Join CRW online for an informative workshop covering trainer options, virtual platforms, and staying connected with fellow riders. This is the perfect time to get your indoor setup ready for the colder months ahead!

Workshop Details

• When: 7:00 PM, Thursday, November 19th, 2026
• Format: Virtual event via Google Meet
• Duration: 1.5 hour

What We'll Cover

• The basics of indoor training
• Things to consider when looking for an indoor trainer
• Different types of trainers available on the market
• Zwift, Rouvy, Peloton, and other platforms
• Using Discord while virtual riding
• Q&A session

How to Join

• Register on the event calendar. Zoom link will be emailed 24 hours before the event
• Join from your computer, tablet, or smartphone

Questions?

Email questions to rides-VP@crw.org

Presentation materials will be available afterward for those who can't attend live.

See Cranberry Century photos HERE!

Monika O'Shea brought her "real" camera and got in several sprints up the road to take photos during the Praline Croissant Ride.

Images Copyright 2026 Monika O'Shea. Shared with permission.

***SHARE YOUR RIDE PHOTOS WITH CRW!***

Email them to: media-share@crw.org 

WheelPeople is CRW's monthly newsletter, featuring club news, event and program announcements and recaps, cycling travelogues, gear reviews, and other in-depth articles. General announcements and informal updates are better suited to the member blog, Slack, or ChainLink.

Submission Guidelines

• Length: Aim for 500 words or fewer. This is a target, not a strict limit. Keep articles focused and concise.

• Writing: Lead with important information, avoid repetition, and use links for additional background.

• Formatting: Keep it simple! Bold, italics, headings, and lists are fine. Avoid elaborate formatting.

• Images: Attach photos as separate files. Indicate placement and captions in the article. Images cannot appear within the first three lines of text.

• Editing: Editors may adjust wording, formatting, and image placement.

For more details, see our Complete WheelPeople Submission Guidelines.

Deadline: Submit by the 20th for consideration in the following month's issue.

Send articles to:wheelpeople-editor@crw.org

WheelPeople is published at crw.org/wp, generally during the first week of each month.

Want to get more involved?

We're always looking for volunteers to help with editing and producing WheelPeople. If you'd like to take on a larger editorial role, we'd love to hear from you! Contact wheelpeople-editor@crw.org.

By John Springfield

I love September weather for bicycle touring.  I usually plan a week-long tour, but this year a special occasion tempted me to try a 770 mile tour to Detroit. Why bike to Detroit?  Well, my 60th high school reunion was occurring in early October.  At age 78, was this going to be "too much"?  I gave myself 3 weeks.

Instead of climbing over the Berkshires, I arced northwest to climb Hogback Mountain in southern Vermont.  I had been over Hogback recently, so I knew what to expect. After that I would follow the Erie Canal, cross into Canada at Buffalo, then on to Michigan.

The whole trip was motel-to-motel, so I carried no camping gear. But my baggage still weighed 25 pounds.  Going up hills was going to be a test...

It took me two days to get to Brattleboro.  I hit rain on the second day.  The rain in itself was not a problem, but my map app "bicycling route" took me down dirt roads that turned into a muddy mess.  One "road" was under water at several places.

On day 3 the 2300 foot climb up Hogback started.  With the extra weight, even though the weather was perfect, I had to stop many times on the final 5-mile uphill...with a lot of patience, I finally made it! The 4-mile descent into Wilmington was almost too fast, so I braked periodically.

At this point I figured the worst was over.  WRONG.  There was another 1300 foot climb before Bennington!  I did have another refreshing descent into town. Now, there would be no more serious climbing for the rest of the trip.

I picked up the Erie Canal/Empire State trail north of Albany which goes across New York to Niagara.  The Canal Trail varies in surfaces.  Sometimes it's paved, but usually it is a fine crushed rock surface.  I managed on 28x700 tires.

Sometimes I traveled a few feet from the Erie Canal, and other times I was close to the New York Thruway.  The canal is still used in parts, and other parts are abandoned. There are a lot of locks along the route, but I found viaducts that carried the canal over existing streams most interesting.  Cool.

After Seneca Falls, I discovered the Lehigh Valley Trail. Like the Canal Trail, It started with a fine-crushed stone surface, but slowly turned into a two-track dirt surface with a grass strip median.  There were few riders on the trail.  As I approached the outskirts of Rochester, the trail became single-track.  It finally ended in a Rochester suburb.

I left the rail trails and returned to the main roads as I angled down toward the Peace Bridge that connects Buffalo with Fort Erie, Ontario.  There was no charge for bicyclists, and they allow you to bicycle across the bridge.

Once in Canada, I was again surprised to discover the Friendship Trail that goes from Fort Erie to Port Colborne.  All paved!  

After that I was back to main highways and county roads.  Sometimes the map app routed me onto gravel roads.  If they were hard-packed, it was fine.  But a few were loose gravel, and I had to turn back to the highway. 

One time I rejoined Route 3, only to be subjected to road construction.  The scarified pavement shocked me and my bike for 5 miles!

I crossed into Michigan at the Algonac Ferry. The fee was $3 for the 8-minute crossing of the St. Mary's River. After 19 days of biking, I made it to the reunion with one day to spare.  I celebrated by wolfing down a few White Castle hamburgers.

Funny, everyone at the reunion had gotten older!
But it was fun to see the old crowd after all these years...

Here's a link to my daily journal and photos:
https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/Detroit2026

1. Where are you from originally?
I grew up in Connecticut, and have lived around New England and in upstate New York.

2. When did you start cycling, and what got you into it?
My parents bought me my first bike when I was 5 years old, which I rode all over the neighborhood and around town. They got me a "10-speed" [2x5] when I turned 13, and I did my first 50 mile ride that year.

3. When did you join CRW, and what brought you to the club?
I became a CRW member in 1990 (36 years ago!). I had recently moved to the Boston area and was looking for organized rides and other cyclists to ride with. I found out about the club when I saw a small article about it in The Boston Globe's Sunday magazine. Back then, the internet as we know it today didn't exist, so the club didn't have a website. To find out the week's rides, you had to dial the club's landline telephone number and listen to a recorded message.

4. Do you volunteer for CRW, and if so, in what way(s)?
I have been a CRW ride leader since 1999. Currently leading the West Podunk and Gravel Tuesday rides.

5. What type of cycling do you enjoy the most?
All kinds (road, gravel, and mountain), but I especially enjoy finding a new-to-me backroad that's scenic and devoid of cars. The picture of me is on a gravel bike riding along the Colchester Causeway on Lake Champlain in Vermont.

6. What’s your favorite ride or route?
I like most of the routes in and around the western suburbs. The Apple Pi ride has long been one of my favorites.

7. What has been your favorite moment or experience with CRW?
I've had so many great experiences over my decades in CRW. But if I had to pick, it's one of the first rides I did with the club way back in 1990, a tour of Martha's Vineyard, led by Jamie King. The group of us took the ferry over from Woods Hole, rode 50 miles around the island (on which I had never been before), and on the drive back home we stopped in Bourne at the Scallop Festival (which is sadly now defunct).

8. What advice would you give a new CRW member?
Just get out there and ride. Don't worry about how fast you go. Eventually you'll find others who ride like you do.

9. What’s a fun fact about you (cycling or non-cycling)?
I wrote a novel, entitled Coffee Crash, a bio-tech mystery/thriller set in the coffee industry.

10. What do you enjoy most about being part of CRW?
Many of my friends today are people that I first met on CRW rides.

11. Anything else you'd like the club to know?
A great thing about cycling, unlike many other sports, is that you can do it alone or in groups, and you can do it fast or slow, making it an ideal life-long activity. You can have a rewarding experience no matter how you do it.

By John S. Allen, CRW Safety Coordinator

The rules of movement which underlie the rules of the road are quite simple : 

• First come, first served;
• Ride on the right
• Yield before merging;
• Merge before turning;
• Pass on the left;
• Turning traffic yields to through traffic.

But some situations require extra attention by cyclists, so let’s take a look. The issues here bear on traffic law, convenience of travel, and safety. Sometimes these do not always agree with each another. You may need to be either more cautious or more assertive, reflecting the spirit of the law.

This is a quiz, with answers. I could get two articles for the price of one if I held the answers till next month. But then you might not remember the questions.

Here goes:

• You are approaching a 4-way intersection and planning to go straight through. The traffic light is red for you but it turns green just as you reach the intersection. A car waiting opposite you has its left-turn signal on and will reach the intersection at the same time. Who is required to yield? What do you have to do to be safe?
• Answer: Left turning traffic is required to yield to all other traffic in the intersection. But in Massachusetts, a driver first in line will often rush to turn left as soon as the light changes. In my experience, this is less likely when I am bicycling, and I can easily avoid it if it happens, but still, an assertive hand signal pointing straight ahead can help. It helps to be waiting in the middle of the lane rather than at the right edge – both to be more conspicuous and to have more maneuvering room to turn right and avoid a collision.

• Here’s a situation which may look the same, but… You are at a driveway which is directly opposite the “upright” leg of an uncontrolled T intersection (no stop or yield signs or traffic signals). You are planning to turn right. A car coming from ahead of you has its left-turn signal on. Who is required to yield right of way?
• Answer: This is different from a four-way intersection. Traffic in a driveway is required to yield to all traffic on the street. So, you yield to the car, even though it is turning left..

• You are approaching the T intersection on its “upright” leg. There is no stop sign or traffic signal. A car is approaching from the left. Who is required to yield?
• Answer: You are. Turning traffic is required to yield to through traffic, and here, you can only turn right or left. You’ll find many T intersections in Massachusetts with no stop sign, though stop signs are increasingly being installed because many drivers do not know of this exception to the usual rule that the vehicle on the left yields.

• You are in Paris, France on a street approaching a larger one at an uncontrolled intersection (no signs or signals). A car is coming from your left. Who is required to yield right of way?
• Answer: In France, « priorité de droite » (yield to the vehicle on the right) prevails, and there are few stop signs. Be aware of this rule if you are going to be driving or cycling in France!

• You are on a street approaching a larger one at an uncontrolled intersection in Paris, Maine. A car is coming from your left. Who is required to yield right of way?
• Answer: The rule as stated in the law is the same as in France, but the unspoken rule in the US is that drivers on a side street yield to those on a through street. Usually though not always, there is a stop sign to clarify the situation. That is one reason that we have so many of them.

• You are waiting first in line on your bicycle at an intersection where right turns on red are prohibited. Where should you wait?
• Answer: It makes good sense to wait in the middle of the right lane, for the reason given in the previous example. As the light is red, you aren’t preventing anyone from going anywhere legally. You can merge back to the right as you cross the intersection.

• You are waiting first in line to go straight at an intersection where right turns on red are permitted. Where should you wait?
• Answer: If there’s room and you see that the vehicle behind has its right-turn signal on, you can often be far enough to the left to let the driver turn right on red, while still blocking through traffic. Sometimes I have to encourage a driver to take advantage of the courtesy which I am offering! I also want to prevent a following driver who will be going straight through or turning left from coming up next to me on the right. This requires some finesse in lane positioning and possibly a slow signal (arm extended downward) or stay-back signal (arm extended horizontally, palm of the hand facing the rear). Massachusetts law permits a slow signal or right-turn signal to be made with the right hand. The stay-back signal is nonstandard, but consider it as a more emphatic version of the slow signal. What matters here is to get the message across.

• You are riding in a bike lane approaching an intersection at a red light. A truck is waiting, first in line. What is legal, and what do you need to do to be safe?
• Answer: In Massachusetts, it is legal for bicyclists to pass on the right. The truck driver is required to yield to you. But you can’t trust that the driver has seen you and will yield, so wait behind. Or you may be able to position yourself to pass it on the left once the truck is turning the truck turns right -- with plenty of clearance to brake and fall back if it does not. A video drives home the importance of this.

https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/1226033499

• Vehicles arrive at three of the entrances to a four-way uncontrolled intersection (no signs or signals) at the same time. Who is required to yield right of way?
• Answer: Looking around the intersection clockwise, the most clockwise driver may go first. There is a logic to this: The vehicle on the left has an extra ½ road width in which to stop.

• Vehicles arrive at all four entrances to a four-way uncontrolled intersection at the same time. Who is required to yield right of way?
• Answer: Trick question! The rule that the clockwise vehicle goes first fails here. Only common courtesy resolves this problem. Stop signs or traffic signals are usually placed at intersections where there is enough traffic that this problem is likely.

And that makes a point which applies to all the other examples as well. Common courtesy applies in every one of the situations which I have described. And it is often the necessary fallback, because the rules are not clear, or people do not understand their details. But, when you make your intentions clear, most people will cooperate.

When you have to be assertive or relive confusion, your communication using hand signals makes the difference between other road users’ perceiving you as clueless and selfish, or reasonable and cooperative. Don’t even expect that you will get the rules straight in very situation: they can be complicated and confusing, but if you communicate, you can keep the situation manageable.

I’m not done. Expect another article with more questions and answers next month.

CRW's Cranberry Harvest Century returned to Plymouth on October 18, bringing together 283 registered cyclists for one of the club's favorite fall traditions.

The morning started chilly, but the day quickly turned into a beautiful, sunny fall outing. Starting from Myles Standish State Forest, riders enjoyed four scenic routes of 100, 62, 53, and 35 miles, winding through cranberry bogs, quiet country roads, and charming southeastern Massachusetts communities, including fully supported rest stops at East Over Reservation, Tamarack Park, and Mattapoisett Shipyard Park, and a post-ride gathering at College Pond.

A huge thank-you to our ride leaders, route sweeps, organizers, and volunteers who helped make the event possible. And special thanks to the organizations and community partners who supported the ride:

• Massachusetts DCR
• Trustees of Reservations
• Town of Lakeville, MA
• Town of Rochester, MA
• Friends of the Mattapoisett Rail Trail
• Narragansett Bay Wheelmen
• Pedals and Powder

Thanks to everyone who joined us for another memorable Cranberry Harvest Century. Great roads, beautiful weather, and wonderful company, what more could a cyclist ask for?

Fall has been very busy season for CRW! Take a look at the Cranberry Century recap and photos. CRW held its annual Board Election in October. Results HERE. And note that the Board Meeting and our Annual Member Meeting will be held online, November 8.  We will host a thank you party for our volunteers and ride leaders in mid-November. 

I am guessing you have also pulled out your winter gear, in anticipation of riding in cooler temperatures and less light. Watch the club calendar for rides! Indoors, early mornings, weekends...CRW will still be hosting events throughout the winter months. The seasons change, but CRW members ride on! 

Greetings!

I hope you’re enjoying some glorious fall riding! October is a busy month for CRW, and I’m pleased to highlight a few upcoming events and opportunities.

• Cranberry Century - October 18. CRW’s signature event is almost here! There’s still time to REGISTER or VOLUNTEER. As a special thank you, volunteers will receive a free registration for a 2027 CRW event.

• Annual Member Meeting - November 8. Our Annual Member Meeting will be held virtually in conjunction with the November Board meeting. We hope you’ll join us.

• CRW club kit. Members have started receiving their new club kit orders, and the gear LOOKS GREAT out on the road! You can order CRW gear anytime through the CRW homepage. And watch for a special Century sale: 20% off for one week beginning October 15.

Finally, a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has helped make this another great riding season, especially our Ride Leaders, Board and committee members, event volunteers, and everyone else who gives their time and energy to CRW. Our club thrives because of you.

Enjoy the fall riding, and I look forward to seeing you out on the road!

Amy Juodawlkis
President, Charles River Wheelers

The wait is almost over—CRW’s Cranberry Harvest Century is happening this month and you can still register!

Get ready for one of CRW’s favorite fall traditions! Join us in Plymouth, MA, for the Cranberry Harvest Century, featuring four fully supported routes through scenic cranberry bogs and some of New England’s most charming roads.

Starting at Myles Standish State Forest, choose your challenge: 35, 53, 62, or 100 miles through Rochester, Wareham, Carver, and Acushnet. Enjoy rest stops at Eastover and the beautiful wharf in Mattapoisett, plus food, drinks, and an after-party at College Pond!

CARPOOLING IS ENCOURAGED! Connect with fellow members in CRW’s Slack #century chatroom to find a carpool buddy.

REGISTER FOR THE CRANBERRY HARVEST CENTURY

Don’t miss this fall classic—we look forward to seeing you there!