Path: bloom-beacon.mit.edu!hookup!swrinde!sgiblab!darwin.sura.net!mailer.acns.fsu.edu!grep!adchen From: adchen@cs.fsu.edu (Tony Chen) Newsgroups: rec.skate,news.answers,rec.answers Subject: Rec.skate FAQ: Where to Skate (Outdoors) Sec. 2 (8/10) Supersedes: Followup-To: rec.skate Date: 2 Apr 1994 14:51:18 GMT Organization: Florida State University Computer Science Department Lines: 1112 Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu Distribution: world Expires: 05/02/94 Message-ID: References: Reply-To: adchen@cs.fsu.edu (Tony Chen) NNTP-Posting-Host: grep.cs.fsu.edu Originator: adchen@grep Xref: bloom-beacon.mit.edu rec.skate:13638 news.answers:17224 rec.answers:4737 Posted-By: auto-faq 1.24 Archive-name: rec-skate-faq/part8 REC.SKATE FAQ - PART 8: WHERE TO SKATE (Outdoors) Section 2 Compilation of Outdoor Skating Locations Section 2 -------------------------------------------------- (last changed Feb 23, 1994) Table of Contents ----------------- East Coast - New York - Boston - New Jersey - Philadelphia - Washington D.C. - Baltimore - Rhode Island South - Atlanta Overseas - Australia EAST COAST Tennessee --------- From: mldickens@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens) Subject: Re: Where to skate in Oak Ridge/Knoxville TN? I'm not sure if inlines are allowed, but there was an indoor skating rink on the east side of town (Oak Ridge), on the Turnpike. OR does have some nice BIG parking lots to cruise around; mainly the newly renovated Downtown (Indoor) Mall. I'd probably stick to the Wal-Mart side because the pavement is better (and newer). There's always the Kroger's, K-Mart, and Family Rec parking lots. I'm from OR, but I've never tried skaing around town. I think it is do-able, as biking was quite possibly in town. I wouldn't recommend blading out to the 'Labs, because the road is WAY too narrow (as of last year, at least. Maybe they finally got their act together & did something about it! - it had no shoulder, and had room for 2 cars and a bike). During the summer, there are LOTS of runners and bikers. And also LOTS of traffic. I'm also of the opinion that blading might not pass over too well with the natives (of OR at least). Skate boards were (and I think still are) pretty rad. I'll have more to say over the summer, as I'll probably be visiting home over the 4th of July. And I'll definitely take my Blades for some downtown action! New York -------- NYC (from David Madeo dmadeo@is.morgan.com) Depending on how hard core you are, you can skate year round in NYC. Windproof insulated garments help. The prime season is March though October. The New York Road Skaters Association (NYRSA) sponsors events throughout the season. They can be contacted at 212-534-7858. Manhattan --------- The most popular location in NYC is Central Park on the 6 mile loop. Cars are barred for several hours each day during the week during the "summer" season (which lasts until November) and all weekend throughout the year. While you are sharing the road with bikes, joggers, and walkers, there's usually plenty or room since there are three lanes. When the autos are allowed back in, there's a sidewalk for walkers, and a lane for bikes/skates. It does get a bit crowded then. Racing/Loops ------------ The small loop goes counter-clockwise from 59th and Broadway around taking the left at 72'nd past Tavern on the Green and back to 59th. This is relatively tame mild rolling hills. The big loop is just under 10k if you're interested in racing. Go straight at the 72`nd turnoff, you go past the Met, around a long turning downhill and along the top of the park. Then you're on a big winding uphill. There's a long downhill leading back to the other side of the 72'nd crossover. While lots of people skate here, this is the domain of the speed skaters. I'd be careful doing the big loop at night, the top of the park isn't the nicest neighborhood. It's important to go counter-clockwise. Most of the serious accidents in the park have been caused by people going the wrong direction. Salom Course ------------ Just south of the 72'nd crossover on the west side right outside the Tavern on the Green is the cone lane. Most weekends, the cones are out after noon. There's usually a line of people running the course and a whole gaggle of tourists/skaters/bikes watching. There's a short course that's usually not being used. This is where the speedskaters hang out. They usually gather around 7pm especially on Tuesday nights to do laps of the big loop. Dancing ------- Last, there's skater's way. It's a road that was blocked off and turned into some volleyball courts and a skating area. This is *the* place for dancers to congregate. There's a path connecting the cones area to skater's way. The bottom of skaters way connects to the 72`nd crossover. Typically there are three types of things going on. Some of the skaters dance to the music of their headphones and/or the sound system someone always sets up. Then there's the oval where people throw their backpacks in the middle and skate around. Further down, they alternate between hockey, jumping trashcans, and teaching skating classes. You'll find a lot of quad skaters here as well. Bandshell/Cherry Hill --------------------- The newest area in the park to skate in. The is just east of Skaters way. There's a large tiled area where people skate in a circle. There's the occasional hockey game though it's being discouraged by the Parks Dept. (Too many other skaters and it's not enclosed.) This is a good safe place to learn crossovers. Cherry Hill is a bit north of skaters way and is basically a paved circle next to a lake. Mostly beginners here. Wollman Rink ------------ This is where people go to learn how to skate in a safe controlled environment. It's in the SE corner of Central Park. Street Skating -------------- Broadway and Fifth avenue (especially at night) all are used by skaters fairly extensively. There's a night skate every Tuesday night (rain date is Wednesday) 8PM at Blades West (72nd between Columbus and Broadway). Helmets, lights, and safety gear are all strongly recommended. There's a lot of places to do tricks, stairs, handrails, grinds in New York. Too many to list and probably better not to. If you're really interested in this, you'll have to find the right crowd first. Go on a night skate or hang out at the cones on a weekend. Bronx ----- Mulali Skate Park is the only accessible ramp in New York. This is a block away from Yankee Stadium. There's a mini 1/2 with a stair going up and a larger 1/2 that you have to pump to get up on. There's a whole bunch of 1/4 pipes and launch ramps. Occasionally these get demolished by the local gangs so ask around first. Brooklyn -------- Prospect park in Brooklyn is similiar to Central Park, but not as crowded. It's also a lot smaller loop. Some people do a loop in one park, skate through the city and over the Brooklyn Bridge and do a loop in the other park. The Promenade is a good place to walk, but contrary to what some people say, not to skate. The pavement is extremely broken up and the pedestrians are extremely slow, hard of hearing and erratic. Also, going over the Brooklyn Bridge is possible, but the wooden slats will have your feet buzzing for a long time. You will not forget skating it. Nice views though. Long Island ----------- Finally, there's a trail on Long Island a lot of skaters use. It's a five mile trail along the Wantagh parkway from Cedar Shore park in Wantagh, to Jones Beach. The cement path goes from Long Island over several smaller islands and bridges to Jones Island fronting the Atlantic Ocean. It's flat and there isn't much in between the two ends. Bikes and joggers also use the trail. It's much easier to park at Cedar Shore than Jones Beach during the summer. From: danny@cbnewsg.cb.att.com (daniel.moran) Subject: Re: Where to skate in NYC? Thanks to everyone who responded to my request. BROOKLYN: The loop around Prospect Park, The Promenade in Brooklyn Heights, the bike path along the Narrows from Bay Parkway to the 69th street pier and along Shore Road in Bay Ridge. MANHATTAN: Central Park and East River Park. Also, the Roxy has skating once a week. I also contated the New York Road Skaters Association (NYRSA) and they are having a trip to the NY Botanical Gardens on 2/14 at 11 AM and to the Cloisters on 2/20 at noon. From: schaefer@mtkgc.com (Pamela A. Schaefer) Another great place to skate is along the south west side of Manhattan. You can start at the Hudson River Park (Chambers St.), continue to World Financial Center, then onto Battery Park City, and end up at Battery Park. All this, without ever having to be on a street. It is also great because the entire route is along the water. And for people interested in "stair jumping", there is a great set at the entrance to Hudson River Park. From pcrxs@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov Mon Dec 6 13:13:12 1993 > Another great place to skate is along the south west side of Manhattan. > You can start at the Hudson River Park (Chambers St.), continue to World > Financial Center, then onto Battery Park City, and end up at Battery Park. > All this, without ever having to be on a street. It is also great because > the entire route is along the water. And for people interested in "stair > jumping", there is a great set at the entrance to Hudson River Park. This is a decent place to skate, but while skaters (particularly teenagers) can often be seen doing tricks on the steps at the north entrance, it's a no-no. There's usually some park security folks wandering around in little white trucks, and whenever they get to the steps, they chase away anybody they catch skating on them. They've chased me off twice. Someone asked in rec.skate a couple weeks ago where the best stairs in NYC were for skating, and somebody replied that they're all over town. I thought that was technically true, but are they really fit for skating. Then I happened to skate by the NY state courthouse on Foley Square, which has a flight of about 30-40 steps leading up to it at the usual steepness, and observed some high schools kids skating down them, backwards. So...you can skate on any stairs. Somebody also mentioned that Washington Square was a nice place to skate, particularly as there were some shallow steps there. However, the last time I skated down there, there was a security guy at the north entrance who told me the park was closed to skaters. This may only be temporary, as I understand there's some sort of clean-up-the- park effort currently being pushed by neighborhood residents. Massachusetts ------------- Boston ------ The trails on the Charles (at least when I left in 1989) could not meet this policy. There are plenty of places where it would be physically impossible for one bicycle to pass another unless there was no opposing traffic. Portions of the trail up near the Allston exit of the Mass Pike immediately come to mind. I lived in Boston for 10 years. Fortunately, I was able to schedule my work to avoid the crunch time on the trails--in to work after 10AM, leave work after 6PM. The most fun was skating at night along the Charles (yes, O'Leary, with light and helmet). This may have been dangerous, but I rarely, if ever, saw any sinister types along the park at that hour. There are some pretty decent places to skate in Boston other than the Charles. The linear park along the new Orange Line wasn't bad. I did a lot of my practicing on the linear park from Davis to Alewife on the Red Line. At that time, the nearly-empty Alewife parking lot, with its gentle ramps and not-so- gentle spirals, was an excellent place to learn hills. From: Damon@nomaD Not sure where this fits in the FAQs, but here is the information anyway. There is a skating club in Boston called the 'In-line Club of Boston'. The hotline # is 932-5457 ( WE-B-KIKS ). Maximus Skate Park has a half-pipe and a quarter-pipe street skating area. 576-4723. Mass Indoor Skate Complex has a medium-sized hockey rink which is available for open skating and hockey. 937-5577. From: mdickens@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens) Subject: ABC and Boston Night Skate? The ever popular Thursday night Night Skate was wicked crowded yesterday - lots of good skaters, but a goodly number of beginners / intermediates as well. Rumor had it that there was a short clip on ABC sports about THIS night skate, and that's why it was so crowded. Anyone see or know about this? MLD FYI: There are 2 Night Skates in Boston that happen on a regular basis: one is on Tuesday night, meet at the Hatch Shell on the Charles River; leaves around 8:30 pm (or as soon as it's reasonably dark). Your $10 covers 3 glow sticks & some soft drinks. $5 each time thereafter. This is a leisurely skate - no tricks or racing or jumping or stairs, etc... unless you individually want to ;-> This skate is sponsored by John Gilmore, who is somehow related to RollerBlade. the other is Thursday night, meet at the Trinity Church in Copley Square; leaves around 8:30 pm (or as soon as the leaders arrive & want to go). Free to all, but this one is fast-paced. You can do jumps, stairs, natural ramps, bricks, and any number of these combined. You can also choose to go around & just watch; but you'll have to skate fast to keep up. Frequent stops to let the leaders show off. If you plan to participate, wear full protective padding, including large knee pads, and wrist guards at a minimum. A helmet is recommended (just in case....). The powers that lead give a short lecture on safe, polite, respectful skating at the first stop. This skate is TOTALLY unsponsored - skate free at your own risk. Cambridge --------- By the Charles River, just get to harvard. Allston/cambridge exit off Mass Pike. Memorial drive: nice road... 8 hours open ... 11am to 7pm.. skated on sunday... only open on sundays ... open for "recreational vehicles" only... pretty neat... had two sets of cones set up... plus about 2 or 3 miles or 4 lane road to skate... (bikes, skates, foot, unicycles, skatebvoards..) asphalt...few cracks..no real hills ... just by the cones.. mostly flat .. by river ... nice....straight away...no loop....not really crowded... too long to be crowded...short wait for slalom .. one rental van ... Bedford, MA ----------- From: mdickens@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens) Subject: Re: Bike/blading path in Bedford, MA In article <1993Aug26.111944@eriador.Prime.COM>, jns@eriador.Prime.COM (Joe Scianna) wrote: > I recently discoverd the Bike path which begins in Bedford > and extends to Davis Square in Cambridge. It's perfect for > blading. The surface is extremely smooth. It's well marked > with mile markers, so there's no quessing distance travelled. > > It's a nice alternative to the Esplanade. Although, > blading along the Charles River at sunset is tough to beat! This is the "famed" Minuteman Path - ~17 Miles of ~6' wide smooth pavement. They've finally taken out the speed bumps that existed at or near intersections, and replaced them with ground-level slabs of rock. Much easier to get over the slabs. The path starts in Davis Square between the Au Bon Pain & the Theater, just across from the T-stop. The surface begins as fairly smooth brick, and eventually converts into smooth pavement. You have to cross a few big streets (like Mass. Ave in Arlington) before getting to the longer sections. Once you get to Alewife (right at the T-stop), you're away from the large busy crossings, and can start the speed skating! Correct me if I'm wrong, but I seem to remember that this is the workings of Congressman Joe Kennedy.(?) MLD ps. The path is slightly inclined, allowing for some great speeds - I've gone a few miles doing 2.5 minutes / mile pace --> 24 MPH continuous on 4 wheels! New Jersey ---------- From: smo9130@tesla.njit.edu My husband and I recently started skating outdoors. We are looking for good places to skate. Any suggestions?? The best place we have found so far is Nomahegan Park in Cranford, NJ. Please let me know of any other good places. Thanks. ----- From: jogulin@camelot.fia.dmg.ml.com (Joseph Ogulin) Subject: Directions/description for Saddle River County Park By popular request, here we go: To the Fair Lawn area of Saddle River County Park (SRCP)... this is where the slalom course is: GSP North to exit 160. Turn left at the light at the end of the ramp. Follow this road over Route 4. It becomes Paramus Rd. here. Follow Paramus Rd. to the first light, turn left. Pass the signs that say things like "Welcome to Fair Lawn" and "Say No to Drugs." On your right, after passing these signs, you will find a small road which has signs (small ones) that say "Bike Route" and "Parking for Bike Path and Tennis Courts." Turn right here, and park in the lot. To the Dunkerhook (Paramus) area of SRCP: Follow the above directions, except go straight at the first light. Pass the cemetery on your right. You'll see a sign on your left that says "Dunkerhook Area, Saddle River County Park." Turn left there and follow any other signs. To the Ridgewood area of SRCP: GSP North to exit 163. Follow Route 17 North to the Ridgewood Ave. exit. Head toward Ridgewood (you'll loop back over the highway). After you pass Paramus Rd., look on your right. When you see the duck pond (and signs mentioning that it's the Ridgewood Wild Duck Pond of SRCP), turn right into the area. I can't recall how to get to the Glen Rock area. Sorry. To Fair Lawn and Dunkerhook from the north: If you're coming from the north on GSP South, use exit 163 (Route 17). Exit at Century Rd. and head toward Paramus/Fair Lawn/Glen Rock (or whatever it says). You will not cross over Route 17. Follow Century Rd. to Paramus Rd. There will be a cemetery on your right (this is the intersection mentioned in the Fair Lawn and Dunkerhook). To get to Fair Lawn, go straight. To get to Dunkerhook, turn right. Follow the above directions. To Ridgewood from the north: Exit the GSP at the Ridgewood/Oradell exit (I may be wrong, but I believe it is 165) and head toward Ridgewood. You are now on Ridgewood Ave. Just follow Ridgewood Ave. as above after you cross Route 17. Trail descriptions: There are approximately 6-7 miles of trails there. Most of them are quite smooth, with a few rough spots along the way. They're about 5' wide, and traffic is mostly walkers, joggers, bladers, and cyclists of various ages from child to senior citizen. Adult cyclists and bladers will generally follow courtesies and warn people in front of them when they are coming up behind you. The whole series of trails winds along side of a brook. Bugs are rampant along parts of the trails during summer months in the evenings. There are a few hills, but most of them are short, or not too steep. There are a few parking lots along the way where many newbie bladers can be seen tripping, stumbling, or moving forward when they have their balance. There are no street lights along the trails, as they all pass through wooded areas. The slalom course, for those interested, is in the Fair Lawn area by the tennis courts. If there is nobody there and you have your own cones (we tend to use cups because they're cheaper), you'll find red dots painted on the ground. The dots are 5' apart (measured MANY times). If someone is there, you won't be discouraged from trying. In fact if you just stand there and watch, you're very likely to be asked to try the cones. Just watch out for the geese and ducks in any of the parking lots around duck ponds (Ridgewood and Glen Rock), unless you like cleaning your bearings and wheels. Hope to see some of you out there! Joe --- From commpost!opus!camelot!jogulin@uu3.psi.com Well, I know of 2 parks in my area where you can go skating... Saddle River County Park in Fair Lawn/Paramus/Glen Rock/Ridgewood Brookdale Park in Bloomfield I much prefer Saddle River County Park because it has a 5+ mile trail (one way!) which is great if you're looking for long skating runs. Most of the people there are friendly and follow general courtesies when passing, especially when there's a large group (this is cyclists, skaters, and runners alike!). There is also an area where we do slaloming through cones. People in the group I usually meet there have painted dots on the ground for the cones. They're 5' apart (yeah, we know that competitions use 6' as the distance). Any time anyone has cones set up, people are welcome to "try their luck." We'll never tell anyone that they can't try it. In fact, if you stand there and watch for a long time and you're wearing rollerblades, someone's going to ask you to try it. Brookdale Park is ok, but I've found that many of the cyclists there are a bunch of assholes (mostly it's the cycling club members). They might give you 3 inches clearance when they pass you while you're avoiding debris on the side of the road. Next time I go there, I'm going to bring a hockey stick with me (even though I don't play hockey) and swing it back and forth as I go. If the cyclists bother me, *WHACK*... >:-) Other than that, it's got a 1 mile loop with a rather nasty hill. The paths going through the park other than the main road (which has a car speed limit of 30 MPH, which of course nobody follows) are not that great and could use some repaving. How to get to the parks: SRCP: The Fair Lawn area is accessed from Century Rd. Use Route 17 and exit at Century Rd. Head toward Glen Rock/Fair Lawn. The access road (Dunkerhook Rd) is a small road between Paramus Rd. and Saddle River Rd. The Dunkerhook area (Paramus) is accessed from Paramus Rd. The access road (Dunkerhook Rd.) has a sign by it and is north of Century Rd. The Ridgewood area is on Ridgewood Ave. Use Route 17 and exit at Ridgewood Ave. Head toward Ridgewood. I can't exactly remember how to get to the Glen Rock area, but Saddle River Rd. comes to mind. BP: There are entries on Grove St., Watchung Ave., and Bellvue Ave., all in Bloomfield. Take Route 3 to Broad St., head toward Bloomfield. Other things: In SRCP, if it is nice, there are always some skaters there after 1pm on weekends, and a varied subset of them on weeknights. Contact me if you want to come up and skate with us on a weekend. (h) 201-473-7606 (w) 212-449-1398 (direct to me) If you call me at home, my father and I have the same first name. Joe --- From: kamran@pizzabox.dialogic.com (Kamran Vaziri) There's a great place to skate up around the Madison, NJ area. It's the closed (unfinished portion) of route 24. It's paved and very smooooooooth. Plenty of room too. I'm not sure how to get to give you directions cause I don't know all the street names around there but I'll get a friend of mine to post directions to the place. --- From: HQPYR1:walden@ready.eng.ready.com Path or area location: Sawyer Camp Trail Directions Take I-280 to the Black Mtn / Hayne Rd exit-- near Half Moon Bay. Head west after you exit, until you reach the first stop sign. There is a sign that points left to Sawyer Camp Trail. Turn left. It is about 1-2 miles down after you turn. Parking information Park on the side of the road about 1-2 miles down. You'll see the entrance. Path length 6 miles in one direction. Loop or non-loop Non-loop. Average path width Two lanes; each about sidewalk width. Minimum path width Same throughout course. Average surface Fairly smooth; no potholes; some cracks filled with black goop. Worst surface Some areas are cracked with the goop filling. The goop can be kind of slippery, even when dry, so skate very gingerly on this stuff. When there has been rain, only attempt the first half of the trail; the second half is shady, so it dries slower. The pavement is very hard to skate on when wet. Number of hills Several small hills, one huge hill on the last mile of the course. Severity of steepest hill If you are not *very* good at speed control, *do not skate the last mile*. If you are good at speed control, make sure to keep your speed down. The hill is windy, so you risk running into peds and/or bikes if you fly too fast. Average steepness Don't know what the grade is, but the big hill is pretty darn steep. Obstacles Pedestrians, bikes, skaters. Weekend pedestrian and bicycle traffic Saturday and Sunday afternoons see pretty heavy traffic. Most of the traffic, though, keeps to the first mile or two of the trail. So, after you get past that, the number of other path users drops significantly. Weekday pedestrian and bicycle traffic Never gone during the week-- don't know. Number of roads which cross the path None. Number of stairways on the path None. Distance markings Every half mile. Any other pertinent information There are usually two park rangers who patrol the path. Thus, it is fairly safe. They also have radar. The first and last half mile half posted speed limits of 5 MPH. The rest has a speed limit of 15 MPH. They do ticket violators, so you're wise to obey the speed limit. Park is open dawn to dusk. - Eugene Walden (walden@gate.ready.com) --- Philadephia ----------- From: mckay@VFL.Paramax.COM (Donald P McKay) Subject: Outdoor Skating: Philadelphia Area I've skated at two places west of Philadelphia I recommend to anyone. If you happen to want to skate at either of these locations, give me a 'ping', I'm looking for rollerblading companions. Also, if you use these or other places in the Philadelphia area, I'm interested in feedback and other places to skate. Philadelphia - Valley Forge Bike Trail ====================================== The Philadelphia - Valley Forge Bike Trail is a (mostly) marked bicycle route from the Art Museum in Philadelphia to Valley Forge National Park. Some of the bike route runs along an old rail bed and has been paved. There are two paved sections I've skated. One is at the Valley Forge end of the trail and the other is about mid-way. The Valley Forge section runs from a little used section of the national park located on the north side of the Schuykill River (exit off of Rte 422 at the Trooper Rd exit; the park is to the left). The section from Valley Forge park to Norristown is approximately 4 miles, paved, flat and level. The only bothersome part is that you share the trail with bicyclists, walkers and joggers. This part of the trail is decently wide and recently paved in 1992. The Conshohoken section runs from the Spring Mill SEPTA station in Conshohoken for 3 miles east toward Philedelphia. Except for the water treatment plant you have to skate by, this is an enjoyable area of the Schuykill River area. Ridley Creek State Park ======================= Located approximately 15 miles west of Philadelphia. WRNING -- THIS IS HILLY AND YOU MUST BE ABLE TO BRAKE AND OTHERWISE CONTROL YOURSELF ON ROLLING HILLS, 1 MILE CLIMBS AND STEEP DESCENTS. SKATING HERE IS A GOOD WORKOUT. In the state park, there is a paved circular path ostensibly for biking, bladingand walking. Total distance is a little over 4 miles for one lap. There is a 1 mile section along Ridley Creek which is rolling, no steep grades up or down. The trail (no matter which way you happen to go) ascends from the creek bed to the main part of the park which is on the top of some hills. I would guess a few hundred feet elevation change although I've never checked a topo map. The steepest grade is approximately .4 miles (up or down depending). The trail is about 1 mile along the creek, 1 mile of gradual (compared to the other) grade, 1.6 miles rolling over the main part of the park, and the .4 mile steep grade -- there are a few level parts of the run to help slow you down, but none at the bottom where it rejoins the creek. There are a few residences in the park proper so there can be an occaisional motor vehicle. The fastest I've ever been on roller blades was going down the .4 mile grade. Washington D.C. --------------- From: georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark) In article <1992Jul02.203944.13805@eng.umd.edu> naru@eng.umd.edu (Naruhisa Takas hima) writes: > >Yes NO! >Bike paths (contrete) chunky old asphalt paths (maybe ;') >I know this sounds like a good place, but I'm not so sure. >For those in the D.C. area, I have skated on Rock Creek Park which is real >nice path for joggers and slow bicyclist, but I'm not so sure if it's suited fo r >Bladers. The path is narrow, damp in many places, and ocassionally very steep >which makes it very difficult for speed control, which in turn leads to bail ou t or >wipe out. > Most parts of Rock Creek Park's bike path are OK to skate, except for one real steep place that even bike riders have trouble with. Since the path goes through the woods, keep in mind that wet leaves on the pavement are very slippery to skate over. It's also fun to leave the bike path, and skate about the nice neighbor streets adjacent to it. Baltimore --------- From: hall@aplcenmp.apl.jhu.edu (Marty Hall) Subject: Re: Skating in Baltimore Belas@mbimail.umd.edu (Bob Belas) writes: > > I was wondering if there is anyone from the Baltimore-Washington >area who might be able to provide some advice on where blade skaters skate >in the area. A quick summary of the few places I know, slanted toward the Baltimore side: (A) Loch Raven Reservoir. A 1.5 mile or so stretch of smooth pavement on the east side is closed to traffic weekends from 10AM to 5PM. Go up Dulaney Valley Rd. along west and north sides of reservoir. Stay along the reservoir (ie bear right) when the main road bears left at the restaurant. The next road is where skating starts. Moderately crowded with walkers, skaters, and bicyclers on nice days, esp after lunch. But shaded and cool. (B) Baltimore Street Skater's Club. They meet 1st and 3rd Thursday's of the month in the Light Rail parking lot on Deereco Rd. This runs parallel to I83 between I83 and York Rd, halfway between Timonium and Padonia Rds. They meet 7:30-9:30 with clinics (from raw beginners to moderately advanced) going from 8:00-9:00. They recommend "joining" for about 20 bucks, but it is not required. Joining also gets you a T-shirt. They also have hockey some other night. Call Hal Ashman at Baltimore Boardsailing (666-WIND) for more info. 60+ people on a typical night. If you can crossover backwards, do a few jumps, and do basic slaloms around cones (backwards, 1-foot, crossing legs forwards), then you are already as good as all but their best instructors, but can still mess around with the better skaters. The more advanced groups generally take off into the surrounding industrial parks. Cancelled if there is a home Orioles game that night. (C) Patapsco State Park. Just S of I195 off of Rt 1, near the UMBC campus. It costs to get in, but skaters can park in the residential area outside the park (go past the entrance up the hill), and skate in for free. It is about 1 mile into the main park, then there is a 2 mile stretch of river to skate along, ending in a hanging bridge over the river. One side of the river is a road (no cars allowed most of the way), the other is a bike path. (D) Camden Yards stadium. Huge parking lots and smooth sidewalks south of stadium and around it. Obviously avoid game days. Guards will not let you skate between the warehouses (inside the large gates) but will let you skate elsewhere. On a weekday or early AM weekend, you can also skate over to the Inner Harbor for a nice cruise. (E) Baltimore Annapolis Trail. Nice smooth bike trail running from Glen Burnie to Annapolis. I've never ridden it all the way into Annapolis, and suspect that to ride into downtown Annapolis would be hard, since I *think* you would have to cross one major bridge after the trail ends. Anybody know? These are the better places that I personally have skated. Any other suggestions? If you are also interested in indoor skating, Albert Boulanger can no doubt suggest options down in your area. Rhode Island ------------ From: Janice_Green@brown.edu (J Green) since Rhode Island isn't mentioned here yet, i'd like to add that little Rhode Island has a beautiful rails-to-trails bike path that is about 14.5-15 miles long, almost completely flat, and wonderful to skate on! :-) sundown along the bay at the East Providence end is quite beautiful. :-) SOUTH ----- Atlanta ------- From: gn@terminus.gatech.edu (toM o. genesE) Subject: Re: Pipes/parks Well, I'm not quite sure what your looking for in a place to skate, but if you are ever in Atlanta (well, it is on the East coast after all) be sure to go to Piedmont Park. The park itself is home to quite a few skaters, and no one minds their presence. Directly across the street from the park is Skate Escape, the rec/speed skate shop mentioned in the rec.skate FAQ. Every Monday evening, there is an introductory skate through the midtown area, starting at a shopping center near the park. Even though the trip is labeled as introductory, when the skaters (80+) gather in the parking lot, you can meet advanced skaters and pick up some tips, see some tricks, etc. If you are into speedskating, Skate Escape has a distance skate every Wednesday night. There is also a local skate club, the Atlanta Peachtree Road Rollers. These are the people who put on the Monday night skate, as well as provide introductory skate lessons. I can get more info on the club and these events if there is some interest. From rbutera@owlnet.rice.edu Atlanta ------- GREAT skating city lots of hills and really scenic. Piedmont Park is really popular with beginners and pros alike. Go to the entrance near Piedmont and 12th street. There's a skate shop on that corner (Skate Escape). They can tell you whatever you want about other skating events in the city, regular weekly skates with the Peachtree Rollers, etc. Cops don't seem to mind skaters as long as you stay out of everyone's way (i.e. use common sense). The Georgia Tech Campus is another great place, especially for freestyle types. Lots of stairs (the ones by the student center are ideal for stair-riding) and ramps, great hills, and a few parking decks to boot. Tallahassee ----------- From: dcain@mailer.cc.fsu.edu (Daryl S. Cain) Subject: Tallahassee Florida| In-line Tallahassee A great place to skate! Its got it all - hills, flatlands, gentle slopes, the works. Tallahassee is the capital of Florida and home to both Florida State University and Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University. Skating is a relatively new sport in Tallahassee. There are few places to buy skates and none where decent accessories or compentent help is consistently available. The law is tolerant (play it cool) but some private properly owners can be pains. The best place for flatlanders is the St. Marks Trail south of Tallahassee. This is a paved railroad right of way with the trailhead located on Highway 363 (Woodville Highway) just south of State Road 319 (Capital Circle SE). Plenty of parking is available, however, space does get sparce on the weekends. The trail streches 16 miles from Tallahassee to St. Marks - a small fishing village famed for its manatee population. The pavement is high quality with few rough spots. Traffic is light on the weekdays, heavy on the weekends. Most walkers quit after 1-2 miles and skaters after 2-3 miles. From there on down its smooth sailing except for the bikers. The people are generally polite and accidents are rare. There is a combination bike/skate shop at the north end of the trail. They rent skates (Roces) and bikes for reasonable rates there. In the spring the trail is beautiful. Flowers and shrubs are in bloom and the lucky can generally find a good blackberry bush to pick. However, snakes also like sun themselves on the warm trail so beware the occassional rattler when you wander. Florida is a hot place so pack plenty of water. Speedsters will find that Tallahassee is quite hilly. Most hills are located on the East or North sides of town. Pavement is of very high quality, it's asphalt with a fine gravel base, but beware the ocassional patch of shell rock. By far the best hill (in my experience) is located on Morningside Drive just north of Highway 27 off Richview Drive on the east side. My wife has clocked my friend and I at 45 mph near the bottom. The hill is about 1500 yards long, straight, with a baby hill going up the other side to slow down on. For more radical skating work, the place to go is the Florida State University campus. There is no telling how the campus cops would react to skaters but mountain bikers generally get away with murder. The place is a cornicupia of stairs, ramps, hills, sidewalks, speedbumps and parking lots. The campus is huge and almost every type of terrain except for mountain switchbacks are available. The only cavat is that when classes let out during the semester the place becomes packed with pedestrians. The best times to skate there are at night, on weekends, and during the summer semester. For the freestylist, parking lots are in great abundance in Tallahassee. Most places are cool, but the rent-a-cops at the Governers Square Mall are a pain in the ass. Its a real pity to, the parking lot covers about ten acres and was just repaved about five months ago with the smoothest asphalt you've ever laid eyes on. A suitable alternative is the Kroger Center, located on the east side of town between Highway 27 and Capital Circle. Pick-up hockey games are held at Skate Inn East, 2563 Capital Circle N.E. on Sunday - 7:00 pm and Wednesday - 9:30 pm. For more information contact Steve Bohl at (904)656-2056. You gotta have your own stuff. Be forewarned that there are few experienced skaters in Tallahassee. For that reason there are no real "skater" hangouts. Most people have a steady skate partner that they skate with but organized affiliations haven't developed to any real extent yet. There are many outdoor events in Tallahassee, such as bike-a-thons and the like, and they're just now warming up to the idea of skaters joining their ranks. Hopefully skaters will get off on the right foot here and become a legitimate part of the exercise/fitness community. So if your in town and maybe want to skate a few miles, drop me a line. ABROAD Australia --------- From: klaus@captain-crunch.ai.mit.edu (Klaus B. Biggers) Subject: Mountain Roads (was: Law Enforcement and Skating...) My favorite skate is Royal Street in Park City, UT. It's a road that goes about half to two-thirds of the way up Deer Valley Ski Resort. Lots of turns and *LOTS* of new pavement. Its probably about 500 meters (~1600 ft.) vertical and an absolute blast. There is little traffic and the police are very mellow about the whole thing (the town does depend on tourism you know). You can either bomb down it risking the tarmac(sp?) tickle or get thousands of turns (literally). Its really great in the summer since the temperature is rarely over 78 degrees F or so. Also, in the winter, a bus runs up to the top on a regular schedule and doesn't cost a dime. I kind of like the grunt up. It is kind of strange though watching a blader skate by a "Watch for Ice" hazard sign.. --- From: msp@posmac.UUCP (Mark Purcell) Subject: Canberra ACT AUSTRALIA HI I just thought I would share with all what I think is the best location in Australia for blading. Yes I am refering to Canberra Australia. The network of bike paths is quite extensive, one can go from one end of the city to the other on bike paths. The paths are all >1.5m and made from hot mix, which makes them fast and ideal for pole work training for X-C. As Canberra is only two hours from the snow fields a large population ofve, one can go from one end of the city to the other on bike paths. The paths are all >1.5m and made from hot mix, which makes them fast and ideal for pole work training for X-C. As Canberra is only two hours from the snow fields a large population ofkm loop, all in all I would estimate that there would be about 300-400km of trails in Canberra. IDEAL!!! There is nothing like blading around the lake just as the sun is coming up over the mountains, with the smallest amout of mist over the lake, and only one or two joggers/cyclists to worry about. There are some problems though, before most road crossings there is a section of about 1.5 - 2 m of concrete bumps, which play like hell on the legs. It is possible to jump these but not the easiest. So if anyone is thinking of going to Canberra make sure you pack in your blades or you will be sorry when you get here. See you out there. Hawaii ------- From: grr@cbmvax.commodore.com (George Robbins) Subject: Re: skating in Hawaii? In the Honolulu area, the terrain in town is pretty flat, but you can get into some serious hill-climbing instantly if you want to head inland. Great view though, if you work your way up the hill right behind Honolulu. The roads in town are good, but it is a pretty dense urban area, more like western business districts than NYC though. Expect to deal with traffic and try to avoid getting stuck playing tag with the frequent city buses - it's hard work to get past and stay ahead, miserable to stay behind or play leapfrog. In the outlying areas, you have a bit of a problem. The roads are generally good, but there is usually only one road between any two points, so traffic can get heavy. Also, since the general geography is a volcanic mountain, with kind of flat shoreline skirt, you will find that everytime you circumferentially cross one of the many radial river/streambed valleys, you go down a steep slope, over a bridge and back up. This is especially true on the smaller roads, major ones may have a bit more invested in grading and bridges. Also, be prepared for hot and sunny weather. When skating you may spend more time in the sun than the usually carefully rationed time on the beach vs. indoor shopping and clubs. It is very easy to get dehydrated or severly sunburned. Make sure you have light clothing that gives full body, arm and leg coverage and a wind-proof hat/sunshade of some sort. On a more serious note, a parter isn't a bad idea, especially if you intend to travel independently outside the major tourist traps. Hawaii isn't exactly paradise when it comes to crime and delinquency. This has come up a number of times on rec.bicycling with respect to bicycle touring, and it's not clear if there is a real problem or just a few overworked tales. -- From: rabbett@cris.com (Rabbett) Subject: halloo from Hawaii Nei! 11/13/93 Greetings from Hawaii...add year round In-line skating as another reas on to come visit us....lots of places to blade and lots of scenery and warm tem peratures...Should you come to Oahu, do yourself a favor and skate Kailua town on the windward side...miles and miles of flat and low rise asphalt...most of i t in primo condition. Trade winds, blue skies, quiet neighborhoods and a mere c ouple blocks from the beach. Also, further into Kailua..is Lanikai...about 3.7 miles around, it is an oceanside residential loop with staggering beauty and co lorful homes and people. Should you ever need more info on blading Hawaii, Ocea n kayaking , or just where do we go for the best food and such...drop me a note back on the 'Net...Your bladin, bicyclin, kayaking, body surfin' pal Rabbett@c ris.com....nice to finally find this forum! From teshima@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu Tue Nov 30 04:05:22 1993 Organization: University of Hawaii I don't know if your Hawaii contributor actually lives here, but he didn't mention any specific places to rollerblade. While I actually don't rollerblade myself, I do jog long distances so I encounter skaters frequently. Couple of important things, your contributor hit on already. Residential areas on Oahu mostly radiate out from the mountain ranges. You've got hills and valleys--means lots of steepness all around, and not too much flat land for longer distances. Second--Oahu is *not* conducive to non-auto traffic. While you see a fair amount of bicycles and mopeds, you are at the mercy of the cars when you're out on the road. Worse, there are painfully few bicycle trails on the island--a lack of land and planning both. Worse, drivers are not friendly toward cyclists and skaters. They will turn right without blinking OR looking, assuming that there's no traffic to their right because they're in the right lane--or they will parallel park on the road and the drivers will open their doors right onto the middle lane. I have had some friends of mine French kiss some car door interiors this way--ouch! The safest and most popular spot to rollerblade on the entire island is Ala Moana Beach Park and Magic Island. Magic Island is a little area at one end of Ala Moana Beach Park that was filled in many years ago by the Ilikai Hotel when they realized that their customers couldn't see Diamond Head anymore because of all the development. Ala Moana Beach Park itself is outside of Waikiki, across the street from the large Ala Moana Shopping Center. You'll encounter all kinds--kids learning, adults learning, kids whirling around adults learning, adults doing laps around a loop, etc. Basically, these "loops" around Magic Island are wide enough to accommodate joggers and skaters both. Nice view of Diamond Head, too. The other (and more closer site to Waikiki) would be Kapiolani Park, at the Diamond Head of Waikiki by the Honolulu Zoo. They have a 2.5 mile jogging loop around it that you can use--except at parts it's cracked and not too wide--so that's a caveat. Can't think of anymore right now! :) -- Lani Teshima-Miller (teshima@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.edu) "Sea Hare" o/ /_/_/ UH School of Library & Info Studies. "Whatever the cost of our o|<0_0>------* libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant \=^-| |_| | nation." -Walter Cronkite [R.a.b.bit says: "Think Ink!"] \_} \_} ================================================================================ List of contributors: aites@hplvec.LVLD.HP.COM (Jim Aites) betsy@alf.sybase.com (Betsy Burton) bryguy@apple.com (bRYgUY K. Carter) dcain@mailer.cc.fsu.edu (Daryl S. Cain) DEMON@DESIRE.WRIGHT.EDU (Brett Kottmann) dmadeo@is.morgan.com (David Madeo) fontenot@ravl.rice.edu (Dwayne Jacques Fontenot) georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark) gn@terminus.gatech.edu (toM o. genesE) grr@cbmvax.commodore.com (George Robbins) hall@aplcenmp.apl.jhu.edu (Marty Hall) hirsch@northstar.asd.sgi.com (Diana Hirsch) HQPYR1:kimon@orac.holonet.net (Kimon Papahadjopoulos) HQPYR1:walden@ready.eng.ready.com jimy@hkn.Berkeley.EDU (Jim Young) jkaplenk@lucpul.it.luc.edu (Joe Kaplenk) jogulin@camelot.fia.dmg.ml.com (Joseph Ogulin) kamran@pizzabox.dialogic.com (Kamran Vaziri) kcreta@sedona.intel.com (Kenneth Creta) klaus@captain-crunch.ai.mit.edu (Klaus B. Biggers) mldickens@bbn.com (Michael L. Dickens) mpeters@wtcp.DaytonOH.NCR.COM (Michael Peters) msp@posmac.UUCP (Mark Purcell) pae@netwise.com (Phil Earnhardt) pcrxs@nasagiss.giss.nasa.gov (R.B. Schmunk) rabbett@cris.com (Rabbett) rbutera@owlnet.rice.edu (Rob Butera) smo9130@tesla.njit.edu teshima@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.edu (Lani Teshima-Miller) usr2210a@tso.uc.edu (Stewart Rowe) walden@ready.eng.ready.com (Eugene Walden) =END OF PART 8=================================================================