Ride Recon Yields Toynbee Tile

8/18/2013 37m

Had a new sort of riding experience today, got to assist S. in a recon ride of part of the course for the upcoming Pedal Pittsburgh ride. We rode from the starting point through the North Side, checking the course sheet and marking divots and potholes in the street, like this:

I think I pay attention to the road surface when I ride, but when you're riding to check the road surface you do see a lot more. Today's payoff was spotting a Toynbee Tile in the intersection of Smithfield Street and Forbes Avenue, wow wow wow.

This is a 2007 picture of the same tile.

I had known that there was such a thing in Pittsburgh but had never seen it or known of the location. According to the Post-Gazette, there are tiles at these locations:

• Smithfield at Forbes (shown)
  
• Smithfield at Oliver
  
• Forbes near Ross
  
• Liberty Avenue across from the Hilton (since paved over)
  
• Seventh Avenue at Smithfield Street (since paved over)
  

The recon ride was interesting. It was fun to be given cans of spray-paint and permission to mark up the streets.

We knocked off after five hours because we were about out of paint and the precip was beginning to shift from pleasant drizzle to actual rain. I think the Pedal Pittsburgh course through the North Hills will be rather challenging, quite a bit of climbing.