What time is it? M2M time!

The Ramble has awakened. It is Monument to Monument’s tenth anniversary, and you will not be denied your ride.

SAVE THE DATE: Sunday, June 17th

I will post again soon with this year’s route, cue and details. If you have no idea what this ride is, here’s Details from 2017’s M2M and 9 yrs of M2M ride reports

WHAT’S THE RIDE LIKE? M2M is a little of everything. There will be fast and slow riders, skinny and fat tire bikes, racers and bike party people. There has been groups of only 10 riders in rain and groups of 100 in nice weather. M2M goes rain or shine. We ride a steady average pace of about 13MPH. There are hills, but none more strenuous than a long ride through your neighborhood. The roads to DC are as safe as riding in Baltimore. Most of the route is surprisingly scenic and the DC trail system is very relaxing. We’ll stop 3 times: a break at the 25 mile point, a lunch at Union Station in DC and a break at the 75 mile point. I will bring cue sheets, but mostly you will be following ride leaders.

Are you in this pic from M2M2008? I’ll buy you a beer at Irish Times if you make the 10th anniversary. I’ll even extend the offer to anyone who rode with Boson the same year!

B&A pics

Unexpected rain didn’t deter ten of us from today’s ride. Thanks for the company, y’all.

the B&A metric

I plan to ride down to Annapolis this Sunday 12/3. Come join me if you like.

RIDE: The B&A, 74 miles.
START: Washington Monument. 8AM
CUE SHEET: https://drive.google.com/file/d/17EhTUZ9cXZEPm0Z8vrSF7Dh6z-IqAwtQ/view?usp=sharing
ROUTE MAP: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25204742

Chesapeake Beach Ride cue

I’m using the same cuesheet from a few years back:
CUESHEET  Print one for yourself, I won’t bring but a few extras.

All of the turns are still correct. Disregard the 1st lunch option. They’re closed.
We’ll lunch at Subway (mi. 48.3)

8AM start from Dixon OR 7AM start from Carrol Park.

See ya tomorrow.     -Bob

Keep on rollin: Chesapeake Beach on 6/4

This route is always a nice followup to M2M. It usually attracts a sizable group of speedy riders who start from BWI. I like to ride in from Baltimore and take it easy. There are a couple hilly sections on this route, but mostly it’s a flat and fast tour of Anne Arundel county roads and the western Chesapeake coastline. Coming?

 DETAILS:

• The Chesapeake Beach Ride 102 mi., 4400ft.
• Date/Time: Sunday, June 4th @8AM  (SEE NOTE BELOW FOR EARLIER START)
• Start: Dixon/BWI STARTMAP
• Route Map (click EXPORT for GPS files): ROUTEMAP
• Cue Sheet (print one, or ask me to bring an extra): CUESHEET

IMPORTANT: There will be an earlier alternate start for those wanting to begin from Baltimore. Meet @7AM at Carroll Park (south corner). We will ride 11 miles to the BWI start.

Good, good, fun. Thanks y’all.

I had a blast riding Monument to Monument last Sunday: great riding weather, lots of daring bike riders, excitement riding up to the Washington Monument. The afternoon was even more fun, riding easy with a group of Ramble regulars, taking our time and enjoying the day.

How’d your ride go? Got some pics or a ride report? I can post a link to them here.
(click the pic to enlarge)

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I counted 60 riders at the start. There were at least 15 more who joined along the way.

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Socks of the M2M

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3 fixed gear bikes. lots of happy long distance riders.

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along the way

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smiles and beer at the end.

M2M: a fantastic way to spend a Spring Sunday

Print a copy of the CUESHEET if you can, or download the GPX files from the MAP.
Bring a bike bell if you’ve got one. I’ll see you Sunday morning.

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I noticed some great comments on the site from previous M2M rides:

In 2016 after riding the entire route in cold rain, Charlie wrote:
Kudos riders, tough day and you rode strong.

In 2015 Kwesi wrote:
This will be my first Century…. CAN’T WAIT!

In 2013 Charlie wrote:
Excellent as always. i really enjoy running sweep on this ride because the proudest ramblers are in this group. They amaze themselves that they rode all the way to the monument. The “baddest” rambler of the day goes to Jack, 75 year old cyclist finishing his 2nd century ever. And he wasn’t in the back of the pack either.

In 2013 we had a group riding simultaneously from DC to Baltimore. Justin  wrote:
We had a great time doing the ride in reverse from DC. Good catching up with you for a few moments in Laurel there! The chipwich from the 7-11 in Jessup on the way home was delicious.

And patrick in 2013 wrote:
Great route, Bob; great ride, everyone. That was a fantastic way to spend a Spring Sunday.

Whatcha doing May 7th? Riding M2M!!!

• Date/Time: Sunday, May 7th 2017. Meet at 7:45AM. Leave PROMPTLY at 8:10AM
• Start Location: Baltimore Washington Monument
• Map/GPS: M2M Map/GPS  (click “export” in upper right for GPS)
• Cue Sheets: M2M CueSheet
• Cost:  None. Bring $ for lunch and snacks at local businesses
• Assistance/Sag:  None. (except help from fellow riders)
• YOU RIDE AT YOUR OWN RISK

WHAT’S THE RIDE LIKE? M2M is a little of everything. There will be fast and slow riders, skinny and fat tire bikes, racers and bike party people. There has been a small group of riders in rain and a big group of 100 in nice weather. We ride a steady average pace of about 13MPH. There are hills, but none more strenuous than a long ride through your neighborhood. The roads to DC are as safe as riding in Baltimore. Most of the route is surprisingly scenic and the DC trail system is very relaxing. We’ll stop 3 times: a break at the 25 mile point, a lunch at Union Station in DC and a break at the 75 mile point. I will bring cue sheets, but mostly you will be following ride leaders.

IMPORTANT! READ THIS BEFORE RIDING M2M

 

Charm & Grace Cue Sheet is up

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0By9qerQIUo-4Z0pxTUpWQ25zemc/view?usp=sharing

Print one for yourself, or I can bring an extra.

MONUMENT TO MONUMENT WILL BE MAY 7TH. PUT IT ON YOUR CALENDAR, TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND START RIDING!

April 9th: Ramble to Havre de Grace

First, a big thank you to PJ for riding to Frederick with me on the last Ramble. The ride was scenic and kept us climbing all day. It was 21° F at the start and stayed below freezing the whole ride. I won’t argue if you think that’s just too damn cold for a century ride, however, PJ and I remained comfortable the whole ride. I wore: shoes, wool socks and full cover booties (I did not use chemical warmers. my feet were cold but never miserable), bibs/wicking long undies/windproof outer pants, wicking turtleneck/arm warmers/soft shell outer jacket/wind vest, thick ski mittens, balaclava/ear flap hat. These kept me just warm enough, but most importantly, they allowed moisture to evaporate throughout the day. If the same clothing had been damp, I would’ve frozen.

Next Ramble is April 9th. A reworking of my route from Charm city to Havre de Grace.

the Lighthouse in Havre de Grace

There are a couple of nice improvements to this route: it’s shorter and with a little less climbing, and the lunch stop is well after the half way point. It is still a hilly route and could be made worse with winds in the open areas of Harford county. Like the original version, there’s a little bit of everything: city riding, woodsy stretches, open farmland, paved and unpaved roads, beautiful water views and a beer at lunch.

DETAILS:
Charm and Grace 95 mi., 4700ft. (hilly)
Date/Time: Sunday April 9th 7:50 meet-up 8AM push-off
Start: Canton Waterfront Park parking area STARTMAP
Route Map (click EXPORT for GPS files): ROUTEMAP
Cue Sheet (print one, or ask me to bring an extra): CUESHEET

MONUMENT TO MONUMENT WILL BE MAY 7TH. PUT IT ON YOUR CALENDAR, TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND START RIDING!