V-CC New England Section: May 2008

Ray's Roundel, May 10, 2008

Next event: Liz Coffey's film night, May 24

Reading Pilgrim propaganda in Watertown

Look closely

c1973 Holdsworth Super Mistral

1967 Hetchins Vade Mecum

Reading Viking propaganda in Weston

Scenic Waltham

Photos by Chris Barbour

The V-CC on a Bummel, April 27, 2008

The Oxford English Dictionary defines a bummel as "a leisurely stroll or journey." Ours wandered from densely settled urban neighborhoods through suburban landscapes, sprawling cemeteries with rolling hills and Neo-Gothic chapels, a park built around a mountain of trash, to a stunning expanse of woods, marsh, and dirt tracks at the edge of Boston.

The third helmet in the stack has just fallen.

Photos by Chris Barbour

Tour of the Donkeys, April 12, 2008

Donkeys, a few sheep, a lot of horses, and many beautiful old farmhouses and barns...

Photos by Chris Barbour

Road Salt Ride, March 15, 2008

Winter in southern New England is not what it once was. The prospect of scheduling a club run in concurrence with snow is dodgy at best. Indeed on the morning of the ride the sound of rain falling in the alley accompanied my breakfast. When it came time to pack the saddlebag before heading out the door, I noticed that the sound had stopped. I raised the blind and saw that the rain had turned to snow. "Perfect!"

Mudguards clogged with pine needles and snow bring proceedings to a quick halt. Bob hoists the Flying Scot.

We like our old bikes splattered with mud. It's cycling, not taxidermy.

Photos by Chris Barbour

Charles River Time Trial, February 3, 2008

The New England Section's speed judging event covers two laps of 8.6 miles each around the Charles River Basin, from the Weld Boathouse at Harvard to the Museum of Science, past Beacon Hill, the Back Bay, and Allston, finally crossing the Larz Anderson Bridge back to the starting point. The rider with the smallest difference between laps is winner. Pedestrians, dogs, joggers, rollerbladers, baby carriages, and other cyclists provide sporting interest.

Bob Williamson on his aerodynamically enhanced pre-War Elgin.

By tradition the contestants buy the timekeeper lunch at John Harvard's Brewhouse after the race. This year they forgot :-(

Who thought it would be a good idea to ride over seventeen miles on a Raleigh RSW 16? No one more fully embraces the spirit of the Charles River Time Trial.