Skating Again 2007
Wow it feels good to be back on skate wheels. We will be skating Friday nights starting some time in May we have not settled on an exact date yet. Thanks to the TRAX line construction turning down 400 West from South Temple then turning West on 200 South we MUST alter our route and stay away from the Gateway area. We are looking for your input for a safe route using bike lanes or shared roadways. I recently surveyed the bike lane running North from 800 South on 600 West it is still unsafe for skaters we will NOT consider that route. I really want to find a safe route to the olympic parking lot behind the Salt Lake Hardware Building which thanks to Greg Garton became our destination and turn around point. Perhaps we can find a way in from the East by going North on 200 West under the big Salt Palace dip to 100 North and then West. PLEASE post suggestions by clicking on Comments.
posted by jamie at 9:42 PM
11 Comments:
One more comment: we can utilize sidewalks, though we prefer not to, but only "outside" of CBD (central busines districts). That means most of downtown is off limits unless we use bikes lanes on 2nd South or other?? Makes for a nice challenge.
Also, want to keep the parking ramps in the route!!! Love those 8 story downhills!!
Zooooooooooom!
skatenow
This comment has been removed by the author.
I just explored the whole area on skates (Friday, April 27). Here are some alternate routes in order of preference in order to get to the parking lot.
Alternative 1) Go down the south sidewalk of 500 S (since it is technically outside the Central business district) for three blocks from 200 W to 500 W. Then go up 500 W which is fine. The intersection of 200 S and 500 W is also OK as the road is not torn up at that intersection (at least for now, it might get worse). Note: We can't just go up 500 W because there is no crossing at 600 S.
Alternative 2) Keep on going on 200 W until 300 N and than loop back around to the Parking Lot. This will involve a bit of an incline going under the building at 100 S. But it is fairly safe. It is also possible to cut across at around 200 N via the sidewalk which goes through a park, but I don't recommend it since it is fairly narrow and downhill.
Alternative 3) This one will involve adding about 2-3 miles to the route. Keep going on 800 S under the freeway until 1000 S than up 1000 S until 300 N. Than down 300 N to the parking lot. The main problem with this route is it there are 3 railroad crossing (800 S @ 600 W, 1000 W @ S Temple, and 300 N @ 500 W). All these railroad crossing are fairly busy so we might have to wait for a train to cross. This in itself isn't so bad, but at times trains have been known to STOP, blocking the road. If this happens than we might have to cross on N Temple or 400 S which involves a bit of an incline. On N Temple there is a separate pedestrian walk but it is narrow, and on 400 S there is a decent shoulder eastbound but we lose it at the very end of the bridge and will have to be in a travel lane until the intersection of 500 W. (I never skates westbound on 400 S I don't know what the shoulder is like on that side).
As far as getting back. The sidewalk along 400 W that we use in still in good shape, however it is narrower. But it is still safe if we go slow and watch out for pedestrians. I went down it with out any problems. The intersection at 200 S is a bit tricky but passable. Also the bike lane going east on 200 S between 400 W and 300 W is also fine. However, if you don't agree we can just go back the way we came.
Just so we are clear, I personally explored all these options on skates. So I know what conditions are as of Friday, April 27.
I will be happy to explore any of these options with you (Jamie, Kim or Eric).
PS: Sorry for the last comment. I was just testing things and didn't mean to submit.
This comment has been removed by the author.
This comment has been removed by the author.
GTEAT comment is considered retracted.
Alternative 2 is interesting I think it moves the skate into the expert range but is safer than going through the construction where the conditions will change week by week. I think we should come back the same way then East on 200 South.
Kudos to Kevin for all that skating what do you all think?
Great now I can't spell either.
Kevin when you went down the 400 West sidewalk was construction underway? What time were you there?
It was late, about the time we will go. 8:00ish. There was no construction going on.
Thanks for the updates. I think we can use the 200 w. to 300 n. route and try it out. SF FNS has huge hills which make the drop on 200 w. under delta center at 100 s. pale in comparrison. And, as long as we are not crossing construction zones, open road(gravel pits) etc... it could work. As Jamie points out that can change daily/weekly right now, so we will have to work around that stuff.
btw- what is the status of northbound 300 e. near the bakery stop? last yr the northern few blocks south of 200 s. were torn up due to construcstion. not terribly keen on 200 w tar snakes.
I only skated in the area around the construction zone to try and find an alternative, so I don't know what the condition is around the bake shop.
I will happy to do a dry run with you, just let me know (preferably via email) when.
The northbound bike lane on 300 East is also not skateable across from the Bakery due to construction. Damaged or gravel covered bike lane when we will pass bye, unloading of flatbed semi's filled with construction materials during the day. I don't bike through there anymore.
Post a Comment
<< Home