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Ultra Cycling Records "In two sections, the only choice was to bike through a foot and half of water, nearly submerging my bottom bracket." by Eric H. Jensen |
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It is amazing how much time I spent studying maps looking for the shortest/easiest route for the E-W Massachusetts crossing. The biggest challenge was to find a route out of Boston that would hit the fewest number of traffic lights. Two weeks before the ride I ventured into the "Big" city and was amazed how many people and cars were packed into such a small area. Starting a ride at 2 p.m. out of Boston would be a big mistake. It took us 45 minutes just to drive a six-mile stretch on one of the potential routes. After understanding the traffic lights, I determined to take a longer route on Memorial Drive along the Charles River, which had only a quarter of the lights.
The first few weeks in October of 2005 will be memorable to many people in the Northeast. We experienced an abundance of rain, which caused drastic flooding in many locations, wiping out roads, flooding neighborhoods and in some areas demolishing houses. As luck would have it, the day of crossing coincided with the last of the extended rain period. And as luck would have it, the winds changed from out of the east to the west on this day.
I found myself again studying the Weather Channel for the specifics on the weather for the day. My final interpretation was the first few hours would be in the rain followed by clearing for the remainder of the 8-9 hour ride.
It was a 1-1/2 hour drive from my house to the start. I left home at 4:30 a.m. at which point the rain had actually stopped. Stopped for about five minutes! On the way I picked up Sandy Dunbury, the driver for the venture, who lived only a short distance from my house. As we drove towards Boston (on way to pick up the judge) the rain began to come down. Let's just say that the wipers were on the fastest speed. At least five times in the next hour of driving I considered bagging the day. The only thing that kept me going was the knowledge that there would be clearing after a few hours.
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After picking up Tracey Ingle, the judge, who lives 30 minutes out of the city, we made our way into the heart of Boston, venturing through some nearly flooded roads. Once there we decided to find a Starbucks and evaluate the weather and course route. At this point the heavy rain had tapered down to a gentle rain. The original 6:45 start was now moved back to a 7:45 start. After affixing the lights and signs on the vehicle and finding the exact starting location, we were ready. The temperature was around 60, which was not bad for a rainy day. I wore a light rain jacket and long tights to give some protection from the elements. A few pictures and we were off.
The six-mile stretch on Memorial Drive had five lights, which I hit four. Memorial Drive sits relatively flat only several feet above the river. I tried avoiding the rather large puddles that encompassed much of the road. In two sections, the only choice was to bike through a foot and half of water, nearly submerging my bottom bracket.
This first hour of the ride through continual rain was relatively flat. Going from a stop to an accelerated speed of 26 m/hr back to another stop put my average around 19 m/hr.
Just outside of Boston, in Maynard, I came up to another traffic light at which a police car was just rolling up to a red light on the adjacent road. Over his intercom he yelled out "YOU are dedicated" (I was expecting a "you are insane"). My light turned green, I took three pedal strokes and my chain broke! Fortunately, I had a tool packed, so removed a few links, reattached and back on the bike in about five minutes. Left behind the light rain jacket and exchanged my water soaked gloves for fingerless gloves.
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The rain continued but as I rode farther away from Boston, there were fewer large puddles and the distance between stoplights was much greater.
The climbing started heading out of Clinton into Sterling and Princeton. In the second and third hour my pace increased to 20 mph average. The third hour included a bit of up and down hills heading up to Barre. The towns should be embarrassed to have Hubbardston Road (Route 62) in such ill repair in their district! On the final descent before the climb up to Barre center, I rode into a crevice that caused my rear tire to puncture. Tracey commented that she was glad that I stayed on the bike! Fumbling around to put the spare wheel on I took off the rear fender to make the transaction quicker - time off about three minutes.
My predication of the rain tapering off was wrong. My plan, assuming the rain was ending, was to stop briefly in Barre and do a complete change of clothes and shoes to dry off. I told the follow vehicle that I wanted to wait till the rain stopped before the change, so maybe in another hour.
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The next section from Barre to Route 2 was quite familiar and went by very quickly. I rode on Holtshire Road past the BMB stop at Bullard Farm, one that I became very acquainted with over the summer of 2005. Holtshire Road goes under Route 2 and takes you onto Route 2a. The map then showed Route 2A connecting to Route 2 at a certain distance. Having passed that distance and seeing no onramps, I frantically discussed the situation with Sandy. We pulled out different maps, which did not clarify the situation. I flagged down a car heading towards us to clear up the confusion - and sure enough I just had to go around the next corner to see Route 2A merging onto Route 2!
The start of Route 2 was nice and actually felt fast. I have been told that with wet roads there is less friction with the tires and road so you actually go faster. We had to detour around construction in Erving and heading into Greenfield we had to go back onto Route 2a, which ventured around the city to reconnect back to Route 2.
Now is where the fun started. After a warm up climb through Sherburne, the road follows the Deerfield River going up and up and up. At first the grade of the climb seemed insignificant but as time passed without the slightest of downhill relief, my speed got slower and slower. Finally after over an hour of non-stop climbing, I reached the summit. There was a stiff headwind coming directly out of the west, the kind that makes a flag stand up flat like a board. Anyways, the road took a merciful decent down to North Adams, with a 270-degree switchback adding to the excitement.
On the last leg of the ride Route 2 merges with Route 7 South for about seven miles. Then the route turns back onto Route 2 for a final 3.5 miles climb at a 7 % grade up to the New York state line. Glad to be on the home stretch, I alternated three minutes standing with three minutes sitting to grind out the last section. Coming to a stop at the New York state sign a few hundred yards before the top, we shot a few pictures. Then Tracey said to me "how about finishing it to the top of the climb". I kindly obliged.
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After eight hours of near non-stop rain with a total ascent of 9200 feet, the ride had ended and so had the rain.
Looking for a place to stop for dinner, Tracey asked what I desired for dinner. I replied, "Cow." After an enjoyable dinner (14 ounces of medium rare prime rib) we headed back towards Boston under a near clear sky with a staggering full moon.
One final note: After two days off the bike, I ventured out for a nice morning spin - no sooner had I left my garage - my chain broke. It took me 26 minutes to fix!
Looking forward to my next challenge!
Official record:
East to west 147.1 miles in 8 hours 07 minutes, 18.1 mph
East endpoint: Boston City Hall on New Sudbury Street
West endpoint: SH 2 at MA/NY state line west of Williamstown, MA