*** Update #1 (11/2) ***
The course was checked out with a volunteer preride that I completed on Tuesday, 11/1. As you can imagine, most of the area was still in recovery mode from the weekend snowstorm. Although this effort is clearly still a work-in-progress as evidenced by the many road crews I saw working, the course was in better shape than I expected -- especially in light of the wide spread destruction that the storm caused. That being said, I'd estimate that more than half of the area that the course passes through was sill without power, given the constant drone of portable power generators I heard throughout the day.
The currently posted cuesheet that's been up the past week (draft 6 dated 10/25) is still the latest. There are a couple of items listed below, that you might want to add to your copy of the cuesheet (which of course, you should be printing out and bringing with you to the ride):
-In general, there is a fair amount of grit and loose gravel on the road, due to the sand and salt treatment from the recent snow storm. Please take extra care in cornering.
-There may still be some low-hanging branches and debris protruding into the roadway.
-Mile 27.1: After crossing Rt 173, the road changes name to Maple Ave.
-Mile 39: I saw a live wire that had fallen and was arcing to the wet ground with an impressive light show. It's likely that this will be repaired by the weekend, but keep in mind that any wires you may encounter on the road may be lethal.
-Mile 47.0: There was a "Road Closed" sign and some road debris further on down the road. But the road was passable, and it's very likely the road crews will have taken care of this issue by Saturday.
-Mile 48.6 to 51.1 (Tunnel Rd): This area was hit pretty hard, and several road crews were busy clearing debris and repairing the power lines. Although I encountered a few temporary road closures, I was able to pass through OK. It's seems likely that most of this repair work will be completed by the weekend.
-Mile 56.9: There was a "Road Closed" sign and further down the road, a fallen tree had blocked one lane. However, I was able to pass through OK, and several cars also seemed to be ignoring this sign as well.
-Mile 64.8: Road is unmarked.
-Mile 70: There is a "Road Closed" sign and some bridge construction. However, the bridge is passable, but you will have to dismount and walk around some heavy equipment. There is also a short stretch of dirt road around the construction. This of course was a bit muddy from the recent snow melt. But it will most likely dry out by the weekend.
-Controle #3 (Mile 71.6): The power was still out in this area and the store was closed due to the outage. Even if power is restored by the weekend, the store may not be fully restocked. You should replenish your supplies at the Milford controle #2 with enough to go beyond controle #3. There are some stores off-course (as indicated on the cuesheet) near mile 78.8 in Allamuchy. This area had just gotten power restored, about 5 minutes before I arrived. The deli owner met me outside -- he had tears of joy at getting his power back. But alas, he had nothing to offer in his store, other than warm drinks and chips...the rest of his inventory was ruined. Further down the road in Tranquility, there is a deli at mile 82.1 on the left. This store never lost power, and would certainly appreciate having a few hungry randonneurs stopping by.
-Mile 88.2: There is a bike repair shop, if you need one.
-Mile 104: There is a short stretch of 1-lane roadway, under control of a traffic light. This appears to be due to be some damage compliments of tropical storm Irene. You should wait for the light to turn green, and let any waiting cars there to go on through first. The one-lane restriction is about 0.1 of a mile.
-Mile 119.9: This is unmarked -- there is a baseball field at the turn, which you can use as an additional "spotting" cue.
-Mile 125.2: (Rt 80 access road) There is a huge crater of a pothole, right in the middle of shoulder. This will most definitely swallow your wheel up whole and ruin your day if you hit it. Please keep an eye out for this hazard, especially if you're passing through after sundown.
-Mile 126.6: The cue is correct, but the road sign has been rotated 90 degrees, so the signage is a bit misleading.
-Mile 127.1: The cue is correct, but the exit is for "Portland / Rt 611" (the cuesheet has "Portland /River Rd").
As a point of interest to any railroad buffs out there, the course crosses the "Lackawanna Cut-off" in several spots: mile 85.4 (fill and tunnel), mile 121.1-122.8 along Polkville-Kill Rd (fill, tunnel and viaducts), mile 124 along Rt 94 (fill and tunnel). The small ridges you see near these points are actually man-made railroad fills, to level out the terrain and minimize the gradient. The Lackawanna Cut-off was a marvel of engineering, constructed in the early 1900's... a fascinating description of it can be found at this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lackawanna_Cut-Off
*** Original Post ***
For the November R-12, we'll be running the Stillwater 200k, and hopefully, the recent snow will be melted by then and perhaps, a bit of fall foliage will still be around. With the closing of the Portland Diner, the start location will be the Portland Park and Ride. There is another diner about a half mile away in Mount Bethel, where we can top off for breakfast before the ride -- I'll be there around 6AM if you want to join me for breakfast and collect your brevet card. The finish is at Teresa's Pizza, about one half mile from the Park and Ride start: after signing-in at the finish there, you can coast all the way downhill from there to the Park and Ride and your car.
Additional event details are posted at:
http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/R12ClubNov2.html
A volunteer preride is planned for this Tuesday ... be sure to check the PA message board and website for any updates. Also, with the limited daylight, lights and reflective gear will be required.
Rider Roster (As of the 11/1)
-Barbara Anderson
-Ron Anderson
-Geoff Brunner
-John Capriotti
-Dawn Engstrom
-Joe Fillip
-Joel Flood
-Doug Haluza
-Steve Hammel
-Mark Kaufman
-Goon Koch
-Andrew Mead
-Bill Olsen
-Tom Rosenbauer (Organizer)
-Norman Smeal
-George Swain
If you'd like to join the the roster, please send me an e-mail by Thursday.
The course was checked out with a volunteer preride that I completed on Tuesday, 11/1. As you can imagine, most of the area was still in recovery mode from the weekend snowstorm. Although this effort is clearly still a work-in-progress as evidenced by the many road crews I saw working, the course was in better shape than I expected -- especially in light of the wide spread destruction that the storm caused. That being said, I'd estimate that more than half of the area that the course passes through was sill without power, given the constant drone of portable power generators I heard throughout the day.
The currently posted cuesheet that's been up the past week (draft 6 dated 10/25) is still the latest. There are a couple of items listed below, that you might want to add to your copy of the cuesheet (which of course, you should be printing out and bringing with you to the ride):
-In general, there is a fair amount of grit and loose gravel on the road, due to the sand and salt treatment from the recent snow storm. Please take extra care in cornering.
-There may still be some low-hanging branches and debris protruding into the roadway.
-Mile 27.1: After crossing Rt 173, the road changes name to Maple Ave.
-Mile 39: I saw a live wire that had fallen and was arcing to the wet ground with an impressive light show. It's likely that this will be repaired by the weekend, but keep in mind that any wires you may encounter on the road may be lethal.
-Mile 47.0: There was a "Road Closed" sign and some road debris further on down the road. But the road was passable, and it's very likely the road crews will have taken care of this issue by Saturday.
-Mile 48.6 to 51.1 (Tunnel Rd): This area was hit pretty hard, and several road crews were busy clearing debris and repairing the power lines. Although I encountered a few temporary road closures, I was able to pass through OK. It's seems likely that most of this repair work will be completed by the weekend.
-Mile 56.9: There was a "Road Closed" sign and further down the road, a fallen tree had blocked one lane. However, I was able to pass through OK, and several cars also seemed to be ignoring this sign as well.
-Mile 64.8: Road is unmarked.
-Mile 70: There is a "Road Closed" sign and some bridge construction. However, the bridge is passable, but you will have to dismount and walk around some heavy equipment. There is also a short stretch of dirt road around the construction. This of course was a bit muddy from the recent snow melt. But it will most likely dry out by the weekend.
-Controle #3 (Mile 71.6): The power was still out in this area and the store was closed due to the outage. Even if power is restored by the weekend, the store may not be fully restocked. You should replenish your supplies at the Milford controle #2 with enough to go beyond controle #3. There are some stores off-course (as indicated on the cuesheet) near mile 78.8 in Allamuchy. This area had just gotten power restored, about 5 minutes before I arrived. The deli owner met me outside -- he had tears of joy at getting his power back. But alas, he had nothing to offer in his store, other than warm drinks and chips...the rest of his inventory was ruined. Further down the road in Tranquility, there is a deli at mile 82.1 on the left. This store never lost power, and would certainly appreciate having a few hungry randonneurs stopping by.
-Mile 88.2: There is a bike repair shop, if you need one.
-Mile 104: There is a short stretch of 1-lane roadway, under control of a traffic light. This appears to be due to be some damage compliments of tropical storm Irene. You should wait for the light to turn green, and let any waiting cars there to go on through first. The one-lane restriction is about 0.1 of a mile.
-Mile 119.9: This is unmarked -- there is a baseball field at the turn, which you can use as an additional "spotting" cue.
-Mile 125.2: (Rt 80 access road) There is a huge crater of a pothole, right in the middle of shoulder. This will most definitely swallow your wheel up whole and ruin your day if you hit it. Please keep an eye out for this hazard, especially if you're passing through after sundown.
-Mile 126.6: The cue is correct, but the road sign has been rotated 90 degrees, so the signage is a bit misleading.
-Mile 127.1: The cue is correct, but the exit is for "Portland / Rt 611" (the cuesheet has "Portland /River Rd").
As a point of interest to any railroad buffs out there, the course crosses the "Lackawanna Cut-off" in several spots: mile 85.4 (fill and tunnel), mile 121.1-122.8 along Polkville-Kill Rd (fill, tunnel and viaducts), mile 124 along Rt 94 (fill and tunnel). The small ridges you see near these points are actually man-made railroad fills, to level out the terrain and minimize the gradient. The Lackawanna Cut-off was a marvel of engineering, constructed in the early 1900's... a fascinating description of it can be found at this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lackawanna_Cut-Off
*** Original Post ***
For the November R-12, we'll be running the Stillwater 200k, and hopefully, the recent snow will be melted by then and perhaps, a bit of fall foliage will still be around. With the closing of the Portland Diner, the start location will be the Portland Park and Ride. There is another diner about a half mile away in Mount Bethel, where we can top off for breakfast before the ride -- I'll be there around 6AM if you want to join me for breakfast and collect your brevet card. The finish is at Teresa's Pizza, about one half mile from the Park and Ride start: after signing-in at the finish there, you can coast all the way downhill from there to the Park and Ride and your car.
Additional event details are posted at:
http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/R12ClubNov2.html
A volunteer preride is planned for this Tuesday ... be sure to check the PA message board and website for any updates. Also, with the limited daylight, lights and reflective gear will be required.
Rider Roster (As of the 11/1)
-Barbara Anderson
-Ron Anderson
-Geoff Brunner
-John Capriotti
-Dawn Engstrom
-Joe Fillip
-Joel Flood
-Doug Haluza
-Steve Hammel
-Mark Kaufman
-Goon Koch
-Andrew Mead
-Bill Olsen
-Tom Rosenbauer (Organizer)
-Norman Smeal
-George Swain
If you'd like to join the the roster, please send me an e-mail by Thursday.
Tom Rosenbauer
Eastern PA RBA
Eastern PA RBA
This snow came much earlier than I'd expect. Wish you have a great weather & a good time this Sat.
ReplyDelete- Yiping
Not joining us, Yiping? Come on, it'll be fun!
ReplyDelete