Kansas City and A Blizzard

Spent some time in  Kansas City a couple of weeks ago.  Had coffee with Kansas City Bike. He is the same age as my youngest son.  Funny thing is that when I went to his site to copy the link, he had posted the same thing.   A few days after returning home we got smashed with a blizzard.  The dogs loved it. 

Riding is limited to errands and short trips around town.   Except for Friday nights.   That's when I ride into New Bedford, (MA) to coach indoor soccer.   I have a senior high school team and a group of under 16's.

New Years Eve From London

Thanks to Harry in Belgium for sending me this link.   Turn up the volume and go full screen. Incredible display.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1yLRK2M8YQ&feature=youtu.be

Janurary 7th Ride

As always:  Click any photo for big. 


Distance 37 miles
Ave speed 11.4 mph
Time 3:13

I offered to take Dave and Paul on a route neither of them had ridden before.  Fairhaven to Fall River and back.  It's a ride I had done a few times either alone of with "the kid" who now lives in Austin.

We did some urban riding in the city of New Bedford, but my mates were out of their comfort zone.  Both are relatively new riders and are "not there yet".  People who have been riding and especially commuting know what that means.

Crossing the bridge to do some city riding. 

The streets were relatively quiet in the city.

Stuff like this made them nervous.

When we finally got beyond the airport things quieted down some and everyone was comfortable again.  We came upon a pond after a couple good climbs and stopped for a breather and to walk in goose shit.  

Paul posing for a candid shot. 

Did ya hear the one about the three Irish guys who walk into a bar in Boston?

On the return leg we decided to take a side road and see where that took us.  It was 57F in the early afternoon on January 7th.  Weather like this is too good not to take advantage of.  I had a general idea where we were and said if we run into a sheep farm, we're good.
We were not really lost, just not sure where we were.  On a bike if you keep riding eventually you figure it out.

Is thisTennessee?  Coon hunting?   WTF

My next Woolrich jacket

Sheep farm.  We're good

Do you know where we are?   No do you?  No . 

This road most likely leads somewhere

   One thing is why in the F**k would a town put something like this near a school.

Things eventually got back to normal in rural Massachusetts. More butter, less guns. 

The Weather is Cooperating Nicely

The weather is unusually mild making going for a bike ride the natural thing to do.   I stay pretty close to home because it does change quickly in these coastal communities.   I decided to top of the tires before heading out and broke the valve on the rear tube.  Changing it was quick and painless in the garage. On the road things never come together that smoothly.

It's very quiet on the roads in the middle of the day.  Everyone is at work or school and us retirees have free reign.  The weekend looks like it will offer two good riding days.   It would be nice to get a couple of hundred miles before leaving for Kansas City on Thursday.  

Rochester Saw Mill

Vaughn Hill Road.  Rochester MA. 

This used to be a business that moved houses.

Quonset Hut home 

18th century cemetary

New Year Day Ride in Fall River MA.

 click any photo for big

The temperature was approaching 50F at the start of the short New Year's Day bike ride in Fall River.  A handful of riders showed for the ride.  It was a last minute decision which may have kept the ridership down.  On a day like today there would have been a lot more if there was some publicity.  No matter, this was perfect for those of us "in the loop".  Fall River is know as the city of hills and there are some doozies. Weatamo St. is famous for it's steepness and could easily be used for one of those crazy bike races where riders try in vain to reach the top of the hill without their hearts exploding.  Naturally, we went the other direction to avoid any temptation of trying that.

Close to the end of the loop I decided to do some sight seeing since this was my first time riding in Fall River.  I had seen "the foundry" many times while driving the highway over the years and have wanted to find a way to get a closeup.  Today was the day and I broke away from the group a mile or so from the end of the ride. 

The sign said "Emergency Access Road" Good enough for me and my bike. 

It's been a while since anyone drove this road

Running back to the bike before the timer took a photo.  Late again. 

Later on I met the gang at Friendly Ice Cream to see if anyone wanted to keep riding for a while.  There were no takers but luckily one of the group had a six mile ride home through the city.  I rode with Bruce toward his abode for a while before breaking away  for the return trip to the starting point.  

Thirty miles to a ham sandwich.  cheap cheap unlike gas prices.

Bruce and I blasted through this red light.  We owned this road. 

Portuguese in Fall River?   Who knew? 

Fall River has a reputation for very aggressive drivers.  None of them were out today and all those we did encounter gave us plenty of room and were very courteous at intersections giving us the right of way.  I was told however that tomorrow is a work day and things change during the commuting times.   Lots of eff use and horn honking.

Is there any city in the Northeast without a Flat Iron Building? 

The only traffic of the day. Plymouth Ave.

The last climb of the day.  It was a humdinger.