rtool

Jim,

I am planning on being there. Setting up my campground reservations in the next couple days. See you then. John and Beverly won't be there this year. They are going on another ride during the same time frame.
hope to see several of the Fifty +R's there.

Dick

missjean

Shoot. I won't be able to make it. :-( Despite the gridlocked traffic that made me 3 hours late and the rain, I really enjoyed the ride last year and was looking forward to this year's ride! I will be attending a huge craft fair that Sunday (in Boston actually) and Saturday will be spent getting ready for it.

Dudelsack 

Flag Day is June 14. It's a fine idea for a group ride, although that wasn't to point of my post. Also, I'm doing a point A to point B ride, which isn't always the best format for a group ride.

You might consider the Little Miami River Trail for the future. It's only two hours from my house.

Steve Sawyer

Definitely in for OHR - gonna hafta pass on Boston though - the PALM ride is going to tap me out for vacation days this year...

Jim from Boston

Just send out a call for riders and see who shows up.

Jim from Boston

July 2014 has finally arrived, so here’s an update of the three Sixth Annual Fifty-Plus Rides of which I am aware:

One Helluva Ride, Chelsea, MI: Happens tomorrow, July 12; about seven riders and a few additional possibilities.

Katy Trail Social, July 19 & 20 in Missouri: Next weekend; about six riders

MassBike Summer Century and Family Event in North Acton, MA (Boston suburb): in two weeks, Saturday July 26, with (?) additional activities on Friday and/or Sunday; about five riders. (Send queries or replies to this thread, or a PM to me.)

Note the initial enthusiasms via the poll results at the top of the page.

BTW, DnvrFox recently posted a reminiscence of the First Annual Ride.

jimmuller 

JFB, we plan to be there with tandem. Are there any other planned activities for out-of-towner's coming?

bruce19

Haven't read all the response so maybe this has been said multiple times. Perhaps two or three different venues? East and West coast and somewhere in the middle? It would be easy, for instance, for me to go from CT to upper New England, upstate NY or the BRP. But a lot harder to go to CA or TX or MN.

Jim from Boston

These things usually sort out as the participants arrive. I would tentatively anticipate a leisurely bike ride on the Charles River Bike Path on Friday afternoon, followed by some possible walkin' around town, including a dinner. Saturday the ride distances to be chosen; it seems the 62 mile one is preferred; then walkin' around and dinner on Saturday night.

Sunday to be determined.

Jim from Boston

This has been a perennial discussion since Annual Ride III, and maybe Ride II also; Watkins Glen in the Finger Lakes region was the venue for Ride II. The poll results at the top of the page reflect this year's discussion.

All it takes is for someone to come forth, issue a call for riders, and provide information about the venue, usually held in conjunction with a local organized ride.

bruce19

Thanks. FWIW there is an annual ride out of Mansfield, CT called the Steeplechase Ride. I will post a link. It really is a great ride. FWIW Mansfield is the town in which UCONN resides although this has nothing to do with the university.

bruce19

2014 Steeple Chase Bike Tour | 23nd Annual Steeple Chase Bike Tour

Jim from Boston

That sounds like an ideal event for me; close by and I've never cycled in Connecticut, but that weekend is already planned.

If any out-of -towners would like to come in Thursday night to get a start on Friday, give me a heads up. Similarly I might be available on Monday.

Unlike previous events in rural areas, Boston itself, beyond the ride and camaraderie, is a draw, and I'm an enthusiastic booster.

freedomrider1

Go
Celtics

jimmuller 

So...who here is planning to ride the Massbike Century/Metric/32mile'r on Saturday the 26th, either as or not as a participant in the 50+ forum's Annual 50+ Ride?

My sweetie really, really, really wants to do the metric, starting at 9AM. Some of that route looks to be interesting, especially the run up to Harvard at about the 2/3rds point. Some of the rest we've ridden before, and it is very pretty. Any other takers?

Jim from Boston

I’m so inclined, but as the “host,” I’d go along with the group, as we did last year, and all rode the 30 mile ride.

BTW, by “walkin around,” I don’t mean aimless wandering. Boston is considered one of the most walkable of cities, so perambulating is a definite activity.

John_V 

Except for Boston, the rest of the rides are in western part of the US or upper central US. Kind of a far drive for a bike ride for those of us in the east and southern area.

Jim from Boston

Are any of the above rides described in the poll at the top of the page actually announced? My recollection is that was a preference poll closed last August, and I read Fifty-Plus daily.

In the past I drove about 350 miles for the Second Annual Ride in Walkins Glen, NY, and one subscriber drove from Alabama. The next year I drove over 700 miles to Michigan for Ride III, also to visit family.

jimmuller 

After talking this over with my sweetie (the stoker who is the Ultimate Boss, outranking even the Captain) we decided we would be delighted to the whatever people want to do. We'll likely bike over from Bedford which will add about 10 miles at each end of the day, very delightful miles too, I might add. That's an option we had discussed before and then forgotten about.

So it's just a question of timing. The metric is supposed to start at 9, the 32 miler (half metric? though they didn't call it that) starts at 11. We can leave Bedford at 9 and be there quite early, enough to meet everyone!

Addendum: I had mentioned this some time ago but I'll mention it again. I can provide some bikes to people who would like to ride but can't bring their own. All are classic/vintage, all in good shape, some are inexpensive and so there is nothing to worry about, some are mid-end robust journeymen capable of just about anything, and some are high-performance machines. All about 56-59cm with downtube friction shifters and toe clips/toe straps. I just need to know ahead of time.

Jim from Boston

That's really generous, Jim.

One of the biggest obstacles that concerned me about a Boston ride last year was that finding lodging in the urban area would be difficult / expensive compared to previous Fifty-Plus Annual Rides in a small towns, but last year’s riders all found satisfactory accommodations. In fact one participant got an amazingly cheap Bed and Breakfast within about 3 miles of downtown. Feel free to reply to this thread, or a PM to me for any assistance.

Jim from Boston

Since Boston is accessible by train, with a relatively good public transit, and some riders with cars could provide transportation to the starting point, a participant, especially from the East and Southern coasts, could participate without driving a car and hauling a bike. [I have taken a train to and from Florida, over a couple days one way.]

fietsbob

You forgot a None Of Them, Choice. I'm staying Here.

Jim from Boston

When you don't show up, we'll know it's you.

fietsbob

I'll toast to people who live a Long ways away from here.. :Beer:

Jim from Boston

Well, the final plans for the Boston venue for the Sixth Annual Fifty-Plus Ride this Saturday are falling into place. rtool is traveling from Ohio, planning to arrive on Friday afternoon, and we may do an easy ride on the Charles River Bike Path. He and I have met personally on the Annual Rides II and III. He’ll be staying with us in downtown Kenmore Square til Monday, so we’ll probably do some touring, likely on foot and/or subway, when not cycling. We could also use the Hubway Bike Sharing System for short hops to get around and not worry about the bikes.

The weather forecast for Saturday, as of 3 PM today (Thurs), is partly cloudy, up to 85°, but we hope for shaded roads. We plan on doing the Metric Century on Saturday, which starts at 9:00 AM in North Acton. We should leave by car for the Ride by around 7:30 or 8:00 AM. Metro Boston BF member jimmuller and his wife plan to ride too on their tandem. Again Saturday through Sunday are open. If anyone else is interested in the above activities, send me a PM so we can make further arrangements.