Not Quite Haverhill (Haverhill Short) - April 27, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, April 27, 2016,  Not Quite Haverhill (Haverhill Short)
Ride Leader:  Tom Allen
37 miles, 10:00 am start from Ipswich River Park, North Reading, MA

Riders(23): Tom, Adena Schutzberg, Amy Lawrence, Andy Brand, Barbara Martin, Dave Balaban, Dick Harter, Everett Briggs, Francie Sparks, Gene Ho, Greg Stathis, Herb Kavet, Ilkka Suvanto, James Hsia, Kathy Horvath, Kathy Jonas, Lindy King, Patrick Ward, Rich Taylor, Robyn Maislin, Steve Carlson, Susan Sabin, and Tod Cochran.

I had just finished taking attendance (using Jack's handy iPhone web app) when a tandem hove into view carrying Everett, with Barbara Martin stoking.  They had remoted from town for a total of 82 miles for the day. 

The beginning of the ride has a few uphill stretches and we spread out a bit at first.  We then proceeded through lovely Harold Parker State Park under bright sunny skies, and then on over roads with little traffic and a few potholes.  After a re-group, we pushed on to the rest stop at Ingaldsby Farm where some of us stoked up with donuts and coffee.

Departing there we encountered the little rise in the landscape that I call "the uptick on Uptack" (Uptack Road).  We continued south on the especially lovely Spofford Pond and Herrick Roads to Boxford, where we encountered a "Road Closed" barrier.  It had been placed by some tree workers who graciously paused their dropping of branches to let us pass.

At some point on the closing leg of the ride one of our riders began to flag.  She was tended to by Gene Ho and Pat Ward, who called the leader to tell me that they would navigate the rest of the ride at a slower pace and without relying on arrows (who would have otherwise had long waits).

We finished the ride at a considerably relaxed pace to keep remaining riders together and rendezvoused with the delayed riders at the Ryer's Store lunch stop.  The group split roughly in half between those who stayed for lunch and those who headed directly back to the start.

Thanks to Pat Ward for sweeping.  And a special shout-out to Butch Pemstein for accompanying me on my scouting ride on Patriot's Day.

Report by Tom Allen.

Thursday on Wednesday rides - April 20, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, April 20, 2016,  Thursday on Wednesday rides

Ride Leaders:  Patrick Ward & Tom Allen

39 & 29 mile options, 10:00 am start from Ixtapa, Lexington, MA

Riders - 39 mi (11):  Patrick, Barry Nelson, Butch Pemstein, Dave Balaban, Gene Ho, Kathy Horvath, Kaz Zelny, Roy Westerberg, and first-timers Amy Lawrence, Andy Brand, and Julie Dodd.

Riders - 29 mi (17):  Tom, Adena Schutzberg, Andrea Clardy, Barbara Jacobs, Betty Hoffman, Bruce Lederer, Don Mannes, James Hsia, Janet Miller, Jim Whinfield, Judi Burten, Kathy Jonas, Richard Fortier, Richard Mandel, Selig Saltzman, Susan Sabin, and Tod Cochran.

Present at lunch:  John Allen.

I was impressed to see that Butch, Selig, Tom (and perhaps others) rode to the ride start.  There we welcomed Amy Lawrence and Julie Dodd on their first Wednesday Wheeler rides.  We enjoyed the cool, but brilliant, spring weather on our three-mile cruise on the Minuteman Bikeway to Lexington center.  Skirting the far edge of the green, we rolled west on quiet roads, except for a brief stretch on 2A, to reach Hanscom Field and the CRW Thursday night medium ride route.  After a rest stop at the Old North Bridge, where the 29-mile group met up with us, we dodged some potholes on Monument Street and River Road on our way towards Great Brook State Park.  Shortly after that, our route diverged a bit from the regular one, taking Bingham Road, a curving downhill run that was new to several riders.  From there, we all rode at much the same pace back to the restaurant where John Allen joined a total of seventeen riders for an enjoyable lunch.
 
Many thanks to Barry Nelson for sweeping.  

Report by Patrick Ward

According to photographic evidence there were fifteen of us on the ride. [Maybe two had strayed? PW]  We set out shortly after Pat's long riders, following the same track.  (We were delayed briefly by a rider who discovered the wrong shoes were on her feet.) 
 
We mushed along at a reasonable clip to the official rest stop at Old North Bridge, where we found the long ride group milling about.  They were persuaded to pose for a photo before they set out up Monument Street into Carlisle.
 
Meanwhile the short ride group posed for a photo snapped by an agreeable passerby.  We then headed up Monument Street and back to Bedford, where we dismissed a couple of riders to take the more direct bike path route back to the start.  The rest of us headed back toward Concord to return via Virginia Road and Lincoln's Mill Street to Lexington.  We enjoyed a very agreeable, intimate lunch at Ixtapa (at least until the rowdy long riders appeared). 
 
Thanks to the multitude of arrows and to Barbara Jacobs for serving as sweep.

Report by Tom Allen.

Wachusett Dam/Harvard Rides - April 13, 2016

Wednesday, April 13, 2016,  Wachusett Dam/Harvard Rides
Ride Leaders:   Fred Newton & Roy Westerberg
~34 & ~28 mile options, 10:00 am start from Forbush field, Bolton, MA

Riders - 34 mi (20):  Fred, Bernie Flynn, Bob Wolf, Butch Pemstein, Dom Jorge, Elizabeth Wicks, Francie Sparks, Frank Hubbard, Gardner Gray, Gene Ho, Jack Donohue, Kaz Zelny, Ken Hablow, Kim Wach, Larry Kernan, Mary Kernan, Richard Vignoni, Rick Carlson, Russ Keene, and first-timer Steve Carlson.
Riders - 28 mi (10):  Roy, Elissa Brown, Ilkka Suvanto, James Hsia, Patrick Ward, Richard Fortier, Robyn Maislin, Selig Saltzman, Susan Sabin, and Tom Allen.

It was a beautiful day for a ride, with a cloudless sky and a temperature of 52 at the start, rising to 55 for most of the ride and spiking to 61 towards the end.  The group was in good spirits and the pace was comfortable and conducive to visiting all the way to the dam, where Jack took the attached photos (Thanks, Jack!).  It was interesting that quite a number of riders had never been to the dam and were delighted to see it.  Even Ken Hablow confessed that he had never been on some of those roads, which I found astounding.

We then left the dam and encountered some more challenging hills like Mile Hill Road, followed by a beautiful long downhill on Linden into Berlin, and then up Highland to Bolton.  We continued up Harvard Road, at the top of which the long route turned down Golden Run to access more hills.  The short route went straight to Harvard.  I thought there would be some long riders who would have had their fill of hills at that point and would prefer to follow the short route, but it was a group of hard core riders, so on we went - down Golden Run and up Brown Road, Stow Road, and, passing through Harvard, up Prospect Hill.  Everyone seemed to agree that this ride had a lot of hill climbing, but it was a beautiful day with a fine view from the top of Prospect Hill.  Some of the group lunched at Bolton Orchards.

Thanks to Jack for sweeping.

Report by Fred Newton.

Ten riders set out on the shorter ride.  Initially, we were intermingled with the riders doing the long ride, but by the time we left the stop at the Berlin Town Buildings complex, we were separated out.  We only needed arrows a few times.  All of us were favorably impressed by the excellent scenery along the route, especially on a beautiful sunny day, but there were a few grumbles about the amount of hill climbing.  Six of us enjoyed lunch at Bolton Orchards afterwards. There were no problems, mechanical or otherwise. Thanks to Pat Ward for sweeping and to all who served as arrows.

Report by Roy Westerberg.

Blue Moon ride - April 6, 2016

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, April 6, 2016,  Blue Moon ride
Ride Leader:  Barry Nelson
~40 miles, 10:00 am start from Blue Moon Bagel Cafe, Medfield, MA

Riders (7):  Barry, Barbara Martin, Elizabeth Wicks, Everett Briggs, Francie Sparks, Gene Ho, and Rich Taylor.
Present at a solo (!) lunch:  Helen Greitzer.

No one on today's ride was willing to be a human arrow and wait, because it was somewhat cold at the start.  ​The riders also wanted to go fast to warm up, so we dropped dozens of riders along the way.  Some of them had GPS devices - we assume that most of them were able to find their way back to the parking lot.  At the end there were only seven riders left:  Franci​e​, Elizabeth​, Barbara​​, Gene​​​,​ Rich​​​, Everett, and Barry.​

Francie was prepared to go swimming in Lake Massapoag., but the snow covering the entire beach changed her mind, so we did not stop to watch her swim.  All but Rich enjoyed lunch at the Blue Moon.  Rich needed more miles, so he left without eating for another ride which started in Concord.

Report by Barry Nelson.

Whitehall Reservoir rides - March 30, 2016

RIDE REPORTS

Wednesday, March 30, 2016,  Whitehall Reservoir rides
Ride Leaders:  Alan Cantor, Kim Wach, & Ken Hablow
~19, 25, & ~38 miles, 10:30 am start from Cornell's Irish Pub, Hopkinton, MA

Riders - 19 mi (5):  Alan, Butch Pemstein, Susan Sabin,  and first-timers Darlene Mathews and  Nick Bojda.
Riders - 25 mi (11):  Kim, Annemarie Altman, Bob McCarty, Dick Harter, Frank Hubbard, Jim Cant, Patrick Ward, Rich Taylor, Selig Saltzman, Tim Wilson, and Tom Allen.
Riders - 38 mi (17):  Ken, Barbara Martin, Bernie Flynn, Bob Wolf, Curt Dudley-Marling, Dimitry Gorenburg, Dom Jorge, Elizabeth Wicks, Everett Briggs, Francie Sparks, Fred Newton, Gardner Gray, Gene Ho, Kaz Zelny, Richard Lawrence, Russ Keene, Wing Chow, and first-timer Ron Carter*.
Riding to the beat of his own drummer:  Eli Post.
Present at lunch (3):  A J Gemperline, Ann Northup, and Helen Greitzer.

19 Mile Ride

We were happy to welcome two new riders, Darlene and Nick, to the WW family. The leader is very grateful that Darlene joined, as she provided invaluable navigational assistance on many occasions.  Once again, this leader learned the lesson of doing a recon ride to gain knowledge of the route, prior to the ride.  In any case, the group was very forgiving and enjoyed a lovely route designed by Eli.

Thanks to the prospective arrows, none of which were called upon to serve.  Special thanks to Butch for his brilliant work as sweep - we did not lose anyone.

Report by Alan Cantor.

25 Mile Ride

Our ride began with two deer crossing our path on Granite Street.  After putting a few hills under our belts we made our first stop at Fiske Mill Pond, where we took a quick break and some group photos.  Then it was up the steady grade of Fiske Mill Road and continuing on into Upton.  We made another stop at the Upton State Forest and then passed Whitehall Reservoir (which we could actually see without leaves on the trees).

The route was hilly, but with very little traffic.  Thank you for being patient with me on my first time as ride leader (and sorry about the arrowing glitch at Elm Street).  Also thanks to all for arrowing and to Dick for sweeping.  Overall, a gorgeous day for a ride!

Report by Kim Wach.

38 Mile Ride

Seventeen WWs on the long ride had a delightful day.  Everyone commented on how nice the route was.  I kept getting compliments, but explained that Eli had created the route and I was just the leader.  (It would have been prettier if there were leaves on the trees.)

It was hilly, but there was nothing really steep.  There were a few long climbs, but we stayed together for the most part and took only one Geezer break.  Keeping the pace at a reasonable 13.5 to 14 mph average helped.

Thanks to Gene for sweeping and to Everett & Ron (?) for doing most of the arrowing. Thanks also to Eli for providing pizza after the ride.

Report by Ken Hablow.

I had nothing but positive feedback and wish to thank those who led and otherwise made for a fine day.  The Irish Pub is my home away from home, and I was happy to share this local treat.

Eli Post (rides organizer).

**********************************

Ride photos, courtesy of Rich Taylor, available on WW Facebook page (below).

https://www.facebook.com/WednesDayWheelers/posts/446282435560339

Spring Butterfly Ride - March 23, 2016

RIDE REPORTS

Wednesday, March 23, 2016, Spring Butterfly rides

Ride Leaders:  Clyde Kessel & Tom Allen

37 & 26 miles, 10:00 am start from 385 Curve Street, Carlisle, MA

Riders - 37 mi (11):  Clyde, Barry Nelson, Bob Wolf, Butch Pemstein, Curt Dudley-Marling, Dom Jorge, Francie Sparks, Gene Ho, Jim Cant, Lindy King, and Richard Vignoni.

Riders - 26 mi (7):  Tom, Dick Harter, Gardner (Sandy) Gray, Jack Donohue, Robyn Maislin, Roy Westerberg, and Susan Sabin.

Present at lunch:  Helen Greitzer.

Long Ride

We had a smaller than usual turnout for such a warm day in early Spring.  Presumably folks were worried about getting caught in 50 degree rain.  We were fortunate though, the rain missed us both geographically and temporally.  The ride went smoothly and, en route, we lost less than 10% of the riders, which is within acceptable tolerances.

We were treated to a great blue heron flying high overhead, a red-tailed hawk which swooped low over the road, giving us a lovely view of his tail feathers, and an enthusiastically burning brush pile.  Near the end, we saw an impressive row of cairns along Tadmuck road - it is worth a bit of a detour to see them, so delicately balanced.

The group stayed close together, until the first hill.  Kaz was late and missed the start, but he did the entire long ride, and then some, and showed up at the finish shortly after everyone else had finished and gone home.

Thanks to all the arrows and to Curt for sweeping.

Report by Clyde Kessel.

Short Ride

Turns out that the butterflies were not the attraction for the short ride group.  We stopped at The Butterfly Place and a couple of folks used the restroom, and then we proceeded without visiting inside.  So the attraction must have been either the lovely route designed by Clyde or the charisma of the ride leader - TBD.

Anyway, the weather turned out to be very cooperative, despite a few raindrops on windshields as people were driving to the start.  I was very comfortable in my biking shorts, despite being the only one so attired.

One scary incident on Chestnut Road as one of our riders was cut off by a vehicle and forced off the road.  The victim took a few moments to recover her composure and was able to continue riding.

Having skipped the butterflies, our group not only got to lunch before the long ride group, we were finished and leaving just as they were arriving.  Thanks to Dick Harter for sweeping and to Jack Donohue for being the lone deployed arrow.

Report by Tom Allen.