by Bill Brown, FLMSP Board Secretary

Most cyclists enjoy riding the Little Miami Scenic Trail for its miles of paved, offroad surface. But that enjoyment can be occasionally interrupted by a jarring bump in the trail which is usually caused by a tree root pushing up the pavement. FLMSP volunteers and Little Miami State Park maintenance workers try to prevent these bumps by removing trees that are too close to the trail. But this doesn’t always prevent the formation of bumps. Repaving an entire section where bumps form is not practical or economical. That’s where bump grinding comes in.

When a generous donor asked for a specific trail project they could support, Bruce Cortright (FLMSP Volunteer) suggested they fund the purchase of a concrete planer, or as we call it, a “bump grinder.” FLMSP has rented grinders in the past, but it required long days and lots of volunteers to get the best use of the equipment over several days of rental. This meant these grinding sessions did not occur very frequently.

The $5,000 donation (given in memory of dedicated FLMSP volunteer Bill Schwinn) allowed FLMSP to purchase a bump grinder, and it arrived in early February. The South Trail Maintenance crew wasted no time in putting it to use, and began grinding bumps on Feb. 7th.

The grinder uses a rotating drum with steel teeth to remove the high spot in the pavement. Different materials are being tested for the best solution to fill in the remaining crack in the pavement.

The result should be smoother rides for bikers and maybe fewer bumps to trip over for walkers, runners, and skaters. Pictured is the South Trail crew of Bruce Cortright, John Telintelo, Mike Dresch and Bill Brown as they grind bumps between Camp Denison and Milford. You should begin to see the grinder in use all along the trail as more crews begin to grind bumps from Newtown to Spring Valley!

March 2023

by Erick Wikum

I spent January and February in Northern Wisconsin and skied three cross-country marathons, including my 19th American Birkebeiner. The “Birkie” is a 50km (~30mi) point-to-point race that finishes on the main street of Hayward, Wisconsin. The finishing stretch is lined with hundreds of cowbell-ringing fans. There’s a particular point on the route that features a tight turn where snowmobilers gather to rate and provide good-natured jeering to skiers who fall. Tight turns are just one challenge of ski racing. Another is sharing the trail with thousands of other skiers.

Sharing the Little Miami Scenic Trail with others is far easier, but just as important. The trail is home to bicyclists, walkers, runners, roller skaters, roller skiers, horseback riders, and others. The benefits of using the trail in so many ways come with a responsibility to respect the rights of others and to act in a way that promotes the safety of our fellow trail users and ourselves.

To remind you of the importance of sharing the trail, I would like to share this video from a cross-country ski race, the 90km 2012 Swedish Vasaloppet. This video shows a particularly challenging, heavily trafficked downhill on the racecourse. The spills are a cross between painful and humorous. As you watch, be mindful of the importance of sharing our beautiful Little Miami Trail with others safely.

March 2023

by Erick Wikum

In writing, a comma is used to indicate a brief pause, providing the reader with a chance to catch their breath (as illustrated in this very sentence). By contrast, a period is used to indicate a longer pause, a chance for the reader to digest the meaning of the sentence just read. In fact, a period is also known as a full stop.

In the context of road crossings on the Little Miami Scenic Trail, a brief pause versus a full stop takes on a whole different meaning. Recently, I bicycled north on the trail. As I approached the road crossing at South Lebanon, I scanned the roadway and noticed a car approaching from the left. And then, I sensed something else. To my great surprise, a trail user riding an e-bike approached from my rear, veered around me without saying anything, and zoomed across the intersection at full speed.

Now that’s a recipe for disaster, but here’s a recipe, including four tips, for crossing roads safely:

1. Come to a full stop.
2. Check left, right, and left again.
3. Proceed only when it is completely safe to do so.
4. Remain vigilant while crossing expeditiously.

If a car stops for you, ensure that cars in both directions have stopped. You may wish to wave cars through, or to remain back from the intersection until you can cross with no cars present. Also, for your safety and theirs, overtake other trail users on the trail, and not while approaching or crossing a road.

Road crossing may just be the most dangerous aspect of trail use. The only way to cross is with extreme care. Full stop.

November 2022