Metro Boston: Good ride today?
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it's many days away but if I'm reading the forecast correctly snow showers from 1am - 2pm. temps in the 30s so it will be wet, not fluffy ...
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I had a great ride today. MM to Bedford and Narrow Gauge Rail Trail (NGRT) up into Billerica. It was brisk but very pleasant. Not may people out, except when coming back just after the schools got out.
This is the side trail leading down to Fawn Lake. The NGRT was behind me as I took the picture.
There was quite a head wind on the way out, but working harder against that warmed me up quickly. I wore the Pearl Izumi AmFib gloves I got last Spring:
If anything, these were too warm this afternoon, but they would be just right if it was still in the 30s. They are a bit hard to get back on after your hands sweat a bit, but its not a big deal.
I don't know if anyone else has encountered the fussiness of the electronic lock on the men's room at the Bedford Depot, but I have found a workaround: lift the inside handle so it is fully horizontal (pointing to 3 o'clock) before touching the lock button. It works every time if you do that. The return spring is weak causing the handle to not return to the fully latched position on its own, and that prevents the lock from engaging.
I hope everyone has a happy Thanksgiving. We've got a turkey breast dry brining in the fridge that I plan to cook in my charcoal smoker. The weather looks great for that.
This is the side trail leading down to Fawn Lake. The NGRT was behind me as I took the picture.
There was quite a head wind on the way out, but working harder against that warmed me up quickly. I wore the Pearl Izumi AmFib gloves I got last Spring:
If anything, these were too warm this afternoon, but they would be just right if it was still in the 30s. They are a bit hard to get back on after your hands sweat a bit, but its not a big deal.
I don't know if anyone else has encountered the fussiness of the electronic lock on the men's room at the Bedford Depot, but I have found a workaround: lift the inside handle so it is fully horizontal (pointing to 3 o'clock) before touching the lock button. It works every time if you do that. The return spring is weak causing the handle to not return to the fully latched position on its own, and that prevents the lock from engaging.
I hope everyone has a happy Thanksgiving. We've got a turkey breast dry brining in the fridge that I plan to cook in my charcoal smoker. The weather looks great for that.
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Took the 1982 Sequoia, also just back from Battle Road Bikes (new seat post), for a shakedown ride on the Minuteman. Though I've had this bike since October of 2019, I've ridden it almost not at all due to exceptionally bad timing. I bought it from another iBOB member during a traumatic period involving a bike-bike collision that pretty well messed up my left hand, the death of a good friend (who happened to be my bike mechanic) from a long illness, and a round of international travel; after that, the COVID hit the fan, and the bike languished in the basement for two years, not quite rideable and not getting the very small amount of attention from me that would have rendered it so, lost in the backlog of bike tinkering projects.
I had bought it in part because of the frame, sport-touring geometry with standard gauge steel tubes and lugged construction, and partly for the build, which turned it into a speedy, light-weight road bike that nonetheless rolled on 35mm Compass Bon Jon Pass Extralights. This included elements that I perhaps never would have opted for on one of my own builds: brifters, drillium rings on the crank, a relatively aggressive drop between the saddle and the handlebars, 28-spoke wheels, and a general weight-saving approach to parts (e.g., aluminum nipples) that led to a 22lb bike. It also included things that I already did like, in some cases a great deal: center-pull brakes, those nice, supple Compass tires, and some attention to the frame from Jeremy Sycip. All that got ignored for 2 years, but today's ride reminded me of what I hoped the bike would be: speedy, agile, elegant. It appears it actually is those things. I'm going to make minimum changes for now, and enjoy riding it as it is.
Drillium? Who, me?
rod
I had bought it in part because of the frame, sport-touring geometry with standard gauge steel tubes and lugged construction, and partly for the build, which turned it into a speedy, light-weight road bike that nonetheless rolled on 35mm Compass Bon Jon Pass Extralights. This included elements that I perhaps never would have opted for on one of my own builds: brifters, drillium rings on the crank, a relatively aggressive drop between the saddle and the handlebars, 28-spoke wheels, and a general weight-saving approach to parts (e.g., aluminum nipples) that led to a 22lb bike. It also included things that I already did like, in some cases a great deal: center-pull brakes, those nice, supple Compass tires, and some attention to the frame from Jeremy Sycip. All that got ignored for 2 years, but today's ride reminded me of what I hoped the bike would be: speedy, agile, elegant. It appears it actually is those things. I'm going to make minimum changes for now, and enjoy riding it as it is.
Drillium? Who, me?
rod
Last edited by rholland1951; 11-24-21 at 04:53 PM.
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This morning I rolled out at 0530 for 22 miles with the mercury hovering at 27*. For the first time this season I rocked the BarMitts. I hated covering up my fairly new and pretty Silca black and orange bar tape but the temperature justified it. My boots, goggles and baselayers ensured the rest of me was warm enough. Not too far nor very fast, no Strava segments were challenged today but it beat not riding. I signed up for Ride Sprinter Vans first snowfall ride which may be this Sunday night. Ride Studio Cafe is now Ride Sprinter Van
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Took the 1982 Sequoia, also just back from Battle Road Bikes (new seat post), for a shakedown ride on the Minuteman. Though I've had this bike since October of 2019, I've ridden it almost not at all due to exceptionally bad timing. I bought it from another iBOB member during a traumatic period involving a bike-bike collision that pretty well messed up my left hand, the death of a good friend (who happened to be my bike mechanic) from a long illness, and a round of international travel; after that, the COVID hit the fan, and the bike languished in the basement for two years, not quite rideable and not getting the very small amount of attention from me that would have rendered it so, lost in the backlog of bike tinkering projects.
I had bought it in part because of the frame, sport-touring geometry with standard gauge steel tubes and lugged construction, and partly for the build, which turned it into a speedy, light-weight road bike that nonetheless rolled on 35mm Compass Bon Jon Pass Extralights. This included elements that I perhaps never would have opted for on one of my own builds: brifters, drillium rings on the crank, a relatively aggressive drop between the saddle and the handlebars, 28-spoke wheels, and a general weight-saving approach to parts (e.g., aluminum nipples) that led to a 22lb bike. It also included things that I already did like, in some cases a great deal: center-pull brakes, those nice, supple Compass tires, and some attention to the frame from Jeremy Sycip. All that got ignored for 2 years, but today's ride reminded me of what I hoped the bike would be: speedy, agile, elegant. It appears it actually is those things. I'm going to make minimum changes for now, and enjoy riding it as it is.
Drillium? Who, me?
rod
I had bought it in part because of the frame, sport-touring geometry with standard gauge steel tubes and lugged construction, and partly for the build, which turned it into a speedy, light-weight road bike that nonetheless rolled on 35mm Compass Bon Jon Pass Extralights. This included elements that I perhaps never would have opted for on one of my own builds: brifters, drillium rings on the crank, a relatively aggressive drop between the saddle and the handlebars, 28-spoke wheels, and a general weight-saving approach to parts (e.g., aluminum nipples) that led to a 22lb bike. It also included things that I already did like, in some cases a great deal: center-pull brakes, those nice, supple Compass tires, and some attention to the frame from Jeremy Sycip. All that got ignored for 2 years, but today's ride reminded me of what I hoped the bike would be: speedy, agile, elegant. It appears it actually is those things. I'm going to make minimum changes for now, and enjoy riding it as it is.
Drillium? Who, me?
rod
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I wore the Pearl Izumi AmFib gloves I got last Spring:If anything, these were too warm this afternoon, but they would be just right if it was still in the 30s. They are a bit hard to get back on after your hands sweat a bit, but its not a big deal.I don't know if anyone else has encountered the fussiness of the electronic lock on the men's room at the Bedford Depot, but I have found a workaround: lift the inside handle so it is fully horizontal (pointing to 3 o'clock) before touching the lock button. It works every time if you do that. The return spring is weak causing the handle to not return to the fully latched position on its own, and that prevents the lock from engaging.
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This morning I rolled out at 0530 for 22 miles with the mercury hovering at 27*. For the first time this season I rocked the BarMitts. I hated covering up my fairly new and pretty Silca black and orange bar tape but the temperature justified it. My boots, goggles and baselayers ensured the rest of me was warm enough. Not too far nor very fast, no Strava segments were challenged today but it beat not riding. I signed up for Ride Sprinter Vans first snowfall ride which may be this Sunday night. Ride Studio Cafe is now Ride Sprinter Van
rod
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This morning I rolled out at 0530 for 22 miles with the mercury hovering at 27*. For the first time this season I rocked the BarMitts. I hated covering up my fairly new and pretty Silca black and orange bar tape but the temperature justified it. My boots, goggles and baselayers ensured the rest of me was warm enough. Not too far nor very fast, no Strava segments were challenged today but it beat not riding. I signed up for Ride Sprinter Vans first snowfall ride which may be this Sunday night. Ride Studio Cafe is now Ride Sprinter Van
Thanks,
rod
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Took the GT for a late afternoon ride on the Minuteman, after raking the yard and before going to Thanksgiving dinner, temperatures falling out of the 50s and into the 40s. This ride gave me some more chances to play with the shifting and get used to the new normal with the renewed drivetrain, but mostly just provided me an opportunity to spin along in the quiet and enjoy the sunset colors. The Minuteman was not quite empty, but was sparsely travelled, a good time to be there.
rod
rod
Last edited by rholland1951; 11-26-21 at 07:44 AM.
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25 miles on Thanksgiving Day.
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jimmuller
Real cyclists use toe clips.
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jimmuller
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1st snow, out by Stow, tonight
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Mike, we recall that ride fondly, despite the weather that day!
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Took my refurbished 1987 GT Karakoram, complete with 2021 René Herse Humptulips Ridge Extralights and SKS Longboard fenders, along with time-traveling NOS 6-speed UNIGLIDE cassette and a chain to match, and rode East for an afternoon tour of the hills and flats of Arlington, Medford, Malden, Melrose, and Stoneham. This was the most comprehensive challenge to date of the drivetrain work that the folks at Battle Road Bikes recently performed on this bike, and the new-old bits did just fine with hill-climbing duty.
The hills themselves were a timely source of heat. I was wearing enough clothing to crank through the cold air, but not enough to sit around idly. Soon enough,the late November sun set early, and afternoon ride became evening ride. The hills, of course, didn't care about that. I took my cue from them, and just kept cranking. The planet Venus didn't care either, and floated over the hills, a disinterested observer.
As the darkness deepened, I followed my headlights back to Arlington.
rod
The hills themselves were a timely source of heat. I was wearing enough clothing to crank through the cold air, but not enough to sit around idly. Soon enough,the late November sun set early, and afternoon ride became evening ride. The hills, of course, didn't care about that. I took my cue from them, and just kept cranking. The planet Venus didn't care either, and floated over the hills, a disinterested observer.
As the darkness deepened, I followed my headlights back to Arlington.
rod
Last edited by rholland1951; 11-28-21 at 07:54 AM.
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Looks seasonal but I’d say it doesn’t meet the threshold for a first snowfall ride.
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came across a decent shelter
Last edited by rumrunn6; 11-28-21 at 07:32 PM.
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