DT Active Life 050617 for web-REVISED

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Join a Group Ride:
The First Ride of the Season
Now that the weather is beginning
to clear up and the snow
banks have melted, many of us
who have had our bikes sitting on the
trainer all winter are beginning to get
back out on the roads. The weather is
occasionally a little finicky in Spring,
but getting back into the saddle is always
better done earlier in the season
rather than later. The great part about
our area is that group rides can be
found everyday throughout the week,
and most have already started up with
regular meeting times. So if you’re
lacking in the motivation department,
hooking up with one (or all) of these
groups can give you a little help getting
out the door and back on the bike.
The first official group ride that
I was able to get to this year was on
Thursday, March 30th over at Grey
Ghost Bicycles, located in The Colvin
Building down on Glen Street in Glens
Falls. They will be hosting group rides
from now until when the snow starts
to fly again next Fall. If you’re looking
to come on the next ride, the meeting
place is the public parking lot behind
Grey Ghost Bicycles at 6pm SHARP.
The ride is usually comprised of an ‘A’
Group that goes a little further and a
little faster than the ‘B’ Group. Both
groups are led by either Steve Fairchild
or Niles Gagnon who are experienced
riders, bike mechanics, and
permanent fixtures at Grey Ghost. All
rides are no-drop rides, meaning that
if you’re newer to the sport, you don’t
need to worry about getting left out in
the middle of nowhere. Niles and Steve
are on hand to help anyone with mechanical
issues or flats that happen
from time-to-time out on rides.
Our ride that Thursday was a bit
colder than normal spring and summer
conditions as it was 42 degrees, but
there were still about 12
hardy riders that showed
up. We set out across the
bridge into South Glens
Falls and down Saratoga
Road before picking up
Butler Road. We used
Redmond Road to cross
over The Northway and
get out to the nice country
roads of Selfridge and
Clark Road. Once we got
over I-87 the ride was a
pretty gradual downhill
except for one short, steep
hill towards the end of
Clark Road followed by a pretty steep,
fun descent out to West River Road. The
ride followed the Hudson River north
for about three miles until we made our
way back up into South Glens Falls via
Fort Edward Road and Sisson Road.
The ride finished up back over the
bridge into Glens Falls and with a short
sprint up the Civic Center Hill, we were
back at GGB.
The ride was fairly easy and casual
given that it was most peoples’ first
The group
stayed very
close together,
talked about
how sick and
tired they
were of riding
on their bike
trainers...
By Jared Newell
Photo by Niles Gagnon
time out on the roads for the year. The
group stayed very close together, talked
about how sick they were of riding the
bike trainers, and how the rest of their
winter was since everyone last saw one
another. Overall we rode 22 miles and
averaged a very relaxed 16 mph. While
it was definitely a very social ride, as
the weather becomes warmer and the
ride gathers its normal
group of riders, the ‘A’ and
‘B’ rides will break off into
groups of 15-20 riders.
As the summer ramps up
the rides progress to some
more difficult routes and
get a little faster.
While there is plenty
of help out on the rides,
its always a good idea to
bring a couple of water
bottles, some gels or nutrition
bars, and your own
flat kit (spare tube, co2
and inflator, patch kit) to
be on the safe side. Helmets are always
mandatory, and LED lights are recommended,
especially for the longer rides
when it might start getting dark before
the end of the ride. If you haven’t been
out on the roads in a while it wouldn’t
hurt to get your bike checked out at
your local bike shop or get a tune up
before getting out there and riding.
I am looking forward to more Thursday
Night Rides and hope to see some
of our readers out there!
The Grey
Ghost group
out on one of
their favorite
routes.
Check with
your local
bike shop to
locate a
group ride
you can join.
12 | DACKS & TOGA activelife