September 2005 Ride Report Page            
Here you will find the reports of our exploits for the month September 2005 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. 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. 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.

Thursday 9/1: After the rain we got yesterday, the heat and humidity has gone and we had a beautiful day today. It was warm and sunny with not much wind. I was able to get the usual last minute repairs and flat tires fixed and we left the shop at a little after 6:00. We had a total of 45 riders show up tonight. I led a group of 29 riders down to Deerfield via the Hope Street route. I stayed out of the wind once we got onto RT. 5&10 so that I would be able to conserve some energy for the end of the ride. The group motored through Old Deerfield and out onto Mill Village Road where we formed a nice double pace line. I stayed near the front as we passed Stillwater Road and headed up to Lee Road. I drifted to the back of the group as we neared the hill, so that I could gather anyone who got dropped off the pace. As we got near Lee Road the group split in two, with several riders hanging off the back of the second group. I went to the back of the pack and gathered everyone into a pace line behind me and we headed off to catch up with the front group. Luckily, the leaders took it easy and I was able to make contact with them at the turn onto RT.116. I led the pack down the hill onto So. Mill River Road and then I peeled off and headed for Jamieland. Michael Beh was having a hard time keeping up and I tried to pull him onto the group, but he drifted off the back. When I got back onto the pack the group was winding up for the town line sprint. After the town line sprint, Bob Croake had a problem with his wheel so we slowed to let him stop to make the repair. As we were heading off, I noticed that Michael was coming up from behind, so we slowed down to let him get back on. This was short lived as Michael was not up to snuff tonight and he said that he would find his own way back. The pack was now heading through Whatley at a pretty good clip and when we got to the downhill out of the center of town, Curt and I used our gravity advantage to go to the front. We hammered to the front of the pack and managed to stay at the front over the next uphill. I was mainly trying to keep Socks from stealing another town line sprit, like he usually does. The pack motored down to the next town line and that was won by Dougie. As we got into Hatfield I had to choose a course. Judging by our speed and the quickly setting sun, I decided to take MT. Road over to Depot Street. After we crossed the highway, I told all the riders to get off their bikes and walk across the "Tracks of Doom". The set of railroad tracks that are just off the turn have claimed hundreds of tires and tubes and if anyone rode over them and got a flat, I was not going to wait for them. Everyone heeded my warning and we hiked our bikes across the tracks and headed for River Road. As we rode along, Parrott rode up along side of me and suggested that we take a left onto Straights Road instead of taking River Road. I agreed to his plan and we all made the left turn. Soon after the turn there was a town line that I had forgotten about, but when Socks went flying by us all, it was too late to challenge him. Socks took another sprint and we all shook our heads in disbelief. He did it again!! After the sprint we motored down the road past the grammar school, where I took the lead. I led the group all the way to the RT. 116 crossing. After getting across the highway we turned onto South Main Street and headed down the hill, when suddenly Socks went flying by us again. Yep, he got yet another town line with barely a notice from the group. We all got a good chuckle out of our inability to keep that boy from stealing the town line sprints. After passing through the center of South Deerfield, we headed up North Main Street. When we got to the intersection of 5&10, I was in the middle of the bunch and Parrott was at the front. There were lots of cars coming and Parrott was indecisive about what to do, so I hollered up to him to take a right turn onto the highway. At this point it was getting dark and we put the hammer down. We kept a nearly 30 mph pace for most of the way back to Greenfield and we arrived at the shop as darkness fell. There were a couple of people who finished in the dark, but everyone got back safe and sound. It was a great ride  and I was glad that we did not try to do the whole route, as that might have been disastrous.

Sunday 9/4: The Greylock Century. This is arguably one of the most difficult rides that we have here in the valley. It is a very simple route: ride out RT. 2 to North Adams, then up to the summit of Mt. Greylock and then turn around and ride back. Simple maybe but not easy. The weather was perfect for the ride with sunny skies, warm temperatures and not much wind. A group of 17 riders assembled at the shop for the 9:00 start and after some last minute adjustments, we got underway. We had MaryEllen and Jen for our sag team and they had loaded the van and Jen's car with water food and supplies. They waited at the shop for about a half an hour before heading out behind us. The trip started out with me at the front leading the crew down to Main Street. When we got onto Main Street I was riding along at a good clip to try to make the green traffic light when I hit a large pot hole. This instantly launched my water bottle onto the road. Socks stopped and picked it up and delivered it to me further down the road. Jamie was quick to point out that I had finally dropped a bottle (something that he does with fair regularity on these rides) and he reminded me of my comments about my Campy water bottles. To wit " Say what you will about my funny looking water bottles; I have never lost a water bottle in thirty years!". Never say never!! After that incident we headed down Main Street and around the rotary. After the rotary we were at the base of the first climb of the day. The usual suspects went to the front and picked up the pace while I headed for the back of the pack. As we neared the Longview Tower, Jeff, Todd Roberts, Wilber, Steve Power and several others were pulling out of sight. I decided to stay at my pace and just ride up the hill regardless of what anyone else did. I rode up the hill with Jamie right behind me while Matthew and Harold Green pedaled along ahead of me. When I got to the top of the hill I decided to try to get a group together. The first thing I did was hunt down the Green's who were several hundred yards ahead of me. Joining me was Stan Kolpa who caught me from behind. Together we caught up with the Green's at the Duck Pond. As we got to the Duck Pond I looked behind me and I saw Jamie and Al Mason coming so I had Harold slow up a bit and they joined us. Soon after that we had Socks join us and that left Jack as the last rider. Socks told me that Jack was OK and he was riding at his own pace. The seven of us rode on and we did a nice pace line to Shelburne Falls when I saw two riders ahead. I then took the lead and rode off the front of the group to try to catch up with them. Just then Jen came by in her sag car and she waved before heading off. I caught up with the two riders as we got to Buckland. It was Brett and Bruce Rogers (Nervous Doctor) and they joined our pack. We rode along the highway at a pretty good clip until just before we got to Heath Center Road when I heard "Bob is Fat" coming from behind. I slowed down and Harold came along to tell me that Stan had flatted. I turned around and went back to fix the tire. Stan had the wheel off the bike and was beginning the repair when I arrived. I took the tire off the rim, checked the tire for debris and then Stan gave me a tube which I installed. As soon as I inflated the tire it started to loose air. At this point I did not want to keep the group, they were waiting up the road a bit, so I gave Stan a new tube and a CO2. I then headed off to rejoin the group. I told Stan to fix the tire and wait for MaryEllen to come along to give him a ride back up to the group. After riding up to the group we headed off through Charlemont. We all worked together in a pace line as we made our way out to the Florida Mountain climb. As we neared the bottom of the climb, Brett and Bruce rode off the front while I stayed in the middle of the pack. I paced my way up the hill behind Jamie while the other riders passed me one at a time on their way up the hill. MaryEllen came along at about the half way point and dropped off Stan. Stan quickly got in front of me and we worked together for the rest of the way up to Whitcomb's Summit. MaryEllen and Jen were waiting for us with refreshments when Stan and I got to the summit. After enjoying some banana's and oranges we headed off to do MT. Greylock. There were nine of us that headed out together and we all arrived at the bottom of the mountain in a group. As we began the climb I drifted to the back of the pack and soon was on my own going up the hill. I rode at a steady pace up the steepest part of the hill and soon I was right behind Jamie. At this point I was having a slight cramp in my right leg so I eased off a bit. MaryEllen and Jack passed us several times as I slogged my way up the hill. I managed to stay with Jamie all the way to the top of the mountain, but I was a little sore when I got to the parking area where MaryEllen and Jen were waiting with the rest of the group. Walters and Gary Fenton were also at the top of the mountain having ridden up via the southern route. We ate and drank lots of water before setting out to return back to Greenfield. I followed Bruce down the hill and we finished the descent together. We were joined by Brett at the bottom of the hill we headed off through the city to begin the climb back up the hill to Whitcomb's Summit. The climb is not as hard as the Greylock climb but it is pretty tough after 55 miles. I rode at a steady pace and was passed by several riders on the way up, but I rode to the top and after a brief stop at Whitcomb's I headed out with a group of 10 riders. I rode down Florida Mountain at the front of the pack and stayed at the front all the way to the Cold River Campground. At that point I went to the back of the pack to rest. We pedaled down to Charlemont and we did not stop for MaryEllen and Jen's pit stop. We continued on and I did as much of the pulling as I could and rested when I could. But in the end I was not able to keep the group together and I ended up by myself as I headed up the hill by the old KK building supply. I rode the rest of the way back to Greenfield by myself, but when I got to the rotary I managed to catch back onto Jamie, Bruce and Keith Streeter. We all then rode back to the shop together. I was pretty pooped when I got back to the shop but I recovered quickly before heading off to my house and the after ride BBQ. We had a good group for the feast and everyone seemed to enjoy the food and great weather.

Monday 9/5: I hung out at my house for most of the day and headed over to the shop at 5:30 for the beginners ride. It was a beautiful day and there were nine riders who came out for the trip. Bad Bob, Paul, Kim Ruddock and Karen Hebert went out on a longer ride while I took the new riders out for a ride to Country Club Road. Joining me for the ride was Doug and Leni Gaudet, Corinne Dugas, Karen Dowd, and Alex Baker. I spent a few minutes talking with the riders about their bikes and answered questions on how to shift and brake. I gave the riders some tips on riding with traffic before we left the shop. We rode down to the traffic light and made the turn onto Silver Street and headed down to Country Club Road. I helped the riders with their shifting and pedaling cadence as we rode along. We rode to the end of Country Club Road where we rested for a minute or two. Some of the riders were getting tired so we headed out to return back to the shop. As we rode along I coached the riders on how to climb and descend a hill as well as how to use their gears efficiently. After we made the turn back onto Silver Street, we stopped to help Alex cross the street to his house. After getting Alex safely home, we headed back to the shop. It was a great first ride for Alex, Leni and Doug.

Tuesday 9/6: Tonight I scheduled the Guilford Center "Ride of Doom" for 5:30. It was a great day for a ride because we had warm temps, no wind and low humidity. I was looking forward to doing this ride. I wanted to ride the entire loop, start to finish, without stopping for a repair or flat tire for the first time this year. I have had such bad luck on this ride and I wanted the curse to end! It was a busy day at the shop, with lots of bikes to build and repair, so I hardly noticed the time. At 5:00 or so the riders started to pull into the parking lot. We had our usual crew of Jamie, Curt, Mark N., Steve P., Socks and a few others ready to go at 5:25. George Frick had called to say that he would be joining us along with Steve Bellefeuille from K2. Well they were late and so I decided to head out without them. I left the shop with the group and rode down to the traffic lights where I saw George and Steve pulling around the corner. I decided to turn around and go back to the shop to get them, so I motioned the pack to go on ahead, and I pulled over to the side of the road. After returning to the shop I helped Steve and George get ready to ride. After twenty minutes or so, we left the shop and headed out to Bernardston Road. George set a wicked pace on the hill and I was quite frankly riding on the rivet for the entire time. Once we got over the hill I managed to recover enough to do a long pull down to the Bernardston town line. We were ticking off the miles at a 26 mph average and George wanted to try to catch the group ahead. I let him and Steve share the work but by the time we got to Bernardston center it was obvious that we were not going to catch up with the pack. At that point I decided to try to hook up with the peleton on the Greenfield Road in Guilford. As we headed north I was surprised to see Jim Smith heading south and I wondered what had happened to him as I waved when he passed us. To do that we pedaled up RT. 5&10 to Keats Brook Road and took a left. We rode at a steady pace up the hill with George and myself at the front. At some point we dropped Steve and by the time we realized that he wasn't with us, we were out of sight. George went back to get Steve while I headed up to the four corners to wait for the pack to come by. I did not want to miss the "train". I rode around in circles for a couple of minutes before George and Steve arrived, but still the pack wasn't in view. so I figured that we missed them. We headed south at a pretty good clip in hopes of catching the group. We hammered the next couple of hills and soon we were in Leyden. We pushed the pace up to 35 mph as we worked a nice pace line on the downhill portion of County Road. When we got to the steep descent, I went to the front and flew down the hill at 49 mph with George and Steve right behind me. We cruised down Leyden Road to Silver Street where we made the left turn to head back to the shop. I fully expected to see the group waiting for me at the shop, but when we got back the only riders there were Roger and Amber and their riders. After a few minutes Jamie, Curt and the pack returned with another tale of woe. It seemed that Curt and Jim Smith had gotten a flats, Mark broke a spoke and there were a couple of other mishaps as well. This is indeed a "Doomed Ride"! After the ride we all enjoyed the refreshments before heading for home.

Wednesday 9/7: Tonight I went on a MTB ride at Jack's house. Joining Jack for the ride was Mark Newton, myself, and Steve Ellis. We arrived at Jack's house just before 6:30 and quickly got our gear ready. It was a sunny when we left Jack's and headed for the state forest on High Street in Erving. When we got to the gate we began to climb up the hill to the first left turn. I was lagging behind and just staying in contact with the rest of the guys. I was pretty tired from the ride last night and a busy day at the shop so I wanted to stay at an even pace. We rode up the hill on the route that we snowshoe on and I almost made it up the almost vertical climb to the top of the ridge. I was feeling OK for the next few miles on the jeep roads that lead to the singletrack. We rode along the ridge for a while and I was able to recover a bit before we started up a very long uphill section of jeep road. I lagged at the back on the ride up the hill and was pretty tired when I crested the hill. We stopped briefly before getting onto the singletrack and I was glad that the first bit was mostly down hill. It was a little tough to get through the trails due to the downed trees and branches, but I was able to keep up for the most part. After we rode on a hardtop road in the forest we got onto a very nice section of singletrack that led us to a beaver dam. There was a path in front of the dam but it was filled with water and we decided to walk over the dam instead of fording the stream. At this point it was getting pretty dark and we all turned on our lights. We rode through a very nice pine forest which led us out to a sweet downhill run on a jeep trail. When we got to the bottom of the hill we came out onto a hardtop road which we took back to Jack's house. It was a very nice ride and I hope that we will get a chance to do this one again.

Thursday 9/8: As the daylight gets shorter I have had to shorten the rides and we all have to go a little faster in order to get back before dark. With that in mind I picked the Conway-Whatley 35 mile loop for tonight's trip. There were 16 riders at the shop when we left at 5:30 and I led the troops down High Street to Main Street. It was a perfect night for a ride, with sunny skies and warm temps we have had a good run of weather these last couple of weeks. We rode down to Deerfield via the Hope Street route and I spent most of my time near or on the front of the pack. After we got to Old Deerfield I went to the back of the pack and tried to get rested for the upcoming hills. We had a fairly stiff headwind when we got out onto Mill Village Road, but Baby Bell and a few others managed to keep the pace up to 21 mph for most of the way to Stillwater. When we got to the hill on Stillwater Road the group got pretty strung out. I stayed near the front of the pack and watched Baby Bell, David Bradford, Bob Croake and a couple of others power their way up the climb. I was several hundred yards behind Baby Bell & Co. when I crested the hill and there we a few riders ahead of me as well as a bunch behind me. I rode up to Bruce Rogers (Nervous Doctor) and got onto his wheel and we rode to the stop sign at Lee Road. When we got to Lee Road, Baby Bell was there waiting for us. I could see the rest of the group coming from behind so I had the riders soft pedal over to RT. 116. When we got the turn, everyone was back on with us. We made the turn and headed up the hill for Conway. As we neared the town line, Socks came sprinting out of the back of the group and went on ahead of us to solo across the line (what else is new?). At that point, Parrott, David, Bob and Greg Roberts charged ahead  to get on his wheel. That left me at the front to pull up the hill. I stayed on the front all the way to Walters driveway and then I pulled off. This section of RT.116 was just re-paved yesterday and with the new paving, we have more room to pass and this will make it safer for us and the motorists. After I pulled off I went to the back of the group which was now only 6 or  so riders. As we got up to the grammar school I could see a couple of riders ahead of us and so I went on ahead to catch up with them. I knew that there was a section of road ahead that was not paved and I wanted to keep the group more or less together so that we could all make the turn onto Whatley Road safely. When we got to the top of the hill we still were riding on new pavement, but as we descended down the other side we encountered a short section of roadway that was half paved and half scarified. The right side of the road was all rough and un-paved so we rode in the middle of the road all the way to the turn. It was a pretty sketchy trick, but we all made it. After we got onto Whatley Road we came upon Baby Bell and the rest of his group. It seems that they had a near miss with an El Camano just before the turn and they had to slow to nearly a stop as they approached the corner. With the entire group back together we headed up Whatley Road at a pretty good clip. I rode in the front with David and Baby Bell (a rare treat for me, as they are usually long gone after the first few miles) to the top of the climb. As we got over the hill I noticed that there was a group coming up from behind, so I asked Baby Bell to soft pedal until I could get them back on the group. I dropped back and brought Curt, Mark, Socks and Greg back up to the pack. As soon as we caught back on the pace went right up and we ripped down the hill to the reservoir. As we descended the hill past the reservoir we passed Roger, Amber and their group. I waved to them and encouraged them to join us if they wanted to. After passing Roger we rode down to Strippe Road and then made the turn onto Haydenville Road. Both Curt and I like this road as we can fly down the hill at 45 mph and then coast a quarter of the way up the next hill. I managed to stay at the front all the way to the top of the hill and then I went hard down the other side at 50 mph. Parrott and Dave passed me near the bottom of the hill and the three of us were the first to the Whatley Inn. After everyone got to the Inn we decided to take 5&10 back to Greenfield. Parrott wanted to go look for Kate, so he took North Street while the rest of us headed for 5&10. We all took turns on the front as we hammered our way back north. There was a certain urgency in the group as the sun dropped below the horizon, because we still had a fair way to go to get back to the shop. We rode all the way back to Greenfield at a 27 mph average and there was a pretty lively sprint at the town line that Dougie won. After taking the usual route back to the shop we all had a bit of refreshment before heading home. It was a pretty tough ride for me but all in all I had a great time. It was nice to ride with Baby Bell and his crew for a change.

Sunday 9/11: It was a fairly warm and sunny morning and I arrived at the shop around 8:30 to get ready for the ride. I had scheduled the ride so that I could ride for two hours and still have time to shower so that I could open the shop at noon. Soon after I got to the shop, Jeff arrived and we got our bikes ready for the trip. As 9:00 approached we had me, Jeff, Ben L., Steve P., and Jim H for riders. We left shortly after nine and headed off to do the Wendell-Warwick loop. I led the riders over to Bernardston Road and we headed up the hill. I pulled off at Burnham Road and Jeff took over the pace making. Big Mistake!! We were flying up the hill at 19 mph and I was pegged at the red line on my heart monitor. I made it to the top of the hill with the bunch but I was really suffering. When I turned around I could see that Socks had fallen off as well so I decided to ride with him. I told Ben to keep going and not wait for me or Socks. I got on Sock's wheel and we rode down the hill together. I took over the pace making at Leader Home Center and we rode at a steady 20 mph to the Bernardston town line. We could see the group ahead but I had no intentions of trying to catch up with them. I was watching my heart rate and I noticed that I could not get my BPM much higher than 150 or so. This is not good for me, because I should be at 165 to 170 if I am working hard and 185 if I am on the rivet. When my heart rate is that much lower than normal it means that I am either over trained (not possible) or tired (most probable) or maybe just no good at this. Anyway I made the decision to forgo the longer loop and do a shorter ride with Socks. We pedaled into Bernardston where Socks took a shortcut over to RT. 10 and I followed the group up RT. 5. We all converged together at Streeter's Store and headed east on RT. 10. I managed to stay with the group up the first couple of hills but Socks came off the back. At that point, I told Jeff and the boys to go on ahead and that Socks and I would do our own thing. At that point Jeff and his crew went to warp speed and soon were out of sight. Socks and I headed over to RT. 63 and made a right turn. Socks wanted to do the whole route but I reminded him that we would be suffering like dogs on the climbs if we were to try to make it back to the shop in two hours. At that point he agreed and we headed south towards Millers Falls. I did a fair amount of the pulling as we made our way over the hills in Northfield and Erving, but I kept the pace at around 20 mph or so, which was sustainable for me. When we got to Millers Falls we had to stop for a freight train that was going over the roadway. After the train passed, Socks and I then rode through the town and up the hill to Millers Falls Road. We set a steady tempo over to Scotty's Store and then we took L Street down to Ave A because the Third Street hill is still un-paved. After crossing the river we headed back to the shop. Socks rode past the shop and headed for home while I stopped at the shop to stow my gear. At the end of the ride, Socks said that he was glad that we did not try to do the whole route, because he was really more tired than he thought. I was glad as well, because I knew that if I had done it I would have probably not be able to do much more for the rest of the day.

September 11: If there's better weather for riding-I've never been in it. We've been dry for weeks, it's late summer so the cooler nights have dispatched the bugs from the woods and the daytime has been nothing but sunshine and seventies--I could live like this year round.
It's September in MA--prime mountain riding season, last week I rode in the berks to fine weather and this week I continued to celebrate the season with an early morning ride at the ever great Hawley! Hawley was in perfect shape-the trail elves have been very busy, the leaves are on the trees and the ground, roots, rocks and bridges are DRY!!! As I pulled into the parking area by the firehouse on East Hawley rd to meet my fellow riders I just knew this was going to be a good one! Meeting me for the ride this morning was Eric Malloy (on his retro-FULLY RIGID ALUMINUM SINGLE SPEED), Harold and Matthew (The Messrs Green), Dr. Mike Stamm, and Jay. We putzed around for a few minutes while we got our stuff together and ready to roll. I had never ridden with Dr. Mike or Jay before so we talked a little (yeah, I was sizing them up a little). Jay rode wheelies around the parking lot and Dr. Mike asked some questions about the trail. Soon we were ready to roll--off we went up the dirt road towards the beginning of the snowshoe trail. I figured I'd hit the Kiln Trail loop (a short singletrack that begins and ends a little further up on the road to the snowshoe trail. I was pushing along a good clip when Jay came bombing past me up the hill-I raced up to him and told him to slow down 'cause I'm not sure of the trail head (and he had never ridden here before) so we didn't want to miss anything... Well, I did, I missed the entrance to the Kiln trail chasing Jay, and got on the wrong end---after a few minutes of poking around what I think was the Lumpy Bumpy trail, we backtracked back to the main dirt road and headed up the hill to the snowshoe trail. I got to the top and waited for the crew to arrive--Harold rolled in and asked us to slow down a little because Jay was struggling up the hill. I asked if he was coming and Harold assured me he had made it to the dirt road and was only a little bit behind him. After a few minutes when Jay hadn't shown up-I figured he had a technical and rode back down to find him (calling out all the way). He was nowhere to be found--in the past I would have spent a lot more time looking for him--but I knew what had happened-He'd Bailed, without telling anyone. Man, I hate that! I'll wait for the slowest rider at a trailhead, we'll wait out any technical's--but bailing without so much as a goodbye-that's lame--we wasted 15 minutes of our precious time looking for someone who could care less. When you show up for a group ride 1. be honest about your skill level 2. If you need to bail-let someone know-when Harold told jay he was going ahead to tell us to slow down-he should have finished the ride up to that point-or, just told Harold he was bailing. Anyway, I didn't think too much about it and soon we were all whizzing down the most excellent snowshoe trail, and then the equally long and excellent notch trail (yep, the 'classic' route0. From there we hit a few Hawley classics like periwinkle and Stoned Walls, and even made it to the far end of the park for some really challenging trails. Eventually we worked our way down to the upper and then lower moody springs trails.
At the bottom of the Ravine we took a few minutes to breathe and smile and think about all the great riding we'd already done. From here we climbed up Sprague's ravine and then worked our way over to the well-bridged cemetery trail. Next up was Vietnam-I kind of-er-forgot exactly where it was and after about 30 minutes of poking around deep into the woods, we finally found the trail--it's a real great technical gem and everyone felt the challenge and joy of this singletrack wonder.
Well, it's was getting near time for me to get home so we high-tailed it to the snowshoe trail and rode up the snowshoe trail and the back down to the cars. More glorious sunshine and crisp air greeted us--and Harold had cookies. It was a great ride-and a few props are due. 1.
Eric rode the three hour ride on his fully rigid ss, and was always in the front end of the group-amazing. 2. Matthew continues to get really good all-around--I'm not sure there's a another 15 year old who's better in the area. Dr. Mike did great on difficult trails in a whole new area--I'm not sure he's really ridden that much true singletrack before--he seemed real pleased (and why not?). And of course to Harold--finally, on his third attempt to ride Hawley had no disastrous technical and rode the whole thing-well at that-without a hitch! good ride gentlemen.

Oh yeah--and to all the guys who build and maintain Hawley--I know a lot more about the work involved in building a trail system now and the sweat equity of the hill town hardcore riders is quite evident at Hawley--those guys build great trails.
Liam

Monday 9/12: It was a bright sunny day today and I had a good group of riders show up for the last Monday night ride of the season. We split the group into two rides with Bad Bob and Paul taking one group down to Deerfield and back, while I took the rest of the riders on the Hillside Road loop. I had a group of ten riders following me as I headed down to Deerfield Street via Hope Street. I kept the pace pretty reasonable for the first part of the ride but when I got down to Hope Street I only had four riders with me. At that point I decided to head onward with Tom, Linda, Wendy and Ben Marsden. We only had an hour to do the ride so I could not afford to wait for the rest of the group to catch up. I led my pack down to River Road and we began the hilly portion of the ride. I let the other riders set the pace on the uphill and when we got to the flatter sections, I took the lead and pulled them into the wind. This worked pretty well and we made it down to the turn onto Hillside just before 6:30. We pushed the pace a bit going up the hill and Tom and I were able to crest the hill together. At the top of the hill I sent Tom on ahead to see if Bad Bob and his crew were waiting for us at YCD. I waited at the top for Wendy, Ben and Linda and when they arrived we paused a minute or so to let them catch their breath before we headed down the hill. After turning onto North Main Street we rode at a steady pace over to YCD where we caught up with Tom. Bad Bob and the rest of the group had already left to return back to the shop so we just continued on. We rode down to Old Deerfield and then out to RT. 5&10 where we turned left to head for home. As we neared Woolman Hill, I could see the flashing tail lights from Bad Bob's bike and I knew that we were going to catch up with the rest of the group. We caught up with Bad Bob and Julie who were the sweeps as we neared the bridge. At that point I sent Bad Bob, Wendy and Ben on ahead while I took up sweep with Julie. Julie and I then caught up with Alex Baker on Deerfield Street and the three of us headed over to Washington Street. At this point the sun was setting so I sent Alex on ahead and I rode with Julie up Hope Street. Julie and I managed to keep Alex in sight for the rest of the way back to the shop and we arrived just as it was getting dark. When we arrived at the shop we found the group feasting on ice cream and toppings that were being served by Margot Peck. Bad Bob and Margot had offered to supply the refreshments for tonight and the group really enjoyed the treat. After finishing off the refreshments I thanked the group for a wonderful year and told them to look for the emails about the weekend rides this fall. After everyone left I closed the shop and headed for home.

Tuesday 9/13: As the daylight hours diminish I have had to reduce the mileage that we do on our rides even with a 5:30 start time. Tonight I wanted to do something a little longer than 30 miles so I picked the Cave Hill Ride. We had 12 riders show up for our trip and we left the shop promptly at 5:35 to head over to Turners Falls. It was a warm evening with bright sunshine and not much wind as we made our way to the L Street hill. I kept the pace pretty mellow and we all made the climb in the big ring. At the top of the hill Chris Williams took the lead and the pace went up quite a bit. Everyone was able to stay with the group to the fire house where we made the left turn. At this point I was on the front and I led the group past the Millers Falls Rod and Gun club before I relinquished the front of the pack to Jim Hayssen. Jim pulled us along at 26 mph all the way to Hatchery Road when Parrott took over. We cruised down the road with most of us taking turns on the front. The pack stayed together all the way through the turn onto Rt. 47 and then onto the North Leverett Road climb. As we climbed the hill the group got a little strung out but we all were able to stay in contact for most of the hill. As we neared the turn onto Cave Hill, I asked the leaders (Jim, Chris, Parrott, Tom Silko and Bruce Rogers) to wait up at the bottom of the hill so that everyone could get back on. I managed to stay near the front of the pack for most of the way up the hill, but as we neared the top, I dropped back to gather the riders behind me. I waited for Jamie and Socks to come up the hill but only Jamie came along. It seems that Socks was having a bad day and he was way behind. He told Jamie to head on so that's what I did. Jamie, Mark Newton and myself headed down the hill to Montague Street where the rest of our crew was waiting for us. I took the lead and we headed down the road to Leverett Center. At this point we all were sharing the work load and we sped through town and down the hill to RT. 63. After a somewhat shaky highway crossing we headed for Bull Hill. After the sprint for the town line (which Silko won) we headed out to the open area of the hill. We were hit with quite a wind blowing across the fields, which made the group work pretty hard to keep the 22mph pace going. After we got to the bottom of Bull Hill we turned onto RT. 116 where we encountered a bit of rough roadway. It seems that the state had installed rumble strips along the edge of the road and this process left a lot of loose stone and gravel. We had to ride carefully all the way to the Seven O's where the rumble strip work stopped. After getting onto smoother road we picked the pace up to 27 mph and we raced into Sunderland center. After going through the traffic light there was a sprint for the town line that Parrott won. We took the South Deerfield route back out to 5&10 where we made a right turn to head back north. At this point the sun was setting pretty quickly so we got to work and picked the pace up considerably. We pedaled pretty quickly back to Greenfield and when we got to Hope Street the sunlight was nearly gone and we were racing against the coming darkness to get back to the shop. The entire group made it back together and after some refreshments we all headed for home. :)

Wednesday 9/14: This is the last of the Wednesday night MTB rides for the season. This year we have not had much of a turnout for the MTB rides and we have done fewer of them. It is hard to ignore the fact that on any given night that we have a road ride we will get between 40 and 60 riders while an average mountain bike ride is 4 to 6 riders. Anyway, I had a ride scheduled for the Coke Plant and Mark Newton, Huckle May and his wife Sharon showed up at 6:00. Sharon is a newer rider and she was out on her first group ride with us. We left the shop with Mark in the lead and we rode over to the trails via Gill Road. I stayed in the back with Sharon as we made our way along the trails. We found that although the trails were somewhat overgrown in places, they were in great shape. Even the swamp was not muddy at all. We rode through the swamp and  over to Five Points where we paused for a minute to rest. After we got underway again we headed up the Ridge Trail to Luke. Mark led and I rode sweep and we all made the climb without difficulty. At the top of Luke we paused for a minute before heading out to the power lines, Mark was the first down the hill and I led Huckle and Sharon down the trail. I showed them the line through the rough sections and then followed them up to Red Rock. We headed for the Chute, but before we could get there we had to cut our way through a dense briar barrier that had overgrown the trail. Once on the trail we rode down to the Chute. Sharon decided to hike down the hill while I rode down. At the bottom of the hill we re-grouped before heading to the Hill of Doom. I managed to ride up the hill without any problem and I was amazed at the good condition of the trail. At the top  of the hill we took a right and headed over to the Streambed Trail via Jack's Pond. Once on the Streambed trail, Sharon said that she was getting tired so we took Deer Run over to Stinger. After riding up Stinger we re-traced our route back through the swamp and then took the Lillian Street Trails over to the highway. We returned to the shop via Gill Road and ended the ride just before it got dark. It was a really nice night to ride and I was surprised that we did not have that many riders for the trip.

Thursday 9/15: I had scheduled the last ride for this season tonight and we had a bright, beautiful day for a ride. Unfortunately I was so busy that I was unable to get out to do the ride. Curt, Tom Silko and 10 others went out for a ride and I hope that they will write a report.

NEMBAFest 2005 Sunday September 18:
Predicted weather for the cape for the weekend was hurricane force winds and heavy rains, but since the in-laws place is less than an hour from the site of the 2005 NEMBAFest, I loaded the 4 Mountain bikes onto the back of the car and we headed south-east into the predicted storm Friday night.

Saturday in fact turned out to be a pretty good day. The boys and I took our bikes down onto the beach and road the length of Horseneck Beach watching the surfers and the pounding waves. Beach riding is a good prep for riding the plains - you should all try it sometime, just don't forget to wash the salt from the bike afterward! We were hopeful that the weather a bit further east on the cape would be similar for the riding on Sunday.

I pried the kids from the bunkroom at about 7:00 Sunday morning for a quick breakfast and the ride from Grandma's house out I-195 to Sandwich in time for the festival start at 8:30 AM. When we arrived the parking lot was already filling up fast.

Attendance was pretty good, over 350 riders - great location at the YMCA's Camp Lyndon, and regardless what came from the weather prognosticators the weather was great. The folks at Cape Cod NEMBA had marked three loops out on the Trail of Tears for the day. Since I had all three kids, we joined up with a friend Allison had met at Pedro's and did the beginner (8 mile +/-) loop as a family at a pretty aggressive 11yr olds pace in the morning. The friend's dad had led the kids on a ride at Pedro's, so it was my turn to let him do a more advanced dad's ride. I had Allison and friend Jenny ride at the front of the group so they would be comfortable with the pace. The route was very well marked - we made all the right turns at all the right times (except for when Matthew snuck to the front...) The two girls are pretty new to single track riding, so there was an occasional squeal and crash from the front as a quick turn surprised one or the other. Matthew was pretty bored by the pace set by the girls, but I don't think it is possible for the him to have a bad time on a bicycle. Jeffrey cleared everything and continued to push the girls pace throughout the ride, complaining continually every time one of them dismounted to get over a log, rock, steep or bump in the trail.

After a lunch of overpriced cheeseburgers, we checked out the available goodies at the vendors booths. I picked up some shoes and pedals for Allison - she thinks its cool to have a mismatched set of salesman's sample shoes one blue foot, one green foot and who could complain about the price? - so she spent the afternoon practicing clipping and unclipping riding around the camp. The brothers fooled around on the various technical stunts, drops, teeters, logs, skinnies etc. Matthew even gave the 55gal drum a try or two - failing dramatically, but without injury.

He and I then did a race-pace replay rip on the beginner loop before a final swim to close the day. We didn't get to see the full extent of Trail of Tears, not having time for the intermediate or advanced loops, but surely enjoyed the sweeping smooth Single Track. NEMBA raised over $6,600 from the event which will be donated to the American Red Cross to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina.
We definitely will plan a return visit next year!

Harold
Official press release below:
Mountain Bike Festival on Cape Cod Raises over $6600 for Victims of Hurricane Katrina The New England Mountain Bike Association's Harpoon-Topeak Mountain Bike Adventure Finale is donating $6652.45 to the American Red Cross September 20, 2005 - Acton, MA - The New England Mountain Bike Association (NEMBA) announced today that it raised $6652.45 for the American Red Cross from its annual mountain bike festival, the finale of the Harpoon-Topeak MTB Adventure Series, held on September 18th in Sandwich, Massachusetts.
370 mountain bikers attended the festival, presented by Dirt Rag Magazine, to raise funds for the American Red Cross and enjoy a day of trail bicycling, a bicycle industry expo, swimming, music and food. "This event is usually a fundraiser for the New England Mountain Bike Association's trail advocacy programs. However, because of the national calamity caused by Hurricane Katrina, with some of the victims staying nearby at Otis Air Force base, we decided donating the proceeds to the American Red Cross was much more important," says NEMBA's executive director, Philip Keyes. Neal Todrys, owner of Topeak Cycling Accessories (Foxboro, MA) commented that "Topeak is pleased to be involved with an organization like NEMBA because of its ability provide great riding opportunities for cycling enthusiasts throughout the region, and its ability to raise money for good causes."
Individual riders who gathered more than $200 in pledges were entered to win a custom cruiser bicycle donated by NEMBA member, William Noonan.
In addition to the title sponsors, Harpoon Brewery and Topeak, the festival was attended by the following companies: Back Country Excursions of Maine, Belmont & Ace Wheel Works, Coyote Mountain Bike Camps, Crotch Guard, East Shore, Eastern Mountain Sports, Harris Cyclery, LeVeL Components, MassBike, Mavic-Adidas, MetroSports Boston, os20gear, Red Bull, The Bike Depot, and TobinSport / Winter Athlete, and Trek Bicycles.
About the Harpoon-Topeak MTB Adventure Series: This mountain bike charity ride series is produced by the New England Mountain Bike Association and titled sponsored by the Harpoon Brewery (Boston, MA) and Topeak Cycling Accessories (Foxboro, MA). The series is presented by Dirt Rag Magazine, and has the following additional sponsors: White Lightening, Hammer Nutrition, and On Guard Locks.
About the New England Mountain Bike Association: The New England Mountain Bike Association (NEMBA) has 18 chapters and more than 4,500 members throughout New England. Its mission is to promote responsible mountain biking and to protect and preserve New England trails and open spaces. The group also leads about a thousand recreational rides a year, hosts mountain bike festivals and camping trips, and has bicycle patrols in many parks. Contact NEMBA at www.nemba.org or 800-57-NEMBA.

Sunday 9/18: It was a pretty nice day today and I left the shop at 5:30 with Curt and headed over to Montague to do a ride on the plains. When I got there we were met by Jack, Walter, and Steve. I led the group from the center of town and over to the trails. Although there had been some rain over night I found that the trails had dried out pretty well. We rode from the fire pit out to Willis Hill and then took the Water Tank Trail back down to the sand road. After a short loop out to Red Rock we headed back to the center of town. I have been pretty tired from a long season of not enough help and too much to do, but this ride was a good rejuvenator for me.

Monday 9/19: Tonight was to be our last Monday night ride for the season. Really!! It was another beautiful late summer evening with warm temps, sunshine and a brisk breeze. We had a group of 9 riders show up for the ride even though I did not send out an email. Bad Bob took a group of three riders out for a loop into Deerfield while I took the rest on the Hillside Road loop.  Joining me for the ride was Linda Chandler, Tom Graney, Mike Sztegala, and a new rider Jireh. I led the pack down High Street to Deerfield Street via Hope Street. I set a 18mph pace down to River Road and after we made the turn I pulled off to let Tom lead up the first of the hills. The group was a little ragged at first but I was able to get everyone working together on the flatter sections of the road. I coached Linda and Tom on how to ride smoothly in a pace line and how it helps to reduce the effort needed to keep your speed up to that of the leader. We rode down to the McClelland Farm where we were hit by a headwind. I took the lead all the way to the big hill. I pulled off just before the climb and I then coached the riders on how best to ride up this hill. As we got going, Jireh headed up the hill at a pretty good clip so I left the others and rode up the hill to catch him. I was not too sure of how much experience Jireh had at riding hills so I wanted him to pace himself so that he would not bonk on Hillside Road. After catching Jireh, he and I soft pedaled until the group caught up with us. We all then rode over the last hill together. When we got down to Pine Nook Cemetery I again took the lead until we got to the next downhill, where Linda took the pace. We rode over to the turn onto Hillside and I cautioned the riders to pace themselves up the hill before we headed onto the climb. I rode with the men for the first part of the hill before dropping back to finish with Linda. At the top of the hill we made a right turn and headed downhill to RT 5&10. We made the right turn to head north with daylight rapidly diminishing. We all took turns at the front as we headed for Old Deerfield but whenever the pace went below 20mph, I and Jireh took over to keep the pace high. We pedaled hard all the way back to Greenfield where we took the Hope Street route back to the shop. We finished the ride with a 18.5 mph average which was the fastest ride of the year for Mike, Tom and Linda. Although they were tired, all the riders enjoyed the workout and were sad to see the season end. After a brief rest the group said good night and we all headed for home.