bikebob@crocker.com

Tuesday6/1: Tonight's ride was just four people, due in large part to the fact that everyone did  pretty hard rides on Sunday and Monday. I went out for a short ride with Miss May, Alex, and Matt Sawin. We rode over to the Coke Plant and did a short loop on the race course and then we returned to the shop,

Wednesday 6/2: I went out at 2:00 for a road ride. It was pretty hot (88 degrees) and windy as I made my way west on RT. 2 towards Shelburne. As I made the crest at the top of the hill I thought that I was entering a blast furnace. The wind was so hot and I really thought that the next gust would blow me back to Greenfield. I contemplated turning around, but I kept going anyway, figuring that I needed the work. I rode through Shelburne and Buckland and made my way up RT. 112 to Ashfield. I rode at a steady 18 mph average all the way to the bottom of Ashfield Mountain and then rode up the hill at a pretty slow pace (8 mph), but I was glad that I made it. After turning onto RT. 116 and riding past the road paving crew, I rode at a good clip to Conway.  After nearly dying on Parson's Hill, I recovered on the ride down the other side to So. Deerfield, and made pretty good time as I rode back to the shop. I did the 43 mile ride in just over two hours at an average speed of 20 mph. Not bad for an old guy!!

Thursday 6/3: Our road ride for tonight was run without the capable leadership of Steve and Becky, as they were at the high school graduation ceremonies. We had about forty-five people show up, but I did not get all their names, since this is what Steve and Becky usually do while I get everyone ready. Tonight we had our usual three events, with MaryEllen leading an 18 miler to Deerfield, Bob and Deb leading a 19 miler to Millers Falls and Montague, and finally the Wendell ride that was led by Joe and Matt Putnam. I rode with the second group that included Nancy S., Todd A., Star, Todd, Marty, John Wallace, and Joe Poirier. We rode at a steady pace as we made our way to Millers Falls and although we started to climb as a group, the hill took it's toll as the riders slowed  on the steepest part, and we were pretty strung out as we approached the top of the hill in Wendell. I hollered to Star and had him slow the pace a little to allow the group to come together again. After everyone was back on, I ran a little pace line clinic, with each rider taking a turn at the front. This worked pretty well for a while, but Marty got a flat near the forest and we stopped to offer him a hand. At that point I realized that John and Joe were not with us, so Marty decided to fix the flat on his own and ride in with John. The rest of us continued on and we were soon back in a pace line, with me as the "captain", giving tips to the riders as we started the descent. We soon had the speed up to 27 mph as we screamed towards Lake Wyola. The ride down the hill was a blast and we whizzed by the lake and then down through Leverett center towards Rt. 63 and Montague Center. We rode at a steady 20 mph pace through town and we all made the trip down Greenfield Rd. together. We turned onto Montague City Rd. and then we crossed the General Pierce bridge where we took a right onto Mountain Rd. and began the climb to Poet's Seat. It was here that I took leave of my companions and I rode to the top at 15 mph and then back to the shop. I was greeted by a large group of riders who had finished up earlier and we all had a good time comparing tales of our trip. Everyone was accounted for by 8:30 and soon the parking lot was empty again. I locked up the shop and headed for home at 9;00, tired but satisfied that everyone had a good ride.

Sunday 6/6: Family ride tonight was a large affair with CTD, Maxine, Kris, Lynn, Chris, Karen S., Mick, Scott, Matt, Alex, Ken, Cathy, Patrick, Tommy, Converse, Garson X 2, Nancy, Hot Rod and myself heading out for a trip to the Plains. We rode in two groups with Ken leading one bunch and I was leading the other. Our plan was to meet at the Red Rock as is our usual practice, and we set out for trip from the center towards the Telephone Pole Trail. We made good time all the way to Old Northfield Rd. where we turned onto the second first left and onto the single track. We followed the usual trails out to a new section that we rode back out to the power lines. From there we rode over to the sand pit and up the hill, and over to Craggy Hill. Garson and I were the only ones to ride to the top and soon after everyone else had made their way to the top we headed out towards Willis Hill. After we got to the power lines at Willis Hill the group decided not to try to ride up but to head back over to Red Rock. However, when I got to the bottom of the hill I saw Garson Jr. and Mick on top and I had to ride up, just to say I did it. After several others made a try at it, we all headed out on the trail that runs parallel to the ridge. We got over to the Red Rock and waited for a few minutes and since there was no sign of Ken and his bunch, we decided to head back to the vans. We rode back to the Telephone Pole Trail and the out to the road. After a quick discussion we decided to take the trail through the cemetery and down to the river. This is a nice way to end the ride and everyone likes the views. We got back to the vans and it only took a few minutes for Ken to show up. It seems that Ken took the group up to Red Rock a different way and we missed each other in the process. Everyone in the group made it back to the van just in time to finish off Maxine's cookies and refreshments, they all had a good time and as I always say; All is well that end's well.

Tuesday 6/8: Tonight's ride was again a small one with only Mr. Flemming, Alex, Matt, Patrick, and myself in my bunch and Cathy and Tommy riding by themselves. My group rode over the trails behind Stop&Shop and I was again unable to ride up the new section of trail. Alex and everyone else seems to have it figured out, but I have not. After we were all together again we rode over to the Coke Plant where we entered the trails behind the plant. The brook is now completely dried up and there is no mud anywhere, very strange! We rode up Luke Skywalker to the water tower and then down to the Red Rock and then down the chute. As I was descending I saw Scott L., on the side of the trail and then Mick a little way further down. We all said hello as we passed and they told us that they were just finishing up. I rode over to the Hill of Doom and then to the top where the group was waiting. From there we rode down to the lower trails and then back up the dry streambed to the halfway turn where we made a left and rode over to Double Death. I rode up to the top of Double Death and joined the group at the log. We decided to follow the secret trail to the top, and it was here that I headed for home with the rest of the group doing another loop on top. I spotted Mick and Scott in Mick's car just as they were leaving and I waved. I headed out across RT. 2 and then onto Gill Rd. where I caught up with Ryan Conway, Cathy and Tommy Heider and I rode back to the shop with them where we all finished off another great ride

Thursday 6/10: If ever there was a time that the word perfect could be used, tonight was it. I keep thinking that we all have been living in Pleasantville. The weather has just been amazing, and we seem to be on a streak of delightful Thursday evenings. The trip for this week was Tyler Hill and since we have the daylight, I have been increasing the distances every week. Joe, Matt,Tim Coleman, Tommy Davis (National time trial champion) as well as several others led the front group while I led the second bunch. We all traveled over to Turners Falls in a group, but things split up pretty fast as we rode up the hill into Gill. There were twenty-two people on the ride and we were in three packs. I drifted back to the third bunch and made sure that everyone was OK, before joining the middle group for our rip up to Vermont. After we got to RT. 142 we all settled into a pace line and we got going at a pretty good clip. When we got up to Vernon VT., Ray Salle and Wayne Holden were still at the front doing a lions share of the work, so I suggested that they take a break and let the rest of us help. Just as Sean Kelley pulled through to the front, Wayne got a flat. He said he was all set, so we kept on going, with everyone taking a turn at the front. As we were passing the nuke plant, Joe and his pack passed us. They took a detour up and over Huckle Hill, and were just about to hammer over Tyler Hill. Like, one hill wasn't enough! Anyway, after they passed us, we made our trip up Tyler Hill at a somewhat slower pace. We re-grouped at the top and then we rode south in a pace line on Rt. 5&10. We waved as we passed Becky and Steve's bunch as we headed through Bernardston and not long after that,  we arrived at the shop, tired but invigorated by our effort.

Friday 6/11: George Anastos stopped by today to get a couple of tubes, just as I was getting ready to go out for a ride, so I talked him into joining me. I rode down to Deerfield and pick him up and we headed for So. Deerfield on Mill Village Rd. at an easy pace. We rode along RT. 5&10 and turned onto RT. 116 and pedaled all the way to River Rd, where we turned left and headed north. We chatted as we made our way up the road and we did a couple of good efforts on the hills as we rode into Greenfield. I said goodbye to George as I turned to head back to the shop and he to head back home. A good ride of 26 miles.

Sunday 6/13: I was a little tired today as I got ready for the ride so I was looking for an easy pace. But when I got to the shop I found 12 people waiting for me. I told everyone that I had to be back to the shop in two hours which meant that we had to do the 35 miles at 17 mph. When you factored in the hilly course I selected, that meant that we were going to have to hit the hills pretty hard. Along for the rip was the Spanbauer's',Schilling's, Shattuck's, Todd, Wayne, Irene, Sandy Waldron, CTD, Star and me. I led the group as we headed south on RT. 5&10 into Deerfield. I kept the pace at 17 mph as we headed for the hill on Stillwater Rd, but as soon as I got to the top I could see that the group had splintered. I slowed the pace to let some of the riders, who were just a little behind, get onto the back of the group. When we turned onto RT. 116, however, the group splintered again, so I dropped back to make sure everyone was OK. Star and his bunch rode to the center of Conway as I followed the last rider into town. When I arrived at the turn onto Shelburne Falls Rd., Star decided to wait as people rested for a minute, while Todd, Wayne and I pressed on.  We rode fairly briskly up the hill and made good time as we descended into Shelburne Falls and out to RT. 2. As we turned to head east I rode into a headwind and although I tried to maintain a steady pace, as soon as I got to the top of the hill near Shelburne Center, I nearly exploded. I was whipped!! I sent Wayne and Todd on ahead and I slowly rode the rest of the way into Greenfield. I made it back to the shop in just two hours and even though it wasn't pretty, I got the task done.

Family ride: After this morning and a pretty busy day at the shop, I decided to take it easy tonight, so I sent Todd, Ken Heider and Matt Chickering over to Montague to lead the ride. If I get a report of the event, I will publish it.

Tuesday 6/15: Tonight we had our scheduled "demo" ride put on by George Frick and K2. We had a crew that included Mick, Bill, Dan, Alex, Matt C., Matt S., Matt P., Patrick, Mike W., Brad Mosher, George and myself. I wanted to ride over to the Coke Plant, but George wanted to ride on the ridge, so I gave in and we headed out for the ridge. We made our way up the steep hill and onto the White Dot Trail in a one group, but George and I soon dropped back and we followed the last rider into the parking lot at Poet's Seat. We crossed the road and soon we were riding along the ridge, taking in the wonderful views of Greenfield on a warm summer night. We made the 180 degree turn at Sachem's Head and rode down to Bear's Den trail and then out to the power lines where the rest of the riders where waiting for us. Everyone tried to ride up Joe's Rock, but only Matt Sawin actually made it without dabbing. After George and I made a try at the rock, we headed across the top of the rock and then down to the lower trails and out to the other side of the mountain. We rode the Red Dot Trail back to the parking lot and then down along the lower Red Dot Trail to the starting point. It was such a nice evening that George asked me to do another loop with him, so I led him along the Blue Dot Trail and back down the White Dot Trail to the seafood restaurant. After getting all the demo bikes back into the shop, George and I headed off to the Peoples Pint for dinner.

Wednesday 6/16: I was looking forward to riding with Jaybird today, as we haven't connected in a couple of weeks. Jay mentioned that he wanted to go out a little earlier today so that he could get a good workout. His plan was to ride with me for an hour and a half and then go out for another couple of hours on his own. I was impressed with his ambition and somewhat apprehensive about his fitness, because if he was going to do all of that, he surly was going to whup-up on me pretty good. We left the shop at 1:45 and headed up Bernardston Rd at a 17mph pace. This was OK for me but I knew that Jay was going to want to pick it up from there. I was right! As soon as we go to the Honda dealership, Jay pulled around me and soon we were going at 22 mph. We rode at this rate all the way to Northfield and then we picked it up some more as we headed south towards Millers Falls on RT. 63. When we made the turn onto RT. 63 we rode into a headwind and at this point I was thinking that if I had to ride into the wind for too much more, I would be looking for a taxi to take me home. After we turned off Rt. 63 we got a side wind blowing at us, but this was at least, doable. We rode back to Turners Falls and soon we were heading up the hill toward the shop. It was here that Jay announced that maybe he would just ride back with me. I guess everyone has their day!! We got back to the shop with a 21 mph average and we were glad to be home.
   After the shop closed I was joined by Patrick, Kris, and Lynn for a trip to the Coke Plant. Patrick and Kris rode together on the trails behind Stop&Shop, while Lynn and I rode across RT. 2 and up the hill to the trailhead behind the plant. I led as we entered the trails, but as I was ridding along, a bug got under my watercarrier and was biting me. I was getting "bugged" and I had to stop to try to get the critter out. As I did, Kris and Patrick came by and we agreed to meet again at the Hill of Doom. Lynn and I rode up the Ankle Breaker trail and she practiced her climbing skills. We rode across the hill and down the Messed Up Trail, then over to the top of the Hill of Doom where Patrick and Kris were waiting. Lynn and I decided to head for Five Points, and Patrick and Kris rode up to Double Death. After meeting at Five Points we headed out through the swamp to Lillian St. and then back to the shop.

Thursday 6/17: No ride tonight, because of rain. We did however have some excitement today. It seems that Pepper, the dog, came over to visit Madison. Pepper was immediately taken by her beauty and he was obviously unable to control his passion, as he cavorted around the shop. After a few minutes of this, Cathy decided to put him back in the car, as he is not getting any younger and we do not want the "old boy" to get into any cardiac trouble. It was quite a scene; as Cathy pulled out of the driveway we could see little Pepper's face in the window, a tear rolling down his cheek, and that baleful look of love as he was driven into the evening mist. Ah, nature!
Dear Bob,
A few word clarifying your recent account of my encounter with Madison.  Rather than being captivated by her beauty, I actually was cautious knowing of her rather bizarre "squeaky toy" fetish.  However- being a gentleman, as all Boston Terriers are, I swaggered about [note that I did not cavort in any way] being polite to all customers in the store.  I was removed from the premises, not because of any concern about my age or condition, but because Madison showed signs of being winded due to her recent weight gain.  Obviously, she has not been sticking to her diet doggy treats.  There was, in fact, a tear in my eye as I left.  I always hate to disappoint the ladies.  A final comment, just because Madison is named after a president does not mean she must mimic recent presidential behavior.                                                                                                                                Sincerely,                                                                                                                                Pepper

Sunday 6/20: I arrived at the shop at 9:00 to find the Spanbauer's, Todd, and Wayne waiting for me. My plan was to ride 40 miles in two hours and I selected a pretty straightforward route. We were simply going to ride south on 5&10 to Hatfield and return on River Rd. through So. Deerfield. I wanted to get everyone used to riding in a pace line and to some of the communication skills that are needed to succeed. We headed out at 19 mph as we rode into Deerfield and we kept that all the way to the Candlelight restaurant, where we sort of fell apart. After everyone got back on, I gave a few tips on how to keep a group going, and soon we were working well as we rode towards Hatfield. But as we got to LaSalle's, Jack came off again and we slowed to wait for him. I could see that he was not going to keep that pace for much longer so I turned him at Bradstreet. I hammered back onto the group and soon we had the pace up to 22 mph as we shot up over Rt. 91 in Hatfield and headed for the home stretch. As we peddled down Elm St in Hatfield, we were nearly killed by a kamikaze squirrel that darted in front of Todd. We made it by without mishap and sped through the center of town and on towards So. Deerfield.  We made great time as we crossed RT.116 and headed for the hills, which slowed Nancy and Todd somewhat. We regrouped at the top of each hill and we all made it back to the shop in about one hour and forty-five minutes for 38 miles. Not bad for a Sunday.
The shop was pretty busy today and I had a hard time getting everything done before five, but I managed to get going and race over to the Plains for our ride. Along for tonight's adventure was Ken, Patrick, and Tommy Heider, Mick, Scott, Lynn, Donna the Hon, Kurt, Kris, Maxine, CTD, Tracy, Mike W., Matt S., Elizabeth Fisk, and me. We broke into two groups with Ken leading the fast bunch and CTD leading our bunch. CTD took us up the Telephone Pole Trail with his usual expert guidance, and after I tied Tracy's shoes we headed out to the Toilet Bowl Trail. We were doing pretty as we made our way down the trails but somehow CTD got behind the front riders and I almost had to replace him with Tommy. CTD apologized for his transgression and promised not to let it happen again. I forgave him and soon all was well, with CTD leading us out to the power lines. CTD decided to take us up the "back side" of Willis Hill and everyone managed the challenge well. Elizabeth did amazingly well for her first time out on a mountain bike. We stopped at a few places to make sure everyone was doing well and to give people a chance to catch their breath and get a drink of water. After we made it to the top of Willis Hill, I gave a brief seminar on descending, so that the new people would feel comfortable going down. I rode about half way down the hill and stopped to coach the riders as the rode past me. After a brief stop at the bottom of the hill we headed out for the rendezvous with Ken. All of the riders did very well as we made it to Red Rock in record time. After Donna the Hon got through smooching with Kurt, we headed off towards the Groovy Trails. Before we left, we picked up two of the riders from Ken's group, who did not want to hammer themselves anymore. It seems that Mick had ridden to his limit and Scott had tried to dent the top tube of his bike with his scrotum, and both of them were looking for a more leisurely pace. Lynn did very well descending the hill, in spite of being nearly run off the trail by Donna, who was still distracted by her "other" desires. As we got to the banked trails I rode along with Maxine who has a sensible approach to riding. She just has fun! Tommy did very well tonight, although I only got to see the back of his jersey. he seems to have mastered this course. We rode pretty steadily as we headed back to the center of town, everyone was going at their own pace and we were enjoying our last few moments out of civilization.n After we got back to the cars, I broke out the usual refreshments  provide by CTD and Maxine. Maxine had once again out did herself, providing us with a delicious blueberry crumb cake. Some of the lucky few who got there before I did, even got to have some.
    On another note, it seems that Cathy was unable to join us this evening because Pepper, the dog, was inconsolable after his re-buff by Madison. Cathy had to stay home to comfort the dear boy, and re-assure him that love is a many splendor thing, and he should press on. Everyone knows that a woman likes to be pursued. Hopefully Pepper will have composed himself enough that Cathy will join us next week.

Tuesday 6/22: I was a little tired today,because I have spent the last two days training policemen on mountain bikes. I went out tonight with Mick, Scott, and Tracy for a short loop up on the ridge. The main bunch that included Matt S, Matt C., Alex, Billy, John Friends, and Patrick also went up to the ridge but at a much faster pace. Following them was Joe, Johnny Boy, Steve, Lori and Dave Minor who also did a longer loop on the ridge. My group rode up the White Dot Trail and then we crossed the road to Temple Woods. We then made our way down the Red Dot Trail towards Bear's Den Road. Mick and Scott wanted to do a little more difficult trail so we agreed that they would go up to the Yellow Dot Trail and meet us on Bear's Den Rd. Tracy and I continued on Red Dot Trail, but we never met up with Mick or Scott so Tracy and I continued around the mountain and rode back to the shop. Soon after we arrived, the rest of the riders started to trickle in. I was getting tired, so I didn't wait for Joe's group to get back, and I just headed for home.

Dear Bob,
There is a saying that dogs and their owners resemble each other physically, well it is obvious to me after reading the Sunday ride report that you and Madison also mimic each other in your "style" of relaying the truth. The real reason I wasn't able to go on the Sunday ride was because I was injured. I was riding along the trail with my family and came to a rutted part. I thought to myself, what would Bob do in this situation and the next thing I knew I was on the ground with an injured shoulder. I'm not sure if it was trying to think like Bob or just the thought of Bob that caused the accident but either way I have learned my lesson. As for Pepper, he has also learned a valuable lesson. I'm sure you have seen him on national TV staring in the Planters Peanuts commercial. He now knows that with fame comes the burden of obsessed, crazed fans who delude themselves about their relationships with the star and these fans will do anything to maintain this delusion.

Sincerely,
Cathy

Thursday 6/24: There has been an incredible run of good weather this spring and tonight is no exception, We had thirty-six people show up for our road ride that got rained out last week( last week being and exception to the above). I led a small group of riders that included Todd, Timster, Bryan,  Rick, and Uncle Mic. We were the "fast" group tonight and we headed out on the Conway/Whately   forty mile ride, right at six o'clock. We rode down to Deerfield on RT. 5&10 and headed up the hill on Stillwater Rd. and then out to RT.116 where we regrouped. I had been leading the ride most of the way but every time I pulled off, Todd and Bryan picked the pace up. The pace on the hill was a little too much for some and I had quite a job keeping things together, but we managed to get to Conway together. Some of the guys waited at the United Bank for Mic and I and after we all were there we headed for Whately Road. We rode up Whately Rd. past the reservoir and then all the way to the end of Weber Rd. We turned onto Haydenville Rd. and we rode to the Whately Inn where we regrouped again. After everyone was ready, we rode down Christian Lane to River Rd. We turned left and rode across RT. 116 and from there we rode on River Rd. all the way back to Greenfield. It was a good ride and everyone got back safely.

Sunday 6/27: It was a very hot day today, temperatures near 100 degrees, so I didn't expect a big turnout for the Family Ride. But when I got to Montague Center there was a large group waiting for me. Along for the trip tonight was CTD, Maxine, Mick, Scott, Karen S., Chris, Elizabeth, Andy M., Donna the Hon, Kurt, Cathy, Patrick, Tommy, Mike W., and me. We headed out in two groups with Patrick leading one group and CTD leading the other. CTD took our bunch up the Telephone Pole Trail and then out towards the Toilet Bowl Trail. Once again, CTD missed the turn in the trail as we tried to cross Northfield Rd., and I had to appoint Tommy as temporary leader. Once we got going again we rode down the Toilet Bowl Trail, but when we got near the end I noticed that Cathy and Andy were missing, so I headed back to find them. I rode all the way back to the last turn and since they were not there, I rode out to the power lines and then back to the end of the TB trail. Sure enough, Cathy and Andy were there. It seems that Andy had dropped his chain and they took the direct route out to try to catch us.  In the meantime, CTD went back to look for me, so I had to go shag him out of the woods. As soon as everyone was accounted for, we headed out for Willis Hill. We took a little different route to the hill, and we ended up on a trail that was mostly very deep sand, so many of the riders had to walk. I quickly made a route change and soon we were back on firmer ground and heading for the base of Willis Hill. When we got to the bottom of the hill I sent most of the group up the hill "on the kibukus", while Donna the Hon, Karen and I rode up the front of the hill. Once we got to the top we then rode over to the connector trail where we hooked up with Patrick's bunch and from there we all rode back to the van's together. After we enjoyed the refreshments provided by Maxine and CTD, we all headed for home to cool off and rest up for our next ride.
    Ken Heider did not make the ride tonight and although I heard a report of him being out of town, I suspect something else was going on. I think that little Pepper, the dog, is probably trying to recover from his heartache of last week. His heart, having been broken by Madison, is still on the mend and Ken was probably consoling the dear boy. We hope that Ken can get the job done and make it back out to the trail with us.