Dolly's Bike Blog

It was nice to see the sun this morning when it was time to ride, although it went into hiding for much of the day, but luckily no rain!

We had some difficulty getting started leaving Sturbridge Host Hotel, as the traffic light did not recognize any of our lightweight bikes, so we skirted across 4 lanes of traffic and headed north, first past Sturbridge Commons (where Nancy I. and I had walked yesterday), then through Southbridge, and onto Oxford.  The hills did not seem as steep or as long today, for which my legs are thankful.

The recent rain had made everything green and we rolled past cattle farms, through Manchaug and into Whitinsville.  There I noticed seemingly hundreds of yellow ribbons tied to phone poles for several miles. I asked a local and he told me a local boy had died in Afghanistan and there had been quite a memorial parade.

As luck would have it, the town of Westborough, site of our 40 mile sag stop, had a bike shop as Lynda C. and Chef Emily both had chain problems today.  I am thankful that my Orbea is performing well, though I confess to spending all my time in the small ring with recent hills.

I was riding with Gail, Wendy, and Marilyn again today and we passed on a Starbucks stop in Westborough, looking forward to ice cream noted on our cue/clue sheet at mile 51.  Sadly the shop was closed – not sure if just today or permanently.  We ended up “picnicking” standing over our bikes at mile 54 – thank goodness for PBJ.

We crossed several interstates today: I-90, I-290, and I-495, an indication that we are skirting around Boston.  Our hotel, the Holiday Inn Boxborough, is just off I-495, but there are no restaurants or other amenities for at least 5 miles.

All of the other cyclists were transported for a picnic at the home of Robin, friend of several of the riders from a Southern Tier tour.  I was invited out by Ralph & Anne Sheridan and had a delightful evening reminiscing about “old times” and catching up on current events.  Don and I will see them again in 3 weeks at Tanglewood.

Late in the ride, I realized we were riding along a ridge and could sometimes glimpse wide vistas on hills/mountains in the distance, with lots of trees. That is a big difference to the Southern Tier ride, when we were following spring across the country.  Here the trees are full and we can’t see the great expanses around us.

Kathy Q. from Dallas took this photo of me among the trees earlier in the day.

And special thanks to Ralph and Anne for a wonderful evening of friendship.

63.02 miles today; 4100+ ft of ascent (4400+ ft of descent – we are headed once again to the coast!).

After I posted last night, I received this photo, taken before the intrepid group departed in the cold and rain on Tuesday.  I think Lesley from Australia is the only one missing from this photo that also rode yesterday.  We celebrated crossing into Connecticut and into Massachusetts with “adult lemonade” last night – since the hotel has a bar we had to be discreet about “imported” beverages.

Today was truly a wonderful day of rest.  I was able to sleep in until 7 am, spent over half an hour cleaning my bike, showered, then Marilyn B. and I took our laundry next door to the Super 8 (our hotel has no laundry facilities) and then had breakfast at McDonald’s nearby while our clothes were washing. We also helped with laundry for Michelle and Emily, our guides, since we had snuck into their hotel to do our laundry.  By the time the two loads were done, it was lunch time.

We walked to Sturbridge Seafood and had a delightful lunch with Nancy H., Emilie (Nancy’s wife), Sheila (Nancy’s sister), Judi R., and Nancy I. – yummy fish tacos.

After lunch, Nancy I. and I walked to Old Sturbridge Village.  We decided not to pay the entry fee, but did visit the gift shop and the herb garden.  Our plans to buy postcards were defeated by some 50 school-age kids lined up to buy candy and souvenirs.  Then we walked to Sturbridge Commons, the historical center of town.  Sturbridge was incorporated in 1738.

When we returned to the hotel, I relaxed on our patio, to be joined by 2 ducks who enjoyed some Doritos I shared.  While the hotel needs a perk-up, our room had a lovely view of Cedar Lake/Pond. Spent some time on a  bench by the water while talking on the phone.  And after dinner (again at Sturbridge Seafood), I took some photos at sunset.

Only 7 more biking days – but no miles today!

Last night in East Windsor, Peter Murphy, brother of Nancy I., treated us to wine and cheese – it was a perfect evening for this treat after such a cold day on the road. (Sorry the photo is less than perfect.)

Peter Murphy with sister Nancy I.

Our ride start today was delayed until 10 am, hoping for some relief from the rain forecast.  In fact, we never rode in a downpour, though we did experience periodic drizzles.  And it was cold, certainly not higher than 50 degrees.  You can keep warm pedaling up the hills, but the downhills will freeze your bones.  Luckily, it was only a 40 mile day.

Lots of backroads on this route, very little traffic, and plenty of hills.  Don had warned me about the downhills to the creeks, then the steep uphills – today was the worst example so far.

Super sag Nancy B. had hot chocolate for us at the 20 mile sag, and I added rain pants (thanks to Nancy H.) and dry gloves (thanks to Nancy H. and Nancy B.).  Can’t say I was warm, but also wasn’t freezing.  At mile 38, the cue/clue sheet indicated a steep hill – and I confess I walked – just too steep and late in the ride to try to struggle to pedal up.

We have a rest day tomorrow here in Sturbridge – can’t get excited about Old Sturbridge Village, may just relax, do laundry, read, eat and relax some more.

Mileage today: 40.6; ascent 2400+ feet.  Total mileage since Fort Lauderdale: 2296.4 miles; since Key West: 2523.88 miles.