Bike Chase Circa 1971 in San Francisco, McMillan and Wife

Sultry Commute

Boat docks empty for the winter. 

Click any photo for big.  Click again for bigger. 


There is something about a cool foggy morning on the coast.  I left a little early for for my daily commute into the city.  No reason, I was just up before usual.  The construction workers were just setting up the barriers. The traffic was light, and I had plenty of time to lollygag before the next schedule opening of the bridge crossing the harbor.

Cabin Cruise moored in the fog. 

The extra time allowed for a side trip up Johnny Cake Hill in the National Historic Whaling Park in New Bedford, MA.

Arthur Moniz gallery.

Whalemen's Shipping List

Seamen's Bethel

Behind the Scenes at the Salvation Army

It's a 5 mile bike commute to the Salvation Army headquarters in New Bedford, Ma where my job has me driving the bell ringers to their assigned stores.  This on the new Single Speed I bought last weekend in Maine.

A look behind the scenes could be of interest to some.

We all meet up in the basement of the building.  Outside there is always a line of people waiting to apply for assistance.  They have to go through quite a bit to prove they are poor with documents, IDs and for some, recommendations form other aid organizations.    The bell ringers are the ones who go out and raise most of the money so the Salvation Army can provide those families standing in line a chance to have a better Christmas for them and their kids.

Showing the love

A candid shot

Waiting for their assignment.

Bell Ringer gathering.

The Major prepping the kettles.

On the ride home I took a detour that brought me to the shipyard district for a look a shipyards in the winter.

Block Island, R.I. ferry

In dry dock for the winter

Provincetown, MA  Whale Watching Fleet

Cold Toes

It began to drizzle as the ride began.  It continued off an on for most of the ride.  The temperature hovered around the 43F mark.  The wind added it's two cents and don't forget to add the rolling hills.  If it were'nt for those things, the ride would have been perfect.

Climbing the hills dressed for the cold was a sweaty ride. Add a little light rain to the mix made for a wet body.  Now it was time to descend and a choice had to be made.  On the downhill the wind made it very cold once the speed hit 24 MPH or so.  Breaking could eliminate the cold but that would make more work climbing the next roller.  Accepting the cold and letting loose on the downhill got me up to around 35-38 MPH and it was really cold, but I could coast part way up the next roller.  I opted for the cold and more coasting uphill. That went on for 8 mile then things settled down as the road leveled. The last 17 miles had a couple of easy climbs but all in all it was relatively flat.  Maine flat, not Cape Cod flat.

Actually today was one of those rides that was difficult but the type your glad you did once it's complete.   It began with eight miles of rolling hills traversing Pleasant Hill Rd from Freeport to Brunswick.   Yesterday at the end of Pleasant hill the ride continued through Bowdoin College into downtown Brunswick.  Today the ride turned away from downtown and looped back along Casco Bay.  

Friday Afternoon Ride in the State of Maine

We arrived at the hotel in Freeport Maine and were told our room would not be ready for another three hours.  Wifey and I were fine with that and took the short walk to LL Bean's Outlet store. It took me all of three minutes to realize I wanted no part of that.  I walked back to the hotel, unpacked my bike, got dressed in lobby men's room and was ready to go.  The desk clerk was a bike rider and gave me a printout of the route to Brunswick that took me through the campus of Bowdoin (bow din) College.

The hills caught me off guard and it took a few good ones before I settled down and accepted this is the way it's going to be.  Naturally I got off track in Brunswick.  I did not get to loop around back to Freeport but instead was forced to back track using the rolling hills.

When I tired a couple of times I began to mash up the hills and that killed my legs forcing me to stop.  After a brief rest and a drink I was able to continue up the hills without a problem.

Tomorrow, Saturday, will offer another opportunity to get some more miles in the state of Maine.

Downtown Brunswick, ME.

Bowdoin College

The smooth ride back to the hotel. 

 

Cool but not yet cold

 The early morning commutes are beginning to be chilly.  A medium jacket, hat and gloves are still good enough to keep the ride comfortable.  My commute is at the tail end of the rush hour which keeps the ride mostly civilized.  There has been no head banging with motorists and everyone is sharing the road and getting along.  Maybe we have forged an alliance finally. 

The ride begins off road along the salt marshes.  That stretch ends abruptly and soon enough I'm in the middle of construction. 

Once through the construction the commute crossed over the new boulevard into the historic district of New Bedford, Ma.   That's when the rider enters the time warp and finds himself back in the whaling days among all the 18th and 19th century buildings and Honda Accords.  

Freeport Me.

I will be leaving Friday for a weekend in Freeport Maine.  While the family is shopping I want to do some bike riding.  I have heard there are some pretty good routes to ride.  If the weather is decent enough, I'll find out. 


Here is the route I'll probably ride.  Or maybe this one.  Comparing the two it really looks like the same ride by different groups.   So, there we have it.  Riding in Maine.