Jim from Boston

As usual, rod, thanks for your great photo essay. I particularly enjoyed the photos of the Reformatory Trail. Last year on the 30+ mile route of the MassBike Summer Ride, we of the Fifty-Plus Forum were directed onto that trail, two of us on road bikes with 25C tires; also the Minuteman National Historic Park trail was part of the route. It was very interesting, but slow-going.

Yesterday was indeed a gorgeous day. Saturday mornings are my only chance for a long distance training ride, and I lost last weekend due to threatening rain. I did a 60 mile loop starting at 5:45 AM, from Norwood on Rte 109 to Millis, Franklin, on to Rte 140 to Milford, where I could not locate the Upper Charles River bike trail, but did pick it up along Rte 85 to Hopkinton. I've only read sherbornpeddler post about it, but IMO it rivals the Minuteman, and is more rural, even as passing through Milford. To paraphrase Horace Greeley, "Go Southwest young man, go Southwest and ride the Upper Charles River Trail."

I often ride from Hopkinton to Norwood via Ash, Prentice to Holliston then via Sherborn, Dover and Westwood. Yesterday, I took Highland in Holliston to Winthrop directly back to Medway, a great route. Village Street from Medway through Millis to Medfield is also a very nice street to avoid Rte 109. One of my previously-mentioned “enchanted” roads is Causeway Street off of Forest which intersects Village St, and I usually do a drive-by past a colleague's house to say “Hi” if he’s outside.

Even though it was the Summer solstice, I wore tights and a long-sleeved jersey most of the ride, and my fingers were pretty cold the first hour without fingered gloves.

PS: This is my only picture of the Upper Charles Trail. Sorry it's so fuzzy (taken on a previous ride):

jimmuller 

Good to hear you are okay. You are okay, right?
Fellow cyclist are incredibly helpful to other cyclists, I have found. It's a good community.

I got out on the Masi this morning, doing a first run on new wheels I strung up a week ago and new tires, Veloflex Criteriums running 140psi.




They performed spectacularly. 44.9 miles, Waltham out to Carlisle, with a moving average around 15.5mph. No flats either, probably because I was carrying two spare sew-ups in the handlebar bag. When you are prepared you never encounter the problems you are prepared for!

On the way back I met up with one of the guys who works at Belmont Wheelworks. He and (presumably) his wife were riding matching his'n'hers Raleighs from mid-last century. I asked the year, he told me, and I promptly forgot, but it may have been 1952. Rod brakes, 4-speed Sturmey-Archer rear hubs, white-tail fenders. Really cool. He also recognized my Masi as from Carlsbad, CA ~1975. Not many people even recognize a Masi at all these days.

It was a good day.

Then my sweetie and I took our canoe out the Assabet River. A very pleasant afternoon.

Jim from Boston

It was a good day.

Then my sweetie and I went dining and ballroom dancing in Malden. A fabulous evening.

jimmuller 

Sounds delightful, but better you than me. If I ever took a dancing class I'd get an F. If I ever tried ballroom dancing I'd get a foot hung up in a toeclip and fall over. It's a skill that will forever evade me.

rholland1951

(Continued)

The unnamed-but-suspected-to-be-Taylor road did, indeed lead me to the Old Marlboro Road gate of the Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge.




In the Tantric Buddhist iconography of Himalayan art, the same deity may be depicted in their wrathful or benevolent aspects. Seems that the god Murphy was operating in his benevolent aspect when I managed to take a wrong turn, going SW across Puffer Pond and connecting to Winterberry Way and the visitors center (civilization = bike racks + public toilets), instead of going NW along Taylor Road, ultimately connecting with the unpaved Stow section of the Assabet River Rail Trail, as I had intended. This would have been a dandy ride, but would have eaten into, and perhaps surpassed, my margin of safety for getting back to Lexington Toyota by 5pm. As it was, I got enough of a dose of riding the NWR to hold me till the next time. Thanks, Murphy!








I should add that Murphy was not being so benevolent to a gosling, separated from its mother, that was running distracted back and forth along the trail...

After emerging through the Winterberry Way gate onto Hudson Road, I had a no-nonsense ride back to Lexington Toyota, connecting to Marlboro Road via Fairbank, and a straightforward rewind of the outbound route after that.

There were two exceptions to the no-nonsense rule. Verril Farms was having a Pick Your Own day (strawberries?), and the well-heeled folks paying for the privilege of stoop labor reminded me of a rice harvest I once saw in Cambodia. On the Reformatory Branch, also in Concord, I encountered a fair-size herd of Dwarf Nubian goats, out for a stroll with their humans. These visions of peasant life in Concord kept me smiling.




I made it back to the garage by 4:20. Having a real deadline kept me riding somewhat harder than I usually do on a ride in the country, probably not a bad thing. 42 miles through Lexington, Bedford, Concord, Sudbury, and Maynard, including an initial 6.2 mile segment from Fottler Ave. to Depot Square that didn't get tracked.

rod

mr_bill

All over this weekend.

Bunker Hill then over the Longfellow:


Beacon Hill:


To the North End (didn't get any good pictures really) to China Town:


To Harvard Bridge Yarn Bomb:


Next morning to Concord:


To Acton:


Descending Fort Pond Hill the awe-moment, the deer:


Ran into Cycle for Life for a block in Concord center:
[

Finally back through Cambridge and home. 150 km for the weekend.

Don't want to get cocky, but should be ready for the Bike MS ride this weekend from UMASS Boston to Mass Maritime to Provincetown.


-mr. bill

Bishbike

It seems Murhpy was with me too on Friday's ride. Hit a bad pothole (actually a man-made rectangular cutout beside a storm drain) on Old Road to Nine Acre at 22 mph and pinch flatted the front tire. did not even see it until it was too late. Changed the tube and the tire was super tight going on,due to being a new tire, and the fact that Conti GP4000s are always tough to mount on my Campy wheels.

Must have not checked well enough, and pinch flatted that tube while filling with co2. Buddy lent me a spare and we were good to go.

Got 100 yards up the road and the rear tire went flat. Delayed reaction due to the manmade hole. No more tubes. tried my gluless patches but they would not hold. My buddy's glue in his patch kit was dried up.

Had to make it home to get to work, so walking back to ATA in Concord was out of the question.

Was thinking of calling a cab, but then I remembered that AAA has roadside assistance for bikes. Called them, and they were there in 10 minutes! They did not have a tube, but gave me a lift home.

Was able to make it to work ontime.

Lesson learned...

Bishbike

62 mile out and back to Harvard. Sunny skies, great weather.

I carried 2 spare tubes, 2 Co2 cartridges, mini pump, glue and patches.

Of course, Murphy was nowhere to be found...

rholland1951

Mental health ride before dinner out to Lexington, started at a lazy pace but picked it up rapidly, and before I knew it I turned in my fastest pace on that course, period, by .25 mph. No idea what brought that on, but it was definitely beneficial to my mental health. I was too focused on keeping up the pace to stop for photographs (or much of anything else, used the bell more than the brakes on this ride), but here are a couple of word pictures: a big catalpa tree in full bloom (will have to try to get a picture of that, while it lasts); the suspended pyramid has been partially vandalized, untied at two of its vertices, repairable, if someone has the wit and will to do so.

rod

jimmuller 

Oh, yes he was. He was with me. My commute today was an adventure.

I had so much fun on the Masi yesterday that I put the clincher wheels on it for today's commute. Only trouble is, it still has rather fragile tires.

The fun today started with the discovery that Lexington was paving Woburn St. right in the middle of rush hour. Getting through the traffic jam and the one-lane paving operation was interesting. Fortunately when the traffic cop directed me to ride across the new pavement the tires didn't throw any tar up onto the frame.

Then as I was rolling through Woburn Center I heard the ominous hssst silence hsst silence hsst silence... Dang, a new cut. I had gotten an early start for work but I burned through it all fixing that flat. I'd taken my patch kit out of the Masi's handlebar bag for the sew-up ride. I discovered that when I'd thrown patch kit, spare tube, and levers back in it last night I didn't get the new patch kit, only the old one with just one patch left. Bad move. Well, maybe I'll be lucky. Pumped it up, rode the remaining 3 miles to work.

Middle of the day I decided to top off the air pressure. No problem. About 4PM I looked over and saw the wheel sunk to the carpet. What the...? It was leaking at the base of the valve stem. Somebody made a seriously bad batch of tubes. So I swapped in the spare I was carrying, pumped it up, and it promptly went flat from a hole in the sidewall near the valve stem. No more patches, two bad tubes. I checked online for bike shops nearby, the nearest was Mike's Bike Repair in Woburn Center, 3 miles away but on the way home.

By now it was nearing 5PM and only two people were left. One had a commitment. The other offered to take me home but I'd have to leave the bike and he wasn't leaving until 5:45. I called AAA and they said their road service calls were running about 90 minutes late. I said no thanks, I could walk to a bike shop by then. I tried cutting patches out of one of the tubes but they wouldn't seal completely when glued to the other tube. I called Mike's Bike Repair. He was heading out but promised to leave two tubes in the mailbox, and I said I'd drop some money in. By now it was 5:45 so I checked and sure enough my co-worker's BMW was too small for a bike. So I started walking.

About an hour later I got to W.C. and sure enough Mike had left me two tubes, 25-30mm tubes to fit in my 23mm tires, after he'd asked me what I needed and I'd told him they were 23mm. However fitting one into the tire wasn't too hard. Pumping up a tire to discover that it holds air is a most satisfying endeavor!

I rode home. Traffic was light.

Bishbike

Wow Jim, I guess you found Murphy in a big way. Hope he leaves you alone for awhile.

Yeah, AAA told me 45min to an hour on Friday, i was suprised when they showed up in 10 minutes.

Mike is a fellow bass player. in fact, I think he was teaching at Berklee back when I was there.

Looks like you did a biathlon today, but instead of skiing and shooting you were walking and biking. Bet you were glad that you run toe clips and did not have to walk in cleats.

Glad you made it home by bike. Now that is perseverance!

jimmuller 

Hey, mr_bill, that's me on the left heading other way! White helmet and beard, red handlebar bag on the red Masi, yellow reflective ankle straps on both ankles, dark shades, silver&gray long-sleeve jersey. Can't be anyone else. What day did you say this was? Must've been Sunday. You're heading to Concord. What road was this, I wonder? Rt 62?

jimmuller 

I intend to stop by some time and say hi. As for cleats, yeah, I'm glad I don't need them. But I do wear Shimano MBT shows for SPD pedals, without the cleat screwed into the bottom. The metal screws in the bottom holding the current plate in place make odd clicking sounds on pavement!

mr_bill

I figured it might be, thought you'd enjoy the candid shot.

Yeah, Route 62.

247A Concord Road, Bedford MA
Sunday, June 22, 2014 10:51 AM EDT

-mr. bill

sherbornpeddler

Jim,
Nice riding, nice trip and very glad to get your perspectives on Upper Charles Trail and Causeway. Here are a couple of photos in the Holliston portion showing a packed dirt section with advertising and new this year stone dust section further north. Advertising and stone dust are both signs the trail outside of Milford has arrived.

sherbornpeddler

JimM and Bish, you guys are both awesome and resourceful.
Metro Boston BF are quite the community when one shows up in the other's photo. Well done Mr. B!
Rod set the bar for photography a long time ago. JimM's Masi sew-up and Great Blue Heron photos and Mr. B's aw deer and handlebar shots are spectacular. I really look forward to these posts.

jimmuller 

We may have to check this out on the tandem, though my sweetie doesn't like the idea of riding on non-pavement.

Murphy rode with me this morning. Last night I threw patches and a second spare tube into the Masi's handlebar bag. So this morning I got maybe 3/4ths of a mile when I heard psst psst psst psst from the rear tire. I didn't even bother to look for the leak, just turned around, went home and grabbed the Bianchi. The commute in to work was very nice otherwise. Tonight I will examine closely the ninja practice dummy wrapped around the Masi's rear rim.

antimonysarah

Finally downloaded my weekend pictures -- had one of those rides where nothing in my legs felt right. Headed north up to Lowell along some favorite roads, one of which was in grooved mode getting new pavement (which it desperately needed, but I could have done without riding on the corduroy).



And then on up into NH, although I was having a bad enough day I stopped taking pretty pictures and just slogged on for a while.

rumrunn6

mr bill ~ are those frame grabs from video or stills?

Bishbike

Jim is probably one of the most recognizable members on this forum.

Bishbike

Thanks SBP, have not been called awesome for quite some time, made me smile.

We are very fortunate to have such a great cycling community around here.

I love the fact that on days like today when I can't ride, I can vicariously ride through this forum.

DBrim

I rode the same section on Sunday. I'm not normally out that way, but I was at a wedding at Hopedale the day before. I hadn't done much research on the trail beforehand, so the surface quality after the Milford/Holliston line was a bit of a surprise. The loose gravel gave my Trek 7.2 (wider tires) a bit of a jolt at times, even at slower speeds

I turned around here, just short of Holliston center. Pretty bridge. The scenery on the trail is great, but I'd recommend a mountain bike:


I also would not recommend doing the trail while hung over, but that's another story.

jimmuller 

SBP, thanks for the kind words. But I didn't do nuthin' except take a pics, go for a ride, and walk to a bike shop. I've ridden with you a few times now and I know for a fact that you could leave me in your dust if you chose to, but you are too much a gentleman to do it.

And I'm glad Bish didn't get hurt from his encounter with a man-made hole.
-------------
I did my commute today, had no more flats after the single episode this morning. Did find a pinhole leak in that tube. First I pumped it up to 130psi this evening and it did not appear to leak. So I stuck it under water and there it was. Apparently it had sealed itself against the tire casing enough to hold air. Now that wheel carries a 23mm Gatorskin, ready for tomorrow!

On the return home I was climbing the longish hill between Woburn and Lexington when about halfway up I noticed a local police car facing me, sitting diagonal across both lanes with its blue lights flashing. Obviously that policeman wanted no one to continue in either direction. Then I saw why. A turkey hen and two tiny chicks were crossing the road. The chicks were no more than 3-inch tall balls of fluff. Mom could have moved faster, but the chicks couldn't. I stopped maybe 30 yards away and watched and waited. When they reached the shoulder the policeman burped his siren a few times and nosed his car over to chase them safely into the woods. Then he rolled down his window, and as he started up past me he waved and said thank you. It was a very pleasant experience.

Bishbike

Thanks Jim. Glad to be OK. In fact, i am very suprised that I did not hit the pavement. Water bottle launced out of it's cage like a missle. What suprises me even more is that the wheels are still true and no tire damage. I had heard that Campy wheels are strong, I guess the stories are true.

Bishbike

Makes me tink of the Robert McCloskey book "Make Way for Ducklings"