RIDE REPORT
Friday, December 4, 2015, Farm to Farm to Bogs
Ride Leaders: Doug Hobkirk & Tom Allen
31 & 21 miles, 10:00 a start from Verrill Farm, Concord, MA
Friday, December 4, 2015, Farm to Farm to Bogs
Ride Leaders: Doug Hobkirk & Tom Allen
31 & 21 miles, 10:00 a start from Verrill Farm, Concord, MA
Riders - 31 mi (19): Doug, Arthur Teepe, Bob Anderson, Brooke Stevens, Clyde Kessel, Dom Jorge, Gene Ho, Ilkka Suvanto, Jack Donohue, Karen Featherstone, Kathy Horvath, Kaz Zelny, Larry Kernan, Mary Kernan, Maurice King, Peggy Gelin, Rudge McKenney, Susan Sabin, and Steve Robins.
Riders - 21 mi (6): Tom, Butch Pemstein, Dick Harter, Richard Fortier, Roy Westerberg, and first-timer Wing Chow.
Present at ride start: Helen Greitzer.
On a glorious, sun-drenched day, 78 riders (maybe less? I count poorly!) assembled to patiently listen as I rambled on about how I encouraged them to try killing themselves in the final mile on a fast downhill. We regrouped on the rare occasions when we got split up. We found three Wheelers on Monument Street who had said they would meet the group at the end of that street at 10:30, but at that time we were probably just going through Concord center. We regrouped before getting onto Rte 225 for the short stretch to smooth (s-m-o-o-t-h!) Maple Street. Then the short riders split off just before the end of Maple Street, and one mile before the hardest hill. Coincidence??
Great Brook Farm was a treat, even if the ice cream stand was closed. Clyde left us, but everyone shouted "Hello, Clyde" as we passed his house, which has an "Eggs for Sale" sign on his mailbox. Up the hill on Curve Street and then down the hill to the Cranberry Bogs. New England can be really magnificent, even without deciduous foliage. We re-grouped at Ice Pond, seven miles before ride's end, and I explained the best "line" for anyone who wanted to take the final turn at high speed. Should there be an arrow? We left it open.
I had an excellent time - I got to ride my route with a bunch of friends. The group stayed together pretty well; our overall average speed moving was 13.8; there were no mishaps. And then we got to eat yummy food in a toasty greenhouse at Verrill Farm.
Safety: the arrows worked fine and I think that there were few long waits, but what does the leader know? On School Street, we had the only instance where I noticed that a vehicle was behind and we did not break into six-person groups. It was, however, a semi truck on a narrow road and I don't think that it would have passed us, even if we were in smaller groups, but I mention it as an issue to contemplate.
Great Brook Farm was a treat, even if the ice cream stand was closed. Clyde left us, but everyone shouted "Hello, Clyde" as we passed his house, which has an "Eggs for Sale" sign on his mailbox. Up the hill on Curve Street and then down the hill to the Cranberry Bogs. New England can be really magnificent, even without deciduous foliage. We re-grouped at Ice Pond, seven miles before ride's end, and I explained the best "line" for anyone who wanted to take the final turn at high speed. Should there be an arrow? We left it open.
I had an excellent time - I got to ride my route with a bunch of friends. The group stayed together pretty well; our overall average speed moving was 13.8; there were no mishaps. And then we got to eat yummy food in a toasty greenhouse at Verrill Farm.
Safety: the arrows worked fine and I think that there were few long waits, but what does the leader know? On School Street, we had the only instance where I noticed that a vehicle was behind and we did not break into six-person groups. It was, however, a semi truck on a narrow road and I don't think that it would have passed us, even if we were in smaller groups, but I mention it as an issue to contemplate.
Thanks to Gene for sweeping.
Report by Doug Hobkirk.
The long and short rides rode together for the first nine miles. We then split off for a shorter, but (I allege) more challenging, route. We climbed some hills on lovely backroads of Carlisle and eschewed the long and leg stiffening stop at Great Brook Farm. (We did make a just-in-time stop at a convenient porta-potty on Lowell Road.)
There was a bit of drama while the rides were together. On a curvy and somewhat hilly stretch of Monument Street, a pickup truck became impatient with the car in front of him which was reluctant to pass us. When the car did pass, the truck gunned it and, in so doing, dumped a wheelbarrow out of its bed and onto the road, blocking traffic coming in the opposite direction - the truck driver was oblivious. Roy leapt into action and cleared the road of the wayward wheelbarrow. It is unknown whether the truck driver ever noticed the loss.
Thanks to Dick Harter for sweeping our group, but it wasn't much of a chore. I don't think we deployed any arrows once we separated from the long ride group.
Report by Doug Hobkirk.
The long and short rides rode together for the first nine miles. We then split off for a shorter, but (I allege) more challenging, route. We climbed some hills on lovely backroads of Carlisle and eschewed the long and leg stiffening stop at Great Brook Farm. (We did make a just-in-time stop at a convenient porta-potty on Lowell Road.)
There was a bit of drama while the rides were together. On a curvy and somewhat hilly stretch of Monument Street, a pickup truck became impatient with the car in front of him which was reluctant to pass us. When the car did pass, the truck gunned it and, in so doing, dumped a wheelbarrow out of its bed and onto the road, blocking traffic coming in the opposite direction - the truck driver was oblivious. Roy leapt into action and cleared the road of the wayward wheelbarrow. It is unknown whether the truck driver ever noticed the loss.
Thanks to Dick Harter for sweeping our group, but it wasn't much of a chore. I don't think we deployed any arrows once we separated from the long ride group.
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