Night Ride to the Haunted Mill

The Monroe and Orangeville groups meet at Twining Park

The unseasonably cold temps scared away some but not all.  Seven trail enthusiasts showed up for the second annual ride on the Badger and Jane Addams trails on Sat. Oct. 10, 2009. We moved up the time for this year’s ride from 6pm to 5pm to have more bicycling in daylight and that helped. For the group starting in Monroe and biking to Orangeville and back only the last 1/2 hour was in the dark and for the group starting in Orangeville at 4:00pm they made the entire trip to Monroe and back without lights. We move the day for this year’s ride from the 4th Sat. to the 2nd and that did not help deliver warmer weather.  But layering of technical cycling clothing made for a fun and comfortable ride.  No one opted to tour the Haunted Mill this year, but the smells, sounds, and colors of autumn were available to enjoy.   It was a good ride.

Shower with Lance

Photoshowercurtain.com got some press in the Wisconsin State Journal about their ability to produce a photo image on a shower curtain.  This was intriging to us at Earth Rider, who ordered a custom shower curtain to compliment the bike-themed  hotel rooms.   Check out our new shower curtain in the Lance Armstrong room that makes you feel like you are showering with a life size image of the man on his bike. Inspiring.

Windy City Whirl (via Metra)

Traveling from Chicago to Brodhead is over 100 miles so to make it more manageable several Earth Rider guests have taken their bicycles on the Metra train to the end of the line in Harvard, Illinois. From Harvard it is 60 miles to Brodhead on quiet backroads. On Monday, Aug. 24, 2009 I tested one such route in reverse on my new Madone road bike.   I got a later than I wanted start, leaving Earth Rider at 8am with a light headwind for what seemed the entire day.  The route southeast towards Beliot slowed me down on some new pea graveled roads following our Angel Museum route. Past Beckman Mill I headed south into Illinois though Rockton and Roscoe.  There were three unmarked intersections around the state-line area and one of them resulted in a bad turn requiring  me to backtrack a few miles (I have since updated the cue sheet).  But there was no confusion where the Stone Bridge trail started.   It is crushed limestone which is usually not recommended on a road bike, but it was packed down hard for 5 miles.    The Stone Bridge itself is very scenic and although there is a lot of drop offs and grade changes in this part of Illinois, it was flat going on the recreational trails.  The Stone Bridge Trail turns into the paved Long Prairie trail, a total of 22 scenic miles.  Although these trails are flat, there is a significant grade that you can feel in your legs.  At the end of the trail there is no direct route into Harvard (unless you want to bicycle on Rt. 173 which has heavy, fast auto traffic).  I opted for the quiet, county roads so it was another 10 miles to go first south and then northeast into downtown Harvard.  I made the 1:30pm train winded, grabbed a soda from the vending machine, and boarded the train with my bicycle with 15 minutes to spare.  It was a very relaxing ride into Chicago.  Next time I’ll allow more time to explore some of the paths off the Stone Bridge Trail and the communities in Illinois such as Caledonia, Capron, and Harvard.  Burn calories, not hydrocarbons, by traveling on two wheels!

Seeking the Spotted Cow

We gathered a group today to ride on the roads to New Glarus.  We always favor the flattest roads, but you have no choice as you get nearer to Monticello and New Glarus but to experience some small hills.  Exeter Crossing had three steep hills that several of us had to walk up, but your reward is a fabulous downhill afterwards.   The trip was 60 miles total and took 6 hours because of an extended rest stop in New Glarus–a sandwich at the Fat Cat Coffeeworks, browsing at Basic Bikes, and desert at the New Glarus Bakery.    It was a great day to be outdoors.

Groups welcome

Chicago Cycling Club Ride to the New Glarus Brewery Aug 15, 2009

We’ve had the opportunity to welcome 3 groups of cyclists in the past week. One was an official cycling club, 11 people from the Chicago Cycling Club; the other two groups were each just 8 friends who like to get together from time to time and do something fun–like bicycle on the trail or roads. At the end of the day everyone met to share reflections of their ride and relax in the Earth Rider Yellow Jersey Lounge or on the deck.

Summer Cycling Rolls

Chris, Jeff, Marcia, and Rich begin a ride to Monticello 7/26/09

I’ve been meaning to start a blog with the stories of some of the people who visit Earth Rider Cycling Boutique and Hotel in Brodhead, Wisconsin for some time. During the prime cycling season we get visits from cyclists biking across country, roadies biking from local towns such as Orforville, Janesville, Beloit, and Rockford, familes who arrive by auto to bike the recreational trails, and members of bike clubs who drive over to meet for friendship and memories on their bicycles. At the end of the day, some people will have biked 100 miles and others 7 miles, their personal best. What ever distance, time in the saddle or motivation, I can’t remember anyone saying they they did not have a good time.

The newscasters are saying that summer is half way over. If you are a half-empty person this means half of the best cycling weather has passed. But if you are a half-full person, there is still plenty of time to get out on the bike. Earth Rider is the site of weekly groups rides, Sunday at 10:00 am and Thurs. at 5:30 pm. If you need motivation, come and join one of these rides which are “no drop”.