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View Full Version : Sept 08: TBL/MORE Thurs Lake Fairfax Rides


rockhead
August 27th, 2008, 08:24 AM
New Ride! Starting Thursday, August 28th!!!

Pace: Casual/Moderate
Difficulty: Intermediate
Contact: Frank Raiti, frank.raiti@comcast.net or (c) 703-217-1033
Location: The Bike Lane, Democracy Dr., Reston, VA (In Reston Town Center)


This is a socially-oriented, casually-paced ride through the singletrack of Lake Fairfax Park, the CCT, and the Reston area in general, starting and ending at The Bike Lane in the Reston Town Center. Rides will range from 12 to 18 miles, depending on the route and pace. Our default route will be the main loop through LFP, Colvin Run, and CCT, finally incorporating the hillside climbs of the Twin Branches area, but with so much good stuff to ride in this area, we’ll probably ride a different variation every week. We’re hoping to make this a night ride once we get approval to do so through Lake Fairfax Park, but for now, we’ll be finishing up before we need the lights. Riders should meet at 6:00 and be ready to ride at 6:15. The ride leader(s) will try to start as promptly as possible.

Lights should not be needed, as we should be back on the W&OD before dark.

Riders are strongly urged to purchase a hydration pack and use it. A single water bottle is not sufficient, even in cooler temperatures.

Pace: This ride is a social, casually-paced no drop ride, meaning that no matter how bad you’re feeling, we won’t be leaving you for dead. However, considering the terrain and distance, you may want to make sure you’re fit enough to survive it. Of course, if you’re feeling like you may be a bit slow – no problem – just lean on the “social” aspect and bring along a few good stories and jokes and we may not notice the lagging pace. ;-) If you have any questions, feel free to contact the ride leader.

Location: The ride starts in front of The Bike Lane – Reston, 11943 Democracy Dr., in the Reston Town Center. It’ll be great to be able to start at a shop and even better to end within walking distance of a number of fine “watering holes”.

Terrain: Obviously this is going to vary some based on the route, but the current trails at LFP, while fast, are rooty with steep hills, a couple rock gardens and a few stream crossings. The hills in the Twin Branches area are steep and technical enough to fit right in at Fountainhead, but there are only a few of them. Riders should use good judgment and dismount when in doubt.

All riders joining this ride will need to sign the standard MORE waiver form.

This is meant to be a beginner-friendly ride. Bikes should be in good working order, and riders should have basic equipment such as a spare tube, water, and trail food. Helmets are mandatory. Recommended dress is multiple layers appropriate for the season. Gloves, eye protection, cycling shorts, and cycling shoes are also a good idea.

Weather: As this ride starts and finishes on the W&OD, the weather will have to be pretty bad for us to cancel. If weather conditions warrant, we may reroute the ride to a combination of the W&OD and the wonderful Reston roads and paths, so as not to damage trails further than they already are. Information on closures and asphalt reroutes will be posted in this forum.

Ride Leaders: Frank Raiti (contact information above). If I'm unable to make it, it might be Bill Hellwig or Anne Mader. Check back here for updates.

Post Ride: All riders are welcome to join us after the ride for some post-ride refreshments in the Town Center. Come out and help us pick a new favorite hangout in the Reston scene.

jabberwocky
August 27th, 2008, 09:08 AM
Cooooool. I think I'll show up. I haven't ridden Lake Fairfax in like 6 months (which is especially hilarious as I'm supposed to be the liaison, right?)

PunkRock
August 27th, 2008, 10:16 AM
Gee, that's in my neighborhood, cool. Depending upon my work schedule I may have to join the group somewhere along the way, the ice rink for example.

rockhead
August 28th, 2008, 08:22 AM
Nah, c'mon out to the shop to ride the whole thing with us. Looks pretty iffy out there now - what do you guys think?

It'd be great to ride with you, Chris. Hope you can make it. With Bill H out, we'll surely end up talking some "shop" along the way.

jabberwocky
August 28th, 2008, 08:29 AM
1/4" of precip so far. It was steadily soaking things as I rode in this morning. Unless it quits raining real soon and the sun comes out, I doubt things will be in very good shape.

We could always do an hour pavement spin if the trails are questionable.

PunkRock
August 28th, 2008, 10:19 AM
Yup, it's wet out there right now. Plus, I completely forgot that tonight is a soccer practice night, so I may be on transport duty. Regardless, I'll try to meet up with the group if I can. Pavement may be an option as Jabber stated.

mreyes2112
August 28th, 2008, 11:02 AM
Looks like rain most of the day and into the evening. :( But if it clears up just a little I'll be there.

jabberwocky
August 28th, 2008, 11:15 AM
Looking at NWS, theres just no way the trails will be rideable. Lake Fairfax has gotten over half an inch of rain in the last 9 hours and they are calling for another half inch this afternoon. The Lake Fairfax trails simply cannot shed that much rain.

rockhead
August 28th, 2008, 04:26 PM
Definitely no singletrack tonight. How about fat tires on the cinder trail beside the WOD?

jabberwocky
August 28th, 2008, 04:40 PM
Definitely no singletrack tonight. How about fat tires on the cinder trail beside the WOD?I'll swing by. I'll be on skinny tires though. Should be ok on the cinder as long as we don't go too fast.

rockhead
August 28th, 2008, 05:22 PM
Skinnies it is. That's probably the best idea anyways. Great road riding options out here.

bg50
September 3rd, 2008, 12:05 PM
This ride on for Thursday 9/4?

rockhead
September 3rd, 2008, 12:51 PM
Looks like the weather should be good for this week, so we will be riding.

PunkRock
September 4th, 2008, 08:28 PM
That was a good ride tonight, 9/4. I'm glad I made it out and met some MORE riders.

rockhead
September 4th, 2008, 09:38 PM
Great to ride with you, Rob. Too bad you had to run off and miss the Twin Branches fun! We also ran into Linneke in the TB area and chatted briefly about her fun run this past weekend.

Got back to RTC just as things we're getting a bit dark.

Thanks to Todd for having the lights. Not sure I'd have found my way out of the TB area without them!

again next week!

oldnoob
September 5th, 2008, 08:56 AM
yeah that twinbranches trail was fun in the dark having never been on it. hope i can make it every thurs since wakefield is way to far to get to after work in time. and thanks to rob for the duct tape so i didn't lose the nut on my swingarm! wait.... that didn't sound right :eek: at least the source of my creaking rear has been found... wait that didnt sound right either :eek:

PunkRock
September 5th, 2008, 10:05 AM
yeah that twinbranches trail was fun in the dark having never been on it. hope i can make it every thurs since wakefield is way to far to get to after work in time. and thanks to rob for the duct tape so i didn't lose the nut on my swingarm! wait.... that didn't sound right :eek: at least the source of my creaking rear has been found... wait that didnt sound right either :eek:Duct tape...ya gotta love the stuff. :D Duct Shui (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/076112635X/thegreatideafind) is the book that I made reference to.

redclayrambler
September 5th, 2008, 12:32 PM
I am going to be out of town next week, but I would like to start making these.
Hmmmmmmmm, I guess I will have to get some lights though.........
Maybe see you guys in a couple of weeks,
Clay

oldnoob
September 10th, 2008, 08:07 AM
this on for tomorrow night?

rockhead
September 10th, 2008, 11:59 PM
I'm in San Francisco for a few days, so not sure how trails are - I'm guessing not good. Anne may come out and do an asphalt ride. Not sure.

I'll be back for next Thurs, tho.

TBLGirl
September 11th, 2008, 01:10 PM
I think the trails will be too wet. I did not plan enough in advance to bring the road bike- duh...

Hopefully, next week it will be dry.

Anne

rockhead
September 15th, 2008, 08:59 PM
No rain on the weather forcast, so it looks like we're on for this Thursday night. We'll try to get back before dark, but if you've got lights it might be a good idea to bring 'em out.

Unless someone has a special request, we'll do the reverse of the loop we did last time. Anyone know if any of those new trees have been removed?

oldnoob
September 18th, 2008, 08:37 AM
wish i could join yall tonight, but got a 6pm job interview... darn west coast based companies :) hope interest picks up too! rides that gather at LBS's are good for the biking community as a whole in my opinion :)

PunkRock
September 18th, 2008, 09:32 AM
I'll be a big 'maybe' on each & every Thurs. evening due to possible kids soccer practice duty. I won't know my status until evenings.

Side note-I work in Reston and ride the loop at lunch at least 1x each week. So, let me know if you want to join me and this could begin a 'lunchtime ride'.

rockhead
September 18th, 2008, 11:34 PM
How about we move the ride to 5:30? Tonight's finish in the pitch black was a bit too much of an adventure for our newbies.

punkrock - now you're making me jealous - 14 years ago, I used to ride that trail at lunch time two or three times a week. Of course, the CCT wasn't what it is now, so we just crossed 7 and went north - out and back. yeah, life was good! :D

PunkRock
September 19th, 2008, 08:58 AM
That was a good ride last night. :) I liked that small section with the ups & downs and short drop. I'm going to ride that again the next time I'm over on that part of the trail.

rockhead
September 24th, 2008, 03:31 PM
Looks like I'm going to have to bail on the ride this week. Anyone want to step up and lead it this week? Rob, maybe?

jabberwocky
September 24th, 2008, 03:38 PM
I might be able to if nobody else can. I'll hop on a bike tonite and see how my wrist is feeling.

rockhead
September 24th, 2008, 04:04 PM
Thanks, Jab.

PunkRock
September 24th, 2008, 09:10 PM
Looks like I'm going to have to bail on the ride this week. Anyone want to step up and lead it this week? Rob, maybe?I can't make tomorrow's ride, maybe next week.

DownHillDan
September 25th, 2008, 01:26 PM
is this ride still on for tonite?

jabberwocky
September 25th, 2008, 02:14 PM
I don't think I'm quite up to riding yet. If anyone else wants to step up, they definitely can.

rockhead
September 25th, 2008, 02:52 PM
Sorry, folks. Just a bad week for finding ride leaders, but it looks like the rain is going to put a damper on us anyways.

Feel free to ride the gravel bridal path, etc. and I hope to see you all next week.

rockhead
October 2nd, 2008, 01:12 PM
I hear we're 9" ahead for rainfall for the year - whatever that means. On the bright side, helps us find the wet areas for trailwork season! ;-)

Hoping for next week.

rockhead
October 6th, 2008, 09:33 PM
Weather looks good and with the latest reports the trails should be fine for us. 5:30pm start at the Bike Lane shop in the town center. We'll try to get rolling on time and back before dark, but bring your lights just in case.

Who's in?

DownHillDan
November 6th, 2008, 09:19 AM
Are these rides still going on?

rockhead
November 6th, 2008, 09:27 AM
Called on account of darkness.

Still waiting on the park authority board to get back to us on the night riding authorization for LFP. If/when that gets approved, we'll definitely try to form some regular night rides through there.

Thanks for your interest, though.

GF70
May 26th, 2009, 12:09 PM
Is this ride still happening in 2009?

wrench177
May 26th, 2009, 12:18 PM
Is this ride still happening in 2009?
I'm not sure about this ride in particular, but, there is a ride that sounds very similar on Wednesday nights (http://www.more-mtb.org/forum/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2009-5-27&e=1302&c=2).

Hopefully Frank will chime in and give the lowdown for this ride.

GF70
May 26th, 2009, 01:42 PM
Thanks for posting the link! I was looking for this thread.

geekonbike
April 7th, 2010, 06:19 AM
Will this group ride be re-invigorated for 2010?

rockhead
April 7th, 2010, 08:39 AM
Will this group ride be re-invigorated for 2010?

Might be worth a shot at some point. I won't be able to do it for a few months, myself, but any member can lead a ride.

jabberwocky
April 7th, 2010, 09:14 AM
I can lead something pretty easily, as I go right by the ice rink on the way home from work and I imagine the loop is rideable on a cyclocross bike with road tires. :)

PunkRock
April 7th, 2010, 01:38 PM
...but any member can lead a ride.I try to fit in a couple of evening rides each week around Colts Neck/Lake Fairfax. Depending on my work schedule, the nights and start times will vary, but I can either lead or show somebody around the loop if they are unfamiliar with the trail.

geekonbike
April 12th, 2010, 10:43 AM
I'm usually Game everyday except Tuesday Wednesdays....I've been off the MTB for awhile but last year I rode Colt's Neck pretty religiously.

5:30-6ish?

Should we just set a Time and arrive at +/- a few minutes and whomever shows up shows up?