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Greylock - Spiegelpalooza - July 2013 click here for slide show |
 Summit of Mount Greylock - Highest point in Massachusetts - 3491' My plan had been to climb Mount Greylock from the south back in June as part of the Weston-Williamstown ride, but too fast a pace in the first half of that 150+ mile trek got the better of me. When I received the email from Steve S. offering a July 14 ascent up the more challenging north side, I saw the opportunity as one part penance, one part redemption. A dozen of us rolled north from West Stockbridge just past 8:30a on a beautiful summer morning with Greylock in the forefront of all of our minds. First, though, we had to make our way east from Petersburg NY up the Taconic Trail to that climb's peak just before the NY-MA state line. The descent down the Mohawk Trail to Williamstown--to say nothing of treats at the A-Frame Bakery--rewarded the effort we put in hauling ourselves up.  A few rolling miles gave us a chance to recover, but then it was up up up. The steepest of the grades came at us early, in the first third of the 5.5 mile climb beginning at the park entrance. Several times, my GPS displayed 14%. It may have shown more, but every drop of my concentration was focused on keeping the cranks turning. There's probably a name for the micro-premonination you get when you know with certainty the decision you're just about to make. I know I felt the muscles in my feet begin the familiar sideways twist. Maybe the thought of restarting after a stop was too much to bear, or perhaps I simply couldn't muster the extra needed energy to unclip--somehow, I reconsidered and stayed on. There's nothing like a double digit grade to make 5-7% feel like flying. The worst behind me, I recovered and put in the steady turns that too me to the summit.  3,491 feet. The highest spot in Massachusetts (fun fact: that's a whopping 176 feet above the LOWEST point in my another favorite state, Colorado). The addition of a signature climb to my cycling resume was topped only by the excellent company of a great group of cyclists. I'm thrilled I was able to share the day with them.
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