

Race a locomotive on the Great Allegheny Passage
The 3M Man vs Machine vs Mountain inaugural event was brought to our attention by our friend, avid cyclist, and cycling ambassador Larry Brock. Teams of cyclists are invited to race the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad's diesel locomotive, with funds raised used to support lighting of the Great Allegheny Passage’s Borden Tunnel! In the spirit of historic advances and competition between ever evolving modes of transportation, the 3M Challenge will feature a race between two o


Cycling etiquette and courtesy, or you are not going for a prostrate exam for crying out loud!
A subject that has bothered me for some time is cycling etiquette (or the lack thereof) as demonstrated by some riders. It is enough of a disadvantage that some of us dress kind of funny; cycling jerseys reminiscent of a NASCAR driver or professional bass fisherman and spandex shorts (not a good look for most of us, but that is a whole other blog). I am not knocking one’s choice of apparel, just pointing out that some non-cyclists (and cyclists) may be put off by the apparel


Great ride: Fort Frederick to Little Orleans via WMD Rail/ C&O Canal Loop
Fort Frederick to Little Orleans via WMD Rail/ C&O Canal. 54 miles Trail Loop A wonderful loop ride can be found in Washington County, Maryland on the mixed-use Western Maryland Rail Trail and the C&O Canal National Historic Park. The Rail trail section of the ride has several road crossings while the C&O Canal towpath section has two. While there are several starting spots, critical ride planning components for me are good lunch options, scenic beauty, and little crowds.


Take your bike on Amtrak to Washington DC
A wonderful way to begin a bike trip on the C&O Canal National Historic Park towpath, or to just bike around Washington DC and not have to worry about the hassles of coordinating transportation, parking, etc. is to go to via Amtrak and take your bike with you. While there are several Amtrak/ bike options, my wife and I began our DC to Pittsburgh bike trip on the Capitol Limited which runs daily from Chicago to Washington. We boarded the Capitol Limited upon its’ arrival at