my sunscreen cooking, so I knew it would get warmer. But, I wasn’t pushing hard because my HR was only 130 at the top. Chapel Hill isn’t a very interesting part of the ride but there was little traffic. Further into the ride, there are some nice farms in north Lawrence County. When the farms end, the climb up “The Alps” begins. It’s not incredibly long challenging. Seems a little less challenging each time I ride it.

Typically, I head home on Stain Ridge but I wanted to add some miles so I continued west to Harrodsburg (locals pronounce it Harrisburg). It’s a nice rural community. On all previous rides, I’ve come from the north (downhill) into Harrodsburg. Sunday, I rode to the north and climbed a long time on both Popcorn and Rockport Rds up to Kirksville.

I like the Kirksville ride going in the other direction (north - south) in the winter because from the high points near Kirksville, it’s possible to see long distances to the south when the trees are bare. To see the vistas travelling north requires looking a little over the right shoulder.

After Kirksville, Rockport Rd becomes a series of steep hills - downhill at 35 mph+ and uphill in big cogs. The road conditions vary from rough and potholed to relatively smooth but fortunately, it’s relatively lightly travelled. On one downhill, I hit a pothole so hard that my hands bounced off the bars. The bike started wobbling and I panicked for a few seconds until I got it under control. After that, I went down hills more cautiously.

Overall, traffic was lighter than I expected. A little more traffic than riding north of Bloomington but not enough to make any part of the ride uncomfortable. I was much more uncomfortable riding up and down the Rockport Rd hills.

Monday Ride

Monday (Labor Day), I did an intermediate ride. Generally, in the summer, I try to get in relatively long distances (for me) on Sundays and short rides in the morning.  On Monday, I rode about 27 miles on what I term the “airport” ride. I go north through town, leave town heading west on Vernal Pike, Vernal Pike west for a relatively long distance, Oard Rd, SR48, Kirby Rd past the airport, Leonard Springs, cross 37, That Rd to Clear Creek, Schacht, Harrell, Rhorer, and Sare.

I often do this ride in the winter because I know it can be done in 2 hours and that’s enough on cold mornings. The ride isn’t very long but both in Bloomington and on the county roads, there are a relatively large number of traffic lights and stops signs. I decided to ride faster than normal so after crossing 37, I picked up the pace. Unfortunately, Vernal Pike is under construction. I thought that it might be easier to walk across the construction gravel than take the detour that adds a couple miles. Big mistake - I walked a long way on gravel in bike shoes. An unpleasant experience. But, I finished the ride in less than 2 hours, so I was pleased. 

Most of my rides have little traffic but Monday’s ride had even less. I’ve noticed that traffic is especially light on holidays.

Wednesday Ride

Wednesday morning, I did a different morning ride than usual - I rode out to the water treatment plant on Handy/Shields Ridge Rd. Out on Sare, Rhorer, Harrell, Moffitt, Handy to the plant and turned around. When I got back to Moffitt, turned right, down Stipp and up Moore’s Creek to Rhorer and then Sare. I didn’t measure the distance but it took 1 hour, 10 minutes. I did a number of sprints to keep my heart rate up but it never exceeded 150.

It’s a pleasant ride. On weekday mornings, there can be a fair amount of traffic depending on the time. 7:30 - 8 is especially bad. There wasn’t much traffic on the ride today. Sometimes on the coldest winter days or when I don’t have much time, I do variations of this ride, along with old 446 for my Sunday ride. I often add a loop through Clear Creek.

My usual morning rides are about 50 minutes. Since I need to train for Hoosier Hills and the Hilly, I’ll try to do this ride at least once a week for the next month.

Next - road conditions on the county roads.

It was an easy bike week. Only 2 morning rides. My commutes were more interesting because the many drivers new to Bloomington are challenged by the traffic patterns. And, many young adults are testing their freedom in expected ways.

I was asked to do some courier work for our unit this week because it’s often easier for me to travel across campus or downtown locations on a bicycle than for others who have to drive or walk. Usually I don’t mind because it allows me to get out of the office and on the bike. I enjoy my time on the bike, even when drivers are challenging.

Last Sunday, while riding on the Louisville streets and sidewalks, I noticed how much fun I was having on the bike - jumping curbs, riding across unpaved areas, making tight turns around intersections. On the way home, I realized that I have fully bonded with my commuting bike.

I bought the bike about a year ago. I use it for commuting, morning rides, and some longer rides of up to 2 hours. It’s a Trek SU100. It’s considered an urban sport bike. It’s mostly like a mountain bike but without a compression fork and the tires are 1.5″.

Over the years, I’ve bonded with many bikes; mostly the bikes I’ve used to commute. At some point, these bikes become like good horses. We understand each other well; we know our capabilities, and we respect each other. Sometimes I lead my bike and sometimes it leads me. Last Sunday, for instance, I jump a curb onto the sidewalk at the wrong place. There was a light post on the other side of a short sidewalk. I don’t remember turning left to avoid it (I was mildly paralyzed while considering options) but the bike made the appropriate decision.

Many readers might think it’s strange to say the bike behaved appropriately but many who have used a bike for a long time will understand the relationship between a rider and a regularly used bicycle. They become one entity.