Bishbike

Thanks Rod. Looking forward to checking out the new trail in Malden. Can't wait till it is done.

Lived in Malden back in the early 90's, and loved the proximity to both the North Shore (I grew up in Gloucester) and the rest of the "Metroverse" (to quote JfB).

Bishbike

Great ride reports from everyone!

Managed to get a 25 or so mile ride out to Concord and back this morning before a full day and evening of music making. A tad chilly, but arm and leg warmers, plus my trusty old Woolie Boolies did the trick and kept me warm and happy.

mr_bill

Cobbles are fun - right until they aren't. So far, I've never gone down on them, but I suspect if I keep tempting fate on my skinny tires I will regret it one day.

Today, a throwback ride. Over thirty years ago (1983) my spouse while in grad school at Mass Art bought me a Univega for my birthday (knew how much I missed my Schwinn), and that's when I started riding Metro Boston. Back then, not many of us riding out there. Bike lane? ¿Que es eso? Minuteman Commuter Bikeway? About a decade away.

So, taking the longer route I might have taken back then. I'd try to time my arrival to be during a class break, and depending on when I left and how fast I was riding I would swing wide or go more direct. Let's check in with what is the same, and what is different.

Remember when the Capitol was a single screen theater? And a ticket was $1.50?


Arlington in 1983 was still essentially a dry town, with just Jimmy's, Garron's and Shanghai Village having enough seats to qualify for a liquor license. (And all the social clubs.) There was a brief period where BYOB was permitted in Arlington, but that was voted down on the ballot. It would be another decade before Arlington would experiment with beer/wine licenses for small restaurants, leading to a renaissance in dining, the first being Flora.


The Gift of the Wind (1985) was commissioned in 1983 to go outside of the Porter Square T Stop (1984). It was red, not pink. (Since the red line extension, the MBTA has figured out it not only has to commission artwork, it has to maintain it.) Sears and Roebuck dead ahead - now Leslie University.


Memorial Drive is closed to motor traffic on Sundays, and was closed in 1983 too. Much more crowded now.


The railing extension was added a few years later to keep runners from popping out onto the path. My closest call - ever, heading outbound at this bridge.


Somewhat surprised there is not a dismount sign on this bridge. Pretty much nothing has changed here, except the Longfellow is being restored.


Charles Street I think has been in a perpetual state of renovating to look more like Charles Street forever. Quite the historic commission. Always a facade being restored.


The billboard is new, but it would be three years until the 1986 World Series heartbreak, and another couple of decades before the 2004 World Series.


And the humble home of Mass Art studios back then, now Beth Israel Deaconess offices.



-mr. bill

mr_bill

Heading back home, the Citgo sign was neon, and if I remember right, lots of tubes were burned out. Iconic either way.


And back through Harvard Square - which in 1983 was still a huge hole from the Red Line extension. Out of Town News would open in this location in another year.


And a cameo, sort of.


-mr. bill

rholland1951

Mr. Bill, that's some piece of time travel! I was riding in Boston and Cambridge about 10 years earlier, back in the 70s, and still see the ghosts of that on occasion... Thanks for conjuring yours for us.

rod

rholland1951

After a week when house guests, a somewhat frenetic work schedule, and a nasty cold kept me off the bike, I had a couple of hours clear this afternoon and took the STD on a 17-mile ride through Arlington, Medford, Malden, and Revere to have a look at the progress on Revere's Rumney Marsh segment of the Northern Strand Community Trail. I've really come to enjoy riding in Medford and Malden, and keep seeing new things when I do. Today was a look at what happens to the paper and cardboard you put out on the street to be recycled; presumably, it's bound for reincarnated glory as toilet paper or something, but in the meantime it's bound in bales and sitting in JRM's lot in Malden.


After a nice ride on the paved Malden section of the Northern Strand Community Trail, I came to the Revere section; this isn't so much changed from the last time I was there; there has been some additional clearance of ties and other debris, but the surface is still a mix of coarse railroad gravel, single track, and one 20-yard run of good old-fashioned mud (I walked the bike through that, to avoid damaging the surface and fouling the bike; even so, it modified the new-bike look somewhat, probably just as well). But Rumney Marsh is beautiful, and this will be a dandy trail when it's completed. A little poking around the net suggests this is now likely to happen next Spring (the best laid plans of mice and men are apt to be disrupted when a tornado hits your town, after all). Meanwhile, the Bike to the Sea folks are organizing a series of volunteer work days in Malden and Revere to move things along.








Had a pleasant ride home after that.

rod

mr_bill

The bales of paper are unexpected, but those marsh pictures are gorgeous!

(It wasn't until I rode through Marshfield that the lightbulb about the town's name went off for me.)

-mr. bill

Jim from Boston

We did about 10 miles RT from Arlington Ctr to Lexington, from about 4:30 to 5:30 PM, a bit chilly, but I was even more impressed than ever with the Minuteman as an urban trail and rolling town common, as portayed by Rod as its "Poet and Photographer Laureate."

I was musing if there is a intimate geography with names for little features known to the cognoscenti, like the Egg Sculpture. I took note of a small clearing with a picnic table and swing set about a mile from the start. Then for example there were two distinct adjacent big boulders by a soccer field slightly further down the trail. These would I imagine be familar landmarks to the regulars.

I asked at the Visitors Center about a bathroom, and was impressed that we were directed to “Not Your Average Joe’s” Restaurant and they were accommodating. After our ride we had dinner there.

Speaking of landmarks, those were nice pictures of the urban landscape by mr. bill, and I could pretty much identify all the locales, unlike the pretty but otherwise featureless forested roads of the Cape, Metrowest, etc. I wondered where the "final climblet on the way home" was; looked suburban to me. I did recognize the Bedford end of the Minuteman with jimmuller.

We were skeptical when we first heard of it referred to as “The Garage,” but now go there weekly. It’s the only place in MetroBoston I know of for regular Saturday night (social) ballroom dancing. The musicians are excellent IMO, and they play dance music from the Big Band era through to the 70’s.

mr_bill

Fifty meters from the Minuteman Commuter Bikeway, used to be a farm in West Cambridge.

-mr. bill

sherbornpeddler

Compared to y'all we've not much to report. Sunday Mrs. SBP and I rode from Chatham to South Chatham and back, 10 miles, mostly on trail and mostly flat. 33% of the people (2 of 6) we said hello to were from Germany and all were friendly and were clearly enjoying the blustery good weather. Pretty much every car stopped at road crossings for us and when we took the lane in the Chatham village center it seemed expected and comfortable for all. Very bike friendly.

rholland1951

Amusingly enough, what I used to be intimately familiar with on the Minuteman were the bumps. I guess this comes from so much riding in the dark, but I could really tell where I was by those bumps. Then the towns fixed most of them, so now the ride is much smoother, but a little disorienting...

rod

Jim from Boston

So this morning at about 5:30 AM I’m riding on Huntington Ave just west of the Longwood Medical Area when I passed a stopped car straddling both in- and outbound tracks of the Heath Street trolley line (E). A woman is standing outside on the passenger side next to a standing, apparently young man (?son), and she seems to be ministering to him, like he was about to throw up.

First thought, I’m running late already and this looks like a big problem that could consume me. About fifty yards later, my admonition came to me, and I realized no one else can conveniently stop. So I turned around, hoping I don’t get into an accident just reversing my direction and crosssing the trolley tracks.

Turned out the “young man” was a grizzled, thin old-timer, about the same age as the woman. When I said you’ve at least got to get your car off the tracks, “Need a push?” they told me their tie rod was broke and the car could not be moved, My only advice was don’t waste time calling AAA, but call the police. I think if the situation was reversed, I would have been tee'd off if some cyclist offered useless help, but the couple seemed calm; of course it was still only 5:30 AM

Actually I then also remembered that my flip phone was recently inoperative since I could not call out, but was using it mainly as a beeper until I can get the new I-Phone 6. I’m reminded of the sign-off slogan of the late night talk-show host, Jordan Rich, “Be well, so you can do good.” I guess that includes carrying an operable cell phone.

sherbornpeddler

JfB! What happened next? !!! You are always so thoughtful and it doesn't surprise me you gave this more thought and went back. A lot of folks give these things thought as they pass by but only a few actually turn around. What happened? A train come? A sky hook? AAA parachute team? Former White House Security guy didn't notice the car or the tracks? Candidates for Governor on advice from their strategists promise to improve train service but not yet mention Heath or any other specific line at this stage of the campaign? The suspense!!!

I rode 8 careful miles today with my wife and had an entirely different day. My heart monitor averaged 72 and max'd at 92. The 92 was probably due to watching Mrs SBP on the swing at Lake Winthrop.

No car stopped on train tracks during our ride to Holliston, in fact no tracks left on that portion of the Upper Charles River Trail. That we rode under the one car width Arch St bridge really kept things quiet.

Jim from Boston

Thanks for your gracious and uproarious comments, sbp, but when I realized I was of no further help, I left. I was listening to WRKO on the way in, but it didn’t make the news. I just did a brief google search, but found nothing,

I just now though had a flashback to an unpleasant experience, about 20 years ago, of driving a rental car on winding, narrow dark Walnut St in South Brookline, and my tie rod broke just around a curve. I had to get out of the car in the rain to warn other drivers coming around the curve that I was stalled. That was early in the cell phone era, so someone else called the police, and a tow truck came to take the car, and me away.

Its so nice to hear that you are riding again. Where is Lake Winthrop, and that cardiotonic swing?

sherbornpeddler

Thanks, it is nice even in the baby step phase.
Lake Winthrop is the southern border of Mighty Casey's Mudville aka south of the center of Holliston and slightly east of the Upper Charles River Trail. The swing is the distance of Casey's home run from the Mudville ball park if he had actually hit one. Using the MAPC.org trail map I marked the other swing, the rope one Mrs SBP used, with an arrow and the Arch St bridge with a circle. Best to approach the lake via Arch St as the Mudville section of the rail trail is elevated. The northern part of Mudville was home to shoe and boot factories in the early 1900s. The Goodwill Shoe factory still stands in what is otherwise a quaint, small house lot, kids in the streets residential area built up beginning mid 1800s. Holliston split off from Sherborn about 1720 and grew to have a stop on the Framingham to Milford train, factories and a busy town center. There is plenty of joy in Mudville and soon enough I'll bike over to check up on the Bullard Farm cow tunnel.

rholland1951

Took the little Surly (the travel bike with 26" wheels, as opposed to the big old 700C Surly) for a 10-mile night ride on the Minuteman in the benign air. Had the place to myself until I hit the Lexington line, and pretty nearly so for the whole thing, with the only company being a half-dozen cyclists, two runners, one skater, one dog walker, and one dubious pedestrian who seemed to be doing more waiting than walking, plus numerous bunnies darting across the trail in my headlights. The Night Chorus was tastefully layered, but a bit muted. The Egg has made it to October. I'm enjoying this little bike, it has pony-like agility, even though the times I'm putting in with it suggest it's actually a little slower than its older and larger brother. But it's FUN...


rod

sherbornpeddler

Layered chorus. Rod, you do such a great job of noting things I numbly miss but then, with your posts, recognize and appreciate.
Are there layered reasons for seasonally darkened nimble rides? One or what order of layers of factors effect nimble night time rides? Does pony feel come from darkness changing perception of speed, head tube and fork angle? Wheel diameter and weight? Tire and tire pressure? Handlebar geometry and leverage or "other"?

Jim from Boston

Great story about local history; I did follow that link. Who'd a-thunk?

I doubt Mighty Jim will be in Mudville, until winter has played out. Long weekend rides are getting shorter, and will likely not attend the CF ride in Holliston this weekend.

rholland1951

Good question. There are things about that I don't understand from staring at geometry charts: the 26" bike has a longer wheelbase (huh?) and shorter fork length, but most of the frame/fork dimensions are either the same, or similar. The smaller wheels (even wearing the 1.75" tires) spin up quicker, and have a somewhat smaller rotational moment, making for quicker acceleration and nimbler handling. The hand-built wheels on the new bike are a little lighter, and the Chris King hubs make whatever difference they make, and supply entertaining sound effects when coasting. Differences in the cockpit geometry are noticeable: the handlebars are set lower on the little bike, and the handlebars themselves are somewhat wider. Taken together, these differences and others (drivetrain, for example) give the two siblings very different feel. I'm quite sure I don't really understand all of it, but I'm enjoying the variety.

Re tires and pressure: I'm running Compass 1.75" at 45/55 psi on the 26" bike, Compass Barlow Pass 38mm Extralights at 50/60 psi on the 700C. The 38mm tires are significantly more supple, and I prefer them in most cases. If Compass ever gets around to making an Extralight variant of their 26" tire (doubtful, for industrial engineering reasons, apparently), I'd spring for a pair. If they made one in 2", I'd wag my tail while writing the check.

Both bikes do well on both road and mixed terrain rides. The little bike is still new enough so that the longest ride I've taken on it (~50 miles) is only about half the longest ride I've taken on the big bike, but it convinced me that it's suitable for all-day use. With 10,000 miles on the old bike, I've got some powerful biases established in its favor, especially for long rides, but am having fun swapping off, with occasional forays on the old GT with its 55mm balloon tires completing the program.

rod

rholland1951

The answer to the non-mechanical part of the question, aside from a boring one about clocks and calendars, is best stated by Del McCoury.

rod

jimmuller 

Jim, good response, good takeaway lesson too! In retrospect one response could have been to go to a local business and have them call the police immediately. Perhaps that's what happened anyway, or perhaps the couple had a cell phone and just hadn't thought to use it yet, as maybe you got there just after the breakage occurred. Or perhaps they hadn't gone seeking help because they were afraid to leave the car with no one left to watch for oncoming traffic or train. In any case, better to have made the effort if only to help calm their nerves. (A tie rod broke? Because the driver thumped over a curb separating the street from the T tracks??? We'll never know. That's a rare failure mode for sure.)

Having met Mrs. sbp I can understand that! Good for you for getting out again too.

I've been too busy these past few days to post much. I did my commute yesterday and the day before. Yesterday I was almost doored by someone getting out of the right side of a car waiting for a stoplight as I went by along the curb. That's a almost as rare an event as a tie rod breaking. I stopped and confronted the guy, told him how my godfather had been killed by being doored (which is true). He was a twenty-something or maybe a thirty something, they all look alike to me. He said he was a cyclist too and apologized for the mistake. They thing was, I was running a new BRIGHT headlight I'd just purchased the day before, so any brief glance in the right-side mirror or over his shoulder would have shown my presence. He just wasn't thinking at the time.

Frodo my lad, it can be a dangerous thing going outside your door. You step into the road and you never know where it lead to.

sherbornpeddler

The last two posts are still making me laugh. They say a good diet, exercise and reducing stress with a laugh are all good things. I checked off the reduce stress box when I bathed in Rod's ride quality enthusiasm and switched to a 6B pencil with the tail wag comment. I checked it again when JM (aka Bilbo) said, "they all look alike to me."

jimmuller 

I'm thinking the same thing sbp said, good for you for making the observations and posting about them.

For some reason I never think to post stuff like that. For example, on my way to work yesterday I watched a raccoon waddle across the MM in Arlington and start to climb a fence on the southern side. I wondered at the time where it lived and where it was going and why, perhaps for breakfast or to a den for sleep. I even mentioned it to my sweetie later that night, but didn't think to post it. I've seen the egg and the funky jellyfish/crab sign and wondered at the time what that was all about. I guess I take that stuff for granted as part of the diverse and crowded world we live in. So it's good that someone else takes the role of observer and poet occasionally.

rholland1951

Thanks, Jim. I chortled in agreement at "they all look alike to me", likewise the Baggins quote. Re observations: any time we take the bike out, we're riding in the world, but also in our heads. Sometimes I notice the latter, and try to note some of that here, when it helps tell the story of the ride.

rod

rholland1951

Took the little blue bike out for another night ride, 14 miles on the Minuteman at an easy pace. Rode home with the moon.


rod