Wheaton Regional Park - Brookside Gardens - Sligo Creek Trail

**Check back to see if the date or start time has changed. This ride will be postponed (possibly replaced with another ride) if the chance of rain is above 49%, or wind speed or wind gusts are above 15 mph (per Accuweather) **
--Credit goes to Jonathan K for planning and leading this bike route--
TRAIN OR BUS STOPS
Train: Glenmont Metro Station
Bus: M22 at Georgia Avenue and Weisman Road
TYPE OF BIKE: Any kind of bike frame with hybrid tires or wider is recommended due to a short segment of dirt trail. Ensure it is the correct frame size for your height so you can get maximum output. Participants are responsible for ensuring their bike tires, brakes, and chain are in good condition and they have a spare inner tube on hand. Organizers can try to help but aren't responsible for everyone's bike conditions.
SKILL LEVEL: All levels can enjoy this trail; it is fairly flat. However, it isn’t well marked so you need to keep a ride leader in sight or use a navigation app in case you fall behind.
PACE: It’s up to you. HOWEVER, the event organizers have fit legs (avg. 10-18 mph). And some of us like to do a cardio workout at some point. We make stops at tricky points on the trail and /or to regroup every 2-4 miles. Since paved trails can sometimes be crowded, we don’t have expectations of being able to go very fast.
· If you prefer a faster pace than the lead riders, you can make stops to wait for them to catch up.
· If you’re not sure what your avg. speed is, be prepared to use a nav app to ride solo in case you don’t catch up to us at our stops.
PARKING ADDRESS
2002 Shorefield Road, 20902 · Wheaton, MD

PARKING AND MEETUP SPOT
Park at the Wheaton Regional Park Parking Lot at 2002 Shorefield Road.
Meet us at the Wheaton Carousel at the south end of the parking lot. After check-in, we’ll do an icebreaker question.

BIKE ROUTE SUMMARY
From the carousel parking lot, we’ll ride through Wheaton Regional Park to the back gate of Brookside Gardens and lock up our bikes (please bring a lock). Then we’ll spend about a half hour walking around Brookside Gardens. Then we’ll get back on our bikes and ride a short dirt trail through the forest, followed by a short ride on an asphalt portion of park trail. Then we’ll leave Wheaton Regional Park and start on the Sligo Creek Trail on a combination of paved bike paths and portions of Sligo Creek Parkway that are closed to motor traffic. The ride continues to the paved Northwest Branch and Anacostia River Trails, ending at the Washington Rowing School in Bladensburg.
DISTANCE OPTIONS
Participants can choose to return at any point. These are just suggestions.
OPTION A: 2 miles down to Sligo-Dennis Avenue Local Park (4-mile round trip)
OPTION B: 8 miles down to Sligo Creek and Maple Avenue (16-mile round trip)
OPTION C: 10 miles down to Sligo Creek North Neighborhood Park (20-mile round trip) *Keryn plans to do this option.
OPTION D: 12.3 miles down to the Rachel Carson Greenway Trail (24.6-mile round trip)
OPTION E: 14.5 miles down to Washington Rowing School (29-mile round trip) * Jonathan plans to do this option.
BATHROOMS
There are four bathrooms on the route.
1. Wheaton Regional Park starting point.
2. Sligo-Dennis Avenue Local Park (four miles from beginning)
3. 38th Avenue Neighborhood Park (12.5 miles from beginning)
4. Washington Rowing School (14.5 miles from the beginning and final turning-around point)
BIKE RENTALS
No bike rentals
BIKE REPAIR
No bike repair shops, but there is a self-serve repair kit at the Washington Rowing School, 14.5 miles from the beginning.

OPTION TO SOCIALIZE AFTERWARDS
Afterwords, everyone is invited for an after-ride social event at Jonathan’s house (one block from the start/end point). Option to bring your own food or post your order from Tera Mare and his wife will pick it up for us. Jonathan will provide drinks. See separate event posting to RSVP to the after-ride social.

RECOMMENDATIONS
Bring: Water bottles, snacks, biking gloves, bike bell, bike lock, helmet visor, sunglasses, bike tube, pump, patch, first aid kit, mobile phone with nav app installed (e.g. Google maps, we use RidewithGPS). If you get leg cramps during or after a ride, take electrolytes before and during your ride (or add salt and magnesium to your water). A change of clothes for your ride home or a car seat cover to absorb sweat.
Clothing: Wear biking gloves and durable clothing so that if you do fall, your skin is protected. Avoid wearing all black, all grey, all dark brown, or all dark blue, which blends in with pavement, especially while riding through a shady segment. Consider wearing something lighter to help others notice you.

REQUIREMENTS
Participants must wear tightly secured helmets when on their bike.
NOTE: Bikes are not allowed in Brookside Gardens. We will be locking our bikes to the bike racks at the entrance, so please be sure to bring a bike lock.
Be proactive to avoid a fall/crash and minimize injury:
· Keep a distance between yourself and other bikers. If the biker ahead of you suddenly stops, you should be able to avoid hitting them.
· Don’t make stops on the trail. Pull over to the side and use hand gestures to let people know you’re slowing down to make a stop.
· Yelling out “Passing on your left” and/or ringing a bike bell as you approach people ahead of you, so they don’t inadvertently move in your line of travel.
· Slowing down to wait, rather than speeding up when trying to pass people at the same time walkers/bikers are approaching you from the opposite direction.
· Avoid potholes and debris and slow down when approaching bumps
· When approaching road crossings and iffy situations, triple-check before crossing and don’t let yourself be distracted by talking, etc.
· Ensure your helmet is tightly secured so that it won’t move if you hit the ground.
MEETUP POLICIES
Participants should understand that biking is an inherently dangerous activity, and an accident could happen at any time. Participation is at your own risk.
An RSVP of “Yes” to an event is your digital signature acknowledging that you have read, understood, and agree with Meetup’s and MD Rail Trail Biking’s policies, esp. section 6 “Release” and section 8.2 ” LimitationLiability,” found at https://www.meetup.com/terms/