December 2003 Ride Report Page    

Here you will find the reports of our exploits for the month December 2003 more or less as they happened. I will publish any ride reports that I receive. Please send them to  bikebob@crocker.com and you too can get yourself published on the web!

Tuesday 12/2: Tonight was another trip up to Walter's house for a ride and then supper. There were about 700 riders who signed up for the ride but Walter said that no more that 500 could attend. So through a secret process of elimination and bribery we ended up with 15 people who were invited and with my new wealth I will soon be opening our annex in Phoenix. Anyway, at 6 O'clock the were 10 riders at the shop and we loaded the bikes in the van for the trip to Conway. Several of the riders carpooled with MPM and Homer (I offered to drive them, but for some unknown reason they chose to ride with others.) and we met some more people at the gas station in Deerfield. It was mighty fr---ing cold out (12 degrees) and there was a bit of wind as well, so when we got to Walter's house we all piled into the workshop to get ready. Those fortunate few who survived the grueling process of elimination and were able to attend tonight's ride were MPM, Steph, Chad, Mike S., Curt, Homer, Peter T., PJW, Harold, Jamie, Eric, Jack, Chris Koh and Sop. After everyone got dressed, we did a last minute equipment check and then we were on our way out to the trails. Walter was the leader and I did the sweep. We rode from the workshop over to the field and then we headed into the woods. We encountered some trees across the trail that we had to walk around and also some pretty rough sections of trail that were still covered in logs and branches from the thinning of the forest. Penny and Peter were having a hard time on the climbs, so I rode up to where the group was waiting and told Walter to take the riders who were there, out on a longer loop. Walter wanted me to lead, but I wasn't too sure of the trails so I told him that I would be better off taking PJW and Peter back than leading the main group. As I was talking to Walter, PJW and Peter came along. Walter agreed with my plan and he then headed out with the main group and I set off with Peter and PJW to do a shorter loop. As I have said in the past, it is uphill both ways on these trails and I am certain that Wabbit and Peter will attest to that. We rode up and down and up and down and up and down for about two days before I got us to "the shortcut trail". At this point I was sure that all we had to do was ride a short way and we would be coasting down the trails to Walters house and a wonderful supper. Well as luck would have it, the trail just went in a circle and we found ourselves back out on the trail we started on. At this point I had to do some real good goat thinking. Do we turn around and ride back up the hill to where we started and backtrack from there, or do we ride down the big hill to the road and then up to Walter's? I took one look at my companions and realized that I would suffer the fate of the "Donner Party" if I suggested another long uphill on the trails. So, down we went! When we got to the bottom of the hill we crossed the road and began the climb up RT. 116. At this point I mentioned that it was only a half a mile to Walter's house as we rolled along the freezing cold highway. As the wind sliced through us, we pedaled up the hill for about forty half miles. At some point Peter and PJW caught on, but by then their brains were frozen and I knew that they would not be able to mount any offensive against me. When we got to Walters driveway (which has the same gradient as MT. Everest) I wisely sprinted up the hill and hid out in the workshop. After some time, PJW and Peter arrived, and soon they joined me in the workshop. As their brains thawed out, I did my mesmerizing technique on them and they forgot the horrors of the long climb back up the hill. After we stowed our bikes we headed into the house where Katherine was starting to get dinner ready. We waited about 25 seconds before we offered to eat the dinner in case the rest of the riders never returned. Well as we were preparing to feast on Walter's famous macaroni and cheese, some of the riders came whizzing by the window on their way back to the workshop. Drat!! We were denied, but when the riders came in the house, we pretended to be happy that they made it back and soon they joined us at the dinner table. At some point, Stephanie mentioned that there were still six nearly frozen riders out on the tundra. We all stopped eating for a second and mulled about what should be done. After several hours of discussion, we had not yet made a plan, but luckily the riders had found their way back to the house and were beginning to thaw out before we had to do anything serious. Soon after the thawing completed Chad and the remaining riders joined us at the dinner table. We asked the group about what happened to them and as they told the story of wrong turns and flat tires we all fell asleep... I mean listened with rapt attention. After dinner and a nice Brandy (provided by Chris Koh, who also took these pictures.) Stephanie and I entertained the group with a demonstration of Walters new massage device. Being unable to endure any more of that and also having eaten all the food, the group left Walter's house. It was a really great night and we all thanked Walter and Katherine for having invited us.

Tuesday, December 2nd Distance 7.4mi (per GPS)

Tonight's plan was for another ride starting at Walter and Katherine's home in Conway. We had snow on the ground here in Putney and as the afternoon wore on and the temps dropped through the 20s and into the teens. By 4:00 the thermometer was showing 14 degrees. I decided it was best to call down to the shop and make sure that there was still a ride going on. Eric assured me that nobody was planning on canceling the ride for anything as trivial as below-freezing temperatures or a bit of frostbite, so I loaded my stuff into the truck and headed South. At the shop (where, thank goodness, Bob had gotten the furnace repaired!) we had a short discussion about where tonight's temperature fell on the 'cold' scale. We decided that it had reached 'Very F@$*ing' cold as we loaded up and hit the road to Walter's. Walter had a nice warm workshop where we all could get ready without freezing. Bob put himself into the doghouse for a good long time by suggesting that 'the girls' go help in the kitchen before the ride. All the guys present slowly backed away from him to get out of the line of fire, but Michelle, Penny and Stephanie decided to let him live... this time. I wouldn't have been surprised if he had met with an 'accident' on the trails later that night. After a few photos by Chris we decided we had procrastinated about as much as we could and decided to hit the trails (though there WAS a short discussion about heading directly for the beer and just TELLING everyone we had ridden). The first section of the ride wasn't as steep as it was last time we rode here, so we had a bit more time to warm up before hitting the real climbs. The ground was mostly frozen, but the areas that had been really wet were still soft under a layer of frozen mud. Soon we were in the woods where some of the real climbs began. Not too long into the ride, the group that Bob was riding sweep with started to fall back. After stopping for a bit when Walter's H.I.D. light was knocked from the bike, Bob decide to cut the ride short for some of the group. The rest of us continued on into the cold. I have finally found the right air pressure to run these tires at. At 31psi, they were sticking to EVERYTHING. I was riding up things that would have had my wheels slipping out from under me on any other ride. Tonight, I managed to stick almost all the climbs. It was good. :) The riders without disc brakes were having problems with icing and buildup on their wheels, and a few of us began to get cold toes (I *really* need better shoes if I'm going to keep this up!). Sop got creative with the route a few times. Once, descending a bit too fast into a sharp corner and almost running off the outside of the turn, and once again for some unknown reason taking a sudden left turn off the trail and into the underbrush halfway up a steep climb. About 2/3 of the way through the ride Michelle rolled down to where we were stopped to regroup and announced that Bob is Fat. While we all agreed that this was indeed true, a few moments later we realized that she was referring to the OTHER meaning of this phrase. Harold had flatted quite a bit further back the trail. In the interest of getting SOME of us back before we froze to death, the group split, with Walter taking some of the riders on towards the house while others stayed back to wait for the repair. Before we left, Walter made sure that Eric new the way home from here. Don't think about that too hard, I know it doesn't make too much sense logically. 'Eric understood the directions' is kind of an oxymoron. We just hoped that their trail finding skills would at least get them home before cannibalism set in. We made it back to that house just before my toes shattered and fell off. The pain REALLY began as they started to melt. Katherine set out a wonderful meal for us. She must have cooked a TON of food, since even though Bob had been back for an hour there was still enough food and beer left for the rest of us. After some worried moments over if we were ever going to see Eric, Chris & Co. again, they finally showed up. We all settled into a great meal and a few hours of good conversation. Go to the map page to see the GPS map.

Thursday 12/4: It was another cold and somewhat blustery day today with on and off snow showers, the last of which left about an inch or so on the ground. I was busy at the shop and when 6:00 arrived I had to hurry to get the bikes loaded into the van so that we could get to Montague on time. I arrived at the common to find a large group getting their gear on for the ride. Joining me tonight was Jamie, Steph & Chad, Jack, Homer, PJW, Peter T., Liam, Eric, Walter, Curt, and Sop. After getting everyone's gear ready, Curt came by to say that his fork was dead. It was completely out of air and I had no pump to inflate it. No one else had a pump either so I used my co2 inflator to bring Curt's shock back to life. After he was set I led the riders on the roadway to the trails because the plank bridge would have been too slippery to cross even on foot. I rode up to the Telephone Pole Trail and we re-grouped at the top of the hill near the fire pit/rest room. Once everyone (the boy's that is) had taken care of business, I led the group out to the Second First Left Trail. The trails were in perfect condition; the sand was frozen solid and the snow gave us great traction over the ice. I led the group to the turn onto Parrott's Passage, but somehow missed the entrance and we were soon bushwhacking it through the woods. This little misstep was only a test to see if anyone else remembered that the trail was just a few feet ahead. No one remembered so we hoofed it to the path and remounted to continue on our way. We rode out to the Banked Trail, and when we got to the end we stopped to get a head count. Walter was having finger issues and I helped him retrieve his warm gloves from his jacket. I then asked if anyone else was cold and none of the group was so I got back on my bike and headed off towards Willis Hill. Liam was riding right next to me on the double track and I was telling him to be careful because we were now heading into a fairly wet section of trails and there was sure to be ice under the snow. Liam listened carefully but failed to follow my line and soon he found himself out on a large sheet of ice. He managed to ride across, but after that he decided to follow my line just in case. I led the group along some nice double wide trails and Liam and I got to chat as we rode. It really was a nice night, with the moon out and no clouds we got to enjoy winter at its best. After we got to Willis Hill Road I stopped to ask the group which direction they wanted to take. It was nearly unanimous that we take the Water Tank Trail and so I led the group over to the hill. I was a little whipped when I got to the log and I slipped on it and to dismount. After getting back on I caught up to those who had passed me and soon I was leading the way though the woods to the brook. I waited at the bridge and when everyone was across I headed up the hill to the tank. I waited there with Liam and Curt and we marveled at how nice it was to be way out here in the middle of nowhere yet near to home. After the rest of the riders arrived I led the group over to Willis Hill. I did pretty good on the ice in the swamp, but I blew it on the climb up the hill, Oh, well, maybe next time!! I walked up the hill and then led Liam and Chad down the hill and across the field. I stopped at the turn and then led the group up the next hill. I bogged down a couple of times but I managed to ride all the way up to the I-H Trail. At the trail head I took a right onto the Kiabuckus Trail and when we got to the bottom we headed over to the Middle Road. We rode across the pond and down the rocky trail to the brook. At this point it was getting late so I led the riders back to the Plains Road where we then took the flatter trails back to the Toilet Bowl Trail. We rode from there at a pretty high pace back to the Toilet Bowl Trail. At this point I dropped to the back of the group and pedaled back to the van by myself. Although I wasn't cold, my right foot was cramping up, and I really didn't want to push it too hard. After I got back to the van I discovered that my sock had bunched up and caused my foot to get numb. After taking my shoe off I was back to good in no time.

Thursday, December 5th
Distance: 10.8 miles on the trails, plus another .6 miles (each way) on the roads to and from the trailhead from where we were parked. About 12 miles total. Temperatures were in the high teens to low 20s for tonight's ride. A veritable Spring thaw compared to Tuesday's ride. Several of us showed up at the shop, then headed over to the plains for the ride. Tonight was the first 'mapping' ride of the plains. Hopefully, we'll be able to compile a complete GPS map of this trail system over the next several rides here. Then, somebody other than Bob will be able to find the way out and he will no longer be able to extort money from us to lead us back out of the wilderness. I thought the ride was going to be very short for me, since before we even began I noticed that my front shocks had no air in them. Nobody had a shock pump handy, so Bob finally used a CO2 cartridge to get some air into them while I finished getting my stuff together. Soon we were on the road heading for the trailhead. We weren't warmed up yet, so the wind-chill on the open road at 15MPH cut right through our clothing. I was looking forward to the gentle climb as soon as we hit the trails as a nice way to warm up and start generating some heat. The telephone trail, usually a little tricky because of the deep silky sand, was as hard as pavement tonight with a thin coat of powder snow on top. We made good time into the trails and kept up the high speed all the way to the bottom of the first climb. The only tricky thing about these trails tonight was the patches of ice on the frozen-over puddles. There were plenty of spills as people tried to ride the glare ice, or broke through the thin crust of frozen mud into the wet bog beneath. I actually found tonight's ride up to the water tower easier in the cold weather. The last time I rode this trail I had to stop once my wheels got sucked into the mud. Tonight, though still a bit muddy, I was able to ride on top of the worst of it and stay in my seat right to the top of the hill. I also took a trick from Bob and tried to leave a big gap between me and the rider ahead, so even if he (or she) had to stop they had plenty of time to get off the trail before I came through. Because of this, I managed to stay on the bike a lot more than on previous rides where I'd get stuck in (or behind) traffic jams on technical sections of trail. We took a break at the water tank before heading down the other side. We spent the next few miles on the trails up, down and around Willis Hill before riding a long tricky descent back to the power lines. I took 2 good spills on this descent, but had a great time on it anyway. At the bottom there was one final puddle of water to cross before stopping with the group to wait for any other riders. I took it nice and slow to avoid splashing the ice water up onto myself, but managed to keep things upright even though my rear wheel did slide all over the ice as I exited the puddle. When Michelle arrived, she had a dilemma. We were all telling her that the puddle was very shallow and easy to ride, but she knew this group and was probably having a hard time trying to figure out if we were being honestly helpful, or setting her up for a fall. She finally went back 20 feet to get a running start at it and came through without a hitch. Now that she trusts us, we can REALLY get her on the next one! The final third of the ride was once again on mostly flat power lines and the singletrack trails that tie them together. Shortly we were back at the cars, but there wasn't much socializing tonight as we were all wet and cooling down fast with the thermometer now somewhere in the low teens or even single digits.

12/8: Below is a note that I got today from Dan Lass, a fellow NRM member from the 1980's.
Bob,
My friends the Hosmers are in Tasmania until May. They sent me these results from a local club race that they got into. Life is tough for the retired folks. At nearly 60 years old, Dave and Trina are still hammering away.

Hi Dan,
Listed below are the results fro our first outing with the Tas Vets cycling group.  It was a good event for us to go to as it climbed over a hill we had ridden several times and we went out by groups.  The course went up over down and came back, 15.5 miles total. I did not carry my GPS so can't give you a vertical gain but it was substantial.  It was 3 miles of a pitch like the S turns. We started first and were combined with the5's.  One of the 5's was bit on the chunky side.  I could sense Coach feeling "no way is some fat guy going to beat me on a hill climb"  so as soon as we got to the hill we were off  the front.  The 1's and 2's went buy us like we were parked.  The rest of the guys that caught us seemed human.  The guy who won  finished 7th in the World Masters in the 40 -45 year old class and was disappointed he didn't win (so we were told later).    I was toast by the end and coach took me at the end after sucking my wheel the whole way (not really).  We rode another easier 15 mi loop afterwards.  I was pleased as we averaged 17.5mph in the race.  They are a fun group and quite like the X-C skiers.  We won't have a chance to ride again with them until late January due to us leaving and their Christmas hiatus.
Heading home to try the ocean  while coach plays some tennis; How much snow did you get.  Was it the wet heavy stuff?
Dave

Monday 12/8: I was planning on going out for a short snowshoe trip after the shop closed tonight. My thought was to go up on the ridge to get a sense of the snow conditions, to see if that would be a good place to tomorrow's hike. I mentioned it to Curt and Peter Truesdell and they along with Betsey and MaryEllen joined me at 6:00. After we got our gear together we left the shop on foot and walked over to the trailhead. I led the group up the hill to the rock entrance to Rocky Ridge where we got onto the singletrack. It was a very cold night with the temperature of 11 degrees when we left. There was no wind, a cloudless sky, and with the full moon out it was a gorgeous night to be outdoors. We made our way up the hill with our lights on because the moon was not high enough to shine on the west side of the mountain. Once we got to the turn onto the Red Dot Trail we headed east until we made the turn onto the White Dot Trail. The White Dot Trail is easier to do going south than it is going north so we took that route. Peter led us down the trail with ME and the rest of us following him. The trail had been used by a X-C skier and we followed in the tracks that the skier had left. Everyone did well on the steep slopes of the hill as we traversed to Poet's Seat, however ME fell on the side slope near the turn to the parking lot. She was OK and the rest of us were glad that she showed us where the slippery rocks were. After she got up Peter continued as leader and we hiked all the way out to the end of the trail. When we stopped at the roadside I did a little adjustment on my shoes and then I followed Betsey down to the turn onto the Red Dot Trail. We hiked down to the bottom of the steep hill and then turned to head back. As we hiked down the trail I turned off my light and I was able to see perfectly with the moonlight. We hiked along enjoying the views of the river and soon we were back at the start. The snow was perfect for our trip but as we returned on the trail we noticed that the trails were getting pretty packed down so I think that we will go somewhere else tomorrow. We had a lot of fun on a gorgeous evening, it was a great time. Fantastic if you must know! Unbelievable is another word, but there are many more words, more than I have time to type.

Monday, December 8th The weather is starting to look glum for the end of the week, so I'm trying to get more done before the rain comes. Tonight, Betsy and I joined Peter, Mary Ellen and Bob for a little snowshoeing on the ridge.

Tuesday, December 9th Another night of snowshoeing. We had a group of 12 hikers that met at the shop then headed over to the Coke plant for a nice hike on some of the same trails we usually bike on (The Secret Trail, The Chute, The 'Hill of Doom' and quite a few on the return trip that I don't know the names of). We had a great time, I just don't have the time to write about it here!

Tuesday 12/9: After our hike last night, I decided to head over to the Coke Plant, rather than take a chance that the trails might not be so good with a larger group of people. I was busy at 6:00 getting snowshoes ready for those who did not have them. It took a few minutes to get everyone squared away and the gear loaded into the van, but soon we were on our way. Joining me for the hike tonight was Curt, Stephanie, Anna Brickman, Mike S., Eric, Jack, Bill Haines, Ceil Antes, Homer, Liam, Sop, and Walter. Anna rode over to the Coke Plant with me and the rest of the people carpooled in several cars. When we got to the truck turnout we parked and got the gear out and soon the group was heading out across the snowfield. I was the last to get set and I ran over to catch up with the group. I then took the lead with the group right behind me. I headed into the woods and we followed the Swamp Trail over to the Cellar Hole Trail. I stopped at a couple of points to make sure that everyone was still on course. We had such a large group that we got strung out along the single track trail. I led the pack along our usual bike route and most of the people were familiar with the course. When I got to Five Points I had Liam take the lead and I fell in behind him Eric and Curt. We hiked up to the Secret Trail where I had to make another adjustment to my shoes ( I was actually using ME's shoes and I let Sop use mine.) and before I knew it I was the last one in line. I was behind Walter and when we got near the top, Walter took a shortcut and that was all the incentive that Sop and I needed. We cut right across the trail and ended up in the middle of the group. We hiked up to the top of Luke where I had to make another adjustment to the shoes. After a minute to adjust Liam was off on a run to the power lines. When I got to the power lines I was at the back of the group. Liam had already made the turn and was halfway down the hill when I got to the crest of the hill. I was behind Steph all the way to Red Rock where the rest of the group was waiting. I suggested that we do the Chute Trail and everyone agreed. I set off behind Liam and Walter to do the Chute. Liam made some comment about the old man keeping up so with me nipping on his heels we followed Walter who ran all the way down the Chute, well ahead of Liam. When we got to the bottom we stopped to let the group catch up. As we watched the people come down the hill, we saw someone tumble. It was Sop! He fell and rolled down a few feet, but was quickly back up and joined us at the bottom. We then took a trip up the Hill of Doom from where we headed back down to Jack's Pond. It was getting late so we took the Streambed Trail to Deer Run and then we climbed up Stinger. We then hiked down to Five Points and then we took the Red Dot Trail back to the cars. It was a great hike and if we get some more snow we will do this again.

Monday 12/15: Today I went out for a snowshoe hike with MaryEllen. We left the shop at 2:00 and we headed for the ridge. It was pretty cold and the wind was really howling, but we were determined to get a good hike in. After we got to the trailhead we got our shoes on and headed up the trail. I led and ME followed me up the hill and we were the first people on the fresh snow that fell yesterday. We hiked at a good pace and followed the Blue Dot Trail up to Poet's Seat Tower. The snow was perfect and we were able to walk comfortably on the granular surface. We stopped briefly at the tower and then we headed down the road to the White Dot Trail. As we headed off the ridge we noticed that the gale force winds were no longer blowing us or the snow. After we had gone a little ways down the White Dot Trail we met up with an old biking buddy Carl Coniglio and his dogs as they were out for a walk. We hiked down to the Red Dot Trail with them and then Carl and his dogs (Archie and Veronica) took a right onto the Red Dot Trail while ME and I headed up the hill to the Blue Dot Trail. As we neared the crest of the hill we were once again blasted with the wind. It was a furious breeze and the snow had blown into our earlier tracks almost obliterating our path. We hiked back down the hill to the street where we removed our shoes and got into the van to head back to the shop. It was a really nice hike. We were both a little tired from the effort, but it was such a beautiful day that we hardly noticed the fatigue.
    At 6:00 I got my gear together to go out on another hike to the ridge, this time with a larger group. Joining me for the hike was Steph, Mike S, Peter, PJW, Homer, Eric, Liam, Jack, Walters, and Jamie. After everyone was ready I led the group from the shop over to the trailhead. We carried our gear over to the crosswalk at Silver Street and I used "good goat thinking" to get across the roadway. Since the group was large I used my white ski pole to tap the ground as I crossed. This had the desired effect on the traffic, since no one wants to be known as the person who ran over the blind guy with snowshoes. After the group got across the road we put on the shoes and headed for the trail. The group split up as when we hit the first slope and I then went from sweep to lead. Liam, Eric, Walter, and Jack sprinted up the hill leaving the rest of us to set a more measured pace. The wind was howling when we got to the ridge and we were buffeted by the breeze and blowing snow. I led my group up to the Blue Dot Trail where Homer and Mike took the lead and I then followed PJW and Peter up the trail. Mike and Homer  hiked up to the point on the trail where the path goes straight up a rocky cliff and they stopped to wait for us. I had suggested to the other group that they should give the cliff path a try and we could see their tracks where they had climbed up the cliff. PJW was not interested in the alpine aspect of snowshoeing so she followed the tracks that ME and I had left earlier, while Homer and Mike led myself and Peter up the cliff. We climbed up the steep section of the rock with out too much difficulty and after getting to the top we hiked over to where PJW was waiting. The wind was really howling up at the tower and Wabbit had to go inside to make a clothing adjustment or else she would have been blown away. After nearly freezing to death while waiting for PJW to get ready she finally came out of the tower and we were on our way. As we headed down the road Jamie said that he was really tired so he jumped off the 100 foot cliff and landed on the roadway below. He was fine but the landing ruined his snowshoes. After that excitement we hiked down to the Red Dot Trail and headed down the hill. After we got down the hill a ways we noticed that there was no wind. It was pretty nice to hike along without the fear of being blown into the river. We made good time heading back and shortly we were back at the starting point. Just as we were getting our snowshoes off, Walter and his crew came clambering down the cliff side and soon they joined us for the walk back to the shop. After we got back we enjoyed some refreshments while we warmed up. When the hikers were warmed and refreshed, we all headed for our homes.

Tuesday 12/16: Tonight we headed over to Parrott Palace where we were treated to a hike led by  "Torch" himself. Bob Dion came by the shop at 5:30 and gave a demonstration of how his shoes worked and some tips on how to dress for snowshoeing. After getting some of the people fitted for his demo shoes Bob packed up his car to head over to Parrottville. ME and I then got in the van and led the caravan of 5 cars over to Lake Peasant. We met up with Chris Koh at the Post Office and soon the whole train was heading towards Parrott's house. We unpacked our gear and then we were greeted by our hosts at their front door. It took a few minutes to get everyone into their gear and then the group headed out. Besides myself and Me we had Eric, MPM, Bob Dion, Curt, Betsey, Parrott, Nice Kate, Stephanie, Chad, Chris K., Jack, Homer, Anna and Peter. Parrott led the group from his house down the hill under the Bridge of Names and then through the Fairy Forest. We hiked up the hill to County Road where we crossed to get to the trails. When we got to the trailhead several people left their poles and jackets in a tree to be retrieved on our return. The group split up when MPM, Eric and Bob headed off on Parrott's Passage and got out of sight in no time. The trail was a hard packed snowmobile track and it was pretty easy to walk on. After MPM's trio had gone the remainder of the group then followed Parrott out to the Banked Trail. Steph had to stop a couple of times to adjust her bindings and I helped her get going while ME waited at the back to hike with us back up to the group. We finally got back to the other people who were waiting for us on Plains Road. After some discussion about which route to take we headed off. We followed a route that we often use on our mountain bikes on our way back. I hiked side by side with Parrott at the front of the group breaking trail with him until we got back to the Banked Trail. After we made the left back onto the Banked Trail a pair of snowmobiles came upon us from behind. We all stepped off the trail to let them pass, but when they had gone by the fumes from the engines was enough to gag you. Parrott and I bravely hiked at the front an sucked in all the fumes to protect the rest of the hikers from harm. Parrott is immune to that kind of thing since he hangs out around fires and such all the time, and I simply spat out the offending particulates when I was done cleaning the air. After our heroics, Parrott and I led the group back to the road where we located the gear that was left at the start. After the retrieval of the gear we all headed back through Fairy Forest. We hiked up the hill and then we crossed over the Bridge of Names (picture at the left) to head back to Nice Kate's house. The trio of MPM, Eric and Bob had already gotten back and they had also found the refreshments, which they were already enjoying when we arrived. One drawback to being back first is that they had to pay the pizza man for the food. When everyone got their snowshoes off, we all headed into Nice Kate's house where Chad and I enjoyed the party. Everyone stayed until there wasn't any food left and then we tried to forage the panty, but Parrott would not have any of that and he and Nice Kate kept a wary eye on the group. When it looked like we would not get any more revelry or food out of this evening, we all thanked our hosts and then headed for home. Addendum: On December 16th we went over to the Parrott's house for a snowshoe hike. We had a large group come out to enjoy the snow and try out Dion snowshoes. The weather was great and everyone had a good time. Click on the photo of me and Cheetah and wait to hear the a mezzo soprano rendition of "Climbing Time".

Tuesday, December 16th 'The Attack of the Bonk' Betsy and I headed down to Bob's and from there over to John and Kate's house for a snowshoe outing on the plains. There was quite a turnout for the hike. I didn't do a head count, but I would guess 12-15 people. The snow wasn't very deep, so once the first few people in line walked on the trail, things were pretty packed down. Everyone in the back of the group could probably have taken off the snowshoes and not had any problem in just hiking boots. I opted to use just my LED lights instead of my bike light, but once I got on the trails realized that the batteries in it were just about dead. Fortunately, there were enough people with bright bike lights that I never had any problem seeing where I was heading. I noticed that I've been having one consistent problem snowshoeing with a group. The first few people in line pack the trail, then everyone after them walks in the same line packing it more. But my shoes are wider than everyone else's, so I end up walking with the outer edges of my shoes up on the unpacked edges of the path, causing my feet to never have a flat platform to step on. I've found that it is easier to walk with one foot in the packed path and the other on fresh snow off to either side so at least my feet can fall flat. Better yet, I'd rather break trail and not try to follow anyone else's path at all. Walking in a big group like tonight's, I'd probably be better off with much smaller shoes. Most of trails we walked on had already been packed by snowmobile traffic. We saw a few sleds while out there (and smelled them for long after they had passed us). John spent most of the time in the front of the group. Since he ignored most of Bob's shouted directions from the rear of the group we made it back without getting lost. About 3/4 of the way through the walk, I suddenly realized that I was feeling a little strange. I was lightheaded and beginning to stumble a bit as I walked. I was having to push harder and harder just to maintain the pace of the people around me. It didn't take long to figure out the cause of my problems. All I had eaten during the day was a few cups of coffee and a power bar. The Gu I had before heading out didn't do much to help, though my crash without it would have probably been a bit more severe. Betsy offered me another Gu as we walked along, but instead I accepted Jack's offer of an energy bar. I knew that it wouldn't be too much help, since it would take a while to get into my system but it was good to have something in my stomach. In the next few hundred feet I slipped almost to the back of the group as I could no longer maintain any kind of pace at all. We came out to the road crossing a few minutes later (it felt like quite a bit longer than that to me). I decided to stay on the road instead of falling into the lake as my energy continued to fail. It took me a few minutes to fumble with the straps and finally get my shoes off before hiking back on the road. I met the rest of the hikers on the Bridge of Names and walked back up to the house with them. John and Kate had us all in for pizza and beer (and Krispy Kreme donuts for a lucky few).

Sunday, December 21.  Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned…it’s been 17 days since my last mountain bike ride.  Oops, sorry…for a minute there, I thought I was in confession!  Ah, yes, it is true…today, three of us adventurous riders braved the cold weather for a ride at the Montague Plains.  It was this afternoon, around 12: 15, that the plans were finally firmed up: I was going to join Norm and Sam for a ride at the Plains.  I was busy as a bee in the morning, as I decided (with Chad’s urging) that I better clean my bike (and more importantly, my brakes) off soon, or my components would soon turn to rusty chunks of metal.  You see, after the last ride at the Plains (when the highway up to Greenfield was wet and full of salt), I failed to clean my beauty off.  So, this morning, I was hunched over in the garage, doing the honors.  She’s shiny and good as new now.  Anyways, I originally planned to meet Walters up at his house for a ride on the Conway trails, but feeling like a chicken, I decided I wasn’t up for any marathon hills today.  After I threw my gear in the truck and began to make my way to Montague, I soon realized that I had forgotten my shoes in the garage, so I had to double back and get them.  This set me back a few minutes, and of course quickly ensured that the whole way up Rt. 116 and 47, I would get stuck behind every driver out for that proverbial “Sunday drive”.  Nevertheless, when I drove up to Mont. Center, Norm and Sam had only been waiting a few extra minutes.  We quickly geared up, and were on our way down to the trail entrance right over the railroad overpass.  When I hopped on my bike, it was the BEST feeling after being off of it for almost three weeks!  It felt comfortable and familiar, and I have to admit that although I don’t love winter or the cold weather, something about the day was just exhilarating.  Today was my first-ever ride on snow, (and my first ride at the Plains in DAYLIGHT but I really wasn’t nervous or scared.  (Come to think of it, 2003 was the year of firsts for me: first MTB. race, first night ride, first snow ride, first peep with Bob…).  We made it up the Telephone Pole trail without any problems, and it was a strange, yet interesting sensation to be crunching along on top of the packed snow.  The snowmobiles have packed the snow down pretty good in many areas, making our ride a bit easier than normal:  no sand pits, rocks, roots, mud, or STICKS to contend with!  We soon found ourselves on some neat single track, then crossed over a road for some more of the same.  Riding on the snow was, as I said, easy in a way.  However, it was also a great exercise in balance, because most of the time, we were riding in the center track made by the snowmobiles, which was about a foot and a half wide.  If your tire happened to stray too far left or right, you quickly met with a miniature wall that about 4 inches of packed, icy snow, and your tire was instantaneously pushed back in.  The single track was great…we flew along without much thought…it almost felt like a race, just cruising.  Very soon, though, our perfect snow world was shattered by the ice on the power line trails.  Ice, ice, everywhere!  Norm bravely proceeded ahead without a care in the world, so like lemmings, Sam and I followed without a second thought.  We cautiously made our way over the intermittent snow and ice, staying upright until…slip sliding away…Sam and I both took bad slips on the same patch of ice at the same time.  She later coined it “synchronized ice-sliding”, which I thought sounded quite elegant.  I, on the other hand, remarked that it’s the reason God gave us all butts (and in my case, the extra padding helped when I landed right on my keister).  We both got up, unscathed, though we automatically became skeptical of anything that appeared to be glazed over.  After some more of the ice, we turned onto several side trails (not singletrack), which we would go on and then run into long, extensive patches of ice.  We rode for a while and then turned back on most of these, wishing we had studded tires so that we could go further without having to worry too much.  I was just baffled by the sight of the Plains in the light…at night, it seems much smaller and confined…a good feeling to me, actually.  But, in the daylight, it’s clear to see how expansive the area is, and I felt very disoriented (luckily we had a map, just in case).  After a while, we decided to turn back and ride more of the fun, snow-covered singletrack that we discovered early on in the ride.  As the daylight began to fade and get flat against the snow, we made our way back down the Telephone Pole Trail back to the road.  We got back to the trucks, did a quick change, and then headed up to the shop to fill Bob and ME in on our expedition for the day and to eat various body parts of Peep Gingerbread Boys and Girls.  Overall, it was a great ride…great to be out on the bikes again, great to experience the nice weather, and great to escape any form of serious injury!   (To everyone:  If we don’t see you between now and then, Chad and I wish you all a Merry Christmas, and a happy, healthy New Year…thanks for making us feel so welcome the past few months!)  Submitted by Stephanie.

Monday 12/22: I had not gotten a chance to get out for a ride this weekend so I figured that I would try to get out this afternoon. Well it being the Christmas season I was pretty busy and it looked like I would have to wait until tonight to get out. I got an email from Ms. Caspergomaway and in reply I asked if she and Chad wanted to go for a night ride. They did and so we made a plan to go out at 6:00 to Montague. I wasn't too sure of the conditions so I did not invite the whole group. At 6:00 Chad and Ms. Caspergomaway arrived at the shop and after getting her set up with booties we headed over to the Plains. We parked at the Book Mill and quickly got our bikes and gear ready. I led Steph and Chad out of the parking lot and over to the Telephone Pole Trail. The snow on the trail was rock hard and perfect for riding. I rode up the hill on the snowmobile tracks to the fire pit where I waited for my companions to arrive. When they arrived at the firepit Steph said she was having a hard time on the icy trail, so I checked her tires to see if they were over inflated, because too much pressure would make it difficult for the tires to stick on the trail. I lowered her tire pressure  and Chad let some air out of his as well. I have been running on about 25-30 psi these last few weeks and that seems to give me great traction without any flat tires, and with my tonnage, that is a testament to the Fire X-C tires. After the adjustments we took a left onto the jeep road and then headed over to the Banked Trail. Chad was leading and I was the Sweep and we rode down the trail to the power lines. There was quite a bit of ice out on the power lines but we managed to avoid most of it and we made good time out to Plains Road where we stopped briefly to figure out which route to take. Steph said that the road was pretty tough to do so we decided to head over to Red Rock. Chad did much better than I on the climb, as he was able to ride up the hill with only one dab on a icy rock, while I had to dismount and walk over the first and second hill. I wanted to ride up the Swamp Trail but I didn't see that the usual route had been used by snowmobiles so I continued up the hill to where Chad and Ms. Caspergomaway were waiting. When I got up to where they were waiting I told them that I wanted to go across the field to see if there was a trail broken on the other side. I left my bike on the side of the trail and hiked over to the other trail and I found that it wasn't rideable, so I came back. As I neared the trail Ms. Caspergomaway spotted something in a nearby tree. She gasped: "It's a leopard!" when her light hit it. I put my light onto the tree and sure enough it seemed like there was a leopard skin wrapped around the tree. Chad seemed to be unsure of what it was and so I told him that it was a real skin and then I threw it towards him. Chad ducked and then he picked it up and donned the carpet for a second thereby earning himself a new moniker: Cheetah. After the rug bit Cheetah led us down the east side of Red Rock. Cheetah was true to his name and nimbly rode down the icy rocks and snow to the Brook Trail. I was a little more cautious on the descent (meaning: I walked) and I did manage to get to the bottom without falling. When Steph got down the hill we all headed off to the sand pit. We had to do an about face to ride over to the trail that we snowshoe'd on last Tuesday. The trails were in great shape although we ran into a couple of sections of ice that we rode around. We took the Banked Trail back to the Telephone Pole Trail and then we headed back to the parking spot. It was a good ride and a lot of fun for Cheetah too.

Tuesday 12/23: The conditions were pretty good yesterday so I thought that maybe there might be a chance that we could get another one in today. It was pretty warm today but there wasn't that much melting going on so when 6:00 came around there was a group ready to ride. We loaded our bikes in our cars and then headed over to the Book Mill parking lot. I parked the van and unloaded my bike and then got ready to ride. Joining me on the ride tonight was Steph, Jack, Robert, Walter, Gary F., Homer and Sarah Weis (who joined us after stopping at the shop just before we left). After everyone had gotten ready I led the riders from the parking lot to the Telephone Pole Trail. I got onto the snow and found it to be pretty firm at the bottom of the hill, but as I got further up the west facing slope, I encountered some pretty soft snow. I ended up walking for a little was as did most of the group. I stopped at the firepit to wait for the rest of the riders to arrive. Most of the riders were less than enthusiastic about continuing, but I convinced them that we should try. The trails were not that soft but the group was churning up the trails which made for a tough time. In addition to that, the loaner light that I gave to Sarah was not working well so I gave her my helmet light. After we got out to the power lines we decided to ride to Plains Road. Walter rode on the icy section and he fell a couple of times while Robert and Sarah sped right along on their studded tires. The group made it to the road and it was there that I  made a mistake in trail selection. After the trouble we had on the Telephone Pole Trail, I decided to forgo the climb up Red Rock and instead we headed down the road. We only got about a quarter of a mile before we encountered an icy brook that was unrideable for all but Sarah and Robert. This meant that we all had to walk along the edge of the brook, trying not to get tangled in the branches of the trees as we slipped and slid on the icy banks. When we got to the next intersection We took a right and headed over to the trail that we had snowshoe'd on last week. I tried to ride down the trail but it was impossible to not get bogged down in the soft snow so we turned around and headed over to the banked trails. At this point poor Sarah had no light left despite my giving her three different batteries. The group was ready to head back so we rode straight down the Banked Trail to the power lines. The trail was in great shape and I had no trouble riding the entire distance. Robert and Sarah had some difficulty due to their tires biting into the snow and bogging them down, but even they managed to ride most of the trail. We followed the power lines back to the Telephone Pole Trail where we got mired in the soft snow again, causing some people to dismount and walk for a distance. I had poor Sarah follow me down the hill but I got a little ahead of her and she smacked into a snowbank at the bottom of the hill when she could not see that the trail turned. Sarah was a trooper and she got up quickly and joined us for the ride back to the parking spot. All in all it was an OK ride. I always find something good about every ride regardless of how it turns out. Tonight's ride was one of those rides where you are just glad that you are able to ride.

Thursday 12/25: A Christmas gift to me was the nice weather we have had, so after the gifts were opened and the breakfast eaten I decided to go out for a ride. The plan was to go out about 2:00 with MaryEllen after she returned from her sisters house. But when ME finally arrived at 2:30 it was getting colder and the wind was really blowing so she decided not to ride. I went over to the shop and went out for a 17 mile ride. It was pretty nice although the wind was really howling on the way back. I managed to get back in just over an hour and just before it got dark. Any ride is better than not riding.

Saturday 12/27: Today is the other December holiday and so I decided to hold a ride to celebrate. It was another unseasonably warm day and we had a group of 9 riders for the trip. Joining me was Jeff V., Steph, Will Kraham, Gary F., Chris K., Brenda, Tom Martyn,  and Harold Green. The plan was to go down the valley for an hour or so and then return to the shop in about two hours. Today was Steph's first ride on her new road bike and so we decided to take it a little easy until we got down to Deerfield. Before we go two miles into the ride, Tom Martyn was on the side of the road re-tightening his rear wheel. Apparently the skewer wasn't tightened and the wheel slipped when we pulled onto Deerfield Street. We all stopped by the side of the road until he fixed the wheel and then we continued on towards Deerfield. I took the town line sprint and then headed across the bridge. As we rode past the antique center Jeff pulled over to the side with a "Bob is fat" coming from the group. I stopped and showed the group how a real pro can pull the tire off the without levers. After a short time we were back on our bikes and heading south. But before we got a mile down the road, I noticed that my tire was going soft so it was "Bob is fat" part two. I stopped and put some air into my tire and that seemed to do the trick so we headed off and made the turn onto Main Street in Deerfield. I led the group around the corner and then I dropped to the back to chat with some of the riders. But bad luck was soon to follow. After we got down onto Mill Village Road I noticed that the tire was soft again so called up to Chris Koh to see if he had a tube. Yep, not only is Bob fat, he is also stupid. It seems that when I left the shop, I left my tubes on the counter, but Chris came to my rescue. I stopped and fixed the flat but I needed to use my levers to force the tire off the rim. OK so I am not invincible. Anyway, after fixing my flat and adjusting Steph's saddle height, we were back under way. We rode down to Stillwater Road and then climbed the hill. We set a good pace as we pedaled down the hill on RT. 116 to So. Mill River, but as we headed towards Whatley, Brenda and Chris got a ways behind us and we had to double back to them. We rode down to the center of Whatley and then we took Christian Lane down to River Road. When we got to River Road we were hit with a brisk head wind which quickly left me and Brenda behind. Brenda and I rode together until we got to Sugarloaf Street where Chris and Steph were waiting for us. After we got going I suggested that maybe Brenda should maybe head over to Chris's house to wait as it seemed that she was getting tired. Brenda thought that was a good idea and she left us in the center of town. Chris, Steph and I then headed back to Greenfield where we expected to be greeted by the other riders. But when we got back it was nearly 4:00 and the rest of the group was still not back. They arrived soon after and they all said "Bob is a whale". It seems that when they crossed the railroad tracks in Hatfield three of the riders got flats. They got them fixed, but it took a while and they just made it back before it got dark. Many thanks to Chris Koh who supplied many of the photo's on this page.

Monday, December 29, 2003. Hear ye! Hear ye! The mountain biker has found a way to keep in shape for the spring and summer.  Yes, Saturday, I went to the “Dark Side”…I bought a road bike, and became a pseudo-roadie!  (Of course, you all I know I’m kidding…well, sort of)!  After some thinking around Christmas, I figured that in order to have a kick ass MTB. season in ’04, I should better do some road riding this winter, so with some suggestions from Bob, I purchased an ’04 K2 Mach S…not quite the Cadillac of road bikes, but I figured that since it is my first real foray into it, I should start off small and work my way up.  Don’t worry…drop bars will most likely follow in the next year or so.  Anyways, Saturday was to be my first true road ride.  For those of you who have not heard me tell the tale…for about 1 ½ years, I rode my too-big Marin MTB. on the road…don’t ask me why, but it seemed like a good idea (at the time, anyways).  I would chug up 116 in South Hadley, then cut across into Granby, past Mt. Holyoke College, then back home again.  The route was exactly 13 miles…and on a good day I could do it in exactly one hour.  Now, for those of you math aficionados, that’s a 13 mph average…no wonder I used to get passed up by roadies, old people on those scooter things, and the occasional squirrel or two.  Needless to say, riding those knobbies on the road wasn’t too efficient, but it was darn good exercise.  Fast forward to Saturday…I made my way up to the shop to check out my new bike, and there were many riders waiting there to join the ride.  It was a little over 40 degrees out, which felt balmy to me.  Many of us remarked that it would be a crime to pass up such nice weather (especially considering it is the end of December), and so we all set out around 1:30, down into Deerfield.  I had a squeaky back brake which sounded like the equivalent of those flying beasts featured in the Lord of the Rings movies (well now you’ll have a good reason to drop $7 and see the darn movie). Everyone knew where I was at all times!  We had several mechanicals along the way (reference Bob’s post), and not far after we passed through Old Deerfield, the group split up, sending a larger group on ahead, while Chris, Brenda, and I waited for Bob to change his “Bob is fat” (he also lowered my seat, and miraculously, I finally had an upstroke!).  Not much to my surprise, it’s a lot easier to ride a road bike on the road…wait a second…go figure that logic!  We made our way down into Whatley and cruised along at a respectable pace.  Right as we passed over the highway by the YCI factory, I gave a good push up the rise, and felt something in my right knee give a weird sort of pop.  Needless to say, we were only at approx. the halfway mark, and I felt trouble brewing, but not wanting to be a wimp, I kept riding.  After the pop, my knee fell into an aching sensation, which I figured out was due to my cleat alignment.  As we turned onto River Road in Whatley, we faced a very strong wind which gave us a challenge most of the way back.  Finally, after some strong pushing, we made it back to the shop, where Bob fixed my cleat, and all was good in knee-land (except for a bit of residual twinge that has continued to fade slowly but surely…bet those tourists at Old Deerfield were wondering what was up with the crazy girl on the bike pedaling with one foot!)  We logged 30 miles on Saturday, I finished feeling good, and Bob kept my bike to fix the back brakes (which turned out to be duds). (Submitted by Stephanie) 

Saturday, December 27th.

From an email I just sent:

So I missed another ride... As I sat in the 'comfy chair' looking out onto the snow-covered yard through the sliding glass door, I just couldn't motivate myself to leave this warm sunny room and head out into the cold for a (much needed) ride.

I tried to 'visualize' myself riding, hoping that if I thought about it enough my body would start to fall into line. But the more I thought about getting my stuff together, loading up the bike and heading South, the stronger the gravity field holding me to the Lazy boy became.

I look back and see that the last exercise of any kind I got was our Tuesday night snowshoe stroll at John and Kate's almost two weeks ago. I see now that the 'big bonk' I suffered that night was probably the first warning of the flu that would really hit me the next day. Sure enough, when I entered the 'Lord of the Rings' in the theater Wednesday night I was feeling great. When I walked out after 3+ hours of trolls, elves and hobbits I was circling the drain. I'd hate to think of how many people in the sold-out theater I infected with my germs while I hacked and coughed my way through the final hour of the movie :(

I spent the next six days using moans, groans and other monosyllabic utterances to try to elicit every bit of sympathy I could from Betsy. Unfortunately, she soon became sick as well (probably as just a way to avoid having to take care of me anymore)!

Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday came and went without any relief. I have very little memory of any of those days other than endless hours of lying curled up and sweating in bed, trying to put together at least 30 minutes of contiguous sleep. I have a major project due on January 1st and wasn't even able to check my email or read my online comics, much less concentrate on programming.

Monday and Tuesday found me beginning to feel slightly human again. We both celebrated Christmas by actually managing to get out of bed and showering. Ah... the simple pleasures.

Friday found me able to walk up and down the stairs without seeing black spots like I was finishing a town line sprint, so I tried to work. Let me tell you that doing database programming with an effective IQ of about 80-85 is a real joy. I spent 2-3 hours to get a good 15 minutes worth of work done before giving up to flip through the TV offerings for the rest of the day.

Today is Saturday. The sun is out. I WANT to be outside but my lungs still feel like they are 1/2 full of SOMETHING that is not air (I don't want to think about it too much). I should be working, but anything I do today I'll probably have to tear apart and do again when I can really think.

Tomorrow is another day. Maybe there is another ride going on? If so, I'll start now trying to talk myself into making it. It won't be pretty. I'm sure that anything I do right now would fall into the 'If it doesn't kill you, it will make you wish it had' category.

Sunday, December 28 Distance - 33.44 Average - 18.8 Ending Mileage - 2810.2
Ready or not...
I wasn't quite sure if I was rid of the flu enough to ride today, but wanted to get out and do SOMETHING so decided to show up at Bob's for his 1:30 ride. Most of the flu was out of my body except for a deep hacking cough that made my lungs feel like they were more than half full of fluid. There was a great turnout for the ride. I counted 16 riders in the parking lot just before we pulled out, with one more (Rick) showing up just as we were ready to ride off. Bob split the group before we even left the lot so there would be a definite division between the faster and slower groups. Otherwise, people get caught in the middle when we wait for things to naturally split up after the ride starts. Up until the time the ride actually began, I was thinking that I would ride with the B group. But since we were all riding the same route, I decided the go out with the faster group then have the safety net of being able to drop back into the Bs if things didn't go well. Eight riders started out in this faster pack (Michelle, Bob, myself, Will, John G, John, Peter Bell, +1 other). As we rolled down into town I was feeling great. It felt so good to be back on the road bike again! Bob knew that he wasn't going to have much luck with the sprints in today's group, so he went unchallenged for the Greenfield/Deerfield line at the Cheapside bridge. As soon as we were over the bridge, we turned up the first climb on River Road. This climb is a real barometer of how I am feeling. In the late summer, I hardly notice it at all. But in the Spring or when I'm not feeling well it hits me like a wall. Today I had just enough energy to make it past the "lawnmower man's" house still attached to the rear of the group. I settled into the rear of the pack and started to save up for the next climb. I knew that if I was going to drop on this ride at all it would be on the next set of two small climbs. I was surprised to top them both with the group still in sight ahead and was able to use the descents on the other side to catch the group's wheel again. I then practiced my 'Jamie' skills for the next 12 miles, just sitting in the back of the group sucking the wheel of whoever happened to be in front of me. Somebody would drift to the back of the group once in a while after taking a pull in the front, but I defended my position fiercely and made them pull in ahead of me, not behind. Once we hit the Sunderland town line on the bridge, I thought there was going to be some sprint action. Peter, Michelle and Will went out ahead, but the sprint never happened. We set up a paceline down 47, over Plumtree Road, then onto 116 East where we doubled it up. I maneuvered myself into the back of the double paceline as Bob and Will pulled us all the way back to Sunderland. John G had vanished from the group as some point, so we were now down to 7 riders. I was feeling good enough that I was half tempted to go out for the sprint on Meadow Road, but I knew that any effort would kill me for the remainder of the ride. As it was, Michelle, Bob and Peter went out VERY early for the sprint. I pulled out and followed them just fast enough to be able to keep them in sight so I could see the finish. Bob dropped off first when he realized just how far away the sprint was. Peter and Michelle kept it up for a while but just didn't have the energy to keep it going all the way to the line. The ended up side-by-side when they finally came around a curve and saw the line ahead. It was a close call, but Michelle finally took it by a wheel's length on the line. The pace picked up from here to Montague. This was the only section where I really felt I may have to drop off, but I managed to stay with the group up to the final climb up to Turners Falls Road. By this time, though I was feeling pretty well, I was starting to hack my lungs out. I must have sounded like death warmed over as I hacked and coughed my way up the road. The pace stayed pretty high all the way into Turners Falls. Finally we were on the ridge between Turners and Greenfield. I put everything I had left into this climb (I'll be damned if I was going to stay with the group all this time only to fall off in the last mile!) but only managed to creep up this hill at 10MPH. I topped the hill right on Peter's wheel, then we got lucky and caught the others where they had been delayed at the traffic light at 2A. Once back at the parking lot, it took a good 10 minutes to clean all the crap out of my lungs that had built up, but after that I was feeling much better than I had before the ride started. BTW: With this ride, I matched my total mileage from 2001 (not counting this year's mountain bike miles). This will probably be my last road ride of 2003, so it looks like the year will end at 2810.

Sunday 12/28: Bob planned another ride for Sunday, and even more riders showed up for the event.  We saw the appearance of Curt in quite some time, and were glad to see that he had made it back from the brink after being hit with the flu for a few weeks.  The group decidedly split up as we left the shop…the quicker, more experienced folks would go out for longer distance, and the second group planned to do about 20-25 miles.  Although Sunday was supposedly going to be warmer than Sat., those of us who took the River Rd. route to Sunderland (basically following the back, shaded side of the ridge, would disagree…it was quite chilly at times, making me wish I had worn my booties.)  My knee still felt tweaked from the day before, forcing me to hang mostly in my middle chain ring in the front, and having to spin it out to get over the hills.  We made it to the Sunderland bridge, then turned onto Rt. 47, and then eventually followed the river back into Montague, and then into Greenfield (which I quickly recognized as the route we take to get to the Plains.)  Harold and I joked about taking the bikes onto the Plains, while Matt quickly remarked that that would be something only Parrott would do this time of year!  After a hard push up the road to Poet’s Seat, we made it back to the shop just as Bob and his crew were finishing up their route.  We posted 25 miles, while they did 33.  We had chips and refreshments, and listened to Bob tell his humorous stories (which he never seems to run out of!)  I mentioned to Brenda that there is one sure way that many of us can divide our lifetimes (much like the designations B.C. and A.D. except in our case it’s B.B. and A.B…)!  (Submitted by Stephanie) 

Monday 12/29: Today we had a small ride planned for 1:00. I had called Steph and a few other people for what was to be my last ride of the year. I have ridden every day this last week and I wanted to keep it going as long as I could

Monday 12/29: Finally, today arrived and with another nice day (and prompted by Chad’s sudden decision to try a road ride), we made our way up to the shop for a 1:30 ride.  Again, we couldn’t pass up the chance to ride on such a nice day!  Bob fitted Chad up with a K2 just like mine to try, and he was ready to go.  Joining us on this ride was Bob, ME, Michelle, and Chris Koh.  Michelle and Chris originally planned to go out by themselves, but we convinced them to hang back and go with us.  Today was consecutive day #3 of riding, which I haven’t done in over a week (and the last time, it was MTB., not road riding), so needless to say, I was feeling it.  My knee continues to improve, and I was able to progress above the 2^nd chain ring, which felt good.  Bob also hooked me up with a computer, so I’m able to track everything.  My goal in ’04 is to log 1000 miles (maybe even 1500) on the road bike (which probably doesn’t seem like a lot to those roadies out there, but will be kind of hard for me since I plan to hit the trails ASAP!)  Our group rode 23.7 miles today, and averaged about 18 mph.  Chad did very well today, it being his first ride and all, and a few times he set a very respectable pace as we went down through Deerfield, then Sunderland, and up River Road back to Greenfield.  Bob and ME split off at one point to shave off a few miles, and we met them further up the road.  Cheetah lived up to his name, and made it look easy going up and over the hills, whilst I with my semi-bum knee spun it out to get up and over.  It’ll be nice to be able to give it a nice hearty push and stand up over the saddle on some of those hills once I am fully healed up!  We made it back to the shop, where Chris wanted to snap a picture of Michelle, Chad, myself, and him before Bob got back, but alas, just as he figured out the delay feature on the camera, Bob came ripping into the parking lot, and kindly joined us for the picture, along with ME.  We went inside to warm up, and Bob gave us newbie's some advice about pacing, group placement, and such.  Overall, it was a great three days on the new bike, and I look forward to logging many more miles with the group, and on my own!  (Submitted by Stephanie)       

Wednesday, December 31, 2003.  And I believe the quote from Monday’s ride report was: “Don’t worry…drop bars will most likely follow in the next year or so.”  Let the record reflect a change to that statement that reads such: “Don’t worry…drop bars will most likely follow in the next few days or so!”  With some advice from the BigMan himself (gee, does he ever run out??? Note: the preceding question was rhetorical, just in case you were wondering) I switched my straight handle bars for drops, and the work was completed today.  Yesterday, Chad picked up his new bike, also changed over to drop bars, and was anticipating a short trial run this afternoon once he got out of work.  I called Bob up at around 11 am, and he said that the bike was good to go.  To his knowledge, nobody was planning to ride, so I gathered up about half of my gear and threw it in the truck, and made my way up to G’field.  I was planning to ride by myself at home, for old times sake.  As luck would have it though, once I arrived at the shop, Bob informed me that Michelle and Michelle were planning to go out, so I decided I would join them.  Of course, my lack of tights and a jacket warranted that Bob bail me out, and ME was kind enough to lend me hers (thank you ME, and I hope that your size small tights are still small after I squeezed my legs into them!)  Today, I also tried out my new road shoes (Sidi’s, which are wider to accommodate my “peasant feet”)…they are so comfortable that I’m thinking of getting some for MTB. too.  The two Michelle’s and I were ready to go and we all took stock of how we were feeling, the suggested route, etc.  Without much debate, we settled on taking 63 to Northfield and 5-10 back, for a total of approximately 25 miles.  When the ride was over, we actually did 26.6 miles, with an average of about 17.5 mph.  The three of us set out, knowing it was another beautiful day and that we were lucky to have such great weather.  After a day of rest from the bike yesterday (although I lifted), I felt energized and ready to keep up a good pace.  All in all, the ride started off on a positive note, and it wasn’t long before we cruised through Turners and started over the rolling hills toward Northfield.  I was very glad to have the two Michelle’s with me…they gave me pointers along the way, and we all switched off leading the pack (the wind was definitely present, and although subtle at times, it was still there) so that the two in the back could catch a bit of a break.  I watched them carefully and tried to model how they shifted and climbed, and what gears they were hanging in.  At one point, Michelle pointed out South Mountain Road, and with a devilish laugh, told me that soon enough, Bob would lead us up.  I spent most of today in my big chain ring, as my knee only twinged slightly once or twice, and I was glad to have the momentum.  I still have much to learn, though, as we reached the slow, gradual mile-long hill past PVRHS.  About halfway up, I downshifted too soon, and my momentum gradually slowed.  The two Michelle’s, with their skill and experience, made it up without slowing too much.  We were soon on Route 5 and heading for “home”, interspersing our pushes with funny stories about the horrors of learning clipless pedals and such.  We sailed back into the shop in just about an hour and a half, where Brenda was trying out her new Lemond…she looked fabulous on that bike, and I’m sure she’s going to be great company throughout our future rides.  Happy New Year Everyone! (Submitted by Stephanie).