Carolyn and Guy with IGotaBike.com stopped by the shop today. They filled us in on some of their adventures since they have last ridden by R-D Bike Shop.
As we are enjoying temperatures of 80+ degrees today the discussion included water bottles-in specific insulated water bottles. We currently have in stock Polar Bottle brand, they are made in the USA and are free of BPA, and Phthalate. Carol shared that she likes the insulated bottle offered by Camelback.
End result? I feel compelled to do a product test and the Camelback insulated bottles are on order. I also promised to share the results of my tests with Carol and Guy. They have a page on their website devoted to the gear they are using on their journey.
Another reason for their visit to the shop- they proudly shared the recent completion of the Ohio to Erie Trail Guide. It is available for purchase as a digital download.
The spring edition of the Silver Ribbon arrived in our mail box the other day. The Silver Ribbon is produced by the Ohio & Erie Canalway Coalition.
The Ohio & Erie Canalway celebrated the completion of 81 miles of the 101 mil Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail in 2012. Summit County marked the completion of all 41 miles of trail in its boundaries last year. We have available at R-D Bike Shop free stickers to celebrate this achievement.
What is happening now? Construction is nearly complete on a new 2.7 mile segment of the trail in Tuscarawas County. This segment runs from just outside of the Village of Zoar to Rt. 800. In addition, work will be beginning this year on the Tuscarawas River Aqueduct Towpath Trail Bridge linking Tuscarawas and Stark counties.
Did you know: the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail is the Northeast leg of the 300+ mile statewide Ohio-To-Erie-Trail connecting Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. The link is to the O.D.O.T.’s map of the bikeways in Ohio available on the Ohio Bikeways website.
As reported in the Region section of today’s Akron Beacon Journal, the first 4.2 miles of the new Freedom Trail will be dedicated at 11 am on May 1. The ceremony will be held at Lions Park located at 245 Northeast Ave. in Tallmadge.
The 4.20 mile trail runs from Middlebury Road in Kent to Tallmadge Circle. The trail follows an unused railroad corridor and it is on land owned by Metro Regional Transit Authority.
R-D Bike Shop is the sponsor for the water stop at the Wolf Creek Trailhead for the upcoming pledge ride to be held May 18-19. You missed the early registration deadline for this ride but you can still participate by registering and committing to raise a minimum of $1000 in pledges at the event website. Forms are also available at R-D Bike Shop.
The Ohio & Erie Canalway Coalition is offering a couple of different options for this ride. All proceeds from the FirstMerit Towpath Century Ride benefit the continued development of the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail.
For the 1 day bicycle riders, the parking location is Water Works Park in New Philadelphia, Ohio at 5:30 a.m., and bicycle riders and equipment will be transported to the starting location in Cleveland, and ride to their cars.
For the 2 day bicycle riders, the parking location is Lake Avenue Trailhead in Massillon, Ohio. On Day 1, bicycle riders will meet at the Lake Avenue Trailhead at 6:30 a.m. for transportation to Settler’s Landing Park in Cleveland. On Day 2, bicycle riders will meet at the Lake Avenue Trailhead at 8:00 a.m. for transportation to Water Works Park in New Philadelphia.
FirstMerit Towpath Century Ride
Wunderground says it is a balmy 33 degrees outside, and the sun is shining! If you are interested in snow shoeing or x country skiing you may find that you are losing your base for your activity. You may still be smiling since there 50% chance of snow tonight through tomorrow!
Below is the winter sports chart from the Metro Parks Serving Summit County website, to give you ideas for new places to go to have fun.
Winter Sports Chart
Did you also know Portage Lakes State Park has some great trails to investigate and they allow winter camping?
A construction update was reported on Saturday, December 15 in the Beacon Journal. Staff writer Bob Downing reported work will begin on the second phase of the new Freedom Trail.
People are already using the first nearly completed section of the trail, and Metro Parks crews are currently adding trail signs and bollards. This section of trail is from Middlebury Road in Kent to Tallmadge Circle and is just over four miles. The park district and its partners will hold a formal dedication ceremony in spring 2013.
Starting at the Portage Hike & Bike Trail in Kent, this multipurpose trail – on land owned by METRO Regional Transit Authority – will follow an unused railroad corridor, connect to the Tallmadge Trail and continue west to the Towpath Trail via a linkage at the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad’s Northside Station in downtown Akron.
The next phase of the construction will from west from Southwest Avenue to Eastwood Avenue in Akron, a distance of about two miles. Engineering is first needed on this phase of the trail and if completed in 2013 could allow construction bids to begin in late 2013 or early 2014. The third and final phase will bring the trail to Akron’s Northside Station and is more complicated than the first two sections.
Another section of the trail may link to the 33.5-mile Bike & Hike Trail in Munroe Falls.
You can expect the completed section to be included in Metro Parks spring hiking series, Spree For All (May – June), and a new cycling event, the Summer Biking Spree (July – August).
