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SMR 09/19/2026

17 Sep 2026 11:28 AM | Joseph Lellman (Administrator)

I just posted a ride for Saturday AM.  9 AM start at Pulaski Park.  Out to Westhampton again, to do the paved part of King's Highway/Resevoir Rd.  Possible gravel detour around Pine Island Lake, then Northwest Rd to Chesterfield.  Stop at Chesterfield General Store and down to the Gorge.  Up Ireland St to 112 south, then, back on COUNTY RD!  Yikes!  See you there.

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  • 19 Sep 2026 4:43 PM | Joseph Lellman (Administrator)
    SMR summary: Author's note- I may try to incorporate a mix of old timey expressions, as well as Gen Z slang into this report in order to demonstrate the breadth of my knowledge and lived experience. Apologies in advance if I offend...
    I was totally chuffed by today's SMR! I was pumped that,by the time Tim C. had texted me about his lack of availability to lead a ride, I had already posted one! PSYCH! I scheduled the ride to start at 9AM, and end at 1 PM, and I rolled into my driveway at 12:59. I was so pleased that the first thing I did was stand on my head and spit nickels! (Anyone have change for a nickel, BTW?) I was a little worried about the route that I had planned because it looked a bit strange on paper, but it seemed to work out well.
    A nice group assembled at Pulaski Park for the 9 AM start. Among the sufferfest participants were: John Marshall (who I usually call Boltcutter, but today he had a sweet, steel Indy Fab one-by with a dinner plate at the back), Madelyn Mad-dog Nagy (fresh from crushing Mt. Greylock one week ago), Brent the Music Man Auerbach, Zach the Ninja Judson, Jeff Silver Fox Barronn, and me. The biggest disappointment, and only real stain on an otherwise great day, was that Marco Panetonne was a no-show, even though he had texted me personally yesterday to say that he would be attending. It seems he was a little under the weather and couldn't get out of bed. Poor baby. We did catch a glimpse of him later, as we were finishing our ride.
    It was chilly at the debut, and it didn't really warm up too much. Most of us were slightly under-dressed, except Johnny Cash wanna-be Zach. He was clad in black from head to toe, including a provocative black doo-rag. Dude was seriously Kitmaxxing! Bro is my Ride or Die, so I don't think he'll mind me ribbing him a little.
    Anyway, we went out the old TNR route, past NHS and down Nonotuck. Then, out to Leeds and past Musante Beach. The pace was solid as we took Montague Rd, North Rd, and Hathaway to get to Westhampton, and our first set of climbs on Resevoir Rd. There's a short, steep one followed by a longer, steep one, with gradients up to 18%. At the top, we took a detour down East Shore Rd, with a brief stop at my camp to drop my jacket and knee warmers, then over the dam, and out by Red Pick-up Truck Lady's house, to Northwest Rd. NW Rd climbs up to Chesterfield, and we continued our B+ pace to the CGS for refreshments. At this point, Jeff headed home, leaving five of us to tackle the remaining hills. We zoomed down 143 to the bottom of the Gorge, then up Ireland St, which is a tough climb, but which had all new pavement. Then, fast downhill to South Worthington and the junction of Rte 112. In a momentary fit of disorientation Brent thought that he was in Leverett. We pacelined down 112, which would have been more fun if the pavement had been better and if the cars had been going more slowly.
    We finally arrived at the major impediment of the day- County Rd (that's in Huntington, Brent). It's a beast of a climb-long and steep. As usual Zach and Madelyn were out front, with you know who at the tail end. After conquering that one, we went down Rte 66 and turned left on North Rd, and into Westhampton Center. Then home on Chesterfield Rd and Kennedy. John took a group photo there, and I'm hoping that a tech wizard will find it and post it here (as well as the photo that I posted on my Strava feed). Back in Leeds, we took the Rail Trail to our respective destinations. I had 52.5 miles, 4,200 feet of elevation, and 3 hours and thirty minutes of ride time. I was just the right amount of tired/ clapped out at the end, and I had commented earlier that we are very lucky to be able to do these types of rides in such beautiful country! The route seemed good- I was as proud as a dog with two tails (that's a Beverly Hillbillies reference- womp, womp).
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