Bicycling in Bloomington

Wednesday and Thursday, I had to go to a few places in Bloomington that I don’t often go to. Wednesday, I rode to Landmark on the east side of town for a medical appointment. It’s about 5 miles from my house, so it’s not a long ride. The streets I choose to ride are easy to ride, except the last .5 mile on Second St. There, the street is narrow and traffic is heavy. Fortunately, I can generally keep up with traffic.

 I noticed that Patterson St is no longer marked as a bike path. At one time, the shoulder had a clear bike path line and bike path signs. They are no longer there. I guess it’s because the shoulder was so full of dirt, gravel, debris, litter, and all the other things that make Bloomington streets so filthy. Most of the year, Bloomington streets are filthy. In late spring, they are very filthy. It would be difficult to ride safely on the shoulder of Patterson St. so it’s good that it’s no longer a bike path.

Thursday morning, I left my car for maintenance at a dealer on the far west side of town. I took my bike so that I could ride home. I chose an indirect route, going south of town before turning east and then north. It was a pleasant morning for a ride. I put some extra loops in the ride until I started to be concerned about the time. Maybe 10 miles.

I went back for the car about 4:00 PM. I had to ride on west Third St. Third St. was even more filthy than Patterson. Third St is a narrow road with very heavy traffic, especially late afternoon. With the debris and gravel, riding on the narrow shoulders wasn’t always possible. I was able to keep up fairly well, so it wasn’t a bad ride.

In fact, I consider it a 3 B ride (brains, brawn, and balls). During the ride, I felt fully engaged - both mind and body. Riding on tight roads in traffic is challenging but fun.

When I drove back to town, I realized again how bad driving is in Bloomington. Riding at 20 mph or more in traffic is fun. Driving at that speed is very annoying. In all honesty, drivers have more problems than bike riders in Bloomington because of the poor traffic system.

Bloomington is a paradox. It appears to be a nice, modern, progressive city and it often is. But, in many ways, it resembles a poor city in a developing country. Bikes are more appropriate transportation in cities with poor transportation systems.

 Wednesday March 26, 2008

While the temperature this morning wasn’t spring-like, I felt a need to go for a ride - my first morning ride of the year. It was 38^o and the sun was coming up when I left. I hoped to ride a standard morning ride - to the south end of Old 446 (Knightbridge) and back but I decided to send a couple more emails before leaving so it cut into my ride time. Old 446 is usually a 45-50 minute ride. I rode about 40-45 minutes in the neighborhoods around my house.

My riding was better than Sunday. The ride has a many stop signs and hills. I used them to do sprints, out of the saddle climbs, etc. I felt like I had some “snap” today. Maybe spring is coming in many ways.

Last week, I was able to commute three days. The two days I missed it rained very heavily. This week, I’ve been able to commute all three days. Along with this morning’s ride, it indicates spring is arriving, even if the nice weather isn’t quite here yet.    

ADDENDUM - The Snap is Back. This evening, on my commute home, I was able to get in a line of cars going about 30 mph on Sare Rd. It might be cheating a little because I was drafting the car in front. I thought for a moment about bump drafting the car but decided it wouldn’t be a good idea. (For those who aren’t NASCAR fans, read down the drafting article to see what bump drafting is. ) I was surprised that I was able to get up to 30 mph so quickly and maintain it.

Friday March 14, 2008 

This was spring break week at Indiana University. For many people, spring break is a trip south. For me, spring break was a ride to the south end of 446. We take what we can get. 

This week, the weather has improved in Bloomington. I was able to commute Monday to Wednesday. On Wednesday morning, I rode Old 446, a standard morning ride. I decided that I would take a little time off to do the ride - my spring break. 

Spring break has another meaning to me. It is time to think more about riding outdoors. Since Indiana started DST two years ago, it’s hard to get out in the morning before work. But, every so often I can arrange something. My preference now it to ride outside instead of on the trainer but I will be on the trainer until late April. 

I reviewed my training log for the year. It’s pathetic. I had two rides by January 6 and Wednesday was the first since then. Only about 80 road miles. Also, I’ve commuted to work only about 10-12 times. (I often forget to include commutes in my log.) Most years, I might not be able to commute about 20 or so days from January through spring break. This year has been awful. 

I was not able to commute the past two days because of a minor injury that I think was the result of an attempt to do a strange yoga stretch.  

I estimate that I have 35 hours on the trainer so far this year. And, I have reasonable number of running miles. (I estimate that I did about 50 hours of yoga and tai ji.) But, as much as I like the diversity of working on the trainer and running, I don’t enjoy them as much as outdoor riding. However, both are more efficient forms of exercise. When I’m riding outdoors, I don’t focus on training but focus mostly on all that’s going on around me. Some days, like Wednesday, I use the ride to think about work or other issues. 

Spring arrives next week and I expect that my riding time will improve substantially. I’m looking forward to it.

 Winter Riding

Generally, I think Bloomington has good riding weather. The summers can be hot but the temperatures are tolerable. The fall and spring have nice weather, for the most part. And, it’s possible to ride through most of the winter. For me, I don’t ride often in the winter but I still try to commute each day.

However, some days, the weather makes riding too difficult for me. Today was one of them. It was about 4^o this morning. That’s colder than I care to ride but I know that it can be done. My fellow Bloomington bicycling blogger, apertome, rode this morning. I didn’t ride for three reasons. First, it was too cold and I’ve been recovering from a cold. Second, yesterday’s snow caused some ice and snow buildup along the sides of the roads. For the parts of my commute on Sare Rd, it’s dangerous enough without losing the sides of the road. Third, I had to go to the far side of town for an errand before going to campus.

While I don’t get to ride outdoors much in the winter (besides commuting), I often ride a trainer. For a long time, I had a trainer but didn’t use it often. I didn’t much enjoy spinning indoors because it seemed almost pointless. Last year, I got a few indoor bicycling DVDs and my attitude changed. The DVDs provide the structure needed to make a workout work.

I think that my time on the trainer using a DVD is more efficient for improving my bicycling than most outdoor rides. I noticed on my ride last Sunday that let my mind wander while riding and often forget to push a little harder or use correct form. (By the way, I think that’s a good thing for the most part.) Indoors, the instruction and changes during the workouts require focus. I find the time goes fast. The room I exercise in is generally 50^o or cooler in the winter and I am completely sweated after 30-40 minutes.

So, while I miss riding outdoors, I don’t miss riding.

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.

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.

 I did a standard morning ride this morning; the first time in over 2 weeks that I was able to ride. It was a warm morning and I didn’t make a strong effort to push myself. After 2 weeks off, it seemed better to spin than push hard.

Traffic conditions in Bloomington have changed significantly since my last ride. I had to wait longer at stop signs this morning both on the ride and on my commute to work. There are many more cars on the road. But, it’s really closer to the normal pattern for the year.

The start of the local school year brings an increase in traffic and school started last week. Today is “move-in” day for Indiana University, so there’s a lot of traffic and many people who aren’t familiar with Bloomington road patterns. The city and campus deploy 75 police officers to direct traffic around the university today and tomorrow. It’s necessary.

For a bicyclist, it means that more caution is needed. In general, the increased traffic travels slowly but drivers sometimes find themselves in situations where they need to make bad decisions to get where they need to go.

Next Monday, the first day of classes at IU, it will be worse for bicyclists. This week and the following two weeks, bicyclists beware!!

 Bloomington weather is generally fine for bicycling but during the warmest parts of the summer, it can be uncomfortably warm. We’re in that period of summer now. So, sweating is part of every ride.

Sweating is important for maintaining body temperature and inevitable when active in warm weather. For example, today the bank time / temperature sign on College Mall Road reported that it was 88 when I was riding in to work. It doesn’t seem possible to ride a bike in this weather and not sweat. So, when I arrived at work today, I was wet.

Sweating doesn’t bother me. Over a lifetime of sports, recreation, and work that generates sweat, it’s not a big deal. But others think it’s strange that I don’t feel uncomfortable when wet. I usually try to stay in my office for awhile after I arrive.

Last Saturday, I watched the end of the Tour de France time trials. I noticed that the Tour riders and I are similar in one way. We sweat a lot from our faces when riding. My road bike has about 6000 miles and sweat has caused the paint under the top tube to blister. Previous bikes have rusted significantly on the top tube and the connection to the seat tube.

It’s been a good week for riding for me. Monday and Wednesday I did Old 446 with 10 60+ second intervals and a number of shorter intervals. Tuesday and Thursday, I rode 446, Swartz Ridge, Moore’s Creek, Rhorer and Sare. On most of the flat spots, I was riding faster than 20 mph and pushed a little hard up the Moore’s Creek hill. I was very sweated when I finished the rides and all finished no later than 9 AM.

Hot weather and sweating are part of bicycling in Bloomington. And, as uncomfortable as sweat might make us feel, I don’t think it’s nearly as bad as cold feet and hands on winter ride.