PFW : Etra Lake to Clarksburg 20100905

It was little chilly as we set off, and I was wearing full-finger gloves and arm-warmers. I hate being cold. But still, it's a sign of the immanent arrival of the fall/autumn and working out how a cold morsel like me can continue to cycle comfortably.

Anyway, Gary set a cracking pace ... maybe we need to reconsider at what level this ride is set ... sociable "B" suits me.



The deli at Clarksburg was inundated with various rides; I saw three or four groups arrive while we were there. Club rides seem to be a thriving  feature of central New Jersey.

PFW : Sourlands Friday 20100903

Posting this a bit late because I had browser/blog interface problems over the weekend.

However, we rode a very pleasant circuit from a new starting point and around the southwest edges of the Sourlands with one or two roads which somehow have hidden themselves from me ... until now.

The evenings are now drawing in. It was almost dark by 7.30pm/19.30 even with a clear sky. Blinky lights told the tale and led us back to our cars.

Down Time

The blog has got behind recently. It just would not load correctly using Chrome.

In the end there seemed to be an issue between Chrome and Quicktime. Quicktime enables the .mp3 under "Today I Am Mostly Listening To ..." to stream correctly, ie: on request from the viewer and not automatically as the page opens.

So with helpful advice from eBlogger - clear cache and update Quicktime - the page seems to load correctly again.

Please let me know if there are still issues via the Comments box below.

PFW : Griggstown Grinder : 20100831

Time passes so quickly ... it was the last Grinder of the season.

Fortunately we descended Springhill Road rather than repeat last week's climb ...



Thanks to Diane for planning this year's rides and for hosting a soirée after the ride.

See you all next year!!!

PFW : Pennington Y : 20100827

I managed to make the last ride of the season on this Friday evening. And what a fine evening it was ...

But this was to be no easy finale. Poor Farm Road and the upper stages of Pleasant Valley Road kept us either spinning out grannie gears or stood on the pedals. Not too taxing for hardened Griggstown Grinders, but challenge enough.



No ride for me this Sunday. I'm off to Windham Mountain for a rare visit to the US for the UCI Mountainbike World Cup.

Unfortunately, I'll miss the cross-country on Saturday, but will catch the pro downhill finals.

PFW : Griggstown Grinder : 20100824

What happened? Only a few days ago it seemed that never a day went by without the temperatures soaring into the 90s - F that is ... not C. So Tuesday evening, having heard that the ride was going ahead if the roads started drying after a day's rain, I set off complete with arm-warmers, because, believe me, it was cold!

An intrepid group of riders assembled at our new meeting point, although by that time Diane had turned up assuming no-one else would. 

So this select group set off with every expectation of being rained on again, but as it happened, it didn't.

This evening's torture ended up being a climb of Springhill Road, which was at its worst about 13.3 miles into the ride. 

By the time we returned the overcast sky ensured it was very gloomy indeed. In the event, the roads hardly dried, but we didn't get rained on bar a couple of spots as we arrived back at the start.

So get this, August, wet, cold ... but a great ride anyway.

PFW : Rainy Day at Etra Lake : 20100822

Let's face it ... if you don't like getting wet you'll never ride a bike in England.



Anyway, four intrepid riders did meet up at Etra and decided to go anyway ... sans leader, sans ride register, sans everything.

The gamble paid off for 10 miles, but a steady drizzle set in for the next 12 or so miles back to Etra. By the time we got back the rain had eased off, so we stuck in a couple of loops to make the ride up to 30 miles.

In the end, we made good time in the B Ride category, minimal stops and a sense of soggy satisfaction.

Back ... Back on the Blog ...

Just had a busy few weeks with family visiting from The Old Country. Managed a few rides, but now, haven't ridden for nearly two weeks. But I'll be back in the saddle soon, just as fall/autumn rolls on ... next target ... The Pumpkin Patch Ride Century.

Watch out Old Cranks!

PFW : Etra Park to Battleview Orchards : 20100808

A small, but perfectly formed collection of riders - in the Tour de France we'd be known as The Select Group - set off from Etra Park to enjoy the delights of Battleview Orchards. In my case, 2xBlueberry Strudels - $1.98 ...



As usual, thanks to Gary ... we only got lost once ...

PFW : Etra Park to Allentown : 20100801

A bit late for this ride; family in from the UK, massive laptop failure problems ... excuses, excuses ...

This Sunday's ride was a fast 42-miler which left people tired but exhilarated. Thanks to Gary and trusty lieutenant Donna.

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