Everything new is old again..

My mind is blown.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to join a great group of riders on a trip to the Metz bicycle museum, in Freehold New Jersey.

The Day's agenda was as follows:
-9:06 board the train to Aberdeen-Matawan NJ
-Ride to the Metz musem along a scenic rail trail
-Ride through Allaire State park to Manasquan NJ (the beach), eat lunch
-Ride back up the coastal highway, then again on the Hudson Rail trail to Aberdeen-Matawan
-Train back Manhattan

Well.. I messed up right off the bat and either boarded the wrong train, or was given incorrect information by a train agent...and was stuck at Newark NJ station for an hour. I felt bad for holding the group back, but was glad that Scott (the ride organizer) sent them ahead, while he waited for me. Standing around in spandex at a train station is pretty funny. Quite a few people asked me if I raced.

Once in Aberdeen I didn't feel so bad, because Scott got us lost trying to find the trail head. Once we were on it we were flying, then we took a highway shortcut in order to meet up with the rest of the crew already at the Museum.

The museum is run by a collector named David Metz. Hes an incredibly healthy and sharp 92 year old man, who has spent a lifetime cycling and collecting bicycles. He joked that in the next few years he may need a cane. The passion is strong in this man.

He was waiting for us (Scott and I) to arrive before he started his chronological ordered tour of the museum... and for that I am grateful. He had some incredible stories about many of the bikes in his collection, and the people that they have brought him in contact with.

The lighting wasn't too hot inside, but I was snapping away with my phone none the less. History this good deserves to be documented. Flickr set here.

One of my favorite bikes there:


After the museum, we agreed that we could all make it to the coast before needing lunch. I don't know how far it was, but it felt like over an hour... so probably 40km.

Once we refueled and made some bicycle adjustments we were back on the road. Sadly a couple of us had to drop out at this point so they could make it back to Brooklyn for prior engagements that evening. So the pack got a bit smaller. With 7 people, pace lines were more manageable.

When we got to the coast road, a couple of the riders seemed to drop the hammer. Since they were all on geared roadies and I was on my Spicer, it was all I could do to tuck down, wheelsuck, and spin for my life. That felt like a good half an hour of suffering.

Eventually they slowed down once we reached the NJ highlands, and I was able to drop them on the moderate inclines. There was one bomb downhill that wouldn't end and I started to fear for the contents of my jersey pockets while spinning at 160+ RPM.

We made it back to Aberdeen-Matawan with about 20 minutes to spare before the train.. so naturally, there was a 7-11 and beer store run.

The train back into Manhattan was interesting to say the least. It was 8:00pm on a Saturday night, and the train was FULL of Jersey kids heading into the big city to party. Hilarious!

Despite my feet feeling like they were on fire, it was good to get back into midtown Manhattan traffic, to which I am so accustomed to. I sprinted up Broadway towards home, thinking about how great a bath would be. All in all, 145km for the day, and totally worth every meter.

Flickr slideshow test: