Ghazmh

This morning I put on socks for the first time in a week (thanks to my much favored yet powerfully ugly Shimano SD66’s I wore on my tour) and cinched down the Boa dials on my white SWorks SPD-SL shoes and joined the field of kindred spirits enjoying a Sunday ride. Aboard my Seven Redsky and dressed in my Sunday best I rode through Weston and Lincoln to Concord center where I looped up Monument st, rode by Ferns and came back towards Concord center via Strawberry Hill before heading home with a comfortable 34 miles which rounded out my week just above 310 miles this week. Something that seemingly can only be achieved while on vacation. I relished in the endless rays of sunny August warmth albeit with pollen getting under my glasses and taking up permanent residence in my eyes.

rholland1951

Took the old GT Karakoram with the new tires for a quick sprint around the Mystic Lakes before dinner, and just after a frisky little thunder shower blew through. There was a confused, cooling wind that enhanced the ride. Lots of folks out, some in, some on, the water. Others stayed on dry land.


Not so long ago the lakes were frozen. This is definitely better.

rod

rholland1951

Monday rolled in, and I rolled out on the Nordavinden. After a brief round of adjusting saddle height and angle, a chore that seems to need repeating at least once a season, I had those parameters set optimally enough to please both my seat and my knees. Good day for a bike count, I saw a bunch of countables on the Minuteman.


In Lexington, in the little park off Bow Street, a gentleman was taking his ease with an elaborate touring rig, bike and trailer, that he was going to take on a tour Real Soon Now, but in the meantime was taking out for dry runs. I felt a vicarious referral of the tug of Out Yonder.


I admired the fact that he was carrying his own lawn chair.

rod

DBrim

Managed to squeeze in a bit more than an hour on the bike today, riding up a bit beyond Arlington Center and back along the Minuteman and Somerville paths. I decided to leave the geese and geeselings of the Fitchburg Cutoff alone today, instead tacking on distance beyond Arlington to make up for it. It was a bit of a struggle today between the 22mph (per the usually unreliable Garmin) crosswinds and the absurd amount of tree pollen, which triggers my allergies. Between my dislike of contact lenses and my lack of prescription sports sunglasses, the solution to the "pollen in eyes" problem looks like an expensive one.

rholland1951

Headed out on the Minuteman in the late afternoon again, this time on the Surly Trucker DeLuxe. It was one of those odd days that seemed to have a headwind coming and going. Lots of folks were out for a ride, so the versatile headwind had a lot of huffing and puffing to do to keep everybody ventilated.


The Woodman has received a makeover of sorts for the warm weather, and is now brandishing a dial or gauge. This makes him look very scientific, or at least technical, and I asked him if he was going to explain time dilation or other relativistic effects to me. "You won't need that the way you ride," he said, a little snarky if you ask me. "Einstein used to encounter relativistic effects on his bicycle, at least in thought experiments," I replied. "Oh, Einstein... now there was a man who could ride a bicycle." And that was all I could get out of him on the subject, so I continued up the path.


The Mile 4.0 Cairn Builders have had a hard time of it lately, but today had produced a single, enigmatic figure. Though lovely in its own way, this seemed a little mournful, since they usual show us couples or little family groups. I hope all is well with them.


After turning around at Lexington Center, I again passed by the little park where the Woodman keeps watch, and found that a pair of young funambulists were practicing their art, perhaps with the hope of running away and joining the circus.


rod

rholland1951

The sky is falling. The sky is falling! THE SKY IS FALLING... somewhere else, some other time.


Took the GT Karakoram out on the Minuteman for another indulgence in evaporative cooling on a warm day, beta release of Summer. Stopped to examine the latest evidence that the Mile 4.0 Cairn Builders have gotten back to cairn building and cultural evolution, just like it says in the book (which book?).


How do they do that? This puts the guy doing the track stand waiting for the light at Mass & Mystic to shame.


rod

rholland1951

The afternoon-ride-on-the-Minuteman pattern held firm Thursday, on the Rawland Nordavinden this time. Had a focused ride, made good time, and took one photograph. Sometimes, a little black-and-white dog is the center of the universe.


I'd like to think Einstein would agree.

rod

DBrim

Same ride both yesterday and today, out to Arlington Center and to the end of the Fitchburg Cutoff and back. Yesterday's pace was brisk, today's was leisurely, hampered by tree pollen-induced brain fogginess, though I stopped for a bit of caffeine at kickstand cafe to help me through the rest of the ride. The geese of Alewife Brook have been well-behaved of late, and the geeselings are getting noticeably larger. It won't be long until they're hissing at passersby too.

rholland1951

I had some time for a ride Friday afternoon, and regarded that as a hedge against the dodgy forecasts for Saturday. I revived the old Rivers and Hills route, following the bike paths in Medford along the Mystic and Malden Rivers, and then continuing out the Northern Strand Community Trail through Malden and into Revere, for a view of Rumney Marsh, then turning around (cued by drizzle) and taking a familiar hilly route back to Arlington, through parts of Melrose, Stoneham, Malden, and Medford. By the time that was done, I knew I had been on a bike.

Medford: a reminder of clipper ship days, on the trail.


Medford: a view of the Boston skyline down the Mystic.


Medford, Mystic River State Reservation: this tower beckons drivers on Route 16, but they seldom find their way to it.


Medford, Wellington Greenway: in case there was any doubt as to what you were looking at.


Medford, looking East across the Malden River, into Everett: the power plant burns fossil fuel, the casino burns money.


Medford, looking East across the Malden River: a greener view of Everett from The Park at River's Edge.


Revere, Northern Strand CommunityTrail: a look at Rumney Marsh. About here was where the incipient drizzle suggested that I turn around.


Malden, near the Revere line: a cheery welcome to you.


Malden, Fellsmere Park: the second jet d'eau is up and running.


Medford, Kurukulla Center for Tibetan Buddhist Studies: stopped to pay my respects at the stupa as I rode West on the return.


rod

rumrunn6

as the heat approaches, in case anyone misses the cold

rholland1951

Wonderful movie! Really captures the ice biking experience on the Minuteman! I have no idea as to how you got some of those shots, but I'm glad you did. Welcome back!

rod

rumrunn6

thanks, yeah it's more interesting for ppl who know the trail. I rigged a quick release to a camera stick, so I can take the sport cam off my helmet & easily slip it onto the stick. it's best done while standing still but sometimes I cheat, especially if the stick is already extended. also put a quick release on a small travel tripod for the ride-bys inspired by Zipp2001 who is often found in the MTB & 50+ subforums. both slip under bungees around a rear trunk. if I'm clever I will find a way to store the extended stick along the top bar. maybe I can use a cpl extra frame pump mounts that are collecting dust. thanks for the welcome. it's been a screwy year

rholland1951

I spent Saturday morning and much of the afternoon chanting, "Rain, rain, go away!" in all sincerity. It took its sweet time to do so, but finally obliged around 4pm, and my legs wanted hills, so I took the Surly Trucker DeLuxe and rode East, through the familiar flats and hills of Arlington, Medford, Malden, Melrose, and Stoneham.


I was a little wary of the wet roads, but the low-profile file tread and big contact patch on the Rat Trap Pass tires gripped nicely. The wind was another matter: I was in the teeth of it for much of the ride, but made way adequately, and on those occasions when it presented as a tailwind, it was delightful. There wasn't much traffic just then, so the urban tactical riding component of the route was a little tame (that's ok), and the hills were the thing. Climbing a long hill into a strong headwind made up for the lack of traffic at times. Fast descents with a tailwind made up for that (Wheee!). Descents with a headwind were a little funky, had to keep up with all that vector arithmetic. In any event, I got my money's worth out of this ride, and any rainy-day blues I had been suffering earlier were rolled away by the end of it.

rod.

DBrim

Needed to shake my cabin fever this afternoon after hiding inside from the cold rain for most of this weekend, so I rode out to the end of the Minuteman and back, saying hello to the train of Depot Park for the first time since 2015


On the way home I passed the scene of what looked like a pretty nasty crash between two cyclists. I didn't stop to help, there were already five or six people there and I don't think I would have been able to add any additional help, but it was a reminder that the trail doesn't make you immune from danger (I had a bad tumble on the minuteman about five years ago, also caused by another cyclist, but luckily I was able to ride home after zip tying my newly broken saddle back onto its rails).

Overall, 26 miles of relatively relaxed pace riding for me today. And possibly the last riding in upper 50s weather until fall.

Also, one side note to the towns of Massachusetts: if it's safe enough to remove the indoor mask mandates, it's safe enough to turn the water fountains back on.

rumrunn6

yes! & the public restrooms at depot park & the Lexington vis. ctr. maybe?

DBrim

The public restrooms at depot park were open today.

rholland1951

The weather broke better than I was expecting on Monday, and I took the Surly Trucker DeLuxe and headed East at midday. The folks at the Kurukulla Center were washing the stupa.


I regarded the good weather as a gift, and had an energetic ride on the hills fringing the Fells, climbing and descending in turn. Happy legs, happy lungs, happy brain. One of the things the brain was happy about was the Rat Trap Pass Extralights' ability to smooth rough pavement, up hill and down.

rod

mr_bill

‘Tis June.



Brief Pills and Ills update.

In the early spring, other than a vague unpleasantness at the start of a hot flash, they were mostly manageable by shorts and t-shirts.

Now I’ve done run out of socially acceptable clothing to remove.

The sunny side of the street is not my friend

Both walking and riding, I will seek out shade, even going well out of my way for refuge. Clouds are rather nice too. But even on sunny days there is a silver lining. I’m now finding glorious new ways to get theah from heah. Lots more kilometers near brooks, streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes, my own version of urban forest bathing feeding my soul. The roads less travelled I suppose.

Surgery is scheduled for July 15.

-mr. bill

rholland1951

May the dice roll in your favor.

rod

rholland1951

Took the 1987 GT Karakoram out for a mix of old, new, and some things so old they've become new again. I headed N up the Mystic Valley Parkway, along the Eastern shore of the Mystic Lakes, and encountered a man playing with his hilarious Giant Schnauzer in the shallows of the Upper Mystic Lake.


I continued through the Winchester Flats, then rode past Spectacle Pond (not to be confused with Skeptical Pond) and arrived at the Horn Pond Reservation, in Woburn. There's lots of history here, some if it civic, some personal, but today I was interested in the somewhat too grandly named Horn Pond Mountain.


I rode to Nolan's Trail, these days a well-paved, switch-back road that climbs up the wooded NE slope of Horn Pond Mountain. I bought the old GT back when it was a new GT, 34 years ago, in part because I saw a young man do this climb on one. So today's ride constituted answering a call across the years, a little of that personal history I mentioned.


This is a frankly steep, staged climb. I haven't worked out the grade yet (somewhere I lost my theodolite app, and I tended to get into trouble using that, anyway). Some of it I cranked up with a little help from the granny gear (this guy's my stunt double).


Some of it, I walked the bike up (gear zero).


Soon enough, I was on the relatively level ridge road, admiring the view of the distant Boston skyline.


I rode along the gravel road that runs along the ridge, noting the changes in the decades since I'd first been there.


For example, the former reservoir is now a forested crater.


Some cultural ephemera were on display.


The ridge road terminates in a precipitous stony trail that I have picked my way down on foot, but wouldn't dream of riding down, nightmares excepted. Some might, I guess. In body armor.


So, I back tracked, and somewhat gingerly descended the switchback road. I was pleased to note my rims did not overheat. I did some trail riding in the old cranberry bog section of the Reservation, in part to give the new knobby HTR Extralights something to chew on, then returned home via segments of the Tri-Community Greenway.

Thinking about the ride, I think I'll try to return to it every week or two during the season, to see if I can further strengthen my hill climbing capacity. If that kid could do it, 34 years ago...

rod

rholland1951

Took the Rawland Nordavinden out Wednesday afternoon, up the Minuteman to Lexington Center and back, all rail-trail Spring gentleness.

New from the Mile 4.0 Cairn Builders: the invention of Furniture! It could be a lectern, perhaps a short speech is in order.


Now, where did all their masks go?


Oops! Where did my mask go?


rod

rumrunn6

nice selfie! ever consider making an animated gif of yourself?

rholland1951

Not so far...

rod

rumrunn6

oh btw, as I reread that, I meant of you riding, not necessarily an animated face

rholland1951

Ah. Occasionally I've tried to capture multiple frames of my shadow, and stitch those together, but I haven't felt that those attempts have been particularly successful.

rod