NEMBA Fells Opening Day

Superfly's First trip to The Fells. The guy who lent me a pump, if you know him let me know. Karen and The Leg a the front of the group. Crossing over from the other side.

Saturday was NEMBA's Fells Opening Day Event. It just so happened that it was the nicest day thus far this year and tons of people showed up to ride on dirt. The Luna Chicks were there leading rides. JRA and IBC were there helping folks get their bikes ready to ride. The guys from Cycleloft were cooking up some Barbecue. Andrew from October Bikes was showing off his wares and IBC racer Greg Robidoux was working the massage table.

Making bikes work, giving away popcorn. That's what we do.

Repairs were done, tubes were pumped, and once it seemed the flow of customers had begun to subside, it was time to ride! That was really what this event was all about, getting out on the trails. Once out on the trails the repairs didn't end. A lot of people had pulled their bikes out for the first time this season. Derailleurs were getting thrown into spokes, stuff was breaking, it was mayhem.

Joe from I.F. and The Man himself, Philip Keyes of NEMBA

Everyone was out there, from beginners to Pros like Maureen Bruno-Roy, Rebecca Wellons, Greg Montello, and Alexis Wruble. Seeing the mass migrations of riders out to the trail-head was inspiring. Judging by the attendance at this event at last week's Hop Brook Dam race, it is going to be a good year for mountain biking.

Fast ride with the boys. First time the legs have seen daylight this season. Kevin catches a flat. Is that thing on?

At one point I had spun off from a group ride to get back to Flynn Rink with Greg The Leg and Kevin Sweeney. Kevin ended up ripping open his tubeless tire, it was far beyond sealing with Stan's. Unfortunately he didn't have a pump and I had only brought shop-size tools to fix other people's bikes, I was rolling with a tube and a cell phone, no flip tool, no pump. We were relatively close to the main drag where folks were crossing over into the main body of The Fells. I rolled down the way looking for a pump to borrow. I found it, the gentleman in the upper right hand corner of the photo at the top of this post lent me one. I returned the favor by never actually finding him and driving off with his pump at the end of the day. So if you know this guy, please drop me a line. I want to get his pump back to him with interest.

How does my hair look? Like Bjork's? Why thank you.

Big thanks to Philip, Tim, Terry, and all the other NEMBA people that work so hard so the rest of us can ride our knobelly tired bikes on dirt all over place. You guys, as they say, rock!

Mass Bike Commuter Breakfast

Last Friday morning Mass Bike did one of their Commuter Breakfasts at the Cambridge side of The Mass Ave. Bridge. It was a gorgeous morning and folks were out pedaling like mad. A huge cross-section of cyclists were on parade. You had your racer/commuters, hipsters on Fixies, Messengers, Berkeley students on ten speeds, bikes of all shapes and sizes, it was great to see everyone just getting out there.

Shane brings the hype

David, James, and Shane of Massbike were there, dishing out Orange Wedges and Bagels and Cream Cheese, along with info on Massbike.

We told pedestrians passing by that we'd give them free breakfast if they came back with a bike. Watch the Cambridge Police reports for a rash of bicycle muggings. "Hey, give me that bike, I want my free bagel!" Whack!

James manning the bagel bag

So many of the cyclists we saw were smiling and happy, quite a contrast to the motorists sitting in traffic, watching us suspiciously. One solution to that problem...ride your bike to work!


A few of the riders said they'd already had breakfast as they rolled on by. That's the beauty of riding your bike, you get second breakfast. Those calories you are so pragmatically burning aren't going to replace themselves. Have that bagel. Heck, have two!

Dave Watson, Executive Director of Mass Bike walks the walk,
or rolls the roll, or...you get my point

Seeing how many people are out there riding these days was pretty cool. Not sure what the statistics are but my impression is that there are more people doing it than when I first started riding around Boston in the early nineties. Who knows, maybe they were forced onto the bike by the high gas prices of last summer, only to realize how much more fun it is to ride than drive. Maybe they got hooked, maybe they couldn't put the bike down...couldn't kick the habit. Good thing it's an addiction that comes with little to no negative side effects. The positive side effects however, are too numerous to mention.

Thanks to The Mass Bike guys for putting this thing on. Watch for them at The Longfellow Bridge sometime soon.

Cutler Park Opening Day Ride

The group assembles. Heading up Winchester St.. Colin and PVB. Leaving Nahanton Park.

Wednesday was the official opening day of the oft overlooked, yet conveniently located Cutler Park in Needham. This was also the first of International Bike's Wednesday Mountain Bike Rides. I won't call it a night ride because lights are not required. All you need is a bike, a helmet, and a hankerin' for some fun.

The ride was well-attended, eight folks showed up, which might not sound like a lot, but it's a good sized crew once you're out on the trail. We rode right out the door of the shop, cut through The Book Fair parking lot, hit the road for just a couple minutes, and we were in Nahanton Park, on the dirt. Nahanton is limited but boasts a couple pretty fun obstacles in the from of large log hops in quick succession. Great place to practice your log-hurdling technique...or brush up on your Cyclocross Transitons.

Nahanton actually serves as a short cut to Cutler Park, dumping you out right across from a trailhead which leads into Wells Ave. and to Millenium Park beyond.

Whipping through the trees. Beauty of Semi-Urban riding. Plank bridge. Balancing act.

The pace was steady with several re-grouping and socializing stops. We were out there for about an hour and a quarter, getting back to the shop as the sun was about to set.

Technical stop. Re-group. Chasing GTL at high-speed. Sun on its way down.

The island in Cutler has a finite section of awesomely twisty-fast singletrack, great for cornering practice.

We'll be doing these rides every Wednesday throughout the season unless otherwise noted. Check our ride calendar for more info.

NEMBA Pre-Season Clean Up at The Fells

The Middlesex Fells officially opens in just a few days, so on this cool, blustery Saturday morning a bunch of folks got together for a little walk through and clean up of NEMBA's Mountain Bike Loop. Greater Boston NEMBA President, Tim Post was there to kick things off, then Terry Kennedy took up the helm from there.



We divided up into groups, driving to various points of the loop, which we would walk and inspect until we ran into another group coming the opposite way. Each crew was outfitted with Loppers, saws, and McCloud tools. The McCloud tool came in handy for smoothing out "Commando Water-bars" into more gradual water-shedding troughs with wider "lenses" at the end for more even water dispersal. NEMBA member Adam was an expert in the art of trail maintenance, showing the rest of us the way things are done properly.

IBC Racer Hannah Sarnow came out to represent as did
IBC Elite MTB Team Rider Kevin Sweeney. Thanks guys!

Due to the relatively dry end to winter, the trails weren't in bad shape at all. So after a couple hours of hiking around we met back at the Sheepsfold parking lot for a great (huge) lunch spread put together by Terry Kennedy.

Thanks to NEMBA for putting this event together. It seemed that just about all the hikers and walkers we met along the way were vocally appreciative of the trail work we were out there doing. Stuff like this can go a long way toward smoothing out relations between different groups sharing public lands.

IBC will be back down at The Fells for the opening day event on Saturday April 18th. We'll be doing some tech support, leading rides, and most importantly, giving away T.T. Buds Popcorn. Come by and say hi.

Commuters turn to scooters, bicycles in recession.

IBC featured on NECN

Racing Your Mountain Bike For The First Time

You're thinking of racing your Mountain Bike for the first time, or you're thinking of buying a Mountain Bike and racing it for the first time, or you were thinking of neither of the above, but once you learn how easy it is, you might just consider it. I hope so anyway.

First off, you'll need a decent bike. The less you spend on the bike initially, the more you will spend on it later as the parts break. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. As you break things you essentially earn your upgrades. Replace the broken parts with better ones. As Lance says "It's not about the bike". You don't want to be the person on the $6,000 bike off the back of the beginner race. Let your skill level exceed your fitness level.


You'll need some accessories to make sure you can finish the race (or any ride).

• Helmet. This is required at all races. You don't get to decide when you'll smash your head, that's why it's an accident. My helmet has saved my brains on a few occasions.
• Gloves. A minor fall can cause a lot of pain if you aren't wearing them.
• Glasses. Recommended but not required. Even cheap safety glasses from the hardware store can save your eyeballs from flying dirt and poky sticks.
  
• Pump. You don't want be walking out of the woods. C02 Cartridges are another option but should be used only during races.
  
• Tubes. Bring two with you at all times.
• Tire Levers. Have them, know how to use them, if you don't ask someone at your local bike shop.
  
• Tool. A good flip tool should be in your pocket or bag on every ride.
• Water Bottles or Hydration Pack. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! On hot days and during races use a sports drink. Anything from Gatorade to more high-tech stuff like GU2O or Accelerade.
  

Items like Bike Shorts and technical clothing are something that can be figured out later as you get more serious. After the first wet, muddy race you do wearing baggy cut offs and a T-shirt, you'll be looking to upgrade your wardrobe fast!

Getting your bike ready. Take it to a reputable bike shop (hmm, where would I find one of those?) to have it checked over for safety and have it tuned if needed. They should also be able to help you with a rough fit on the bike as well and answer any other questions you might have.

Getting your body ready. Don't over-think it at first. Just go out and ride your mountain bike, NEMBA can show you where to go. Let your skills and your fitness improve together. Don't worry about Heart Rate Monitors, Power Meters, Coaches and training plans when you're starting out. That can come later if you decide to take things to the next level. Ride as much as you can or as much as you feel like. Seek out group rides, NEMBA can also help with that.

A fun way to chart your progress is set up an off-road Time Trail course. Choose a loop that takes roughly 30 minutes and then do it as fast as you can without stopping and record your time. Do this course once every week to see if you are getting faster. It's a great method for figuring out pacing and develop the high speed skills and focus required to race a bike. You'll begin to look forward to your MTB TT day!

One of the truly wonderful things about mountain biking is that, once you get past the initial, basic learning phase, you will be way too focused on how much fun you are having to worry about "working out" or "getting fit". Fitness just happens as your love for the sport grows.

Riding with faster, more skilled people is the best way to improve. Ask the folks at your local Shop when their group rides and skills clinics are.

Race Time. You'll need to know where and when the races are. There are few indispensable resources you'll have to familiarize yourself with (for finding races in New England anyway):

• Bikereg.com - Search for races in your area then register online. A great service.
• Root 66 Race Series - A huge schedule of local races. Jill and Chris do a swell job with these.
  
• EFTA Race Series - An equally awesome schedule of local races.
  
• USA Cycling - The big, national level events. All have beginner races.
  

You'll have to fill out a profile on Bikereg to register for events. Pre-regging as it is called is easier for both you and the race promoter. I'd highly recommend it.
Of course you can almost always just show up and register on the spot. Just allow a little more time. USAC races like Root 66 will give you the option of purchasing a day racing license or an annual license. This can also be done online at the USAC site. EFTA does a day license as well or you can purchase an annual license at any event.

Eating before your race. Big, I say BIG rookie mistake is to over do it. You almost want to be hungry on the line, seriously. Eat your breakfast at least three hours beforehand and keep it light. A couple packets of Oatmeal, or some cereal, maybe a bagel with peanut butter. Whatever sits well in your gut. You might want to try out a few food combos before hard rides leading up to the race. Have a bar of some sort or a banana an hour or so before the start. You can supplement that with Gels and energy drink right up to and during the actual race.

Warm up? Get there as early as possible, an hour before minimum. If your race is 12 miles and you're used to riding much farther than that I would warm up by pre-riding the course or just spinning around for a bit. If that seems like a huge distance I wouldn't warm up, you'll need that energy for the race.

Race Prep. I like to get out of the car, get suited up, put everything I need in my pockets or Hydration pack and get on my bike as soon as possible when I get to an event. First place I head is registration to get all sorted out and get my number on the bike. At that point I'm basically ready to go, plenty of time to work any bugs out.

Begin hovering around the start line ten or fifteen minutes before your race is scheduled to start. Unless you are at a big, national level event like Mt. Snow you won't need to worry about start position. The promoters will get on the loud speaker to announce staging or delays. Just make sure you are within earshot.

Go Time. Eat a gel, take a good swig of your drink, and focus on how you are going to ride your bike really, really well. Think "Fast, Fun, and Efficient". If you are nervous think to yourself "Well, let's go out there and see what happens, no pressure". People will start fast, if you can follow them, go for it. If you find yourself hyper-ventilating for a long period of time, your head starts feeling tingly, or you begin to see stars...back off a bit. Ride at your own pace, enjoy the act of riding your bike in the woods, do it as fast as you can, but don't go nuts! If you have something left for the next lap (most beginner races will be two laps) then pick up the pace.

What I've outlined here is really just a quick primer. The best way to gain more knowledge is to get out there and do it! Call or email over to The Shop or leave a comment below if you have any questions.

International Bicycle will have a full schedule of mountain bike related events starting up in April. We want to help you get out on your mountain bike and start having fun!

Resources:

• NEMBA
• Root 66
• EFTA
• USA Cycling
  
• International Bicycle Center

IBCer Erich Leas on Boston.com

From a February 15th article on Boston.com on the subject of winter Cyclo-Commuting in Boston.

Erich Leas, 26, takes the opposite approach. The Jamaica Plain resident says he puts in 300-plus riding days a year. His traction strategy? "Run the skinniest tires you can get to cut through the loose-packed stuff," he says, available to speak only because he's behind the counter at Allston's International Bicycle Center rather than slugging it out on the roads. "It's worked pretty well for me. And fenders, of course."

-Erich Leas

Read the rest of the article HERE.