Ride or Hike & Hanukkah/Ken Birthday Party - December 28, 2016

HIKE/RIDE/PARTY REPORTS

Wednesday, 28 December 2016, Hanukkah Hike/Ride & party 

Ride Leader:  Ken Hablow

Hike Leader & party hostess:  Marie Keutmann

33 mile ride, 10:30 am start from 68 Birchwood Lane, Lincoln, MA

4 mile hike, 11:00 am start from 68 Birchwood Lane, Lincoln, MA

Riders (18):  Ken, Barry Nelson, Bernie Flynn, Bob Wolf, Butch Pemstein, Dom Jorge, Francie Sparks, Gene Ho, Greg Stathis, Linda Nelson, Lindy King, Marc Baskin, Rich Taylor, Rick Carlson, Rick Lawrence, Russ Keene, Stan Kay, and Wing Chow.

Hikers (26):  Marie, Adena Schutzberg, Barbara Jacobs, Bob Anderson, Carol Anderson, Chuck McWilliams, Don Mannes, Ilkka Suvanto, Janet Miller, Joanne Samuels, Joel Covitz, Judi Burten, Julie Dodd, Margie Lee, Mike Hanauer, Robyn Maislin, Romaine Randall, Roy Westerberg, Sander Nydick, Sandi Hartwell, Susan Sabin, Ted Nyder, Tony Lee, Winslow Green, and first-timers Mark Levine and Marsha Westerberg

Present at lunch (10):  Betty Hoffman, Bob Sawyer, Eli Post, Jack Mroczkowski, Jan Hablow, Jerry Green, Joan Laxson, John Allen, Judy Kanigel, Kathy Halmi, Kaz Zelny, and Sumner Kagan.

Kitchen crew (2):  Helen Greitzer & Richard Vignoni (assisted by Barbara Jacobs, Betty Hoffman, Joan Laxson, Judi Burten, and Sandi Hartwell).

The good news was that the roads were dry and the temperature was always above freezing, barely.  It was mostly cloudy and there was a slight wind, but – hey! – it was December 28th. 

Eighteen of us ventured out on seventeen bikes for my shortened “birthday ride.”  We pretty much stayed together for the entire 33 miles, so arrowing was not necessary, although we did place arrows on two occasions.  The ride was rather uneventful which, at this time of year, is a good thing, and we didn’t have to wait for any mechanical problems. 

We arrived back at Marie’s for a major feast, although only about half the riders stayed for lunch.  When I walked into Marie’s kitchen, Richard had his hands deep in turkey fat as he pulled the bird apart.  There was plenty of food and more than enough beer and wine.  After lunch, the Yankee Swap went off very well.

I would like to thank Marie, Richard, and Helen for their work planning the day, as well as those who brought food.  Special thanks also to Marie for opening her home to us. 

Thanks to Linda Nelson for sweeping.  Barry volunteered to sweep, but, since Linda was always behind him, she deserves the credit.  Thanks also to Russ Keene for taking photos which may be seen at

      https://goo.gl/photos/jFfzinafnKWDnVGm7 .

Ride report by Ken Hablow.

Twenty-six hikers headed into the woods from my backyard for a four mile hike around Farrar Pond.  Along the way we saw evidence of very recent beaver activity, including an enormous new beaver dam and freshly cut tree stumps.  A new fence, across the route where we usually bushwhack, required us to go over or under the fence, but did not deter us from our route.  We all returned to the house on schedule, just before 1:00 pm.  Thanks to Adena for sweeping.

There were about fifty people at the party, nearly equaling last year's Hanukkah party attendance record!  It was great to see Bob Sawyer, Jerry Green, and Kathy Halmi who came early for the party and to visit with the cooks before the hordes arrived.  It was also very nice to see some WWs whom we have not seen for a long while, including Judy Kanigel and Sumner Kagan (who came for lunch), as well as Joel Covitz and Sandi Hartwell (who hiked with us).  While the bikers and hikers were out on the road and the trail, the cooks were very active, with Richard cooking two turkeys, one on the gas grill outside and one in the oven.  Helen and Richard made applesauce and a delicious cranberry sauce.  Betty Hoffman came early and helped with the cooking and set up.  Barbara and Judi had prepared dozens of delicious latkes (the day before) which were reheated in the oven after the hike.  With the many appetizers, side dishes, and desserts brought by others, there was plenty of food for all to enjoy.

After everyone had eaten, Sander lit the Hanukkah candles in the menorah and recited the blessing.  This was followed by the Yankee Swap (supervised by Joanne Samuels), with a wide selection of gifts including wine and chocolate turtles (both of which were swapped many times), as well as bike books and socks, to name a few.  

Thanks to Ken Hablow for leading the ride, to Richard and Helen for cooking, to Betty, Joan, and Sandi for helping in the kitchen, to Barbara and Judi for making the delicious latkes, and to all those who contributed and participated to make the party such a great success.  Happy Birthday, Ken!!

Hike & party reports by Marie Keutmann.

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Coordinator's note:  I wish to thank Marie, again, for opening her home to us.  Thanks also to Richard for his many efforts on our behalf, without which our Hanukkah party would not have happened.  He always makes it look so easy!

At the rest stop

Penultimate Hurrah Ride - December 21, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 21 December 2016, The Penultimate Hurrah 2016
Ride Leader:  Jack Donohue
30.4 miles, 10:00 am start from parking lot behind/beside the Bikeway Source, Bedford, MA

Riders (17):  Jack, Andy Brand, Barbara Martin, Barry Nelson, Bob Wolf, Butch Pemstein, Curt Dudley-Marling, Dom Jorge, Doug Hobkirk, Everett Briggs, Francie Sparks, Gene Ho, Ken Hablow, Larry Kernan, Richard Vignoni, Susan Sabin, and Wing Chow.
Present at lunch:  Helen Greitzer.

Q - When is a Wednesday Wheeler ride not a Wednesday Wheeler ride?
A - When there's no one to lead.

Read on. . . . .

We were all ready to go when someone noticed a Late Arrival (LA).  It was well past post time, but I figured I could wait a few more minutes.  The rest of the group, who'd been waiting for a while in the cold, decided they could not and took off.

When the dust settled, the only cyclists remaining were LA, Barry (who volunteered to sweep), Andy (who volunteered to help), and I.  This was somewhat worse than last time, when a mere 2/3 of the group departed without me, enough to make one paranoid.  So instead of a pleasant leisurely Wheeler ride, I had to engage chase mode in a vain attempt to catch the group.  This was clearly futile since, having thrown off the shackles of arrowing duty, they were free to go as fast as they possibly could and take no prisoners.

So I played catch up for a while, until there came a fork in the road (sound familiar?).  Naturally I took the wrong one and was blissfully unaware until the road ended and my Lady of the Phone had no advice as to which way to turn.  So, I realized my mistake and LA and I turned around.  Unfortunately, Andy and Barry didn't see us go the wrong way; they kept on going the right way.  So now we were in the strange situation where the sweep was ahead of the leader, but we managed to catch up to them and our group of four was restored to its proper order.

We did eventually catch up to the rest of the group at the Ken Hablow Rest Stop on South Chelmsford Road, where I forced everyone to pause for a group photo.  While Barry and I were using the facilities, they again left us in the dust, this time including LA and Andy, so Barry and I had no one to lead.  Nice work if you can get it.

I saw a rider in the distance and had a fleeting hope that my group had started arrowing again.  Alas, it was only Everett, who very kindly had waited to point out a large patch of black ice in the road.

At the ride start I had announced an alternative rest stop at Great Brook Farm, since the ski touring center portajohns were locked.  This required a slight deviation off course, so the question was whether the group would make the detour, having already relieved themselves at the KHRS.  The answer was yes and no.  The chase group who were visible when we neared the turn decided to stay with the program, so we were able to catch up with them at the farm.  I gave them the option of resuming the rest of the ride in true Wheeler fashion, arrows and all, or continuing the wild ride they had been on.  They opted for arrows.  In the end I was able to lead 1/2 the riders 1/3 of the time, so it wasn't a total bust, leader-wise.

Four of us (Barry, Francie, Helen, and I) went to Ken's NY Deli for lunch.

Thanks to Barry for sweeping.

PS - I am happy to report that the "Curse of Butch" has lifted.  This was the first time in quite a while that Butch was able to complete one of my rides without mishap.

Sermon on the Dismount

We need to talk about tardiness.  It seems every time I lead a Wheeler ride, one or more people come late.  It's one thing to wait around a bit on a warm summer day, quite another to stand around shivering when the temperatures are in the 20s.

So I've decided, on my rides, no more Mister Nice Guy.  From now on there will be zero tolerance for lateness.  If the ride starts at 10:00 am, we will roll at 10:00 - or at least immediately after boring ride details and the roll call.

This is not as Draconian as it sounds.  Nowadays, most, if not all, rides have a published route which you can download to gps or phone.  Failing that, you can print out the cue sheet and bring it.  If you arrive late, you're on your own, so like a good boy scout, be prepared.

Report by Jack Donohue.

At the start

The whole group at the KHRS

This time with Barbara's phone

Jingle Bell walk/ride & potluck - December 14, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 14 December 2016, Jingle Bell walk/ride & potluck
Walk Leader and hostess: Ann Northup
Ride Leader: Fred Newton
~5 mile walk or ~24 mile ride - 10:30 am start from Ann's house, Southborough, MA

Walkers (15):  Ann, Adena Schutzberg, Barbara Jacobs, Chuck McWilliams, Eli Post, Illka Suvanto, Janet Miller, Joan Laxson, Judi Burten, Kaz Zelny, Marie Keutmann, Patrick Ward, Roy Westerberg, Sander Nydick, and first-timer Ted Nyder.

Riders (6):  Fred, Butch Pemstein, Francie Sparks, Gene Ho, Richard Vignoni, and Wing Chow.
Ride start & party:  Helen Greitzer and first-timer Bill Schofield.
Party:  Margie and Tony Lee.

It was a sunny, brisk day for the fifteen walkers and six cyclists who set out from Ann's home at 10:30 am.  The cyclists did a 23.7 mile route and the walkers did 5.3 miles to and around Hopkinton State Park.  A few WWs arrived early (expecting a 10:00 start).  Two arrived late:  Kaz followed the route backwards and met up with the walkers at the dam; Gene didn't expect the strong headwind on his ride from Newton, so, not able to meet up with the riders, created his own ride.

It was a pleasant walk on forest trails over crunchy light snow and leaves, on roads, and on clear paths.  We finished in about two hours and met up with the riders who finished at exactly the same time!  Both groups, plus partygoers Margie and Tony, convened at Ann's to enjoy delicious potluck refreshments.

Many thanks to Fred for leading the cyclists.

Report by Ann Northup.

Five cold-resistant riders started out after a short safety talk.  Since Butch was a bit hoarse, he declined to sing his safety song.  Gene arrived late and rode the entire course by himself.

It was a clear, brisk day, with temperature ranging from 34 to 36 degrees.  Fortunately, the 0.4 mile 6-6.9% grade hill, Cedar Street Extension, was waiting for us at the very beginning, so we had a chance to warm up right from the start.  Since our group was small, we stayed together without a sweep.  The ride was advertised as 1466 feet of climbing - it ended up being 386 feet more, bringing the total to 1852 feet which is a lot for a 23.5 mile ride, but we needed the hills to stay warm.  Our steepest grade was 10.3%.

My favorite spot on the ride is Fiske Millpond on Pond Street.  Large rocks poke up through the water (ice in this case) like many little mountains - very unusual = with a nice picnic table by the dam.  So we had our photo taken there, before the long 2.1 mile climb up Fiske Mill Road and East Street.  There was a little bit of down hill on the way to break it up.  I chose a different return from last year to avoid the long, boring climb up Westborough Road with its heavy traffic, using School, Pond, Spring, and Fruit streets instead.  Miraculously, we arrived back at Ann's house at the exact moment the hikers returned.  The potluck was fantastic, as was the company.  Thanks to Ann for opening her home to us and for hosting such a great party.

Report by Fred Newton.

The hikers

Birdhouses of Boxboro - December 8, 2016

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RIDE REPORT

Thursday, 8 December 2016, Looking for the "Birdhouses of Boxboro"

Ride Leader:  Ken Hablow

35 miles, 10:00 am start from North Bridge parking lot, Monument Street, Concord, MA

Riders (16):  Ken, Barry Nelson, Bob Wolf, Butch Pemstein, Curt Dudley-Marling, Dom Jorge, Francie Sparks, Jack Donohue, Larry Kernan, Lindy King, Ray Komow, Rick Lawrence, Roy Westerberg, Selig Saltzman, Wing Chow, and first-timer David Fay.

The weather was definitely better than on Wednesday.  It was chilly, but not bone-chilling cold.  It was 32 degrees when I left home at about 9:15 am, and maybe a couple of degrees warmer at the ride start.  The temperature rose to 38 during the ride.  The roads were damp, but otherwise clear - there were no puddles or ice.  Worthy of note:  Lindy actually drove to Concord. 

Fourteen of us started out and stayed together enough so I could see the line of riders in my mirror most of the time.  There were a few instances where we used arrows, even though they were not necessary.  We made a few short stops to collect the group.  We rode mostly in single file and were very courteous to passing vehicles. 

Butch left us at the top of Strawberry Hill because he forgot warm gloves and his hands were cold.  We made our obligatory geezer stop at the South Acton fire station at about mile 8.  I thought I saw a "Welcome CRW" sign, but I may have been mistaken.  It was here that Bob and Wing found us.  Bob had to return home, so he left the group at mile 10. 

We found the birdhouses on Hill Road!!  Our photographer of record, Jack Donohue, took the attached photo to commemorate the occasion.  Just as we approached the house where the birdhouses reside, a car swerved into the driveway.  The driver told us that her husband’s grandfather had put the birdhouses up and she was glad that the house was still in the family.  Since Wing kept blasting off the front of the group, he missed the photo, but, as Jack always says, “if you go off the front you are on your own.”

At the bottom of the hill, just before the Rte 111 crossing, we passed by another favorite geezer stop at the Boxboro town hall.  However, we did stop at yet a third favorite stop at a trailhead on South Acton Road.  Again I pointed out a "Welcome CRW" sign, but was told that it really read "Watch for Lyme Disease." 

Roy and the Bedford group left us in Concord center to head home and the rest of us rode back to the parking lot.  Thanks to Jack for sweeping and taking photos.

Report by Ken Hablow.

At the Start

With the Birdhouses

Matching Jackets

Joinred by Bob and Wing at the rest stop

Farm to Farm - December 1, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Thursday, 1 December 2016, Farm to Farm (Verrill to Great Brook)
Ride Leader:  Doug Hobkirk
31 miles from Verrill Farm, Concord, MA

Riders (24):  Doug, Allan Fierce, Barry Nelson, Bill Lane, Curt Dudley-Marling, Dmitry Gorenburg, Don Mannes, Francie Sparks, Fred Newton, Gene Ho, Jack  Donohue, Jim Whinfield, Julie Dodd, Larry Kernan, Mary Kernan, Maurice King, Ray Komow, Richard Vignoni, Roy Westerberg, Selig Saltzman, Steve Carlson, Susan Sabin, Tim Wilson (?), and Tom Allen.

How can 50° be hot, even with a bright sun?  Dimitry wore a short-sleeved jersey and it was apropos  - another gorgeous day for riding.  Almost immediately after leaving Verrill Farm, we took a left onto "Old Road to Nine Acre Corner," aka ORNAC, to avoid Sudbury Road.  We proceeded through Concord center and up Monument Street, where we were joined by four riders (Curt, Jack, Larry, Mary).  We regrouped and waved to Rich Taylor as he passed by - will he reach 10,000 miles by year's end?  Good luck, Rich.

Superb rural atmosphere for almost all of the next thirteen miles (Maple Street to the end of Pope Road), which include a swamp, several farms, Great Brook Farm state park (where we took a break and Julie joined us), and cranberry bogs.  The final ten miles had very little  traffic, but the atmosphere was more suburban.  Zero hills in the final 4.5 miles.

Rider's complaint:  riders were staying in groups too large to allow cars to pass easily.  So I gave a safety talk, mentioning that whenever a cyclist avoids irritating a car driver, it helps all cyclists.

Leader's complaint:  Fred blasts up the steeps, seated, looking easy.  Message to Fred:  AARGH!!

Thanks to Barry for sweeping.

Lunch at Rossini's was great - excellent bruschetta, pizza, sandwiches.

Report by Doug Hobkirk.

Managed to get everyone's face except Jim

Compass Ride & DBTD (Day Before Turkey Day) lunch - 11/23/2016

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 23 November 2016, Compass Rides & Day Before Turkey Day (DBTD) lunch

Ride Leaders:  Jack Donohue & Larry Kernan

30 miles from Bikeway Source, Bedford, MA

Riders (25):  Jack, Larry, Andy Brand, Barbara Martin, Barry Nelson, Bill Lane, Bob Apsler, Bob Wadsworth, Bob Wolf, Curt Dudley-Marling, Don Mannes, Doug Hobkirk, Francie Sparks, Fred Newton, Gene Ho, Ken  Hablow (joined en route), Lindy King, Rich Taylor, Richard Vignoni, Roy Westerberg, Rudge McKenney, Susan Sabin, Tim Wilson, Tom Fortmann, and Wing Chow.

Remoted from home & present at lunch (2):  Bob Sawyer and John Allen.

Also present at lunch:  Mike Hanauer.

Like Foghat, I had promised a "slow ride" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcCNcgoyG_0), but then  Larry piped up and offered a faster paced alternative.  Of course, I figured my awesome charisma would prevail, but when the dust settled, two-thirds of the Wheelers present had defected.  Fine, makes my leader job a lot easier.  Barry volunteered to sweep, and off we went.  We stayed together for the most part, no arrows needed.  Whenever I saw Barry at the back in black, I would make the turn.  I used stop signs as a strategic regrouping mechanism, by actually stopping.

One surprising thing was that there was a lot more traffic on the back roads than usual (usual being virtually none).  Maybe there was a Black Wednesday which no one told me about, or maybe it was the hordes of working stiffs being released early from their dead-end jobs.

We ran into the fast riders at the Chelmsford Country Club - they had stopped for some reason, so we joined them.  I thought this would be an excellent opportunity for a group photo, but they had clearly already paused too long and resumed their ride before I had my camera at the ready.

We then enjoyed the new pavement on a couple of our compass points, West Street and South Street in Carlisle.  A couple of more smooth Carlisle roads, then back on Rte 225 for the home stretch.  I was somewhat remiss in not keeping track of folks towards the end of the ride - when we reached our cars, about half the cyclists were missing.  Susan called Don and ascertained that the rest had decided to go directly to the restaurant, so a search party was not required.

Thanks to Barry for sweeping.

Report by Jack Donohue.

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Ken Hablow was supposed to lead the brisk paced ride, but he had a flat shortly after leaving Lincoln.  So I offered to lead the brisk group and Jack warned riders that there would be no arrows, no human arrows, and "no mercy" (my words).

Fourteen riders chose to join the group and we had a very enjoyable ride.  The weather was good - very sunny, little wind, and warmer than previous days.  We stopped at Chelmsford Country Club to regroup after one rider dropped his cell phone.  Jack's group nearly caught us at  that point and word has it that Ken almost rejoined the brisk group, but having already taken our obligatory photos, we got back on the road.

In the end, the group kept up a moderate pace of 14.6 mph and finished with a majority of our initial riders.  Then it was time for our Day Before Turkey Day lunch at Holi Restaurant.

In 1621, the residents of Massachusetts Bay Colony sat down with the Indians to celebrate the first Thanksgiving.  This past Wednesday, on the eve of Thanksgiving, 395 years later, the Wednesday Wheelers celebrated with an Indian feast.  [Editorial note:  Different Indians, you idiot!]

Fifteen of us enjoyed a great buffet.  Among the diners were honored guest, Bob Sawyer, who pedaled over from Carlton Willard on his 95th birthday(!), John Allen who cycled from Waltham, and Mike Hanauer who traveled about three miles from Carlisle in his automobile.

Report by Larry Kernan.

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Here is a link to John Allen's video of Bob Sawyer on his electrically assisted tricycle:

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjxlLtjVE5k

Bob Sawyer

Bob Sawyer on his trike

Wheeler pace riders

Brisk pace riders sans Barbara

Brisk riders sans Larry

At Holi Restaurant

The birthday boy at Holi

Water Row - November 16, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 16 November 2016, Water Row
Ride Leaders:  Larry Kernan, Ken Hablow, & Jack Donohue
41 or 31 miles from Bikeway Source, Bedford, MA

Riders - 41 mi (13):  Larry, Ken, Barbara Martin, Barry Nelson, Curt Dudley-Marling, Elizabeth Wicks, Francie Sparks, Gardner Gray, Julie Dodd, Kaz Zelny, Rich Taylor, Tom Fortmann, and Wing Chow.

Riders - 31 mi (10):   Jack, Butch Pemstein, Chuck McWilliams, David Kobes, James Hsia, Kathy Horvath, Ray Komow, Steve Bogue, Tom Allen, and first-timer Tom Ennis.

The WW long group stayed together nicely and only deployed a human arrow once or twice.  The group showed good bike etiquette and singled up whenever "car back" was called.  However, our relatively large size did keep many vehicles from overtaking on the smaller roads.  Despite the weather, the cyclists enjoyed the route and the ride.

Eight riders enjoyed the buffet at Great Wall, especially the "all you can eat" aspect.

Report by Larry Kernan.

Larry enlisted me to help with this ride, which I was happy to do since it was close to home.  This time Larry and I actually did a dry run beforehand, so I would not be completely in terra incognita.

The weather forecast, which was pretty cheery the day before, had taken a turn for the worse.  Looking out my bedroom window and seeing that it was raining was a clue ("you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows" - Bob Dylan).  Sure enough, NOAA was now saying rain in the morning and possible showers later.  But the prediction was for rain before 10:00 am, as if the weather gods had planned the day with the Wheelers in mind.  And so it was - I rode to the ride start pathologically early and got rained upon, but, by the time of the main event, it had stopped raining.

Butch showed up looking a bit tattered.  Seems he had an FDGB on the way over.  He, nonetheless, soldiered on and did the first part of our ride before returning home to lick his wounds.  Butch and I seem to be star-crossed riders - the last time he showed up for a ride of mine, he discovered that he had a flat tire.

It was good to see Kathy back on her bike, after a long sojourn on the wounded list.

Since we were a small group, I figured we could stay together without human arrows. Tom, our sweep, was pretty easy to spot, though yellow was definitely the color of the day (see photo).

We had to halt a couple of times when I got a "mechanical" alert, which turned out to be a dropped chain, quickly fixable.

We were an exemplary group, calling out "car back" and pulling in to let cars pass.  Gold stars all round. There was, however, one faux pas on my part:  when I'm in sight of Rte 2 and the light is red, I engage sprint mode so that I can be in range of the very short light cycle when it turns green.  Unfortunately, this doesn't work so well when you've got a bunch of other riders in tow.  This time, as I approached the intersection, green had just turned to yellow.  So, rather than slamming on the brakes at that point, I rolled on through.  So I got to wait on the far side of Rte 2, instead of at the light.  Bad leader, bad!!

Our planned pit stop at Lincoln Town Hall turned out to be too early in the ride, so we opted for a stop at the Visitor's Center on Monument Street in Concord, where we had our obligatory group photo.  Tom offered to take one that included your fearless leader, rarely seen.

Thanks to Tom for sweeping and being guest paparazzo.

Report by Jack Donohue.

The whole group at start

Short Ride Group sans Tom

Short Ride Group sans Jack

Many Ponds - November 10, 2016

Thursday, 10 November 2016, Many Ponds
Ride Leaders:  Barry Nelson & Bernie Flynn
40 miles from Weston Town Hall, Weston, MA

Riders (17):  Barry, Bernie, Bob Wadsworth, Butch Pemstein, Dmitry Gorenburg, Dom Jorge, Francie Sparks,, Gene Ho, Julie Dodd, Kim Wach, Mike Byrne, Richard Lawrence, Richard Vignoni, Steve Carlson, Susan Sabin, Wing Chow, and first-timer Maher Elmasri.
Present at ride start & lunch (2):  Bill Widnall and Helen Greitzer.
Present at lunch:  Susan Broome.

Barry asked me if I'd rather lead or sweep the ride, so I agreed to lead.  Barry, who was technically the ride leader, acted as sweep.  We moved along at a reasonable clip and, aside from several missed turns (the bright, angled sun made it hard to see my Garmin), we followed the route.  There were a few regroupings and a geezer stop at Haskell Field about halfway.  Some riders dropped off, but the majority made it back to Weston in one piece and in one group.

There was a round table discussion of the election results, often interrupted by arrows.  Special mention goes out to Dimitry for his cogent analysis of Russian /US relations in the Trump era, and to Steve Carlson for his insight and experience with global manufacturing and the unlikely possibility of Trump being able to "bring back the manufacturing jobs."

Report by Bernie Flynn.

Needham, Dover, & Beyond - November 2, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 2 November 2016, Needham, Dover, & Beyond
Ride Leaders: Susan Sabin & Tom Allen
27 or 41 miles from Cutler Park, Needham, MA


Riders - 27 mi (12):  Susan, Ann Northup, Chuck McWilliams, Dale Ferguson, David Kobes, David Wean, Don Mannes, Ilkka Suvanto, James Hsia, Jim Cant, Maurice King, and Stuart Kaufman.
Riders - 41 mi (16):   Tom, Annemarie Altman, Bob Apsler, Ellen Gugel, Everett Briggs, Fred Newton, Gene Ho, Kathy Horvath, Ray Komow, Roy Westerberg, Rudge McKenney, Selig Saltzman, Stan Kay, Tim Wilson, Veronica Vedensky, and Wing Chow.
Present at lunch (9):  Andrea Leopold, Barbara Jacobs, Brett Serkez, Helen Greitzer, Judi Burten, Larry Kornetsky, Margie Lee, Marie Keutmann, and Tony Lee.

This was a glorious day for a bike ride.  After scrambling for parking space (Cutler Park parking was nearly full when I arrived at 9:30 am), we started just a bit late.  We stopped at a porta potty at about mile 6 while we waited for the sweep.  He and two others took a while to appear - it seems they were sweeping some woman who was out riding on her own - talk about full service sweeping!

Lunch outdoors in Dover was a delight, except for the persistent bees (one of which got inserted in Dale’s mouth as he drank his water bottle) - ouch!!  The leader had to wrangle the troops outta there, sadly, before the next wave of riders who then benefited from the empty seats.

As promised, the ride was at WW speed: 13.4 mph according to my gps, and the group stayed pretty much together.  Thanks to Stuart for sweeping.  And, by the way, I cannot take credit for the weather, the roads, or the regular CRW route which I had simply downloaded.

Report by Susan Sabin.

The long ride set out, first crossing over Rte 128 at the site of new on-ramps on Kendrick Street, then on towards Dover via South Street.  We paused briefly at the divergence of the long and short rides, in case anyone wanted to switch (no one did).  Shortly after, one of our riders experienced a pneumatic failure that Everett (our sweep) dealt with.

There were some ups and downs, but nothing this group is not used to.  One hill slowed the leader, such that several riders forged ahead and distributed themselves along the route as forward deployed arrows until I managed to catch up.  It was all done in a very orderly fashion,

At the lunch stop in Dover center we met Brett, Andrea, and Helen, along with several other familiar faces out on different rides.  Susan's group had departed before we arrived.

I received many compliments on "my" route design.  Of course I deflected those to Susan and add my own on a most scenic ride.

Thanks to Everett for serving as sweep and to Ellen for schlepping the uneaten half of my sandwich back to the parking area.

Report by Tom Allen.

The third ride

Leader: Larry Kornetsky (because he had gps), Participants: Tony Lee, Margie

If you’re a mountain biker in the greater Boston area, you’ve probably heard of  Cutler Park in Needham. But many of us have never been there so this was an opportunity to explore. We started out when the road riders were leaving and headed onto a rooty trail behind the parking lot. After turning onto a double track we ascended up and down a few hills on single track, at some points quite close to Rte. 128. Eventually we found solitude in the woods and rode over a wooden causeway (boardwalk), followed the blue heron trail, diverting along the way for “playgrounds” with built up mounds, and past some teenage hideaways, emerging to city streets and an Entering Boston sign. Thanks to the gps we were able to reconnect with the blue heron trail, riding through Millennium Park, behind office buildings and through parking lots to emerge back where we started. Thanks to Larry for his expertise with Ride with gps, we thoroughly explored and enjoyed Cutler Park. It was fun to get together with the long road cyclists for lunch in Dover and to see Brett and Andrea.

Report by Margie Lee

Colorful Country Collage & ME Seacoast - October 26, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 26 October 2016, Colorful Country Collage & ME Seacoast rides & LUNCH
Ride Leaders:  Joanne Samuels & Ken Hablow
26 & 48 miles, 10:30 am starts from Joanne's house, Portsmouth, NH

Riders - 30 mi (12):  Joanne, Bob Anderson, Carol Anderson Dale Ferguson, Don Mannes, Susan Sabin, Tom Lucas, and first-timers Jackie Terkow, Jane Harrington, Kathy Paradis, Lillian Hurn, and Peter Terkow.  

Riders -48 mi (9):   Ken, Bernie Flynn, Bob Wolf, Curt Dudley-Marling, Dom Jorge, Francie Sparks, Gene Ho, Julie Dodd, and Russ Keene.

Present at ride start & lunch:  Helen Greitzer.

Present at lunch:  Karen Saltus.

The Wednesday short ride this week started at Joanne's house in Portsmouth.  We actually combined some of the members of the Tour de Tuesday group, that rides in NH on Tuesday evenings, with the Wednesday Wheelers to create a group of twelve.  After practicing a few times with the leader-arrow-sweep system, we were well on our way and stayed together without incident.  The weather was a bit on the cool side, with some wind.  However, the sun peeked through and warmed us a bit along the way.

We rode through the towns of Newington, Greenland, North Hampton, and Rye to make a lovely, fall thirty mile route.  The trees were just a tad past peak, but, with many of the trees losing their leaves, we were able to view the scenery which included Great Bay and large expanses of farmland.  The climax of the ride was when we came upon the glistening Atlantic Ocean from atop a slight hill.  The isles of Shoals were in perfect view.  Then we headed home through the town of Rye for more color, on streets with few cars.  There were no mechanical or other difficulties.

Once home, we gathered for three different kinds of soup and lovely salad and dessert contributions.  People stayed for a while to chat and reconnect.  It was a fun afternoon.  Thanks to Helen for warming the soup, so it was ready for us we returned, and to all who contributed such delicious food items.

Report by Joanne Samuels.

There was a chill in the air.  After all, this was the coldest day since last April.  With the temperature for the day hovering around 44 degrees and moderate amounts of sunshine, nine of us started out on a rolling 49 mile ride.  Once we crossed the bridge into Kittery we spent the next 20 miles along the coast up to Ogunquit.  We had a slight headwind and lots of sun along the coast to offset the temperature.

It was near low tide. The beaches were devoid of people. The long expanses of wet sand were quite beautiful and a bit eerie.   It was apparent that after tourist season all the public restrooms are shut down.  Leaving York Beach, we rode up to Ogunquit on Shore Road which is twisty and rolling.  We spied a great place by a pond, where we could get off the road and claim it a DPS (Designated Pee Stop) with a view.

The route back from Ogunquit took us inland on some very quiet roads with a few rolling hills, past the Stonewall Kitchen headquarters, and into a bit of Eliot, ME.  With the promise of a great feed of three homemade soups and assorted salads, combined with the fact we never passed a place to eat that was open, we made a short “lunch” stop so people could eat out of their back pockets.  Okay, Stonewall has a great restaurant, but we wanted to get back in time to miss the afternoon commuter traffic.

I have come to realize that we have two seasons in New England.  Southern NE has Winter and Construction.  That accounted for all the newly paved roads this summer.  The northern states have Construction and Summer.  We hit one single lane site in Portsmouth, going out and coming back.  The next one we encountered was the last turn to Nubble light.  Several of us got to this site before the others and there was a cop on a construction detail right at the turn.  I stopped to ask her if she would direct the other riders in our direction - she laughed and was glad to do so.  Going into Ogunquit we came upon a Road Closed sign which we promptly ignored.  It looked like a water pipe installation and the right side of the road was a mess with lots of big equipment.  There was a large Caterpillar front end loader blocking the left side, but the driver nicely backed out of the road and waved us through.  Only in Maine.

With a small group, all compatible, we only used a few human arrows.  Thanks to Gene for sweeping, which was a good thing since with seven riders in red, one in blue, Gene stood out draped in yellow with a yellow helmet.  Along with his flashing headlight he was quite visible in my mirror.  As long as I could see Gene, I knew that he could see the rest of the riders and where we were going.  We did make a few regrouping stops at critical points.

Thanks to Joanne for the great spread she put out for the after-ride party at her house.

Report by Ken Hablow.

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Long ride photos courtesy of Russ Keene.

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Short riders at lunch (photo by Don Mannes)

Round the Res & the View from Fruitlands - October 19, 2016

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RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 19 October 2016, Round the Res & the View from Fruitlands rides
Ride Leaders:  Ken Hablow & Jack Donohue
10:00 am starts from Trinity Church parking lot, Bolton, MA

Riders - 46 mi (24):  Ken, Barbara Martin, Bob Apsler, Butch Pemstein, Cecilia Scimia, Curt Dudley-Marling, Fred Newton, Gene Ho, Jody Angevin, Julie Dodd, Kaz Zelny, Kimberly Wach, Larry Kernan, Lindy King, Marc Baskin, Mary Kernan, Michael Byrne, Ray Komow, Richard Lawrence, Rick Carlson, Robert Wilson, Russ Keene, Stanley Kay, and Tim Wilson.  

Riders -36 mi (19):  Jack, Adele Ferreira, Annemarie Altman, Ann Northup, Francie Sparks, Ilkka Suvanto, Jack Mroczkowski, James Hsia, Jeff Smith, Jim Whinfield, Patrick Ward, Rich Taylor, Richard Fortier, Roy Westerberg, Rudge McKenney, Selig Saltzman, Stuart Kaufman, Wing Chow, and Winnie Parker.

It doesn’t get any better than a Wednesday in mid-October at the height of fall foliage, with temperatures in the mid to high 70s, and a ride around the Wachusset Reservoir with a lunch stop at Rota Springs Farm at the top of a hill in Sterling.
 
We had twenty-four riders on the 46 mile ride. Several riders could not wait for the leader and went out ahead, right from the start.  For a while I was “leading from the middle” of the group.  This helped spread out the group so we were not all bunched up.  We were close enough so the “arrows” did not have to wait long.  After a tour through some back roads in Northboro, we hit the major climb at about mile 14. Although the next five miles were mostly uphill, there were a few welcome downhills.  The faster group of about six went on ahead.  The rest of us stopped at about mile 19 to regroup.  Since there were no major hills after that and everyone was compatible, we used very few arrows on the return.

We made a stop in West Boylston for water and stopped for lunch in Sterling where we were surrounded by bright foliage.  Several people were wowed with the “meatball special” and others pigged out on Rota’s great ice cream.  The ride back took us through some back roads in Berlin, with the last three miles being mostly “up,” but we were rewarded with a screaming half-mile downhill finish.

We had one mishap when a rider felt his heart rate escalate more than he wanted - he had the good sense to drop out early.  A later inquiry found him to be fine.

Thanks to Kaz for sweeping, even though, when we were all together, he occasionally swept from the front then dropped back to his assigned duties.  Although we did not need arrows during the entire ride, Tim gets the award for doing the most amount of arrowing.  Thanks to Jack for taking attendance on his very special WW Attendance App on his cell phone.

Report by Ken Hablow.

I once again volunteered to co-lead a ride I'd never been on, but, emboldened by my success last week, I figured it would be a piece of cake.  I was disabused of that idea quite early in the game.

Less than two miles into the ride I was confronted by a fork in the road.  Yes, I'm familiar with the famous Yogi Berra quote, "When you come to a fork in the road, take it."  And so I did.  And again, at the next fork.  I was having an uncanny ability to make the wrong choice.  My phone navigation is pretty good at lefts and rights, but it doesn't say much about slight deviations that could potentially be the true path.  I could turn on the screen, which would show me the route outline quickly, but the rest of the actual roads would appear much later or not at all.  So I had to resort to blundering down one or the other road and comparing the little red line, which is where I was, with the little blue line, which is where I wanted to be.  Having unerringly chosen the wrong one each time, I would then have to stop everyone and order an about face.  Needless to say, this did not instill confidence in my followers.

Fortunately, there were a few others in the group with GPS, so we resorted to crowdsourcing the route, which seemed to work pretty well, and we managed the rest of the ride without incident.

It was a great day for riding.  Orange was the color of the day - between the leaves that had finally turned and the ubiquitous pumpkins.  We passed "Peach Orchard Farm" which could really have been called "Pumpkin Orchard Farm," since that was all that was in evidence, as was the case for every other farm we passed.

Finding a place to pee once again became an issue.  I was trying to hold out for indoor plumbing or even an outdoor portapotty, but there were mighty slim pick'ns.  At one point we spotted a church that looked promising - after trying the front doors unsuccessfully, Roy snuck around back and was gone for a while, so I suspect he accomplished his mission.

Wing got KOM points on the ride for blasting by the leader on every hill.

We had our obligatory photo shoot on Prospect Hill Road near Fruitlands.

The Harvard General Store was the designated lunch stop, but it was seven miles from the end and it was unclear to me what the plan was - to eat en route or return by car.  So I gave the troops the opportunity to eat first and return to the cars after lunch, or soldier on.  Being leader, I felt honor bound to lead my merry band back to the start, but I made sure that the diners had at least a vague idea of how to get back.

Francie stepped in as sweep, since Stuart elected to eat at the store.  I figured Francie's white jersey would be easy to spot, and checked for her periodically in my rear view mirror.  It seemed my party had gotten even smaller than I thought when I realized that the white jersey was not unique, there was another white jersey wearer in the group.

I started out with eighteen riders, but ended up with a lot less.  Several people opted for the twenty mile option.  The early eaters accounted for a few more.  The last regrouping was taking a while and the early arrivals were chafing at the bit.  Bolton was beckoning, so they took off.  I am confident that all my people eventually found their way home.

Thanks to Stuart and Francie for sweeping.

Report by Jack Donohue.

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Coordinator's note:  Photos courtesy of Rick Carlson, Russ Keene, and Jack Donohue.  See all of Russ Keene’s photos at  https://goo.gl/photos/sn9TYo3oCHBrznvo6

Short riders obscuring the view

You can see for miles

Not bad scenery in the parking lot

Circling Wachusett Foliage Ride - October 12, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 12 October 2016, Circling Wachusett Foliage Ride

Ride Leader:  Bob Apsler
Core Ride:  39 miles from West Sterling Athletic Field, Sterling,MA

Remote Start:  62 miles from Forbush Mill Road Soccer Field, Bolton, MA.
Optional climbs – see below (65 miles with all options).

Riders - 39 mi (11):  Dom Jorge, Doug Hobkirk, Ellen Gugel, Francie Sparks, Julie Dodd, Kaz Zelny, Pat Schindeler, Richard Lawrence, Rudge McKenney, Tom Lucas, and Winslow Green.
Riders - 62 mi (5):  Bob, Barbara Martin, Curt Dudley-Marling, Everett Briggs, and Gene Ho.

A perfect, glorious day of riding!  Sun + minimal wind + fall leaves near peak color + temperatures starting at 50 degrees for the remote starters and rising into the mid-60s + lovely routes laid out by Richard Vignoni = an ideal WW outing.

Challenging climbs warmed the self-selected riders, but failed to spread out the group more than a modest amount.  Many riders commented on the lovely route and riding conditions.

All but one rider enjoyed the exhilarating descent to the Wachusett ski area for lunch.  Her chain wrap required more than the usual tug and ended her riding.  Rumor had it that her husband planned on joining her for lunch, though he might have switched from motorcycle to auto in order to pick up the bicycle.

We ate the lunches we brought, sitting in the sun at tables behind the ski lodge.  Core riders waited for the climbers’ return, but justifiably grew impatient after a respectable delay and took advantage of the ride leader’s suggestion that they make their own way back to the start.

Thanks to Kaz for sweeping the core ride.

Report by Bob Apsler.

The remote start offered more of the same superb riding conditions and some other possibilities.

CLIMB TO THE VISITORS CENTER & BACK:  +2 miles (n=8) - Bob, Everett Briggs, Francie Sparks, Gene Ho, Julie Dodd, Pat Schindeler, Rick Lawrence, Tom Lucas.  Climbers who took advantage of this option benefited from a brief rest provided by the lunch stop.  Nevertheless, most of us needed our lowest gear for the entire mile at a reputed 9% grade.

CLIMB FROM VISITORS CENTER TO SUMMIT & BACK:  +2 miles (n=4) - Bob, Everett Briggs, Gene Ho, Rick Lawrence.  At lunch, Everett insisted that riding near Mt. Wachusett during the fall spectacle of color necessitates taking in the view from the summit.  Four riders succumbed to his exhortations and made the demanding trek to the summit.  The clear air and beautiful day easily justified the effort.

CLIMB BACK UP TO THE VISITORS CENTER:  +1 mile (n=3) - Bob, Everett Briggs, Gene Ho.  The summit riders had flown back down to the ski lodge to learn if any core riders remained.  Finding none, Everett persuaded two others that climbing back up to the Visitors Center would reward us with a descent superior to that followed by the core riders.  So back up we went.  And, in fact, we enjoyed yet another exhilarating descent at substantially high velocity.

Reports by Bob Apsler.

Not Carlisle - October 5, 2016

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RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 5 October 2016, Not Carlisle
Ride Leader:  Jack Donohue, assisted by Ken Hablow
33.3 miles from Bedford Depot, Bedford, MA

Riders (24): Jack, Ken, Andy Brand, Barry Nelson, Chuck McWilliams, Fred Newton, Ilkka Suvanto, Janet Miller, Jeff Smith, Lindy King, Mike Byrne, Patrick Brennan, Rich Taylor, Rick Lawrence, Robyn Maislin, Romaine Randall, Roy Westerberg, Selig Saltzman, Steve Bogue, Steve Maislin, Tom Allen, Tom Lucas, Veronica Vedensky, and Wing Chow.

Present at lunch:  Helen Greitzer.

Tom Lucas's good bike was at the bike shop for repairs, so he showed up on a single speed and elected to do the bike path instead and meet us for lunch.

Cameo appearance by Butch Pemstein, who discovered he had a flat and decided to abort.

Starting at Bedford Depot is always a problem, since the gathering place is not well defined.  I usually end up waiting at the circle of benches where there is a water fountain and bathroom.  People seem to congregate by their cars for some reason, and the only people to appear were Tom Allen, who rode up on the bike path, and Rick Lawrence.  Despite the fact that the ride announcement clearly said "Bedford Depot," many of the participants seemed to have fond memories of parking across the street next to Bikeway Source on a previous ride.  I spied riders over there and dispatched Tom and Rick to herd them over - their attempt was largely unsuccessful.  I was tempted to stand on ceremony and stand my ground until they came to me or hell froze over, whichever came first, but relented.  Tom reported a Ken sighting, so I called him and asked that he use his stentorian voice to tell the masses to get their butts over here.  That worked and, after collecting names, it was time to ride.

The group was a bit large, so I was trying to encourage people to break up into smaller groups leaving a gap between groups.  This has rarely worked in the past, since people, seeing a two second advantage by joining the group ahead, will blithely abandon their assigned group.  Ken, as usual, was looking for a faster group, so I let him siphon off the speed demons and do his own ride.  This left me with a manageable sized group, so the gap concept was abandoned.  In fact, however, we did have a bit of gap for most of the ride, with each group in sight of the next.  We needed few arrows, and those who assumed the position didn't have to wait very long.

I was going to do one of my tried and true routes, but instead I came up with a completely new route.  It could have been called the "One-third Century" ride since it came out to exactly 33.3 miles.  Or it would have if my little excursion down a short stretch of dirt road hadn't been outvoted.  The route probably had more new pavement than my "Smooth as Silk" ride and was pretty traffic free, the major obstacles being road construction and the lawn service van slalom course.

Robyn and Steve got to revisit their old house on Annursnac Hill Road.  Strangely enough, they don't miss doing that climb every day.

Most everyone on the ride went to Ken's Deli for lunch (not our Ken, another Ken), joined by about one hundred high school kids (don't they have cafeterias any more?).  I was envious of Jeff's beer, but I figured if I had one, I would definitely need a nap.  There was a Kaz sighting at lunch.

Thanks to Tom Allen for sweeping.

Report by Jack Donohue.

Ken led a breakaway group of eight riders at a more spirited pace.  With all the riders compatible, we never needed arrows or a sweep - we stayed together for the entire ride.  We rode at an average 14.3 mph pace and got back to Bedford at 12:30 pm. 

Report by Ken Hablow.