Riding the Nashville Greenways

Back in November, I went on my first group ride with Nashville Slow Ride through two of Nashville’s greenways: Shelby Bottoms and Stones River.

It’s really criminal that I waited so long to post about this, actually, because not only was it a fun 20-ish mile ride with great people, it also marked the meeting of the Flik and Andrew’s Bike Friday. How would the two folders compare?

Andrew and Friday, on Saturday

As usual, especially the morning after a late night out, I was 5 minutes late. Andrew waited for me and we soon caught up with the group, at the top of the first and largest hill on the Shelby Bottoms trail.

It was a comfortable day, in the high 30s, low 40s. I was the only person in the group wearing a skirt, and as they saw me ride up the group waiting at the top felt compelled to burst into a rousing rendition of “Material Girl.” Hey, they said it was a slow ride!

Most of the ride was on a bike/ped path, where we could admire the last of the fall foliage. But due to a gap in the Greenway we had to ride briefly on busy Lebanon Road.

Waiting to cross busy Lebanon Pike

This of course meant we had the thrill of getting flicked off and honked at by an asshole in a tacky orange pickup truck who had to wait a millisecond longer to change lanes left.

Old Lebanon Pike next to the bustling new one.

End of the trail: Percy Priest Dam

If you’re wondering why there aren’t more photos, well, the ride wasn’t exactly slow. It was an accessible 12-15 mph, with periodic stops to wait for anyone who had fallen behind, so it was definitely beginner-friendly — but I would have felt odd stopping for photos. So I spent the ride chatting to Andrew about his adventures with the Bike Friday and my experience with the Flik. Everyone else on the ride was curious about our folders, too, and two people tried them while we waited for the rest of the group at Percy Priest Dam before heading back. As always, it was interesting talking to other cyclists about their bikes and their riding habits.

By the end of the ride, I was starving and thirsty. Luckily a stop at Ugly Mugs provided the best snack ever.

I can’t do the Flik/Bike Friday comparison justice in the time left before I go to work, so I’ll leave you with a photo of the two folded side-by-side. To be continued . . .