If you’re curious about mountain biking in the Charlottesville area, road racing, and/or connecting with fellow bikers in the Charlottesville area, you will probably find this interview useful and interesting.
“Take a childlike perspective” to exploring biking in Charlottesville.
One of the concerns/questions I get frequently from people (and my clients) moving to Charlottesville is – “how do I get connected or tapped into the Charlottesville community”?
(no longer available)
The Charlottesville area may need more bike lanes (no longer available):
Area cyclists should focus most of their upcoming efforts on getting more on-road bike lanes, according to a survey conducted by local bicycling enthusiasts.
The 2010 Bike Ballot, administered by Bike Charlottesville and the Alliance for Community Choice in Transportation, had 586 respondents. When survey participants were asked to identify the three most important areas the cycling community should champion in the next few years, the largest percentage of votes, 82 percent, went to pushing for more bike lanes.
“Together with the county, university and city’s leadership, collaboration and resources, we can increase safety and ridership throughout our region,” Heather Higgins, the spokeswoman for Bike Charlottesville, said Thursday.
Duane Gran offers some interesting insight on bike commuting in Charlottesville:
Bike lanes are problematic because it reinforces the segregated notion of transportation. I can see how the lanes make some people feel more safe, but the root of the problem is often that the road space is too narrow. My solution would involve removing more lines from the road, less sign posts and allotting about 15-20% more width to roads. Let all forms of transit pay more attention to each other as they navigate the space together instead of slotting into their designated place.
I started riding a bike fairly regularly in 2008; you can read about my reasons if you’re curious.
I asked on Twitter and Facebook:
If you were moving to a new town & found a mountain biking club, what questions would you have?
Jennifer on Twitter:
mountain bike club: different level rides? when are the rides? do they sponsor any races?
Rich on Twitter:
ask about local affiliations with bike shops or coop’s to get discounts on gear, rent repair shop time, etc.
Karen said on FB:
I would ask about what the members are like, are they crazy riders or trail riders, where are the good trails, what types of events do they have, is there a weekly ride? And, I’d want to know that there are a least one or two geezers my age so I am not trying to ride with a bunch of 20 year olds all the time.
Lastly: Bike Polo & Segway Polo
Resources:
Charlottesville Albemarle Mountain Biking Club (CAMBC) & their Facebook page
What is Single Track (mountain biking)
Mountain Biking Trails – Trails.com
Rivervew Park in Charlottesville
Rivanna Trails in Charlottesville (archived: 2012)
Mint Springs Park in Crozet & Trails.com (no longer available)
Preddy Creek (29 North area)
Mountain Biking in George Washington and Jefferson National Forests (no longer available)
Planners propose commuter bike trail from Rivanna Station military base to downtown Charlottesville
Interested in Learning More?
Jim Duncan has been helping buyers and sellers in Charlottesville’s neighborhoods for 25 years. Get local insight born of experience.
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