rumrunn6

nice it does look clean. would be a shame to christen it right now

rholland1951

Slip'n'Slide!!!!

rod

rumrunn6

got to work after the changeover but no loss of traction



was checking out the BFRT on my way in thru Acton, Carlisle & Chelmsford to Tewksbury. the places where ppl walked/stomped the snow down, is now getting wet & I saw pavement. looked rideable! dunno what this new storm will do to that track tho

rumrunn6

several inches of crusty hard ice & now some snow out around Stow. I would need a plowed trail to ride anywhere tomorrow. I doubt even on a plowed trail would the trail be bare. the BFRT may be off limits for me for several weeks. almost stopped (but didn't on my way home from work) at Bedford Depot to check on trail conditions but with this storm it might require a fat bike

Ghazmh

Today was a great day to Fatbike, last weekends snow was sun kissed enough to be shallower, hard and crusty with a thin veneer of fresh icy snow. Having learned the hard way last week that even a mile ride to the MCRT can be questionable on the side of busyish roads. Today I drove. I rode 10 miles over the path and through Weston woods. 500 carbide studs and proper treads had me bewildered by the level of traction and assuredness. My brand new 45Nrth pogies kept my fingertips toasty warm by providing a wind proof pocket to slip my gloves hands into.

rholland1951

Bravo! to the ride, and to the gear adaptations!

rod

rumrunn6

excellent! I got out too. happy to report the MM is plowed in Bedford. rode it from there to Spy Pond in Arlington where the wind was feirce. it was windy all day but really windy at the water. the plowed surface was miraculously smooth. perfect for walking running skiing I think & biking. over the ~ 20 miles I saw lots of happy faces



the unplowed snow was hard & firm on this raised walkway thru the meadows. I think all the footprints compacted it just right for an easy roll down the middle

on the way back, tried out the outdoor restrooms at the Lexington Visitors' Center. warm & clean. changing table for my gloves & helmet. took my shoes off & warmed my toes & boots w/ the hand dryer. added a little water to my bottle but there's no hot/cold control, it comes out pre-blended, so didn't add too much
I think parking on Hartwell Ave. at Alloy, if necessary, on the weekends, would be perfectly fine. I saw one car way over close to the trail. can't imagine anyone would mind

in lot looking toward Hartwell, w/ business on right. trail is to the left

but since the Bedford section is plowed, there is no need

don't think many ppl were expecting to see bicycles

rumrunn6

nice those look like the real deal. I think they make a big positive impact on winter riding

Ghazmh

Today was a little different. I had to get out early if I was going to get out at all. I rolled out at 0700 and heralded East for a quick hop on the empty Sunday morning roads to the Charles River path. 500 carbide studs and 1/2” tall treads ensured i made plenty of noise for all to hear. I rode the path to Watertown square and back for a whopping 10.9 miles which took three times longer than if I were on a drop bar bike and it were about eighty degrees warmer. Either way it beat not cycling. The entire path was covered in ice, ice and snow, and sometimes just snow. Despite those giant poagies my fingertips are still cold 9 hours later.

rumrunn6

yikes. the last cpl of days have been rudely cold. I've tried diff. gloves w/ my less expensive barmitts and have a cpl favorites. I've also experimented w/ using chemical warming packs inside them. yesterday at the beg. of my ride, I did blow into my gloves a cpl times at the beg. of the ride, which helps them. while my toes always get colder, my fingers warm up as I ride

Ghazmh

Yeah, in retrospect I made a rookie mistake by underestimating my glove needs for 9 degrees. Even with the poagies I should have used my 45Nrth Sturmfist gloves with warmers. In all honesty if I used just those gloves with warmers like 2 weeks ago (before the poagies) I wouldn’t have lasted as long.

rumrunn6

good so they are helpful, good. but yeah, they're weird & require adaptation. I sometimes ride w/ 2 pair, starting w/ the better warmer ones & switching to a lighter glove after I warm up. (btw I like 29 degrees. easy to manage for me). on Saturday I made a rookie mistake too, no outer wind barrier. I knew I was in trouble the minute I stepped out of my car. felt the wind & looked at some of the faces on ppl coming off the trail & one bike that went by. fortunately I had a giant extra fleece jacket in my car (XXL Long). I put that on even tho I looked like a bear. 1/2 way on the 1st half I took it off & tied it to the rear trunk. when I got to the lake the wind was fierce, so I put it back on. kept it on for the whole ride back.

NomarsGirl

You are all crazy to be riding in the winter.

rumrunn6

Saturday is your day ...!

rumrunn6

btw way I spotted Battle Road Bikes. I was too focused on my frigid ride, to stop & tour the shop

it's near this little park near the stream near Bow Street

rumrunn6

from the Berkshires to Boston, construction crews are putting the finishing touches on a dozen new off-street biking and walking paths that are expected to open to traffic in 2022

rumrunn6

fwiw - the BFRT in Acton, Carlisle to Chelmsford has flattened out again after the rain & re-freeze. anyone w/ a studded fatbike would kill it today. I'd guess you'd have the trail to yourself as well

bike_tom

Thanks for that. I am very excited about the first two (Somerville Community Path and BFRT bridge over Route 2). Now if only Concord would work on connecting the Reformatory Branch Trail (RBT) to the BFRT.
Concord does have a presentation (a year old now) where they recognize that Bedford's upcoming paving of the east end of the RBT puts some pressure on Concord to respond:

https://concordma.gov/DocumentCenter...201001-updated

I am not that interested in the paving - I just crave an off roadway connection between the two trails.

Another upcoming link not mentioned is the final opening of the Watertown Cambridge Greenway to Fresh Pond. Last time I rode that way (November I think), the Greenway was still blocked at the Mt Auburn St underpass. Maybe someone reading this has newer info. In any case, a lot of good stuff to look forward to.

mr_bill

Rode a Blue Bike into and out of Davis Square this morning to pick up fresh ravioli at Dave's Fresh Pasta. (Sorry, no pics.)

For me, this is windbreaker weather on a bike, and t-shirt weather on foot. (Yes, my hot flashes are hanging in there still, surprising my docs. Will not miss them when they leave, but they are kind of nice these winter months.)

So, except for a few shallow slushy puddles with milky ice at the bottom, the Minuteman from Arlington Center-ish inbound is clear. The biggest worry was one large puddle east of Spy Pond, where there was a bit of a traffic jam as people walking wanted to wade in the shallow (iciest end) and I had to wait until the jam cleared to ride in the couple of inches of less iced but still some ice water.

In past winters this time of year was usually road biking on treated roads, but while my rehab is going really well, I'm still not ready to ride on roads yet.

So, color me surprised when I got to the very end of the Minuteman and found it treated. It looks like the MBTA treats it to the red line access hatch near Thorndike, and continues to treat it until they pull off at Varnum.

NOTA BENE: The granite stones marking the boundary between Arlington and Cambridge have heaved during the recent storm. Not only are they a couple of inches higher than the tarmac, there is now a two inch wide gap between a couple of stones. Reported.

What completely shocked me, however, is that Alewife Linear Path *AND* Somerville Community Path are *TREATED* with salt and sand in the winter. It's so interesting to see the choices different jurisdictions make. (Lighting or darkness? Plowed or left snow covered? Treated or not?)

Anyhow, this [expletive deleted] eating grin is going to stay on my face for a while. What a glorious day to be running an errand. (And since it's a Blue Bike, I don't have to wash it.)

-mr. bill

rumrunn6

hehe most enjoyable read! thank you!

NomarsGirl

Saturday is looking good, but I have a very busy weekend ahead. My friend's band is playing Friday night. Going to that. UMass Hockey game on Saturday. And going ice skating with friends on Sunday. THAT should be interesting. I don't think I've been on skates in 30 years. Had mine sharpened yesterday so they are ready to go. Even put new laces on them.

rumrunn6

sounds great! enjoy! I'll be painting my parents bathroom ceiling Saturday

rumrunn6

eyeballed the BFRT on my way this morning. looking super primed for riding, not bare, just enough of the white stuff to have fun on. even w/ just my studded 29er. another cpl warm days w/ some light snow Sunday? oh yeah

rholland1951

Friday, I took the GT out for a sunset ride on the Minuteman in the wake of a multi-day thaw that had almost, but not quite, eliminated water in its various frozen forms from the trail surface, leaving just a few patches here and there for the studded Nokians to bite. Lots of the liquid stuff remained, however, flows of meltwater and puddles in a variety of sizes. The puddles held the sunset's colors.


The biggest of the puddles, Lake Fottler, supported navigation. A good day for fenders.


The lion's share of the remaining ice was sitting on the pavement around Maple Street, Lexington.


One of the traditional winter messes awaited all comers near the Woburn Street crossing. Conveniently, this was just beyond my turnaround point.


rod

rholland1951

Saturday afternoon, I took the 1987 GT Karakoram, rolling on studded Nokian W240s, and rode East.


This was the last of several thaw days, and much of the recently arrived snow and ice had already melted away. The streets were wet in places, dry in others, and snow, ice, or slush were occasionally sufficiently present on the margins of the road that I was glad of the Nokians in case the exigencies of traffic forced me unexpectedly onto a glacier. This didn't happen, as it developed, but by this time in the season I've become fond of the merry crackling sound the studs make on dry pavement, even if it gets me a few extra challenge barks from the neighborhood dogs.

I encountered a new (to me) sign on the Northern Strand Community Trail, at its intersection with Medford Street, Malden, across the street from Bell Rock Cemetery. Boston this way, Lynn that way. I like it!


The ride proceeded on its normal round of hills and traffic, sunny with temperatures in the balmy upper 50s. As afternoon became evening, a cooling NW wind picked up, putting warming hill climbs at a premium, and helpfully offering to steer the bike, an offer which I politely declined. Both the wind and the subsequent falling temperatures presaged an end to the thaw and a return to Winter norms. Drat!



rod