Put a Stamp On It ride - October 21, 2015

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, October 21, 2015, Put a Stamp On It ride & visit to Postal Museum
Ride Leaders:  John Allen & Fred Newton
24 & 29 miles, 10:00 am start from Spellman Museum of Stamps & Postal History, Weston, MA

Riders - 24 mi:  John.
Riders - 29 mi (10):  Fred, Clyde Kessel, Dmitry Gorenburg, Gene Ho, Larry Kernan, Paul Greco, Paula O'Sullivan, Rich Taylor and first-timers Doug Hanna and Karen Featherstone.

Present at ride start & lunch:  Helen Greitzer.

A look at a weather radar map at breakfast time showed a patch of rain which would pass.  Helen, Fred and I decided that the ride was on.  I donned my rain cape, mounted my bicycle with fenders, and headed for the Spellman Museum.  As if on schedule, the rain quit at 10:15.  Body  heat evaporated a few light spatterings of rain from my clothing during the ride.

Fred headed out with the long-ride group and I was alone on the short ride.  Fall foliage is still in its early stage:  next week will probably be the peak.  My slightly slower pace and a little detour had the long-ride group catch up with me shortly before Weston, where Helen rejoined the group for lunch at Dumpling Daughter Chinese restaurant.  A fine if slightly damp time was had by all.

Report by John Allen.

As I pulled out of my driveway in the rain, I had faith in <weather.com> that it would be clear by 10:00 am, and it was!  So I, with nine other slightly moist souls, set off on the long (pardon the expression) 29 mile course, the only problem being wet roads which lead to wet seats (bottoms) of those who lacked fenders or long-enough windbreakers.  The route was most enjoyable, the roads being in good shape for the most part, with very little need for arrows due to the lack of turns.  Our group stayed fairly tight as well.  We were treated to a section of off-road single track, between Old County Road and Old Conant Road, which got our attention.  Lincoln Town Offices building served as a bathroom stop and also gave us a chance to appreciate the recently completed interior remodeling.

Upon returning, Rich Taylor was full of praise for the conduct of all riders saying that this was the best WW ride ever in terms of the riders pointing out road hazards and signaling their intentions!  Congratulations riders!!

Thanks to Rich for sweeping and to my two always available arrows, Larry and Dmitry. Most of us, including Helen, enjoyed a delicious lunch at Dumpling Daughter and three of us returned to the Postal Museum for an interesting discussion with Museum Director, Henry Lukas.

Report by Fred Newton.

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Photo courtesy of Rich Taylor.

Circling Wachusett Foliage Ride - October 14, 2015

RIDE REPORT

 

Wednesday, October 14, 2015, Circling Wachusett Foliage Ride
Ride Leaders:  Richard Vignoni & various
39 mile core ride, 10:00 am start from West Sterling Athletic Field, Sterling, MA 

62 mile remote start ride, 9:00 am start from Forbush Mill Road Soccer Field, Bolton, MA.

Riders - 39 mi (20):  Richard, Barry Nelson, Dave Balaban, Doug Hobkirk, Elizabeth Wicks, Ellen Gugel, Francie Sparks, Fred Newton, Jack Mroczkowski, Jim Cant, Jim Egerton, Jim Whinfield, Karen Saltus, Kathy Jonas, Kaz Zelny, Rich Taylor, Richard Fortier, Selig Saltzman, Winslow Green, and first-timer Neil Martin
Riders - 62 mi (6):  Bob Apsler, Clyde Kessel, Everett Briggs, Gene Ho, Lindy King, and Rick Carlson
Remoted from home (3):  Elizabeth Wicks, Everett Briggs, and Lindy King

The weather gods were once again kind to us, continuing their tradition of great weather for our annual circling Wachusett ride.  Showing up early at the ride start to organize the ride fell apart when I discovered that I had forgotten my helmet.  Elizabeth, who had remoted from home in Boylston, had a spare, so I drove her back to her house to retrieve it.  In the meantime six remote riders joined the twenty core riders who were all patiently waiting in the warm sun when I returned.  During my absence I phoned in and had someone offer that a spirited pace group could head on out, giving them a desired gap, but there were no takers.  We all exited the parking lot 15 to 20 minutes later than planned and headed up Holden Road for the first of many hills.

We cycled clockwise around the mountain through the towns of Rutland, Barre, Hubbardston, Westminster, and Princeton, where on many roads seeing a car was a rarity.  The foliage was not quite at its peak, but there were lots of good patches and stretches of color along the way, where the foliage camouflage pants worn by Everett could easily disappear into the background

While there were no flats, there was a mechanical issue with someone breaking a rear derailleur cable.  I did have a spare in my bag of “stuff,” so this was perhaps redemption for forgetting my helmet.  We were only two turns and two miles from the lunch stop at the ski area, so I sent the group, including the sweep, ahead with six of us staying behind.  The repair took longer than expected as Shimano has changed the design of their shifters.  In our haste, we did a real MacGyver, attaching a new cable to the rear and tying it to the old cable from the shifter allowing for pretty much the full range of gears.

We cycled on to the lunch stop.  Everett and four others biked to the summit and most of the other riders took off on their own as the weather turned cloudy and cooler.  Barry, who swept the ride, was patiently waiting for us but we released him to ride back with the few remaining riders while the six of us ate a leisurely lunch.  From there it was one last climb then seven miles of downhill back to the parking lot.

The ride lived up to its reputation of being very beautiful and hilly, with very little traffic.  It was another great day of cycling and being outdoors.

Thanks to Barry Nelson for sweeping the ride, to all those who arrowed and participated, and to Elizabeth Wicks for coming to the rescue and loaning me a helmet

Report by Richard Vignoni.

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Photo courtesy of Everett Briggs.

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West of Bedford - October 7, 2015

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, October 7, 2015, West of Bedford
Ride Leaders:  Larry Kernan & Ken Hablow
44 & 27 miles, 10:00 am start from Bikeway Source, Bedford, MA.

Riders - 44 mi (21):  Larry, Barbara Martin, Bernie Flynn, Bill Umphrey, Bob Apsler, Bob Wolf, Clyde Kessel, Curt Dudley-Marling, Dave Balaban, Dom Jorge, Everett Briggs, Francie Sparks, Fred Newton, Karen Saltus, Mike Byrne, Rich Taylor, Richard Lawrence, Richard Vignoni, Rick Carlson, and first-timers Gene Ho and Jim Egerton.    
Riders - 27 mi (25):  Ken, Andy Lewis, Ann Northup, Chris Schuch, Cindy Bernstein, David Wean, Dick Harter, Eli Post, Ilkka Suvanto, Jack Mroczkowski, Janet Miller, Jeff Smith, Jim Whinfield, Kathy Jonas, Larry Kornetsky, Richard Fortier, Richard Mandel, Robyn Maislin, Selig Saltzman, Tom Allen, Tom Clark, Wick Doggett, and first-timers David Sachs, Marty Rogers, and Mary Kernan.

Present at lunch:  Helen Greitzer. 

1)  Perfect weather
2)  Great route (laid out by Ken Hablow)
3)  Wonderful camaraderie
4)  Delicious lunch at Holi Restaurant in Bedford

What more is there to say.  The twenty-one pedalers on the long ride option rode a comfortable 15 mph pace on a glorious fall day.  We stopped at the Veryfine juice facility in Littleton for a group photo and all agreed that we were having a "VeryFine" day.

All of us enjoyed our lunch at Holi where we restoked our calorie deficits.  We lingered for about an hour over a nice Indian buffet and great desserts.

Thanks to Dom and Rick for sweeping.

Report by Larry Kernan.

The short ride started after the long ride had cleared the two traffic lights at the beginning.  Not all of the group got through the second light and, since no one arrowed the first turn, several people got lost.  Thanks to Tom Allen, they got back on course.  The rest of the ride went smoothly, with a stop at Great Brook Farm to re-group and use the facilities.  At about five miles from the end, we were in Carlisle center with a straight run on Rte 225 back to Bedford.  Many of the riders went on as the leader stayed to wait for stragglers.  The sweep was relieved of duty and the leader brought in the slower riders.  Everyone seemed to enjoy the route.

Report by Ken Hablow.