The Bicycle Adventure Club - Come Ride With Us!

Horsing Around the Virginia Blue Ridge Foothills

October 15th to October 23rd

Ride Director: Rita Zeidner
Ride Co-Director: Harold Datz
Report by: Rick Madden

In order to fully understand the inaugural ride of leaders Rita Zeidner and Harold Datz, a glossary of terms is included in this Tripper Report. Please review these terms before deciding if the Blue Ridge Foothills is a ride for you.

• Accommodating...Rita and Harold could not have been more accommodating to the group. Ride too tough? Our leaders would carve out an easier route. Bike in need of repair? Let’s jump in the van and get that bike fixed! Vegetarian? No problem.
• Bucolic…Set in the beautiful Virginia countryside, this ride was chock full of quiet roads, green pastures and…gasp…polite drivers!
• Buttery…Smooth pavement that indicates our leaders paid off some local officials. Some of the roads had paved within the past month. What a treat!
• Historical…Did you know eight American presidents were born in Virginia? Civil War history is around every corner. Some of our group that had cars took a day off riding to visit nearby Harpers Ferry. Antietam, Manassas and Fredericksburg are nearby. Take a little time to explore if you don’t feel like riding.
• Hostess…with the Mostest.  See Rita.
• Punchy…That’s what I call the climbs around this area. Not too steep, not too long but they come one after another. Heed our leaders warning; this isn’t an easy ride, but the rewards are ever-present.

This ride was one of the most pleasant surprises this reporter has had in a long time. Frankly, I didn’t expect much. Virginia? Who rides in Virginia? After exploring this area, I’ll ride in Virginia! Roads were lightly travelled and in great shape. This wasn’t an easy ride, and Rita makes this very clear in her ride description. You will climb many hills in a day, but none are too long or two steep. Goldilocks, if she rode a bike, would find the terrain to be “just right”!

Our leaders described this as “horse country” and they were not kidding. Middleburg seems to be equestrian central. Horse “farms” were expansive, easily several hundred acres. Although a bit over the top, it made the riding all that more delightful with few residents per square mile, which equates to less cars on the road.

From hotels to a rustic B&B, this trip offered nice accommodations. With the exception of the first and last night, we spent three consecutive nights in the other two accommodations, giving us more than enough time to explore the area.  A word of warning; the B&B offered a variety of rooms, from a cottage to small rooms sharing a bath. Rita was very clear, first to sign up get the preferred rooms. So, if you want to go on this ride, sign up early!

Many of the riders brought their cars which gave them more riding options. Our B&B accommodations were five miles from the nearest town which made dinner options limited to those who didn’t have transportation. However, there was plenty of ride-sharing so nobody went hungry.

For many of us this was our first time experiencing bicycle touring in the Old Dominion. Thank you, Rita and Harold, for introducing us to yet another great ride on the BAC calendar!