Plainville Greenway Alliance

What a great painting! It portrays a group of cyclists who meet on Wednesday mornings for a regular ride. The cursive writing is a little hard to read, but it says: "... at Messerschmidt Pond. The Wednesday Group has the best people for support and camaraderie. We had three flats today!" It was painted by Madeline Favre in 2008, and a copy presented to one of our longtime and faithful members, Judy Chatfield, who rides with this group as often as she can. It's no wonder she enjoys this group. Thanks, Judy.

This may look like a photo of trail work in one of the more progressive states somewhere west of Connecticut, but it is actually of the new tunnel being built on the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail/East Coast Greenway under Skiff St. in Hamden. If you have never ridden this section, the trail currently goes up a short, steep incline to the street, then crosses busy Skiff St. at grade via a button activated traffic signal. It was never pleasant, or easy, or all that safe, but this tunnel will correct all that. How could something like this happen in a place like Hamden, and why not something akin to it here, like bridges over Northwest Drive or, even bigger, over Route 6 in Farmington? It can happen here, if there is the will for it amongst the citizens of Plainville and Farmington that will get the politicians and the DOT moving in this direction. I have been told, by those with more experience with local trail building than I have, that to include a bridge in the trail design guarant

It was a beautiful day for a ribbon cutting and the Governor was relishing this opportunity to not wear a tie. He absolutely refused to dress like a cyclist. But, he had high praise for Canton's efforts to continue the trail from Collinsville to this point near the intersection of Routes 177 and 44, just around the corner from the "Shoppes at Farmington Valley" (or, what I like to call, "the Rape of Canton"). While he did not exactly promise funding would continue to be available in the future, he certainly gets the principle that "if we build it, they will come". He also acknowledged the tremendous opportunity the trails offer to our sedentary society for physical activity and the resulting healthy living benefits. A good time was had by all. Give this section a try, if you haven't already.

Here's our fearless PGA member (and blog creator), Merrill Gay in his shiny new velomobile, at rest. Take a good look, because he will not be at rest for much longer, as he is about to leave on a trip across the USA with other velomobilists from here and abroad. It's not all by pedal power, however; there is a small electric motor on board to help power the velomobile uphill or on level ground if one is feeling tired one day. I imagine there will be many tiring days, as they are doing this trip averaging 130 miles per day. Please keep Merrill and his fellow riders in your thoughts and prayers for a fabulous and safe journey. Maybe we can expect a personal report (with photos) upon his return. In the meantime, you can follow his progress here .

This is what the smart woman rode back in the day when the bicycle was new. It was known as the "safety bicycle". The guys liked a little more of a risk, so they rode the "high wheeler", alternatively known as the"bone shaker", or the "penny farthing (the larger wheel in front being the "penny", compared to the smaller wheel in back being the "farthing", both coins of the realm in the UK at the time of the introduction of the bicycle). These photos are of cyclists today who still like to ride these things. They were taken at a recent event in Southington. Whatever sort of bike you prefer doesn't matter, so long as you ride. If you ride on the trail, watch out for that gap in Plainville (known as the "hole in the donut"). If you ride on the road, ride safely and be: PREDICTABLE, ALERT, VISIBLE and ASSERTIVE (PAVA)!

OK, so maybe he doesn't look exactly like this, but you get the idea. Local radio host and newspaper pundit, Colin McEnroe, has started a new column in Bicycling Magazine, titled "Fits and Starts". In the first of this series, he writes about buying his bike from our own Steve Cole at Renaissance Cyclery here in Plainville, and how he took Steve's advice about using the multiple gears that were a mystery to Colin. Click here for the full article.

Enjoy a six day, fully supported tour of trails in Pennsylvania. This is a great chance to find out what rails-to-trails are all about and to share the experience with cyclists of different ages and experience. Click here to find out more. There are rumors that the 2012 Sojourn may be right here in Connecticut. Keep checking here for details.

Check out Ken Byron's story in the FRI, 25 MAR 2011 edition of the Hartford Couran t about how the Legislature used the meager funds generated by the Greenways license plate program to reduce the budget deficit and what is being done to restore those funds.

National Bike Summit March 8-10, 2011 Grand Hyatt|Metro Center|D.C. ACTING ON A SIMPLE SOLUTION - NATIONAL BIKE SUMMIT There are more people riding bikes than ever. Yet half of all U.S. trips are three miles or less, and more than 90 percent are made by car. The National Bike Summit has improved bicycle-friendliness and livability in many communities, but the need and opportunity to improve physical activity, safety and livability in the U.S., while reducing congestion, greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on oil – remains greater today than a decade ago. These issues seem difficult to solve but the answer is simple. The answer is the bicycle . Now is the time to ask Congress to make strategic transportation investments that foster healthy people and healthy communities. Join us March 8-10 in Washington, D.C. to act on a simple solution – the bicycle. KEYNOTE SPEAKER ANNOUNCED Janette Sadik-Khan, the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation, is the keynote