Baltimore: I-83 North via Lancaster. Never failed us. Trip to-from Clinton area never more than 3 hours. Only the stretch between Reading and Trexlertown is a bit slower but never jammed.
My wife used her iPhone (iOS 5 for now) to locate a very nice (as in tiny setting but authentic) Vietnamese restaurant on the way back. Pretty soon we'll have done all the Vietnamese places there, including the supermarket where they sell frozen durian (not to be eaten inside the house).
Charm City 'cross, amazing venue, no sand on the course though. Day 2 I dropped my chain going around the tree lap 1. Everybody goes by and then some. When I went back initially I thought I wouldn't even pass anybody I wasn't gaining much... This is the worst time to have a problem, you lose not only time there but afterward waiting to pass in the tight sections. But it's a long race and I came back a bit. Caught 1 last guy just before the finish, passed him before the road nailed the last turns and thought I was home free but no, we had to sprint to the line and I got him by 1 half-tire...