ABC Ride: Wednesday, September 2 at 10:30 a.m. from 29 Pratt Way, Hopkinton
ABC Riders
The Ashland Bike Club’s next ride will be held Wednesday, September 2 at 10:30 a.m. from Hopkinton’s Fruit Street Athletic Fields.
GPS Address: 29 Pratt Way, Hopkinton, Ma (park at Fruit Street Athletic Fields at the end of the road)
Route Name: ABC – Red Rock, Upton XI (get the right version)
Ride Rating:
Distance: Moderate
(23.8)
Elevation: Moderate-Challenging (60)
Total Gain: 1429 feet
Steepest: 7.3%
Wednesday’s Weather
Wednesday’s forecast
is calling for a cool, cloudy day with temps between 68 and 70 degrees. It might be a good idea to bring a windbreaker or something
with long sleeves just in case you are totally cool (as so many of you are).
The Ride
ABC’s Red Rock route includes a scenic, pastoral roll along the edge of Upton
State Forest, and a few back roads in Grafton that will make you feel like
you’re traveling through the deep-woods boonies of Maine. Most of the
route feels far more rural than it does suburban in that it covers lots of
country roads with numerous water views. This is very clearly one of
ABC’s most scenic routes.
At the ride’s mid-point, we’ll be paying a visit to the Red Rock Grill & Bar in Upton for a little outdoor dining on their patio. We’ll try to get a headcount before we start riding so that we’ll know whether to modify our reservation. If you would like to study the Red Rock’s menu before the ride, click here. We have a reservation for 12 at 12:15 pm.
Not up for lunch? No problem. We’ll all meet at the Red Rock and those who want to skip lunch can form their own “thanks, but no thanks” group and ride back together.
Bring your appetite and be prepared to do plenty of hill climbing, too. Make no mistake about it, this is a hilly route!!
Here’s a link to a map of Wednesday’s route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/50691890
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 think are worth sharing with the ABC cycling community. Please let us know what you think.
Ashland Bike Club Radio (*** - see how to get
rid of ads on youtube below)
See you later, alligator … Catch you in a while, crocodile …
Dan Zanes and Nick Cave – Sweet Rosyanne
Curt Kirkwood – Movin’ On
Steve Earle – Goodbye
Patty Griffin – Goodbye
Bob Dylan – Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right
*** - How to get rid of ads on youtube
Try adding an extension called “ublock” to your browser. Extensions
are just small helper programs that add features to your browser. The ublock extension
works great, it’s totally free, and it takes less than a minute to install.
Need more help with this? Just ask …
One of our ABC riders, Karen Schechtman, will be doing the
RIDE FOR FOOD.
Let’s
chip in all we can to help her meet her fundraising goal for this very worthy
charity!
Karen writes:
I will be participating in the “RIDE FOR FOOD” 🚴🏼♀️on September 27th! I have attached my donation link below. Appreciate any and all donations, no matter the amount.
I am extremely passionate about volunteering with the Boston Area Gleaners (BAG). Please read below all that BAG does for the community.
Thank you SO much!!🌽🥦
Check out Karen 's fundraising page for Three Squares New England - https://ride.threesquaresne.org/fundraiser/7495604
Boston Area Gleaners is a regional food systems organization working at the intersection of farming, food waste and food security.
Our mission is to increase access to fresh fruits and
vegetables across our communities while supporting our region's farms and
reducing systemic food waste. Our vision is to facilitate a reliable and fair
agricultural supply chain that will improve the viability of regional farms and
the health of communities who have historically suffered from inequity in the
food system.
In 2025, Boston Area Gleaners:
• Donated over 5.1M pounds of fresh
produce to our food access partners
• Transported 2.4M pounds of fresh produce on behalf of our partner farms and agencies
• Generated over $1.6M in revenue for 62 regional farms
This year Boston Area Gleaners' Ride & Stride for Food Team is aiming to raise $20,000 to support the work we do.”
Melatonin – harmless hormone … or not?
Some
people take a melatonin supplement to help them get to sleep. I tried it once for a few nights. It didn’t seem to do much so I stopped taking
it.
Most of the reviews suggest it is “all natural” and it’s identical to a hormone the body produces on its own.
The latest study from the American Heart Association, however, raises some serious concerns about its safety.
Check it out: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/08/260829035228.htm
Knee pain? Is rest the best treatment?
I went through a couple of weeks of knee pain last year. Going up
the stairs was painful; going down the stairs was unbearable. I had always been
told that “deep knee bends” were an absolute no-no and that they could tear
your meniscus or tear the cartilage in your knees. Always start with rest, they
said.
Well, I didn’t rest. I started doing squats which are essentially deep knee bends. In less than a week, my knee pain was gone … completely gone.
Should you just blindly follow this guidance? Of course not. Knee problems come in all different flavors and what works for one person might not work for another.
But, if you can rule out certain causes of knee pain, as itemized in the video linked below, squats might be exactly what the doctor ordered.
Check out the video: Your knees are not wearing out - Do this instead of resting
Please remember to check your email after 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday to make sure the ride was not cancelled or postponed due to weather or other reasons and … don’t forget those helmets … and your appetite!!
See you Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. at Hopkinton’s Fruit Street Athletic Fields (29 Pratt Way, Hopkinton). The food will be great, the scenery will be even better, and the company of your fellow riders will be best of all!
Joel