ABC Ride: Saturday, October 4 at 10:30 a.m. from Haskell Field, Sudbury

[Joel Arbeitman]

The next Ashland Bike Club ride will be held this Saturday, October 4 at 10:30 a.m.  The ride will start from Haskell Field in Sudbury. 

GPS Address:  38 Fairbank Rd, Sudbury, Ma

Route Name:    ABC – Verrill Farm for Hill Haters

Ride Rating:
Distance:   Easy-Moderate (23.3)
Elevation:  Easy (35)
Total Gain: 815 feet
Steepest:    5.4%

Saturday’s Weather

The forecast for Saturday calls for a perfect riding day with temps ranging from 70 to 78 degrees under totally sunny skies.

 

By the way, next Wednesday’s forecast looks like a total rainout.  Ride while you can!  The best riding days are dwindling down to a precious few.

 

Looking ahead, we have some great rides coming up in the next few weeks including:  Three Bike Paths and Lake Boon, Mattapoisett, Nashua River Rail Trail, Hog Island and the Cape Cod Canal, the Shining Sea Trail and many more.

Saturday’s Ride

Saturday’s route is one of the flattest we could find.

Earlier versions of this route used to take us to Lake Boon before heading over to Verrill Farm.  This version of ABC’s Verrill Farm route eliminates the trip to Lake Boon and also avoids Hudson Rd.  As a trade-off, we’ve added some highly scenic roads in the Water Row area of Wayland and a few new roads after the Verrill Farm lunch stop as well.

With an average gain-per-mile of just 35 feet, it’s hard to find on-road routes anywhere in Metrowest much flatter than this one.  This route is “almost” bike path flat.  Are there hills?  Sure … but, overall, this one falls into the “easy” category and should be no problem for most ABC riders.

We’ve been doing lots of really challenging rides lately.  This is not one of them.  With great weather, great scenery, very few hills, and even a visit to the fields at Verrill Farm, this one should be a treat.

Here's a link to a map of Saturday’s route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/52200325

You can print our “official cue sheet” for the ride by clicking the link above, then click “More”, then click “Print Map and Cue PDF”, and finally click “Print Official”.

 

Off the Route
Our “Off the Route” feature includes interesting topics we’ve come across that we think are worth sharing.  Please let us know what you think.

 

Ashland Bike Club Radio

Dion and the Belmonts – I Wonder Why

Sha Na Na – Remember Then

 

Anker Power Bank Recall
Between playing music on my cell driving to (and from) ABC rides and using RideWithGPS during the rides, there’s always a chance of draining the battery on my cell. One time I ran out of power in Wompatuck State Park after our Scituate ride and had to follow someone back to the highway because my phone died and I had no access to Google Maps or Waze.

 

Now I carry backup power in the form of an external power bank that can fully recharge my cell if it runs out of battery.

 

The good news is the Anker battery I bought is not on the Anker recall list.

 

Is yours?

 

Check it out:  https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2025/Anker-Power-Banks-Recalled-Due-to-Fire-and-Burn-Hazards-Manufactured-by-Anker-Innovations-1

 

Should you unplug your phone charger when it’s not in use?
If you’re like most people, you turn to Martha Stewart’s website when technology questions arise.

 

So, what’s the guidance on this “unplug your charger” business?  There are lots of rumblings about it but does it really make any difference?

 

The risk some have cited is that phone chargers can cause fires.

 

But do they?

 

Read the article:  https://www.marthastewart.com/why-you-should-unplug-phone-charger-after-use-11813637

 

E-Biker versus ICE

And, if you’ve made it this far …

Watch this very short ICE “meltdown”:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqvWKR-QQOw

 

To recap this Saturday’s ride, we’ll meet at Haskell Field in Sudbury at 10:30 a.m.

 

As always, check your email after 9:00 a.m. on ride days to make sure we didn’t postpone or cancel the ride and … don’t forget those helmets!

 

See you soon.

 

Joel