RIDE SCHEDULE

TUESDAY & THURSDAY night rides from Amherst
Meet at the Mill River Recreation Area off Rt. 63 in North Amherst (on right ¼ mile north of the church at the lights) at 5:15 PM Pace is 14-16 mph. Distance is between 20 - 28 miles until daylight diminishes. Ride as a group. There are NO Cue sheets.

TUESDAY & THURSDAY night rides from Greenfield
Meet at Bicycles Unlimited on High St. in Greenfield at 5:30 PM. Thursday has been attracting more people than Tuesday. Select a group based on how fast you want to go (fast group rides at >20 mph avg., intermediates are 18-20 mph avg, slow group is around 14-15 mph avg), each group has a separate leader. No cue sheets. For more info, contact Bob Perry 413-772-2700 or BikeBob@crocker .com
Thu 09/04/05 - Due to diminishing daylight, all rides will start at 5:30 starting Sept. 6.

WEDNESDAY night rides from Southampton Bike
1. If possible, Joe is emailing out the ride so riders can get a better idea of where they will be going before hand.
2. 20+ riders is hard to control. Joe wants to break up the group into 3 riding groups starting at different times. Each group has a "group leader". They will know who's in the group and will help guide the group. No one in the group will be left behind. EACH RIDER MUST KEEP AN EYE ON THE PERSON BEHIND THEM. IF THEY LOSE SIGHT, SLOW DOWN AND HAVE THEM CATCH UP (UNLESS they say it's OK).
Group definitions and start times:
     Fast - leave at 5:25 - Newer riders. Less experienced, 15-17 mph average.
     Faster - leave at 5:30 - example, but not the rule, 2nd year Team Soho riders. Experienced, 17-18 mph average with hills.
     Fastest - leave at 5:35 - Folks who normally are in the front of the pack. Very experienced riders, 18-20 mph average with hills.
3. BE ON TIME, Bike in riding condition.
Please note: as we improve we can change groups. We want to make our rides fun and challenging.

JULY 3 (SUN) - AROUND POCUMTUCK & POTLUCK PICNIC; 42 miles, fairly flat. The headquarters will be the Mill River Recreation area off Rt. 63 in North Amherst (on right ¼ mile north of the church at the lights).
- The Ride will leave PROMPTLY at 11:00 AM from the Mill River Recreation Area Parking Lot.
- The Food will be served at 3:30 PM or when the riders return.
Watch for more details in the Summer Rides Schedule.
COORDINATORS: Sally Peters & Bob Kowaleski (413) 527-4877 Cue sheet available online.
Excellent weather, about 85°, sunny & NOT humid. 20 or so riders (including 2-1/2 year old Nathan Kitson), and we gained a few more picnickers after the ride ended. No castastrophies to speak of. Several new sections of repaved road, including Cheapside! Dale took pictures of the group riding past him from several spots along the route. I hope to have a link to them in a few days.

JULY 10 (SUN) - COMMON TO COMMON AND STORE TO STORE; 40 miles, lots of little hills. An uncommonly good ride; you'll like it. We'll ride on scenic, lightly traveled country roads and visit Petersham Common (and Country Store), Hardwick Common (and General Store), Barre Common (and Jackie's Country Kitchen) and Templeton Common (and the Ice Cream Barn). Then we'll ride back to Petersham Common (and its Country Store). You won't go hungry! Meet at 10:00 AM at the Petersham Common (just north of the intersection of Rt. 122 & 32 - northeast of the Quabbin Reservoir). If we can’t park at the common, we’ll meet at the Petersham School on Spring St. near the common.
COORDINATOR: John Gustin (413) 772-6192 Cue sheet available online.
13 riders started out on a beautiful, sunny day. Julie & two other women dropped off the back early, but had a good time relaxing at the first two regroups and then taking a shorter way back. They avoided the worst road on the route which continues to be Rt. 101 in Templeton. Still one of the poorest maintained, route-numbered roads in the state. Although this ride was a bit hillier than I remembered (just over 3000 feet of climbing), it was good to get on some different roads. It was a nice change of scenery. Thanks to all who participated.

JULY 17 (SUN) - GOING NORTH (to get ice cream); 42 miles, rolling to flat terrain. We’ll head north to Turners Falls. Early lunch stop at the Country Creemee. Return thru Lake Pleasant and Sunderland. Meet at the Hadley Elementary School on Rt 47 in Hadley. Ride starts at 9:30 AM.
COORDINATOR: Walt Chudzik (413) 586-3956
Humid day. Well, it's 9:30 AM here in Greenfield, and it's raining...

JULY 24 (SUN) - McCUSKERS LAST STAND; 45 miles, hilly. We'll bike UP Rt. 116 to Ashfield, DOWN to Buckland/Shelburne Falls where we'll eat lunch at McCusker's Market & Deli. One can also walk across the street and admire the Bridge of Flowers. Afterward, we'll ride UP along back roads to Conway & Whately and back DOWN to Mt. Sugarloaf. Meet at 9:00 AM in the Mt. Sugarloaf parking lot in South Deerfield off Rt. 116 just across the Connecticut River from Sunderland center. Bring plenty of water, you can buy delicious deli/bakery stuff at McCusker's.
COORDINATORS: Jack & Suzanne Fitz-Gibbon (413) 527-4052 Cue sheet available online.
Wow! Really great weather. Not sure how many riders, but a decent crowd (only 1 tandem). The "red train" from SoHoBikes pedaled up from Southampton. We also met Mary & Elsa out on the course, they must have left early. This is a hilly ride (over 2300 ft of climbing) and the pack kept getting pretty spread out. We had numerous regroups to reel everyone back in. The big question on peoples minds was the condition of the road in Conway which has been under construction. Fortunately, it looks like they put down a layer of black top recently, so we had no problems.
p.s. Lance officially won his 7th Tour de France today.

JULY 31 (SUN) - 6th ANNUAL "NEW" BELCHERTOWN SURPRISE, 2nd Attempt; 45 miles, rolling terrain. Meet at 9:00 AM at Fred & Joyce's house at 51 Brandywine Drive in Belchertown (park in driveway). Bring water and munchies to provide enough energy to get you to the lunch stop.
COORDINATORS: Fred & Joyce Morris (413) 323-4183
Ride update: Despite the rain in Franklin County, it was dry enough in B'town to have the ride. They missed most of the rain and only got some scattered drizzle.

AUG 7 (SUN) - 5 BURROUGHS FOR PAT & ELAINE; 41 miles. Words cannot adequately describe how wonderful this ride will be. Meet at 8:30 AM at the Mill River Recreation Area off Rt. 63 in North Amherst (on right ¼ mile north of the church at the lights).
COORDINATORS: Pat Vinskey (413) 253-4260 & Elaine Stafford (413) 423-3165
Well, a total of 17 people participated in today's ride, in one form or another. It was a cool start, but warmed up quickly. This was a fairly flat ride, with only 2 hills (from the river up to the Bookmill, and from the river up to the airport), for a total ascent of 820 ft. I was able to stay in the same gear for the entire ride (but I almost had to shift climbing the steep hill out of Turners). The only incident happened to the "new guy" who suffered a flat tire on the 2nd half of the ride. Meanwhile, waiting for everyone back at the parking lot was a cooler full of iced beverages, tortilla chips & salsa and a plate full of brownies, courtesy of Pat & Mike. What a great treat, thanks guys!

AUG 14 (SUN) - WHERE’S WYBEN??; 30 miles. Come to this “wyde” and find out. We will have a lunch stop at Sheldon’s Deli. Meet at the Big Y parking lot on Rt. 10 on the Easthampton/Southampton town line at 9:00 AM. Bring plenty of water.
COORDINATORS: Charlie & Eileen Meyers (413) 527-5195

AUG 21 (SUN) - BACK ROADS TO QUABBIN SUMMIT; 48 miles, rolling terrain except for 4-mile climb up to the summit. We will ride mostly back roads to the Quabbin via S. Hadley, Granby, Belchertown etc. with a stop at the Subway in Bondsville for those that want to pick up a lunch to be eaten at the summit. Meet at the Granby Jr./Sr. High School on Rte. 202 in Granby, MA. Ride leaves at 10:00 AM SHARP.
COORDINATOR: Ken Paquette (413) 593-3091

AUG 27 (SAT) - POTLUCK DINNER AND MEETING AT THE SCHWARTZ’S HOUSE
48 Baker St (Shadow Brook Estates), South Hadley. From the intersection of Rtes. 33 & 202, go ¼ mile south on Rt. 33 and take a right onto Baker St (across from Big Y).
6:00 PM --Arrive & Socialize
6:30 PM --Potluck Dinner
7:00 PM --Meeting
After dinner we'll finalize preparations for the century and plan the Fall Rides Schedule for October & November.
PHONE: Steve or Ann Schwartz (413) 374-6728

AUG 28 (SUN) - ROWE ROUNDABOUT (I've looked at Rowe from both sides now); 38 miles, 2500 feet of climbing. This will be a very scenic ride on remote back roads. Be sure to bring munchies, lots of water AND a lunch. We'll bike UP Zoar Rd. to Rowe and on UP into Vermont, eat lunch at the Whitingham Common (No STORES), continue on to Readsboro, and back down into Mass. along the Deerfield River, past the RETIRED Yankee Rowe Atomic Power Plant in Rowe and the Hoosac Tunnel in Florida. Meet at 10:00 AM at Shunpike Roadside Rest Area beside the Deerfield River on Rt. 2, one mile west of Charlemont.
COORDINATORS: Jack & Suzanne Fitz-Gibbon (413) 527-4052 Cue sheet available online.

SEPT 4 (SUN) - LABOR DAY WEEKEND SHOW & GO. Meet at 10:00 AM in the Mt. Sugarloaf parking lot in South Deerfield off Rt. 116 just across the Connecticut River from Sunderland center. Those present will decide upon route and distance.
Sunny, 78°. Perfect weather for bike riding. I didn't go on the club bike ride today, sorry. Hope you all had a great ride. I biked with 15 others from Greenfield to the top of Mt Greylock and back. It took us just over 6 hours, 6900 ft of climbing. It's kind of like repeatedly hitting yourself in the head with a 2x4, it feels good when you stop.

SEPT 10 (SAT) - COVAC (COnnecticut VAlley Century) - Will be starting at the Hatfield Lions Club Pavilion on Billings Way, behind Breor Elementary School off Main St. in Hatfield. FHF is offering rides of 100, 75, 50, or 25 miles along the Connecticut River through Mass., Vermont and New Hampshire over rolling terrain. Pre-Registration will cost $7.50 for FHF members and $12.50 for NON members and is available ONLY on-line through Active.com (pre-registration closes Thurs, Sept. 8th at midnight). Ride day registration is $20.00. There will be NO refunds. The fee will cover map, juice, snack foods, restrooms (available every 25 miles at sag stops), and sag support. The event will be held Rain or Shine! Check-In and Ride Day Registration will start at 7:00 AM and continue until 9:00 AM at the Lions Club Pavilion.
From the South, take I-91 N to Exit 21. Go RIGHT at the end of the off ramp onto Elm St. Follow for 2.5 miles (Elm St. changes to Main St.) to Billings Way on the Left. The Pavilion is at the end of Billings Way.
COORDINATORS: Pat & Mike Vinskey (413) 253-4260
Around 230 people, fantastic weather.

SEPT 11 (SUN) - SHOW & GO. Meet at 10:00 AM at the Mill River Recreation Area off Rt. 63 in North Amherst (on right ¼ mile north of the church at the lights). Those present will decide upon route and distance.

SEPT 18 (SUN) - BETWEEN CENTURIES SHOW & GO. Meet at 10:00 AM in the Mt. Sugarloaf parking lot in South Deerfield off Rt. 116 just across the Connecticut River from Sunderland center. Those present will decide upon route and distance.
Warm & humid, despite being cloudy and only 74°. 6 Riders showed up. We decided to go "Around the Range", when regrouped at the top of Mt. Pollux in S. Amherst. We "lost" one rider here. Jordan, a grad student at Umass, kept going, with the intent of climbing up Mt. Holyoke, then biking over to an apple Orchard in New Salem, on Rt. 202. The remaining 5 were wanting a more relaxed pace. We had lunch at the Tailgate Deli after being forced to detour around the "scenic dam & old mill". The bridge is under construction and the chain link fence makes it impossible to cross. After that, it was a straight (& flat) shot up Rt 47 back to the parking lot. 46.6 miles, 14.4 mph avg.

*** CLICK HERE FOR A LIST OF WEEKLY RIDES ***

SEPT 24 or 25 (SAT & SUN) GRANITE STATE WHEELMEN'S SEACOAST TRI-STATE CENTURY - an invitational 100, 75, 62, 50, or 25-mile ride along the Mass., NH, and Maine Coastlines on relatively flat terrain. Pre-registration only! NO WALK-INS. Fee is $25.00 for one day or $40 for both days. Pre-register through active.com. Check-in is from 7:00 AM to 1:00 PM each day at Hampton Beach State Park, Rt. 1A, Hampton Beach, NH. The registration fee will cover parking at the State Park, route maps, sag wagon coverage, rest room facilities & T-shirt. The event will be held rain or shine. Contact the club sponsoring the event, GraniteStateWheelmen.org, for more information.

PLEASE NOTE: Helmets are REQUIRED for all FHF rides. Bring drinking water, a spare inner tube that fits your bike & snack food. Prospective club members are welcome on FHF rides.