July 2004 Ride Report Page    
Here you will find the reports of our exploits for the month July 2004 more or less as they happened. I will publish any ride reports or digital photo's that I receive.  Please send them to  bikebob@crocker.com and you too can get yourself published on the web! There are several links on the homepage that will give you information about ride schedules and how the rides are run.

Thursday 7/1: I have had a rough couple of weeks here at the shop and I am not up to my usual energy levels. Our trip tonight was the Warwick-Wendell 40 mile loop and I was hoping to just keep up with the middle group. We left the shop at 6:15 and I rode at the front until I got to Adams Road where the pace got a little too much for me and I slid to the back of the group. As soon as I got to the back of the bunch, I got shot right out the back door. At this point I was feeling like the best thing to do was to head back to the shop, but I could see some riders ahead of me that seemed to be waiting for me, so I rode on ahead. As I neared the top of the hill, I saw Jamie and Bruce just ahead of me so I rode up to them. When I got on Jamie's wheel he sped up and we soon had the rest of the group in our sights. We caught up to the group after Jamie put in a Herculean effort to get us back onto the field. We got onto the bunch with out Bruce Rogers who had bailed at Streeters Store. I was convinced that if the pace got too high I would simply turn around and head back to the shop, but everyone was being very good and we all made the turn onto RT. 63 together. We had a miscue just before turn onto Warwick Road with some of the group turning onto Maple Street and the rest going out to Warwick Ave. When we all got back together on Warwick Road we then headed for the hill into Warwick. The group got pretty strung out on the climb and I barely hung onto the wheels of teammates Jamie and Curt. Those guys did a great job keeping me in the ride and I hung on as best as I could. When we got to the turn onto the descent to Wendell the group stopped for a moment to regroup. I told the guys about the dirt road ahead and then we headed out to do the last climb. I rode at the front when we hit the fast dirt section and I emerged from that well ahead of the bunch. At this point I rode on at a steady pace and was joined by Tommy Silko and he and I finished the descent together. At the bottom of the Wendell climb I told Tom that I was going to continue on up the hill as I fully expected to be the last one to the top. As I slowly made my way up the hill some of the riders who passed me said that Tom Martyn had flatted and that Jamie and Curt were helping him out. I continued up the hill to the school and when Jamie, Curt and the rest of the group hadn't caught me by then, I turned around and headed down the hill to see if I could help. About a mile or so down the hill I first encountered Tom and Bob Croke and then Jamie and Curt behind them. I waited for the "Team" to catch and then we headed for the center of town. At the top of the hill we turned onto Montague Road to begin the return to the shop. We pretty much drafted each other all the way down the hill to Millers Falls, although Bob got dropped briefly on the descent, we all then made the climb up to Millers Falls Road together. We caught and dropped Will Kraham as we neared the Third Street Hill, and after crossing the river we rode up Esleeck Hill and back to the shop. we arrived at the shop just as it was getting dark and I was glad that we did not have another mile to do as I might have not been able to finish.

Thursday, July 1st Distance - 42.93 Average - 19.4 Warwick/Wendell

Not one, but TWO climbs today. I can't remember if we did this ride as weekday ride last year or reserved it for a weekend when we had more time. It was really stretching daylight to get it all in before we lost light.

We headed out of the shop and up Adams road (after Bob was asked by local police to not bring large groups of riders over the narrow broken up bridge in Turners Falls). We lost a few riders off the back before hitting the top of the climb on Adams Rd, but they gave chase all the way to Rte 10 and caught us after we crossed the highway. Too bad... I had half convinced myself to drop off and ride with them at a slower pace so when they rejoined us it removed my option to 'bail' from the group I was in.

There was a bit of confusion in Northfield when the front of the group turned one street too early. I, like a lemming, followed them even though I knew they were going the wrong way. We were able to take a side street that got us back on the right track and soon we were starting the first climb.

The first few miles of the climb to Warwick start off very shallow, hardly enough to effect the group's speed. Soon though, the grade starts to pick up and the peleton spreads out, then breaks apart. I observed all this from my vantage point in the rear of the group. I did my usual 'start from behind' thing. Sometimes I start from behind.. and stay there. But if I'm feeling right I can start from behind then make up a little time as I find the right gear and cadence. Tonight I was feeling OK so slowly started to gain on Bob, Jamie and a few other riders ahead. We formed a group by picking up riders one at a time and rolled up to the top of the hill where we found the rest of the group waiting.

There is a nice drop from the top of the climb back down to Rte 2, but today it was broken up by a mile or two of rough gravel where the pavement had been removed. We had just about made it through when Tom Martyn pulled over with a flat. Jamie, I and one other rider stopped to keep him company while he made the change, then we set out together to finish the descent. But the climbing wasn't over. Next we had the stair-step climb up from Wendell Depot to Wendell. A series of not too tough steps separated by short breaks. About halfway up, we met up with Bob who had started back down to look for us. We finished the climb then enjoyed the race back to Millers Falls as the light faded. One more bit of a climb out of Millers, then we were pretty much home free. We pulled back into the shop well after the sun had set, having used up every bit of daylight available this time of year.

Sunday, July 4th Distance - ~41Average - 18.x Shelburne Falls/Ashfield/Conway

Early ride + Early climb = Early bonk.

So... I've come to realize two things. 1) I can't ride well early in the morning (by 'early' I mean anything before 11:00!) and; 2) I really need a good 20 minutes to warm up before anything difficult, or it kills me for the rest of the ride.

Today, I broke both of those rules (as well as seriously abusing rules 3 and 4, about proper food and hydration [coffee doesn't count as hydration]). We met at Bob's for a 9:00 ride then rolled down through town to the first climb. My legs were still dead cold as we started up this long slow climb, so I fell right off the back and soon lost sight of the group. I rode alone most of the way to the top until I came across Keith, bent over his bike near the top of the hill. At first I thought he was changing a flat, but when I stopped to see what was up I found out that he had worse problems. His chain had become wedged between the cassette and spokes and no amount of pulling, prying or begging could convince it to come free. Eventually, he had to use a cell phone to call for an emergency airlift back to civilization.

We continued on our way, coming back out onto Rte 2 then West to 112 where we turned South to Ashfield. I was feeling great on the descents (of course), the flats and any shallow climbs, but as soon as we started to head up any hill I would run out of gas. So you can image what the 5 mile climb to Ashfield did to my position in the group! Everyone stopped to regroup after we turned onto 116, then we had a great time dropping into Conway. Bob and most of the other riders were up for stretching the ride through Whately, but I was feeling done so stayed on 116 with Harold and Stephanie to finish the ride via Stillwater and Old Deerfield.

Tuesday, July 6th Distance - 35.33 Average - 18.6 Wendell Hill/Cave Hill

I had no idea before today's ride started if I was going to feel great on it, or suffer all the way to the top. I ended up feeling great, but didn't set any speed records.

The ride started out...yada yada... third street... yada yada yada... riders off the front blah blah...

So, there we were at the bottom of Wendell Hill. I lulled everybody into a false sense of security by fading to (off) the back, but after a half mile or so found my legs and started to make time up. First I picked up Jamie and we kept each other company for the rest of the climb. A few miles short of the top we added Bruce to our group, the one more rider before hitting the top of the hill.

Keith had rolled through the stop in sight of us just ahead, so we gave chase and picked him up on the fast drop down the other side. We took turns on the rolling descent and made up for time lost on the climb. Before long we were rolling past the Cave hill turn. We slowed for a quick poll and decided (majority rule) to add Cave Hill to our ride. We turned and climbed just a bit back to the turn then made our way up the incredible shrinking Cave Hill (guaranteed to be smaller ever time you ride it... until Springtime suddenly makes it a mountain again).

Once over the top, we turned Right to head back to 63. I was feeling that I had a bit of energy to spare so went out for (and got) the town line. I wasn't so lucky on the next one. I started for it early, since I was on the front of the group at the time, but Keith was determined to give me a run for my money on it. We were wheel to wheel fighting for the line when Jamie casually rolled past us to take it by a mile. I want that man tested for performance enhancing drugs!

The rest of the ride...yada..yada... Poets Seat... blah..blah... back to the shop.

I received this email from Tom Martyn today 7/8, in response to the email for the Tuesday ride. Tom is in France to watch the tour.
On the Col de Joux Plane -

First, seeing Lance's name painted on the road.

Then at the top of Col du Ran Jolly, Pantani; Pantani; Pantani.

But then, on the descent, in very old, faded paint,

Eddy

my life is complete.

Tom

And I got this one from John Bentley.

Sorry Bob,
Tom and I won't make it (The ride on Tuesday). We climb Col de Joux Plane and Col de Ramaz yesterday and our legs area bit tired. Today we'll be doing an easy 65 k valley tour. See you all in 2 weeks

JOHN

July 2 - 5: Fitchburg Longsjo Classic Stage Race

The short version: 4 days of racing: a time trial, circuit race, road race and crit. Shortest cumulative time wins. In my race (women's cat 3) we had 47 start and 40 finish. I finished 21st overall. I'm not sure yet how I feel about that result. Rumor has it that it was the fastest women's cat 3 race in 15 years. In that case, I think I may feel OK.

The long version: Friday began with a 7.8 mile time trial. Last year I went out too hard too soon and blew up. Determined not to repeat that disaster, I took it a little slower for the first incline and then revved it up. I couldn't get my heart rate up as high as I usually can, so that was a bit of a bummer, but I did take 50 seconds off my time from last year. I know I worked hard because several times along the way I wanted to puke because I thought it would make me feel better and once I crossed the finish line, I thought for sure I would whether I wanted to or not. That uphill sprint killed me - as it should. I ended the day 28th overall, 1m 44s back.

Saturday's race was a 27 mile circuit race. It was 9 laps of a 3 mile loop. At the end of each lap we had to climb a 0.5 mile hill. It wasn't too bad, but it was bad enough. It was touch and go for me for a few laps... I kept having to chase back on to the group. I wasn't riding aggressively enough and would come around the last corner to climb the hill in the back of the group.... not a good place to be. Luckily for me, on the last lap, I guess the sprinters were taking a breather before the final climb up the hill so I too got a bit of a rest. When we came around the last corner, I had moved up a little bit and then just gave it all I had and finished 12th. I didn't lose any time and my GC position moved up two places to 26. Of course, I almost lost it all when I accidentally crossed over the finish line again 20 minutes later and got yelled at by an official. Thankfully they did not penalize me by giving me the time for the second crossing.

Sunday was a long day. I got up early to head over for the first set of races. My race was scheduled for 12:41 but I had offered to feed the Bell Brothers during their race which began at 9:05. They raced well. Pat and Baby Bell had good position at the front for most of the race. When they came through the feed zone on the last lap, they had put a gap on the main field. Apparently they got swallowed by the field on the downhill. It was a tough course. Each lap is 11.4 miles. It rolls along for awhile then you start to go up and then the feed zone is on a long hill. You get a little rest before you get to the top of the next climb where the KOM/QOM sprints were. Then, you go down a scary fast downhill over really bad pavement. On the last lap though you get to miss that descent and instead take a left turn to climb to the top of Wachusett. I had a tough day. I had been battling an upset stomach for most of the morning and it started to get better (or so I thought) as I got ready for my race. I stayed close to the front of the field for most of the first lap, but lost my good position just before the descent. Not a big deal, I caught on by the end of the descent. On the second lap, I decided to take a Gu just to be on the safe side. Big mistake. My stomach revolted, my abdomen seized....it was ugly. Luckily it settled a bit by the climb in the feed zone. I took on some plain ole water and it seemed to be what I needed. There was a breakaway on the third lap and I was in the first chase group, but not working as I had a teammate in the break. We did catch them but there was an attack on the feed zone hill and I slipped off the back. I gave a good chase on the descent, but had to pull off to the right as the Men's Pro/1/2 field came through. A very scary time I might add. I was doing 50 mph and they all passed me like I was standing still. I then got stuck behind their race caravan for a bit. I ended up doing most of the 4th lap by myself with a chase group in sight up the road, but I didn't have enough gas to close the gap. I caught one person on the climb up Wachusett. I put 24 seconds on another person just in the final 200 meters. I finished 9 minutes down which was disappointing. I did do some research however and found that my time was still 3 minutes faster than last year's winning time and would have been top 10 in the previous few years. Somehow, I managed to better my GC to 25th.

Monday was the crit. I didn't sleep well and my stomach was still not happy. My legs.... ugh. I got myself together and headed out for the final day. It didn't get off to a great start as I got pulled over (again). Thankfully I only received a warning. (phew!) With that behind me I hoped that I hadn't used up all my good luck yet. My warm up was less than encouraging but I went to the start line hoping to be able to hang on long enough to not get a DNF. It had rained earlier and the roads were still wet. Just in case it wasn't enough to do a crit with wet roads, large painted surfaces and 40+ very tired people, it started to rain again shortly after we started. There was a crash on the 2nd or 3rd lap that took down the race leader. Our field did not show much cycling etiquette and did not let up for an instant. She eventually caught back on and took the next sprint. In lap 4 or 5 on the same nasty turn, I felt my back wheel fishtail rather severely but I kept it upright, scaring the crap out of the women around me. I didn't panic at the time, but found myself being very very cautious at that turn for the remainder of the race - to the point that I always had to chase back on. I managed to hang on until the end to finish with the field and not lose any additional time. After it was all said in done, my final GC position was 21st. It seems two women decided not to start due to the rain and 2 others ahead of me got lapped. All in all, probably not too bad for my first FSR as a cat 3.

July 6 - Wendell Road with Bicycles Unlimited.

I wasn't sure that going on this ride the day after Fitchburg was a wise decision. But hey, it was a ride and it was Tuesday... I've never been good at passing up a Tuesday night ride. I did however decide that I would not try to keep up with the bunnies like Bell and Jeff or even Curt and Jamie. Tonight, I left the shop with a group that included Snake Boy, Nancy and Penny. My goal was to keep my heartrate low and try to "recover." Yeah, I know. Recovery rides generally do not include Wendell. Oh well. No one has ever accused me of being normal. I did a decent job of keeping my HR at a reasonable level. I chatted with Nancy and Caroline on the way up the hill. We were at the stop sign in no time waiting for the rest of the group. We headed down the hill with myself and Snake Boy on the front. We knew that there were 3 town lines coming, but neither of us knew exactly where they were. SB spotted the first one, but I beat him to that one. The second one was a different story. I wasn't paying attention and lost that sprint in a big way. Determined not to miss out on the third one, I took a long pull on the front and kept the pace fairly high. I was hoping that if I could tire him out with a several mile lead-out he wouldn't have anything left to come around for the sprint. My strategy worked. After that town line, I went to the back of the group and behaved myself. We took a nice easy ride back through Montague over to Poets Seat. It was a very pleasant ride and I was glad that I had decided to ride.

Thursday, July 8th
Distance - 41.4
Average - 21.4
Ending Mileage - 1973.3
Whately

Extreme Biking Challenge, Part II
(See Part I, -45 degree Winter mountain bike ride on January 15th of this year)

Welcome to the second in the series of Bicycles Unlimited Extreme Biking Challenges. Tonight, our contestants will face attacks by a wild animal (goat), Harsh road conditions (scarified pavement) and extreme weather (torrential rain and close lightning strikes) to compete for a.... well... for nothing really, but it was fun anyway.

This ride came as close as possible to not happening. While we were preparing for the ride, we heard the thunder of an approaching storm. By 6:00, the rain had started so we all retreated to the shop to stay dry and see if we could wait things out. By 6:40, the rain was letting up so we decided to test our luck.

We headed out on wet roads, but things dried out as we made our way South. I had a bit of trouble hanging on the short climb up to Lee road, but the group soft pedaled until I made it back. We made our way toward Whately, where Baby Bell tried to commit goatricide by ignoring the creature on the shoulder of the road until it stepping directly in front of him.

The rest of us, who had noted the goat a hundred feet earlier, managed to swing easily around it. I bet they don't have this kind of trouble on the tour (though I do remember seeing a horse running along with the peleton for a bit last year).

The group fragmented and stretched a bit in Whately, but we brought it all back together by the time we go to the point where the road narrowed. Michelle, who was not having a good day, decided to break off here to make her way back at her own pace while we continued South.

We came out onto Rte 5 which had been mostly torn up the last time we were here. Now it has been repaved with the exception of the final mile or so North of Northampton. A rider directly in front of me hit a pothole dead center and flatted, so we all stopped for the repair before turning East onto River Road for the run North.

The pace started slow but crept up as we headed North. Soon we were rolling along at 22-26MPH. It was a bit of a challenge to stick to the group's wheel whenever the riders in front picked up the pace for a town line sprint, but things always came back together after the line.

North of 116 the group pulled apart just after I took a turn on the front. I was resting in the rear after my pull when the front accelerated. I couldn't close the gap from where I was, so just watched the front half of the group slowly move away.

By the time we reached the first small hill on River Road, our group down to 6 riders. We made it up this hill and the two to follow easily, but kept a wary eye on the dark clouds and frequent lightning flashes from ahead. Just a mile or so short of Rte 5, we hit very heavy rain, almost nighttime conditions, and close lightning strikes that were making me rather nervous. Just short of 5, we got one close call as lightning struck something not much more than a stone's throw away.

We raced back up into Greenfield, each of the dozens of flashes around us too close for comfort. Luckily we made it back with nothing more than a good story (and very wet clothes and bikes) to show for it.

July 8 - A Valley Ride of the dangerous variety with Bicycles Unlimited.

As we gathered at the shop at 6, thunder could be heard and it seemed to be coming in our direction. Shortly after, we saw some lightning and then the rain came. We h hung out in the shop for awhile contemplating whether riding or beer drinking would be the activity for the evening. Well, it cleared up, sort of, and at 6:45 we rolled out of the parking lot for a flat ride south. It started out nice and mellow, but once we got through Old Deerfield, Bob took the pace up over 25 mph and then Baby Bell kept it there which started to split the group. I found myself not wanting to work that hard and my left leg muscles were not feeling so good. The group got back together but as we rolled through Whately, I started to think that I might need to drop back and do my own thing as anytime I had to accelerate to not get dropped, my knee would hurt. Finally, after Jamie, Bob and a few others dropped back to wait for me, I told them to go ahead without me and that I would do my own thing. I didn't want to hold anyone up and I knew that I wouldn't be able to keep the pace so I headed left over to Depot Road and in Bell fashion, got a flat. I fixed that pretty quickly and headed over to River Road. When I got to 116, I decided to continue up River Road, despite the hills, because the weather looked to ominous in the other possible directions. As I rode up River Road, the skies got darker and the rumbles of thunder grew louder. Baby Bell and another rider eventually flew by me followed shortly by Jeff. A couple of minutes later, the rest of the group had caught up to me. By this time, the skies were scary and we had a few flashes of lightning. I tried hanging on to the back of the group. I had visions of being struck by lightning and no one ever knowing. I got dropped along with Harold and at one point the sky seemed so dark I started mentioning "tornado" to Harold. We went as quickly as we could as the skies just opened. It rained so hard I could barely see. Lightning was striking around us. There was one that seemed frighteningly close by. We found the rest of the group riding in circles underneath an underpass. I wasn't sure that I would be able to slow down enough to avoid hitting someone. We quickly moved on as sitting underneath a large metal structure in a deep puddle did not seem like the best place to be. We headed back through town to the shop safely. We were all completely soaked. We couldn't have been any wetter had we gone swimming. I changed out of my wet clothes and headed home to start cleaning the bike, or at least to pour the water out of the frame.

Thursday 7/8: It was thundering out at 6:00 and soon after that began the rain came down in buckets. Usually this would have sent the 20 or so riders packing, but not tonight. After 5 riders wisely departed the group of 15 waited until the rain let up and then we were on our way. I led the troops down to Deerfield on very wet streets but once we got to Mill Village Road the pavement was dry. We had dry roads for most of the way over to RT.116 and the group had no troubles with the turn onto South Mill River Road. I had to keep taking the lead and staying near the front to keep Baby Bell from ripping the group apart with his pace making. Every time Baby Bell went to the front the pace went from 22 to 28 mph and the line got strung out. I managed to keep under control for most of the way down to Whatley, but he got away from us at the town line sprint in Whatley. We re-grouped at the climb into Whatley and soon we were on our way. Silko had to make a nature call stop at the edge of town and I dropped back to pace him on. At the same time Michelle said that she was cooked so I gave her directions to return to the shop and then Tom and I re-joined the group. We rode down Cottage Street to RT. 5&10 where we encountered some new pavement. This was much nicer than the last time we were here, but it only lasted for a few miles and then we were back onto the pave' for about a mile or so. I went to the front on the pave and paced the group down to Northampton. As we got to the turn I heard from the back that a rider had hit a pothole, so I rode back up the street to where Mike McCusker had suffered a hard jolt to his brakes and they had jammed. I made the repair in no time and soon we rode off to find the group at the service station by the turn to Hatfield. After we all made the turn onto Elm Street we settled in for the ride back to Greenfield. We rode at a very high pace for the 8 miles up River Road to RT. 116, I checked my average speed for the trip so far and we had a 23 mph average. We crossed the highway and began the hilly section of River Road. I stayed near the front until we got to the top of the first hill and then I sat up to wait for the rest of the group behind me to catch on. I was pretty whipped and I did not want to hammer the last 8 miles at Baby Bell pace, so I was glad to have company for the ride to the shop. On the run down the last hill we could see the lightning off to the left and the thunder was booming overhead. I thought that if we picked up the pace we might make it back to the shop before we got wet. After our bunch got together we rolled down to the train yards in E. Deerfield and we were briefly joined by Michelle who had for some reason decided to ride the hills back to the shop. After we got to the train yard it started rain in earnest and as we climbed the last hill a bolt of lightning went right past myself, Jamie and Curt. I was a little shaken but otherwise OK. At this point is was raining so hard it was difficult to see the rider in front of me. We rolled down to the railroad bridge to let the group get shelter while we waited for those behind. As soon as all the riders had arrived we headed off to ride back to the shop. It was a really wild end to the ride but all in all it was a very good ride.

July 9 - Recovery/Pre race ride

Today, my coach scheduled a 60 minute recovery ride with 3 sets of speed accelerations. I headed out later in the afternoon. I took my usual route out to 63 down to Northfield Mountain and back. Not a long ride, but good to keep the blood flowing and to rest up for tomorrow's crit in Attleboro.

July 10 - Attleboro Criterium: I must admit that I was less than enthusiastic about this race. Last year, I got dropped and lapped in this race and I just wasn't up for a repeat performance. Add to that an 8:00 AM start time in a town 2 hours away, I wanted to stay in bed. But, when the alarm went off at 4:00, I got up and grabbed a quick shower and some breakfast. I was expecting a small field, as not too many women had pre-registered for the event. However, by the time we rolled up to the start line, there were over 30 of us. This was a 3/4 race so I had set some goals for myself. I figured that if I raced a smart race, I could do well... it would be about position. So, my goal was to keep myself near or at the front of the race. I tend to spend a lot of time in the back during crits and all that does is make it harder as you get shelled when the group whips you off the back on a corner or up a hill. I managed to stay near the front for the majority of the race. Coming up on 3 laps to go, I had lost my good position and motored up the slight incline to try and get back to the front. Well, it worked, perhaps even too well as now I was off the front. I looked back and no one seemed to be reacting so I put the hammer down and opened up a fairly good size gap. I wasn't sure that I could hold them off for 3 laps but I figured that this might be my best chance for a win as I am not the strongest of sprinters. I dug deep and held them off as I passed 2 to go and then 1 to go... I thought maybe I'd make it, but within 50 meters or so from the finish line, I was caught by the finish sprint. I managed to hang on for 4th place. Not too bad. The win would have been nice, but this was still a good race for me. I've never tried anything like that before so it was exciting to try. Definitely my most aggressive race. And, hey, I won my entry fee back. :)

Michelle

Sunday 7/11:
Hi Bob,
I think we're getting there.  105 miles yesterday. Col du Glandon, Col de la Croix de Fer, Telegraphe, Galibier and back to our hotel. Hardest ride we'll ever done. Immense!  The beginning of Glandon and the last half of Galibier very, very hard.  Not climbing. Just keep going up. But we made it.  The mountains are beyond belief. Some of the roads are down right scary. But we ride on.  The Alpe today or tomorrow.
John
PS. Yesterday-33,200 ft of climbing up to 9000 ft. Spend 4 hours riding above tree line.  Hardly enough air to light a match

Sunday, July 11th; Montague:
The 'Stephanie Cas-a-Gone-Away' ride.

Tonight was Stephanie's last ride with the group before packing up the bikes and moving to Arizona on Wednesday.

This trail ride was a perfect change of pace after spending the last few weeks on the road. We hit some of the 'standard' trails, the Toilet Bowl trail, The backside of Willis Hill, Red rock, Big Pine Tree trail, Telephone Pole trail and more as we wove our way around the plains. Two riders forgot to touch the big pine tree while riding past, but we sent them back before the gods became too angry with them, thus saving them from much bad mojo later on.

Everybody had a spill (or two) and most people drew blood at least once, if only from scratches from briars along the sides of the trails. It was one of those rides where falling and ending up bruised, scratched and muddy was just part of the fun.

The only tough part of the ride for me was the 1/4 mile or so of fine, soft deep sand on one trail/road. I don't think anybody was able to ride the entire section, it was like trying to plow through deep powdery snow. For the most part, the trails were dry, clean and fast, so we were able to zoom along with only the occasional obstacle to jump, dodge or bounce our way over.

Monday 7/12: There was a fairly large group for the beginners ride tonight. Joining me was MaryE, Bad Bob, Deb Kopla, Ceil Antes, Regis Crosby, Bob and Jose Rigby as well Becky. We split up at the start with Bob R., Ceil and Becky riding with me on a 17 mile loop. We left the shop and headed for Leyden Road at a pretty good clip. As we rode down Silver Street we were joined by Kip and Stone Dresser on their tandem. Ceil and Becky set a torrid pace and by the time we got to Barton Road we had dropped Kip and Stone. When we got to Country Club Road we told MaryE that Kip was behind and maybe they could ride together. We continued along Barton Road where Ceil nipped me for the town line sprint. Woo hoo!! We headed out to RT. 5&10 and then we took Cross Street over to Lampblack Road. We worked on climbing skills as well as bike position as we rode along and soon we were climbing the steep hill on Adams Road. After the climb we blasted down to the RT. 2 traffic lights which we, of course, obediently waited to change to green before charging across. After getting onto the French King Highway we headed back to the shop and ended the ride with a 17.5 mph average.

Tuesday 7/13: Tonight we had a small group come out for a ride up cave hill. It was a cloudy, cool day with a chance of rain so I decided to take the day off and work at the shop. Harold, Terri M., and Baby Bell did the Cave Hill ride. They managed to get the entire ride in without getting rained on.

July 14-5:10am Mt. Toby. After being off my bike for a week an a half, I certainly wasn't going to let a little dampness forestall my morning ride. So with cup o' joe in hand I pulled up to the Park St. entrance to Mt. Toby to find Hammerhead Harold already unloaded and suited up for the ride (Harold is truly Amish, he's always the first one there and he comes from the furthest away!). So let's ride! Due to the rainy overcast sky, and the fact we're already slipping along the downside of daylight availability, the initial climb up mountain rd was dark and treacherous and almost warranted lights (almost). But I felt good and pushed up the hill in quick fashion, Hammerhead stayed fairly close behind but made a wrong turn (the first left) to the power lines-a wrong turn I usually also make, but not this morning. Soon we were whizzing down the Sugarhouse trail-a rather enjoyable, rugged double track that undulates along the low west side ridge of the preserve. Much to my surprise (and delight) the trails of Mt. Toby were fairly dry (all things considered) no boggy sudden stops, no impassable mud ditches, no chain clogging-very cool since Toby can be a mud fest. Soon we had ridden to the end of the Sugarhouse Trail and turned off onto the RF extension and then down the zippy double track to the bottom of Mt. Toby road-the long fire road ascent up the mountain. Must admit that I had my climbing cap on this morning, and Hammerhead and I both made good time up to the upper link trail. We headed towards the telephone pole trail-along the way trying to negotiate some fallen trees-truthfully my log-hopping skills have been less than satisfactory lately...I'm turning into a wuss. We soon found ourselves gingerly picking our way down the rocky, loose, very damp, very rutted and very steep telephone Pole trail-this trail gives me fits-I don't know-I've fallen hard on this trail a few times and there's something about the narrow crooked ruts and the sliding rock surface that spooks me-but after a slow but focused descent I made it to the RF connector without stopping or dabbing...along the way I heard a few "Waaaahoaaa!" type hollers from Harold who later told me he had rolled his bike-Twice along the way-I've been there plenty. We headed across the RF connector and noted how dry this usually muddy trail was. Soon we were back at the steep climb back up to the Sugarhouse trail (which after a brief descent is mostly uphill at a low gradient in this direction). And finally, we got to enjoy our just desserts-whooping it up while going down the mountain road trail, launching gleefully off the numerous small rock ledges and riding the berms all the way back to the car. You know, on paper Mt. Toby doesn't sound or look like much fun-almost all jeep roads and wide double track punctuated by one long fire road climb-but as the cliché goes, you don't play the game on paper-Toby has a lot more life and energy than it's modest representation on a Topo map belies. Every time I ride here I leave wondering why I don't ride it more often-it's a lot of fun and a credible work out and It demonstrates how a mountain bike ride is always greater than the sum of its parts. Rise and Shine, Peoples ('cause it's still summer!)

Wednesday 7/14: It was another cloudy day today and we were very busy at the shop. Although the cool temperatures are hindering the rides somewhat, people are still out on their own, or in small groups when the weather permits. Tonight I went out for a MTB ride over to the Coke Plant. Joining me was Jack, Jessie, Chris, and Patrick Heider. We rode over to the trails behind Stop&Shop where Jessie and I got separated from the group on the climb. Jessie and I took the shortcut to Canada Hill where we met up with the group. We all headed over to the truck turnout via the RT. 2 crossover. When we got to the turn out, Chris had a soft tire so I filled it with my CO² and we headed out to the trails. When we got to the back of the Coke Plant, Patrick and Jessie went to the Brook Trail while the rest of us rode through the swamp. My group did very well and we soon were at the top of the Ridge Trail where Pat and Jessie were waiting for us. Jack and I went on ahead to ride up Luke while the other riders climbed at their own pace. When Jack and I got to the top of Luke we did a loop out to the power lines and back to the water tank where we waited for the other three riders to join us. Chris's tire was soft again so I gave him another shot of CO² and soon we were on our way over to the power lines. I rode to Red Rock with Jessie where our three companions were waiting. Patrick and Jessie decided to forgo the Hill of Doom and so Chris, Jack and I went to do that and then we re-joined them at Jack's Pond. We rode from Jack's Pond to Deer Run via the Streambed Trail. The group headed across the hill to the Ridge Trail and then we headed back to the shop. It was a really nice ride and we all got back before it rained on us.

Thursday, July 15th Distance - 33.75 Average - 21.0 Plumtree Road Loop (Clockwise)

I've been off the bike a bit more than I should be lately... Tonight's ride was my first in four days, mostly due to the wet weather we've been having over the past few weeks.

I couldn't tell ahead of time how I was going to do once we hit the road. I tried to hang toward the back of the group and take it easy but I kept finding myself drifting to the front. I was on Baby Bell's wheel as he pulled the group through Montague toward 63 and was getting tired just hanging on at the pace he was setting. Not a good sign for the rest of the ride. I dropped out of the line before my turn came. It would have beaten me up to take a pull when I was already riding on the edge.

Once we hit 63, I hung on to the back of the group up the small initial climb. I realized at this point that the group was heading for a 22+mph ride, which isn't what I really needed today, so I let Jamie know that I was going to drift back to join a slower group.

I rode solo most of the way South to the Bull Hill turn. A mile or so before the turn Michelle, who was also looking for an easy ride tonight, bridged the gap from the group behind and brought another 4 riders with her.

She kept looking for me to come past her for the sprint. I ignored her for a while then finally decided to take the bait. I timed it right so by the time she looked back again I was already on her wheel and starting to pull past her. She dug in to match my speed, but by this time we were too close to the line for her to have a chance. I took the line by less than half a wheel.

When we hit the bottom of Bull Hill Rd we had a decision to make. Right up 116, or add a few more miles on by turning left to Plumtree Rd. We decided we had the time and energy to turn left, so headed down Plumtree road then up Rte 47 back to Sunderland. The rest of the trip was a nice flat roll up Mill Village road and back to the shop. I was surprised at the end that even on this ride that I was thinking of as an 'easy spin', I ended up with a 21mph average at Hope Street.

Thursday 7/15: It was another day of sun and clouds and at times I thought that we would get the ride off without any rain. Wrong!! As the riders gathered at the shop the skies opened up at 5 minutes before 6:00. It rained hard for a few minutes but the sun came out and we were on our way. I rode with the faster group tonight and we headed out to do the MT. Warner ride in a clockwise direction. I stayed near or at the front for most of the way over to Montague but as soon as we got to the Poop Factory, Baby Bell took the lead and the race was on. We hammer along at 27 mph all the way to the hill on Greenfield Road where Bell decided to take it easy on us and only go up at 19 mph. At the top of the hill the speed went up and a few unfortunate riders in the back of the pack did not see the rather large pothole in the road and several of them hit it hard enough to dislodge their water bottles. I saw the problem and I hollered up to Bell to wait up for the group. When all the bottles were back in the cages and the riders had rejoined the group we headed for Montague Center. We caught up with Snakeboy and his group in the center of town and said hello before riding on ahead. As we neared the turn onto RT. 63, Curt bailed and headed back to Snakeboy's group. After the turn onto RT. 63 the pace was pretty fast for the entire ride to Amherst. I did some long pulls and at one point I thought that I would be in trouble on the climb up MT Warner. I managed to get some rest in the pack on the run up to the hill and was able to stay near the front for most of the way up the hill. Bell and Jeff made a jump just before the top of the hill and I tailed off and let them ride away. I caught them on the descent and soon we were on Rt. 47 and heading for Sunderland. The pace stayed right up near 27 mph for most of the way to town with myself doing the last mile or so. After the turn onto RT. 116 Bell and Jeff sprinted for the town line which we all watched from a distance. After the turn onto River Road we got the pace back up to 26 mph or so and I cruised along behind Bob Croke, Bell and Jeff until the first hill where they put several yards on me before the top. At this point I had no more fight in me so I waited up for Jamie and Doug F. to catch up. We rode down the hill and on the next climb I caught up with Tom Silko and we waited for Jamie and Doug to join us and we rode all the way back to the shop together. We ended the ride with a 22.4 mph average, which is pretty good for me.

Sunday 7/18 Ride #1: I went over to the shop at 8:30 for the ride and I was met there by Laurie and Jeff, who had just arrived. We chatted and then got ready for the trip. Joining us today was MB, IP, Mike S., Al Mason, Jamie, Snake Boy, and Brenda. Jeff, Jamie, MB and Al went out to do the 50 mile ride while the rest of us headed out on a shorter loop. My plan was to do sweep for a 20 mile ride while Snake Boy led the way for a 25 mile loop. We headed over to Leyden Road and soon after the hill the group split up with Laurie and myself following Snake Boy and the rest of the group. Laurie and I rode together and I gave her some pointers on pedaling and hill climbing. We rode over to Bernardston via Barton Road and then we took RT. 10 to Main Road in Gill. Laurie kept a very steady pace on some very long and somewhat steep hills. She had never been out to Gill before so she was a little tentative on the longer climbs, but she rode right up them without any trouble. We did a 20 mile loop at a little over 14 mph average. After the ride Laurie came back to our house and had coffee with MaryE, Eddie and me.
Ride #2: After the shop closed I loaded the MTB and headed over to Montague Center for the mountain bike ride. Joining me at the common was John Friends and his son Caleb, Jack, PJW, Rod, Peter T., Patrick, and Curt. The group split up at the start with Curt, Pat, Jack and myself heading out to do a long route over Willis Hill. PJW and her group were planning on doing a little shorter loop and then meeting us at the BPT. My bunch headed up the Telephone Pole Trail where we passed the firepit and continued on to do the Second First Right Trail. Curt brought his GPS and we planned on filling in some of the blanks on our Plains Map project. We rode a circuitous path over to the pond where we then took the Middle Road to begin the climb up to Willis Hill. The trail was somewhat overgrown and we had to stop to move several large branches that had fallen across the path. I led the group over to Red Rock Road where we turned left and climbed the hill to the Swamp Road. I led the boys over the hill and down to where Middle Road intersects with the trail. We decided to take Middle Road down the hill and then we followed a little used (although a favorite of mine) trail that takes us up to Craggy Hill. The climb up Craggy rock is not used by us any more because it is somewhat difficult to do, but I like it and it was great to be back out on it. After the climb we headed over to Willis Hill Road which we rode down to the BPT Trail. We paused briefly to see if the rest of the riders would be coming along, but after a few minutes we decided to head out. Patrick rode down the BPT while Curt, Jack and I took the long loop around. We all met at the Plains Road trailhead and after not finding the other riders we decided to head back over Red Rock. As we got near Red Rock Road we spotted Road at the BPT and we met up with him and the rest of our group. John and Caleb we ready to head back to the start so they along with Patrick, PJW, Peter, and Rod took the Banked Trails route, while Jack, Curt and I did another rip up and over Red Rock. After the hill we headed over to the Toilet Bowl Trail and then down the Telephone Pole Trail to the road. We rode back to the center of town and soon after we arrived, the rest of the bunch came rolling in. Although it was warm and very humid, it did not rain on us, so all in all we had a really nice ride.

Sunday, July 18th
Plains

Bob announced this ride as an 'all ability levels' ride, but I think the threatening skies and forecasts of severe weather scared plenty of riders away. I don't remember the names of some of the riders that showed up (I pretty much have to ride with someone a dozen times before I have a chance of remembering their name). Bob, Jack, Patrick and I headed out on a more difficult loop while Penny, John(?) and his son and a few others headed a different way with plans to meet us at the bottom of Willis Hill.

I had my GPS and wanted to fill in the gaps of some of the trails I haven't mapped yet, so we headed out to some obscure trails. We spent some time on one little-used trail moving some deadfall, but there is a lot more to do that will require a chainsaw. We finished by riding through the woods along the side of the obstructed trail.

This brought us out to Red Rock, where we turned up Swamp Road to add it to the map. Just before we got to Willis Hill, Bob turned us back down Middle Road, then Left onto a well hidden trail he called Craggy Road. When we finally reached Willis Hill, we were surprised to find that nobody was there waiting for us. We sent Patrick down Big Pine Tree trail in case the other riders were working their way toward us, while we swept a bigger loop over to Plains Road then back to Big Pine Tree. Once we got there, there was one rider waiting for us. A few minutes later, the group was once again whole.

Most of the riders were pretty much finished by this time, so they headed out along a direct route. Bob, Jack and I went over Red Rock one more time then headed home along the Toilet Bowl trail.

After the ride I headed to Bob's to transfer the bike photo album site from my web server to his and set up the album creation software so he can add to and maintain the photos from now on.

Check out this link to see the Plains Trail Mapping project (1.2MB gif image), a work in progress.

Tuesday, July 20th Average - 21.1 Tyler Hill

Once again, we used Adams road to head North to Bernardston. This hill, while it comes before I get a chance to warm up, at least isn't as difficult for me as the Third St. climb which also comes right at the beginning of a ride. Adams road is longer but not as steep, so as long as I'm careful to maintain a reasonable pace I can get over the top still with the group. Over the top there are a few miles of easy riding that let me finish warming up before we hit Rte 10.

The riders in the front of the group set a fast pace East on 10. I found myself riding in the middle of the group barely managing to hold the wheel of the rider in front of me. A few miles short of the 142 turn, Bob came past me then slowed his pace. I took this as the sign I was looking for and instantly dialed things back. We (me, Bob, Jamie and another rider Chris?]) settled into an easier pace and watched the front group slowly pull away.

We rolled up 142 and soon added Mooseboy and Homer (who had slowed to drop back to us) to our group. The six of us set up a paceline and continued North. I went out for the state line, but Mooseboy fought me for it and managed to take it on the line (his first of three for the evening).

I was still recovering from the sprint when we turned West onto Pond road. I had a bit of trouble hanging on to Bob's wheel after the turn but was OK after I drifted back and let Jamie do the work while I quickly downed a Gu in anticipation of the climb to come.

Soon enough, we were at the bottom of Tyler Hill. I settled into an easy gear, anticipating a long hard push to the top, but as I got rolling I felt much better than I was expecting to. I clicked down a few gears and moved my way forward in the group. After rounding the first sharp turn (the most difficult part of the climb) I was still feeling great so shifted down another gear and stood up over the next rise. The rest of the climb continued like this. While I didn't set any speed records over the top, I finished it feeling great. I rolled down the short drop to Rte 5 to find Michelle and Mooseboy waiting. The other three riders were just behind me so we all rolled through the intersection and headed South.

The trip South on the newly-paved Rte 5 was effortless. We all took nice long pulls in the front and maintained a quick pace all the way to the state line. Michelle went out for this first and I caught her wheel, but my hopes of winning the sprint vanished when Chris came around me fast enough that I couldn't catch his draft as he passed me.

While still basically flat, this section wasn't quite as fun since it is a mess of cracks, patches and potholes. We navigated these hazards through Bernardston and onto Barton rd. My final chance for a sprint was just ahead, but I wasn't thinking straight. I blew my perfect position behind Michelle and Chris by going past them for the sprint much to early. Sure enough, they both came past me in no time. Chris took it to get 3 for 3.

Though we kept the pace up, the rest of the ride was a fairly easy spin down Barton rd to Country Club rd then Silver Street. Our last excitement came as we entered Silver Street from the end of Country Club road. A motorist coming from our right had stopped to let us through the intersection, but as we pulled out another car passed him on the right and almost mowed us over.

I sprinted a bit back to the shop for the sole purpose of keeping the 21.1 average displaying on my computer.

Thursday 7/22: Blink...You just missed the ride tonight. We had 40 or so people show up for a 40 mile ride. It was a perfect night to do a long ride. We had temps in the 70's and not much wind and although it was a little humid it was not too bad. The group left the shop and soon we were flying down the road to Turners Falls. Soon after that we were in Sunderland. Soon after that we were in Whatley and before I knew it we were in Hatfield. I rode at the front for all of 38 seconds after we left Turners Falls and I never saw the front all the way to Hatfield because the pace was so fast that I never got near the front. I was at the back of the group after we turned to ride North on RT. 5&10 and after a moment's inattention and I found my self behind a rider who let a large gap open to the field. With the group pulling away, I jumped to bridge up and I was able to make contact at 30 mph but as soon as I got on the back, pace went up to 35 mph and I got spit right off the back again. At this point I was whipped and I decided to ride back at a slower pace. I slowed a bit and soon I was joined by Walter and Gary Fenton. We rode up to the Whatley Ballet where we caught up with Curt, Soon after that we made contact with Jim Hayssen. The five of us rode back to Greenfield together and we ended the ride with a 23.5 mph average.

Thursday, July 22nd Distance 39.59 Average - 23.8 Sunderland/Hatfield

Bob advertised this as a flat, long and very fast ride. He was right on all counts.

We headed over the Turners Falls then up the dreaded Third Street climb. The only saving grace to it tonight was knowing that this was quite possibly going to be the most difficult climb on the entire ride tonight. Once over the top, it took a mile or so for the group to come back together as we headed South toward Montague.

I have to admit I was struggling a bit here. I wasn't yet properly warmed up and was feeling every little acceleration in the group. I didn't start feeling better for another several miles when we were on the flats of Falls road. The road was about as flat as you can ask for the next 10-12 miles, but this just meant that the group pushed the pace higher. The good news was that the group was big enough that I was able to hide in the middle while the strong riders rotated around at the front.

I was starting to think that the rest of the ride was going to be easy when as we turned West, but then things got kicked up a bit and the group got fragmented as everyone tried to close down the gaps. I hung onto Michelle's wheel for a bit and let her do some of the work. When it looked like she was starting to slow, I pulled around her to finish the job of catching Jamie. Jamie, in turn, pulled us up to Tom Martyn, and Tom finished things up by connecting us back with the front group.

I didn't get a chance to look back (I was working too hard just maintaining my position) but I think we lost several riders here when they never managed bridge the gap.

I barely thought it was possible, but the pace kicked up again as we headed North on rte 5. I was putting out 100% to hang on, but decided to drop to the back of the group when I started getting too close to the front. I usually have no problem taking my turn in a paceline, but at this pace I was doing all I could manage just to hang on. I wouldn't be doing anybody any good to spend three seconds in the front before dropping right through the group and out the back.

After a few miles of riding on the back, we came to a little grade where 5 crossed the highway. This is all it took to break me. I sat up and watched the group slowly pull away, knowing that I would get swept up soon by some of the many riders still behind me.

For the next 2-3 miles, I rode by myself at 22-23mph. I kept an eye on the main group, still in sight ahead. Just before I lost sight of them, I saw one other rider drop off. Shortly afterward, I was caught by a group comprised of Bob, Gary and Walter. We worked together and eventually added one more rider, Chris, to our group. As the light began to fade we pushed hard up Route 5. I was riding third as we came back to town. Still feeling good, I pulled out and sprinted past Gary and Walter for the town line before easing up. Just short of the turn onto Hope Street, we rolled past Malcolm, Jesse, Doug and a few other riders that were spinning slowly back to the shop.

Back at the shop we enjoyed a few cold recovery drinks (beer) and conversation before calling it a night and heading home.