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Spicing up the ride, have you done this?

3K views 18 replies 8 participants last post by  Trek_5200 
#1 ·
Was getting a little bored of Rockland, so tomorrow I'm taking the train up to Pougkeepsie armed with my Garmin and going to explore Peekamoose up in Ulster County. Anyone ever just hop on the train and so a solo ride away from home?
 
#2 · (Edited)
Made it back from my ride. Despite some Garmin issues that prevented my using the TCX file bringing cycling back to the dark ages of navigating by sheet, this is such an awesome ride. Not only is the scenery spectacular but barely a car to be seen except when crossing between New Paltz and Poughkeepsie.
 
#6 ·
I went to ride out by a friend in western NJ. I had my girl drop me and the bike off at the train station. bought a ticket, boarded train half way and was denied acess by a conductor who said "sorry you can't bring the bike on it's crowded" while giving the we're pulling away signal. and off the train went. I stood there somewhat confused at what just happened and then dialed my girl for a pickup.

she drove half way, my buddy drove out half way. had a great weekend of riding and took the train back to NYC (NJ morristown line, I think). The ride back wasn't bad! I had the bike next to me, AC humming, phone out. 1.5 hours flew by and I was back at the station for a pickup. So yes, I can now say that I've taken a train to go biking.
RE: Garmin: did you drop the new file into the "NEW FILES" directory, or did you drop it into courses? manually added files need to be dropped into new files so they can be processed and placed into the course folder...after that it's turn by turn magic.

I went to customer service to ask why I was denied access and she threw a brochure at me and told me to go educate myself. The decision whether a person may board with the bike rests with the conductor, and is obviously very subjective. Getting left at the station with no transport back to my house was not a good feeling.
 
#7 ·
Bikes are not allowed at rush hour i believe. Otherwise they should be ok. But customer service on NJ Transit is hit or strike out. Miss is too kind. Great riding from Morristown. Personally if i stay local that is where i want to retire. City amenities and great cycling. Close enough to ok skiing.

For Garmin i always use the new files folder.

Maybe electronics just don't like me.

[emoji26]
 
#10 ·
This wasn't rush hour. It was July 3rd, 10AM heading OUT of the city. The guy simply said, too crowded and closed the door in front of me. There was a bicycle icon on the schedule so technically bikes were allowed. I didn't think the train was crowded at all as I watched the wagons pull into the station. Clearly, the guy had a bad day. What's bothersome is that his actions blew the credibility of NJT as it pertains to transporting myself with a bike.

I like riding in the Green Township, NJ - Andover - Blairstown area. Car traffic is minimal and terrain is just right. I head south if I want more meadows and flats, I head west if I want desolate hills. I did a ride by the delaware water gap on the NJ side... I remember riding for 30 minutes and not seeing a single person! It was fantastic...flying down empty forest roads...western NJ is a nice change from NYC and Bergen county
 
#12 ·
Well I went to customer service. The person sitting there looked comatose. Without making eye contact she handed me a booklet and muttered something about conductor's discretion. To hell with that. The only phonecall I am making is to AMEX to get the $14.25 charge reversed.
 
#13 ·
I've heard it is conductor's discretion as well. The NYCC when doing rides with large groups will even alert Metro North of plans to bring riders with bikes to avoid unpleasant situations. And while cyclists can be refused boarding, it is not typical.
 
#15 ·
#18 ·
There was a guy with a regular bike on a rush-hour morning train a couple of months ago. The conductor just told him not to do that again. I was intrigued and told the cyclist, "I've always wanted to bring my bike on during rush hour!"

I've brought the bike on the 5:29am train into work, and ridden it home, but now we can park bikes overnight in the garage, so no off-peak train necessary for a one-way ride.

Nothing will humble you faster than schlepping a bike on mass transit. I've been hated on by an old man, reprimanded by a conductor (not a big deal), yelled at by a token booth clerk in the subway, and yelled at by a subway conductor.
 
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