My Velo in Several Zip Codes

By no means would I ever consider myself or my opinions about biking as authoritative as many of the biking websites that I follow (Let’s Go Ride a Bike, Loving the Bike, and EcoVelo). But, if you’ve been paying attention to this meme here, you’d see that I do have a affection towards riding that seems to be growing each ride. This past weekend, I got a chance to do something I’ve been meaning to do for a while, and added several layers to my understanding of life around these two wheels.

Danville, VA

Not really the start of the weekend, but in many ways it probably was. I took some time Sunday of last week to ride through Danville, VA. I’ve been working on a project here and so I’ve got my bike up here as part of my “get away from the project” tools.

That Sunday, I took a ride through Dan Daniel Park – which was one part great and another part unsettling. The great part of the ride was the weather and scenery. It was really cool being in a city that has a wide enough bike path in the park. I’d not see that in sometime.

What wasn’t good was the feeling of the past that lingers. Danville is full of friendly people, but there are some places that just have the lingering feeling of danger and death. I’d rather keep it there; but if you do some homework about the city and its past, you can get where a bro gets that feeling.

Charlotte, NC

The weekend technically began on Wednesday when I attended The Geek Fest at Charlotte’s Central Piedmont Community College. There, I was part of a panel presentation for STEM professionals. Given that I had some extra time there, I made sure to take my bike and re-ride some roads on the day after the conference.

This picture captured the morning just right. It was colorful and cold. As I rode, I poked myself to remember to not get so lost in the ride that I’d lose sight of the scenery. Glad I looked up.

Philadelphia, PA

Charlotte’s ride was like a freebie, Philly’s ride was the intentional play. I had to get my car inspected and checked out and so I knew that I’d have a few hours in the morning to ride. A few hours turned into the entire AM and I rode all over parts of the city.

I started near the Airport Automall, then biked through Southwest Philly, to University City. I took a spin around Children’s Hospital (I spent too much time there in my youth) and ran into the new South Street Bridge. Took a moment there to get a few pics and remember running at Franklin Field (Penn Relays 1997). Then rode through Center City, and parts of West Philly – stopping to see a friend – before rocking through Cobbs Creek Parkway and SW to get my car.

Totally a fun ride. And very easy. Philly is literally the easiest place to ride a bike that I’ve been so far. So much so that I almost considered moving back just for the ride.

Lessons Learning and Followed

I learned a lot in this extended trip with my Valencia. Making sure that I tie the bike rack good is a good thing. It is always a bit funny to see the looks on people’s faces when you pass them and one of your hooks is flowing in the wind.

Being sensitive to cultural norms is just as important on a bike as when walking. In Danville, people didn’t wave at riders as they do in Charlotte. Things like that are interesting to me. In Philly, I passed a few other riders, and it was cool to see them wave be by. That’s something that’s not done in other places, at least not in the non-Lycra set (that I’ve seen).

I wish that I would have ridden in Lancaster/York, PA. That would have made for a capping event on the weekend. Instead, that time was spent with my 2yr old God-daughter Beaui as it was her birthday. Totally am going to have to get her a bike so that we can ride the next time I’m up there in good weather.

What’s next? Got to find other places to ride. I’ve done DC, so now its about biking those places that I’ve not been. Maybe that’s worth another trip for the winter or spring. My bike is ready for it, hopefully, my body will be too.