TheFool

Hi Sherbornpeddler, my first taste of "grown up" biking as a youngster riding around Dover, near the river on Dedham street, up Strawberry hill road and back, or out to Claybrook road and
back over the river and back into Needham and home.

BostonRoadee

Joe, welcome! Where do you ride around Wellesley? Isn't it awesome to be getting into such a great sport?

windup capybara

i live in somerville, work in cambridge. i'm keeping my eyes out for some leisurely loops to ride on my day off, hopefully something away from traffic like the minuteman bike path. any ideas?

BostonRoadee

Hey, Windup! I think we probably have some ideas for ya -- where in Sommy are you, and how far do you want to ride?

BTW, there's already been one good post, above, about a good short hill loop in Arlington. I'm guessing traffic on those roads is manageable during the middle of the morning (after 9:30) or even later. The start is a real quick ride from the Arl./Som. line (Rt. 16/Alewife).

JoesInBoston

I don't ride around Wellesley yet. I just moved here in November and haven't felt like getting outside yet. Normally I ride around my home town of Brockton. I usually just bike around DW Fields Park on a diamondback hybrid.

I can't wait to finish my road bike build though. Really only need a set of 3x9 brifters and I'll be set.

sherbornpeddler

Strawberry Hill has the nicest curves and hill combination then I go to Westwood, Rt 109 then up Dover Rd, a nice series of roads

antimatt_er

Hi, I live in Maynard (just west of Concord) in bike heaven. I take route 117 west out to Leominister for a forty mile round trip with maybe two stoplights or head north up 110 through Harvard for the hills. I commute in to Harvard Square for work, usually east on 117 or on the Trapelo Road roller coaster, legs permitting. I just started mountain biking and discovered we've got miles and miles of singletrack in Acton.
I used to live in Watertown on Nichol's Ave, a block from the Town Diner. I know that 3 mile/2 hill loop well.
Can anyone explain why Concord and Belmont, two of the wealthiest communities in the state, have roads that apparently haven't been resurfaced since the British marched on them? Is it for the historical value?

BostonRoadee

Hey, Anti, welcome. I hear you about the roads around here. I ride Concord Ave. through Belmont-Lexington nearly every day. Holy cow! Some of the holes there, and here in Watertown, would literally swallow my entire front wheel if I didn't steer clear. It's either historical value -- or, my theory: "Keeps the riff-raff out." Hey, they all drive luxury SUVs out there -- they can replace their wheels or suspension without blinking at the price tag. Just a thought.

sherbornpeddler

It is the nature of things to curse the pot holes and by mid summer they get filled. By fall we forget and so it goes. On the Sheldon ride last weekend it was suggested to point out the road rather than the hole.

BostonRoadee

Sherborn, somehow I didn't hear about the Sheldon ride. Was it just a one-time thing? I liked his Web-site and have visited Harris.

That's very funny about pointing out the road instead of the hole. Still, there are some roads around here that are so racked up, fixing the potholes doesn't quite seem to do the job. Having lived in the southwest, and visited CA many times, I'm jealous of their roads.

Spartan112

Woostah representin'...j/k...seriously, I have a couple of loos I do around here the best maybe around Wachusett Resevoir and into Clinton/Lancaster/Harvard through the apple orchards. Some of the most beautiful country in mass as far as I'm concerned. Should be a fun srping for me as I go shopping for my first new roadie ever.

antimatt_er

If only this were true. I've ridden 117 from Cambridge to Leominster and Concord is the only town that has moon craters year around. When I lived in Watertown, I used to go to Concord for weekend riding. Now that I live two miles away, I avoid it like the plague. Acton, Sudbury, Stow, Bolton, even blue-collar Maynard, have better roads. Of course, Concord wins hands down for scenic pastoral vistas, etc.
sorry about all the griping, but I'm anticipating the start of the commuting season and I cringe when I think about trying to dodge potholes and rush hour traffic. Still, I'll be out there. I must be an idiot.

BostonRoadee

Welcome, Spartan -- if you have any routes posted on-line in those areas you mention, we'd love to see them.

BostonRoadee

Yup, I'm sticking with the "Keeps the Riff-raff Out" conspiracy theory.

sherbornpeddler

The Sheldon ride last weekend was a one time thing here and will be replicated in various cities by fellow fans. It may well be annual event(s) will evolve.
BTW: the ride was mostly on fine roads; on "glass is half empty" days, the potholes tend dominate my recollections. Today the sun is shinning and I'm back from a 5 mile walk with my wife and I recall sweeping turns along the Sudbury River and Weston Observatory....I think the whole loop was downhill (half full day) .

I assume Sheldon's prolific writings will remain on his web site via Harris Cyclery.

Re roads: I'm jealous of Florida pavement but not the traffic and routes.

brunop

reppin' somerville. commute everyday rain or shine fixed to newton. went on the sheldon ride. basically all i do is ride. i have multiple whips. some geared, some not.

Spartan112

I have several on Mapmyride.com

sherbornpeddler

Nice ride out to Grafton today. One section had road cracks big enough to swallow tires and wheels. Hills!

BostonRoadee

And I'm just back from a weekend in the Northampton area. Took some time to check out bike shops and learn about local rides. Talk about hills -- they have plenty! My wife and I might be relocating out that way later this year, so it was interesting to do reconn on the bike culture. Nice folks, for the most part.

Namenda

I live on the Woburn/Winchester line. I do most of my riding through Winchester, Lexington, Burlington, Medford, Malden, and Melrose. Occasionally, I'll ride down to Waltham and Watertown. I often ride part, or all, of the Minuteman if I'm out for a long ride. I like to punish myself on the short, steep hills around Winchester Hospital on my way home.

If I need something from a shop, I usually go to Cycle Loft. I like to check out the bikes at Wheelworks on occasion, and I've bought two bikes from them.

kweichsel

I normally take Mt. Auburn to the Charles River MUP to the BU bridge, but take Putnam in the winter. Yeah, the MUP's full of dog-walkers and iPod-deaf runners, but it's also a reasonably good surface east of Harvard and has the fewest lights by far. There's also no way I can be mad at the weather if the crew teams are out there in it too. I don't go in to the Fenway - after crossing the bridge I take a half-block wrong way onto Essex St, pass the Hebrew school, cross Beacon on Carlton, then continue on Chapel St to Longwood.

I've tried Allston, but the number of cars and lights just makes me impatient, and I prefer to avoid Arsenal St for that reason too. Plus, I live on the Belmont/Trapelo hill and going up the Common St side is more than I can handle most evenings.

dcmurf

Hi Folks,

Namenda, I'm in Melrose, not too far from you. I ride through those Winchester Hills you mention on my way to the Minuteman Trail. The only time I'll do the trail is if I'm up and out of the house before 7am (preferably 6)on a Saturday or Sunday - I just can't handle the crowds otherwise.

I have an Orient Heights, Deer Island, Revere beach loop I like. The roads aren't in great shape, but I enjoy riding by the sea. Gives me about 20 miles rt.

More often I head through Wakefield, up Haverhill Street into North Reading/Andover and branch our from there. I had a nice 60 mile loop through Boxford, Middleton and Topsfield that I rode a few times last year. Nice roads up in that area! And I often had long stretches all to myself if I got out early enough.

Spring is almost here!

Namenda

Just got back from a ride (22 miles). Rode part of the Minuteman, from Lexington Center to Bedford and back. The other way, towards Arlington, is still too icy (from what I could see). I saw exactly one other bike, and that was a commuter on a hybrid. Not bad.

At least the weather is getting better. I rode almost all winter last year, since it was so mild. This year has pretty much sucked.

tcwolf

Hi all, I live in Brookline and do the Dover / Sherborn and Lincoln / Concord rides a fair amount.

The best local hill ride I do during the week includes the Arnold Arboretum. I ride down to Jamaica pond, up a bit of Perkins St. over Prince St (no traffic) over to the Arboretum. I then do the hill in the main part of the Arboretum (Bussey Hill) and exit South to the Peter hill part. I loop around Peter Hill 4-5 times (this is pretty tough). Do Bussey hill again and return to Perkins St. The Perkins St hill is a pretty nice challenge after the other hills. I then cycle over to the Beaver School via Newton St and come back down (and up) Heath and go by the Country Club. I end back on Walnut St where I live. This is about 20 miles of pretty hilly terrain, in town, with only 2 traffic lights!

sherbornpeddler

I am double impressed:
Doing 4-5 hill loops takes determination. I tend to bag out when I give myself the choice.
Only 2 traffic lights! I've got to try to map your route.

Being a "westerner" my biggest hill is Hopkinton W. Main St becoming Hopkinton Rd in Upton. Usaully this is in the middle of a long ride and it is becomes a grind. I live in hop to pushing it the whole way. My other big hill is the last one before I get home. It gets longer and steeper....