Conference noted::bicycle

    
    Here's one I know of.  I did this one last year, and it was
    really fun.  I have another commitment this date so won't be
    in it this year.  There were about 400 riders last year, and
    it seemed to be quite well-organized with about 70 volunteers.
    The lunch stop was well-run.
    
    Vernon-to-Vernon Tri-State Tour
    Sunday, Sept 29, 6:30 AM
    
    This ride, sponsored by the Yankee Council of AYH in association
    with the Cycle Center of Vernon, CT, is a scenic but challenging
    85 mile (with century option) tour of the Connecticut River valley
    from Vernon, VT to Vernon, CT.  Buses and trucks will transport
    riders and bikes to VT, leaving the Cycle Center at 6:30 AM.  The
    cost is $40 which covers breakfast and juice enroute, lunch at the
    midpoint, transportation to VT, plus a commemorative helmet cover
    and water bottle.  For further information, send SASE to AYH/V2V,
    118 Oak Street, Hartford, CT 06106, or call (203)872-7740 during
    business hours, or (203)872-1809 before 9:30 PM.  Registration
    deadline is Sep 15.
    

    Here are the details on the GSW Tri-State Century.  Is this the one
    you're looking for?
    
    Dates: September 14 & 15, 1991.
    
    Century, metric, three-quarter, half, and quarter centuries are all
    being offered on both days.  All routes are relatively flat terrain
    and run along the coastline.
    
    Registration starts at 7:00 AM, both days.  Register at the Admin-
    istration building office at Hampton Beach State Park, Route 1A, 
    Hampton Beach, NH.  Registration fee is $10 per person per day
    (Don't pay for parking.  Pariking is included in the $10 fee).
    No advance registrations will be accepted.    
    
    Cue sheets, route markings, sag wagons, and some refreshments will
    be provided, as well as LAW patches.  Hope to see you there.
    
    
    
    Steve

    There is a planned century ride from Westboro to the Quabbin scheduled
    late in September (Sept. 22).  The group sponsoring/mapping ... the
    ride is Landry's, who can be reached at 508 836-3878. My assumptions
    are there will be a number of hills (the bad kind - going up) on the
    way there, with the good ole hills (descending) on the return trip..
    
    Al
    

    
    re .2:  I don't get it - are they running the same ride(s)
    both days?  Is everything exactly the same about the two
    days?  I've never heard of doing that.
    

    RE:.4.  Yep, same options both days.  There's usually an optional
    Inland Century for the addicts who really want to do one each day but
    a different one.  The featured coastal route is arrowed and mobbed
    both days unless it rains.
    
    There's also an optional double which does it twice.  It optionally
    starts at 2 am.
    
    Optionally yours,
    ed

    RE .2, .5
    Is it possible to get the route in advance? I'd like to try this,
    but wouldn't mind meeting someone waiting at around the 70-80
    mile mark.
    
    John

    Charles River Wheelmen Fall National Century
    
    Sunday, September 15, 1991
    
    7:30 - 100 and 80 miles
    9:30 - 62 and 50 miles
    10:30 - 25 miles
    
    Weston High School at Route 30 and Wellesley Streets, Weston, Mass.
           
    Covers East Central Massachusetts; moderately hilly terrain.
    
    Cost $7.00 (non-CRW members) includes Wrench Force before and after,
    massage crew after, cycling techniques clinics from 7:00 am, 
    food, water, sports and fruit drinks before and after the rides.
    
    More info, leader Ken Hablow at 617/647-0233
    
    	~Mike

	Hi,

	Does anyone know the route for the GSW century this weekend. I am
	interested in doing the entire thing, and my wife would like to
	do the half. 

	Is it possible for us to ride together, or will there be different
	routes for the full and the half?

	Thanks, in advance, for any help.

	/Bill
	

    the half is a subset of the full so the easiest way is for her to wait
    while you do the southern section of the C, then ride Northward with
    you for 25 miles, wait and then return with you.
    
    ed

    Frank's Spoke 'N Wheel Century
    
    Sunday Sept. 29, 1991
    7:00am start
    100.1 miles
    FREE
    Sag Wagon provided
    
    Many different 'packs' of riders usually, some that take 7+
    hours, some do it in 4.5 hours, lots inbetween.
    
    Route Starts in Weston Center (Weston,MA) and heads
    northwest via routes: 117,12,101,119,113,111,2A,119,27,20
    IT'S ONE BIG LOOP. 
    
    Stops if desired are at:
       @ 30.3 miles	Dunkin Donuts in Leominster (12x117)
       @ 52.3 miles     Lunch (119E)
       @ 73.9 miles     Wendy's in Ayer circle
    
    Just show up.  More info: call Mike or Frank @ Frank's
    Spoke 'N Wheel @ (508)872-8590.
    
    Mark	

    Seven Hills Wheelmen LAW sanctioned century:
    
    From our newsletter " This course is considered by many cyclists to the
    be prettiest century in the East.  Enjoy cycling thru quaint rural New 
    England towns and countryside..."
    
    Rides leave from Knights of Columbus Hall, Meadow St, Spencer MA
    Directions - At McDonalds in Spencer on Rt 9, take a W. Main st to
    Meadow St, approx 1/2 mile.  
    
    Mail entries $6.00, $8.00 day of event payable to Seven Hills Wheelmen
     
    Mail pre-entries to:
    Francis Ouellette
    Gold Nugget Rd
    Spencer MA 01562
    
    You can probably send the registration in with your name address, etc
    then sign the release at the AM registration.
    
    100, 75 leave at 7:30
    50            at 8:30
    25            at 9:30
    
    Personal note, one great feature of this ride is the low number of
    turns.  This will help those going for time.  In addition, the century
    does a 75 mile loop going back to the start then out for the final 25.
    If this is your first century, it will reduce the anxiety.
    
    steve

    
    
    	Thanks for the info, Ed. It sounds like she'd have to do a lot of
    	waiting for me. Perhaps the southerly loop would be better; How
    	long is that portion.
    
    	Thanks,
    
    	Bill

    The southerly loop is about 30 miles and pretty darn flat.  Crosses
    4 steel grates.
    
    ed

    Stowe Bike Club remembers Patti Huntsman and Tom "T" Smith

    Metric Century and Century Rides

    Saturday, September 21st, 1991

    Registration: 8:30-9:30 am at the Round Hearth (4 miles up Rt 108)

    $20.00

    	* T-shirt (first 100 riders)
    	* Water bottles for all
    	* Food stops on the course
    	* Club will be donating to VT Cancer Society and NH Mtn Rescue

    Start Time: 10:00 from the Round Hearth

    Course: 

    	North on RT 100 to RT 15 east to Hardwick, pick up RT 14 to
    Craftsbury (turn around for Metric riders).  Continue on RT 14 to
    Irasbury, pick up RT 5 to RT 16.  Continue on RT 16 back to RT 15, and
    take RT 15 back to RT 100 and back to Stowe.

    Helmets are required for all riders - No Exceptions!

    Riders under 16 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

    Sag Wagons available along the course.

    Overnight lodging:

    	Special 1 Night and Weekend rates:

    	Round Hearth Lodge - dorm style 802-253-7223
    	The Yodler Inn - 1-800-227-1108

    More information: 802-253-4213 or 1-800-427-4213

    (copied from flyer)

    (I drove the course from the Round Hearth and back and it was 114
    miles, with miles 30-75 somewhat hilly, the rest relatively flat)

Frank's Spoke 'N Wheel Century
Sunday Sept. 29, 1991

	(Warning ... I write as slowly and as thoroughly as I pedal!)

I bicycled the route from Weston to Leominster to Ashburnham to
Ayer to Maynard.  I didn't continue the last 10 miles from
Maynard to Weston, since I live in Maynard. 

Doug Larrick met me in Maynard at 5:30 am, so that my husband
would drive the two of us (and our bikes) to Weston. 

Miles 0 to 30 

There were about 35 cyclists.  Doug Larrick and I left Weston
promptly at 7 am, leading the pack, pedaling steadily westward.
The first group of nine passed us at the Maynard High School, two
more passed at the Stow town line.  Then Doug left the course, as
he had previously planned.  So I biked along alone, averaging 11
mph before the Leominster Dunkin Doughnuts.  I thought that the
advertised sag wagon was certainly discrete; I also grumbled, to
myself, that it might not exist. 

But there was plenty of time to observe nature and its beauty:
cold fog over the Sudbury River, cold dawn over my shoulder, that 
sort of stuff.  I started with gloves and two jackets and two
leggings, but packed the gloves away somewhere in Bolton and
packed one jacket layer at the morning snack. 

A total of 31 bikers passed me before the DD, and two more bikers
arrived while I got my morning snack. The small huddle of bikers
at the DD seemed cold, quiet, and uncomfortable, except for the
six-year-old Jason who had too much energy.  But Frank (of
Frank's Century) introduced himself and said that the sag wagon
should be starting the sweep from Weston right about now.  I gave
a quick look to my derailleur; Frank asked if something was
wrong; but I had to confess only that my bike does better
downhill than uphill.  I dislike shifting.  Ah, ha ... a downhill
bike! 

Miles 30 to 52 

I headed upwind from Leominster to Fitchburg and headed uphill to
Ashburnham.  All the riders at the DD managed to pass me on this
hill.  Half way between Fitchburg and Ashburnham, I identified a
likely sag wagon (a van, parked on my side of the road, with a
Kryptonite window decal) at the 40 mile point.  Sure enough, five
minutes later, the van drove by, and we started the leap-frog
game.  A mile before Ashburnham, the saggers asked if they should
go ahead and wait at the lunch stop.  I easily agreed.  Then I
got to thinking.  Lunch stop?  I only have 40 miles clocked ..
no, update ... 42 miles clocked so far and lunch isn't until 52
miles and they've deserted me out here in the forest all by
myself and my bike and my yellow socks and my tools and my rain
gear? 

And I turned north from Ashburnham ... don't you just love it
when the road around the corner is steeper than the one you came
from and you're already in your lowest gear?  And Rt 101 is
bumpy in some places but smoothly patched in others and still up
hill, just like Rick (from the Sudbury store) had warned me.  I
finally warmed up enough to remove the other jacket.  Well, it's
only three or four miles until the familiar Route 119.  And the
saggers came back.  Now, should I be pleased since they obviously
care about me, humanity, and the state of world affairs?  Or
should I be disappointed that they had so little faith in me?  
No, nothing was wrong, just my average speed had dropped from the
11 in Leominster to 9.6 when I arrived at Route 119.  Let's see
now, 46 over 9.6 minus 30 over 11 equals 16 over something. 
Borrow 1, divide again, heck, eight mph for that hill!  But,
luckily for me, Route 119 was in my favor: long and downhill. 
Back to 10.2 mph average speed by lunch.  I was cold in just my
t-shirt, but moving too fast to complain about the temperature! 

I didn't miss the important turn where Route 119 jogs left and then
right. The lunch stop restaurant is on the left corner, boarded
with plywood and CLOSED signs.  Agony ... and ecstasy ... the
saggers are there, with the energetic six-year-old.  And lunch
will be served at the next restaurant, which is just around the
next corner.  Really!  It was!  And there were still bikers
there, too!  (Such little things cheer me up!)  Well, I guess
there were four bikers, plus Frank and Jason and the two saggers
and me. 

Lunch was a big disappointment.  It took an hour and 15 minutes
for the food to arrive; other customers had been seated and
served and finished while we waited.  Rigor mortis set in.  The
bikers again seemed cold, quiet, and uncomfortable; the saggers
and the six year old were certainly cheerful and spunky.  And 
Frank bought lunch; thank you!

The rain drizzle or shower predicted for early afternoon didn't
happen.  The sun was shining steadily, but became cloudy in 
patches.

Miles 52 to 74 

I left promptly after lunch.  The others delayed while they
installed Jason into his bugger contraption on his father's bike
and re-arranged the saggers. 

Downhill.  Well, er, yes, one uphill going into Townsend, and
something on the way over to Pepperell.  That's when the lunch
crowd caught me ... they had been chasing after my chain tool,
which I agreed they could borrow at lunch!  Then they all passed
me, once each for the bikers (including Dad, Jason, and his
bugger) and several times for the sag wagon.  More nature: a
field of orange pumpkins. 

There were lots of yard sales.  Single families, combined
families, the PTA at the school, etc.  I was able to stay my
course and avoided all such tourist traps.  The closest call was
the QUILT SALE AND SHOW sign, but it listed dates for next
weekend in very small print. 

I managed to pull my average speed up to 10.7 before arriving at
Wendy's.  The biking crowd included most of the quiet lunch crowd
plus one new face.  Most had finished their food when I arrived
(with the saggers right behind me); everybody took off while I
visited the (closed and broken) toilet at Wendy's. 

Miles 74 to 90 

I had the road to myself, with a bit of a tail wind as I headed
to Littleton.  This part of the trip report is definitely a view
from the back of the pack. 

The saggers were gone, nothing but me and open road!  Just as I
crossed 495, I felt the first drops of a drizzle, not enough to
worry about.  But, presto, zippo, the sagger was there, right
behind me.  I pedaled steadily into Littleton Center, where I
made the obligatory telephone call home (if you want supper, you
have got to let the cook know when!).  The sagger pulled into the
parking lot with me, and told me he wanted to stay very close in
case it started to rain.  I put my jacket on again, just for the
water protection, not for the warmth.

Then I pedaled to North Acton, turned to Acton and South Acton.
The sagger stayed right with me, even slowly cruising behind me
with his hazardous blinkers warning the traffic.  But in Maynard,
I dismissed the sagger at 5:50 pm.  I arrived home at 6:00,
instead of biking through to Weston at 7:00, where there wouldn't 
have been any food or toilets anyway, just a wait for my ride 
back home.

Overall, my average biking speed was 10.9 mph ... 90 miles over
8:15 net biking hours in 11 gross hours.  The route is easy to 
understand and to follow, although I did some home work ahead of 
time with some topographic maps.  Generally, the first section is 
flat, the second is up hill, the third is moderately down hill,
and the fourth is gently down hill.  I liked the route; the 
traffic and weather were cooperative.  I was already familiar 
with Route 117 from Waltham to Bolton and with Route 119 from NH 
to Concord; the new part was out to Leominster and up to Ashby.
I wasn't fast enough to participate in the companionship of
biking, except with Doug for the beginning 14 miles and the lunch
crowd. 

Next year

I'm definitely taking several peanut butter and jelly sandwiches,
so that I'm not dependent upon that slow restaurant again. The
extra hour spent waiting for lunch is the hour of daylight I
would rather have spent biking to Weston. 

Maybe I'll bike east from Maynard, arriving in Weston in time to
leave again on the regular route.  Or maybe I'll bike west from
Maynard, arriving in Leominster with the early birds. 

What would you do differently?

Sally

    Sally, first off, thanks for the write-up -- makes the ride into
    kind of a little adventure.  :-)
    
    Yes, taking along food is an excellent idea -- the peanut butter
    & jelly would be fine, non-messy food would be better (cookies,
    raisins, etc.).  This waiting-on-restaurants business is for the
    birds (so to speak).
    
    Other hints?  I'm going to re-read your saga, but for now, maybe
    some sprints and interval training to put you up closer to the
    front of the pack.  :-)
    
    -john

    	Sally,
    
    	Nice write-up.
    
    	I've only done one century, but here are a few things I've
    	learned:
    
    		Take food with you. As John mentioned, cookies
    		or something not messy. I like Apple Newtons
    		or Fig Newtons.
    
    		If you stop for more than 10 minutes (your time
    		may vary), you're gonna tighten up.
    
    		Ride a steady pace. If you go out too fast, you
    		may not have enough energy for the last couple of
    		miles.
    
    	Generally, eat and drink on the bike and pace yourself.
    	That makes the ride much more pleasant.
    
    	Oh, yeah. Don't ride with John Ellis. When you're ready to
    	call it quits, he's just breaking a sweat and wondering
    	how fast he can do the next 100+ miles.
    
    	Scott

    
    RE: .-1   :-)

    agreed to all points of .17 to which I'll add, "Don't ever,
    ever, EVER, go out for a short metric with John Lee Ellis."
    
    ed

    
    Well, all right, so I can't count so well.  :-)
    
    -john (who took Ed out an 95-mile-or-so metric century last May)

    twas a 114 mile metric as I recall.
    
    ed

    
    re: -1
    
       You remember well Ed.  I had some reservations about the next day 
    when we were supposed to do 100 miles.  A double was a possibility
    after the "metric".  :-)
    
    						Norm
    
      

    
    Yes, well, maybe it's the tire-size setting on my cyclometer.
    Yeah, that's it!  Gotta check that out...  :-)
    
    -john  (Hi, Norm)

    Yes, in May, Norm and I went to Charlotte to do one of John's funds
    raiser Centuries on Sunday.  We arrived early enough (Friday evening)
    that, though tired, we felt that a ride such as a metric century on
    Saturday would be nice.  JLE took us out for a "short metric."  Being
    no neophyte, I observed that we were still heading sorta southward
    at 40 miles.  John confessed that it would be a long metric.  A bit
    later it became a short century, then a long century and, finally 114
    miles.
    
    The next day we went on the cue sheeted century.  When I announced to
    Norm that there was a mileage discrepancy in the cue sheet, we were
    prepared for the worst.  However the discrepancy was one of those minor
    ones that is more than likely the result of measuring the route with a
    ball of twine and the route was quite close to 100 miles.
    
    ed

    
    To explain further, for the Saturday outing, I took these gentlemen
    out on one of the Solstice Century routes, and attempted to cut it
    down (not made any easier by the fact that we started 12 miles from
    the Century start).  Well, I guess it wasn't a totally effective
    trimming operation, but for a while I thought they might not notice,
    and that in the end they'd be glad of the extra miles. :-)
    
    Alas, the sun angle gave me away, as Ed pointed out ("still heading
    south at 40 miles)!  Anyway, Ed and Norm did fine the next day, on
    a "real" (not inflated) century.
    
    -john

    Re: Frank's Century starting in Weston,MA on Sept 29,1991:
    
    The century started around 7:20 (luckily for me since I arrived
    later than the announced 7:00am start time).
    
    A group of riders who are riding for 'time' usually end up
    forming in the lead; this year I was foolishly in this group of 8
    riders.  Dan Massucco (of recent Cat II fame) lead this small
    pack at a scorching pace (for me it was scorching!).  Every
    uphill was brutal and I felt like I was in a race, on the verge
    of being dropped as my heartrate rose to 170+ BPM in the 40-50
    drgree morning temps.  Dan was apparently riding a smooth pace for
    him. along with teammate (and DECie) Barney Costello, but for
    less fit riders the pace was tough.  After 30 miles averaging
    over 23mph, I cried 'Uncle' and pulled into Dunkin Donuts to
    wait for the company of more sensible (i.e. slower!) riders.
    
    Dan finished in 4:49, Barney 4:50, and other reminants of the
    broken up lead group in the 5 hour range.  Norm Lafleur (DECie)
    finished in 5:20.  The lead riders never stopped, and drank only
    two water bottles of fluid! Are these guys humans or camels?
    
    For most Frank's century is not a 'race', but there are those
    who cannot resist the challenge of a good workout!
    
    Mark

Mark, 

Will Frank's Spoke 'n' Wheel have its freebie century again on
the last Sunday in September?  The one from Weston to Ashburnham 
and back?

Thanks,

Sally

    RE:-1
    
    Yes, Frank's century is on SUnday Sept 27; start at 7am in Weston Ctr.
    For directions/details, call Frank @ his shop (508)872-8590.
    Anyone is welcome.  There is usually a group of a dozen or two
    riders who shoot for sub-5 hrs, as well as others just out for the
    ride.
    
    Cheers,
    Mark