Conference noted::bicycle

         The road construction that is being done on the west side of the
    Wachusetts has been extended past Linden all the way to the convenience
    store located in Boylston near the police station, there seems to be a
    side road that branches off Linden and leads past the most recent 
    construction but I have never used it.  It looks like the plan may be to 
    carry the construction all the way to the 70/140 intersection.  I
    cycled the unpaved section of 70 on Saturday and found it to be quite 
    rough and dangerous, lookout for flats.  The most dangerous part of the 
    ride on the unpaved section occurs just at the intersection of Linden and 
    70, this section appears to have just been ripped up, there are huge rocks 
    all over and when I was riding there, cars were all over the road trying 
    to dodge them.     
         The earliest part of the construction from the 70/62 intersection
    to about 1/2 mile before Tahanto High school has what appears to be a
    primary asphalt layer, this layer can be ridden on without problems.
    
         Abe;

    re: .1 I was cycling down Rt. 70 - one of my favorite routes.
    The road was so rough that I walked my bicycle part of the way!
    hasn't the construction been going on in that small section for
    over a month?
    
    nmp

    Rt 70 has been screwed up for a while (over a month?) now.

    As somebody mentioned, the intersection with Linden st
    is a mess in either direction, but Mile Hill road comes out on
    a clear part (you can get to Clinton.)

    One thing I've disliked about Linden St is some stupid dogs
    along there, I usually come up Rt 62 and turn left on 70
    instead.

    To loop the Quabbin, I normally follow a course based on
    one of the BMB Brevets, stopping over in Amherst for a bite
    to eat, it's around 165 miles from here in Maynard.

    I'd have to think about the names of the roads, I just
    know where to turn when I'm cycling it!  But it's roughly
    Rt 62 -> Barre, Rt 32 -> Rt 9 -> Amherst, up Pelham Rd,
    left thru back roads thru Shutesbury etc, back on 32,
    retrace path from Barre to Maynard.

    I'll post details later if there's interest.

    - Jim

         The road construction was finished well enough this Sunday for me
    to ride the whole distance between 62/70 and 70/140 ( the area which
    was the site of all the construction ).  The road surface may not be
    finished but it is in the best shape that I have seen it during the
    5+ years that I have ridden it.  Expect to go somewhat faster than you
    normally have over the new surface.
    
         Abe;
    
    

   Based on .4, I cycled around the resevior late yesterday afternoon,
   thanks for the note.

   I expect that they may leave the surface as it is for a while,
   it's better to let the roadbed settle before putting on the top
   coat (fewer potholes later on...)

   Of course, this also gives them time to dig up the new surface,
   as I always observe they do :-) in Chelmsford the *week after* they
   finished a section of 129, they had a massive trench dug in it!

   - Jim

    They'll finish it after the can get the grader on site.
    
    You know, the one that makes those "required" tractor marks in the 
    fresh tar.  :-)
    
    ed

    For those in Mass that use the Wachusetts resevoir (Rt70, Rt140, Rt12,
    Rt62) as a training circuit in the upcoming summer months, it should
    be noted that there are two "free" watering holes about 11 miles apart
    (i.e. equidistant apart; the loop is about 22miles) with easy-on, easy-off
    access: the east side of the Sterling post office has a faucet, and
    there's a fountain next to the Boylston Police Department.  kb