Riding the DC Metro to a Gravel Cycling Paradise (Loudoun County)
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- Опубликовано: 16 июл 2024
- "The Washington Metro (or simply Metro), formally the Metrorail, is a rapid transit system serving the Washington metropolitan area of the United States. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), which also operates the Metrobus and Metrorail services under the Metro name. Opened in 1976, the network now includes six lines, 97 stations, and 129 miles (208 km) of route. The system's most recent expansion, serving Dulles International Airport and Loudoun County, Virginia, opened on November 15, 2022." - wikipedia.org
"Loudoun County is home to Virginia’s largest network of rural roads. Many of these miles of byways pre-date America, carved out of Virginia’s hilly terrain by early settlers who helped shape our nation and build our prosperous communities." - americasroutes.com
JOM of the Gravel Cyclist crew is no stranger to the roads of Loudoun County, Virginia. He first rode these historic roads in 2010, long before they gained popularity and conservation efforts to keep them intact. In this video, JOM is joined by The Lady Gravel Cyclist, for a trip aboard the D.C. Metro on the Silver Line, from the eastern-most start point at Largo Town Center, Maryland, for a journey all the way to the new and final stop on the Silver Line, Ashburn, Virginia (Loudoun County).
Following the Metro trip, JOM and LGC ride a loop route of their own design from Ashburn Metro Station. Note, JOM's route isn't the best and a variant is available linked below, but please see the additional links below for several mixed-surface routes kindly provided by our local friends in Loudoun County, the VeloPigs (velopigs.org) that start and end at Ashburn Metro Station.
Continued from Above:
"We believe these roads, and the stories they tell, are worth preserving. They tell of pioneers seeking a new life, of terrible wars fought along these roads, of slavery and the struggle for freedom, of the coming of the era of the automobile and now modern commuters living side by side with farmers. They are truly America’s Routes."
"These old roads provide a unique and beautiful experience to Loudoun’s rural residents and to the thousands of visitors who come to enjoy our spectacular and authentic rural landscape."
Chapters:
0:00 Intro
0:52 Buying Metro Tickets
1:20 Boarding the Metro
2:04 Arrival at Ashburn Metro Station
2:39 Ashburn Metro Station
3:03 Riding to Loudoun County Gravel
4:13 Gravel Cycling Fun Begins
11:33 Return to Ashburn Metro Station
12:17 Closing
12:39 Madness
13:02 Bonus Metro Scenes
Route Links (starting from Ashburn, Virginia Metro Station):
Waterford Lollipop (design by VeloPigs) - ridewithgps.com/routes/41477213
Old Waterford 45 (design by VeloPigs) - ridewithgps.com/routes/41477234
Ashburn 35 (design by VeloPigs) - ridewithgps.com/routes/41477347
Ashburn 50 (design by VeloPigs) - ridewithgps.com/routes/41477330
GCX Ashburn Original (variant of JOM's route in this video - not necessarily recommended to some potentially busy paved roads) - ridewithgps.com/routes/41477500
Additional Route Links in / near Loudoun County, Virginia:
Leesburg VA Gravel Funfest - ridewithgps.com/routes/34714993
Haymarket VA Gravel Ramble - ridewithgps.com/routes/34768982
Middleburg VA Gravel Exploro - ridewithgps.com/routes/34816270
Links of Interest:
Metro Silver Line Extension - wmata.com/silverline
VeloPigs Beer & Social Club - velopigs.org
Visit Loudoun - www.visitloudoun.org
Americas Routes - americasroutes.com
Virginia VDOT Unpaved Roads - www.virginiaroads.org/dataset...
All-New 2023 Trek Domane: Gravel Bike AND Endurance Road? (JOM's bike in this video) - www.gravelcyclist.com/videos/...
Tailwind Nutrition (JOM's choice of on-the-bike hydration) - bit.ly/3eVogDT
Champion System (JOM's clothing) - champsys.com
DeFeet Cycling Sock (JOM's accessories) - defeet.com
Gravel Cyclist's Route Library - www.gravelcyclist.com/gravel-...
Amazon Affiliation Link:
No cost to you, but every purchase made helps keep Gravel Cyclist up and running! - www.amazon.com/?&_encoding=UT...
Web: GravelCyclist.com
Facebook: / gravelcyclist
Instagram - / gravelcyclist
Twitter - / gravelcyclist 
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Excited about the Ashburn extension. Allows me to get to a spot on the W&OD trail that lets me explore the gravel. Planning on doing that in Spring.
And only $2 each way on the weekend!
@@GravelCyclist I have a feeling I'll be using the Silver Line option more. I costs me 4 gallons in gas and ~$20 in tolls to drive to Leesburg from Arlington for a gravel ride.
Nice. A buddy and I did a road/bike trail ride from Ashburn Station yesterday. It's 2.5 miles to the W&OD Trail, and another 9 miles west on the trail to Leesburg, where you can hit the gravel in the Velopigs route. Loudoun east of Rt 15 is pretty grim IMHO...
There's a public bathroom at the Ashburn station?!?! Great intel, that one detail makes an adventure like this a LOT easier. I live in DC and will be trying this for sure. Thanks!
As soon as you exit the train and take the elevator / escalator upstairs, four super clean bathrooms are right there, just before the Metro entry / exit gate. Enjoy your future journeys from DC to Loudoun!
We used to take backroads from Ashburn area up to Harpers ferry and back.... That was some years ago... We had 100 mile circuit from just outside D.C. out the W.O.&D and cross another ferry to Maryland and back on the Canal or backroads... good times!!!
Great ride and info, JOM. You probably made use of the new Metro silver line extension for some riding goodness before most of us locals! Cheers.
I hope you enjoyed your trip to the DMV and Loudon County! You are welcome back anytime.
That gravel on the shoulder is what I like to call "suburban gravel". :)
This video is awesome for me. I grew up there. Living in Michigan now.
You're making me homesick, Jayson. Thanks for the great shots of my old 'hood.
Loudoun my gravel playground.
Such an amazing playground it is too :) I sincerely hope no further roads are paved. I've got video / photos somewhere of a few roads from Leesburg and Middleburg that were paved a few years ago. Stoked to see the efforts of people like Kasey Clark and Americas Routes, working hard to preserve these historic roads.
People from the Maryland and Virginia area drive like maniacs. It's a shame because there would be some awesome cycling to be had but it's not safe.
cars ruin everything
Is Australia the only country in which you can't travel on a train with your bike?!
You can in Melbourne,.
Perth👍
@@shanemerx3887 Good to see some states are a bit more progressive than NSW! Inquired with NSW Rail about taking my bike on the train from Coffs up to Brisbane to bikepack back and was told I would need to disassemble it into an impossibly small cardboard box!
Disappointing to hear about NSW. In my South Aussie home state, there used to be an amazing country rail network that was torn up in the early / mid 1980's, that would have opened up a ton of amazing gravel cycling in the Barossa Valley, and the mid North. Instead, I've driven out there each time to ride those fab roads. If any of you make it Stateside, you need to add Loudoun County, Virginia, gravel roads to your must-ride list.
@@GravelCyclist I didn't think you had an American accent (lol). I've cycled the UK and NZ and both countries are more welcoming when it comes to travelling with bikes compared to NSW. As more and more rail trails open up in NSW, this state needs to get more on board(pun intended). The Casino-Lismore-Byron- Murwillumbah rail trail opens in 2023 and it would be great if NSW Rail permitted bikes to encourage more Aussies to start exploring. Especially now ebikes are getting more popular with older cyclists. Great for eco-tourism as well! We can only hope! GS- enjoy your RUclips vids immensely and having recently gone over to the dark side and bought better half and I ebikes, enjoying the vids on the Trek Domane. Nice.