July 2003 Ride Report Page    

Here you will find the reports of our exploits for the month July 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 7/1: It was a beautiful day today. There was no wind, the temperature was in the 70's and there was not a cloud in the sky. That is until Jeannie B. and Kristina "the crab" showed up at 6:00 for the ride. Fortunately they were not going on the same ride as me and I was soon under the sunny glow of Jamie and IP, who were getting ready for the 35 mile ride up to Shelburne Falls. There was three groups heading out tonight. ME took 12 riders on a 20 mile loop out to Millers Falls and back, while the remaining 21 of us went out in two packs, on the longer trip. My group left the shop and headed south with Baby Bell in the lead. The group went out at a 18 mph pace and we all stayed together until Jamie dropped his magic pipe, and nearly killed MB and several others as he dove off his bike to retrieve his "go smoke" device. Now while all this was going on in the back, those of us at the front continued on. It wasn't until I got down on RT. 5&10 that I realized that there was a bunch of riders chasing us. That group was led by MB and they steamed right up to us just as we passed Sweet Kate who was leading a pack of seven riders. YOU GO GIRL!! Anyway we all made the turn onto Old Main Street and that is where IP and I lost contact with the main group. We rode together up Stillwater Hill and out onto RT. 116 where we caught up with Homer. The three of us rode more or less together until the hill really steepened and Homer pulled away from us. IP and I continued up the hill and we caught back up to Homer just as she turned onto Shelburne Falls Road. We rode the short distance to the bottom of the next hill where Homer again left us. IP rode at a steady pace up the hill and soon we not only had Homer in our sights, but Jamie and John Gustin as well. At the top of the climb MB was waiting and we re-grouped and headed down towards Shelburne Falls. This is a really nice road to ride on and we zoomed right along. Near the bottom of the descent there is a set of railroad tracks and after a couple of tense moments we were all safely across and into the village. We wheeled into Buckland and as we passed McCusker's Market; eagle eyed MB spied Michelle Lombardo's bike parked outside so he stopped to see if she was OK. The rest of us had already crossed the bridge when John came up to the front to tell me what MB had done. I turned around and headed back to see what was up and as I got across the bridge I saw Michelle riding towards me, so I turned and crossed the river again. After everyone was back in the group we headed out to the highway to begin the last leg of the trip. As always; RT. 2 is a tough road to ride in any direction, but it is even tougher if you are tired, which was the case for most of us. We rode together for a couple of miles, but IP and John came off the back on the last hill, so I stayed with them and we rode the rest of the way back into Greenfield together. When we got to the town line and started down the hill to the rotary, I went off the front to ride down the hill at 47 mph. John was right behind me and IP was a little way off from him. John and I waited for a couple of seconds at the traffic light and when IP arrived we all turned left and headed back towards the shop. We caught Jamie and two Michelle's near  Greenfield Community College. We rode together until the Silver Street hill where John, IP and I took it easy all the way back to the shop. I was pretty tired today and so I was glad to have IP and John to ride with. I hope to get some rest in the next few days and maybe I will be able to ride with the front group again.

Thursday 7/3: We had 22 riders show up for our ride tonight. It was a really nice night with clear skies and no wind. The temperature was 80 degrees and the humidity was pretty low as well, so it was a good night to ride. I led the troops out of the parking lot and headed north on High Street. After we got out on Bernardston Road I went to the front and led the group up the hill. I kept the lead past Newell Pond and then I pulled off and dropped back a few spots. I kept an eye on the group as we neared the town line and although I did not contest it I kept the pace high so that Curt and Michelle had to work hard. After the town line I stayed near the front until we turned onto RT. 10 and then I dropped back and rode through the rotation. I kept taking my turns at the front but at some point Tom Terrific snuck off the front and headed for the town line. As soon as I saw him off the front I rammed the speed up to 31 mph and tried to catch him, but he had too much of a gap and I couldn't close it. Tom stayed off the front all the way to Northfield where we caught up with him again. I worked pretty hard to keep the pace high and not get too blown away as we headed down RT.63. I got stuck at the front of the group for the lead up to the hills and I tried to pull off several times, but nobody would come through until we got on the first hill. I was able to drop back and catch my breath and plan my attack for the next town line. I knew that the town line is at the bottom of the long down hill, and although it is about a half a mile from the actual bottom, I can usually carry my speed that far. My hope was to jump the group on the uphill side and then wail the hell out of my pedals on the way down. Unfortunately I began my attack from too far back and too far away and I blew a gasket about three quarters of the way up the hill.

Friday 07/04 - Northampton Crit for Equal Access - Jamie Laurin is officially out of racing retirement! It's true! After much harassment before, on, and after the Thursday night ride, Jamie was lined up in front of the Hotel Northampton for the men's 4/5 race at 9:20. He made it about half way through the race before being pulled, but despite telling everyone that "Michelle bullied me into doing it," he seemed glad that he did it. He is now on the prowl for Cat 5 for old guys races. Luckily, I have found several of them for him. He couldn't have been hurting too badly since by the time I found him to get my verbal lashing, he had already been home, ridden back, and was getting ready to ride to a cookout! Joining Jamie in the 4/5 race was Brendan who came in 23rdish.
The next race of note was the men's 3/4 race which Brad, Pat and Peter Bell were in. Pat looked really strong and was in the front 3 for a couple of laps. Brad was holding steady in the front hoping that no one would crash in front of him again, and Peter was holding a strong position in the middle. Brad looked like he was in really good position at the end, but alas, for the second crit in a row, someone crashed right in front of him on the next to last turn. He did still finish 14th. Pat took 27th and Peter was right behind in 30th place. I think their race started with over 70 riders. And then, the "Elite Women" race which included some elite women and some not so elite women. There were some pretty quick women there and well, my goal was to finish and I did that (thanks to the fact that the officials did not pull anyone due to the field size of only 38). Lana reports being lapped 3 times and I, too, was lapped 3 times. (4 times if you count the winner who lapped everyone!!).
All in all it was a good day. We all kept the rubber side down. I have really enjoyed the recent races where more people from the Tuesday/Thursday rides have been coming. It's really a lot of fun and I hope that more people will join us.

Tuesday 7/08: This week was another week of my kids MTB camp. This week I have the 12 to 15 year old boys and all their energy to contend with. I was considering a big climb this week, but I wisely decided not to overload myself, so tonight I planned to do the Huckle Hill ride from the Bernardston side. MB suggested that we take Adams Road to give us a change of scenery and I agreed. I had 14 riders in my group when we headed out from the shop and we rode in a long line up French King Highway. It was a beautiful night for a ride although it was a little humid, and the temperatures were in the 80's with a south wind. I rode near the front until we got to Adams Road where the group started to string out. I dropped back to ride sweep partly because I did not have the energy to keep the pace as high as Bell and Doug Dale. I rode up the hill on Adams Road with IP and at that point the group was not that far ahead, but they pulled away from us on the descent. IP and I kept an even pace and soon we caught up with John Gustin and Jair near Hoe Shop Road. When we got to Streeters Store we were joined by Jamie and Mike Davis who waited for us there. Our group headed up RT. 5 to the Bald MTB Road bridge where we made a right and headed for the climb. When we turned left onto Huckle Hill Road our bunch strung out right away. I could see a couple of riders not too far ahead but I stayed at my pace and rode up the hill with IP. IP set a steady pace and soon we caught back onto the rest of the group and we all headed over the top together. I went on ahead on the descent and soon I caught up with Jamie and the others from our group. I hit a maximum speed of 56 mph which is pretty good for me these days. At the bottom of the hill we all soft pedaled to wait up for IP. When she got back on we headed for RT. 142. After the turn onto 142 we rode steadily towards Northfield where the sprint was contested by John and Jair, with the little lad taking the sprint. (This however would come back to haunt him a little later.) After the sprint we regrouped and rode over to Gill for another sprint between John and Jamie, which John took. After we all were back together, we took a vote as to which route we would take. The result was unanimous and we soon were taking Turners Falls Road to head back. I had IP leading as we headed past the four corners, and just at the right moment I swept around her and took the town line sprint ahead of John.  After that nonsense we kept the pace at 13 mph going up the hill by the golf course and everyone made it over the top in the group. From there we rode across the Gill-Montague Bridge and then we headed across the river to the Greenfield Road Climb. When we got back we had kept a 18.1 mph pace for the thirty-three miles. Not too bad if you ask me!

Tuesday, July 8th B.U. Huckle Hill/63/Millers Falls Distance - 37.88 Average - 18.9
Hot and humid, with some dark threatening clouds set the scene for tonight's ride. I was a bit worried about not being able to drink water quickly enough to replace what I was sweating out. I drank as much as I could stomach even before the ride started, then went through my first bottle on the ride before we even reached the bottom of the Huckle Hill climb! The start of tonight's ride was fast with no real warm-up time as we headed North to Adams Rd. Though we were all together at the Rte. 2 traffic lights, the group got spread apart almost right away as we started up the climb on Adams Rd. I put it the extra effort to stay with the front group (though I was a bit cautious, not knowing how long the hill was). I finally just started to drop off as we neared what turned out to be the final push over the top. Michelle went past me at this point, but I didn't have what it took to catch her wheel. The descent on the other side was steep enough to give me the boost I needed to catch and pass Michelle, then catch back onto the group's wheel, where I stayed until we hit Rte 10. As riders rotated off the front of the group, I waived them in ahead of me so I could stay on the back, just barely managing to hang on. I said goodbye as we crossed 10 and headed up Rte 5, leaving me to ride solo with nobody in site behind. By the time I got to the bottom of Huckle Hill, I wasn't sure where I stood in the group. Did the rest of the riders behind me come this way, or had they taken the shorter path to the base of the hill, putting them ahead of me? At the start of the climb, I spotted one rider far ahead of me and guessed that it was a trailing rider from the intermediate group. I settled in to try to catch the rider and managed to make up some time by the halfway point before the rider turned to come back towards me. It ended up being Michelle, who had also lost the wheel of the 'fast' group. We continued up the climb together and were soon joined by Michael, who suddenly came from nowhere behind us. We later learned that the group including Bob and Jamie were right behind us and had us in site on some stretches of Huckle Hill. If we had known that we probably would have regrouped with them, But thinking ourselves alone we settled in for the return trip with just the three of us. 142 South went quickly and soon we were on 63 heading towards Millers Falls. With only three riders in out group, we declared a 'truce' on the town and state line sprints to conserve energy. I was starting to feel the miles but when I slowed on some of the climbs Michelle and Michael slowed with me, so we must have all been feeling the same way. I drank the last of my water by the Erving town line and had a Gu in anticipation of the few last climbs. The short climb out of the town of Millers Falls really took it out of me, but I recovered quickly and actually enjoyed the next few miles into Turners Falls. Soon we were on the final climb over the Ridge and back to the shop. Everyone else was waiting for us back at the shop, as they had all come back through Gill to shave several miles off the trip. I drank as much as I could as soon as I got off the bike, and continued to drink all evening. Finally, by the next morning, felt that I had started to get re-hydrated. This may have been a good ride to use the Camelbak but on the other hand carrying that extra weight would probably slowed me down even more on the first climb. By Curt Bousquet

Wednesday 7/9: It rained all morning and I was really soggy after three hours of riding on the ridge, so when it got to be 3:00 and it still was raining, I told the first few riders that called to bag it. Well it turns out that the rain stopped and the sun came out at 5:00. I was already in the rest mode so when Kip showed up, I sent him on ahead to Northfield to do the ride. If I hear about the ride I will post it.

Thursday, July 10th B.U. Cave Hill Distance - 32.24 Average - 21.6
There was a great turnout for this ride tonight. I think us 'Beermonters' outnumbered the locals. I was a little worried about what the pace would be, since we had several very fast riders in the group who might bring the pace up to a level that would burn me out quickly. As it turned out, things were pretty mellow on the climb in Turners up past the market, then the pace slowly picked up as we made out way down to 63. Once on the climb up to the Cave Hill turn, I was surprised that the riders in the front kept things at 17-18MPH. A very easy pace to maintain on this section of road. I was feeling rested and fairly ready for the climb as we took the turn past the mill. As soon as we turned onto Cave Hill, I dropped off the back like a rock. Once I fell to the back, I didn't really lose contact with the group. Everyone was pretty stretched out over the climb but the nearest group of 3-4 riders was only 50' or so in front of me for the entire climb. I wasn't able to close this gap, but on the other hand it didn't get any bigger! As I rolled over the top, I was determined to make up some time on the riders out of sight ahead. I passed several riders on the other side of the hill (with Tom Silko taking advantage of my burst of speed and catching my wheel). We got to the stop sign at the bottom just in time, with a final burst of speed from Tom, to attach ourselves to the main field. At this point, several of the fastest riders had already detached themselves from our group and were never seen again. Michelle got the sprint on Bull Hill Rd, but my excuse is that I didn't even realize there was a town line on the road until she went flying past me for the win. The pace remained high all the way back, but the dynamics of the group were really messed up. For some reason there was a lot of braking going on in the group and when we attempted to set up a double paceline on 116 it never really formed. I think we had a few riders who weren't 'regulars' with our group and would need a few more rides with us before knowing how things worked. I was feeling winded by the time we made it onto the flats South of Old Deerfield, so with the exception of the nice downhill onto the flats, I sucked on someone else's wheel (mostly Tom's or Malcolm's) all the way back to Greenfield. I was feeling recovered as we hit the final back roads to the shop, so instead of slowing to cool down I dug in a bit and maintained a fast pace all the way back to the shop. By Curt Bousquet

Thursday 7/10: It was a beautiful day today! There was cloudless sunny skies, low humidity and the temperature was an even 78 degrees at 6:00 when we left the shop for a trip over to Cave Hill. We had 33 riders and we split into three groups. My group had 19 riders at the start. We left the shop and headed over to Turners Falls in a very long line. I was a little pooped from three hours with the kids on the mountain bike but I wanted to do what I could. I managed to stay in the middle of the bunch over to Turners and then up the Third Street Hill. At that point I drifted a little further back but still in the group. I knew that I had to work hard to keep in contact with the peleton, because if I did get dropped, I knew that it would be a long, long ride home alone. I rode near the front as we passed through Montague Center and I was doing OK as we did a split around the traffic island on RT. 47.  After we crossed RT.63, I pushed as hard as I could after we began the climb but I soon found myself at the back of the bunch. I told Jamie that I was not going to go that hard and if the town line sprint went off too hard I was going to pop. I stayed at the back when we made the turn onto Cave Hill, but as the climb steepened, I rode an even tempo and soon I moved up the line several places. I started the descent four or five riders from the back and soon I was overtaken by Curt who went flying by me. At the bottom of the hill we re-grouped and headed over to Leverett. I was feeling a little better now that the hill was over and took several turns at the front of the group. I am still a long way off my form of last year, but I am improving all the time. We all flew down to RT. 63 and then onto Bull Hill. I was at the front and tipped the group about the up coming town line. This got Curt and Homer going with several others and the speed went way up. I cruised past the sprinters when the sat up, and once again I was on the front. I got off as soon as possible but when we got down to 116 I was again in the wind. I asked the group which way they wanted to go after the bridge. The group voted to take the flatter route through So. Deerfield. I stayed near the front of the group and took several turns at the front as we made our way over to Mill Village Road. We all stuck together down the hill and as the speed got up to 27 mph on the flat I found myself at the front again. I did a long pull, but I got off before Main Street and was able to recover before we got to the highway. After a confusing highway crossing I was again at the front and I started the run back to Greenfield. I knew the guys were coming and sure enough Tom Silko came flying by me at the Wok restaurant. Just as he got to the bridge however, Parrott came down the hill on River Road and he flew out onto the bridge for a run at the town line with Silko. The faster group ahead of us had taken River Road back and now we were all back together. After getting to Hope Street, I soft pedaled for a while before spinning back to the shop with Curt and Tom. It was a nice ride with the pace at 21.5 mph.

Sunday 7/13: I closed the shop a little late tonight and after the last customer left and then I headed over to Montague. It was another beautiful day with low humidity and 70 degrees under sunny skies. Joining me tonight was Jack, Al Mason, Harold Green, Brian Pierce, Kip, Mark C., and Bart. After a couple of quick repairs on Harold's bike, we were on our way over to the Telephone Pole Trail. We kept a good pace up the hill and then we continued on to Parrott's Trail. I rode at a steady pace in the middle of the group and I stopped at the turns to make sure that everyone went the right way. After we turned onto the banked trails I picked up the pace and I caught up with the group at the power lines. We continued across the flatter trails all the way over to Willis Hill Road. At the rest stop on the road we decided to try to ride up to the water tanks. We rode up the trail for a few hundred yards and then we hit the overgrown section of the trail. We had to stop several times to clear some brush and low hanging branches, but we were able to ride most of the way over to the climb to the tanks. I was at the back when I tried to ride across the rather poor bridge over a stream. I hit the bridge at a weak spot in the plywood and my front wheel went right through and I went right over the bars. I quickly got back on my bike and rode up the hill to where the group was waiting for me. After I got there I led the group back over to Willis hill and we then made the climb up to the top on the wooded trail. I managed to make it all the way up and I waited for everyone to join me before heading down through the pine forest. The group rode down the trail and took the first left to head back uphill to the swamp. I managed to do the climb without any difficulty but I got bogged down in the swamp and had to walk up the hill to where the boys were waiting. We rode down the Kiabuckus Trail and after some discussion we continued downhill to Red Rock Road. At the bottom of the hill we took a sharp right turn and headed right up the rock. I was able to ride up the hill right behind Brian and we led the boys over to the Swamp Road where our path was blocked by a bunch of drunken idiots in pickup trucks. The morons were stuck in the middle of the hill and on every attempt at going uphill the truck bed that was full of beer cans and rubbish, spilled some of the refuse onto the trail. We decided to take the other route and not confront these boneheads. We rode down the hill and then headed out to the power lines. From here we took the Toilet Bowl Trail back to the Telephone Pole Trail. I rode down the trial to the hardtop to help the riders cross the road and then I headed back to the van. It was an awesome ride on a great day.

Tuesday 7/15: I was unable to make it to the ride tonight. I was really pissed off but that is life in the retail business.  I would like to a report on the ride so if any of you have time and want to jot something down please send it along.
Tuesday, July 15th West Hill - Bernardston P.O. ride Distance - 30.19
First Annual "West Hill/Bikes Unlimited" Combined Ride

Tonight was 'my' West Hill ride. I had signed up earlier in the Spring to lead this ride. I based it upon the same ride last year, basically dropping down to Turners Falls then over the old bridge under the French King bridge and finally back on routes 63 and 10. On Monday night I used my mapping software to create a route map and directions so I could have handouts for the ride. I printed 15 copies which turned out to be way short of the number I actually needed. Bob and I thought it would be a fun idea to combine this ride with his Tuesday group, so I planned the route to drop down to his shop on Rte 2a before turning East to Turners Falls. We agreed that once the two groups came together, one of use would lead the 'short' loop, while the other would bring anyone who wanted a longer ride South for a loop through Montague. I was going to be riding 'sweep' on the ride, so I wanted to get a few more miles in. I showed up early for the ride and took a warm-up ride up a good part of Huckle Hill. By the time I got back to the Post Office, there were already 20+ riders ready to go with more arriving every minute. By 5:40, the count was up to 35. I called Bob from my cell phone to let him know when to expect us and that we were on our way. As we turned on to River Road, I dropped to the very back of the group to ride sweep. I stayed with a nice group of people (mostly new riders) all the way to Rte 2 where we waited through three full cycles of the stop light before just going crossing against it. As we approached Bob's, some of the riders I was with turned down towards Turners to get a jump on the ride, while I continued on to the shop. With the two groups combined, we must have had over 50 riders in the parking lot. :) I called for anyone who was planning on the 25 mile ride to follow me and we headed out. I was a little surprised to see the ratio of people who had decided on the longer ride. The 25 mile ride only attracted about 20 riders out of the total group (15 leaving Bob's with me, plus the half-dozen or so who hadn't stopped at his shop). Roger knew the route, so he went to the front while I stayed with the back of the group. I told anyone who wasn't familiar with the ride to 'Follow the guy in the white T-shirt'. He stopped the group a few times to bring everyone back together. We had a really nice ride down Mineral Rd, over the bridge, Under the French King Bridge and up River Road on the East side of the river. On the directions I had handed out I had directed people to climb back to 63 at Ferry road, so I did this to sweep that route while most of the group decided to continue straight past the sod farms. For the last several miles up 63 and over 10, the route was pretty obvious so some of the riders sprinted off the front. we also started to sweep up some of the riders who had started out much earlier or never stopped to regroup. I let out some pent-up energy by pushing myself to the top of the Rte 10 climb, then rolled back down it to ride sweep again. The front riders of the 'long ride' group also passed us on this part of the road. After we pulled back into the parking lot, riders kept trickling in in small groups for the next 20 minutes. About a dozen of us headed to the Four Leaf Clover for dinner before heading home to watch today's TDF stage.

Wednesday 7/16: Our trip to Northfield got rained out again. We will try next week.

Thursday 7/17: Tonight was our trip to South Mountain and what a night it was. The weather was absolutely perfect with low humidity temperatures in the 70's and a group of 30 riders showed up for what is the toughest hill that we do. I was feeling OK tonight so I decided to keep with the Intermediate Group for the trip. We left the shop and headed over to Turners Falls and the group was still together as we began the climb up the Third Street Hill. On the hill, however, Brad, Baby Bell and three other riders took off and we never saw them again. I rode up the hill with Tom Terrific and Michael Beh and when we got to the top we headed towards Millers Falls. I noticed that the group had split off about 7 riders and so I had Tom Silko go back and pace them on while I went to the front to slow the pace. We had a large group going into Millers Falls but that didn't stop Homer and Curt from sprinting for the town line, which Homer took at the line. After that we all settled in for the trip to the mountain. The pace was pretty mellow as we headed into the turn onto South Mountain Road. I was near the front but I drifted back as I got into my tempo. I started up the stiff part of the climb with my heartrate pegged at the red line. I kept my pace at just below the "pop" level and I managed to work my way through the field. I was just behind Harold Green when he flipped off his bike on the 24% slope (He was OK, he just misjudged the pitch as he weaved across the road and made the turn uphill too sharply.) and I soon caught up with Norm Flye who got a flat. I kept my place in line and tried to keep pace with Curt and Lana. As I got near Four Mile Brook Road I heard someone coming up from behind. It was Pat Bell. He had forgotten his shoes at home and he drove from Greenfield back to Amherst to get them. After he got to Amherst, he got on his bike and managed to catch up with us on the climb. Pat blew right past me and headed off to catch up with the leaders. I did reasonably well on the climb and finished the hill pretty strongly. Everyone regrouped at the top of the climb and soon after that we were flying down the descent to Gulf Road. The group kept pretty much together on the uphill part of Gulf Road but the riders got strung out on the serpentine descent. I flew down the hill at 55 mph and passed quite a few riders. At the bottom of the hill, I coasted down to Maple Street where the faster riders all waited up for the group behind us. After everyone arrived, we made the left turn onto Main Street, and then we turned right onto RT. 10 to head back to the shop. I was riding at the front with Jamie and Curt as we crossed the river and began the climb up to Gill.  As we neared the town line I was keeping and eye on the front of the field to see if there was going to be a sprint. Nobody sprinted but the pace quickened quite a bit and I didn't notice that a split in the peloton had opened up. As we neared the top of the hill I heard Silko yelling something as he came up from behind me. I thought that he was saying "Bob is fat, Bob is fat!", so I put some pressure on the pace to show that miscreant who was fat. I pushed the pace for a little while and then I drifted back to where Tom was to see if he had repented. Well, as it turns out,  what Tom was saying was: "Bob, there  is a flat".  At this point we were too far ahead to be of any help so I decided to continue on with the 10 or so riders that we had left. (As it turns out, Jeff VonDauber was the rider who had flatted on the Bennett Meadow Bridge. He had a couple of riders stop with him and he was able to fix the flat and continue on.) We motored down RT. 5&10 and made the turn onto Barton Road, where Curt and Silko went for the town line. Jim Hayssen was the main motor for most of the trip down Barton Road. He was almost always on the front, keeping the pace fairly high, from the time we turned onto RT. 10 right up to the end. We raced down Barton Road to Country Club Road where we turned left and headed back down to Silver Street. I was getting tired as we made the turn onto Silver Street, so I soft pedaled down to High Street. I rolled into the parking lot and was greeted by the Bell's, Jim Smith and the other riders from the Expert Group. I was pretty happy with my ride tonight, but I was really tired. I waited at the shop for the rest of the bunch to get back and soon after 9:00 I headed for home. Another epic ride in the books.

Thursday, July 17th
B.U. South Mountain Distance - 33.56 Average - 17.9
After weeks of anticipation, we finally did the 'South Mountain' ride tonight. I was curious to see what difference my new bike/gearing made on the climb, but still realized that it wasn't going to be easy. Though my bike is several pounds lighter than the one I was riding at this time last year, I weigh 5 pounds MORE, negating any benefit of the lighter bike. :( Everyone started off slowly and maintained a nice pace out to Millers Falls, conserving our energy for the climb itself. Bob attempted several times to set up a double paceline on the wide-shouldered road, but the people that were in the front weren't 'getting it' so Bob finally gave up. Tom Martyn and I were at the front as we approached the Millers Falls town line, but we decided that we weren't going to waste any energy on the sprint. No sooner had we decided this than Michelle came up from behind and challenged me for the line. Well, I couldn't ignore THAT so I chased after her. It was close, but I think I took it on the line. From there, I sat towards the back of the line all the way up 63 to the climb, trying to time my Gu intake so it would kick in just as I reached the steepest part of the climb. Michelle was saving her legs for two races this weekend, so continued on North as the rest of the group turned onto South Mountain road. I let myself drift to the back at the bottom of the climb. It is hard enough without people passing me on the steepest part, so I decided I'd rather ride in the rear then make up time if I was feeling up for it. It was 1/2 mile or so before the grade increased to 15% or more. There was a lot of groaning as riders tried to shift one last time and realized that they were already in their lowest gear. I finally dropped into my 30-27 on this stretch just before turning a corner and starting in on the 24% grade part of the climb. All I can say about this section is that I made it... I didn't have to weave back and forth due to my low gearing, and I didn't have to stop. The less I remember about the specifics, the better. As soon as we topped this steepest part, there was a short downhill then another mile or two of 'gentle' climbing (everything is relative) before we hit the top. After a very steep descent, we hit a few more miles of rolling climbs before a nice long drop into Northfield. In minutes, we were on Rte 10 heading East to Bernardston. Tom Silko came past the front of the group yelling something about 'Bob is fat! Bob is fat!'. Later he clarified that he was really telling us that someone in the back of the group had a FLAT, but we didn't realize this at the time and kept going. Jamie took the front of the group all the way up the Rte 10 climb and I was happy to let him stay there all day if he felt like it. Once past 142, the pace really picked up into Bernardston. It wasn't until we hit the 5&10 intersection that I looked back and realized that our group was down to only 7 riders. We decided on Barton Rd as a route back, where I tried to pass Tom Silko for a town line sprint but lost by just a few inches. The pace never let up down Barton road then Country Club road. We were rolling along at 27-30MPH in a nice line. I was happy as long as I wasn't being asked to take the front. By now my legs were pretty toasted and I was just happy to be able to hang with the group. One more little push brought us back to Silver Street, then a short but fast sprint back to the shop after having to stop for a light as we crossed Rte 5.

Sunday 7/19: It was another really nice day today and I left the shop at 5:00 with Gary and headed over to Montague Center. I was met over there by Chris Koh, PJW, Laura, Parrott, Nice Kate, and Jack. After repairing a flat for Parrott and pumping up, we then headed out for the Telephone Pole Trail. The group rode to the top of the hill and we then took the left at the fire pit to head over to the Toilet Bowl Trail. Parrott and Kate were able to stay at the front of the group due to the fact that they were on Cyclocross bikes which roll faster on the flatter ground. The rest of us followed them out to the Toilet Bowl Trail where we headed into the singletrack. Parrott rode along at the front with me  as we paced the group out to the power lines. At the power lines we decided to ride a new route so I let Parrott take the lead and we headed for the Mixing Bowl. Parrott tried some of his well known horseplay with me, but I got the better of the lad, by taking the group back into the singletrack. Parrott stayed behind with PJW and Nice Kate, while the rest of us headed up the hill. I rode behind Laura while she made the trip up to the top of Willis Hill where the rest of the crew was waiting. I rode over the top and headed down the hill, turning in a less than stellar performance on the descent. We waited a couple of minutes before Nice Kate, PJW and Parrott came over the top and down to us. Kip and I led the group into the swamp and the group waited while Chris and I moved a huge log out of the path. Parrott just stood by, wishing that he had the strength left to help us with our chore. After the trail maintenance we headed off to ride over to the water tanks. This route is the reverse of the trip we took last week and is somewhat easier to do. Everyone paused at the water tanks before we all rode down the grassy hill. After crossing the rickety bridge we headed up the hill onto the "trail". The trail is quite overgrown in places and although you can ride it, it requires that you duck and dodge some of the branches and logs along the route. We rode down the trail to Willis Hill Road single file and we regrouped at the four way. We then took the dirt roadway over to the Banked Trails which led to Parrott's Passage. We came out onto the power lines and then we ripped down the Telephone Pole Trail to the hardtop road. I spun back to van at the back of the group and enjoyed the end of a really nice day.

Tuesday 7/22: There was a threat of thunderstorms again today and I was not sure that we would get the ride in. We had scheduled the ride and a BBQ as a booster for the ALA fall benefit ride. It was raining at 3:30 and so I told the people who called to wait and see what the conditions were at 5:30. As we got close to 6:00 the roads were dry and 10 riders showed up for the ride, so I got ready for the trip. Doug Dale and Dick Easton had come over to do the ride and had agreed to be the leaders while I took up the sweep duties. The route was the Sunderland 25 mile loop and the group headed out from the shop and over to Turners Falls. We got pretty well strung out on the Third Street Hill but we came back together at the top. We cruised down the road towards Montague Center and another gap opened up with Doug, Dick, Tim Silva, and Marty going off the front. I stayed behind with Jeff, Chris, and Dan and we rode to the turn onto Ferry Road together. As we rolled down the hill we caught up with the group in front for a short time but as we got to the flatter section of Meadow Road a trio of riders went off again. Doug, Dick and Tim rolled ahead of us and soon were out of sight. The remaining riders and I set a good pace to keep our group together. We arrived in Sunderland to find Tim waiting for us. It seems that he got dropped by Doug and Dick so he waited for us to come along. After he got onto the front we ripped over the Sunderland Bridge and then up the hill to Sugarloaf Street. I brought the pace down after the turn to give the riders at the rear a chance to catch up and get a little rest. I rode at the front with Tim and we motored through town at 21 mph. I took the lead up to Mill Village Road and the pace quickened a bit all the way into Old Deerfield. We all did a nice pace line up RT. 5&10 into Greenfield and then back to the shop. We finished the ride with a 19.7 mph average, not too shabby for a small group.

Wednesday 7/23: We had a small group of riders for our MTB ride tonight. Although there was a prediction for rain, none fell, so Liam, Kip, Rodney and I left for a trip to the Coke Plant. We rode the trails behind Stop&Shop over to the RT. 2 crossing and then we re-grouped at the truck turnout. I decided to take a different route than usual tonight and we headed off to do the Swamp Trails over to the Cellar Hole. I managed to stay in the group, but Liam and Kip were clearly much stronger than I was. Rod and I took several shortcuts to keep up and we certainly did not have the stuff to stay with those two. After crossing the swamp we headed up the Ridge Trail to the Secret Trail. There has been a lot of motor traffic on this trail and the motorcycles have hacked a few new trails as well. I managed to keep Kip and Liam in sight for most of the way up the trail, but lost them after the steep section. When I got to the top Kip and Liam we already at the water tank so I yelled up to them and told them to head over to the power lines while I would wait for Rod. When Rod came along we took a shortcut to the Crossover Trail and then waited at Red Rock for Liam and Kip. After they arrived we then headed down the hill to where Jack's Pond was. After the town cut down all the trees we have to relearn the old routes again. I led the boys over to the Streambed Trail and then we turned onto Deer Run. Liam and Kip wanted to do Double Death so the three of us headed over to do it while Rod took Stinger Trail back to the Ridge Trail. None of us made it all the way up the climb, but Kip did the best. After getting to the top of the hill we headed down to meet up with Rod. After getting down to where Rod was we decided to take Mud Road back out to the power lines. We rode back across RT. 2 and then we headed back to the shop. It was a great night for a ride and we all had a good time.

Thursday 7/24: Tonight we did an abbreviated ride due to the chance of thunderstorms in the area. My plan was to do a 38 mile loop down to Plumtree Road and then up Bull Hill and back through Montague. I sent out the Bell's, Jim Smith, Brendan and Andrew "TDF" Hilton ahead of our group and we followed them down High Street until the slowly pulled away from us. As we neared the hospital, John Bentley and Jim Hayssen took off to try to catch them. I was going to tell them not to try too hard, because if they did not make the group before Hope Street, then they might as well wait for us. But I didn't and neither did they, so they did the ride by themselves. The rest of us headed down River Road with Malcolm and Tommy pushing the pace on the first few hills. I rode near the front of the group to keep things sort of together, but Rich Dorherty and several others kept pushing hard on the hills so I did my best to keep at the front. I managed to sneak past that bunch on the last hill to crest the hill in front. After the hill I rode down to the flats and I could see some really nasty clouds off to the east, where we were supposed to go, and I could hear the thunder. At that point I took a look to the west and I noticed that the skies were clear and the sun was poking through. So, guess which way we went. The road was pretty wet as we got near the end of River Road and we all had to pay attention to the large puddles left over from the storms that past through just before we got there. We crossed RT. 116 and headed down River Road in Whatley with myself and Tommy leading the way. The roads were not as wet on this side of the river and as I looked over to Sunderland I could see the rain coming down in buckets. I was really glad that we didn't go over there. (More on that, later.) We rode up Christian Lane and carefully crossed the railroad tracks. After the tracks we almost stopped at the Ballet for the Tommy show, but he did not want to perform tonight so we continued on. The group crossed RT. 5&10 and we headed up the hill and Tommy and Malcolm sprinted to the top first. We rolled down the hill and I had to keep order in the group because of the horseplay of Michael Beh and Malcolm. I got those two clowns under control and just after I did, Tommy started to act up. Fortunately there was a big hill and I sprinted to the top and that took the steam out of the Beermonters for the time being. After rolling down the hill, we came up to the town line sprint, which I did not see because I was chatting with Michael at the back of the group. We rolled over to Mill Village Road and did the usual race down the hill and around the corner. We kept the pace fairly high all the way to Old Deerfield where we had to slow down to cross the highway. After everyone crossed the road, the pace quickened for the rip back into town. Malcolm took the Woolman Hill cut-off to try to gain an advantage on Rich and myself, but we sped up and pulled out ahead of him. I tried to accelerate to 25 mph in order to "steal" the coveted Greenfield town line sprint, but Tommy used his buddy's from Beermont to launch himself right past me at the bridge. I was getting a bit tired at this point so I drifted to the back and rode up to High Street at a moderate pace. The group strung out on High Street and we all streamed into the parking lot just as the sun was setting. When I got there, the Bell's were waiting and they told me that they had gotten hit with a rain storm on River Road in Deerfield as well as one in Sunderland. The rain was so hard that they had a hard time keeping the wheels on the road going up Bull Hill Road. They got rained on most of the way back. Soon after we got back, John and Jim came rolling in. They too got hit with the rain as they tried to catch up with the Bell's. They never got close enough to see them, so they just did the ride themselves. Although it was a wet ride, it wasn't too bad and everyone seemed to have had a good time.

Sunday 7/27: It was a sunny warm day today, with a little humidity in the air, but not too bad considering what it is sometimes this time of year. I rode over to Montague with Gary and we were met there by Harold and Matthew Green as well as Parrott, Nice Kate, Peter, Mark C., and Jack. We left the common and took the Telephone Pole Trail up to the power lines where we re-grouped to decide a route. I told Parrott that we should do a loop over to the lake and so we headed off to do that. We meandered through the trails and ended up over on the Banked Trail, where we took a right to head over to Lake Pleasant. We rode the snowshoe trail over to the lake where we briefly rode to the shoreline and then headed back to cross the brook that feeds the lake. Parrott decided to use a fallen log as a bridge but Nice Kate said that she wanted to cross upstream where the water wasn't so deep.  I followed Nice Kate as she led us on a path to the crossing point. As we got near the cross over, Nice Kate told us that there was a lot of poison ivy, and we should be careful. I did my best to stay on the trail and away from the vegetation. We crossed the brook without any trouble and I remounted my bike and started to ride up the hill. I got most of the way up but had to stop when the pitch went almost vertical. At the top of the hill we found ourselves along side of the railroad tracks which we followed to the path that leads to the village. Parrott forgot to be nice, and picked a rutted path which caused Nice Kate to fall down. She did not say any naughty words, but I think maybe she might have thought of a few. After Nice Kate got up, we rode over to the Bridge of Names. We crossed the bridge into Parrottville and we took the hardtop rode over to the Fairy Forrest. Nice Kate decided not to take the trails and she rode the pavement back to County Road where she waited for us. We took a quick ride through the Fairy Forrest, (which is quite beautiful) and we popped out onto the road where Nice Kate was waiting. We took Parrott's Passage to the Banked Trail and then we meandered across some lesser used trails that took us over to Red Rock Road. Everyone but Nice Kate decided to take a trip over Red Rock. Nice Kate took the Brook Trail and met us at the sand pit. After a brief stop, we headed for the Toilet Bowl Trail. We rode at a good clip down the Toilet Bowl Trail and just before the usual turn, Parrott decided to take a little detour. He headed off on a longer loop out past the spring, and then we rejoined the Toilet Bowl Trail again. After that we headed back to the Telephone Pole Trail where we ripped down the hill to the hardtop road. I stayed near the back and did a cool down spin back to the van. I had a really good ride, as did the rest of the riders, and soon after getting back I loaded the bike into the bus and headed for home.

Tuesday 7/29: Tonight's ride is another new route, one that I have planned to do in the past, but I just never got around to doing it. I made the route out after driving most of the course, and although there are some rough sections, for the most part it is in good condition. The weather was just about perfect tonight. We had sunny skies with low humidity and little or no wind. At 6:00 we had 25 riders for my ride and 6 people going with MaryEllen on the "birthday boy" ride. Just before the ride left I had made some adjustments to my bike and changed a flat. This is almost always a mistake, and I was soon to find out why. I led the group out of the parking lot at 6:05 and we headed for Silver Street. As I rolled down to the traffic light I noticed that my computer wasn't working. I reached down and fiddled with the pickup, but to no avail. After a few minutes of reaching down trying to get it going, I decided to pull over and do it right. It only took a few seconds, but I was quite a way behind the group. I humped it all the way to the turn onto Nash's Mill Road before catching the front of the bunch. I road at or near the front of the group down Colrain Road to the turn onto Old Greenfield Road. At this point I shifted gears and prepared for a long climb. Quite a few riders went in front of me on the early slopes of the hill, but I was patient and settled into a nice cadence. As the hill steepened I shifted up a few cogs and then the fun began. It seems that the chain would skip off the 17 and 19 tooth cogs in the big ring, but not in the small ring. This left me with a choice. Either I had to pick a cog that was too hard to push in the big ring or shift to the little ring and spin. I chose the latter and soon I was spinning up the incline. I managed to catch up with a few riders as I got near the top, but the high cadence left me a little winded. I ended up riding over the top of the hill with Brent, Sean, Nancy and the Gustin's. When we got to the first turn there were several riders waiting for us. It seems that I had written the cue sheet with the wrong road name. I had said that the left turn was onto Lucy Fisk Road when in fact it was Zera Fisk Road. Anyway we paused for a moment and then when the rest of our group arrived we turned onto Zera Fisk and began the descent. This road is very narrow and really pretty rough. There are sections of dirt as well as some really rough pavement. I flew down the hill behind Brent and Sean and we all did very well dodging the potholes. When we got to the four way, there was some confusion as to which way we had to go, but we soon sorted it out and we headed straight through. The rolling hills were some relief for my gears as I didn't have any skipping in the smaller cogs. We made the merge with Bardswell Ferry Road and began the big descent to the river. This is a fairly dangerous road with many turns and blind corners, so I kept cautioning the riders not to go too fast. After crossing the railroad tracks, which are in the middle of a hairpin turn, we then headed across the bridge. Brent kept asking me if the hills we over and I kept telling him that they were not. Well, you should have seen the expression on his face when he made the corner after the bridge and he looked up. The road goes almost vertical for several hundred yards and then it just is steep for the next mile or so. The "boys" (Brent and Sean) were really suffering here, and Brent kept asking if the hill was over yet. I told Brent that the good news was that "this" hill was almost over, but we had two more just like it left to do. Brent was overjoyed with this news and he seemed to start singing the praises of the course designer, or so I thought. After we got to the crest of the Bardswell Ferry climb, I told the riders that they ought to consider eating some GU or energy bars, because we had some more climbing to do. QN thought this was a good idea so she opened a GU packet and started to down the contents. I was riding next to her and I noticed that she was having some difficulty with the GU. She had gotten more of the GU onto her shirt than into her mouth. "Ant Penny Says: Put the GU into yourself not onto yourself."  After lunch, I went to the front of the group to make sure that everyone made the turn onto RT. 116. I made the left turn and headed up the hill where I then turned onto Whatley Road and sat up to wait for the rest of the group. We all rode to the base of the climb together, but as the hill steepened the group strung out quite a bit. John and Jair rode with me up the hill and we all soft pedaled until the group got back together. Brent asked if there were any more hills, at which point I took out the "Peacemaker", and he quickly retreated to the back of the bunch. I rode near the front of the group up to the reservoir and began the rip to the bottom. A couple of riders passed me near the corner and I warned them about the hazard ahead. We rode through the rough pavement and then up to Webber Road. I took the front just before the left turn to make sure nobody missed it. I rode down to Haydenville Road where a nice lady in her car let us cross. I raced down the hill with Sean to see if we could hit 60 mph, but we could only muster 47 mph. I then took the lead and rode to the top of the hill. I flew down the other side and when everyone arrived I made the left turn onto North Street. I was at the back and told the group to take the next left. Jair did not hear that and so he ended up doing a Lance across the grass. We rolled down the hill and I planned to attack Brent and Sean on the next hill. Just before the hill, I flew up to the front and put the hammer down. My legs were into it, but my gears were not, and after grinding and gnashing my way up the hill I decided to take it easy rather than break the chain. The group kept a pretty good pace as we crossed RT. 116 and made our way to Mill Village Road. We all raced down the hill and onto the flatter road near the river and at this point we spotted Mooseboy and his group just ahead of us. We chased after them but we had to stop for traffic at RT. 5&10 and they were able to pull away from us. We rode hard to catch up with them but we never got to see them the rest of the way back to the shop. It was a great ride, although pretty tough. We averaged almost 19 mph for the 38 miles, which is pretty good considering how much climbing we had. I think everyone enjoyed the challenge, even those who got back at dark.

Wednesday 7/30: Hawley! Tonight was the night for a trip up to the Dubuque State Forest. It was a perfect night for a ride, low humidity, cool temperatures and no wind. I loaded my van with bikes and Gary and then led Doug Linell and Homer up to the parking spot at the fire house. When we got to the firehouse we were met there by Liam and Mark Newton as well as Kip and Chris Unaitis. As soon as we got the bikes out of the cars a member of the Evil Society of the West Woods arrived and we chatted with him for a couple of minutes before we headed out for the trails. I rode at the middle of the group until we got to the turn onto the Snowshoe Trail, where I dropped to the back. I was still feeling the effects of the ride last night and I did not want to slow anyone up. I kept pace with Chris and Doug and I was able to get into a rhythm on the twists and turns. This trail is not too technical but I struggled on some of the rocky sections. I was the last one to get out to the dirt road. We discussed a route and soon we hopped onto the lower section of the trail, which leads out to South Road. As we got onto the tougher section of trail I caught up with Mark Newton who was taking a stick out of his derailleur as well as Doug and Chris who where getting a little whipped on the uphill section. I waited at the turn for Chris and Doug and got led them out to the road where the rest of the group was waiting. The group wanted to do the Periwinkle Trail so I led them up the road to the trailhead. This is the most beautiful trail you have ever seen. The trail takes the riders along a path that winds through a forest that is carpeted with the emerald green plants. The fragrance from the plants is hard to describe but it is worth the trip to experience. I rode behind Doug and Chris as we made the climb up the steep section of the trail, but none of us made it up the hill, so we walked to the top where the group was waiting. We all then rode off to do the 10 foot drop off which is just about half way down the trail. When I arrived at the drop I decided not to try and I took the alternative route around that part of the trail as did several others. After the drop off, I followed the group down the trail and out onto Hunt Road where we regrouped. I suggested that we head down to Moody Springs on the Chute Trail as it was getting late and it was going to take me a while to do the climb. I told all the riders to be very careful on the way down the Chute, as the trail is in rough shape and there are a few steep drops if you were to veer off the trail. I followed Kip down to the turn and then waited for the last rider to pass before heading onto the trail. At this point it was getting dark in the woods, even though the sun had not set yet, because we were in a deep valley. I followed Gary down the hill, riding from one side of the trail to the other, while we avoided the washouts and rocks. As we neared the bottom, Gary braked hard and I nearly crashed trying to avoid him on a very narrow section. I managed to stay upright and soon we were at Moody Springs with the rest of the group. After a brief rest we then headed off to do the climb. This is a very hard climb for most people and I started the hill at a very modest pace. I was in the middle of the group for most of the gradual part of the climb, but I dropped back to the rear as the hill steepened. Everyone had to dismount on the steepest parts of the hill, but I tried to keep my walking to a minimum. At this point Chris, Doug and Homer were behind me and I thought that they were going to stay together. I rode up the hill to where Kip and Liam were and we then climbed to the swampy section of the hill to wait for the rest of the group. By now it was pretty dark, even as we neared the top of the hill, and we needed to turn our lights on to see clearly on the trail. Kip, Liam and I were waiting near the top of the hill for Homer, Chris and Doug, while Gary and Mark rode out of the trails to head back to the firehouse. We were waiting for a couple of minutes when we saw a light coming up the trail. It was Homer, but she was alone. I asked if Chris and Doug were with her and she said that she hadn't seen them for quite a while. I knew that they did not have lights, so I sent that trio on ahead, while I headed back down the trail to get Doug and Chris. I rode down the hill a little ways when I spotted them riding up towards me. I turned and then I had them follow me up the hill, using my lights to illuminate the trail for all of us. Chris said that he was cramping up a bit so we rode slowly up the hill to the roadway. After we got onto the hardtop we were able to make good progress back to the firehouse, and we were able to enjoy some of the refreshments provided by Liam. After a few minutes and many mosquito bites we loaded the van and headed back to the shop. As always this was a great ride and it was nice to be able to do it on such a beautiful summer evening.

Thursday 7/31: I must have lost my mind, because I decided to do the Frizzle Hill ride tonight. After two very hard days I was not in the best of condition for another long steep climb, but I was ready to give it a try. It was a nice night for a ride with low humidity and lots of sun. Twenty-six people showed up for the ride and we broke it up into three groups. Roger Katz and 6 other riders left 10 minutes ahead of me and went on the same route. MaryEllen and four riders went out to do a 19 mile loop up to Gill. I left with the main group and we headed over to Turners Falls. I rode near the front of the bunch down the hill and through the traffic light in the center of town, but I drifted to the back on the climb up the Third Street Hill. I stayed at the back until we got over the top of the hill and then I rode on ahead where I found the group had split in two. I got to the front of the second bunch and pulled them up to the leaders. At this point I decided to stay at the back while we headed into Millers Falls. We zipped down the hill into town and then began the climb up the hill on RT. 63. I was able to keep pace with the group over the top, but I was starting to fade pretty quickly. I was hanging on the back of the group as we caught up with Roger and his riders. After we rode through, we headed down the hill and the town line sprint was on. Baby Bell, Brendan, John Gustin, and Homer went out for the sprint which Brendan won. The sprint caused the whole group to speed up quite a bit and that caused me to hit the red line. I stayed on the back for a mile or so but I knew that I was done, so I told IP that I was dropping back to wait for Roger. I turned around and rode a short distance back to Roger and his bunch. I then took up the lead for a little way and soon we go a good line going. In the pack with me was Rob Macks, Julie, Timster, Roger, Rick McCullough, Mike S, and Cindy Johnson. After we got down to the bottom of the hill the road widens and with the breakdown lane we were able to get into a double pace line. I rode with Roger for the first time in a while and it was nice to pedal along and have a nice conversation with him. As we got to the turn onto RT. 63 Roger said that he was going to take it easy on the hill. That seemed to sit alright with the rest of the group and we all glided around the left turn onto RT. 10 in a pack. The group got strung out on the climb into Gill and I stayed back with Julie, Cindy and Mike. After we got to the top of the hill I was astonished by what I saw coming onto the road from RT. 142. It was Jorge!! Yep and he was on his bike. I sprinted up to him and we chatted while the trio behind pulled up to us. At this point we all pedaled hard and got back on with Rick and his bunch. We rode down to the center of town and made a left onto RT. 5&10 where I took up the lead. Jorge and I kept the pace at a steady 19-20 mph all the way to Barton Road. We made the turn and I stayed at the front for a while and then I noticed that Rick and Tim were not with us. It seems that they turned onto West Mountain Road and did Frizzle Hill. I didn't know that they had planned that, but that was OK with me, 'cause I wasn't going to do that hill anyway. Although our numbers were smaller we still managed to keep the pace up all the way back to Silver Street. We all had a good ride, although I think Julie and Cindy were riding on the rivet for most of the way.  It was nice to see that rascal Jorge back out on his bike. On the way back to the shop we ran into ME and her ride and we all ended up finishing together.