There were two rides offered this sunny, warm, Saturday morning. One was a full hammerfest replete with full spandex, helmets and all that other stuff , the other was a little slower, smell the roses kind of ride.  I chose to ride with the later group. My spandex days are long past.  I do wear the spandex shorts, but I cover them with hiking style riding shorts.  Tight clothing doesn’t do much for my image.

We took a couple of detours off the MUP to have a more pleasant experience scenery wise that the the MUP offers in small doses.  Naturally, near the end of the ride we stopped for coffee, as any bicyclist worthy of the bike life is apt to do on a ride.

Up next is the Monday Morning Wake Up  Ride with Margret, that meets at Bristol Community College tennis courts in Fall River, MA for an 8 A.M. wheels down.

Saturday Morning on the East Bay from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

Thursday:

Bike the Night in Providence. Don’t miss this one

RI Bike Coalition is partnering with PVDFest to host the most festive Bike the Night yet! We’ll be meeting at Burnside Park at 8 PM before departing on a 8 to 10 mile ride through Providence and ending for a party at the The Black Sheep Providence. Providence Art Culture Tourism will be providing some bike decorations, but support the fun by getting you and your bike PVDFest-ready!

CLICK HERE for the Facebook link with all the info

The forecast called for increasing winds throughout the morning with 25-30 MPH gusts. The next three days will be rainy.  The temp was a near perfect 58F and mostly sunny for my 8 AM wheels down. Same route as yesterday, but a whole different feeling.

Yesterday’s ride was a slog.  It usually takes me a mile or so to get into a comfortable rhythm. That never happened yesterday.  The hills really got to me so bad that I cut the ride short.  You see,  the route I took has two options, the “Rochester Long and Rochester Short”.  The bail out is around 7 miles into the ride.  The feeling good turn around spot is at the 12 mile mark.

Today I got into the zone.  Twice when I emerged from my “highway hypnosis”,  I was already beyond those hills.  My average speed was up quite a bit and the whole ride felt…well I didn’t really feel anything.  My mind took me to places other than where I was on the bike.  I was on the home stretch much sooner than I realized and as I though about the last climb, I realized that I had already done it.   That’s a good feeling.

I had heard about this ride for a couple of years and decided to give it a go.  Eleven of us began the ride in Somerset, MA all looking forward excitedly for the hills to come when we made the turn and rode through Fall River.  Everything about the city is hill related.  The high school nick name is “The Hill Toppers”.  The businesses are called “Hill Side”,  the “Hill Top Cafe”,  “Seven Hills”, and on and on.  It’s challenging to say the least.

A couple of rides broke away from the group and I tried to organize a paceline to chase them down.  There was only one taker but together we caught them pretty quickly.

I hung back with the slower riders  for a while to get some video footage.  When I decided to chase down the faster riders, the general consensus was “good luck, there are too far ahead”.   “I’m riding a Felt” was my response.  It didn’t matter.  The five of them were waiting in the parking lot at then end, showered, changed and sated.

Much of the group opted for Mexican after the ride.  I declined (I don’t eat after 5 PM), but was only 30 minuets away from my fridge and cold beer.  Bikers love coffee and beer.  Mexican food? Not so much. Not around here anyhow.

A good turnout on a spectacular, warm, clear spring evening for the Full Moon Ride.  A 22 mile round trip easy spin on the flat East Bay Bike Path, a rail to trail conversion.

The group meets in the public parking lot on RT 103 in Warren R.I. at Dell’s lemonade building and ride to India Point Park in Providence. And back.

Full Flower Moon Ride in Providence from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

Monday, May 28, 2018 –

Monday Mornings Highland Ride – weekly ride – meetup 7:45AM, Ride starts at 8:00AM – Start from Bristol Community College on Elsbree Street (please park by tennis courts). This will be an approximately 11 mile ride through the beautiful Highland section of Fall River. The ride will take an hour to complete. A perfect start to our week day. Rain cancels our rides…hope to see you there!

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Tuesday, May 29, 2018:   This is a really good 100% bike path ride. It’s a favorite.

Bike Fall River Ride – Sunset/Moonlight Ride on the East Bay Bike Path! Meetup will be at the parking lot off of Rte 103 in Warren – take left right after Dels Lemonade – arrive at 6:45PM – ride will start at 7:00PM sharp – Sunset is at 8:10PM, Moonrise is at 8:14PM, Distance is flexible. Names for this Full Moon: Full Flower Moon, Corn Planting Moon, Milk Moon, Hare Moon.    Rain cancels the ride.

We will ride toward Providence till we decide to turn around. Turn around point will probably be India Point Park unless we decide to turn around sooner (or later). That’s around 22 or 23 miles roundtrip. Bikes should have adequate lighting. If you have a second headlight as a backup that might come in handy if the first one goes out. Bring water, snacks, cameras and anything else you might want or need. Helmets are highly recommended. Take note that it is cooler after sunset and dress accordingly.

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This is a Bike Newport ride – Meet at Bike Newport, 62 Broadway Newport RI – 8.00pm FREE Conquer the night, ride under the full moon and hear the sounds of the night with us on this Bike Month bike ride through Newport, guided by the full moon! So bring your cycling friends and sign up. Route tbd (probably around the ocean loop) – All riders are required to bring a bike, helmet, lights & weather-appropriate clothing. To register go to – https://www.eventbrite.com/e/full-moon-bike-ride-tickets-45450363260?utm-medium=discovery&utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-source=strongmail&utm-term=listing

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Wednesday, May 30, 2018: I’m away for this one. I’ll try to get a leader in Fairhaven but if not, leave Staples at 5:40 and Hiram will lead the ride from the Y in New Bedford.

Wednesday Night Casual Ride – Two areas to choose from to start the ride. 1st Location: Fairhaven to New Bedford – 15 mile ride – Meetup at Staples in Fairhaven, 17 Plaza Way, Fairhaven Ma. The ride starts exactly at 5:40pm. Other location – Meetup at YMCA in New Bedford at 6:00pm for a shorter ride of 9 miles.

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Thursday – May 31, 2018

ICE CREAM Ride!!! Meetup at Somerset Creamery, 146 County Street Somerset – Meetup starts at 5:30pm, Ride starts at 6:00pm sharp – 20 mile ride, all on-road, casual pace has us back at 8:00pm for ice cream. Helmets highly recommended – Rain Cancels Ride

It was a near perfect day for a bike ride on the Cape Cod Canal. It was also a workday morning so only six of us did the ride.  The wind was at our back as we rode from the head of the canal in Bourne, MA and the Mass Maritime Academy.  It took us a while to get there because we had to walk our bikes over the Bourne Bridge, and the multiple stops to take pictures.

We rode to the power plant in at the opposite end of the canal before doubling back to cross  the Sagamore Bridge.  An easy ride to Scusset Beach brought us to our turn around spot.  That’s when things got a little crazy.  We had two riders missing.  After a quick look around, we determined they couldn’t find us and started riding back to Bourne.  The rest of us began the chase.  Then the winds came.

The canal is like a giant wind tunnel intensifying whatever wind kicks up.  On Buzzards Bay, the wind shifts to the southwest almost every afternoon We rode into the wind, heads down, pedaling hard, trying to catch the other two.  I was on a hybrid, and the others were on carbon fiber bikes.  They pulled away, and when they were too far gone, my phone rang.  The two riders  were looking for us.  I said, “we are trying to chase you down”.  They answered, “we haven’t left yet”.

We decided just to split up and go on our own since it was a straight ride along the canal to the cars.

Three ahead of me,
two behind me
the wind was making it feel like I was pedaling a truck.
it got to a point where I really no longer gave a

2018 Cape Cod Canal Both Sides Both Bridges from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

Biking the Dunes of P-Town, MA from John Sullivan on Vimeo.

Tuesday in Ptown from John Sullivan on Vimeo.