Saturday Morning B Ride Report –02/18/2012

by Joseph Lellman » Sat Feb 18, 2012 3:20 pm
I counted 13 guys at the start of our ride at the Academy, and it proved to be somewhat of an unlucky number as no less than three riders suffered punctures, with Todd Roberts leaving the group on Haydenville Road early in the ride. Newcomer Bill Burque, who came up from Southwick, dropped after the first hill at Horse Mountain (aka North Farms Road), realizing early on that he had bitten off more than he could chew. We thank him for coming, and hope that he continues to look at the NCC for ride options. Perhaps the Wednesday afternoon C ride that will be starting soon will suit him better.
Ron Bush arranged this ride and we did the Cosby loop, so there were plenty of opportunities to test the legs going uphill. The weather stayed cool and cloudy, with a bit of a headwind until we made the turn for home up in Greenfield. I swelled with pride when I saw the very impressive phalanx of NCC elite team riders coming up the hill we were descending up in Shelbourne.
The pace on the way home picked up considerably on the flatter terain and with the nice tailwind. David G. and Andrew split off in Sunderland to head to Amherst, and we lost Frank the physicist somewhere along the way after the orchard. About 46.5 miles from the Academy, 2 hours and 40 minutes. A good hard ride with lots of guys showing good early season form.