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.

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.

 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.

 I spent much of this morning (Saturday) in downtown Bloomington. There was a substantial amount of biking activity. Many people were using bikes to go to farmer’s market. (Notice that the website has a picture of a bicyclist at the market.) Others were doing what appeared to be various shopping trips and errands on bicycles. A very positive sign. I hope that more people will use bicycles to replace cars when possible.

I also drove to north end of town to get a map at AAA and returned on North Walnut. Sometime recently, the bike lane on North Walnut has been widened. It now essentially takes a full driving lane. The wider designation helps drivers because previously the number of driving lanes was not clear. It could have been 2 or 3. And, it allows bicyclists to travel farther to the left of parked cars.

I can think of no good reason for a bicyclist to use the bike lane on North Walnut. It doesn’t connect any locations that bicyclists might want to go and there are better streets for bicycling parallel to North Walnut. However, the bike lane sends a message to drivers coming into Bloomington that bicyclists have a place on the streets and it makes clear the 2 driving lanes. So, overall, the bike lane serves two purposes but bicycling on it is not one of them.

I also drove further down North Walnut in the lane with the sharrows. I found that it’s harder to see and interpret them as a driver than as a bicyclist. Earlier this week, I had to travel downtown for some business, and I used a sharrows lane. I found it easy to see and understand while biking. Perhaps a sign on a post would help drivers understand the sharrows.

 Sunday, I rode nearly 60 miles. I rode what is now becoming almost a pattern for me - through the Forest, Bottom Rd, through Bloomington, Clear Creek, and a long way home (more detail). I had an 11:00 AM curfew for the ride. I got out about 7:15 or so and was back at about 11:05.

I won’t have another weekend ride for perhaps a month. The road bike is hanging on the garage wall and will likely be there until Labor Day weekend. I’ll be travelling for the next few weekends. It’s not unusual for me to have extended periods without riding. But, I think that I’m ready for the Hoosier Hills and the Hilly with just a few more rides.

The ride conditions were good but not great. I was sluggish but it might have been because of the weather - hot and humid. I noticed while riding through the “corn canyon” on Bottom Rd, that I was going about 2 mph slower than the previous week. But, the overall average time was not much different.

Traffic was very light. Hardly a car anywhere outside of town.

Some observations -

Boltinghouse Rd Hill - Earlier this year, I was getting more courageous in going down the hill and letting myself go. Then, three bad things caused me to be more cautious.  1) I use the middle of the road because it’s smoother but on a recent ride, a truck coming up was using the same part of the road. 2) I got to bottom okay but then I had to cross some unexpected gravel at a speed that was too uncomfortable for me. I used the principles of motion to get through it but it scared me. 3) I hit a hole so hard at the bottom that it caused my water bottle to fly out of the cage and burst open.

Sunday, I decided to go slowly because the Saturday night evening rains had caused a lot of gravel and other stuff to come out on the roads. A very wise decision. About 1/2 way down, there was mud and muck but not too much to handle. About 2/3 of the way down, far more mud, muck, leaves, branches, twigs, etc. than I think would have been able to manage at full speed. I’ve learned over the years to be cautious after heavy rains on rural roads in Monroe County. It paid off on Sunday.

Shirtless recumbent trike rider - I saw him again on Bottom Rd. This time I passed him going in the same direction. He has what looks like a beer cooler on the back. Even better, there are a bunch of flashing lights on the container. Interesting bike. Bloomington has some interesting characters riding bikes.

Big ring - I tried the big ring during the last 1/3 of the ride. I have rarely used it and generally considered it a weight that I carried around. I found that it is useful to ride through quick changes in slope. It was especially useful on rollers because I it allowed me to get into the spin more quickly than going down one rear cog. Because Bloomington is relatively hilly and I’m not a strong rider (I can rarely spin out the little cogs and the small ring), I didn’t see a value in going to the big ring. Now, I see how it can help improve my bicycling skills.

Saturday evening, I watched some bike racing in downtown Bloomington - the Bloomington Cycling Grand Prix. (Indiana Daily Student article) These are fun races to watch because it’s all amateurs, they go fairly fast (especially the cat 1/2 riders), and the course is laid out so that it’s possible to see many parts of the course. Another nice event that Bloomington has to offer for bicycling.

Sharrows, again - On Monday, the Herald Times reprinted the press release about Sharrows that the City released last week. Mitch Rice’s blog has a copy of the press release. Unfortunately, a subscription is needed to access the article. The HT, unlike other newspapers, discourages use of its website.

The article is merely a summary of the press release. Nothing creative in the HT. However, the article generated 84 (mostly) relevant comments. Many comments are thoughtful about the conditions for bicycling in Bloomington. It’s a shame that these comments cannot be more widely disseminated and discussed.

Mitch Rice’s blog has some recent interesting posts regarding bicycling safety. Among them, he has posted a news release that he hopes the city will send out. It describes sharrows - the new arrows on College and Walnut Streets. I mentioned them in an earlier post.

Thanks, Mitch.

 Saturday,  July 14 Saturday, I rode a little more than 81 miles. It was at least 10 more miles than my previous long ride. I rode it with my daughter who is training for an Ironman and needed to ride 90 miles on Saturday. She rode a loop before I joined her. Our average speed was 14.8 mph. The distances were PRs for both of us, so the average speed was good (in my opinion).

The ride was similar to one we did earlier this summer, except when we got to the Forest, we went to the Forest headquarters to get water. My water bottle flew out of the cage when I hit a bounce at the bottom of Boltinghouse. It opened and the water spilled. We also added an out and back on Clear Creek Trail and we didn’t go out to the water treatment plant. At the end, we added my standard Old 446 ride (about 13 miles) to reach the target miles.

For a summer ride, the weather was reasonable. It was cool when we started but it got warmer over the morning. The heat was tolerable. The traffic was much heavier than any recent ride. Saturday mornings have more traffic than Sundays, when I typically do my long rides. However, at no time did the traffic affect our ride. We both enjoyed the ride.

My summer rides are aimed towards being prepared for the Hoosier Hills Tour in September and the Hilly Hundred in October. I plan to ride both this year.

For the past 3 years, I started training for these rides in late July or mid-August. Last year, I had only one 40 mile ride by this time and didn’t have any 50 mile rides until the third weekend of August. Since I’m already ahead of previous years, I can do a few off-road rides between now and Hoosier Hills. Next Sunday (weather permitting) - either Wapehani or Brown County for an off-road ride.

 This is the third in a series about riding conditions in Bloomington. The previous posts are Riding on Bloomington Streets Part 1, Addendum to Part 1 and Part 2. Part 1 focused the on street conditions and Part 2 focuses on traffic management and their affect on bicyclist and bicycling.In Part 3, I describe the bike paths, bike routes, and bike lanes in Bloomington.

Bike Trails. Bloomington has 2 real bike paths. The major trail is the Clear Creek Trail and its partner, the Bloomington Rail Trail. The Clear Creek Trail is paved and reasonably maintained. All bicyclists can use it but during some periods, many pedestrians (runners and walkers) are on the trail. The Bloomington Rail Trail is mostly gravel and suitable for fat tire bikes only. There are plans to extend the Rail Trail into downtown Bloomington. 

The map on the bottom of the Bloomington page of Indiana Trails website shows additional Bloomington bike trails. As far as I know, these are wide sidewalks and not real trails. Most riders would not notice them as bike trails. Designating sidewalks as trails is a strategy used by Bloomington city government to promote Bloomington as bike-friendly but it’s a weak effort. One trail that parallels the railroad tracks on the east side is poorly maintained and almost dangerous. On a recent ride, I found blind spots, mud, overhanging thorn bushes, and poison ivy on the trail. Bicyclists need to be aware of the hazards and the possibility of unseen pedestrians.

Bike Routes. Bike routes in Bloomington have no apparent function. They are scattered throughout the city. The map makes them look organized. They are organized to make a nice map but not for riding.  For example, there’s a bike route on a three lane, one-way street that carries most traffic in and out of town. Not really a safe place to ride.

The streets are no different than other streets - they have the same hazards and traffic management problems as described in the earlier posts. There is no reason to use them. It’s also a part of Bloomington’s attempt to do little but promote itself as bicycling-friendly.

Bike Lanes. There are a number of bike lanes throughout the city but they do nothing to improve cycling in Bloomington and are actually dangerous to use. Two one-way north and south streets (Lincoln and Washington) have bike lanes from 7th Street to Hillside Street. The lanes are used primarily to store road debris and for traffic control. They provide nothing useful for bicyclists. At the intersections, cars turning right have to cross the bike lane. This leads both drivers and bicyclists to unsure how to approach intersection.

A very dangerous traffic pattern occurs on Lincoln St at the intersections from 3^rd to 7^th Sts. The right lane is right turn only. Cars need to cross over the bike lane to turn right. Even worse, the bicyclists have to cross the right lane into the left lane to go straight. A more stupid design is not possible.

When these bike lanes were first developed, I talked to a member of the Bloomington Bicycle and Pedestrian Safegy Commission about the problems the lanes created. He said that many things the Bloomington city government does for bicyclists are stupid but at least they recognize that they should be thinking about bicyclists.

Another dangerous bike lane is on Jordan St between 3^rd and 7^th. The traffic goes around a small island. Bicyclists in the bike lane are threatened by both cross traffic and traffic exiting from a parking garage.

A few years ago, I called the city to ask them to keep the lane clear of debris and fix the low spots that trapped water, debris, and mud. They said they didn’t exist. When the street was being repaved a few years ago, I called the city to ask them to fix the drainage and debris problems. I was told it would be done. It wasn’t. During the winter, the bike lane dams freeze creating additional hazards for bicyclists.

Overall, except for the Clear Creek Trail, the attempts by the city government to improve conditions for bicycling in Bloomington are stupid and dangerous. Bicyclists should not assume that bike lanes and bike routes are safe and in fact, should consider them somewhat dangerous to use. Fortunately, the streets are relatively safe, although dirty, and there is little need to use the bike routes and lanes.

After the 58 mile ride on Wednesday, I rested yesterday. I didn’t ride but I took a long walk and I biked to work. I guess it qualifies as a rest day. Today was a recovery day. I took an easy Old 446 ride and biked to work. The distinction between rest and recovery is not clear.  

To me, rest days are days off the bike. Recovery days are on the bike but little effort. I much prefer recovery days because I enjoy the time on the bike. Rest days are needed when I’m tired but I miss the time spent on the bike. I am in no way addicted to riding. I am off the bike for long periods for a variety of reasons. But, when the weather is nice and I have the time, I often regret that I need a rest day. 

Today had some unusual weather – patchy fog. However, the patches were no more than 100 yards long. In the fog, my sunglasses got wet; in the sun, I needed them. And both could happen in a 1/4 mile.

Today was also unusual for the traffic – much heavier. In fact, I had to make a jug-handle turn from 446 to Moore’s Pike (right, u-turn, and cross the road). I’m usually willing to take the appropriate position on the road to make left turns but the heavy stream kept me from finding a place to get to the left side of the lane.   

Overall, it was nice to have a morning ride.

 Tomorrow I leave for a short vacation, so I won’t be back on the bike (except for my commute home tonight) until Monday. This morning, I did my usual ride - Old 446 but it was both cautious and quick.

Cautious first - a few years ago, I crashed my bike and broke my collarbone on the day before we were scheduled to go on vacation. It was during a period when I was doing more off-road riding. I was testing my skills by riding at the edge of a road that had a curb and trying to keep the bike within a foot of the curb. Going down a hill, I saw an unexpected road hazard (it shouldn’t be unexpected in Bloomington). I swung out to avoid it but quickly remembered that I hadn’t been monitoring the road for approaching cars. I swung back and caught the wheel in a little crack. It caused me to go into the curb and over the handlebars.

I broke my collarbone. I walked home (about .75 mile), and drove a manual transmission car to my doctor’s office. It was challenging to shift without being able to move my arm. But, it’s not nearly as impressive as Tyler Hamilton who rode most of 2003 the Tour de France with a broken collarbone.

So, I rode cautiously today. I waited a little longer before crossing intersections, and I didn’t make any quick decisions. I experienced a very considerate driver today. Travelling west on Moore’s Pike, I needed to turn south on Smith. I kept looking back for a break in traffic but there were many cars behind me. A driver slowed to let me pull across the lane for the left turn. I wonder if he was also a rider who could see what I needed to do.

Quick second - I did the ride in about 45 minutes, which is as fast as I ever ride it. I think it was quick because my legs weren’t tired from a long ride on Sunday. Also, I put air in the tires. I’d guess that I last put air in them in April. Yesterday, I stopped on my ride to work to see if the rear tire was flat because the rim was almost on the road.

My speed was consistently over 18 mph and my HR was in Zone 3 which is about 140 - 150 for me. The ride was essentially 6 - 8 long sprints. The speed was about 2-3 mph faster than my typical ride. I’m already looking forward to getting back on the bike on Monday morning.