Hadley Bend Connector Inquiry/Response

Hey Gang,

I sent comments along to Liz Beeching at TDOT on the HBC and received a response this morning. I think she addressed the inquiry well but we could still use more folks sending comments and I included Ms. Beeching's contact info with her response.

Tim (Nik the Stik)
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I am a cyclist who rides with a group out of Sumner County and one of our members, Dave Miley, attended the 8/14 meeting at Station Camp on the HBC proposal. Dave gave us some details on the meeting via a blog post that mentioned bicycle facilities may be a part of the project.

Having started some road cycling within the last year with an eye toward improving my commute and errand running options, as well as just getting out to ride, I am for anything, even toll roads, that will improve the opportunities for cyclists (and pedestrians) to be integrated into the transportation fabric of our state.

Some of our major arterials and collectors in the Nashville MSA, such as US 31 (E and W) and US 41, are not only horrible for cyclists but also motorists as well, with shoulders that are pitifully constructed or non-existent. Those that are ample for cyclists are so poorly maintained that cyclists do not want to ride on them for fear of major equipment damage and/or flat tires from debris.

So if toll roads are the answer, even with cyclists paying equally as drivers, or prorated down in relation to our superior road impact costs over automobiles, for access, they have my vote.
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Thank you for your comments on the Hadley Bend Connector and tolling. Although TDOT saw some support for the Hadley Bend Connector during public meetings held this summer, there was also a strong sentiment from those against this project. The General Assembly requires strong public support for any proposed toll pilot project. The Commissioner is committed to this requirement therefore further tolling work on the Hadley Bend Connector will not occur. The issues relating to bicycle and pedestrian mobility you discuss are very important not only in tolling applications, but also on a broader level for all transportation infrastructure. While this project will no longer be studied as a potential toll facility, it may still hold value as a needed piece of transportation infrastructure. TDOT will support the Nashville Metropolitan Planning Organization's leadership in any further study of this project.

Again, thank you for your comments. I will be sure to include them in the record of public input for tolling.

Best regards,

Liz Beeching
Tolling Coordinator
Suite 700 J.K. Polk Building
505 Deaderick Street
Nashville, TN 37243-0349
Main: (615) 253-2104
Cell: (615) 587-8246
elizabeth.beeching@state.tn.us
http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/

Fogbee Wannabe

A free roaming horse joined the Tuesday Fogbee ride as we made our way along Willow Rd. The horse was ignoring us till Phil called out to him/her. I never got close enough to see. Tom B thinks he was hoping to join us for a beer. The image above taken with my cell phone shows the horse chasing after Phil. Really, it does. Now to file this away with my images of Bigfoot.

Last reminder of Fall Ride

I know it's a while, but tomorrow is last day to definitely get room at Garden Inn. After more research, the route and plans remain the same. So if you plan to do the fall ride, call tomorrow. Then we can put it to bed till after the Jack and back.

I did some scouting by automobile for the Fall ride for November 15,16. 1. The Garden Inn in Monterey will only hold the rooms exclusively for us till August 19, next Tuesday. The benefits are a reduced rate of $125/night per couple. That includes room and breakfast, not the Sat evening meal. The usual rates are $135 and $145/night. The negative is the reduced rate is non cancelable whereas the regular rate is cancelable with a $25 penalty. Currently Phil and I have reservations. You can check out the rooms at http://www.thegardeninnbb.com/guestrooms.shtml/ 2. The first day route is tough with a very hard climb for 3.5 miles right at the end. I plan to ride the last 18 miles from Sparta to Monterey and loop back via Allgood tomorrow just to see how hard it is on a bike. I will also check out Monterey for places to eat Saturday night. Anyone who desires to ride with me is welcome. I know we will need to plan pickup about 4 miles from the end but the entire stretch from Sparta to Monterey looked pretty hard from behind the wheel. In summary, the route is still under consideration but if anyone wants to assure a place at the Garden Inn in Monterey, they need to call soon. Only eight places left. Garden Inn 931-839-1400
Bruce

Want a Toll Road with Bike Lanes to Old Hickory & Opryland? Tell TDOT

I passed on last Thursday's ride to attend the TDOT meeting on the proposed Hadley Bend Connector - a toll road that would connect West Main St., SR-45 in Old Hickory and Briley Parkway north of Orpyland. This project is in competition with other proposals to be one of two pilot projects authorized by the recent tollway legislation, and TDOT is holding meetings to get public input. Most of the attendees were in favor, as am I, to offer an alternative to I-65/SR-386 for motorists.

My primary motive for attending however was to state for the record what this proposal could provide cyclists and to ask if facilities or access for cyclists were being considered. Those familiar with the greenways near Opryland know that a cyclist can go east on the Stones River greenway to Percy Priest Dam or can take the greenway bridge west to Shelby Bottoms to downtown. Imagine getting there with a 7 mile ride from Hendersonville on bike safe lanes - sure beats Gallatin Road.

I was pleasantly surprised to hear the TDOT rep say that bike facilites are a possibility and that it's easier to accomodate those in new construction. (Oh to go back to when Indian Lake Blvd. was new construction.)

Let TDOT know what you think at: mailto:TDOT.Comments@state.tn.us

For more info on the project go to: www.tdot.state.tn.us/documents/tollstudy/HadleyBend.pdf

Fall Foliage Tour

Proposed Dates: November 15,16, 2008 Picked for out of town Titans game.
Stay at Garden Inn, Monterey, TN Picked because it's reportedly nice.
Itinerary:
1. Drive to and park vehicles at County offices, Smithville, TN. Picked because it goes through nice area and is pretty flat for TN. A killer hill last mile but near enough for rabbits/spouses to fetch up those in need. Food stop at Rock Island or Sparta.

Spouses/SO's drive directly to Monterey or whatever they prefer.

2. Return Sunday to Smithville, via Cookeville. Relatively short, scenic enough with food stop in Cookeville.

The Garden Inn has limited rooms (11) so if we have need for more, there is a problem. I thought there was a motel in Monterey but can't find it on the net. I may have been thinking of Crossville.

Links

Garden Inn
Day 1 route
Day 2 route

Some of the roads are new to me, at least in the last 10 years, so I plan to scout them out, as well as visit the Garden Inn. However, I am relatively confident of the lodging and route so unless someone points out a deal killer, will make my reservations in the next month.

FOGBEE Party - BIG Success

With help from Renee', the coiffured DJ Extra-ordinaire Gary leads FOGBEES to a night of fun.

For more pictures click here.

Why Gary and Bike Didn't Make Olympics

GARY

When Will We Ever Learn

Fat old guys & Fine old gals,
Last night's ride was invigorating as we chased the sun to squeeze in one more thirtyish mile ride before summer is over. Unfortunately, darkness closed in on a few who were either still out on the road or were searching for presumed "lost sheep". As the delegated ride leader, I feel responsible for the unusual shot gun conclusion to an other wise well concieved ride. I allowed us to modify the ride after the start thinking that the fast group and the not so fast group were together respectively. All said and done , I apologize for the craziness that resulted last night. If anyone should know the disappointment of finishing a ride alone , then I am that person. So as to avoid repeats of last night's events, I recommend that we adhere to the mutual agreement that ride routes not be altered unless EVERYONE who started the ride is fully aware of the proposed change. It's a simple thing to do. It is the safe thing to do. It will insure that no one ever rides alone on one of our FOGBEE or FOGBEE Lite biking excursions. Just my take on it for what it's worth.

Phone Number Share

We have had a request for FOGBEES to Share cell phone numbers, for contacting each other about riding, and for use in emergencies on the road. I will compile a list and email it to those who want to share. This will allow you to share only if you want to. If you want to be included please email bikenwalk@comcast.net and include your:

NAME CELL NUMBER Whether you are a FOGBEE or a FOGBEE LITE

Let's make a deadline of August 22 if you want to be included and receive an emailed copy.

Graffiti Road ride images

Thanks to David M for leading this one again. Hear the Lites had 15 riders! Unedited images of the Graffiti ride are at Snapfish.

Fogbees take second place!

The Fogbees are already known to have the good looks when it comes to bike clubs but Tuesday night they also showed that they got the brains! The underrated team of Bruce, Brett, Renee, Gary, Andrew, Doug and Mr. Miley "held on" at Big Lou's last night in the "Battle of the Trivia Beer Drinkers" contest and took a $25.00 second place gift certificate to be used on Saturday after the ride at Big L's.
Several miscues led the Fogbees team to lose by 10 overall points including Gary's bumbling failure to wager any points the first 2 questions (which we got right but got no points!); Doug's over confidence when he "swore" he knew what year the 49'ers beat the Bengals ( he wasn't even close!) and Brett's final question bombshell when he missed the question "What was the name of the venue where the Blue's Brothers played (the song "rawhide")? The answer was not "Cowboy Bob's! Still, Bruce's amazing "Red Badge of Courage" and my "Billy Preston" answer had the crowd hating us even more,but in the end, too many miles, too much beer and a guy who knew what the "golden egg cup" teams were was too much for the Fogbees. Like they say "There's always next Tuesday"

The Swap Shop Works!

In two days I have already sold the biking shoes and water bottle holders. You all should try the site and post your unused bike equipment as there is a market out there.

Exchange or find pre-used stuff on SWAP SHOP. Send it to Fogbees@Gmail.com and we put it on this Web Page.

Comments from Frank Bowyer

. . . We're about to lose the bridge over 386. It currently has 2 lanes with shoulder space, but will soon be 3 lanes with no shoulder space. Much worse, the northbound will consist of 2 lanes to ease traffic on ILB. What makes this worse is that such a proposal is not safe for cyclists to ride in the area around the on/off ramps in order to head north on Drakes Creek Rd.
. . . I need your input. Who do you support for Sumner County Commissioner, and why? Let me know based on your experience and knowledge of these candidates' actions. The choices are Anthony Holt, Ragan Hall and Paul Goode (is it Paul?). I'm registered as a delegate for the Republican caucus, which will be held at the Taj Mahal on 8/16.

Frank Bowyer IV

The Hammer Ride

My hat is off to David Miley for sharing Saturday's ride, despite threatening weather and diminished participation. The ride out of Gallatin through Bethpage and up to Westmoreland was nothing short of wonderful ! David and Gary rode point with me and Doug doing rear guard duty. Even though I'm truly a FAT old guy, I'm dubbing this route the " hammer " ride because you can ride a lot of miles of it flat out and it includes the most inviting incline to the top of the Highland Rim I've ever seen. As we climbed to Westmoreland i kept holding back expecting some hidden surprise near the top. Never got surprised. There was one stretch of Old Hwy 31-E north of Westmoreland where the road encouraged one to go faster and faster. It was one of those rare topographical features where the road appears to be gradually flat to rising but your pedals tell you you're on a subtle downgrade. I told Doug that we could ride to Michigan with a road like that. This ride should be done again in the fall by all of us. Without a doubt, I'm placing this ride in my top three local rides.

http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/tn/-gallatin/982555213

BREWSTER'S FESTIVAL

I noticed in the paper that the "Music City Brewer's Festival" is from 2-8 pm at the Hilton downtown with over 40 world-wide breweries represented. Anyone interested?

SUPPORT Greenways for Sumner County

We were all saddened by the news about the death of Hank Thompson after a lengthy battle with cancer. As many of you may know, Hank was Sumner County Commissioner and friendly to our greenways and general "cycling/running/ walking-related-activity" causes. Hank has been temporarily replaced by Ragan Hall. On Saturday, July 26th, there will be several GOP County Caucus events throughout Sumner county to elect a representative to fulfill Hank's unexpired term. SUPPORT GREENWAYS through political action. Please click here to read more.

Frank P. Bowyer, IV

Hendersonville Greenway

. . . Frank Bowyer has a GOOD NEWS Report. He and David Hardin examined the proposed site for the Indian Lake Village Greenway last week. A path has been cleared and 10-ft wide stone trail constructed near the site of the new library. As you know this Greenway terminates at the little bridge over the CSX RR on STOP 30. This bridge will be accessible only for pedestrian/bike traffic.

I'm in a New York State of mind

Hello fellow Fogbees. Just wanted to say hello from the Big Apple. We have seen Times Square, the Empire State Building, shopped in ChinaTown, ate lunch on the streets of Little Italy, seen A-Rod hit a homer in Yankees Statium, riddin the subway every where and had a fun biking experiance (will eplain later). Anyway, see you all Tuesday.

Could be an upcoming FOGBEE Lite

Yes, your eyes are not fooling you, this is Marsha. She is at Percy Priest Dam. Today Marsha and I did the Greenway ride. Our speed was not up to even Lite, but we just took our time and enjoyed the Greenways. We made a stop at the Jack in the Box (May become a regular stop on the Greenway Ride) and got a Strawberry Banana smoothie for some extra carbs. Hope you all had a good ride tonight.

Shorts for our Jersey

Before I spend a lot of time on design, I would like to get an idea how many people are interested in purchasing shorts. I have discussed designs with Kimiko at Louis Garneau and have placed information for your consideration on our Web Site. Please click here to review and then enter a COMMENT as to how many shorts you would be interested in buying, provided you like the design. Also, comment if you aren't interested. Please note the same guy (KJ) who put the beer (or Vernor's Ginger Ale) mug with our bee also suggested the base color.

Cyclist Injured on New Shackle

Travis Simpson (an Acme Biker) was hurt this morning on New Shackle near Drake's Creek. He was looking back and ran off the road. He ended up in the hospital with torn ligaments in his shoulder.

Back from Monticello, KY

Hey, guys. Posting this from front porch of cabin on Lake Cumberland on off chance of being near Wifi sometime today. The ride was terrific, had about 15 min of rain just before getting to Red Boiling Springs but was no problem given the wide shoulders on 52. The route included a little gem named Ferguson Hill Road, not for hill haters. My selective forgetting of hills was working as usual. I remembered the ride being hilly, especially Savage Mountain just past Albany, Ky which I again had to walk, but the rest of the ride into KY was much hillier than remembered. Still, got there OK and fresher than I remember from last trip. That was probably due more to the 70 degree, low humidity this time as opposed to the 95 degree high humidity of last trip.
Don't think this will be on the Fogbee ride agenda any time soon. I was beginning to hate the downhills because one knew what was to immediately follow. Did not get out of my granny for 20 miles because I wanted the downhill to last as long as possible and all the uphills immediately required a granny. Plan to be on the ride Tuesday.
Bruce
Update, I'm back and was no where near wifi. Sorry to hear about Brad. There are bad, worse, and absolutely terrible cervical spne fractures. Hope his is one of the lesser bad.
See you tonight.

Deficient Road Design = Bike Injury

This picture was taken with a cell-phone on Bonita Pkwy Hendersonville on 7/12/08 after a FOGBEE cyclist distracted by traffic hit a grate over a storm sewer. The slots run parallel to the flow of traffic and are wide enough to swallow a bike tire. The smashed helmet, split into two, shows the damage as the grate caught the tire and cyclist went head first into the pavement. As the cyclist laid on the street, passing motorists called 911, which in minutes solicited a response of three police cars, a fire truck, and an ambulance.

This accident could have resulted in serious back, neck, and head injuries and worse if the cyclist had fallen into traffic. Fortunately, after a thorough examination by the EMT's he walked away only with facial abrasion and a very sore back. (Click on photos to enlarge)

UPDATE 7/14/08: Biker has a fractured C7 vertebrae and will be seeing neuro-surgeon this Friday. His wife is upset because the grate is an obvious hazard. I explained that the Greenway Committee has brought these issues to the attention of Mayor Foster's office in past (Wessington Rd and Thornton Market) and received only promises of action. We expect a similar reponse until someone is seriously hurt.

Jersey - In Production

Hello Doug, I have received your signed layouts and will be putting your order into the early stages of production later today. I hope you are pleased with the resulting product and I thank you for your time and business, have a great day. Cheers,
Nick Beaulieu, Graphic Designer
nbeaulieu@louisgarneau.us
Louis Garneau USA Inc.

. . . Nick says, "Expect Jersey delivery by September 1'st."

7/11/08: Thanks to the "smartly dressed" Dave Miley and Dave Buckman who showup for rides with shorts matching their jerseys, I have been asked, "Where are our shorts?" I do plan to design shorts. I just had jersey fatigue. This weekend I will have samples for your inspection.

FOGBEE Priorities

. . . A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
. . . The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
. . . The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes.'
. . . The professor then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed. 'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
. . . The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else---the small stuff. 'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you. 'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Cycle another hour. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'
. . . One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked.' The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of Beers with a friend.'

Police Encounter

While doing my Mud Hollow training loop today I encountered Church Traffic leaving Our Lady of the Lake at 12:35 pm. That alone was a surprise. First Baptist traffic was all gone and I always thought we Baptist were the worst for long sermons. Anyway, I slipped into the very polite stream of traffic easily enough and proceeded to the intersection of Stop 30 and Drakes Creek Rd where a policeman was directing traffic. He held everyone up for a few seconds to come over and tell me he could write me a ticket for holding up traffic by not riding far enough to the right. Then waved me on and said" Have a nice ride." Now I'm in a quandary.

I was riding just to right of the oil streak, on the place where most cars right tire goes, which is technically not as far right as possible. But then I was doing about 25 mph and it was only 200 yards from the church exit to the intersection and did not consider that anyone wanted to speed up fast enough to pass me in that distance anyway. Certainly the SUV behind me was keeping his distance. If I had gone way over to encourage a pass, I would have created a dangerous situation. Etc, etc, for my reasons but I was not about to attempt a discussion on the spot. I did note his particulars for later reference. I think he is a reasonable guy and was honestly giving me what he thought was good advice for my safety.

I'd like to discuss this with him and spread the word that on most of our roads we cannot possibly ride far enough to the right to allow cars to safely pass us when there is oncoming traffic or limited sight distance. However, given my perceived attitude toward cyclists by the Powers That Be, any pubic airing of this, including this blog, will likely get the guy into trouble for not giving me a ticket. Certainly more likely to create ill will than to help. Bummer.
Fortunately, the rest of the ride was great, legs strong, nice breeze, polite cars, no dogs so my immediate impulse to put my home up for sale and move out of this g*d**n city has passed.

What do you guys think? I'd sure like to chip away at the attitude that automobiles have the absolute right to proceed as fast as the road surface will allow, but also don't want to make things worse for us. I probably break five laws with every trip out of my drive, be it by car or by bike.

Bruce

Intro ride idea

I am planning to do a much shorter (and less hilly) ride next Tuesday with April. So we thought if there are any significant others who might be interested in riding that they'd be welcome to join in.

We will be leaving from the Family Restaurant on Stop 30 (near New Shackle) at 6PM and doing around 7 or 8 miles of the mostly flat Stop 30 / Drakes Creek area.

We will be out of town Tuesday the 8th, but are planning to do this again the following Tuesday, July 15th.

Beyond that we'll see if the mileage and hills increase a bit...

Gone Graffitti

Fantastic ride today guys ! Feel like I should eat some Wheaties for having seen so many amber waves of grain. I guess I'll have to settle for the next best derivative of grain........ beer.
David , thanks for the maps and routing. Next time we traverse Graffitti we need to carry cans of spray paint in Bruce's panniers ! Tom, thanks for fitting us to our jerseys.

Don't Ride Against Traffic Flow

Tom : I have a new bike picture for you to post. (the others are pretty amazing also). I didn't think I could beat the Mexico race accident but I think this does. Could you post it for the FOGBees. Gary Seee you next Thursday.

Fall Foliage Tour 08

Now that it's hot as blue blazes we can anticipate with favor a ride in cooler weather. And it's never too soon to begin planning. For this year's fall ride I propose a Saturday/Sunday out and back from Hendersonville to Cedars of Lebanon State park. The ride could be as short as 40 miles and relatively flat to whatever and hilly. To avoid back tracking as much as possible, about 60 miles each day would work well.
The park has cabins but no restrauant on site. We could drive back about ten miles to Lebanon or take stuff to prepare at the cabins. Their Delux AAA cabins rent for about $110/night and advertise to sleep 6 but that depends on the mix. Each cabin has two bedrooms and another double bed in a loft. I have usually slept on the couch and done very well.
The time can be from late October to mid November. It seems middle TN weather gets bad about first of October but then we have a warm dry spell mid November. No promises but it worked out well enough for Red Boiling Springs last year. Ok, there was a miseble headwind coming back.

Other/future options are a drive to Henry Horton and do some loops. Rock Island State park is also a good option for a drive and ride weekend.

Let me know who is interested and any preferences for dates and place. We can work on difficulty level of routes etc as planning progresses.
Bruce

FOGBEE HONOR GIVEN

Just to let you all know, I went to the bike shop yesterday (after the ride from Hell,Part II!!)and was talking to Travis (I believe is his name) who repairs the bikes and he said the following:
1. The FOGBee website (blog) is fantastic and he regularly visits the Blog. He says that the information contained therein is exceptional and that he gives the blogsite out to people he knows. He particularly likes the maps.
2. He also said that the FOGBees had developed into a great bike club and we were very dedicated to the art of cycling (or something like that).
Lastly, a person I know, Dean, was shopping for a bike for his son and he immediately said, when I began to explain the ride yesterday, that I must be a "FOGBee". I asked him how he knew that and he said that he had heard of us! I invited him to ride sometime.
Unintentionally, our hard work and dedication pays off in other ways.

Rogana Ride

Doug, although I'm still feeling somewhat scorched, I thought that route today added just the right amount of adventure to keep the wheels turning. Thanks for the rest breaks, the views along Greenfield , and the comraderie during and after the ride. It was good how we worked it out so each one had the ride they wanted and no one got left behind. David and Gary , I'm not sure why you wait for us , but I'm appreciative that you do. Brett, your a wandering prince for herding and guiding us along the way. We've a special thing as fellow FOGBees, unlike any band of brothers I've experienced yet. Oh, and by the way , Rosemary said my noggin looked no more or less hairy, but my butt seemed shaggier !

Doug Humor

Ed's Jersey Movie #2

Mexico Needs 3-Ft Law

Check out this gallery I found at AOL...http://sports.aol.com/top-sports-photos?feeddeeplinkNum=0


Tom post this on the blog . . . Gary

Bike info

ED:
The twist bands that I use to tie the wheels of the bike on trips are called "kwiktwists" and can be found all over the internet for sale. I have tried to remember where I bought these but can't recall. They may have them at walmart.