SummeRides - Groton Center Again

Dear AdventuRiders,

Well, it looks like a perfect summer day tomorrow, sunny, upper 60s in the morning, upper 70s in the afternoon and low humidity. So, I scheduled a longer ride and lunch on the patio at the Hollis Country Kitchen.

The FREE SummeRides season is coming to a close soon. Get your rides while you can!

Tomorrow, we will meet at the Rail Trail parking in Groton Center at 9:15 AM. Here is a map.
Beware of the Precision Parking Police!
Only parallel park between the signs and make sure you are facing the correct direction (facing away from Buckingham Bus). We got warning tickets last time we parked facing the "wrong" way.

After I do a final precision parking check, we will head DOWN to West Groton, then UP to Pepperell, and UP some more to the Beaver Brook Association. Lunch will be at the Hollis Country Kitchen, yum! After lunch it is almost all downhill to the rail trail and slightly uphill back to Groton. The route is a little over 27 miles will about 550 feet vertical, almost all in the morning. There is quite a bit of gravel on the way, but I'm bring my road bike anyway. Here is a map.

On Friday, July 30th - We will meet in Groton Center at the Rail Trail parking. Here is a map.

• At 9:15 AM - We will leave for Hollis, NH. Here is a map.
• At 11:30 AM - Lunch at Hollis Country Kitchen.
• At 2:15 PM - We should be back.

Hope to see you there,
Bill

SummeRides - Groton Center

Dear AdventuRiders,

Well, it looks like another HOT day is on the way for tomorrow, so I scheduled a shorter, easier, ride with a optional swim along the way. The FREE SummeRides season is coming to a close since I'm off to Bar Harbor soon. Get your rides while you can!

Tomorrow, we will meet at the Rail Trail parking in Groton Center at 9:15 AM. Here is a map.
Beware of the Precision Parking Police!
Only parallel park between the signs and make sure you are facing the correct direction (facing away from Buckingham Bus). We got warning tickets last time we parked facing the "wrong" way.

After I do a final precision parking check, we will head for West Groton for a refreshing dip in the Squannacook River at Bertozzi. Then we will head UP to Shirley Center, DOWN to Ayer and back on the Rail Trail. The route is about 18 miles and 400 feet vertical, mostly getting up to Shirley Center. There is some off road at Bertozzi, but I'm bring my road bike anyway. Here is a map.

On Wednesday, July 28th - We will meet in Groton Center at the Rail Trail parking. Here is a map.

• At 9:15 AM - We will leave for West Groton. Here is a map.
• At 11:30 AM - We should be back.
• At Noonish - We will have lunch (Filho's?).

Hope to see you there,
Bill

SummeRides - Boxboro to Horseshoe Pub Tomorrow

Dear AdventuRides,

Well, the weather is looking terrific tomorrow. Its supposed to be low 70s in the morning and low 80s in the afternoon with very low humidity and a WNW breeze.

You don't have to RSVP, but if no one does ...

On Monday, July 26th, We will meet at the soccer fields in Boxboro on Liberty Square Road. Its very near the intersection of Routes 2 and 495. Here is a map.

• At 9:30 AM, we will leave for Harvard. Here is a map.
• At Noonish, we will have lunch at The Horseshoe Pub in Hudson.
• At 2:15 PM, we should be back.

We will meet at the soccer fields in Boxboro on Liberty Square Road. From there we will go past the old Littleton train depot and climb Oak Hill to Harvard. After checking out the new solar panels at Carlson's Orchards, we will enjoy a 2 mile downhill cruise to Delaney Pond.

Then its off to lunch at The Horseshoe Pub in Hudson (80 beers on tap).

After lunch we will return by way of the Assebet River Rail Trail, Stow golf courses, Boxboro Center and the aptly named Hill Road. The route is about 28 miles and hilly with about 800 feet vertical (mostly in the morning). It is all on road and I plan to bring my road bike. Here is a GPSies map or a MapMyRide map.

Hope to see you there,
Bill

SummeRides - Sand Hill Road

Dear AdventuRiders,

The weather is looking quite nice for tomorrow morning. Partly cloudy, 70's and reasonable humidity.

Let's meet at 9:15 AM at the Sand Hill Road parking lot for the Rail Trail. Here is a map. From there we will ride to Baddacook Pond, Cow Pond Brook (swimming opportunity), Massapoag Lake, and Dunstable Center. Then its on to visit cows and return on the Rail Trail.

The route is almost 20 miles with a little over 300 feet vertical. Here is a map. There is a bit of gravel on the route, but as usual I'm bringing my road bike.


On Friday, July 23rd - We will meet at the Sand Hill Road parking lot for the Rail Trail. Here is a map.

• At 9:15 AM - We will leave for Dunstable. Here is a map.
• At noonish, we will be back.
• Lunch???

Hope to see you there,
Bill

GO - It looks like it will be dry.

SummeRides - Groton Center

Dear AdventuRiders,

Well, the weather forecast is for 30% chance of rain tomorrow morning. Let's live dangerously and go for a ride unless its actually rain hard! Hypothermia shouldn't be a problem :-) I'll post a GO / STOP notice before 8:00 AM tomorrow morning.

We will meet at the Rail Trail Parking in Groton Center. Here is a map. We will ride to Bertozzi in West Groton and then Heald Pond in Pepperell. Either place is swimable if we want to. The route is about 18 miles and 400 feet vertical. Here is a map. There will be some offroad around Bertozzi and Heald Pond, but as usual, I'm bringing my road bike anyway.

You don't have to RSVP, but I might not show up if no one responds.


On Wednesday, July 21st - We will meet at the Rail Trail Parking in Groton Center. Here is a map.

• at 9:15 AM - We will leave for Bertozzi and Heald Pond. Here is a map.
• at 11:45 AM - We should be back.
• Lunch at Filho's???

Hope to see you there,
Bill

How about 9:00 AM Starting Time?

Dear AdventuRiders,

It seems that there are a bunch of conflicts early, so how about a 9:00 AM starting time? We will probably skip breakfast, so you may want to bring a snack.

Bill

SummeRides - Hollis Country Kitchen

Dear AdventuRiders,

Well, the hot and humid weather continues, but so does the Breakfast Club rides! As someone who HATES to get up early, I must say that I am enjoying these rides.

So, tomorrow we will meet at the parking lot on Sand Hill Road in Groton where the Nashua River Rail Trail crosses. Here is a map. From there we will ride on the rail trail to Nashua and then Hollis NH to have a delicious breakfast at the Hollis Country Kitchen. On the way back we will visit Beaver Brook Association and perhaps take a dip in the Nissitissit River to cool off. There is quite a bit of smooth dirt / gravel roads on the way back, but I'm bringing my road bike anyway. The route is a little over 19 miles, and 370 feet vertical and quite scenic. Here is a map.

You don't have to RSVP, but if nobody does I will probably not show up.


On Monday, July 19th - We will meet at the Sand Hill Road parking lot for the NRRT. Here is a map.

• At 7:30 AM - We will leave for Hollis. Here is a map.
• At 8:30 AM ish - We will have breakfast at the Hollis Country Kitchen.
• At 10:30 AM ish - We should be back.

Similar rides on Wednesday and Friday, if I feel like it.


Hope to see you there,
Bill

SummeRides - Main Street Cafe - Heald Pond

Dear AdventuRiders,

The hot and humid weather continues ...

So, tomorrow morning at 7:30 AM we will meet at the rail trail parking in Groton Center. Here is a map. The plan is to have breakfast at the Main Street Cafe before we leave.

After a quick breakfast, we will ride to West Groton and up to Pepperell via beautiful Maple Street. Then its up some more to refreshing Heald Pond for an optional swim. If we can tear ourselves away from the pond, we will zip down to East Pepperell Center and take the rail trail back. The route is about 19 miles and 400 feet vertical. There is some dirt / gravel / offroad , but I'm bringing my road bike anyway. Here is a map.

RSVP if you are planning to join us.

On Friday, July 16th, we will meet in Groton Center at the rail trail. Here is a map.

• At 7:30 AM, we will have breakfast at the Main Street Cafe.
• At ~8:00 AM, we will leave for Heald Pond. Here is a map.
• At ~10:30 AM, we should be back.

Hope to see you there,
Bill

STOP - Tomorrow's 5BBT Ride is Postponed

Dear AdventuRiders,

STOP - Tomorrow's 5BBT Ride is Postponed.

Most of our "usual suspect" riders can't make the ride tomorrow and I'm having second thoughts about the heat. Its a very nice ride, but perhaps a bit too strenuous for the weather. I'll reschedule for a cooler day.

Bill

This Week - 5BBT + Pepperell Spa

Dear AdventuRiders,

Well I guess we should expect July weather, ... since its July :-) We had a nice ride Friday morning, but I'm glad I was wet most of the time. We went to breakfast at Mario's (very good), then Nabnassett Pond, Burge's Pond, and had an interesting 16 mile ride too.

Anyhow, this week is looking a bit cooler but more unsettled than last week. At this point, Monday appears to be the most bike friendly day so ...

Not to be outdone by the NYC 5 Boro Bike Tour, I present the Central Massachusetts 5 Boro Bike Tour. We will ride through Marlboro, Southboro, Westboro, Northboro, and Boxboro. Along the way, we will ride on the Assebet River Rail Trail, have an optional cooling dip in Chauncy Lake, explore the old Westboro State Hospital, stop at the Horseshoe Pub for lunch (80 beers on tap!), and then circumnavigate Delaney Pond to pick up our last "boro".

The whole route is almost 37 miles with about 900 feet vertical. None of the hills are particularly significant and most of the elevation gain is on the rail trail with about a 3% grade. Lunch is at 27 miles, so be sure to bring a snack! If people get tired at the end, there is a shortcut that saves 5 miles, but misses Boxboro. There is some offroad / gravel around Chauncy Lake, but I plan to bring my road bike anyway. Here is a map.

NOTE: the 9:00 AM starting time. We want to beat the heat and get lunch at a decent hour. Don't expect a GO status update since I am on "vacation". If the weather is looking bad, I will send out a STOP before 8:00 AM.


On Monday, July 12th, we will meet at the new park in Stow. Here is a map. Note: Old Bolton Road DOES NOT intersect with Route 117 at Delaney Street.

• At 9:00 AM, we will leave for the Assebet River Rail Trail. Here is a map.
  
• At 10:30 AM (ish), we will be at Chauncy Lake for a snack / swim.
• At 12:30 PM (ish), we will have lunch at the Horseshoe Pub in Hudson.
• At 2:30 PM (ish), we will be back.

On Friday, July 16th, we will meet in Groton and ride to Pepperell for breakfast and Heald Pond for a swim.

• At 7:30 AM, we will leave for Pepperell.
• Breakfast at the Spa.
  
• Swim at Heald Pond.

Hope to see you there,
Bill and Carole

SummeRides - Breakfast at Mario's

Dear AdventuRiders,

Sorry for the late notice, but I'm getting severe bicycle withdrawal symptoms. To avoid the heat of the day, lets meet at 7:30 AM at the Stonebridge Soccer / Lacross fields in Groton on Route 225 near the "4 corners" intersection with Route 119. Here is a map.

The plan is to ride about 15 - 20 easy miles, have a lovely swim at pristine Burge's Pond in Westford, and have breakfast at Mario's Restaurant near Keyes Pond in Westford. I'm not going to send out GO / STOP email. so just assume its on.

On Friday, July 9th, we will meet at the Stonebridge Soccer / Lacross fields in Groton, Here is a map.

• At 7:30 AM, we will leave for Westford. Here is a possible route.
• Breakfast at Mario's ?
• Swim at Burge's Pond ?
• ???

Hope to see you there,
Bill

GO - Its A Top 10 Day.

Thanks! + Free SummeRide Tomorrow

Dear AdventuRiders,

First of all I want to say thanks to all our faithful riders, we couldn't do it without you. We had 41 rides this Spring in more than 50 Massachusetts and New Hampshire town for a total of almost 800 miles. And a big thanks to Alex for hosting the End of Season party. Here is a video that Alex took.


The weather tomorrow is looking absolutely perfect, with low 70s, no humidity, and sunny skies!

Joe and I did the 5 Boro Bike Tour in NYC this Spring, so I have been working on a ride I call the 4 Boro Bike Tour (it was too far to include Boxboro). I'm too lazy to write a bunch of prose, so here is a list of the highlights:

• Winery
• Orchard Hill
• Horses
• Wachusett Aquaduct
• Northboro
• Chauncy Lake
  
• Westboro State Hospital (old insane asylum)
• Southboro
• Jericho Hill (old ski area)
• Marlboro
• Assebet River Rail Trail
• Horseshoe Pub
• Baby Horses
  

The route is about 32 miles with a couple of significant hills and 750 feet vertical. There is some off road and gravel, but I'm going to bring my road bike anyway. Its about 25 miles to our lunch stop, so bring a snack.


On Friday, July 2nd, we will meet just past Bolton Center at the baseball diamonds. Here is a map.

• At 9:30 AM, we will leave for the insane asylum :-) Here is a map.
• At Noonish, we will have lunch at the Horseshoe Pub in Hudson, unless we get hungry earlier.
• At 2:30 PM, we should be back.

Hope to see you there,
Bill