Conference noted::bicycle

2852.0. "1994 Mt. Greylock Hillclimb" by LASSIE::ZIELONKO () Mon Sep 19 1994 08:48

Cross posted from CYCLE_RACING:

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Note 710.5                    Greylock time trial?                       5 of 11
LASSIE::ZIELONKO                                     71 lines  16-SEP-1994 17:58
                            -< Mt Greylock details >-
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Just called Paul at the Spoke and updated this from last year:


What:		The Greylock hillclimb is a time trial hillclimb starting in
                downtown North Adams, MA and ending at the top of
                Massachusetts's highest peak - Mt. Greylock - in Mt. Greylock
                State Forest.

Classes:	There are five men's classes, two women's classes and a men's
                and a women's mountain bike class. The race is *not* USCF
                sanctioned.

When:		Sunday, October 2nd. First rider off at 9:00 AM.

Where:		North Adams, MA. in the beautiful Berkshires.

Registration:   7:30 - 8:30 AM. day of race. No pre-registrations. Show and go.

Fee:		$8.00. No T-shirt this year. Paul hasn't had time.


From Boston:    Rt 2 into North Adams. Left at light just past McDonald's onto
                Eagle St. Right at next light onto Main St. Straight thru one
                light, left at next light onto Rt 8. Up and over overpass and
                take first right onto Furnace St. Heritage Park is on right.

Prizes:		Merchandise. Not for mercenaries. ;^)

The Course:	The climb is ~9.5 miles with a base elevation of 620 ft. and a
                summit at 3460 ft. It starts at the Heritage park in downtown
                North Adams. The first three miles or so are all on city roads
                and the last six or so are on the summit road in Mt. Greylock
                State Forest.

                It figures out to a 5% average grade but don't let that fool
                you. There are plenty of flat strecthes and even some downhills
                that mess up the average grade calculation. There are some
                really steep stretches (over 12% - I would guess). This is one
                of those climbs where you're constantly shifting gears. 

Course Records: 38:51 Mike Horner  |   4?:00  Kim Morris. You can't touch this.

Equipment:	Very challenging but you don't need to put on a pie plate
                freewheel or different tires like you do for Mt. Washington.
                This is a hard climb but it's not a freak climb. Bring your
                regular hilly road-race bike or put street tires on your
                mountain bike.
		
                When I was fit I used a 42x21 and was doing times between 45 and
                48 minutes. For a comparsion with Washington I was using a 42x32
                there and my best time there was 1:11.

                You also won't need to worry about special clothes. This is
                nothing like Mt. Washington. Regular shorts and short sleeve
                jerseys are best. When you start it might be a bit cold but once
                you get going you'll be hot. 

Other stuff:	At the summit is the Bascomb Lodge which has a cafe and
                bathrooms. There's also "the tower" which is a war memorial not
                unlike a lighthouse with a beacon on the top. You can go inside
                the tower and climb a long spiral staircase to the top where you
                can see quite a way in all directions.

		It takes around two and a half hours to get there from Boston's
		western 128 suburbs. Take route 2.

		For those of you looking for one last race to round out your
		season this one is worth trying. You won't be sorry you did it.
		The fall colors should be peaking too.

For more info call The Spoke in Williamstown MA. The number is 413-458-3456.

For a course description see CYCLE_RACING note 710.6

If I came across to the US (from France) for a short holiday that
included this hillclimb, would anyone have a road bike in the 22-23"
range that they would be willing to lend me? I'd be very grateful
if so...


Rod

    	OK, so no one is willing to admit they climbed Greylock
    	Sunday. I can live with that. What I need to know now
    	is "Where is Rod MacFadyen?" If he's close to us here
    	in Littleton, we could get together and swap lies about
    	our riding ability.
    
    	Scott

    talked with Rod last evening.  He did the Greylock climb and indicated
    that it was indeed a challenge.  I invited him to join us on our
    century tomorrow.  I might send him off with the scholl teacher from
    Manchester so they can both run each other into the ground :-).
    
    ed

    Ah so it's *your* century he's doing.  Good on him (you'll remember
    that I didn't do one when last I was over).  Say `Hi' to him...

    Well, we missed meeting.  Rod had some seafood that disagreed
    with him and ...
    
    Well, maybe next time.
    
    ed, who should have wanred him about Fried clams and beer.  :-(

Hey, it tasted nice at the time. How was I to know I'd end up barfing my
guts out at 3am. The next day (Friday) I felt pretty wasted and didn't do
anything constructive, such as buying presents for my girlfriend for
example, so I had to devote Saturday to a shopping mall experience rather
than Ed's century, which was a pity.

Sorry that I managed to avoid meeting so many people, I'll do better next
time. I'll make sure to prepare some lies in advance to keep you amused. 


Rod