October 2006 Ride Report Page          
Here you will find the reports of our exploits for the month October 2006 more or less as they happened. Please note that the ride reports are the results experienced by the writer and not necessarily a reflection of all the rides that went out on that particular day. We have rides for all abilities but I only publish the reports that I receive. This means that if no one from the beginner rides send me a report, then you will not see that ride listed here. I will publish any ride reports or digital photos that I receive. Editors notes are in pink. Please send them to  bikebob@crocker.com and you too can get yourself published on the web! Go to the Ride Schedule link; You will find information about ride schedules and how the rides are run.

As many of you may have noticed, we had a very lovely floral display given to us last month by the Parrott's. (see photo to the right) Well, tonight (Halloween) I decided to return the favor. I carved up a pumpkin that Tom Graney gave MaryEllen and with the help of Grasshopper who did the graphics, I had a finished product. So along with MaryEllen and Eddie I headed over to the Parrott Palace. We dropped off the designer "Porch Pumpkin Planter" at the Palace and we nearly got away, but an observant Bee Boy saw us leave and jumped into the back of the van before we could make our getaway.  Anyway we got a couple of shots of the happy couple before the cops came and cleared the streets of the hooligans from Greenfield.

Monday 10/30: We had our mountain bike ride on Monday this week because tomorrow is Halloween and some of the riders wanted to stay at home with their families. We gathered at the shop at 6:00 to get ready to head out on the trails. Joining me for the ride was Curt, Mark N., Steve P., Mike L., Ed H., Walters, Jam,  and Gary Cole. As we were leaving the parking lot, Steve said he was having a problem with his shock, so I sent the group on ahead to do the Stop&Shop trails while I stayed to fix the shock on Steve's bike. After getting Steve squared away, we headed out on our bikes to ride over to Gill Road. We pedaled past the crossover and up to Canada Hill where we met up with the group just as they came out of the woods onto the hardtop road. We all then headed over to Gill Road and then crossed RT. 2 to the trails. After crossing the Stinkhole we headed over to the Lillian Street Trails. I followed Jam and Walters over the brook to the top of the hill, where the rest of the group was waiting. Mark Newton led the pack on the usual route through the swamp (I almost made it all the way through the swamp!) but I had to dismount on the slippery roots on the bank of the brook. After getting back on the bike, I sped off to catch up with Mark so that I could get him on the loop around the Balustrade. But by the time I caught up to him, he and several others had already passed the turn, so we all just rode over to the stone wall and continued on to Five Points. After a brief discussion about the route we headed up the Ridge Trail to Stinger. I rode behind Mike and Gary and we rode down the hill to Deer Run. Once on Deer Run I slowed my pace so that I would not get caught up in the traffic going up the steep hill to Water Tank Road. Sure enough, when I got to the hill there were several riders walking up the incline. Fortunately they were enough to the side that I was able to negotiate around them and I ended up riding up the hill behind Curt. Curt and I then rode the rest of the way out to Water Tank Road where Steve and Mark were waiting. After all the riders had arrived we headed out on Deer Run to ride the rest of the way over to Red Rock Road. As we were crossing the Streambed Trail, I watched as Jam did a three point pirouette into the mud. She was OK and with help from Walters she was quickly back on the bike. We did not do the Chute today due to the large amount of water that was on the trail. Instead we rode down to Jack's Pond and then took the left to do the Hill of Doom. I actually made it up that hill for the first time this fall. HOO-Rah!! At the top of the hill we waited for Jam, Walters and Mark Newton to arrive. Mark was actually doing the hill for the second time and he followed Jam up the hill. After everyone was ready Mark took the lead and we headed over to the Orchard Trails. At some point on the trail, Gary's light went out and he walked out to the road. We waited for him to ride over to the end of the trail where he made the decision to head back to the shop. We then continued on the newly cleaned trail that parallels the roadway and soon we were heading up the hill (on a yet un-named trail) to the Secret Trail. Most of the riders had to dismount on the rocks near the top of the hill and I stopped at the bottom. I hiked the short distance up the hill past Jam and Walters, who had tumbled on the steep pitch. After getting back on the bike I rode over to the Secret Trail and headed up the hill behind Jam. About half way up the climb we encountered Mike who was on the side of the trail with his chain off the little chainring. I stopped and got Mike going and followed him up the hill to the top of Luke. We decided to do a loop out to the power lines and then ride up the Crossover Trail. I followed Mike as we rode over to the power lines and I guided him down the hill to Red Rock. Most everyone walked up the steep hill on the Crossover Trail and we all met again at the top of Luke. When everyone was ready Mark and Steve led the way down Luke to the Ridge Trail. From there we rode down the hill to the Red Dot Trail which we followed over to the Fenceline Trail. (Jan, how did that trail get its name?) We rode over to the truck turnout where we rode over the dirt pile to head back to the RT. 2 crossing. I was last in line behind Curt, Walters and Mike. As we got near the Stinkhole I reminded everyone to stay on the "bridge" and not try to ride through the mud. Just as I finished saying that, Curt stacked it hard right in the middle of the Stinkhole! I really thought that he was going to be really hurt, but to my amazement. he quickly got up and slogged through the mud to the other side. Mike, Walters and myself took the sensible route over the mud and we soon joined the other riders on Gill Road. We all rode back to the shop via Gill Road, with "Stinky" at the back of the pack. Everyone seemed to have a great ride and we all enjoyed the riding on our manicured trails.

Sunday 10/29: I scheduled a trail clean-up and ride at the Coke Plant for today. When I got over to the shop at 1:00 I was met there by Mark Newton, Gary Cole, Steve Power, and Walters. So along with MaryEllen and Eddie, we headed out for the Industrial Park. I got a call from Harold, who said he would also be joining us. When we got to the parking spot we split into work groups and headed into the trails. MaryEllen and Eddie went out for a hike on the trails while the rest of us started the clean-up. I ran the leaf blower on the trails leading up to Luke and got them pretty well groomed. Working with me was Steve and Gary and our trio made good progress getting the trails repaired. After we got to Luke, I got a little ways ahead of Steve and Gary due to the large amount of tree limbs and trail work that was needed. I was about half way down Luke when Harold and Matthew Green arrived. I turned the leaf blowing duties over to Harold and then Matt and I went to work on picking up the larger branches and trimming the brush on the sides of the trail. Our crew worked about 2 hours together and we cleared a couple of miles of trail. We opened up Double Death Trail, The Collar Bone Trail and a couple of connector trails as well as cleaning up the Secret Trail, Stinger and Luke. Mark Newton, Walters cleaned and opened up Deer Run as well as the Chute Trail and several other trails on the east end of the park. All together we got the Coke Plant in great shape for the riding season ahead.
After the work detail most of the helpers went home, while Harold, Matt, Jam (who joined us after the work detail) and I went out for a ride on our newly cleaned trails. Quite frankly. I was a little beat, so I was not looking for a hammer session. fortunately no one else was either. We rode over to the trails from the shop and did a short loop around the park and then headed back to the shop before dark. At some point, Jam crashed and broke her shifter so she was working with a three speed. After doing our lap around the Coke Plant we headed back to the shop just before it got dark. I was tired at the end of the ride and I headed for the couch soon after everyone left!

Thursday 10/26: This afternoon Curt and I (using borrowed equipment from Liam and Walters) headed over to the Coke Plant to do some trail cleaning. It was a beautiful afternoon with bright sunny skies fairly warm temps (high 40's) and no wind. After loading the tools into the van I drove over to Silvio Conte Drive and parked the van. Curt and I then set about cleaning most of the lower part of the Coke Plant. We cut away several large trees that had blocked our path as well as blowing the leaves off the trail. After a couple of hours we headed back to the shop to get ready to ride on our newly groomed trails. At 6:00 Mark Newton led Gary's Cole and Fentin, myself, Jam (Jan Wholey's new nickname), Steve Power and Curt over to the Stop&Shop Trails. We rode up the hill on the Blue Dot Trail and after hopping over several large trees that had fallen across the trail, we ended up out on Canada Hill. We rode down the hill and across the highway to the RT.2 crossover where we all managed to stay upright on the Stinkhole bridge. Mark and Steve were definitely much faster than the rest of us and they set the pace for us to follow. I rode in the middle of the pack until we got to the right turn onto the Lillian Street Trails. I stopped at the corner to make sure that everyone turned on this hard to see right hand corner. I ended up following Jam as she rode over the brook. It seemed to me that she hit the rocks pretty hard, but she managed to stay on the bike and she pedaled up the hill. But as we neared the top of the climb, I could see that her rear tire was going flat. Just as we got to the top of the hill where everyone was waiting for us, her tire went completely flat. I hopped off my bike and with the assistance from Steve and Gary Cole we had the tube changed in no time. We got underway again and rode over through the swamp to the Ridge Trail. It was here that we took a different route than what we usually do. Because we had cleared the trees on Deer Run we could now ride from the top of the Ridge Trail all the way to the Hill of Doom without stopping. Mark led us up to Stinger and down the hill to Deer Run. We rode over to the Water Tank Road where we re-grouped before heading out on the newly cleared section of trail. I led the way and I have to say that it was marvelous to ride on some of my old favorite trails and that they are in such fine condition. I rode over to Red Rock Road and waited for everyone to catch back on before heading down the Chute. The Chute was in perfect condition and although I dabbed about half way down, I was able to ride the entire way without difficultly. Everyone else rode down it and remarked on how much fun it was to have this back in the route again as a rideable trail. Mark and I waited at the turn onto the Hill of Doom Trail for everyone to get down the Chute. Mark was the first rider down the trail and he was followed by Curt, who said he wanted to get a full head of steam going, so that he could possibly make the Hill of Doom. I got going in the middle of the pack and was at the bottom of the hill when Curt started up. Curt powered up the hill and I could see his lights going smoothly up and up until I heard him whoop at the top. He made it!! And he was the only one to actually make it all the way to the top. After we got to the top I led the group on a trip through the Orchard Trails. This is a wonderful route that we have not used in 4 years or so. We looped around the trails and then rode past Jack's Pond and took a left onto Mud Road. We then turned right onto the Streambed Trail and rode that all the way to Red Rock. Again this is the first time in a couple of years that we have been able to go all the way to the top of the hill without having to dismount to walk under the tree. At the top of the hill we re-grouped again before heading up the power lines to the water tanks. From the water tanks we headed down Luke. I followed Mark and Steve and we were really ripping down the hill. This trail has not had much work done on it and there were several large fallen trees and branches on it as well as being leaf covered. I stopped at one point to remove several large branches that were on the trail before heading down the hill to the Ridge Trail. We rode up the Ridge Trail to the Secret Trail which is another trail I want to get cleaned pretty soon. I rode up the hill behind Mark and Steve to the Crossover Trail where we waited for the rest of the crew to arrive. After that we took the Crossover Trail back to Red Rock Road where we turned right and headed down the hill. After we took the Orchard Trail back to the Mud Road, I led the group back to the Coke Plant on the Red Dot Trail. I then led the group down the hill back towards the Stinkhole. I was really flying and just before I got to the end of the trail, I came upon two very large deer standing in the middle of the trail. I startled them and they took off running. One of the deer headed right into the woods, but the other one stayed on the trail with me right behind. I was actually closing in on the deer, who kept looking back at me and finally the deer turned right just before I caught up to it at the Stinkhole. I rode over the bridge at the Stinkhole and then across the RT. 2 crossover. I waited on Gill Road for everyone to cross before we headed back to the shop. The deer encounter was a highlight of the ride for those who saw what happened. As we rode back to the shop we were treated to a beautiful crescent moon on the horizon. It was huge and shone down on us from a nearly cloudless night sky. Altogether I would have to say that this was one of our better rides in a while!!

Wednesday 10/25: Today I took the boys from NMH and Eaglebrook for a MTB ride on the Montague Plains. It was a chilly day with temps in the upper 40's but with the bright sun shining through the partly cloudy skies, it made for perfect late fall riding conditions. I drove up to NMH and loaded several of the boy's bikes into my van. I then led Mr. Pack and Michelle over to the start on Old Northfield Road in Montague. After parking the van and unloading the bikes, Michelle took some of the boys on a loop around the area while Mr. Pack and I waited for the Eaglebrook boys to arrive. When the kids from Eaglebrook pulled up, I helped unload the trailer and pretty soon we were on our way. We had 21 boys and 5 adults as we headed out on the Second First Left Trail. Mr. Lakey and myself rode in the lead pack and Mr. Pack, Mr. Landenberger and Michelle followed with the rest of the bunch. We did not get very far before Gustavo got a stick in his spokes and crashed pretty hard. Mr. Lakey stayed with Gustavo to make sure he was OK and I continued on with the rest of the boys. I rode along with Billy Kencel, Alex Smith, Berner, Ben Hefner and a few others to the Banked Trail where we stopped to wait for the rest of the group. After everyone arrived (Gustavo was OK after his fall) we headed out on the trails to ride to the Water Tank Trail. I was riding in the front of the group, behind Billy, when we made a sharp turn and Billy stacked it pretty good. It seems that Billy hit a pedal on the ground and that spun him into the dirt. I stopped to see what happened and I discovered that Billy's crankarm (where the pedal threads into it) was stripped. Billy was done for the day. Mr. Landenberger said that he would take Billy back to the bus and wait for us there. I then headed out to catch up with the rest of the group. Mr. Lakey and Mr. Pack were waiting at the intersection of Willis Hill Road when I arrived at that spot. I asked them to wait for everyone else to catch up before they followed me on the Water Tank Trail. I then rode off to get set up to take some photos of the boys climbing the hill. After taking the photos I rode over to the brook crossing and helped the riders get over the hay bales. After some of us got to the top of the hill near the water tanks there was a lively game of "Dab" played while we waited for Michelle and her crew to arrive. After all were accounted for, we headed off to Willis Hill and the descent to the Big Pine Tree Trail. After Lakey missed the turn onto BPTT, I had to holler over to him to get him to return with the boys who were with him. Ben Hefner led the group down the BPTT and over to Middle Road where we took a right to begin the climb. The climb up Middle road was marred by a couple of mechanicals (Lakey had a derailleur adjustment problem and Satchel had a stick rip off his derailleur) but we all arrived at the Swamp Road in good order. At this point Satchel's bike was un-rideable, so he and Lakey started to walk it out. I led the rest of the boys on the Swamp Road over to Red Rock, where we descended down the hill to the power lines. After making sure that everyone knew the route I headed out with Ben and some of the faster riders to go back to the start. I raced Ben's Hefner and McDonald down the power lines to the vans, beating both of them by several hundred yards. After getting my gear stowed, I got in the van and went to pick up Satchel and a couple other boys who were well behind the main group. I returned to the parking spot to load up the NMH bikes and soon we were headed back to school. It was a really nice ride and the boys seemed to really enjoy the outing. With only a few mechanicals and a couple of bumps and bruises, it was a very successful day!

Tuesday 10/24: Tonight I planned a ride over to the Montague Plains. It was a cool day with temps in the upper 40's and cloudy skies. There wasn't much of a wind but it felt colder than the temperature actually was. At 6:00 I got my gear together and along with Gary Cole, Curt and Jam (Jan Wholey's nickname) I headed over to Montague Center. When we arrived we found Steve Power waiting for us. We all quickly got our bikes ready and soon we were heading for the trails. We took the usual route over to the fire pit at the top of the Telephone Pole Trail, where we stopped to make some equipment adjustments. After a brief discussion on the route we headed over to the Second First Left trail. Curt set a pretty fast pace and I generally stayed at the back of the group. We rode over to Willis Hill via the Banked Trail and then began the climb up the Water Tank Trail. I was leading up the hill but got stuck on some fallen trees as I tried to ride over them. I stopped and let the group pass and then cleared the path of the trees. After getting going again, I caught up with the group at the stream crossing. Because of the construction going on there, we cannot ride over to the trails. Everyone had to dismount and hop over the hay bales and walk across the bridge. I am thinking of making a trail around this section, but it will have to wait until later this fall. After crossing the brook I rode to the water tanks where I took some photos. From the water tanks we headed over to Willis Hill and turned left to ride down the hill. I commented on how dry the trails were this year as we rode through what used to be a swamp. It seems that every year there is less and less water on the plains and places where we would have to ride across vast mud and marshes are now dry trails. After getting out to Willis Hill Road we headed down the hill to the Big Pine Tree Trail. With Curt in the lead we rode down the BPTT and onto Red Rock Road. I followed Curt over to the turn onto the Middle Road and began the climb with Curt. Steve waited at the turn for Jam and Gary before catching up with Curt and I. I followed Curt and Steve up the hill to the rocky climb where we all had to dismount due to the slippery conditions caused by the wet leaves that covered the rocks. After everyone got to the top of the hill Curt led the group along the Swamp Road to the Kiabuckus Trail. I was in the lead until I hit a very large leaf covered ravine and had to stop briefly. Once I got going again I rode to the top of the hill behind Gary. At the top of the climb there is a very large red oak that has completely blocked the trail so we had to dismount and climb over that. I will have to remember to tell Paul to get out there with his chain saw and get it cleared for us. After we all got to the end of the trail, we took the I-H trail over to the Pine Forest Trail. From there we rode at a pretty good clip down the hill and out to the power lines. We rode down the power lines to Plains Road and then tool Brushy Way to the Toilet Bowl Trail. We finished the ride via the Telephone Pole Trail back to the hardtop road which led us back to the cars. It was a great ride on what turned out to be a perfect night for a ride. After we got back, we loaded the van an headed back to the shop. When we arrived at the shop we were met there by El Presidenté and Eric who had done their own ride on the Greenfield Ridge.

Sunday 10/22: After the morning spent cleaning up the trails at Wendell State Forest, I headed home to get ready to go up to Curt's house for lunch. As I was heading back home I got the bright idea to call Curt and see if he wanted to do a ride. My plan was for me to leave the shop and head north and Curt would leave his house and ride head south. We would meet somewhere in between and then ride back to Curt's house. MaryEllen would meet me at Curt's with the van so that after lunch I could ride home in the van. Curt agreed and I headed over to the shop to get my bike and head north. It was a fairly cool day with temps in the upper 40's and cloudy skies. There was a brisk wind blowing so it seemed a little cooler than 40 degrees. When I arrived at the shop, Karen was there getting ready to ride with Tom. I told them of my plan and they said that they would follow me north to Tyler Hill and then finish back at the shop. After I got dressed and pumped up my tires, the three of us rode over to my house so that I could get my cold weather shoes (I forgot to bring them with me). We left my house after I got my shoes on and headed north. I led up the hill on Bernardston Road to the top of the hill where I pulled to the side of the road to fix my front brake which was rubbing the wheel. After getting going again, I got to in front of Tom and Karen and we headed for Bernardston. As we neared the town line I noticed that someone was coming up on my right. It was Tom!! He made a late charge for the town line but got there after I was across!! He will have to get a better plan for the next time!! After the town line I was at the front of the group going over the railroad bridge when I heard the "Bob is Fat" call come from behind me. It seems that Karen had flatted, so I turned around and headed back to her. After getting her wheel off the bike, I looked for the cause of the flat. It was not hard to find. There was a roofing nail that went squarely into the tire and through the rim. In all my time on the road, I have never seen anything like that. I wish I had my camera or a way to preserve the wheel so that I could show it off at the shop. But alas, I had to fix it and get back underway. Since there was a hole in the tire and the rim, I made the repair by ripping a dollar bill and wrapping it around the tube to prevent the tube from popping. After fixing the tire we headed on our way north. As we rode along I noticed that Tom was falling off the pace a bit so I kept the pace in the 19 mph range as we headed through Bernardston. As we neared the Couch Brook bridge I turned around and only Karen was behind me. Tom had dropped several hundred yards back. I slowed the pace a bit and soon he was back on. I had Karen lead and I rode ahead of Tom until we got to Keats Brook Road. At that point I took over and rode up to the state line in Beermont. I sprinted just enough to keep Tom from trying, but when I looked back, Tom was again off and only Karen was with me. As I looked back to see where Tom was I noticed "The Bus" as it was heading north on RT. 91 with MaryEllen at the wheel (I didn't actually "see" her, but I knew it was her). Anyway, I continued on at a 14 mph pace and Tom got back onto Karen's wheel. I kept the pace pretty mellow on the next hill, but Tom came off again. At this point I told Karen that I had to get going and so she agreed to wait for Tom and finish the ride with him. I headed off and rode north to Brattleboro where I met up with Curt near the hospital. Curt and I rode through town and then continued on to Putney. RT. 5 north of Brattleboro is in pretty rough shape and we spent a good deal of time riding around potholes and cracks in the road. Curt and I made pretty good time on mostly uphill ride to his house. As we made the final climb of the day, it started to rain a little bit, so we picked up the pace. As we passed Santa's Land we caught up to the only other rider we sow on the road. I said hi to the rider (I recognized him but I can't remember his name) just before we made the turn onto Curt's road. After getting to Curt's house I stowed my gear and we all had a very nice lunch, provided by Betts. After lunch, Betsey made us a delicious apple crisp desert which we made quick work of. After I had a cup of coffee, MaryEllen and I headed back home.

Sunday Oct 22, Wendell: Well, with a hard morning of very productive work under our belts on the trails our group convened at the Park Headquarters. Some of us had to say good bye (Bob had to go serve the bike riding consumers -Mark Courtemanche--Yes THAT Mark Courtemanche left with hopes of returning but did not-Jason Left and did in fact return) others chomped down on homemade sandwiches (or tailgate made sandwiches from Jan!). Anyway, once fueled up, dressed up we were ready to roll. Out of the gate we had Me (Liam), Jason (of the Racin' Variety), Jan, Kyle Bradford (a buddy of Matt Green's from Hatfield), Shea (or Billy as most of you know him ), Ok, I'll fess up to giving him the name Billy!! It was because I couldn't remember his first name! So there, I admitted it!! and the real El Presidenté-the ageless George Willard.
We rolled out with the 'Classic Opener'; the XC trail over to Carrolton Rd and the Around Ruggles Pond Trail. Everyone did great with this-yeah Ruggles pond has it's challenges but it rode really well. We then climbed out to Laurel Rd (or Marshes Road, depending on who's map you have) and headed down towards the pond to climb up the lower portion of the Lookout Trail. We had done quite a bit of work on this trail this morning and were eager to ride our handiwork. Awesome, always one of my favorites and now, maybe my favorite trail. De-mudded, smooth ascending, still kind of challenging and I only walked the final staircase ascent to Jerusalem Hill. From Here we rode all the way up to the Lookouts (after some deliberation at the midway point--but George expressed a real desire to see the view so off and up we went).. After taking in one of the finest views in Franklin County we rolled back down and turned left on the still unnamed new trail towards Damon Camp Rd. This trail was also the recipient of some trail love this morning and it rode beautifully. At this point we were ready to keep pushing. We descended the Lower Hannah Swarton (Bob is Fat Trail--fess up-who carved it?!?). Again, the leaf blower had made this trail a real treat. So now we decided to turn left onto the Maple Leaf Trail-ending our riding on the 'groomed trails' of the day and into the uber-leafy splendor of Fall at Wendell. Jason had 'sanded' much of the wet spots so it rode very well all the way up to the Nipmuck. Once on the Nipmuck, Jason and I pulled out a little home field advantage and navigated the very leafy twists and turns of the trail at high speed and made good work out of one of the stellar features of this park. After that we rode up Baker Rd-again, we all punched up it in good order, although Kyle was feeling the hill climbing blues of a smallish bike. At the top we turned right onto the Hannah Swarton's Remove, and proceeded to tackle this long technical thriller in all of it's tortuous glory. At the Bridge I waited for the rest and learned Jason had torn a sidewall and was getting a little help from George fixing it. As Jan rolled up I asked her if she had had enough and whether or not she wanted to bail out to the road she said "no way!" Though she admitted it was difficult she wanted to see it through to the bitter end--Whoo-hoo! At this point my time was running short and Jason and GW were still not done fixing the tire so I asked Shea if he would lead the troops out (and he'll have to fill you in on what happened next) I hauled down the rest of the Hannah Swarton, and then up the long slog of Damon Camp and out to my car--I passed a number of other bikers out enjoying the riding. Go Wendell! Good riding Kyle, Billy, George, Jason and Jan!
Liam
Okay Shea finishing the ride report. If you call me Billy I will be very cross, so don't. (I will have to come up with a different nickname for Shea, or get permission for me to use the "old" one!) Liam disappeared down the remaining Hannah Swarton while Jan and I waited for George and Jason. Jason's sidewall tear was sufficiently fixed to make the return trip more on the enjoyable than frustrating/awful side. Of course, I can't imagine that anyone would find climbing Damon Camp Rd. similar to cuddly teddy bears and peppermint gumdrops. So we finished off the Hannah Swarton with me trying my best to emulate Liam's "lead-from-afar" style of riding. At the end of Swarton we all waited at the top of Davis road. Kyle was hurting by the time he got out-out of water, and he had been riding all morning before he joined us. Jan donated an energy gel of some variety to the cause with the solemn instructions not to chew, to swallow immediately. And then the fun began. Jan's PB&J's must have had something funky in them because I motored right up the considerable climb to whale's head and waited. George wasn't far behind-he regaled us with stories of his many artificial body parts while waiting for the stragglers. Always the hard workers, we rode back out through the new trail to ensure its readiness for the 12th. George showed us all up by riding down the rock stairs that I had prudently walked down. Not to be upstaged, I was forced to ride the porcupine cave rock contraption on the way out, cleaning it to my astonishment. We all huffed it up the hill to the Ranger Station and were shocked to see the number of cars at Wendell-the lot was full!

Thursday 10/19: We did not ride on Tuesday due to the rain so I decided to run the Tuesday ride today. It was an overcast night with very warm temps (60's) and no wind. Riding with me tonight was Curt, Jan, Gary, Ed, and Mike. We left the shop at 6:05 and headed for Gill Road. Curt led the group down to the Highway crossover and I did sweep. Mike Levin was riding my Apache while I rode my old Razorback that I just got done repairing this afternoon. (I rode at the back because I had to put an 8 speed cassette on my 9 speed bike. It seems that we had a run on 9 speed cassettes this week and when I went to get one for my bike, they were all gone. I had orders for cassettes from several vendors but they did not have them either.) As I rode along Gill Road I tried several different cogs to see which ones would work. I discovered that I could get the 2nd and 3rd cogs as well as 8th and 6th and that is what I would be working with tonight. We crossed RT. 2 and headed for the trails. Curt was leading until we got to the Stinkhole Bridge, when he was passed by Ed and Gary. I followed Mike up the hill but I had some shifting issues and it took me a minute or so to get straightened out. After getting my gearing settled, I set off to chase the group which was getting out of sight on the trails. I followed the last rider and caught up with the group just as they made the sharp right turn on the Lillian Street Trails. After that I got right behind Mike and followed him through the swamp. There was a bottleneck at the brook crossing and I ended up passing most of the riders. When I got to the top of the little hill I found Curt and Gary stopped at the trailside, looking for the turn to the loop around the shooting range. They had missed the left turn, so I took the lead and headed off with the entire crew behind me. I stopped to shoot some photos and then rode behind Mike. We followed the usual route over to Five Points where I again took the lead on the Ridge Trail. When I got to the top of the hill I stopped to shoot some more photos and again fell in at the back of the group heading up Luke. When everyone got to the top of Luke I suggested that we do a longer loop at the Coke Plant and skip the ridge tonight. I had the riders follow me down the Secret Trail to the bottom where we headed down the Ripper. This trail is called the Ripper because we used it as a fast downhill that we finished the rides on many years ago. Now it is more apt to rip your arms and legs apart from all the thorny vines that have overgrown the trail and snag you as you pass. After we got to the bottom of the Ripper I turned left to head down the Mud Road. There were lots of large stinky puddles on this road (I fell into one of them) and we wondered what Cooper would have looked like had he been here. I led the group over to Red Rock Road and began the climb. I made it most of the way up the hill, but ran out of gears on one steep section, and got passed by Ed and Gary. After getting back on the bike I rode up the hill to Red Rock behind them and we waited until everyone had arrived before we set off to do the Chute. I followed Curt down the hill until we got to the large tree that had fallen across the gorge and blocked our way. Curt and I moved some large logs from the trail but we found that the tree was too low to ride under so all of us had to dismount and crawl under the tree. On the other side I got back on my bike and rode to the bottom of the Chute. After getting on the flatter section of trail I came upon another tree that had fallen across the trail. We again had to dismount and  walk around it. (Curt and I are planning on coming up next week to cut the trees out of the way and clear the overgrowth.) After getting around the tree I got back on my bike and headed for the Hill of Doom. I rode over to the hill with no problem, but I was only able to get 3/4 of the way up before running out of gears again. After everyone got to the top of the hill, I led the group over to Jack's Pond. At this point Gary had passed me and he was leading the pack. Gary rode over to the Streambed Trail at the front of the group but he made the turn too wide and ended up in a deep rut. I rode past him and headed up the hill, but only got about half way before I picked up a stick in my front wheel. That stopped me dead in the middle of the trail with the group right behind me. Gary and Mike made it past me and they then made the left turn onto Deer Run. As I was about to turn onto Deer Run, Jan came along and said that Ed had a problem with his bike. I turned around and headed down the hill and was about half way down when Curt hollered up to me, that Ed had ripped his derailleur off. Curt offered to lead Ed back to the truck turnout, and they then headed off. I turned around and rode over to the Water Tank Trail where I met up with the remaining riders. I led them down Deer Run to Stinger (which I did not make) and from there we rode the trails to the truck turnout where we met Ed and Curt. Ed did the coast-a-bike thing down the hill to the Stinkhole. From there he walked across the highway to Gill Road where we were waiting for him. At that point Curt and I gave him a push back to the shop with the crew right behind us. All in all it was a good ride on a really nice late fall evening.

Sunday 10/15: It was a beautiful sunny day today with temps in the lower 50's. There was also a brisk wind blowing so it seemed a little on the cool side. There were two rides scheduled for today. Mark Newton and Gary Cole were leading a ride from Heath (Mark's ride report is below) while MaryEllen and I were doing a road ride from the shop. As the 1:00 start time was nearing it looked like it would be only Curt, Jamie and me for the longer ride. But just before we got ready to go several other riders arrived. Joining me, Curt and Jamie was Wilber, Dougie, Stan Kolpa, Bentley, Steve Power and Michelle. MaryEllen had a good sized group that included Bad Bob, Paul Billings, Deb Kolpa, and Karen Moore. Also going out for a ride was Tom Graney, Linda Chandler, Christina and John Macy. After a brief discussion on the route for today we agreed to do a flat 50 miles or so down the valley. I led the group out of the parking lot and we headed north. I was trying out the Zipp 404 wheelset for the first time and there was a noticeable clicking noise coming from them. The clicking was from the magnet on the spoke hitting the sensor. I was not getting a reading from the magnet because it was too small so when we stopped for the red light at RT. 2 I moved the sensor, which stopped the noise. After crossing the road I led the pack on my now quiet Zipp's. We rode up the hill on Adams Road where the bunch got strung out a bit but the group came back together at the top. From there we all rode in a tight paceline for the trip out to RT. 10 at Streeter's Store. After the right turn onto RT. 10, I took a couple of pulls with Stan as we rode east to Northfield. The group was a little ragged at the right turn onto RT. 63 but we managed to get organized by the time we got up the hill to Northfield Farms. The ride south was a pretty even workout for everyone. Most of us took at least one pull at the front and although we got a little strung out on the hills, I made sure that everyone was able to catch back on before heading on. Everyone made it to Millers Falls in a tight paceline and after we crossed the bridge under construction, we were through town and heading for Amherst. After we started to roll down through Montague I noticed that Jamie, Curt and Michelle were getting gapped when the pace went up. I was on the front as we neared the Hunting Hills farm stand when Curt came riding up the line to say that he Jamie and Michelle were dropping off. I did not see them drop but when I pulled off the front near RT. 47, they were a ways behind us. After the rest of us climbed the hill to Sunderland, the pace picked up. I did not have a speed readout on my computer but Stan told me that we were doing about 23mph on the flatter sections. After we got to the last few hills the speed was really getting up there. This was due to a cross/tailwind that was blowing from the northwest. As we got near the Amherst line I peddled past Stan and took the lead into North Amherst. When we got to the end of RT. 63 I did a less than perfect job of getting the boys onto Pine Street. After that rather confusing left turn at the lights in North Amherst I led the bunch up the hill to the right turn onto East Pleasant Street. After wending our way through town we took Amity Street to Rocky Hill Road. I took a fairly long pull into the very stiff headwind and got the group over to RT. 47. We headed north behind Steve Power who pulled us into North Hadley where Bentley took over the lead. Bentley got us to the Sunderland town line before handing over the lead to Wilber. At this point we were heading into a full on gale from the north and the speed was down to 17 mph. I hit the front near Plumtree Lane and did my best to keep the speed high for the next mile or so. I pulled off as we got near the police station and I found that only Bentley and Steve were behind me. Stan had gotten off the pace a bit and large gap opened. At that point Dougie and Wilber had to close on their own. This left poor ole Stan out in the wind by himself. When Dougie caught up to us I had thought that Stan was with him and Wilber, but he was quite a ways behind them. We slowed down and waited for Stan to catch back on, which he did when we got to Sugarloaf Street in So. Deerfield. After Stan got back on we picked the pace up a bit. Stan recovered nicely and we took the North Main Street route out to 5&10. Traffic was really heavy so I had the boys go north on 5&10 rather than Mill Village. I knew that if we had gone on Mill Village we would have gotten stuck at the end of Old Main Street waiting for traffic to clear so we could cross. We rode north on 5&10 at a pretty good clip with most of us doing strong pulls at the front. After we got back into Greenfield we took the Hope Street route back to the shop where there was a birthday party going on for MaryEllen. Deb and Betsey had made brownies and Tom had brought ice cream. Most of us had some brownies and ice cream before heading for home. It was a tough ride but we did the 60 miles at a 19.5 mph average. Not too shabby if I do say so myself.

Thursday 10/12: Tonight we did a ride on MT. Toby. I left the shop at 6:00 with Curt in the van with me and we were part of a three car caravan following Mark Newton. When we got to the parking spot we were met by Mike Stamm, Walters and Dusty. In addition to the above riders we also had Tim Hilton, Gary Cole and Jan, which made for a fairly large group for a MTB ride. We got our gear together and soon we were heading out to the trails. We rode up the hill to the trails and started the climb up to the Sugarhouse Trail. Although there was a lot of rain the other day the trails were not all that wet. We were able to ride around all the larger puddles and the brook was not running all that high either. Mark and several others were quite a ways ahead of me and Jan when we finally caught up with the group. After a brief stop at the left turn to the Sugarhouse Trail, we rode up the hill with Mark leading and Walters and I doing the sweep duties. After making the turn at the bridge, Jan & I rode at a steady pace at the back of the group and we managed to keep the them in sight all the way up to the Hemlock Trail. After we got down to the Fire Tower Road, we all pretty much stayed together for the ride over to the climb. I rode at the back of the pack until we got to the first seriously steep pitch. At that point I passed Curt, Timmy, Jan and Gary and plodded up the hill. Walters, Mike Stamm, Mark and Dusty were out of sight by the time I got to the middle of the climb. I set a steady but reasonable pace up the hill and I was about half way up the hill when I noticed a light coming up from behind me. I thought it might be Tim so I slowed a bit to let him onto my wheel. I thought it would be nice to have someone to ride with. Well, after a couple of minutes, the light from behind got closer and closer and eventually started to pass me. When the rider got beside me I was about to say "hi" to Tim when I suddenly recognized the rider as Curt. Yep the dear boy had not only caught me, but he motored on past me by several yards. Curt stayed ahead of me for most of the way up the hill. It was only that last brutal climb to the top that Curt relented and allowed me to ride past him. At the top of the hill we waited for everyone to catch up before all of us headed down to the swamp on the bony singletrack trail on the west side of Toby. When I got to the bottom, Mark handed the lead to me as I am one of the few who actually know the trails from here back to the start. I led the crew down through the swamp to the power lines where we regrouped. I wanted to make sure that we had everyone together when I made the turn so I kept the pace pretty mellow. After skirting the rather large hole that the four-wheelers had dug in the middle of the trail, I led the crew down the hill at a pretty good clip. As we neared the place where we were going to turn, I came upon a very slippery, off camber ledge. It was on a sharp corner (one that I knew well because I have seen many a rider fall here) and was covered in wet pine needles. As I entered the corner my front wheel hit a rock or stick and I started to skid out. I knew that I was going down, so I just hung onto the bars and waited for the hit! At first I laid on the ground not able to move. I had the wind knocked out of me and I was pretty sore from landing squarely on my right side. Mark Newton helped me get my bike out from underneath me and after a couple of minutes he helped me to my feet. A quick check of the equipment showed that I had severely bent my derailleur hanger. I did my best trailside repair and soon I was back on the bike. (The whole process, from fall to back on the bike took about 5 minutes) After getting underway again, I led the group down the hill to the turn and then led the pack most of the way back to the trailhead. I had to take it pretty easy on the way back due to the fact that my gears would slip when I applied any real pressure to the pedals. After everyone got back out to the trailhead, I rode most of the way down the hill with Gary Cole. After we got back to the cars, I got my gear stowed and then Curt, Jan and I drove back to the shop in the van. All in all, I had a pretty good ride; and with the exception of my crash, there were no major problems on this ride. We will do it again in a couple of weeks.

Wednesday 10/11: Today I took 9 students from NMH over to Deerfield to ride the trails with the students from Eaglebrook School. In addition to the 20 kids from both schools we also had Tony Berner, Mr. Landenberger, Mr. Lakey, Mr. Pack and Mr. Hilton and myself. It was quite a group that headed out from the Schwab Pool, to ride over to the Mud Mile. I rode in the middle of the pack and managed to keep myself out of the many spills that the kids seemed to have on every ride. When I got to the bottom of the Mud Mile I was met there by Mr. Lakey and we decided that I would go on ahead and he would stop at the plank bridge to direct the riders who were behind us. I rode to the top of the Crystal Cave hill with Satchel and a couple of other kids and we all waited at the top for the rest of the group to arrive. After a few minutes Ben McDonald came along and he said that the rest of the kids were way behind. I decided to head out with the 15 kids that I had. I rode at the front of the pack with Billy Kencel before I stopped to take some photos of the kids coming down the steep hill. Now at this point I told the boys to wait for me at the end of the trail so that we could go left to ride the Over the River Trails. After the last of my crew passed me I got on my bike and headed for the end of the trail. Well, not surprisingly, there was no one waiting for me at the Pool Road. At this point I had to choose. Do I go left and hope that the kids went the way I told them, or do I go right and head for Bruiser? I went left and rode all by myself up the hill to Bruiser where I met up with the boys as they neared the top of the hill. After everyone got to Pine Nook Road we decided to do the DA cross country trails. I rode at the front of the pack with Mr. Lakey and Billy until Lakey got a flat tire. After he flatted, Billy and I went on ahead and waited at the intersection of Mr. Phillips's Trail. After a few minutes, Mr. Hilton came along and I asked him to wait for the rest of the group and to give directions to the trails. I then headed out with Berner, Kencel, Alex Smith, and a couple of other kids to ride up the steep hill. Kencel, Berner and I made it up the hill to the road without stopping and we waited there for some more kids to arrive. After Ben McDonald arrived I headed down the hill to the end of the Over the River Trail to wait for everyone to arrive. After all the kids were accounted for we headed down the hill several different trails to the Refrigerator Trail. When we got to the bottom of the trail I had the kids wait for the everyone else to catch up. At this point, the kids wanted to head back to school, but I had different ideas. I had them ride down the Pool Road and take the short cut over to the Mud Mile and from there we would ride back up the hill to school. After much protest from the kids, we headed out. I ended up riding the whole route with Satchel. The rest of the kids were way far behind us and we never saw another kid until we got back to the start. All in all it was a great ride. No kids got hurt (a few bruises and a couple of scratches were the only injuries) and everyone except for Kencel got back to the start without a mechanical. (Kencel popped his tire and broke his chain on the ride down Refrigerator and had to walk back.)

Tuesday 10/10: It was a much cooler day today than yesterday with the temps in the lower 70's compared to yesterday's temps in the mid 80's. We have been doing lots of rides in Wendell and other places and I thought that it was time to re-explore the Coke Plant and Rocky Ridge, so that was the plan for tonight's ride. I was joined tonight by Mike Levin, Ed, Mark Newton, Parrott, Jan, Cooper, Curt and Walters. Mark Newton led us out of the parking lot and down to Gill Road where we made the turn to cross RT. 2. After getting across the highway we headed for the trails. I followed Ed and Jan across the Stinkhole and up to the trails. We kept a pretty good pace although we were a little behind Parrott and Mark. We re-joined the pack at the turn on the Lillian Street Trails and the whole group rode over to the swamp. At this point Jan and I got held up at the brook crossing when some of the other riders walked across the stream, so Jan and I took the shortcut over to the "target" where we met up with the group at the stonewall. We rode over to the Ridge Trails where I took some photos and then we headed over to Luke. I rode at the back of the pack and followed Mike on the way to the bottom of Luke. I planned on riding at the back of the bunch to the top of the climb but shortly after getting going I encountered a few riders that had stopped on their way up the hill. First it way Jan who ran into a log on the trail, then it was Cooper who ran out of gas, then it was Mike who also ran out of gas and finally I encountered Ed, who was still riding but somewhat slowly. I passed all these riders and eventually I caught up with Curt near the top of the hill. I told Curt to have the rest of the crew do the power line down to Red Rock where I would meet them. I waited at the top of Luke for those behind to arrive and catch their breath. As we waited, I noticed that Ed was looking a little green around the gills, so I asked him if he was OK. Well, before the words were out of my mouth, poor old Ed was spewing out of his. Yep, good ole "Trail Chum"! Ed was leaned over hurling a copious amount of stomach content and it looked like his day might be over. After a couple of minutes, I sent Jan, Mike and Cooper on ahead to advise the group of the situation. I stayed with Ed and shortly after the others left he said he felt better. I gave Ed a GU and soon we were on our way over to Red Rock to join the others. Ed and I arrived at Red Rock and after a brief discussion it was decided that some of us would do the Chute while others would take the road down to Jack's Pond. Parrott, Cooper, Walters and Mark did the Chute while I led the rest of the group down the road. We met up with Parrott & Co. at the end of the Hill of Doom Trail and all of us headed back to the RT. 2 crossover. I was leading the pack on the trail down to road crossing and did not get to see Mike do a spectacular endo on the power lines. Mike was OK but Mark Newton said it was a good one to see. I have got to get a helmet cam!! We all rode the trails back to the RT. 2 crossing and after everyone got to Gill Road we headed for Canada Hill. At this point things came undone. Jan and Ed got turned around on the trail entrance and soon the group was out of sight. The next thing to happen was Walters light fell off. We tried to fix it but it was busted, so Walters was done and he decided to head back to the shop. No sooner did that happen, we then saw a light coming down the hill. It was Cooper. The dear boy had broken his chain and ripped his derailleur off. He was done as well!! So Walters and Cooper headed back to the shop while Jan, Ed and I headed for Lodge Tire to shortcut the trails and hopefully catch up with the rest of the group. The three of us eventually made it to the top of the climb above Lodge Tire and we met up with Parrott, Mike and Curt, but no Mark. Parrott said that Mark was behind with Cooper and they were waiting for them. Well as it turns out, Mark got a flat tire after Cooper left and he had to fix it before re-joining us at the top of the hill. After finally getting everyone together we headed out for the ridge. We did a loop on the ridge that took us along the Blue Dot Trail to Poet's Seat Tower where we paused for some photos. After the photo shoot we headed down the hill to the Red Dot Trail. I rode sweep along the lower Red Dot Trail and ended up riding with Mike for most of the way back to the Blue Dot Trail. When Mike and I arrived the group set off to ride down the steep Chimney Trail. This is a tough descent and most people have a hard time on it. We all made it down the hill without mishap and from the bottom of the hill we rode back to the shop on High Street. It was an interesting ride to be sure, but all things considered, we had a good ride.

Sunday 10/8: I have been pretty busy at the shop so I did not want to do a big ride today. I had a MTB ride set for 5:00 at the shop and the plan ride up on the Rocky Ridge in Greenfield. It was a beautiful day today with 70 degree temps and very little breeze. Joining me for the ride was Al Mason. We left the shop and rode over to the trails at 5:30. Since Al has never been on these trails, I led the way. I did not make the first climb (I can never get warmed up before this climb.) and walked up to the first turn. I managed to ride over to the next climb but again was out of gas before getting half way up the hill. After getting out on the Blue Dot Trail, I had Al take the lead so I could coach him on the upcoming trail conditions (I know this trail very well!!). I was able to make all of the climbs on the way out to Poet's Seat Tower road where Al and I took a left. I took the lead on the Yellow Dot Trail and rode ahead of Al down to the turn onto the White Dot Trail where I stopped to wait for Al. The reason I stopped was not because I had to necessarily wait for Al, but rather it was because I can never seem to make the off-camber 180 deg right hand turn without falling. After Al and I got going, I rode on ahead to the parking lot at the entrance to the park, where I put a little more air in my front tire. I like to run my front at about 15psi on this first part of the trail, but I usually like a little more pressure on the rocky, rooty section in Temple Woods. After airing the tire, Al and I rode over to Temple Woods and did the usual route over to the turn before Sachem's Head. We rode down from there to Bear's Den Road and then out to Five Points via the power lines. Al did very well on most of the climbs, but this is his second ride on his Razorback this year (he has spent most of his ride time on the road bike) and he got winded on some of the hills. After doing a loop around Five Points we headed back on Bear's Den Road to the Red Dot Trail. I rode in front of Al as we headed back to the Poet's Seat entrance. I was able to make all but the last climb on the Red Dot Trail. After we crossed the road to the parking lot at Poet's Seat we took a right to head down the hill on the Red Dot Trail. We finished the ride by riding down the Blue Dot Trail back to the French King Highway. The trip took us about 90 minutes and we really had a great ride.

Thursday Oct 5-WENDELL: Yeah; we all love the fall! The crisp clean air, lower water tables creating the most mud proof trails. Then there is the endemic beauty of a New England autumn. But, during the night riding season, "Fall Conditions" can also mean the most challenging of conditions. In a word, leaves!! Yep., those colorful deciduous cast-offs blanketing the forest floor. They change the whole riding game. They conceal treacherous rocks, roots and pitfalls (of which Wendell has it's fair share) causing sudden, unforeseen tips, topples and total wipeouts. Also there is the ever present problem of "Hey, where the hell did the trail go" syndrome. With all that in mind 10 game riders set out on an intrepid night journey through the woods of Wendell. Tonight's crew: Me (Liam), Racin' Jason, Jan, El Bob, Mark Newton, Scooter or Cooter or Chuckie or whatever Bob is calling Frank this week, the legendary Alf Berry-Senior Statesman of the Boys from Petersham, and Scott Baum, Mike Levin and Chris (Scott's friend). A really nice group!. My ride was almost cancelled before it began as I realized I had left my front wheel at my house (yikes!). But I was able to get a great wheel from Jason's basement stable and Bob got it all adjusted perfectly (dang he's good!) so the ride was saved (yea!). Bob then further surprised me by suggesting that we all stick together tonight--which is great-so the gang of ten rolled out on the XC trail to Carlton Rd in good order. The group soon found themselves making their way down the rugged Ruggles Pond Trail. A bony and slippery trail as ever. Tonight it was complicated by a plethora of fallen leaves that left us all shooting off the trail and disoriented at the worst moments-yet we all survived. After this I realized that the Hannah Swarton would be out of the question! Too bad, as it is my favorite trail anywhere, but alas: We had to let wisdom be the better part of valor. So with that realization, we headed up the trail to the lookouts. After waiting at the turn onto the New Trail for the rest of the crew to arrive we headed out down the trail (at which point I rolled my bike and punctured my lip-OUCH!). After the ride down The New Trail we ended up on Baker Road. From there we dropped down to Damon Camp RD. I was pleasantly surprised that everyone was keeping up and enjoying the route thus far. We then decided to drop down the lower Hannah Swarton (Bob is Fat Trail--fess up! Who did that!?!). At the end of the trail, Bob rolled up and told us that some of the riders were 'toast'. So we parted ways with Bob, Jan, and Mike. Bob's group turned right to ride the rocky portion of the Maple Leaf Trail and then on to the Pine Tree Trail which led them back to the ranger station. My group of seven then began to sojourn left along the Maple Leaf Trail towards the inimitable Nipmuck trail. Jason, Alf and myself lead the charge up and then down, down, down the Nipmuck trail with everyone in tow. For some of the riders, this was their first ride down the best descent in the Pioneer Valley and they were notably pleased (as were the trail builders!). About midway down the hill, Alf was leading me and Jason was right on my tail, I heard a muffled yelp from behind. I later learned that Jason had done an end'o on the birch logs after a jump and he landed awfully hard. We didn't see Jason again until Baker Road. J was looking kind of out of sorts. I asked him if he was OK to which he responded "Thursday!" and began deliriously singing "I want to live in America" in a delightful female Hispanic accent. J then took off to ride up Baker Road without stopping. (JUST KIDDING! Jason, was a little worse for wear but in pretty good spirits and as game as ever as he soldiered Baker Road!). After the group all regrouped at the bottom of Baker Road we began the steady climb.  I caught up with Jason and Alf at the top of the climb. Jason seemed to register our presence and then he rode off to head back to the ranger station. That left the rest of us waiting...and waiting....and waiting...for Frank; Oh there he is! OK let's go. As we sped back to the parking lot-Mark Newton and I enjoyed a little wise humor observing the classic Old Bull-Young Bull dichotomy play itself out. Upon reaching the cars we found that I actually arrived back with EVERYONE I left with--First Time!!! Much to Mark Newton's and Bob's dismay---hey anything is possible if you dare to dream! Jason seemed to have recovered from his crash and happy to enjoy a quick beer with the crew (and yes, I remembered to bring the beer this time). Great-challenging and slightly painful ride tonight--Wendell Night Riding-there is no substitute!

Liam

Thursday 10/5: It was a very nice day today although it was much cooler today (65 degrees vs. 80 degrees) than yesterday, so I got my cool weather gear ready for our ride tonight in Wendell. I left the shop at 6:00 with Cooper riding shotgun and Mike Levin following me in his van. We rode over to Wendell with a huge, nearly full, Harvest Moon rising in the eastern sky. As we were driving up the hill to the ranger station, Cooper saw El Presidenté coming down the hill. Curious... He turned into Racin J's driveway, so I assumed he was going to pick up J and drive him to the start. Not so, as we found out after arriving at WSF!! It seems that Liam had forgotten his front wheel and was going down to J's to borrow one. I unloaded my bike and got ready to ride as we waited for Liam to get back, I went around and said hello to all the riders that came out. We had J, Mark N., Mike L., Jan, Scott, Chris, Alf, Cooper, Liam and myself for the trip tonight. We all left the parking lot together and the group managed to stay pretty much together for the most part. I found myself variously in the middle or at the back doing sweep for most of the ride. We all made the trip over to the Hanna Swarton together, but by the time I got down to the Maple Leaf Trail, Jan and Mike were a little behind. At that point I told Liam to head on to finish the ride on the Nipmuck while I waited for Jan and Mike. Liam & Co. were just heading down the trail when Jan and Mike came along. We then turned right on the Maple Leaf Trail which then put us out on Damon Camp. From Damon Camp Road we headed back to the ranger Station via the Pine Tree Trail. We stowed our gear and waited for Liam to get back. After Liam and the rest of the crew arrived, I loaded Cooper and his bike into the van and we headed for home. All in all it was a great ride and everyone very well on a challenging course!!

Wednesday 10/4: Got to the shop at 4:20 today thinking I was going to have to hustle to get my bike out and shoes on to get going with Karen for our scheduled 4:30 ride, but no need to worry, Karen was in the shop, not even changed yet, chatting up Nate with muffin in hand. Nate loves his muffins... Anyway, Karen and I didn't think anyone was going to show but in came Bob S. and then Patrick breezed on in too. So the four of us took off to South Deerfield thinking we would probably do Christian Lane and back. Well there was quite a headwind on 5&10 to Old Deerfield but I pushed on at a good pace for those first 5 miles. Then Bob S. took the lead on the way out of Old Deerfield going at a good clip along the river on Mill Village Road. A couple of us were chatting (No doubt it was Karen and Christina!) so we took the pace down a notch or two for a bit before we cruised up the hill past Lee Road. We crossed 5&10 nice and easy and headed through South Deerfield. We then crossed 116 at the end of Sugarloaf Street and rode down to River Road where we got the pace going again. As we neared Christian Lane we all discussed the rest of the route and Patrick convinced us that we would have enough time to go to Depot Road....at which point Karen told him he better step on it! When Karen says go - you go! Well we got to the end of Depot and Patrick was trying to convince us that we had time to go straight to who knows where (Mountain Road to Whatley Center)? But Karen put her foot down...and what could we do but agree with her? The light was fading and it was 5:45. Patrick, take off those yellow glasses and now you'll see what we're talking about! Its getting dark out. So we stayed on 5&10 from Hatfield (I think that's where we were?) all the way into Greenfield with Karen leading most of the way (taking us to top speeds of 23-26+ miles/hr) that fading light pushing us ever faster back to the shop where we were met by BOB and his faithful companion...Eddie. Bob had a great mountain bike ride with the kids from Deerfield and wanted to check in to make sure we all got back from our ride OK. Thanks for checking in on us BOB. Total miles on ride was 32.6ish and avg. of 18.3ish, no record breakers but a good ride. Thanks Karen, Bob and Patrick. Oh, and last but not least; in rides Tom with not a moment of light to spare, from a "quick" Frizzle Hill ride! - respectfully submitted by Christina

Wednesday 10/4: Today I took a trip to Wendell State Forest with the boys from Eaglebrook School. We had 11 boys and a crew of adults that included Berner's Dad; Tony, Jan Wholey, Bart Landenberger and Sol Lakey. We did the "beginner loop" on the Carlton-Dirth Trail and except for a flat tire on Derik's bike we rode at a pretty good pace out to Carlton Road. I stopped and took a bunch of photos along the way and some of them came out pretty good (I must have the shutter speed too slow because a lot of the shots are pretty blurry.) When we got out onto the dirt road part of the trip I had the kids take a right turn on Wickett Pond Road instead of a left. It took a few minutes to get everyone back on track but soon most of us were out on the Nipmuck Trail (Bart and Ryan headed back to the cars). We had a great time riding down the Nipmuck and all the boys did very well on this trail. When we finally got everyone down to the road we were running out of time so we headed up Baker Road to Damon Camp Road and from there we shot back to the ranger station on the hardtop road. All in all we had a great time and all the boys got back in one piece.

Tuesday 10/3: It was a cloudy and somewhat showery day today but I decided to do the ride anyway. I drove over to Montague Center with Curt and we were met there by Cooper, Mile Levin, Jan, and Ken Heider. This was the first ride that Ken has done in quite a while so I loaned him a light for the trip. (You can all stop laughing now!) We left the common as daylight was fading and rode over to the trails on the hardtop roadway. When we got to the Telephone Pole Trail, Curt and I went up the hill together and we waited at the fire pit for the group to re-join us. When everyone had arrived we took the usual route over to the Banked Trail (past the new house that was built there recently and which is quickly becoming a dump.) I had Curt lead while I rode sweep. We rode over to the Toilet Bowl Trail and Cooper managed to ride through every puddle and mud hole along the way. After we got out onto the power lines we stopped to discuss the route. We decided to head over to the Pine Forest Trail and then do a loop over Willis Hill to the water tank. As we got onto the Pine Forest Trail we all switched our lights on. Ken only got a few yards before "his" light crapped out. At this point, Curt and Cooper were a long way ahead of us so I had Ken follow me on the trails. We rode up the hill to the top of the first climb where Cooper and Curt were waiting. I asked Curt if he could spare his water bottle battery for Ken and he helped me get Ken set up. After Ken was "lit" again, we set out to finish the ride through the Pine Forest. I rode with Mike and Ken for most of the way up and over the hill and we re-joined Curt, Cooper, and Jan at the swamp. We rode through the swamp and out onto Willis Hill Trail where we split up briefly. Cooper and I stayed on the trail while Curt and the rest of the crew took the alternate route through the woods. I rode behind Cooper as we neared the large pond in the middle of the trail. Cooper went right through the middle of the pond, sinking nearly to the top of the wheels in the slimy waters, while I rode around the edge of the pond. Seeing this, Jan suggested that we now call this area Cooperville rather than the swamp. Appropriate!! After the trip through Cooperville, we headed for the water tank. The trails were completely dry on the run over to the water tank, which is very unusual for this area. It used to be that after a big rain storm like we had on Sunday, these trails would be wet for a week or more. But with all the new industry in the industrial park, the water table is being drained down at an alarming rate. It is good on one level; we get dry trails most of the time, but I worry that the long term result is not going to be that good for the forest. We rode over to the water tank and down the hill to where we had the bridge built across the brook. The bridge is still there, but the trail and brook are gone. There is a lot of construction going on in the area and the brook has dried up and there is a barrier across the trail. We managed to get across the barrier and over to the trail but it is now time to think about building an alternate route around this site. After we got onto the trail again, we rode down the hill and over to Red Rock via The Big Pine Tree Trail. I rode sweep until we got to Red Rock where I passed everyone except for Curt and Cooper, who were already at the top when I got there. After riding down the other side of Red Rock we headed over to the Snowshoe Trail (where Cooper, Mike and Curt briefly got off on a dead end trail) and from there we headed back to the Telephone Pole Trail via the Second First Left. After we got back onto the hardtop roadway, we headed back to the cars. This was a great ride and we all had a good time. The rain held off until we were almost back to the cars and then it only sprinkled on us as we neared the center of town.