People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

— Maya Angelou.

This is the first post on my new blog. I’m just getting this new blog going, so stay tuned for more. Subscribe below to get notified when I post new updates.

So, it’s been a minute! Here I was blogging along and then COVID-19 hit. My plan was to chronicle cycling through my travels but then COVID-19 took over our world. Travel? There was no travel. It was stay at home orders and just stay at home. What does an outside cyclist do during a stay at home order? You wait for the order to be lifted and then you hop back on your bike.

Or you get a Peloton. I did both. Let’s talk about cycling outdoors during Covid. (That Peloton Post is coming soon!).

I live in Maryland. One of the first things to be lifted during the stay at home order was the ability to go outside, socially distancing. It is hard to describe that feeling the first time back on the road, no correction, outside…during a pandemic.

It bears explaining because this was not a normal time for me or anyone in the world.

People were dying. Every. Single. Day.

I think I yearned for something to be the same again. There was no normal anymore, that much I knew. But if I could just feel something familiar. There’s a trail that I ride with my husband, Anacostia River trail, quite often. It goes from College Park, Maryland to Washington DC. I remember the first time we rode that trail, about five years ago, I asked my husband, a DC native, why had he never brought me to this area before. I know you’re thinking Maryland to DC, how exciting can it be?

The streams with water rushing over rocks are some of the most beautiful areas in Maryland that I have ever seen. The lotus at the Aquatic Gardens, on the trail after you pass underneath the Kenilworth Avenue overpass are breathtaking.  There is an annual festival that is worth the trip.

The ride on the Maryland side is great because it is flat with some hills where you will earn your stripes. Your first hill is as right after you pass through the park in Hyattsville. Not bad at all. The next hill is as you approach the continuation of the trail. Again, spicy but not bad. Downshift properly and it’s not bad at all. Once you get into DC you will go through a quiet neighborhood where the trail looks like it ends, but follow the signs for the trail to pick up again. Just past the elementary school, the trail picks up again. The ride is leisurely and flat and then the hill that everyone hates is in front of you. Be careful because you will see folks walking up the hill with their bikes. Yeah, it’s that kind of hill. Downshift and keep up your cadence. It is doable. Remember if I can do it, you can too.  That core work that I hate, is the savior to ascending the hills either in or out of the saddle. The picture of me on the bridge is the bridge as you reach the Washington waterfront. There is a ramp to ascend to the top of the bridge, but it is like butter. Could not be smoother.

The ride is about 13.5 miles from Maryland to the end in Washington, DC, which is directly across from National’s Park.

We usually ride with two other couples. Our first outing during the pandemic was no different. We did our usual ride and then brought chairs to socially distance and chat about life during COVID.

The familiar felt great and provided some peace.

Okay so if you’re counting, I visited the Vineyard twice this summer. The second trip was a girls trip to experience the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival. The first was a bike trip with hubby and you can read all about that trip on my Martha’s Vineyard post.

The coolest part of the trip was the Film Festival and the fact that the Vineyard is a riding town. There is little parking and biking is just convenient. There are lots of asphalt trails all over the island.

I rent a bike at Anderson’s in Oak Bluff. They pick up and deliver and a weekly rental runs about $80. Now I will say that I always go and pick out my bike. Your bike has to fit you. Bikes come in different heights and styles. (We will talk more about how to find the best bike for you in a future post). Anderson’s has cruisers with baskets and a few hybrids. If you are looking for a racing bike, Anderson’s might not be your spot. I usually get a hybrid which has more of a racer seat, but all of their seats are padded.

Popular rides are from Oak Bluffs to Edgartown and Oak Bluffs to Vineyard Haven. Be careful on the ride to Vineyard Haven from Oak Bluffs because once you cross the drawbridge into Vineyard Haven the bike trail runs out and you have to ride in the street. The ride from Oak Bluffs to Vineyard Haven by bike is about 3.6 miles via New York Avenue. There is the usual shopping and great places to eat in Vineyard Haven. The Art Cliff Diner is a great place to stop in Vineyard Haven. Go early or late afternoon, they do not take reservations and the wait can be up to 2 hours

I mentioned in another Martha’s Vineyard Post that my favorite ride on Martha’s Vineyard is the ride along East Chop. So thanks to my GoPro I was able to get a snippet of what the ride looks like. Full disclosure I am new to GoPro. I did some research (it’s a thing in our house) and settled on the GoPro Hero6 Black. I hope you enjoy.

If you are looking for a bike trip in New England, I highly recommend the 3-day bike trip with Great Freedom Adventures on Martha’s Vineyard. The Great Freedom Adventures website indicates the level of their trips and this trip was rated as easy to moderate. I have biked for the past several years so I thought how bad can it be? Fortunately, the folks at Great Freedom were great in responding to my questions. I emailed them prior to reserving the trip to make sure that I could handle the trip and they explained that every trip has a van that accompanies the group in the event you have an issue. That van was everything!

Day #1

Day 1 started in the town of Oak Bluffs at the gazebo near the ferry. The Great Freedom folks arrived with bikes if you chose to use one of their bikes. My husband and I went to the island a few days prior to the trip and we met up with the group at the gazebo. We were not sure about riding bikes other than our own on such long rides, but the included bikes were actually quite nice. We drove from Maryland with our own bikes in tow and took the ferry to Oak Bluffs from Woods Hole, Ma. Be aware that you have to book the ferry months in advance to get a reservation for a vehicle. You also need to know that you have to pay for any additional length to your vehicle due to a bike rack. Walk on passengers do not need a reservation.

Riders were fitted with bikes and we rode from Oak Bluffs to Edgartown. Our guides Jenn and Mary gave us information about Oak Bluffs and about the upcoming ride. The ride is along the water, so the scenery is beautiful. You pass Jaws bridge and the terrain is great along an asphalt path. Once we arrived in Edgartown, we rode to the Edgartown lighthouse. We then checked into our hotel, Kelly House, for the three days of the trip. Dinner was at Chesca’s, steps from our hotel.

Day #2

We met at about 8:30 am on Day 2, leaving Edgartown heading to Aquinnah. If you are not familiar, Aquinnah is called “up island” and truly a climb on a bike. There were several stops including a stop at Alley’s, a general store that still has a post office inside. This was also the meeting spot for the return to Edgartown.

Aquinnah. Let me just say that I ride several times a week, so before the trip I felt good about the trip which was described as moderate. Psych! That Aquinnah ride should come with a warning. The ascent is 1600 feet! For the first time I had cramps in my quads! The terrain was hills and roads but I was able to go at my own pace. I took my time and did not feel pressured to keep up with anyone. The guides were good about communicating to everyone that the rides are self paced. You can ride in the front or in the back and it’s really okay. I was in the back on the ride up and had no shame. The cliffs of Aquinnah are beautiful! There is a long history about the red cliffs and the Native Americans that run the shops gladly share the history. The land of Aquinnah is tribal land and run by tribe members. For lunch, get the fish and chips!

One of the coolest experiences on the way back to Edgartown was the bike ferry to Menemsha Beach.

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The ride back was tough. There were a lot of hills and you really have to pay attention to your gearing so that you don’t wear yourself out. I got to one hill and just walked it. I was tired and at that point we were at about the 35 mile mark. You have the option to ride 50 miles or stop at 44. All but one person out of our group stopped at 45 miles and took the van back to the hotel. We earned the van ride!

Day #3

Breakfast was included and that spot is amazing! After breakfast, we ferried over to Chappaquiddick on our way to Vineyard Haven on the last morning. I didn’t get very far on Chappaquiddick because the road to the gardens is sand and my hybrid bike wanted no parts of it!

Leaving Chappaquiddick, we took the ferry back to Edgartown and then rode to Oak Bluffs along State Road. This was one of my favorite rides. The path is asphalt, but it’s got some nice hills so I had a really nice pace. I found this route to Oak Bluffs did not have the wind that we had on the path along the beach, which made for a great ride. The State road route to Oak Bluffs brings you into Oak Bluffs on Circuit Avenue. From there we returned to our starting point, the gazebo in Oak Bluffs. From there we rode to the East Chop Lighthouse in route to Vineyard Haven.

This is a beautiful ride with the most beautiful views of the ocean. We said our good byes to the group here because we were not taking the afternoon ferry. It really was an amazing trip. Easy, not at all, but if you ride regularly, it is definitely doable. I wholeheartedly recommend http://www.greatfreedomadventures.com.

This is Christopher.

Just Christopher.

I met Christopher at Martha’s Vineyard this year leading yoga on Inkwell Beach. I find that Yoga helps my riding because of the stretching and Bikram, in particular because of the breathing.

But Christopher helped me engage the inner reflection of yoga. Cue yoga music in the background…For real, I thought I would get a good stretch but Christopher had other plans.

Can I say it was not what I expected! I mean, it’s yoga on the beach, on sand to be clear. I just wanted a good stretch because I had plans for a 25 mile ride on the day we met. The class started as many yoga classes do with breathing and sun salutations, all to be expected, except for the sand.

And, except that this was yogi Christopher. He said, as he moved us through the postures, “You are not competing with anyone.” He said, “You are not competing with the you from 10 years ago.” He added, “Make a commitment to your practice that is honest, even sacred.” Okay, this was not my Columbia, Maryland yoga class.

Then came Warrior 1. Christopher said “See what you are waring with.” I was done.

Sobbing in Warrior 1 on Inkwell beach at 8 am.

I wish I could say where it came from, but I honestly do not know. Later I thought that maybe it was my usual mommy, wife, person, thoughts of what holds me back. What is it that keeps me from pursuing whatever?

Went back to yoga everyday with Christopher. So much more than a good stretch.

If you are on the Vineyard go see him. He teaches everyday in August on Inkwell beach.