Metro Boston: Good ride today?
#8176
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rod
Last edited by rholland1951; 06-05-19 at 11:18 AM. Reason: Riverview->Riverside... doh!
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Took the Rawland Nordavinden out to Depot Park on a warm, mid-afternoon ride, the putative thunderstorms still well over the horizon.
Anybody know if Ant Bicycles is still a going concern? Sure they have a web presence, but don't answer the phone. Sic transit gloria formici? A few of their bikes sit immobile in Arlington, aging gracelessly. My pet theory is that they are reaping the karmic penalty for poaching Mike Flanigan's trade name, but that's just me.
Encountered the suburban counterpart of cow-tipping in Lexington; irrational exuberance, middle-school division. Also encountered mr_bill, who helped me get the barrels upright again. We had a nice chat.
I asked this woman if I could take her pet's picture because I thought it was a cat; turns out it wasn't, quite.
Best creative re-use of vandalized signs, in recursive sort of way.
Good old Caleb Neelon. Glad these space critters are still bolted to the pole.
rod
Anybody know if Ant Bicycles is still a going concern? Sure they have a web presence, but don't answer the phone. Sic transit gloria formici? A few of their bikes sit immobile in Arlington, aging gracelessly. My pet theory is that they are reaping the karmic penalty for poaching Mike Flanigan's trade name, but that's just me.
Encountered the suburban counterpart of cow-tipping in Lexington; irrational exuberance, middle-school division. Also encountered mr_bill, who helped me get the barrels upright again. We had a nice chat.
I asked this woman if I could take her pet's picture because I thought it was a cat; turns out it wasn't, quite.
Best creative re-use of vandalized signs, in recursive sort of way.
Good old Caleb Neelon. Glad these space critters are still bolted to the pole.
rod
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Time was short for a ride before dinner, so I took the Rawland Nordavinden for a quick sprint on the Minuteman, turning around at Maple Street, 9 miles that whizzed right by. Spat a gnat.
rod
rod
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lol would be fun to see an animated gif of you & Bill de-tipping the reflected urban cow ...
#8181
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Good to see all of you kept riding while I was on vacation.
I managed about 46 miles today, Waltham to Carlisle and back. Arlington was a hoppin' place!
I managed about 46 miles today, Waltham to Carlisle and back. Arlington was a hoppin' place!
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With great bikes comes great responsibility.
jimmuller
#8182
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Was in Weston today and as promised in an earlier post, I again swung by the newly-paved MCRT Wayside to take some pictures:
Access road off Concord Rd.
Looks like you can get to the trail from either side of the Concord Rd. overpass.
Travelling east you can see why Conant Rd. is closed for a spell. I again failed to explore east of this point.
Not sure if this dirt at Plain Rd. in Wayland is intended for parking.
It's a jungle out there.
Right now the paved part ends at this parking lot at Wayland Library and Old Sudbury Rd./Concord Rd.
Perhaps as the MCRT develops, the Wayland Depot will become as familiar as the Bedford one.
Beyond the rainbow, the unpaved trail continuing west.
Access road off Concord Rd.
Looks like you can get to the trail from either side of the Concord Rd. overpass.
Travelling east you can see why Conant Rd. is closed for a spell. I again failed to explore east of this point.
Not sure if this dirt at Plain Rd. in Wayland is intended for parking.
It's a jungle out there.
Right now the paved part ends at this parking lot at Wayland Library and Old Sudbury Rd./Concord Rd.
Perhaps as the MCRT develops, the Wayland Depot will become as familiar as the Bedford one.
Beyond the rainbow, the unpaved trail continuing west.
Last edited by Trocadile; 06-11-19 at 06:09 PM.
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#8183
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I’ve been riding more than I’ve been posting about it lately. My 5-7 days a week of riding has burned me out physically and otherwise. Having been sidelined since Tuesday I rather marveled in the absolute joy of riding on a day like today. I think I’ll keep things to a more reasonable 3-4 days a week for the remainder of the year. Today and last Sunday I joined group rides out of RSC in Lexington. FWIW Thursday after work I rode my Kayak from the Woerd st dock out to Newton Lower Falls and back.
#8184
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Great pics, all!
We took our tandem out for 50.6 miles today. Weather was superb so there were lots of bikes out. As usual, my sweetie snapped a pic of me eating lunch.
We took our tandem out for 50.6 miles today. Weather was superb so there were lots of bikes out. As usual, my sweetie snapped a pic of me eating lunch.
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Took the LHT for a quick sprint up to Lexington Center before dinner. A lot of solar dazzle on the outbound leg.
Ra reminded me of something...
Yeah, that's it...
rod
Ra reminded me of something...
Yeah, that's it...
rod
Last edited by rholland1951; 06-10-19 at 12:54 PM.
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was nice to see more work being done on the Cochituate Rail Trail in Natick this weekend even if I was working, not riding. this is parallel to Speen St, just South of route 30 (aka Commonwealth Rd)
this thing would be wicked fun to drive
a cpl links
https://www.arrtinc.org/map/Index.cf...ect=Cochituate
https://www.traillink.com/trail-gall...te-rail-trail/
https://www.traillink.com/trail/cochituate-rail-trail/
this thing would be wicked fun to drive
a cpl links
https://www.arrtinc.org/map/Index.cf...ect=Cochituate
https://www.traillink.com/trail-gall...te-rail-trail/
https://www.traillink.com/trail/cochituate-rail-trail/
Last edited by rumrunn6; 06-10-19 at 11:32 AM.
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Trip report! Took a long drive up to Vermont with the hubby and we rode the Island Line rail trail. He parked fairly close to the causeway do the ride was a little different than I had envisioned. I expected to mostly ride the nice flat trail, take the ferry across the gap, ride a couple miles on the island and go back. Since we cut out most of the trail, had to make up the miles on the island. Very hilly!
I will say the causeway is in poor condition. Loose gravel and sand. There are washouts where the path is really eroded. I was actually terrified and had to walk my bike through some areas. I had no traction and a fall anywhere the would have resulted in serious injury. I'm glad i did it but wouldn't go back.
My favorite part was lunch at a winery.
https://www.relive.cc/view/2438993849
I will say the causeway is in poor condition. Loose gravel and sand. There are washouts where the path is really eroded. I was actually terrified and had to walk my bike through some areas. I had no traction and a fall anywhere the would have resulted in serious injury. I'm glad i did it but wouldn't go back.
My favorite part was lunch at a winery.
https://www.relive.cc/view/2438993849
#8188
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there's a thread for that. checked your link, what a fun way to share a ride! this spring has been exceptionally rainy forcing Lake Champlain above flood stage, combined with high winds causing coastal erosion & flooding. the trail is not normally like that
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there's a thread for that. checked your link, what a fun way to share a ride! this spring has been exceptionally rainy forcing Lake Champlain above flood stage, combined with high winds causing coastal erosion & flooding. the trail is not normally like that
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You could say I had a good ride! 30ish miles, nothing crazy. Lots of trails in the woods, some in some grassland/swampy thing, some wildly overgrown. I'm bleeding in lots of places from thorns but I had an awesome time. I promise I don't ride with my bag open, I just had it that way to pull my camera out.
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wow, I guess it was bad, & with kids riding it especially, I see the dangers of dropping a wheel in a washout/pothole & landing on the big granite boulders ... we stopped at the ferry, but it looked like fun. kinda thought we'd go back another time but our visits up there to see our Daughter were always filled with other activities & obligations. now that she graduated we're less likely to go back. I was soooo sad while driving away for the last time
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So, no pics yet.
Saturday morning out on the Minuteman on the Kneerover Go when a friend comes riding up behind me bemoaning "Back on your scooter again, what happened?"
Nothing has happened, just delivering to another friend who broke their ankle.
Saturday afternoon was having a wonderful time visiting porches when the rear derailleur cable stop failed again in East Arlington. The permanent fix proved temporary. Sigh.
Rode to the LBS who were wonderful. Gave me a great deal on a "last year" Scott Addict RC with Ultegra DI2, plus a refund for the failed repair, plus some money for my "trade-in", so for not much more than the cost of just a new frameset I have a new bike.
Picked it up yesterday afternoon for a quick shakeout ride and then out on errands before dinner.
So sorry Scott 1.0, you were a delight. Long live Scott 2.0.
-mr. bill
Saturday morning out on the Minuteman on the Kneerover Go when a friend comes riding up behind me bemoaning "Back on your scooter again, what happened?"
Nothing has happened, just delivering to another friend who broke their ankle.
Saturday afternoon was having a wonderful time visiting porches when the rear derailleur cable stop failed again in East Arlington. The permanent fix proved temporary. Sigh.
Rode to the LBS who were wonderful. Gave me a great deal on a "last year" Scott Addict RC with Ultegra DI2, plus a refund for the failed repair, plus some money for my "trade-in", so for not much more than the cost of just a new frameset I have a new bike.
Picked it up yesterday afternoon for a quick shakeout ride and then out on errands before dinner.
So sorry Scott 1.0, you were a delight. Long live Scott 2.0.
-mr. bill
Last edited by mr_bill; 06-10-19 at 12:53 PM.
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In all fairness, I'm a little skittish on sand after my wipeout last month. But on that fall, I just skinned my knee and elbow and cracked my helmet. A fall along that causeway could put you right on the rocks or into the water. Maybe I would have been more confident with different tires. Mine are wide enough (28 mm) but really smooth. My husband was nervous too on his hybrid and he has wider tires with good tread. He didn't get off and walk, but he was glad when it was over.
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Wow, some serious riding going on here. N'sG, we need a pic or two! (You know the rules, pics or it didn't happen. Yeah, I know, there is a video.)
I did my commute again yesterday, first day back after a vacation. Took the Masi. Glad the rain held out until night. The MM was curiously light traffic-wise. Riding the 2 mile downhill from Bow St to Mill St in Arlington I saw as almost no one. As a result I just powered along at a brisk steady cadence. Then I noticed someone slowly catching up with me. Another hotshot, I figured. They blow by me and everyone else by 10mph or more with no verbal warning. As he got closer I realized he wasn't pedaling. Ah, an electric bike. When we finally stopped at Mass Ave we spoke. He was an older gent, but from my perspective everybody seems younger. He said "You are a strong rider," I told him anyone can be fast going downhill. Still, he insisted that no one ever passes him. I hadn't actually passed him but I did keep him from passing me. I just said "Well, I ride a lot." He said his bike was so heavy that without the "assist" he couldn't do the 20-mile round trip to work. I told him if it gets him out then great. The light changed and we moved on.
A bit later I noticed another hunkered-down rider on my tail but when I waved for him to pass he said no. Okay. Then we came up on some pedestrians walking dogs, one on each side of the trail. I slowed, trying to decided what to do. As we were about 20ft from them the two dogs lunged at each other into the middle of the path. Yow! I hit the brakes hard. The guy following me did the same, probably saw what was developing, for which I am grateful.
I did my commute again yesterday, first day back after a vacation. Took the Masi. Glad the rain held out until night. The MM was curiously light traffic-wise. Riding the 2 mile downhill from Bow St to Mill St in Arlington I saw as almost no one. As a result I just powered along at a brisk steady cadence. Then I noticed someone slowly catching up with me. Another hotshot, I figured. They blow by me and everyone else by 10mph or more with no verbal warning. As he got closer I realized he wasn't pedaling. Ah, an electric bike. When we finally stopped at Mass Ave we spoke. He was an older gent, but from my perspective everybody seems younger. He said "You are a strong rider," I told him anyone can be fast going downhill. Still, he insisted that no one ever passes him. I hadn't actually passed him but I did keep him from passing me. I just said "Well, I ride a lot." He said his bike was so heavy that without the "assist" he couldn't do the 20-mile round trip to work. I told him if it gets him out then great. The light changed and we moved on.
A bit later I noticed another hunkered-down rider on my tail but when I waved for him to pass he said no. Okay. Then we came up on some pedestrians walking dogs, one on each side of the trail. I slowed, trying to decided what to do. As we were about 20ft from them the two dogs lunged at each other into the middle of the path. Yow! I hit the brakes hard. The guy following me did the same, probably saw what was developing, for which I am grateful.
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Real cyclists use toe clips.
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jimmuller
Real cyclists use toe clips.
With great bikes comes great responsibility.
jimmuller
Last edited by jimmuller; 06-11-19 at 05:13 AM.
#8196
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Mid-afternoon Monday, I headed up the Charles River as far as the Moody Street fish ladder, to see if the river herring were still running, and to see to it that I was riding. They weren't, I was, the weather was fine, and I renewed my acquaintance with a favorite route that I hadn't visited this year, 23 miles through Arlington, Cambridge, Allston, Brighton, Newton, Waltham, Watertown, and Belmont, on a gamut of surfaces ranging from pavement to stone dust to dirt to duck board.
Largest Braille text in Massachusetts.
The Watertown dam. No fish jumping here.
The shallows in front of the Watertown dam. During a herring run, this stretch of water should be mobbed by opportunistic gulls. One serene heron does not a herring run make.
Speaking of serenity...
Moody Street: lots of ladder, lots of river, no herring.
Exclamation point!
rod
Largest Braille text in Massachusetts.
The Watertown dam. No fish jumping here.
The shallows in front of the Watertown dam. During a herring run, this stretch of water should be mobbed by opportunistic gulls. One serene heron does not a herring run make.
Speaking of serenity...
Moody Street: lots of ladder, lots of river, no herring.
Exclamation point!
rod
Last edited by rholland1951; 06-12-19 at 08:34 AM.
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#8197
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The gifs show fine for me. There is one missing picture (Speaking of serenity ....) is followed by a blank space.
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took a ride on the MM last night. was interesting to watch one father/son team navigate a road crossing. basically needs to conquer starting from a stop. he'll get it but good thing it was a quiet night. a bit further away I passed a woman standing patiently by the side. I suspect it was Mom waiting for news of the ride. heartwarming
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