/r/bicycling412
Subreddit for bicyclists in and around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
/r/bicycling412
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Hitch or No?
Hello,
My family of four rides bicycles, at best, 10 times a year. We currently have a truck mount bike rack that is a little bit of a pain for me, but my wife, who is short, is unable to do it by herself. Anyway, she wants to get a hitch and trailer (estimating total cost at least $1000). Not sure if it's worth it. My daughters are 11 and 13, so if we do this, will probably use this another 4-5 years. We have a Honda CRV, if that's releveant. Considering just taking off front wheel. Any thoughts? I have no experience with a hitch. Wondering what the community would do.
02:38 UTC
Where did you ride in the past two weeks? and Open Discussion thread
Where did you ride in the past two weeks? Did you have any positive or negative interactions with people on the road or trail? What rides are you going to this upcoming week? This thread is also for any posts/comments/quick questions/rants you think don't warrant a full thread.
14:00 UTC
East End Bike Bus to Critical Mass on 2nd Friday! Regent Square, Homewood, East Liberty.
Hey folks! Once again we're running the East End Bike Bus to the monthly Critical Mass.
It'll be on the 2nd Friday of next month (like Critical Mass) heading from Regent Square, Homewood and East Liberty.
Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45676613
5:45pm: First stop will be Savannah at Whitney.
5:49pm: Second rolling stop is South at Peebles St
5:53pm: Third rolling stop is at Ascend Point Breeze (7443 Thomas Blvd).
5:57pm: Fourth rolling stop is at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh - Homewood (7101 Hamilton Ave).
6:14pm: Fifth rolling stop is at East Liberty Boulevard and N. Euclid Ave.
This is a casual bus, no drop. Typically 9mph ride and we stop at the top of hills for everyone to catch up.
We also have a bcc'd email list. Fill out this google form if you want to be added to it. Drop a comment here if you'd like to help us organize! We need help with marshaling and with spreading the word. We have lots of ideas to improve this bike bus but we can't do it without additional volunteer capacity. We are on instagram at @EastEndBikeBus.
13:59 UTC
Glenwood Bridge ramps at south end now open
All ramps at south end of Glenwood Bridge are now open, after years of construction. They’re marginally bikeable. Many tight turns. Claustrophobic fencing. Feels like an expensive habitrail. The long ramp toward the east connects to the trash-strewn, unmaintained dirt & gravel path along 8th Ave. The ramps are a slight improvement over the old stairs.
A story with lots of pictures:
I biked from Hazelwood to the GAP Trail using the ramps yesterday.
Map below shows Monongahela River at top, Route 837/8th Ave at bottom and right, Sandcastle at upper right. The red track shows my route: west sidewalk of Glenwood Bridge, zigzag ramps down to the level of 837, then followed the maze to explore the long ramp toward the east, turned around, zigzagged down to Baldwin Rd, then across the RR tracks to get on the GAP Trail toward Homestead.
Approaching ramps on west sidewalk of Glenwood Bridge.
Descending to the level of Route 837 in first set of switchbacks (can't get onto road here without hopping the jersey barrier). The tight U-turns are bikeable if you're a bit of a circus acrobat.
Why do one 90 degree turn when you can do three? The black cyclone fencing begins. Who is this fence protecting?
Approaching the second set of switchbacks.
Peeking thru the fence at the fun ahead.
Then I came to a junction where you can go east on a long ramp toward West Homestead. I explored that. The concrete ramps end and you're dumped onto a lousy "path" (not a sidewalk) along Route 837 / Eighth Ave. Not very bikeable. I turned around.
I then negotiated the next (third?) set of switchbacks and emerged onto Baldwin Rd. Who doesn't enjoy biking around a field of six-inch rocks? If you wanted to get to Glass Run Rd, you'd turn left here. I turned right.
A view of the switchbacks from Baldwin Rd.
I heard that these ramps cost $7 million. I would think you could do much better for that price.
For starters, I'd suggest that PennDOT find some design engineers who ride bicycles.
18:06 UTC
Learn about BikePGH's Updated Grassroots Advocacy Toolkit!
I hope you'll join BikePGH for our final Quarterly Bike/Ped Advocacy Network Gathering of the year on Tuesday, December 10th at 6pm on Zoom.
Sign up: https://secure.everyaction.com/dWcAVA1q2E6-Y8ccOuhBeA2
We'll be showing off the 2nd Edition of our Grassroots Advocacy Toolkit, which is often the first resource we recommend when someone comes to us with an idea for improving biking & walking infrastructure in their community.
Join us for a walkthrough of the new toolkit and an interactive workshop where you'll learn:
- How the BikePGH Grassroots Advocacy Toolkit can guide you through choosing a campaign and creating a winning strategy
- A proven framework for organizing an effective advocacy campaign
- How to identify tactics that advance your campaign strategy and goals (rather than wasting energy)
We'll also talk briefly about what's in the City of Pittsburgh's 2025 budget regarding biking and walking infrastructure + advocacy opportunities in the new year.
I hope to see you there!
20:06 UTC
Areas where asphalt is saw-cut, removed, and then unevenly patched for pipes that are repaired/replaced along roads can have the same disastrous effect as getting your bike tire caught in RR tracks or inadvertently hitting a curb at speed.
Roadways where this is the case include Penn Ave in Garfield near Spak Brothers and (more recently and notoriously) 5th Avenue between Craig and Bellefield going inbound.
20:33 UTC
Be Careful in Garfield/Coral Street
The construction on Penn Avenue now funnels a lot of the vehicle traffic on to Coral, which is part of my regular commute route from Highland Park to Downtown. Dealing with a lot of 2-way vehicle traffic on a side street that's not very wide to begin with, not to mention vehicles making dangerous blind corner turns on to Coral. Stay safe, especially on a day like today where visibility and road condition is less than ideal.
14:04 UTC
STOLEN CARGO E-BIKE ALERT!
Our cargo e-bike was stolen in Friendship by the Montessori school! I could scream! It is a very distinctive bike: It is a Radwagon 4 with a yellow bottle cage, wooden running boards on the side and a big front basket. THANK YOU for keeping your eyes peeled. If you spot it, please text: 412-515-4545.
03:02 UTC
Anyone else enjoy riding among the downtown traffic?
How do you feel about being nestled among a few cars and maybe a bus or two, surrounded on all sides? I find it very cozy to be in a slow-moving convoy, and keeping up at a faster speed is wonderfully exhilarating. I had a hard time with it when I first started out but once I actually leaned how road patterns worked it was smooth sailing and fun times 🚴♀️ How do all of you feel about it?
00:52 UTC
Austin Fike Memorial Ride
A few photos from the memorial ride (on November 17th), in Brookline, for Austin Fike.
18:44 UTC
A fond farewell to my first outdoor riding season
Sad to see it go. I'll miss my two-wheeled buddy and the great outdoors.
Seeing as my body can't acclimate well to the cold no matter what I wear, it's time to call it a season and bring the bike to the basement and eventually to the shop for some work. It's also time to hit the streching and exercise routines and if needed, PT, to fix my lower back. It sucks getting old(er).
It was a good first full year. 2309mi, 71,956ft of climb and ~138000+ calories burned and my weight and a1C finally dropped. Looking forward to February or March and getting outside again.
14:43 UTC
Apparently it's National Block the Bike Lane With All Your Trash Day over on Beechwood Blvd...
Fuck these people. And why do they all have more trash than the day after Thanksgiving?
13:26 UTC
Biking on the Busway
Is the busway ever open to bikes? I feel like it would be such a great and easy way to get from East Liberty to Downtown on a super smooth and newly paved road.
Just curious if this has been a conversation before and what the outcome or reason was behind it.
20:54 UTC
World Day of Remembrance Ride
For those planning to attend the Austin Fike memorial ride tomorrow (Sunday), there was a time mixup. It will be at 9am not 10am.
https://facebook.com/events/s/austin-fike-memorial-ride/573840405178848/
23:21 UTC
Children's Bikes stolen from Promise Center in Homewood...
Anyone have any old children's bikes they can donate? Looks like a really good program.
https://www.wtae.com/article/promise-center-homewood-funding/62923227
13:51 UTC
For anyone else considering an indoor trainer for the dreaded winter months...
I just got myself a Kickr Core for $400 on REI's member sale so that I can atleast do some indoor training on weekdays when it's dark by the end of the work day.
Membership is $30, so it ends up being $70 in savings.
14:38 UTC
What Would You Pay for the SuperCycle Conversion Kit? (Hybrid Bike System kit)
We’re business students at the University of Calgary working on the SuperCycle Conversion Kit for ENTI 317, a modular system that stores braking energy to assist starts and inclines and includes a display for speed, distance, and charge metrics.
- Self sufficient hybrid system, stores braking energy to charge the supercycle system controlled via a throttle by the rider, accelerating whilst discharging the energy stored.
- Includes a fully customizable dynamic display for charge, speed, and other functional applications.
Please submit a response we could greatly use the insights!!
(interpret price in CAD please)
00:00 UTC
Cycling books
There are 8 bike racing (mostly biographies) books on the free cart in the Squirrel Hill Library.
20:34 UTC
Where did you ride in the past two weeks? and Open Discussion thread
Where did you ride in the past two weeks? Did you have any positive or negative interactions with people on the road or trail? What rides are you going to this upcoming week? This thread is also for any posts/comments/quick questions/rants you think don't warrant a full thread.
14:00 UTC