Two Famous Swing-Era Ballrooms, plus lots more! - December 18, 2024

 HIKE REPORT

Wednesday, 18 December 2024,, Two Famous Swing-Era Ballrooms, plus lots more!

Hike Leaders:  Zach Woods & Judy Perrin

5.8 miles (~4 hours including lunch), 10:00 am start from Auburndale, MA

Hikers (21):  Judy, Zach, Aiko Pinkoski, Barbara Jacobs, David Goldberg, David Wean, Gerry Sheetoo, Jim Whinfield, Joanne Samuels, Kristina Leclaire, Marc Webb, Marie Keutmann, Mike Hanauer, Patrick Ward, Phyllis Evan, Renee Rees, Steven Venizelos, Susan Amsel, Susan Sabin, Ted Nyder, and Todd Palmer.

 

The weather was almost too warm and sunny, but our large group enjoyed exploring along the Charles River starting in Auburndale, moving east to Waltham, and then crossing the river to head back west to Weston and, eventually, east into Auburndale.  Along with enjoying the scenery and chatting along the way, we stopped to talk about recreation, industry, and history.

 

At about the halfway point, lunch was enjoyed at the South Street Cafe in Waltham.  There were some good laughs along the way as we passed by the Norumbega Tower that was built in an effort to reinforce the inaccurate claim that Vikings had settled along the Charles River in the early 1000s, and as we passed the Boston Marriott which is no longer owned by Marriott and is located in Auburndale, not Boston.

 

There was also a lot of interest in the life and significant first in history achievements of early woman architect, Ida Annah Ryan.  We even discovered, as we walked by different locations, that folks among our number were famously connected to those locations as follows:  one plays Pickleball at The Cove; one attended a college visible along the way; one grew up in a neighborhood we passed; another’s childhood home was visible across the Charles River from our route; one member of the group had attended their high school prom in the Totem Pole Ballroom in Norumbega Park (before it burned down)!

 

Report by Zach Woods.

 

Photos:

     The group admiring the Norumbega Tower and the view from the top of the Tower (photos by David Wean).

     View of the Waltham Watch Factory across the Charles River from the Mt. Feake Cemetery (photo by Kristina Leclaire).

Hike from Twin Pond to Pigeon Hill Folly Ruin and Back - December 4. 2024

 HIKE REPORT

Wednesday, 4 December 2024, Hike from Twin Pond to Pigeon Hill Folly Ruin and Back

Hike Leaders:  Zach Woods & Judy Perrin

5.5 miles (~2.75 hours), 10:00 am start from Lincoln, MA

Hikers (15):  Judy, Zach, Aiko Pinkoski, Annemarie Altman, Betsy Kimball, Betty Salzberg, David Goldberg, David Wean, Jim Whinfield, Kristina Leclaire, Marie Keutmann, Melissa Norton, Renee Rees, Steven Venizelos, and Susan Sabin.

Present at lunch:  Frank Aronson.

Cold but sunny weather made for a great hike with little to no wind and temperatures starting just below freezing and finishing up at nearly forty degrees.  Everyone had a great time on the walk, talking and discussing several historical sites (Garfield cellar hole, Pigeon Hill Folly, and the former site of a colonial era rope walk where hemp fibers were worked into lengths of rope) and some natural features, including a hogback ridge formed by a glacier and Pigeon Hill which was named for all the countless, now extinct, passenger pigeons that used to flock there.  We also learned about several of the Modernist houses viewable from the trail.

Six folks enjoyed lunch at Revolution Craft Food Hall in Lexington after the hike, including Frank Aronson who was not able to join us for the hike.

The attached group photo was taken at the Pigeon Hill Folly ruin.

Report by Zach Woods.

Around, about, and Along Morses Pond - November 20, 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 20 November 2024, Around, About, and Along Morses Pond hike

Hike Leader:  Susan Sabin

~4 miles, 10:30 am start from Wellesley, MA

Hikers (15):  Susan, Aiko Pinkoski, Ann Northup, Clyde Kessel, David Goldberg, Don Mannes, Frank Aronson, Jim Whinfield, Judy Perrin, Julie Dodd, Kristina Leclaire, Marc Webb, Marie Keutmann, Mike Hanauer, and Zach Woods.

With fifteen Wednesday wheelers showing up to share a glorious autumn day, we overwhelmed the parking lot near Wellesley's CrossTown Trail, forcing several later arrivals to park on side streets nearby.  Nonetheless we began almost on time, missing only one of the registered attendees.

As promised, the area surprised several of the participants, leading one to declare, “you can be in downtown Wellesley and, at the same time, in the woods anywhere - hearing and seeing no signs of people.”  And, when we wound through the modest neighborhood that borders the south portion of the pond, another asked, somewhat incredulous,  is this still Wellesley?”

One of the highlights of the walk for me was watching a garbage truck back up along the narrow street that slithered through that neighborhood.  If there was a contest for best back-up driver on narrow, winding roads, this guy could’ve won!  

We hiked for about four miles before we returned to the start.  This, as so often happens, was a great group of strong people, one of whom walked part way without the soles of his old hiking boots attached to the upper parts.  

Nine of us lunched at Sweet Greens in Wellesley, six of whom walked from the hike start to lunch and back, for a solid five miles total.  

Report by Susan Sabin.

Spring [sic] Butterfly Ride - November 6, 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 6 November 2024, Spring [sic] Butterfly Ride

Ride Leader:  Clyde Kessel

30 miles, 10:00 am start from Carlisle, MA

Clyde, Dave Balaban, David Goldberg, Ed Hill, Frank Aronson, Gary Williams, Keren Hamel, Marc Webb, Marie Keutmann, Todd Palmer, Tom Allen, Wing Chow, and first-timers Barry Slosberg and Steve Hoffenberg.

Yet again, we had fantastic weather for cycling.  One of these days, winter will arrive and we will realize how spoiled we have been this fall.

The rider leader (who rides a recumbent) was happy to see another rider in the group on a recumbent.

By 10:05, we were all briefed and safetied and the human arrow system was explained to the new guy on the block.  We were missing Barry who had registered but hadn’t arrived.

We headed out of the parking lot and on the way out, Barry drove in.  Frank knew that Barry didn’t have navigation equipment, so Frank kindly stayed behind to help him out.  The rest of us proceeded on our merry way.  The group never got very spread out because we had lots of regrouping stops.

On the return, just before the climb up Scribner Road, there was a construction crew replacing a culvert.  We asked if we could walk through on the side of the road and the police officer kindly escorted us.  A few weeks ago, on a different WW ride in an identical situation in Harvard, the police officer refused and sent us off on a long detour on a busy road.  It’s kind of like calling medicare - sometimes you get a good person and sometimes you don’t.

Four of us stayed for lunch at Chelmsford Pizza.  After lunch, as we got back on our bikes for the one mile ride to our cars, Frank and Barry showed up - they had finally caught up to us.  For a couple of minutes, we had perfect attendance . . . . .

Thanks go to all the arrows and, especially, to Tom for sweeping.

Report by Clyde Kessel.

Apple Pi (short) Ride - October 30, 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 30 October 2024, Apple Pi (short) Ride

Ride Leader:  Simon Lingard
~37 miles, 10:00 am start from Bedford, MA

Riders (9):  Simon, Betsy Kimball, David Goldberg, Ed Hill, Frank Calabrese, Frank Scibilia, Marc Webb, Martin Hemler, and first-timer Todd Palmer.

The VA carpark was huge and mostly full, so the ride leader arrived early to direct riders to an area where there were enough parking spaces.  The roads were wet after overnight rain, a fact we discussed during the safety talk.  

About ten miles in, Frank C's vintage bike made a pop sound, and the rear wheel skidded to a stop.  A bulge in the tire had forced the rim to bend jamming the brakes.   After releasing the rear brake caliper Frank was able to slowly cycle to the nearest bike shop, while the remaining eight riders continued.

In Westford, the ride leader had a little difficulty finding the Dunkin’ Donuts rest stop location - it required the group to cross a busy four-lane road.  After the break, which was slightly off-route, Frank S. and Ed helped the ride leader find the route, somewhat limiting his embarrassment.

We did not use human arrows, but Ed graciously swept and let the ride leader know when we needed a re-group.  And, the sun came out, the roads dried out, and we all returned together!

Report by Simon Lingard.

Harvard and Bolton - October 23, 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 23 October 2024, Harvard and Bolton

Ride Leader:  Tom Allen

31 miles, 10:00 am start from Boxborough, MA

Riders (12):  Tom, Betsy Kimball, Clyde Kessel, Dave Balaban, Dmitry Gorenburg, Ed Hill, Marie Keutmann, Martin Hemler, Phyllis Evan, Simon Lingard, Wing Chow, and first-timer Lisa O'Connor.

Most of us found our way to the rear of the building at the ride start location.  Those who parked at the front side were rounded up by Wing who circled multiple times and herded folks to the right place.

The weather was delightful, the scenery spectacular, and the route was challenging and fun.  We started on the flat and were soon in climbing mode as we headed into Harvard.  Despite the hills, we were able, with some regrouping pauses, to stay together while employing the WW arrowing protocol.

The first porta-potty stop was quite popular and provided a pause during which Clyde took the initiative to drum up some interest in ride leading among some of the participants.  He pointed out that, while showing up for WW rides was important, it was not enough to keep the program going.  He may have recruited a couple of candidates.

Things progressed as we traveled from Harvard to Bolton and Berlin and back around over some fun roads.  Ascending Prospect Hill we paused for a photo and proceeded to our planned stop at the General Store.  That was interrupted by a bridge construction project that we couldn't sneak past – we were forced to take a detour that was a bit less satisfactory than the planned route, but only a half mile longer.

From "The Gen" we headed back to the start via an extended 2.5 mile downhill and some flat terrain.  Seven of us stayed at the Boxborough Craft Food Hall for a congenial lunch al fresco on their patio.

Thank you to the willing arrows and, especially, to Clyde for ably and patiently performing as sweep.

Report by Tom Allen.

Annual Circling Wachusett Foliage Ride - October 16, 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 16 October 2024, Annual Circling Wachusett Foliage Ride

Ride Leader:  Clyde Kessel

37.6 miles, 10:00 am start from Sterling, MA [remote start, 61.7 miles, from Bolton, MA]

Riders – core ride (11):  Clyde, Aiko Pinkoski, Barbara Martin, David Goldberg, Ed Hill, Greg Stathis, Judith McMichael, Julie Dodd, Simon Lingard, Tim Dodd, and Wing Chow.
Riders - remote start (1):  Marc Baskin.
Summitted the mountain:  no-one.
Present at lunch:  Elizabeth Wicks.

Yet another beautiful day for riding (every day is a good day to ride - some are beautiful).  It was chilly, but the full sun was warm and there were no complaints.  Riders started to arrive at the start point at 9:30 am.  Pickleball was in progress at the park.

Shortly before 10:00, we proceeded to set the ground rules for the ride.  The leader rides a recumbent and tends to be pretty slow on the climbs, so he made it clear that faster riders should feel free to go ahead and not arrow and not wait.

Barbara and Greg volunteered to be joint sweeps (and as the ride progressed, they traded off being at the back).  Hot on everyone’s mind was the question:  “will we be using arrows?”  The leader said “Yes, of course” and was immediately threatened with mutiny.  The group unanimously wanted to dispense with arrows, since everyone had a navigation device and no one wanted to stand around in the cold to pointlessly arrow a turn.
So, we happily settled on a simple ride format:  let’s just ride and regroup at the lunch stop.

 

Now we were ready to leave and someone said they had seen Marc riding from the remote start.  However, he was riding the wrong way and seemed to be lost.  Not being sure if and when he would show up, we just (virtually) wished him good luck and launched into our ride.

We immediately and informally broke up into an A-group, a B-group, and a C-group.  The A-group blasted off up the initial hill and was never seen again (except that Tim was patiently waiting in the parking lot at the end of the ride because he couldn’t really abandon his wife, Julie).  Before long, the B-group and the C-group melded back into a single group and stayed mostly together for most of the ride.  Marc was, again, spotted behind us on the correct route and he eventually caught up with us, just as we rolled into the lunch stop.

During the ride, it clouded up and several riders remarked that it was getting colder.  However, the sun came back just in time for our climb up Mountain Road - it was not entirely welcome at that juncture, but was great to have during our lunch stop.

This is a lovely ride, mostly on back roads with little traffic.  However, it does not work so well with the arrow system because people really do climb at such different speeds.  Also, arrowing at a turn in the middle of a climb or descent can be a problem.

Thanks to everyone who came and made it an enjoyable ride.

 

Report by Clyde Kessel.

Dudley Ramble - October 9. 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 9 October 2024, Dudley Ramble

Ride Leader:  Clyde Kessel

31 miles, 10:00 am start from Wayland, MA

Riders (16):  Clyde, Barry Kaditz, David Goldberg, Ed Hill, Everett Briggs, Frank Aronson, Frank Calabrese, Gary Williams, Gene Ho, John Trotter, Marc Baskin, Phyllis Evan, Renee Rees, Susan Broome, Tom Allen, and Wing Chow.

Present at lunch:  Helen Greitzer.

T’was a beautiful fall day, warm enough for shorts.  Our group of sixteen naturally split into two groups.  As far as the leader could tell, the second group stayed together pretty well, while the front group tended to fragment since it was the reservoir of arrows.  As a whole, the ride was pretty uneventful and we never got spread out much.  The leader only missed one turn, which is below average for this particular leader.

This lovely route was designed, years ago, by Brett Serkez.  Brett has since moved to Florida and we only see him occasionally when he comes back for a visit.  Hurricane Milton was scheduled to cross Florida Wednesday night, so I checked in with Brett.  He said the predicted path was south of his location and he was just going to hunker down and ride it out.  Update Thursday morning:  Brett did fine with very little damage.

Thanks to all the arrows and, especially, to Tom for sweeping.

Report by Clyde Kessel.

Island Cruise - October 2, 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 2 October 2024, Island Cruise 36

Ride Leader:  Alan Cantor

36 miles, 10:00 am start from Sherborn, MA

Riders (16):  Alan, Barry Nelson, Dave Balaban, David Goldberg, Ed Hill, Frank Aronson, Frank Calabrese, Gary Williams, Gene Ho, Janusz Wicher, Joel Bauman, John Kitchen, John Trotter, Kim Wach, and Renee Rees.

After a forecast of clouds and possible rain, we enjoyed a mostly sunny ride on beautiful roads.  At the water stop we learned that Gene had a flat.  After waiting a while and speaking with the sweep, Renee, we rode on.  The sweep, Gene, and another rider made it safely back, as did everyone else. 

 

Many thanks to the arrows and to Renee for a diligent job sweeping.

Report by Alan Cantor.

Ipswich to Cape Ann - September 25, 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 25 September 2024, Ipswich to Cape Ann

Ride Leader:  Simon Lingard

34 miles, 10:00 am start from Ipswich, MA

Riders (6):  Simon, Adam Walpert, Ed Hill, Frank Aronson, Gene Ho, and Scott Mandell.

We all decided on the 34-mile route option and the group kept together the entire ride, without using human arrows, and maintained an overall 15 mph average.  The weather was cloudy, low 60s - perfect cycling weather.  We enjoyed country lanes, many of which were newly paved, and the magnificent ocean views along the Manchester and Gloucester coastline.  We stopped at White Beach to take the attached photo and had a rest stop at Stage Fort Park.

Five of us had post-ride coffee at Zumi's (sadly they'd run out of pastries).

Report by Simon Lingard.

From Concord to Westford and Around Keyes Pond0 - September 11 2024

 RIDE REPORT

 

Wednesday, 11 September 2024, From Concord to Westford and Around Keyes Pond

Ride Leader:  Ken Hablow

41 miles, 10:00 am start from Concord, MA

 

Riders (21):  Ken, Aiko Pinkoski, Barry Kaditz, Barry Nelson, Dave Balaban, David Goldberg, Frank Aronson, Gary Williams, Jim Whinfield, Julia Zhogina, Marc Baskin, Mark Friedman, Mike Hanauer, Renee Rees, Rick Lawrence, Scott Mandell, Simon Lingard, Stan Kay, Wing Chow, and first-timers Debra Mello and Ken Gray.

 

It was a gorgeous late summer day, starting ou8t a tad chilly, but temps got into the low to mid-70s with a light wind.  The first ten miles were the hilliest, not steep but definitely “up.”  There were different pace groups which caused us to split up a bit.  Once we got past these hills, we stopped to re-group.  The rest of the route was more rolling.  We all stopped at the Dunkin Donuts at mile 17, and then continued through Forge Village.

 

At mile 22 we had a big OOPS!  It seems the town of Westford had started paving some of their very lightly travelled back roads.  The road that we were supposed to take was closed.  I know the area well, so a detour was not an issue, other than the fact that it was not on anyone’s navigation.  I told the sweep, Rick, where we were going – he also knows the roads in that area.  We had been using sporadic arrows where absolutely necessary.  However (there is always a “however”), the lead group stayed straight at one bend in the road with a road to the right, so no arrow was left.  The second group took the right turn.  We all ended up in the same place, with only a half mile difference in the route, but it took us a while on our phones to figure all this out.  Once we regrouped, we were on the original route and headed out on the return to Concord.

 

When we left the Dunkin Donuts (before the detour), there were several stragglers that told us to go ahead, as they had navigation and did not wish to hold up the entire group.  Wing Chow rescued one rider from the confusion of the detour.  Others used GPS to get back onto the route.

 

All-in-all, it was a nice day and a good group.  Everyone seemed to like the route.

 

Thanks to Rick for sweeping and to all those who arrowed.

 

Report by Ken Hablow.

Pond Tour: Flint’s and Walden - September 4 , 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 4 September 2024, Pond Tour:  Flint’s and Walden

Ride Leader:  Barry Nelson

33 mi, 9:30 am start from Weston, MA

Riders (9):  Barry, Aiko Pinkoski, Aliza Edwards, David Goldberg, Frank Aronson, Harry Spatz, Ken Weber, Mark Friedman, and Wing Chow.

Present at lunch:  Helen Greitzer.

It was not a typical WW ride, since we did not use human arrows.  We were a relatively small group and all had the GPS route, except for Frank who left his Garmin device at home.  We stayed mostly together until returning to Concord center.  The leader (who had become the sweep because he was the slowest rider) created confusion about the rest stop location, leading to at least three separate groups from Concord back to Weston.

Helen made a surprise visit to join Harry and Barry for an outstanding lunch at Heirloom in Weston center.

Report by Barry Nelson.

Island Cruise - August 21, 2024

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 21 August 2024, Island Cruise
Ride Leader:  Alan Cantor
36 miles, 10:00 am start from Sherborn

Riders (18):  Alan, Aiko Pinkoski, Aliza Edwards, Bill Perry, Charley Lax, Christine Talbot, Dave Balaban, Everett Briggs, Francie Sparks, Frank Aronson, Frank Calabrese, Gary Williams, Gene Ho, Janusz Wicher, Kim Wach, Renee Rees, Richard French, and Simon Lingard.

 

On what may have been the most beautiful day of this summer, we had a really wonderful ride on mostly smooth roads.  The riders make the ride and this was a fantastic group with lots of good spirit and energy.  It was a pleasure to lead them. 

 

On a sour note, however, I learned at ride’s end that an arrow had left their post early (before the sweep had released them).  It’s the human arrowing system that makes the WW rides so unique and available to riders of all abilities, so to hear that it broke down is very disturbing.  There is an easy way to not be an arrow, and that is to not ride near the leader. 

 

There was a mechanical issue when one of the bikes had a motor failure and could not continue.  AAA came to the rescue!  Yes, AAA provides rides for bikers that break down (I had used this service earlier this year and was very pleased - well worth the membership fee).

 

Thanks to the many arrows who remained at their posts until being released by the sweep, and to Gene for patiently and ably being the sweep.

Report by Alan Cantor.

 

Too Cool for School Ride - August 14 2024

RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 14 August 2024, Too Cool for School Ride
Ride Leader:  Jack Donohue
31 miles, 10:00 am start from Bedford
Riders (10):  Jack, Aiko Pinkoski, Barry Nelson, Curt Dudley-Marling, Dave Balaban, Ethan Smith, Frank Aronson, Gary Williams, Linda Nelson, and Simon Lingard. 

They say you should learn from your mistakes.  In my case, it was more like "deja vu all over again."

The ride de jour was going to be my Elm Street ride.  I advertised it somewhat late in the game since there was no ride as of Tuesday.  Meanwhile Clyde had sent out an email about Rte 225 being closed west of Carlisle for all weekdays.   I didn't put the two together until Tuesday night, as I was lying in bed wondering if I had checked this.  I hadn't and, in the spirit of "if something can go wrong it will," the ride went there.

So, Wednesday morning I was scrambling to find a route that one could actually ride.  My first thought was to just move the route around avoiding Carlisle center.  That added a few miles and hills and seemed like a bad idea.  Then I came up with the solution:  lead a different ride.  I had several in my repertoire that started at the same place.  So I emailed all the registrants with the new route.  Problem solved?  Not really.  Turns out about half the group didn't get the memo and still had the route from the original ride, which was completely different.

I had figured most of the group would have navigation and go off the front never to be seen again.  Instead, we had a group with the wrong navigation or no navigation at all.  But this was a Wednesday Wheeler ride known for its human arrows.  What could go wrong?

No sweep was forthcoming, so I deputized Curt, who was one of the GPS-less.  What was I thinking?  The sweep absolutely has to have navigation.  We started out and for the first few turns we all stayed together.  As long as Curt was visible we didn't need any arrows.  I figured we could all stay together sans arrows.  Wrong!  Somehow, at some point we ended up with no Curt and no arrows.

To make a long story longer, Barry called Curt and we got him back into the fold.  Then we ran into a detour.  No more cues from my Lady of the Phone.  Fortunately, Linda stepped into the breach and guided us through the uncharted region.

Other than that it was a nice day, nice route, good group.  We passed the four advertised School Streets, though one was in fact a School Way.  Close enough.

Report by Jack Donohue.

Seabrook to Portsmouth Seacoast Ride - July 24 , 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 24 July 2024, Seabrook to Portsmouth Seacoast Ride

Ride Leader:  self led

31 miles, 9:00 am start from Seabrook, NH

Riders (2):  Frank Aronson and Susan Broome.

Two riders enjoyed a very scenic, dry route along the seacoast from Seabrook to Portsmouth and back.

Verbal report by Susan Broome.

Harvard-Bolton - July 17, 2024

 RIDE REPORT

Wednesday, 17 July 2024, Harvard-Bolton

Ride Leader:  Tom Allen

31 miles, 9:00 am start from Boxborough, MA

 

Riders (6): Tom, Wing Chow, Renee Rees, John Trotter, and first-timers Richard Schoenfeld and Harry Spatz.

 

The forecast heat may have kept our numbers down, but it turned out that the combination of an earlier than usual start, shaded roadways, and self-made breeze kept us comfortable.  As we entered Harvard from our Boxborough start we encountered our first climb.  We waited for one of the group who was slow on the up-hills.  As we progressed that rider suggested that he continue on his own following the route on GPS.  As everyone else was keeping pace, I accepted his offer.

 

The roads were indeed lovely and largely shaded. The Berlin portion of the route took us over roads that were less familiar and a particular pleasure to ride.  Returning to Bolton and Harvard we did a bit more climbing and enjoyed some exhilarating downhills.  We stopped briefly at the top of Prospect Hill for a photo and continued on to the planned stop at the Harvard General Store. 

 

No one needed relief, so we proceeded on Old Littleton Road to the extended descent that provided both breeze and shade.  However, the final three miles back to the start was stark contrast with bright sun and a very warm breeze from the south making us feel the heat. 

 

Three of us stayed for lunch at the Craft Food Hall.  Our solo rider joined us somewhat later having completed the full route on his recumbent.

 

With the small group we rode without arrows or a designated sweep. (I was often leading from the sweep position.)

 

I found this to be a particularly lovely route that deserves another go in, perhaps, the fall season.

 

Report by Tom Allen.