Spring/Summer TE camping/biking at Brown County State Park?

[Catrin]

I think it would be wonderful if we could put together a spring or summer meeting for TE members in Ohio/KY/Ill/Michigan/Wisconsin/etc. Perhaps a perhaps a weekend or long weekend camping trip to Brown County State Park and area with bikes (great road and mountain biking). Of course it wouldn't be limited to members from surrounding states

Is there interest in something like this? The main reason I am thinking about Brown County State Park is that there is something there for everyone - great mountain biking, nice camp sites, and beautiful scenic roads on which to ride. There are existing maps for routes between Brown and Bartholomew Counties that pretty much cover scenic and rolling hills to scenic and very challenging hills. The Park itself has some of the best single-track around and they are working to develop more.

I forgot to mention that one can also hike the mountain bike trails, and there are a good number of regular hiking trails. I only hike the mountain bike trails but there are options.

[indysteel]

My interest will depend in large part on the date, as we have a fair amount going on already this spring and early summer.

DH and I cohosted something similar last April for Roadbikereview's forum. My best advice is to tie into an existing organized group road ride, e.g., the Horsey Hundred or the Hilly. It's a lot harder than you might think to coordinate a group ride for people who are unfamiliar with the area and who will likley have varying abilities. This is especially true in Southern Indiana where the terrain can be pretty challenging and the roads in questionable shape.

The logistics were overwhelming enough that we declined an invitation to host a Midwest RBR ride again for 2011. It was just a lot of work. In my opinion, it's far better to let somebody else worry about routes and SAG support.

[Owlie]

That'd be awesome, but it does depend on the date and where I end up moving for grad school. I can't really do it if I'm in Tucson, now can I?

[Catrin]

Good points, I was basically thinking it out while I typed. It makes sense to tie it into some existing ride - perhaps some weekend where there is both a road and mountain biking event in the area? There are several such times, or a weekend where there is a road biking event and if some want to go off on the single track while others hit the road event then they have that option.

The first step is to establish if there is interest - then we can focus on events and see which event dates would fit everyone's schedule the best. So far we do have several interested, dates depending, so that seems a good start.

Please post here if you are interested in participating in a TE member gathering that would be linked to an existing organized group ride in Southern Indiana, possibly camping at Brown County State Park (just an initial idea).

[Catrin]

That'd be awesome, but it does depend on the date and where I end up moving for grad school. I can't really do it if I'm in Tucson, now can I?

Problem is solved if you come to Indianapolis for graduate school

[OakLeaf]

Like everyone else, depends on the date, but I'm interested.

[surgtech1956]

We love to camp. Where is Brown County State Park, what dates are you thinking. Looking forward to more details. Thanks

[indysteel]

We love to camp. Where is Brown County State Park, what dates are you thinking. Looking forward to more details. Thanks

Brown County is about an hour south of Indianapolis and about a half hour from Bloomington, Indiana. Reserve early; it fills up fast.

Catrin, CIBA won't announce its calendar until about March. There are a few ride--like the Hilly--that have already been announced I think.

[pll]

Would love to join... although I'm not much of a camper myself (i have no gear, whatsoever).

[Catrin]

Here is a link to the actual park, and here is a link with information on the mountain bike trails at the Park.

I don't have much experience in solo camping myself, but I will try it - and am planning on doing that this summer anyway. There are a couple of hotels just outside of the park and in a close by town, so there are other options than camping.

If we choose the Hilly Hundred as our event to meet at, there is information here with the 2011 dates.

Should it turn out that more women are interested in mountain biking rather than road, there is the Brown County Breakdown - 2011 information is here. In 2010 this ride was on the same weekend with the Hilly Hundred, but not in 2011.

There will certainly be other rides scheduled, as IndySteel said the CIBA ride calendar won't be released until March. There are also other options such as the Hope Ride, which is a fundraiser for local food banks and they drew around 2k riders in 2010! This ride is a lot of fun and as there isn't a mass start it keeps things manageable and the roads were in great shape, SAGS were also quite nice. Here is information on the 2010 Hope ride, they have held it for years so there is little doubt that it will be held this year in September.

Obviously there is a lot of time for us to decide what we want to do!

[indysteel]

If you want a ride earlier in the year, you might consider the Harmonie Hundred in New Harmony, Indiana. I would also suggest casting a bigger net and consider event rides in surrounding states. There are various other event rides that would lend themselves to a group ride.

[OakLeaf]

There's a lodge at the park as well. We stayed there one year when we went to the car grand prix at Indy. It wasn't super expensive at the time, IIRC.

[Bike Chick]

I'm interested but it depends on the date. The Harmonie Hundred is early in the season so there may be fewer conflicts for people. If we do it during the Hilly, I will have to train for hills

Sounds fun! Whether we pull it off or not, it's a great idea, Catrin.

[Catrin]

I'm interested but it depends on the date. The Harmonie Hundred is early in the season so there may be fewer conflicts for people. If we do it during the Hilly, I will have to train for hills

Sounds fun! Whether we pull it off or not, it's a great idea, Catrin.

I was thinking about the Harmonie Hundred myself. Bike Chick, you have been on this ride, how hilly IS it? I've looked at the maps and it doesn't look like it is very hilly.

This ride takes place over two days, so there are two 50 mile routes, one for Sat and one for Sunday. Registration is only $15 and there is information here. The dates are April 30th and May 1. There is mixed information on this site just yet, some pages reference the 2011 dates and others reference 2010 dates. It does NOT look like there is a mass start as there is a 2 hour window to start - and I find that quite attractive.

How would those dates work for everyone?

[indysteel]

DH and will be coming back from a hiking trip to Zion and Bryce Canyon on April 30th, so I'm out.