Nostalgia for bike riding

I still feel like I am new to the whole bike riding and racing thing. I have only been riding road bikes for 14 or so years at this point. I guess that is a long time, but sometimes it still seems pretty recent.

Pittsburgh is lucky to have some great riding. We can go North of the city and not see a red light for 100 miles from the city limits (If you are doubting this, 62nd st bridge to Ravine or Kittaning Pike to Hunt to Fox Chapel....).

Yesterday I did a loop that I really enjoy. It is 50 miles and has 5000 feet of climbing. It is just hard. I modify it this time of year to make it more tolerable. Anyway, I came across some new housing developments along the route. The only other time that I remember having this feeling was when I went to my childhood home, and the woods that I played in were now houses. People like new houses. I pay for everything in my life from people buying and selling houses. However, I feel as if somebody is taking something away. Not taking it away from me, but just taking away experiences from the kids who live in my childhood house, or the juniors who are going to have to ride another 20 minutes out of the city until they can ride two abreast and not feel threatened by cars.

This was once all woods. They were woods on top of old slag dumps, so I am not even sure that these houses have basements.

This is a classic hill that is a 20%+ grade. It is/was a beautiful road. The powers that be are developing the area and turning it into a more manageable 8% or so. Shame.