Golf? Nah.....

Distance 21.8 Miles
max speed 22.7 MPH
ave speed 12.3 MPH
Saddle time 1:45


The early morning fog kept the visibility to under a quarter mile.  The temperature was very mild and lo and behold, no wind.  After walking the dogs it was a no brainer to hop on the bike for a quickie.

I stopped for a snack and drink at the public golf course in Rochester, MA.  This is the place that on the fifth hole, a par five, where I packed up my clubs, walked off the course and never returned.  That was six years ago and I was one over par at the time. One guy looked at my bike and commented,

"Where do you keep your clubs?"

"In my attic" I replied

Last summer I went to the driving range to try a bucket of balls.  I hit a little more than half of them and left.  Golf is completely out of my system now.  As a matter of fact, one of the regrets of my life is the time I spent on golf courses over the years.

Westport, Ma. Turnip Country Or Investment Shelter.

 

 As always, click photo for big.  Click again for bigger. 


Distance       16.0 Miles
Saddle Time. 1:28
Max speed      37.7 MPH
Ave speed       10.8 MPH

Westport is a route that is kind of on the back burner.  It takes quite a while to drive to the central spot where the car can be left without worrying about it.  It's the old Village Bike Shop property.  Normally the ride is in excess of 20 miles but things conspired to keep the mileage low.  Road construction, time, wind.... all the usual stuff.

Without fail, I take a wrong turn somewhere on this route.  It happened again today and it was a real bummer.

 When I looked over at the signs, I noticed how all the related things naturally fall into place.

This route offers quite a few small but pre-season annoying challenges.  Only one was painful, but that one always is because it's at the end of the ride.  Not unlike Heartbreak Hill in the Boston Marathon.  I'm sure all the guys in the pickup trucks get a  chuckle watching bikers struggle up the hill at Hix Bridge Road.

This area of Westport remains very much like it was two hundred years ago.  It's upgraded, as much as farm country can be, but there is still lots of evidence of the history of the town.  It's most famous for turnips.  So much so that the locals call themselves turnups.   There is also very old money in town.  Big city money which attracts big city families.   Those are know as skukes, a bird that comes around during the summer, but flocks in the off season.  It's ironic that most skuke families have been a part of Westport years before the turnups started arriving.

Legend of the Turnips

Turnip farm on Main Rd. Westport, MA.

If you take a wrong turn you could end up here. 

The land near the ocean and river was gobbled up by the skukes many, many years ago.  Most have long private roads leading to their places. But the really old places, those from the 1700's sit at the end of main street near the ocean and Westport Harbor.

Private road leading to Westport River

 

 Probably not a Turnip farmers house.

Waterfront property is much more valuable than farm land.

There are two distinct cultures in Westport Ma.   Those who claim the right to farm, and those who claim the right to shelter their wealth.  Both manage to live side by side relatively peacefully.  Kind of.

A Long Holiday Ride

Distance        45 miles
max speed    35.6 MPH
Ave speed    12 Mph
Saddle Time  3:35 

As always, click photo for big, click again for bigger. 

  

The old Nantucket Light Ship in Wareham, MA.

I crossed paths with Dave yesterday. "He said how about a holiday ride tomorrow? "Wareham? I responded" 
Another friend wanted to ride with us because he was fed up with his regular hammerhead companions. He says he feels like he is holding them back and he also wanted to do a different route than the three the others have been doing for two years.

Paul just got clipless pedals and shoes to go with them and this was his first time riding with them. He didn't disappoint.

First clipless fall.

We got to our original destination in Wareham, MA and I suggested we ride on to the town of Buzzards Bay, MA and the head of the Cape Cod Canal. When we turned onto route 6 in Onset I looked back to take a photo of Dave.  That's when the ghost rider appeared.  Non of us knew he was behind us until this photo was developed.

Who is that guy in the yellow jacket behind Dave. We never saw him live, but he sure is there.

 

We all rested a bit before the wind in our face 25 mile ride back home.  Paul liked the idea of riding for the sake of riding and not being concerned with cadence and speed.  I think we have a new member to our two man group. 

Our next plan is to drive to the head of the canal walk over the Bourne Bridge (above), ride the Cape side of the canal, then walk over the Sagamore bridge, (below) and return on the mainland side.  That will be a twenty mile ride, but the way the wind blows here it surely will feel like more.

Things You Learn On Your Bike

Distance    33 miles
max speed 22.5
Ave speed 12.2
Riding time 2:41

 As always click photo for big. Click again for bigger.

The ride began on one of the usual routes. A country ride with a medium difficult spot called Lance's Hill.  The reason being it looks like one of his photos where he is riding a deserted road in a place looking a lot like and Iowa corn field. On this day however I took a left at the fork bringing me deeper into the country side.

Years ago, work had me driving around this area of Rochester Ma. in my NYNEX telephone truck doing house phone and line repairs. Back then the area was on the lower edged of my comfort zone knowing where I was and how to get where I want to go.   Maps got dog eared in some parts of this area because as shown above, there is not a whole lot of people around.

The wind was at my back, I felt good and was feeling a confident sense of direction.  Until I came to Hill and Walnut Plain.  The names are meaningless for the story, but fit in well with the plot.  The intersection was kind of a T in the road, but not really.  Here I was on Walnut Plain, the road sign said left or right was High St. I wanted to get to where Walnut Plain crossed Mary's Pond Rd.  Obviously I'm at the wrong end and take a moment to stop for a drink and a bit of a protein bar.  A rider passed by on High, and offered.  "Everything OK".   "I'm fine".  Naturally I turn around but something is not right.  When in doubt, follow the telephone lines.  If they are getting smaller, your heading away from the center of somewhere.  If the lines are getting thicker, you are getting closer to the telephone office, most likely in the center of town.

As I'm riding I notice the lines getting smaller and the mailbox numbers getting larger.  Now I'm thinking back to my telephone repair days.  "Didn't Walnut Plain have that funny little turn where you think it's a different road but actually if you go straight it's a different road.  High Street right?"  I decided to keep going and as long as I don't end up in Middleboro, MA.  I'll be fine.

It's also predictable what the return ride offered. Yup, stiff winds in my face.


Something I learned today on my bike.  On a sunny Sunday afternoon, who cares if you have to do a little extra pedaling.  There are lots of things to see along the way.

Abandoned cranberry bog

The Mattapoisett River

Shortcut to the Atlantic.

Huffin and Puffin

As always, click for big. Click again for bigger.


Distance      20.8
Time           1.42
Max speed 28.28
Ave            12.2
The wind has been relentless the last two weeks. However riding in the wind for those two weeks had taken the bite out of it.   Even though the sustained winds were in the 20Knot range, and the gusts exceeded 30 often, riding was a breeze.   It's good to begin to feel fit again.

There was one guy on his Pee Wee Herman style bike.  He was just moping along huffin and puffin into the wind.  But he was wearing a smile.

I had planned to combine two regular routes which would have given me around 30 miles.  The second was on a narrow peninsular which would have given me 10 miles of cross winds out and back. It's the land mass across the river from the guy on a bike.  I decided to leave that for another day.

Cemetary Crawl

 As always, click for big. Click again for bigger

Riding today reminded me of college Pub Crawls only these were cemeterys.  These were very old and were family plots used for generations.  One had two babies buried in the late 1792.  I thought it was amazing that that was 220 years ago.   220!  Incredible.

These plots were on what was at one time the only road in the area.  No doubt dirt and probably no more than wagon tracks.  

There is nothing wrong with the routes I have when I begin riding from home, but sometimes a new route is necessary just to keep things kind of fresh.    I drove around 10 miles to a lot that allowed me to do a 28 mile loop on quiet rural roads.   As usual the first few miles were a slog mostly because it was constantly riding up a slight grade.   Eventually I settled into a rhythm and even climbing the hills wasn't bad.   Slowly my bike riding fitness is improving and the miles are piling on.

Crossing under the highway Rt. 140 in Lakeville, MA.

This right turn takes a rider back in time to the original roads of the 1700 and 1800's

Town of Berkley Ma.  inc 1735

The first of many family plots.

Two year old and four year old.  Both died in late 1700's

Rt18, The old road to Boston.

Keith family plot.

The Walking Ride

Distance 30 miles.

Time 3 Hrs.  (includes walking time)

Max Speed. 31MPH


The intention was to ride the usual route to the Fall River, Ma. town line and back.  I had never been on Hicksville road and opted for this new route.  It got very rural but was nice.  Then I saw the sign.  Last year when riding the other end of this route, I crossed paths with another biker.  We were going opposite directions and I told him I was going to try the dirt road up ahead.   "Don't" he said,  "you will do lots of walking".

Now I'm wondering, is this the other end of that same road.  I do have two choices, go right or straight and the sign doesn't tell me which one the warning is about.  It didn't take me long to realize that going straight brought me up a driveway.  Going right, the way I took, was the hazardous, no cell phone road.   It was bad, and I did have to walk a bit.  Quite a bit.  But it was and adventure and really nothing more than a pain in the neck as opposed to being dangerous or anything like that.

Water Supply for Fall River Ma.

The road wasn't bad at all before the turn off to Quanipaug Rd.

Quanipaug Rd got bad quickly

 Then it got worse. Not a good road for a carbon fiber road bike.

This whole adventure was around two miles.  Some walking, some riding.  I got a hoot out of it, but obviously wouldn't do it again.  These photos by the way, weren't the worst part of the road.  Motor vehicles would have difficulty in a couple of section, but walking them with a big was no big deal at all.



Quanipaug Rd. eventually brought me right to the spot I was talking with the other rider last year. The place where the guy said, "don't go there".   I saw it, I did it and I conquered it.

An Easy 30 miles

The Rail Trail in Rhode Island is getting busy again. People are emerging from the winter hibernation for outdoor activities. I took a friend who is new to road riding to the MUP but it was slow going. It was OK but I don't think either of us will be doing that again this year unless it's an early morning ride.

We left the trail to scout for a breakfast place we were told about but couldn't locate it. I did come across and interesting place in Warren RI, The Maxwell House.

The weather looks promising for some pretty good riding days this week.  I'll definitely take advantage and maybe get some serious miles.

I Saw It. I Did It. I Conquered It.

Distance 30 miles. 
Time 3 Hrs.  (includes walking time)
Max Speed. 31MPH
Click any photo for big. Click again for bigger.


The intention was to ride the usual route to the Fall River, Ma. boundary line and back.  I had never been on this section of Hicksville road before today's decision to give it a go.  I was really enjoying this new route and was grateful that I would not be riding this nasty section like Brandon and I did last year.  Then I saw the sign.  Last year when riding solo at the other end of this route, I crossed paths with another biker.  We were going opposite directions and stopped to talk a bit about biking.  I told him I was going to try the dirt road up ahead.   "Don't" he said,  "you will do lots of walking".

Now I'm wondering, is this the other end of that same road.  I do have two choices, go right or straight and the sign doesn't tell me which one the warning is about. Actually I also could have backtracked, but us bike riders hesitate to do that.  We're adventurers right? The route going straight looked too much like a driveway into the woods.  I went right and even though the road was dirt, I was thinking "this isn't so bad. I soon found the the sign maker wasn't being facetious. (the only English word with all the the vowels and in order)  It was bad, and I did have to walk a bit.  Quite a bit.  But it was and adventure and really nothing more than a pain in the neck as opposed to being dangerous or anything like that.

Water Supply for Fall River Ma.

The road wasn't bad at all before the turn off to Quanipaug Rd. 

Quanipaug Rd got bad quickly

 Then it got worse. Not a good road for a carbon fiber road bike.

This whole adventure was around two miles.  Some walking, some riding.  I got a hoot out of it, but obviously wouldn't do it again.  These photos by the way, weren't the worst part of the road.  Motor vehicles would have difficulty in a couple of section, but walking them with a bike was no big deal at all.


Quanipaug Rd. eventually brought me right to the spot I was talking with the other rider last year. The place where the guy said, "don't go there".   I saw it, I did it and I conquered it.