New to NJ - Page 3 - Cycling Mob: Road Cycling, Mountain Biking and More

03-08-2005, 05:08 PM

gmail wrote:
>
> I have to say that riding in CA was awesome. I am really looking
> forward to seeing what types of terrain there is to ride here. I have
> already come to the conclusion the hill climbs are not nearly as
> good(steep) as CA. I am sure I will find my share of hilly rides. Gotta
> love those thigh burners;-)

I have to ask, what part of Northern NJ, and how far are you willing to
go to find some real hills?

03-08-2005, 08:21 PM

I'll be moving to the Morristown area this summer and staying for
about 2 years while my wife does rotations at Atlantic Health System
Hospital.

When I lived in Berkeley I used to take my bike on the trains to SF
then ride across the GG bridge and down to Sausalito, returning to SF
on a ferry. Is it possible to haul a bike on a train from NJ to NYC
or is that sort of thing not allowed?

Any good riding in the Morristown area- I ride on the road and on
MTB...

Thanks!

03-08-2005, 08:53 PM

On Tue, 08 Mar 2005 22:21:48 -0600, kituyjkm wrote:
> I'll be moving to the Morristown area this summer and staying for
> about 2 years while my wife does rotations at Atlantic Health System
> Hospital.
>
> When I lived in Berkeley I used to take my bike on the trains to SF
> then ride across the GG bridge and down to Sausalito, returning to SF
> on a ferry. Is it possible to haul a bike on a train from NJ to NYC
> or is that sort of thing not allowed?

Simple answer is no, more complex is that it's time limited. Rush hour
is crowded and they won't let a full size bike on during those times.

I also just read that the Gothels bridge no longer has bike access so
getting to NY by bike is difficult. I think you can use the ferry
but that's no where near Morristown. :-)

> Any good riding in the Morristown area- I ride on the road and on
> MTB...

Morristown has some very good riding. You'll be in the Watchung
Mountain area (there are some real hills there) and you should be able
to get in some good riding North, West and South. I don't know about
East. I think there are rides with the Western Wheelmen, Morris Free
Wheelers and BTCNJ.

I don't know about MTB.

--
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03-08-2005, 09:00 PM

On 8 Mar 2005 15:40:26 -0800, Maggie wrote:
> Neil Cherry wrote:
>> On 8 Mar 2005 13:03:02 -0800, [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:

>> > Riding at the shore (Island Beach) is awesome. Nice scenic hily
>> > farmland in Hunterdon Cty. Some great organized rides and clubs.
>> > NJ is nowhere bear as good to ride in as CA but not too bad.
>>
>> Hey we don't have mud slides. ;-)
>>
>> I spent some time around San Francisco in April (15 years ago) and
>> I couldn't beleive the lack of color. Everything seemed to be a
>> shade of brown. Even in the winter we have more color than SF
>> did. I doubt all of California is like that. It was just a surprise
>> to me.
>>
>> What might be a surprise to everyone is just how beautiful NJ is.
>> Lots of films like to show the crowded sections and the nasty area
>> of the Turnpike (a part of Northern NJ). There is a lot more to it
>> than that.
>>
>
> Are you talkin' bout the beginning of the famous Jersey Turnpike shown
> on the Sopranos. That's a great part of Jersey too. I might make fun
> of Jersey, but I can because it's MY HOME. It's like your kids, you
> can yell at them, but if anyone else does, you attack like a Mama Bear.

OK, good point. I've just been a little testy about folks picking on
NJ. I was born in the Bronx, it's much nicer here in NJ!

> We have everything. We have country, shore, suburbs, city WE HAVE IT
> ALL!!!!!
>
> Jersey is a joke to some people but only those who live here are
> allowed to joke about it. ;-) It's a very unique State. We can see the
> ocean and the pine barrens, cities and suburbs. We have the boardwalk
> in Atlantic City and protected forests.
>
> Any sport is do-able in Jersey. We change with the seasons. JERSEY IS
> FABULOUS!!!! Not many people in Jersey were transplanted here...we
> grew out of the Jersey swamplands... ;-)

And 24 hour food, Chinese, Thai, Indian, Spanish, French, Italian,
Polish, German, Greek, Russian, (plenty more where that comes from).
Though they did tear down the Irish, Italian, Chinese, American
restaurant in Finderene. I did try that place out, scary thought! :-)

--
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03-09-2005, 02:59 AM

Neil Cherry wrote:
> On 8 Mar 2005 15:40:26 -0800, Maggie wrote:
> > Neil Cherry wrote:
> >> On 8 Mar 2005 13:03:02 -0800, [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:
>
> >> > Riding at the shore (Island Beach) is awesome. Nice scenic hily
> >> > farmland in Hunterdon Cty. Some great organized rides and clubs.
> >> > NJ is nowhere bear as good to ride in as CA but not too bad.
> >>
> >> Hey we don't have mud slides. ;-)
> >>
> >> I spent some time around San Francisco in April (15 years ago) and
> >> I couldn't beleive the lack of color. Everything seemed to be a
> >> shade of brown. Even in the winter we have more color than SF
> >> did. I doubt all of California is like that. It was just a
surprise
> >> to me.
> >>
> >> What might be a surprise to everyone is just how beautiful NJ is.
> >> Lots of films like to show the crowded sections and the nasty area
> >> of the Turnpike (a part of Northern NJ). There is a lot more to it
> >> than that.
> >>
> >
> > Are you talkin' bout the beginning of the famous Jersey Turnpike
shown
> > on the Sopranos. That's a great part of Jersey too. I might make
fun
> > of Jersey, but I can because it's MY HOME. It's like your kids,
you
> > can yell at them, but if anyone else does, you attack like a Mama
Bear.
>
> OK, good point. I've just been a little testy about folks picking on
> NJ. I was born in the Bronx, it's much nicer here in NJ!
>
> > We have everything. We have country, shore, suburbs, city WE HAVE
IT
> > ALL!!!!!
> >
> > Jersey is a joke to some people but only those who live here are
> > allowed to joke about it. ;-) It's a very unique State. We can see
the
> > ocean and the pine barrens, cities and suburbs. We have the
boardwalk
> > in Atlantic City and protected forests.
> >
> > Any sport is do-able in Jersey. We change with the seasons. JERSEY
IS
> > FABULOUS!!!! Not many people in Jersey were transplanted here...we
> > grew out of the Jersey swamplands... ;-)
>
> And 24 hour food, Chinese, Thai, Indian, Spanish, French, Italian,
> Polish, German, Greek, Russian, (plenty more where that comes from).
> Though they did tear down the Irish, Italian, Chinese, American
> restaurant in Finderene. I did try that place out, scary thought! :-)
>

See you are from Da Bronx, so you have trouble joking about Jersey.
I'm proud of the fact that I live here. I joke about it, because it's
Jersey. If I lived in Utah, what would I joke about. ;-)

I have alot of friends in Manhattan and a business partner who lives
and works there. There is a certain Mahattan personality that looks
down at Jersey as "pitiful" They go to the Hamptons, I go to the
Jersey Shore. No comparison....Jersey shore wins hands down. Great
place to ride a bike btw.

Hey, I'm still here after 50 years, because I can't think of anywhere I
else I would rather live. Today we are left with the ice after the
blizzard. One day I am going to wake up and actually ride my bike to
work. I know the day is coming. The seasons change and so do I. :-)
All Good Things,
Maggie

03-09-2005, 05:13 AM

On 9 Mar 2005 02:59:40 -0800, Maggie wrote:
>
> Neil Cherry wrote:
>> On 8 Mar 2005 15:40:26 -0800, Maggie wrote:
>> > Neil Cherry wrote:
>> >> On 8 Mar 2005 13:03:02 -0800, [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] wrote:
>>
>> >> > Riding at the shore (Island Beach) is awesome. Nice scenic hily
>> >> > farmland in Hunterdon Cty. Some great organized rides and clubs.
>> >> > NJ is nowhere bear as good to ride in as CA but not too bad.
>> >>
>> >> Hey we don't have mud slides. ;-)

>> >> What might be a surprise to everyone is just how beautiful NJ is.
>> >> Lots of films like to show the crowded sections and the nasty area
>> >> of the Turnpike (a part of Northern NJ). There is a lot more to it
>> >> than that.

>> > Are you talkin' bout the beginning of the famous Jersey Turnpike
>> > shown on the Sopranos. That's a great part of Jersey too.

>> OK, good point. I've just been a little testy about folks picking on
>> NJ. I was born in the Bronx, it's much nicer here in NJ!
>>
>> > We have everything. We have country, shore, suburbs, city WE HAVE
>> > IT ALL!!!!!
>>
>> And 24 hour food, Chinese, Thai, Indian, Spanish, French, Italian,
>> Polish, German, Greek, Russian, (plenty more where that comes from).
>> Though they did tear down the Irish, Italian, Chinese, American
>> restaurant in Finderene. I did try that place out, scary thought! :-)
>>
>
> See you are from Da Bronx, so you have trouble joking about Jersey.
> I'm proud of the fact that I live here. I joke about it, because it's
> Jersey. If I lived in Utah, what would I joke about. ;-)

Nevada, of course!

> I have alot of friends in Manhattan and a business partner who lives
> and works there. There is a certain Mahattan personality that looks
> down at Jersey as "pitiful" They go to the Hamptons, I go to the
> Jersey Shore. No comparison....Jersey shore wins hands down. Great
> place to ride a bike btw.

That's one place I avoid after Memorial Day and before Labor Day. At
my pace all the wrong way riders become quite a hazard. I love it in
September, still warm and very few BENNYs.

> Hey, I'm still here after 50 years, because I can't think of anywhere I
> else I would rather live. Today we are left with the ice after the
> blizzard. One day I am going to wake up and actually ride my bike to
> work. I know the day is coming. The seasons change and so do I. :-)

I'm working on that for this month. The snow and cold isn't the
problem it's the thaw and freeze. During the day the snow melts and on
certain parts of the road it melts or travels across the road. In the
evening it freezes. The roads I travel are all back roads, still very
pretty even where they're growing homes. With sunrise at 5:58 AM &
sunset at 6:19 PM I have enough time to get to work and ride
home. Though I do have to leave around 5:30AM so I can avoid the rush
hour traffic. I think today's 20F (current temp at 8:12 AM) would have
me passing on today's commute it just causes me too many breathing
problems on the bike.

--
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[Only registered and activated users can see links. ] (Text only)
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03-09-2005, 05:31 AM

I am in Morristown and I am willing to drive to get to some hills. How
far am I looking at?

03-09-2005, 06:42 AM

gmail wrote:
> I am in Morristown and I am willing to drive to get to some hills.
How
> far am I looking at?

Nice part of Jersey. You'll love it there. Morris County is a nice
part of our Garden State. I live in Essex County. The HUB! If you are
near the three Universities....you will find riding on campus fun. My
daughter went to school there. Just a thought. It's really a nice
area. If you are young and single, it will be even better. ;-)
All Good Things,
Maggie - Old and Married with three kids who went to college.

03-09-2005, 06:47 AM

On 8 Mar 2005 05:46:18 -0800, "gmail" <[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]> wrote:

>I just moved to Northern NJ and I am looking for some good places to
>roadbike. Any suggestions?

What town?
I frequently meet Jersey riders in Harriman State Park.
I also see a lot of riders going along 9W but that is too much traffic for me.

Ben

03-09-2005, 11:07 AM

That opening scene from the Sopranos accurately summarizes the
four-generation-long migration of my father's side of our family across
the state of New Jersey. My great-grandfather was born in New York in
Hell's Kitchen, my grandfather in Jersey City, my father in Ridgefield
Park, and I was born in Teaneck and grew up in Ramsey, in Bergen
County. I'm sure there are similar multi-generational progressions in
other New Jersey families.

I moved away from N.J. when I was 12, but I have great memories of the
place. Where I lived in New Jersey was like all the idealized suburban
towns in those Dick and Jane early-childhood books (or, for that
matter, Springfield as depicted in the Simpsons). There was a beautiful
skyline on the horizon, quiet settled neighborhoods with big leafy
trees, four distinct seasons, planes, trains, ocean liners, concerts,
and museums (if you took the short trip into Manhattan), beaches; zoos;
great pizza; and major league sports.

I'd never move back, though. I moved out west as soon as I could. New
Jersey has a lot going for it, but there are just too many people in
too small a space for my taste. Getting out in the wilderness
recharges my batteries, and that's hard to do in New Jersey.

I am not making this up. I was hiking down from Glorieta Baldy
southeast of Santa Fe about 20 years ago, and I ran into a couple of
people hiking up not too far from the top. They were from (you guessed
it) New Jersey. We had a really pleasant interaction, but it's the
first and only time that anyone ever asked me "how many blocks to the
top?" to get an idea of how much further they had to climb.