NSC North Berkshire Tour Friday September 14 – Sunday September 16, 2012

This year’s Berkshire tour returns to the Maple Terrace Motel in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Rides are 35-45 miles with terrain varying from the flat Ashuwilticook Rail Trail to the challenging climb over Mount Greylock. This affordable tour is for members of North Shore Cyclists who are experienced cyclists.

Price: $230 for 2 nights lodging double occupancy ($320 single occupancy)

What’s Included? We stay at the Maple Terrace Motel in Williamstown Massachusetts, near the North Adams town lne.

Meals: Light continental breakfast is provided by the motel so we usually cross the street to a breakfast place. The price includes one group dinner at Hobsons Choice in Williamstown.

Rides: Our Friday ride is scheduled for 1 pm. Saturday and Sunday rides start about 9:00 am. Printed maps and cue sheets are provided for each ride. Gordon will lead a ride of his choice late Friday afternoon and a full ride Saturday and Sunday. There is no van support or arrowing for this tour. Expect steep climbs.

Signup: Please email tour leader Gordon Harris

Read full description and view routes

The road bike season traditionally kicks off the first Sunday in April, but last year we had several show and go rides before that date, and with the nice weather this year we’ve never really quit for the season. It’s time to begin filling in the 2012 NSC Sunday Ride Calendar.

Please email NSC ride coordinator Jimmy White and club webmaster Gordon Harris the ride you’d like to lead this year. Dates are assigned on a first come first served basis.

For ideas, take a look at the 2011 calendar, and also the NSC Cue Sheet Inventory which has several rides we didn’t host last year. Click on the map image  to go to our interactive Google map of club rides.

Reply to this thread to share thoughts about your favorite and not so favorite rides as well as ideas about new rides you’d be interested in helping create.

 

Greeting Cyclists:

A hearty group of members attended the Annual Meeting on Friday evening. We received a Treasurer’s Report (yes, we are in the Black for 2011), approved donations to community organizations, and elected officers for 2012. I am proud to serve as your President for this upcoming year. I look forward to another successful year. If you have any suggestions for this upcoming year, please feel free to get in touch with me.

Special thanks to James Danis for his leadership as President this year. Thanks, Jim!

Other officers elected include the following:

Vice President:  Paula Bossone
Treasurer:  Jeff Ontell
Clerk:  Brandon Davis
Secretary:  Ellen Wack

See you at the Banquet on November 19!

Greeting Cyclists:

Your Club’s leadership met in preparation of the Annual Meeting this Friday in Topsfield. Here are some items from today’s meeting:

1. DONATIONS TO COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS

Annually, North Shore Cyclists provides support to cycling related organizations. The Board is supporting contributions again this year to the following organizations:

• Emmaus

• Diabetes Ride

• Mass Bike Coalition

• Topsfield Rail Trail

2. NOMINATIONS FOR 2012 BOARD OFFICERS

 • President: Jeff Cox

 • Vice President: Paula Bossone

• Treasurer: Jeff Ontell

• Clerk: open

• Secretery: Ellen Wack

Additional nominations for officers will be accepted from the floor at the meeting.

See you Friday 11/4 at 6:30 in Topsfield at Goulds Barn! –

 Jeffrey M. Cox

The 25,000 acre Great Salt Marsh extends from Gloucester through Ipswich to southern New Hampshire.   Safeguarded by the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act, the flat terrain provides some of the easiest and most scenic cycling in New England, including:

Jeffreys Neck, Ipswich:  Glacial drumlin separated from the rest of Ipswich by the marsh.   Incredible views of the Ipswich River, Plum Island and the Atlantic reward your efforts as you climb Little Neck Road and then descend from Great Neck on Northridge Road.

Argilla Road, Ipswich:  An easy ride to Crane Beach on Argilla Road and a challenging climb to Crane Castle offer extensive views of the salt marsh on the way to the popular beach.

Rowley-Newbury:   One of our club’s most popular rides.    From Rowley, Rt. 1A offers good pavement and a generous shoulder all the way to Newburyport, with most of the traffic disappearing when Rt. 133 turns west in Rowley.  You’ll soon enter Newbury where the road bisects the marsh for two miles.  After crossing the Parker River bridge turn left at the Lower Green on Newman Road for a short climb past Old Town Hill and a quick descent into the heart of the marsh.

Plum Island:   Continuing on Hay and Green Streets to the Newbury Upper Green, cross Rt. 1A to the Merrimack River and turn right on the bike lane for a splendid view as you take the bridge to Plum Island.  A right on Sunset Lane takes you straight into the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, well worth the $2 entry charge for cyclists.  The Hellcat observation area at the end of the four-mile paved road is a good place to observe ducks, grebes, geese, loons, herons and sandpipers, especially during fall migration.

When you cross the Parker River again, the tide will have flooded or drained the marsh as it does twice a day . The easy ascent through the woods to Rowley offers a glowing pallet of vibrant autumn colors, complimenting the golden hue of the salt marsh cord grass and the vibrant red of glasswort, best seen in the Great Salt Marsh in the fall and on a bicycle.

Garmin Edge 605 , 705 and 800  are GPS-enabled bicycle  computers that feature turn-by-turn directions and  a detailed map.  The  SD card  for Navigator Streets and Maps is a must to make these units useful.  Both  have the same color display,  track speed, distance,  average and max speeds and record laps.    You can download GPX files from Map My Ride or Ride With GPS to follow, and also do the reverse:  record your route and upload to mapping sites.  The only difference other than price between the two units is that the 705 can also calculate cadence, heart rate, and power. If you only want the Garmin for mapping your ride and as a basic cycling computer to measure speed, distance, time, etc., save $100 and buy the Edge 605. The 605 cannot be upgraded to include the additional features.

You can also use these Garmins as a general GPS unit if you are a passenger in a car– they’re too small for a driver to focus on.  Instead of audible instructions they beep before and at the turns with visible instructions in large letters.  When following a GPX route from a mapping site, turn off the auto navigate feature so when you go off-route the unit does not re-navigate .  These Garmins also have a “back to start” and “go home” feature , handy if you’re through riding and not sure about the best way back.

Prices are coming down, but still be prepared to spend several hundred dollars.  I’ve posted more information about the Garmin Edge 605 and705 on my site at bikenewengland.com/gps and bikenewengland.com/edge   –Gordon Harris