Northeast - NYC MS Ride '08

Sorry, 2007!

Who's in? This is a fun ride if you haven't done it. They close down a quite a few miles of road in Manhattan for this (as well as the Lincoln Tunnel!).

Check it out: http://www.nycmsbiketour.org

I think I'm in - I missed it last year but would like to give it a go.

yup yup .... im signed up for the 60 miler...
air an the rest of the guys are down for it too!!1

Not to sound like a salesman, but if you register before midnite tonite, you'll save some $$ (9/14)

I'm registered for the 2007 ride. The 2008 ride isn't open for registration yet. ;) BTW, I'm doing the 30 miler cuz I'm lazy.

the 30 miles can be done in a blink of an eye.... plus u have to ride the hills of nj.... its tough but fun

I will probably do it, especially since a "hilly" (well, by East Coast standards) century is a good excuse to pick up that Lemond Sarthe triple I've been thinking about. ;)

Just signed up to marshal, not sure of the assignment yet.

I'm in, 100 miles.

I'll be there. Signed up for 100 miles, but my wife is recovering from a crash so we might just do the 60 if she's not back up to full strength by then.

I'm registered and raised enough for the 100 Miler on the 2007 ride, though also may only do the 60.

does anyone have a link to a course map?

http://nyn.nationalmssociety.org/site/DocServer/2006_Tour_map.pdf?docID=22101

I'm in got the 60! This is my third one!

They don't close the GWB. You ride on the bike/ped path on the way back from Jersey to Manhattan on the 60/100 miles routes.

yo ...
are we all going to meet up an try to push each other??

I'm down for a pre-start coffee meetup.

Sure, I'll meet up somewhere. There or some coffee shop nearby?

There's this place @ 10th and W.45th: Felix Coffee Shop 630 10th Ave, New York, NY

I won't be able to meet up prior to the start of the ride. Need to check in with my friends and ex-coworkers/boss at the Credit Suisse area. But since people on the team are too fast or too slow for me, I'd like to ride with you guys (if I can keep up).

Anyway to tell who's who if I happen to come across you guys? Wish we had some BikeForums decal or something... maybe we could write something on our bibs.

Second year doing it. Didn't make the 100 miles last year because I didn't make the cut off in time. I'll be sure to try to book it there this year since I'm aware of it now... took way too long on the breaks.

Sure, I'll meet up somewhere. There or some coffee shop nearby?

There's this place @ 10th and W.45th: Felix Coffee Shop 630 10th Ave, New York, NY
Where's the start this year, the seaport? I can make this spot though if anyone's up for it.

Anyway to tell who's who if I happen to come across you guys? Wish we had some BikeForums decal or something... maybe we could write something on our bibs.


I was all set to wear my R600DuraAce t-shirt ("Training is for wussy!" "I'm sorry I have to drop you") but then my team leader went and generously bought us all these very swanky Louis Garneau jerseys... :::sigh:::

I was all set to wear my R600DuraAce t-shirt ("Training is for wussy!" "I'm sorry I have to drop you") but then my team leader went and generously bought us all these very swanky Louis Garneau jerseys... :::sigh:::


Bob, You know he does this ride, don't you? You can have a showdown with him in the Palisades! Wear the shirt OVER your jersey! Do it!

Where's the start this year, the seaport? I can make this spot though if anyone's up for it.


The start is at Pier 94, 12th Ave & 55th. Same as last year. If you haven't been there it's basically a giant empty warehouse north of the Intrepid/cruise ship piers.

I picked that coffee shop because it's the closest I could find to the start. If you guys want to meet up at check in we can do that too.

Sure....
Coffee Run

I guess my post from last night got eaten. I can meet up at Felix' for coffee and a baconeggnecheezonaroll before the ride. Who else wants to meet up?

Sounds good. 6:30? Ride starts at 7:30 & we should probably check in by 7 to hand in envelopes, get cue sheets, etc.

I'm on a red/white Allez, white helmet, 6' white guy.

6.30 COOLS
asian 5*9 rides merlin

Wish I could as my first event. I know the routes very well being born, raised, went to college and worked in NJ and NYC. However, I will be in Coopers town this weekend. When is the next event int he area? I am pretty much a newbie, but ride a minimum of 20 miles every other day. Plus some sprints and stuff in between. I have ridden up to about 33 miles, and I live in the Lehigh Valley so the terrain is VERY HILLY. Any recommendations on how long I should go for my first? 30-60? Try for 60 and drop out after 40+ if i don't make it. Like do most of the routes on these things connect and are just shorter or are they all separate usually? Any help would be appreciated.

Cool, I'll meet youse at 6:30. I'll be on the blue IRO in my sig.

X, there's a free Tour de Bronx ride on Oct. 21. Routes are 25 and 40 miles. Not quite in your area though.

Just out of curiosity, is anyone doing the 30 at a fairly leisurely pace and is it difficult to register first thing Sunday morning on-site?

Henri, are all of you guys gonna hammer all the way (I know you're doin 60) or is this more of a fun ride?

Bob, You know he does this ride, don't you? You can have a showdown with him in the Palisades! Wear the shirt OVER your jersey! Do it!

He's not that fast, if I can beat him up the climb to alpine...

Just out of curiosity, is anyone doing the 30 at a fairly leisurely pace and is it difficult to register first thing Sunday morning on-site?

Henri, are all of you guys gonna hammer all the way (I know you're doin 60) or is this more of a fun ride?
I'm doing the 30 miler at a leisurely pace.

steve,
the 30 mile is a very easy route... ... i can take it easy .. but when the 30 ends im going to hammer the rest of the way... or try to hammer them hills

steve,
the 30 mile is a very easy route... ... i can take it easy .. but when the 30 ends im going to hammer the rest of the way... or try to hammer them hillsThx man - I'm going down there at 6 and then I'll hook up with you guys.

Nice ride guys...the wind going up & down the west side has a wee bit painful, but I feel so good after a nice hot shower/foot soak :D



Sounds good. 6:30? Ride starts at 7:30 & we should probably check in by 7 to hand in envelopes, get cue sheets, etc.

I'm on a red/white Allez, white helmet, 6' white guy.


6.30 COOLS
asian 5*9 rides merlin

oh here's (http://www.bikeforums.net/showpost.php?p=5451290&postcount=37) the HB post

http://gprime.net/board/images/smilies/wallbash.gif

I started the ride, ironically, with R600 after we bumped into each other.
Almost got taken out by a water bottle about 5 minutes into the ride. Halfway up the FDR, saw about 3-4 people go down after someone dropped their bottle. We ended up like, a good mile behind the lead group after we got stuck in the park in the bronx and hauled ass to catch up with em. Got stuck again at the tunnel. Saw another 3-4 people go down over a speed bump just as we got into NJ.
Finally caught up with the lead group right before the palisades and pop! my chain comes off. Almost caught up to em outside nyack and dropped my chain again. Had my head down trying to catch up again and missed a turn so I took 9W back and ended up in that hairy assed section between nyack and piermont. Met up with my girlfriend at her 65 miler rest stop and we went home together. Didn't feel like back tracking then doing it all over again with 20-25mph cross winds all around.
All in all, I ended up a few miles shy of 100 but only 85 some odd miles for the actual ride, averaged something like, 18.5, I suck.

And if you guys saw a chick on a dark blue specialized allez with a cookie monster jersey, this was her. ;)
http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/1003/lsahn4.jpg

You be a lucky man :D
Any girl with a flat was instantly swarmed over
...we're waiting for Lucky07's pix :)

Cool, I'll meet youse at 6:30. I'll be on the blue IRO in my sig.

X, there's a free Tour de Bronx ride on Oct. 21. Routes are 25 and 40 miles. Not quite in your area though.
Cool, it's not really my areas but not far from it. How did the weather turn out today for the ride?

Does anybody know what the deal was with the early closure of the 100mi route? I started a corporate team this year with a bunch of new-ish but eager riders, some perfectly able to finish the 100 but not super fast, and we were obviously looking forward to our first official event. We were taking it a bit easy at first to keep our respective 60 and 100 mile groups more or less together. Just a fun, friendly ride, right?

We hit the Kiku rest stop right around noon. Mid-lunch, we're smacked with an announcement that the 100mi route is closed, and that anyone not already gone has to turn back to the city. We've ridden 50mi, it's only noon, and now we have to give up? There wasn't even a warning.

Mostly in anger because of that announcement, and partly in anger that there was no PB&J this year :mad:, we tore off our numbers and finished the ride self-supported, as did plenty of others. Judging by the f-bombs raining down everywhere, it sounded like the marshals were just as in the dark as we were.

In the end, the "rebel ride" was satisfying in its own way -- the anger fueled our legs for a bit, we procured our own PB&J, and we didn't have to bother with any more portapotty lines.

But the careless organization of the event -- if that was in fact the cause -- left a really bad impression on newbies (And there wasn't even an opening ceremony! Talk about starting off on the wrong foot.) So as a team captain expecting to grow the team next year, I'll be stuck trying to spin today's experience into a positive one. :(

I have no idea, we arrived a little over 10 and didn't hear anything negative about it.

http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/1003/lsahn4.jpg
Remind me to kill your ass and assume your identity next time I see you.

So I met up w/ Lucky07, Henri86 and Marco, rode to the start and lost them when I went looking for the non-existent donations table. Ended up meeting a friend from college and rode w/ him the whole ride. Next time I'll try to stay w/ the pack at least until they drop me.

lol.. very easy going ride...
nice meeting luckyo7.. Jyossarian, Steve.. Marco..
next yr i got to push Steve to do the 60 plus miler..

Had a good ride. Cold & windy as hell all day though.

I'll post a full report & pics tomorrow. As MasterShake noted above the rest stop food was kind of substandard. At the finish I was allowed one 1/2 slice of pizza. Gosh, thanks!

They freaking checked off our badges so we couldn't get another 1/2 slice of pizza or tiny bowl of pasta!

Good thing I snuck in and grabbed a.... *gasp* second half slice!

last yr they had tons of food..
an was allowed plenty of refills

This might have to do with the fact that at the sushi restaurant rest stop... I swiped 15 (that's a box and a half) of gels into my jersey pockets. 14 of them are in my kitchen cabinet right now.

Ended up meeting a friend from college and rode w/ him the whole ride. Next time I'll try to stay w/ the pack at least until they drop me.

I would've hung w/ya!


lol.. very easy going ride...
nice meeting luckyo7.. Jyossarian, Steve.. Marco..
next yr i got to push Steve to do the 60 plus miler..

What 60 we doing 100 next year! Training begins tomorrow (DC) and thurday nights!

Guys dont forget... free shipping and big discounts on all Panny Plasmas...

My report:

Met up with jyossarian, stevesurf, henria86 & marco at 6:30am. It was a frigid 48% and windy. I had a shortsleeve baselayer, arm & leg warmers, jersey, shorts & my no mesh shoes and I was still freezing. I kept telling myself I'd warm up once the ride started (& made a mental note to get a vest).

We lost jyossarian almost immediately, when he went off to find the envelope drop off. We might have been distracted by the woman biker wearing low cut sweatpants & a thong. She bent over to fix something on her bike and... wow. I don't think I was the only one staring...

I ran into a guy from work & said hi. I asked if he had ever done this ride before. "Nope. I've never even done 25 miles on a bike before...." Are you doing the 30? I asked. "Nope, the hundred!" Gulp. He seems reasonably fit, so I'm sure he survived, but damn. That's a hell of a first over 25 mile ride. I'll check on him today to make sure he's still alive.

Followed Marco for a bit as he weaved in and out of riders like a madman. I lost him and the group somewhere uptown. The city paved the road above 200th St. which was nice. I almost lost it on the cobblestones there on last year's ride.

Got up to Inwood & looked around for the group after grabbing a snack. No sign of them. I forgot about the enforced wait at that stop, so I stood around for a 1/2 hour waiting for them to let us go ahead. People were not happy. We finally got going after 9am.

Headed down the West side to the Lincoln Tunnel. There was another wait, but it wasn't long. I did see Slvoid & R600DuraAce for a milisecond as they passed me going into the tunnel. There didn't seem to be any trash talking going on. :D That ride through the Tunnel is great. Hit 30mph almost immediately. Really fun.

As we passed Edgewater in N.J I saw a couple of Red Tail Hawks hunting over the cliffs. Kind of amazing to see in such a urban place.

The Palisades were beautiful. This is definitely my favorite time to ride there. Cool air, leaves falling, waterfalls running. Very pretty. Made it up without too much trouble.

Stopped at the 60 mile turnaround rest stop. Expected sandwiches, but there were none. Didn't see any bagels. Just various nutrition bars, apples and gels. That was ok, but PB&J are a staple of rides like this & are expected.

Took off after a short break & hooked up with a couple of pacelines. The ride through Piermont & Nyack was pretty as usual. Tons of bikers in both towns that afternoon, hanging at the coffee shops.

The ride up and back through Rockland was very nice. The weather had warmed up a bit, but was still windy. Have to say, it seemed like there was a headwind all day.

I latched on to a double paceline on the way back. It was going great until 2 guys hit a raised manhole cover and got pinch flats. We regrouped after a bit & headed through Ft. Lee. That town is an incredible collection of new ugly houses. Someone should do a photo essay on the incredible variety & lack of taste on display there.

Stopped on the GWB to take some pics. Saw Peregrine Falcons flying in and around the Bridge (Yes, I like birds.) A guy asked me to take his pic with his camera, so I did. Then a couple stopped & asked me to take their pic. I took off after that, not wanting to turn into the official photographer...

Finished around 2:30. Decent time for me considering the waits & the all day headwind. I was tired but felt ok overall.

Mary & the kids met me at the Finish. I took the kids inside for snacks & found very little. 1 1/2 a slice of pizza per rider & not much else that I could see except snack food & candy.

Had a pretty good ride, despite the temps & wind. The voluteers were really nice & helpful for the most part. Route markings were good. They were either clearly marked, or staffed with a volunteer. Raised a fair amount of $ without much effort.

It was great to meet up with stevesurf, henria86, jyossairian & marco. Wish we could have stuck together for longer. Maybe on the Bronx ride...

My criticisms are mostly about the rest stops. I was fine with it for the most part, but they had definitely cut back. It's essential to have decent food on a ride like this. MS brings out a TON of newbies and you've got to keep them fed to avoid bonking out on the road. I'll note that when I fill out my survey.

Finally, I was trying to get a company team together for the 100 miler. It didn't work out, but judging from MasterShake's post, I'm glad I didn't. I'd understand closing down the 100 mile route early if the weather turned foul, but not 6 hours early for seemingly no reason. I would have pissed. I hope MS has a decent reason for doing that.

I'll post pics tonight. (No, I didn't snap a pic of the thong girl... :D)

(No, I didn't snap a pic of the thong girl... :D)
GAAAHHh!!!

LOL..
i had to wait for steve .. i promised him, that i wait for him .. I climbed them hills like a mtn goat.. an waited for him to fly down... helped a few people with flats