IlLUMENati Wacky Tracks Ride

Snack stop at Pete's Mom's house

This week's Ilumenati ride started and ended from the commuter lot at the intersection of Wolfpit Road and Route 7 in Wilton.  The planned route had quite a bit of different terrain including gravel roads, rail trails and a greenway. We headed south towards Norwalk and Silvermine and then turned north. 

Illuminati Summer Solstice Ice Cream Social

Photo Credit: Scott Davidow

This week's Illuminati ride started a little bit earlier than your normal ride time because our goal today was to ride 50 miles.  However, we got off to a late start because John invited some buddies from the Hartford area and one of which had car trouble and was running late.  We went out for a warm up loop that netted us almost 6 miles.  By the time we got back to the Library, John's friend was ready and off we went.

Singlespeed Night Ride

This Illuminati ride started from the Gaelic-American Club in Fairfield, CT and again a little earlier due to the pending weather situation - strong thunder showers were predicted for the early evening hours. 

Roxbury Roubaix at night

As winter approaches and the days get shorter it's hard to find a good time to ride but having ridden Roxbury dirt roads countless times over the years and knowing that during the week it would be really quiet I finally took the opportunity to meet up with Jeff on one of his Dirty 30 night rides.

This was the first time where I was the only one on the ride on a cross bike and everyone else had mountain bikes.  I was a bit slower on my descents on the trails not having the squish and equally cautious on the other descents in the dark but none-the-less it was a blast.

The route we took was a lot different than what I am used to as I tend to stick to my favorites, like riding up Judds Bridge, descending Mine Hill and Hartwell.  On this ride, however, it seemed that it was all in reverse.

The temperature started out in the upper 30s but I knew it would continue to fall but kit choice had me sweating at the top of the first climb on Mine Hill.  After the second climb on Old Turnpike, I opened everything up and then descending down the other side I cooled off and it felt great.  In fact, the whole ride I never got cold and I was glad that I didn't wear the Lake303s.

The crazy thing about climbing at night is that it seems to go by a lot quicker.  When I got to the top of Mine Hill I felt like I missed something.  I think it's because you really can't see what's coming next so you are living in the moment of the climb in front of you.  However, climbing Old Turnpike, a few cars passed by and you could see cars in the intersection which made that climb painful. However, Shinar Mountain, was the same and this time I didn't stall out by the cows!  At West Church Hill I really wanted to just bomb down to Steep Rock and head back but I stuck with it. 

Eventually, we got to Steep Rock and it was beautiful.  No people, horses, or cars, just the sound of bikes on dirt and the bubbling of Shepaug River on our right.  Riding through the old railroad tunnel with lights on was the first time I have actually seen the inside of the tunnel.

The last stretch of road was Judd's Bridge.  On the second to last climb, one of the riders, Ben, had a bit of chain suck that we had to stop and fix and then we came to the end of the dirt and the ride.  It was beautiful and something that I will definitely do again.

Do you really need a Fat Bike?

I had a couple of hours to kill on Friday after dropping my daughter off at a friends house so I threw the Spot on top of the car and headed down to Pepper Street in Monroe.  No one had been on the Housatonic Rail Trail headed towards Newtown so I headed that way.

Riding in 4 to 5" of light powder is interesting, more so if you not on a fat bike, because the skinnier tire upfront doesn't track well in the snow.  I let out some air before starting the ride but it probably wasn't enough.  

Since fat bikes run at a very low PSI which cause the bottom of the tread to flatten I would think this gives the rider much more stability with a larger surface area coming into contact with the snow (or sand).  Still, as long as there were no other tracks I was fine.

I think it was around 9 degrees (-13C) by the time I got to the Monroe/Newtown line and I was alternating between mask on, mask off because I was working really hard to keep myself up in the snow.  I never got out of the 2nd lowest gear and I could definitely feel the burn.

These snowy tracks are between the end of the "Newtown Trailway" (the trail actually goes all the way to Swamp Rd) and the Batchelder Property, which is an EPA Superfund Cleanup site actually in the process of getting cleaned up.  So there is hope that the trail can officially continue up to Swamp Rd.  That is of course if the back stabbing residents (long story) don't find some other way to block it like the fuss they put up on the initial part of the trail. 

Old Railroad Bridge

The trail down to Cutler's Farm road was also untouched.  In some places, much of the snow was blown off making it much more easier to ride.  While riding the section of the trail that goes out onto the road I got some long looks from those driving by in cars.  

From Cutler's Farm to Wolfe Park it was different story.  There was actually a pretty good defined ski track the entire length of this part of the trail that I tried to stay off of because as I found I get better stability in untouched snow as opposed to disturbed snow.  Riding down this part of the trail was a lot more work and I ended up opening my jacket, my riding jersey and the shirt underneath because I was really hot.  I had three layers on underneath my Windstopper Polar Fleece, which turned out to be too much.  When I turned around at the entrance to Wolfe Park I had to zip up again because everything got really cold, really fast.  By the time I got back to Wolfe Park I had to turn on my head light.

The Lake 303s performed beautifully but I did get a little cold nearing the end of the trail.  Still, for a winter cycling boot rated to 25 degrees (-4C) they were performing exceptionally.  At one point I had to stop and check my junk to ensure it wasn't frozen because I couldn't feel it.  Turns out it was just numb from the way I was sitting on the saddle but Mr Happy was still toasty warm!  Halfway down the last section to Pepper Street some douche bag on a Snowmobile ran down the trail making it nearly impossible to ride, again pedaling in the disturbed snow is a lot tougher than untouched, so I had to weed my way on the sides till I got to the end of the trail.

Overall, it was a great ride.  The only advantage to having a fat bike is that I could have pedaled through more of the disturbed snow and I probably could have gone faster.  Who knows, maybe I will get one next year but I think it's too late to get one now.

Another roll in the Dark

Again, it started out light but that was quickly waning and the sun was setting by the time I hit the southern trail head of the Gussy.  I had light for the ride up the Gussy but ended up turning it on during my ride back down.  Tried something new this time around, at the top of the Gussy I took a left onto the yellow trail and took that down and out to the Poly Brody and then back up to the Gussy for the ride back down.  Thinking about it now, what I should have done is cut over to the Mulikin and then loop back to the Gussy!  Next time.

The temperature was funny when I headed out.  The gauge at home was saying 50 but felt warmer than that in a few places.  Of course riding up the trail I never got cold but coming back down I was glad for having a t-shirt on because I could tell that it was getting colder.  I threw in a loop on the Poly Brody down to the boat ramp and that's when I realized that it was really starting to get cold out.  By the time I got home, my toes were numb.

 

Partageons le plaisir de rouler en grandes roues a la nuite!

A little RAW in the Fall with a friend from work.  He brought his dogs along and they were really well behaved.  Stayed with him and didn't really run too far away the whole time.  Felt good to get a little saddle time this evening because I am not riding much this month.  Work has me all over the place so I can't cycle commute and weekends are full of activities.  I could ride early in the morning but the thought of being in a nice warm bed as opposed to freezing my ass off in 32 degree temps is an easy battle to lose.

Good thing we had lights!  Stephen puts his on from the begging but I waited until I felt it was too dark to see the trail.  Riding this trail at night was tough because with the leaves down I lost the trail a few times.  Still it was a blast and I almost feel human again.

2010 NEMBAfest: Saturday Night Live

photo courtesy of Philip Keyes

What do you do after a hard day of riding?  Recharge with a Growler of BBC's Steel Rail Pale Ale and then get ready of the night ride!

photo courtesy of Philip Keyes

And they're off!

Kathy was the ride leader for the Novice Night Ride at an intermediate pace

There must have been 10 to 15 riders in this group and there were many stops in order to wait for the stragglers to catch up

The more advanced ride finally caught up to us and passed on the trail in the vicinity of the escarpment trail

Not sure this really qualifies as a mechanical because all he needed was air in his rear tire but didn't have a flat.  However, there was one person who lost his lights.  I think the battery went out on him.  Fortunately, someone had a back up light for him.

We rode some of the same trail that we rode earlier in the day, however, our ride leader who is from the area took us on trails that she knew making it really fun.

Winter Riding Reminders

All this warm weather we are having, while great for mountain biking, is taking it's toll on the trails. The CT DEP is asking mountain bikers to be considerate of the temperate conditions and the impact that they are having on on the trails. I saw this yesterday at Trumbull and got a first hand splattering of mud, too. I am going to wait till the next freeze before I start riding again.

Additionally, keep in mind that State Forests and Parks in Connecticut close at sunset. If you are going to ride at night, you could get a ticket! I got this note sent to me by the President of CTNEMBA:

Another thing we have been having lots of NIght Riders at Huntington, coming here after 6 pm for night time rides. recently we have had to start writing tickets for hours of operation to and or simple tresspass to curb some of this. The last 6 guys were quite irate as you can imagine...also its amazing the amount of riders that come out as soon as we get a thaw, the trails are getting hammered.

Please be mindful of the trails during the thawing conditions.

Rube Goldberg, eat your heart out!

Here is the latest update to my commuter. Still pushing a 32:13 gear ratio, but I have added a few things, like fenders, a mirror, a RockShock Jett fork, a new stem that lifts up the handlebars a good three inches and a rechargeable headlight.



The RS Jett is nice because it probably has somewhere between 30 and 60 mm of travel and is still quite stiff. It smooths out the ride on the bumpiest of roads and makes taking the speed bumps in the office park at higher speeds really fun.

The profile design stem puts the bars in a nice position. Before, I was using the Misphit Psycles stem that only had 5 degree rise. It worked fine with the Qstick fork because the extra crown height brought the bars up to a nice riding configuration. When I went to the Jett, the front end dropped considerably, so I needed a stem with an increased rise. Wait till you see what I did with the Qstick fork!


Using a one inch U bolt, which fit nicely over the bars once I provided some padding so it wouldn't slip, I mounted the U-bolt to a bottle cage in which the light fits in very snuggly. I had to create a half inch spacer between the bar and the bottom of the bottle cage so that only a minimal amount of the thread were exposed on the underside of the cage. The spacer, made of wood, also helps hold the whole thing in one place because the wood compresses against the bar when I tightened the bolts. I don't think I have ever fully changed the light. Right now, I get about an hour out of it, but that is all I need.

Total build cost: $22, compared to the $100 to $500 light sets you can buy, this worked out great, but it's a temporary solution until I can afford a real light set, like the Light & Motion Solo Logic, that maybe Santa Claus will put in my stocking this year. Let's hope.

As for the ride, I have found the ideal route that minimizes exposure to Route 25 and still gives me 10 mile ride in total. Of course riding when is 32 degrees out in the morning presents other challenges, like keeping the feet, hands, and face warm enough. Already have started riding with a face mask, over gloves (but I probably needs some lobster mits) and neoprene socks (I am going to give galoshes a try, though). My old Army PT uniform works great for the outer wear.

Here is the best route: