This past weekend found Ludlow, Vermont, invaded by a gang of bicyclists from the Finger Lakes. There was a total of 19 of us, most staying in the hostel in the heart of town. Always a bit of a gamble this time of year, the weather gave us better than an even break — no serious rain at all and much of the time there was sun among the clouds. It was truly a memorable trip and certainly one of the most thoroughly documented in photos. Here are most of the photo galleries from participants:
Brenda | Juan | Amy | Randy | Steve P | Andrejs
For details of the trip, below is Brenda’s great summary of the weekend.
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I posted my photos and sent out the link, yet it still doesn’t seem to do the Columbus Day FLCC tour justice, so here are a few words.
I have been on three FLCC tours in the past two years, and each one has been a wonderful experience. Earlier this year, in June, I decided that I wanted to begin sharing these experiences with my 9yo son, Jordan. It would expose him to a hobby that I am passionate about, as well as expose him to a completely different sort of vacation than he’s ever experienced. When I first told him that we would be staying at a hostel, and explained that we would be sharing our room with up to four other people, he was less than thrilled.
But, he’s quite resistant to “new” and “change,” so I thought we’d give it a go, and if it was a complete disaster, we could probably find a hotel room somewhere. We drove up with Sam K. and Eileen P., and arrived Friday night around 8 or so, and we were the first group to arrive. Randy O. had arrived on Thursday, as he’d been on a business trip just east of Utica and decided it would be more efficient to just drive over from there. The next group arrived around 9:30, comprised of Juan S., Olivia D., and Ben. Soon afterward, Andrejs, Diana, Steve G. and Alexey L., and Laurel and Amy P. arrived.
Saturday morning, Juan, Olivia, Sam and Ben headed out for the 136 mile, 6 gap ride around 6am. The rest of us slept in a little longer, and then decided to take a leisurely 30+ mile ride. Our group comprised of Andrejs, Steve G., Alexey, Eileen, Laurel, Amy, Randy, Jordan, and me. I don’t have the cue sheets, nor do I remember many of the road names. I do remember that we headed south on VT 100 for a few miles, and then turned up a road that followed a creek or river for several miles. “Black River” is sticking in my mind, but perhaps that was a sign I saw for another river as I can’t find it on google maps? It was typical picturesque Vermont, bringing to mind such words as “bucolic” and “idyllic,” with nary a fast food joint or big box store to be seen, and old clapboard sided houses and stone churches populating the landscape.
A highlight of our ride was when we stopped at the 1815 house, what we determined to be a B&B with a bistro. When the group of us walked through their door, into a little area with about 5 tables, the 2 owners went into a tailspin. At first they weren’t quite sure what to do with us, and told us we’d have to do with a limited menu, as it was just the two of them cooking. When we agreed that would be fine with us, they seemed to calm down, and after a few minutes, came up with a delicious solution: lunch of fettucine alfredo and salad for all 9 of us. After we had finished, one of the owners came out with the pot in which he had cooked the fettucine, which still had a substantial amount of pasta left in it, and offered second helpings!
The leaves were at the peak, and the mountains were aglow with fiery red, flaming yellow, and toasty orange hued leaves. While the colors were warm, the air was not. Saturday’s temps were in the low 50’s with grey skies. It sprinkled a few times, but nothing major.
Climbing the hills kept us warm, and then coming back down them cooled us off. Our biggest climb occurred toward the latter part of our ride. It was nothing compared to what Juan, Sam, Olivia and Ben were doing, but it was challenging enough for me on the tandem with Jordan.
We climbed for about 5 miles and gained 1000 ft, with a few grades as steep as 14%. We tried as valiantly as we could, but Jordan and I were unable to ride the steepest sections of the road. We walked the tandem up, but just in time, we were treated to a long, fun, fast, twisty descent. I kept our speed to around 30-35mph, but could have easily hit 40+mph. Jordan was squealing behind me, whether in delight or terror; I’m not sure, but I’m not sure he knew, either. When we got to the bottom, he said breathlessly, “That was like riding the Predator (at Darien Lake)!” We arrived back at the hostel around 5:30 and had a filling and enjoyable dinner together. Juan and his crew didn’t arrive back until close to 9:30 or so.
Sunday began cold and rainy, but turned sunny in the afternoon. Andrejs, Alexey, and Steve G. headed out on a 50 mile ride, while Olivia, Ben, and Juan headed to an Ibex sale in Quechee. Sam, apparently not having his fill of riding for the weekend, headed out on a century route with Eileen. Randy joined them for a bit, but turned back earlier. Laurel, Amy, Jordan and I headed out with the Powell family, who had arrived Saturday night. Steve P. was also riding in this tour on a recently purchased tandem with his daughter Claire. His is a Bike Friday, and mine is a Co-Motion. I should note that Ben and Olivia were also riding a tandem, although I didn’t have a chance to ride with them at all over the weekend. We went up rt. 100 to the Calvin Coolidge Homestead 11 or so miles north/northeast of Ludlow. It was a cute little site, with a general store and post office, barn, the house Coolidge grew up in, a church, and a cheese factory. We hung around here for a couple hours, exploring and having lunch before heading back to the hostel. We arrived back around 3:30 or so, just as Juan, Olivia, and Ben headed out for a ride, having returned from the tent sale. They started out the same way from which we had just returned, but then went in search of some dirt roads and arrived back at the hostel well after dark.
Monday morning, we awoke to a heavy frost that required window scraping. A group of us headed down to North Adams, MA to explore the Mass MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) before heading home. We spent several hours there, but had to cut our visit short as we wanted to reach Ithaca at a reasonable hour, since most of us had to return to work the next day. All in all, I’d say Jordan’s first bike tour was a grand success. Despite his early reservations about the hostel arrangement, he totally dug it once we arrived there and settled in.
He was also happy with both the rides. I tried to remain as flexible as possible, and gave him the option to ditch the rides and go hiking if it was too cold for him, but he was up for riding both days. He complained about being a little cold both days, but apparently it wasn’t too discouraging. When we reached Ithaca last night, he said, “So, Mom…… when’s the next trip?” I laughed and told him he’d have to wait until spring. In the meantime, we’ll have to think up new and exciting destinations for next year’s bicycle tours.
Brenda
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