# Climb to the Clouds - Mt. Wachusett July 16, 2006



## Charlie Schuessler (May 23, 2006)

The Charles River Wheelmen have organized a Century Ride to Mt. Wachusett in Princeton Massachusetts on Sunday, July 16, 2006

Spend the day touring through the apple orchard country of east central Massachusetts.

Start Times:  8:00 from Concord-Carlisle High School, Concord, MA for 102, 92 or 80 miles.  9:30 from Nashoba Regional High School, Bolton, MA for 59, 47 miles. 

Cost:  A $10.00 event fee per entrant is payable the day of the event. There is no pre-registration.

Routes: The rides from Concord pass through Bolton Center where all riders join together. From Bolton all rides go through Lancaster and Sterling center. The 80 returns from Sterling; the 47 & 92 mile routes go to East Princeton. The 105 & 59 mile routes continue to Mt. Wachusett. All routes join back together at the water stop in Sterling. 

All rides return along the Boylston side of the Wachusett Reservoir, passing through West Boylston & Boylston. We ride through Berlin back to Bolton with a well deserved stop at the Berlin Orchards where you will find great hospitality, plenty of water and great food. All routes are fully arrowed and are on back country roads with minimum travel on numbered roads. A map and cue sheet is supplied. 

Terrain:  All routes are hilly. The long rides from each start point, the 105 from Concord and the 60 from Bolton, include a one mile climb at a steady 9% grade to the Visitors Center at the State Park and then a climb up the mountain access road to the summit at 2,000 feet above sea level.  The other routes are rolling and very hilly with no major climb.

Support:  Bananas, bagels & water will be available at the start points and at two staffed points along the routes, one in Sterling and one in Berlin. All routes pass both stops. There are convenience stores in towns along 

For more information go to http://crw.org/CTTC/climb2clouds.htm

Hope to see you there….


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## Charlie Schuessler (Jun 6, 2006)

So, who's riding?

How about the "World Traveler"?


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## skibum1321 (Jun 6, 2006)

I will probably do it.


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## Marc (Jun 7, 2006)

Yeah, I might do that... I'm also doing one of the one day Pan Mass routes...

Now if only the weather would improve so I could resume riding... between the business trip and the weather, I've only been trail riding twice and road riding, not at all, in the last month...


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## skibum1321 (Jun 8, 2006)

Marc said:
			
		

> Yeah, I might do that... I'm also doing one of the one day Pan Mass routes...
> 
> Now if only the weather would improve so I could resume riding... between the business trip and the weather, I've only been trail riding twice and road riding, not at all, in the last month...


I haven't been too much more. I've been on the trails twice all season and on the road 1-2 times per week for a couple weeks now.


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## Marc (Jun 11, 2006)

I went out riding today, at a place in CT called "Gay City."  Close to Case Mountain.  The ironic part is the riding was actually quite good.  Still some wet spots, mud here and there, puddles, and draining streams, but good riding.  We made it all the way up to Birch Mountain which is essentially within the Case Mountain trail system.

Lot's of single track, lots of up and down, rock gardens, drops, roots, and berms.  All in all a good day on the bike.  Now I have to get back out on the road bike this week.


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## Charlie Schuessler (Jun 12, 2006)

So far this season I've been able to trail ride once a week and road ride 2-3 days a week.  With some good weather coming I hope to improve trail riding to two days and road ride 3-4 days a week... Since the CRW Spring Century in Wakefield, MA, on the road bicycle I've been focusing on ascending rides working the 39 x 19, 21 & 23 combinations (saving the 24 & 27 gears for the really steep or long climbs) working between 15 - 40 mile rides... 

Next Monday we're going to sample ride Serotta Bicycles.  Last summer I rode a Legend http://www.serotta.com/pages/legend.html built up with a Dura Ace package and it felt like riding a feather...


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## Marc (Jun 12, 2006)

Charlie Schuessler said:
			
		

> So far this season I've been able to trail ride once a week and road ride 2-3 days a week.  With some good weather coming I hope to improve trail riding to two days and road ride 3-4 days a week... Since the CRW Spring Century in Wakefield, MA, on the road bicycle I've been focusing on ascending rides working the 39 x 19, 21 & 23 combinations (saving the 24 & 27 gears for the really steep or long climbs) working between 15 - 40 mile rides...
> 
> Next Monday we're going to sample ride Serotta Bicycles.  Last summer I rode a Legend http://www.serotta.com/pages/legend.html built up with a Dura Ace package and it felt like riding a feather...



F'in a man, why do I want to do this ride again?  The old dude-

sorry Charlie-

the "older than me" dude is gonna kick my arse.  Ah hell.


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## skibum1321 (Jun 13, 2006)

Marc said:
			
		

> F'in a man, why do I want to do this ride again?  The old dude-
> 
> sorry Charlie-
> 
> the "older than me" dude is gonna kick my arse.  Ah hell.


He's gonna kick both our butts. See ya in the back of the pack Marc.


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## bruno (Jun 20, 2006)

i'm thinkn' 'bout it, but i don't have any gears! both my bikes are fixed gear! anybody ever do this on a fixie?:idea: :-?   :beer:


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## skibum1321 (Jun 20, 2006)

bruno said:
			
		

> i'm thinkn' 'bout it, but i don't have any gears! both my bikes are fixed gear! anybody ever do this on a fixie?:idea: :-?   :beer:


That could be an interesting 100 miles. Especially since it's a hilly 100 miles...


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## Marc (Jun 22, 2006)

skibum1321 said:
			
		

> That could be an interesting 100 miles. Especially since it's a hilly 100 miles...



You're doing the 100 mile route, skibum?


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## skibum1321 (Jun 22, 2006)

Marc said:
			
		

> You're doing the 100 mile route, skibum?


That's the plan as of now. You up for it?


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## Marc (Jun 22, 2006)

skibum1321 said:
			
		

> That's the plan as of now. You up for it?



Yeah, I should be up for it.  That'll be a painful climb... in a good way though.  I'm just glad I've done the climb before, so I know what to expect.


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## skibum1321 (Jun 22, 2006)

Marc said:
			
		

> Yeah, I should be up for it.  That'll be a painful climb... in a good way though.  I'm just glad I've done the climb before, so I know what to expect.


I've never done it before and I really have no idea what to expect from it. I'm doing the CRW fitness ride tonight but it's a pretty flat ride. I really need to start working some more hills into my rides.


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## Marc (Jun 22, 2006)

skibum1321 said:
			
		

> I've never done it before and I really have no idea what to expect from it. I'm doing the CRW fitness ride tonight but it's a pretty flat ride. I really need to start working some more hills into my rides.



Well, I've never done the climb from the 140 side, but I expect that one to just be a grind... having driven it many times, it's straight and a steady grade the whole way up.

The climb on the auto road itself is tough, but there's a false peak and even a bit of elevation loss on the way up, if the ride follows the normal one way car road.  After that you hit to esses and going around the second one is the steepest point in the climb... somewhere around 18% if I remember correctly.  From there it's another straight and steady incline to the top, with a left hand turn onto the short drive up to the summit area for the last 30 vertical feet.

Definitely doable, but it will be painful.


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## Charlie Schuessler (Jun 22, 2006)

I found two volunteers (victims?) to cruise the 60-mile ride with… although the joke may be on me, they regularly cruise the 40-mile Plymouth-to-Waterville Valley loop to get a waffle cone ice cream…


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## skibum1321 (Jul 11, 2006)

Marc, 

You still doing this? Check your PMs


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## Marc (Jul 12, 2006)

Hi... yeah I'm with it.

No... for two reasons.  It's too long a drive to do an activity I can participate in from my driveway, and the main reason is I bought a sail boat and I have to pick it up on Sunday.  Tried to make it Saturday but I have to pick up the trailer for the sailboat then.




I may be getting involved in too many sports.


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## Charlie Schuessler (Jul 17, 2006)

I began the 60-mile route and finished 93-miles later....somehow after the the trip down the Mountain Road I wound up riding with a pace line completing the 100-Mile course and made my way onto Lincoln before I figured out something was wrong...it was hot and way too sunny, but I had a good time...


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