Alewife to Saugus Iron Works - June 7, 2023

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 7 June 2023, Alewife to Saugus Iron Works

Ride Leader:  Gene Ho

36.5 miles, 10:00 am start from Cambridge, MA

Bikers (18):  Gene, Butch Pemstein, Craig Tulig, Dale Ferguson, Don Mannes, Donald Buchholtz, Francie Sparks, Frank Aronson, Frank Scibilia, Gary Williams, Julie Dodd, Ken Weber, Susan Broome, Susan Sabin, Tod Cochran, Tom Allen, Zach Woods, and first-timer Susan Linz.

If you're not familiar with the "last mile problem", the commute to the start is a good illustration.  Distance from my house to the Rte 2/Alewife rotary:  13.5 miles.  Time to travel:  16 minutes.  Distance from Alewife rotary to Danehy Park behind the Fresh Pond Mall:  1.5 miles.  Time to travel:  16 minutes.  The five or so riders who elected to bike to the start did not regret their decision.  Boo Hoo - a half hour commute.  So many in the world would gladly swap their travails for our first world problems.

The trip to Saugus Iron Works went as planned, with no riders lost on the Alewife bike path and lighter than expected traffic on the residential streets of Winchester, Stoneham, and Saugus.  Good ride discipline made for a tight group - less spread out than usual.   SIW was open, but not staffed.   Several of us checked out the 350-year-old equipment.  The return on the Northern Strand bike path was a great illustration of how the livability of some "industrial" neighborhoods can be positively transformed by what some might consider an economic frill.  

We all made it to Charlestown, surviving the dreaded Sullivan Square rotary.  With comfy temps and no rain, lunch was enthusiastically consumed outdoors.  The number of diners who can fit around a table designed for 2 is astonishing.

The final legs on the Paul Dudley White bike path and the Watertown Greenway allowed us to avoid almost all the streets in Cambridge.  This was judged by some to be a worthy goal.  Only one mechanical - a flat near the end on a somewhat unusual bike.  Luckily, another biker owned an identical bike and was able to assist in the fix.  The ride leader and other concerned parties assuaged their apprehension by downing a few brewskis at the Fresh Pond Beer Garden.  The beers were effective - the final riders appeared as we drank our last sips.

Report by Gene Ho.