By Susan Meyers, Guest Columnist

I wasn't going to write about The Pickle Ride.

I've come close to deleting my notes on it twice. I've also tried and failed to write about it in any straight-up, conventional way: the mileage, the sights, the location of the bike shop along the route, in case you bust a part.

Only now, eight weeks on, do I understand that the worst part of the Pickle Ride was also the most interesting part, and the part worth telling.

It began as a weekend spin on a sunny day along the Minuteman Bike Trail. It was the day before the Boston Marathon this year, a steamy one. My biking friend and I began our ride in North Cambridge, ducked under Route 2, cycled past the backyards and ballfields of East Arlington, then Spy Pond and the Great Meadow, and on into Lexington.

We were sharing the road that day with every species of rider: Intense cyclists racing expensive, lightweight bikes as if they were late to the starting line, but also tots on My Little Pony three-wheelers. The Minuteman Bike Trail is a community ride, and at its most enjoyable if you think about it that way.

What I was thinking about during much of the ride, however, was food. My stomach was growling. My biking friend and I had agreed, before we set out, that we would stop for lunch in Lexington.

But my biking buddy, he's not like me. He doesn't stop for lunch when hunger strikes, and especially not when he's on his bike. No, he makes himself earn his food.

Which is why, even though it was well after noon, that we biked right by our designated lunch spot. My friend cycles many more miles than I do, so I didn't argue. And on we spun, past beautiful stretches of greenery on the way to Route 128, then across the bridge over the highway, and into Bedford. Just beyond the Bedford depot is a lesser-known treat: a wooded trail that runs through conservation land and a wildlife preserve. We paused at the trail head.

“Let's go for it,” my friend said. “We'll grab lunch on the way back.”

Because stopping when you are hungry is for wimps.

The added miles were beautiful, no question, but by the time we doubled back to Lexington, it was 3 p.m.

“Let's split a veggie roll-up,” my vegetarian biking friend said.

“Sounds good,” I said, though I could have eaten a whole roasted cow. Hunger, it seemed, had damaged my ability to think.

Fortunately, just as he began to order, my friend had second thoughts.

“Maybe we should each get our own,” he said, and asked for two.

As I watched the deli guy assemble our roll-ups, though, I grew alarmed. Sure, there was a slice of Swiss in there, and a scoop of hummus. But most of the sandwich I carried outside to eat consisted of every pickled pepper on the planet: banana peppers, marinated red peppers, pickle chips, some sort of chopped sweet green pickle, and those were just the ones I recognized.

We sat on a bench and unwrapped our sandwiches. As I ate, a steady stream of pickle juice dribbled out the bottom of my roll-up. Napkins weren't up to the job; I had to hike forward over my spread knees to keep the spatter off my clothes and legs. Trickling madly, and three bites into my sandwich, I discovered a separate something tucked in next to my sandwich. Shocked, I extracted it: a generous wedge of new dill pickle wrapped in its own drippy square of white butcher paper.

I held it out, showed my friend.

“I think I'm hallucinating, here,” I said.

Have I mentioned that I was very hungry? My friend was having no trouble eating his roll-up. So I ate my peck of pickled peppers sandwich, or most of it. When I finished, I was brined to the eyeballs.

And we still had to ride from Lexington back to Cambridge. Not far, but not nothing.

My riding buddy popped up off the bench, refreshed, in good spirits, suffering no ill effects. He eyed me, still bent over on the bench.

“Maybe all that salt will be good for your electrolytes,” he suggested.

“I don't know,” I replied, gazing at the puddle between my feet. “I'm pretty pickled out.”

It came to me, after a moment, that I needed an antidote. Some sort of quick anti-pickle. I am not proud of what came next, but to be fair, my options were limited. I couldn't face the deli again, and nothing in a nearby bakery looked palatable.

So I bought and ate a small bag of malt balls. Just thinking about it now makes me feel ill, but in the moment, somehow, I thought they might be a counterbalance.

And they were, briefly. We got back on our bikes and rode back to North Cambridge. I have to say, I had plenty of pep.

“All that salt and sugar seems to be working for you,” my friend called to me from behind.

He couldn't see the expression on my face. He didn't know that I was riding fast to finish off those sloshy, vinegary, sugar-crusted last miles as quickly as possible.

Is there a moral here? Most definitely. When you're biking, keep it simple. Tune in fully to the world around you, but don't forget to tune in to your own body. Stop and eat when you're hungry. And don't mix pickles and malt balls.

Don't do The Pickle Ride.

Susan Meyers is a Brookline writer. Her memoir about sight, blindness, and her relationship with her brother, titled Check This Box If You Are Blind, was published last June by Climbing Ivy Press.

By Matt Rocheleau, Town Correspondent

Massachusetts was named the third most "Bicycle Friendly State" in the country and the most bike-friendly in the Northeast by a national bike membership and advocacy group that released its annual rankings Tuesday.

The Bay State placed 9th last year, 16th two years ago and 19th in 2009 on the list compiled by the League of American Bicyclists, according to the nonprofit's website.

For the fifth straight year, Washington ranked first. Minnesota ranked second, after placing fourth a year ago.

"We are encouraged to see significant progress in top states like Washington, Minnesota, Colorado [which ranked fourth this year] and Massachusetts," said a statement from Andy Clarke, president of the League of American Bicyclists.

"But, as the scores clearly highlight, there's much work to be done in critical areas like infrastructure and funding," the statement added. "Overall, we see states -- and especially state Departments of Transportation and state legislatures -- lagging behind cities and the expectations of local cyclists, despite the many well-documented benefits of a more active lifestyle."

The organization's survey compares states in five categories: legislation and enforcement; policies and programs; infrastructure and funding; education and encouragement; and evaluation and planning.

A statement from Massachusetts Department of Transportation secretary Secretary Richard A. Davey said the state's improving rank on the list over the past three years, "mark[s] our commitment to the MassDOT mission of providing safe, healthy, efficient transportation and the importance of our innovative GreenDOT policy."

Last month, the League of American Bicyclists named MassDOT and 66 other organizations as being Bicycle Friendly Businesses, making the Bay State department the first department of transportation to receive the national recognition.

David Watson, director of the Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition, or "MassBike," said in a statement that: "MassDOT’s growing emphasis on sustainability and its strong partnership with the advocacy community have led to rapid improvements for bicycling."

Elsewhere in New England, Maine ranked 9th on this year's list of "Bicycle Friendly States." Vermont ranked 18th, Connecticut ranked 20th, New Hampshire ranked 27th, Rhode Island ranked 39th.

To see the ranking of all 50 states, click here.

To read the full "report card" on biking in Massachusetts, click here.

E-mail Matt Rocheleau at mjrochele@gmail.com.
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By Jonathan Simmons, Guest Columnist

One of the great things about Hubway, Boston’s bicycle sharing program, is that it allows all sorts of people to go out for a ride.

Until last year, Love Nickerson never considered herself to be a cyclist. Sure, she knew how to ride a bike, but she didn’t own one. For Love, the challenges of maintaining, storing, and securing a bicycle were more than she cared to manage.

When Love first learned about Hubway she was thrilled. “But when I saw the pricing structure I was turned off,'' she said. "The all-day rental was expensive and not practical.”

Fortunately some colleagues at work explained to her that she probably wouldn’t be riding her bike for eight hours in a row. “They weren’t even cyclists and they don’t use Hubway, but they got me to see that Hubway was meant to give me access to bikes when I needed them and to encourage shorter rides.”

For Love, this was, “A different way of thinking about transportation and commuting. It was about sharing, and I liked that.” Once she understood that Hubway could be cheap, practical, and fun, she joined up.

Last year Love biked enough to become a Gold Club member, an award given to the six men and women who logged the most number of trips on Hubway. Love did this by commuting every day from her home in the North End to her job at Dana Farber.

When she began riding to work she was not able to complete her commute in under 30 minutes (the cut off point at which members incur additional charges). “I wasn’t confident about my route and I was just getting used to dealing with the traffic.” Love adapted by docking her bike halfway through her ride. This restarts the clock and allows you to keep riding without being charged extra.

After a while Love felt confident enough to ride her entire commute without stopping. “It turned out I did that trip in 25 minutes, though I would have been thrilled even if it had been 29 minutes.”

Love first began biking so she could get to work by Hubway instead of the subway. Still, she noticed that even though she rode at a moderate pace for a moderate distance it was more than enough to get her into shape.

After a few weeks Love could tackle the two small hills on her commute “without huffing or puffing or needing a drink of water. The bikes have three gears. When I first started biking I used gear number two. But now I can go in gear number three (a harder gear to push), though every once in a while I’ll be exhausted and have a gear one and two kind of day.”

Love knows that she’s become a cyclist because of the fact that “I’m now aware of how things affect bikers. Even if I’m not on my bike I notice when someone’s double parked in a bicycle lane or if there are potholes or debris in the bike lane. The things that make it tough on cyclists.”

So if Love is so enthusiastic about Hubway, why won’t she be biking this summer and seeing if she can become a two-time Gold Club member? She would if she could, but as of now, Hubway doesn’t have any stations in Mongolia. That’s where Love will be living as of next week when she travels to Asia to teach English through the Peace Corps. “It was something that I’d always wanted to do, to speak another language and experience another culture.”

For Love, “Hubway was one of the first things I thought about that I’d be leaving behind when I decided to join the Peace Corps. I’ll miss how easy it is, how it just became part of my life...I didn’t anticipate that I’d adopt it so completely, but I did.”

Love said, “If I’m stationed in a place with paved roads then I’ll definitely consider getting a bike. But wherever I live after the Peace Corps I see a bicycle in my future.”

In the meantime, Love plans to explore Boston before she flies to Mongolia. At the top of her list of local places to visit is The JFK Library. “I know it’s not entirely Hubway accessible, but I’d like to get over there. Especially as he was the president who signed off on the Peace Corps.”

Jonathan Simmons is a psychologist and an avid cyclist. His book, “Here For the Ride” will be published later this year.

Readers: if you’re interested in following Love Nickerson’s adventures in Mongolia check out her blog at To Mongolia with Love.

Looking for something to do this weekend? Check out Charles River Wheelmen’s “Introduction to Group Riding.” (Full disclosure: I am a member of CRW). This is a great way to learn about paceline riding but it’s not for beginners.

By Jonathan Simmons, Guest Columnist

Dave Watson, the director of MassBike, has been riding to work for the past six years. Dave used to be a practicing attorney. He also used to be 25 lbs. heavier.

His weight loss secret? “I started riding my bike to work.”

From both his experience as a bicycle commuter and the director of MassBike, Dave has witnessed huge changes in the Boston bike scene in the past six years. “The demographics have visibly shifted. In 2006 I noticed that many of the people who commuted were what I called super-commuters: older men wearing spandex on racing or touring bikes, with a lot of equipment. Now that’s the exception rather than the rule. There’s a wider age range and both men and women are out riding their bikes. And they’re not on fancy bikes, not in fancy clothes. It’s become a more accepted part of getting around town.”

If you're one of the area's growing legions of bicyclists, or want to join, then you’re in luck. May is bike month, and this week is Bay State Bike Week, what Dave described as “A statewide celebration of biking to remind people that bicycles have a place on the road.”

Dave described the changes in the area's bicycling climate as “Overwhelmingly positive. When you see people who are dressed up in funny looking clothes it can be very intimidating. Seeing regular people on bikes isn’t threatening. It makes people look and say hey, I can do that, too.”

Dave acknowledges that there is a downside to more people riding around town. “A lot of those people are less aware of how to bike safely. Maybe they don’t know that bikes are supposed to follow the same rules as cars.”

This being Bike to Work Week, I asked Dave for some pointers for people who are in the category of what is described as “interested but concerned.” Interested in riding their bike. Maybe to work, maybe to run errands, and maybe just for fun. But concerned, too: about arriving safe or sweaty and without a secure place to store their bike.

Dave has a few suggestions for safer biking. “If you really want to get a leg up, taking a class is a good idea. MassBike and lots of local bike shops offer classes just to get people acclimated.”

If you don’t have the time to take a class or you’re a DIY kind of person, Dave offered up a few suggestions to make your ride safer and more enjoyable.

“First off, get a bike that fits you. If it doesn’t fit you it won’t be comfortable and you won’t use it. Then learn some of the rules of the road so you know what you’re supposed to do and what others are supposed to do.”

Finally, Dave suggested that you “Plan your route (in advance). Figure out a route and test it out when you’re not in a hurry so you can get a sense of whether it will work for you.”

When people ask Dave if it’s dangerous to bike, he tells them, “It’s challenging. Less challenging in some places, more challenging in others. But if you get a bike that fits, learn the rules of the road, and plan your route in advance you can be safe riding in Boston.”

Bay State Bike Week is chock full of bicycle fun: breakfasts, workshops, art shows, Brookline’s Bicycle Parade, and movie nights, to name just a few. My favorite event is Bike Friday, a series of nine group rides that starts in the surrounding neighborhoods of Boston and meets up at City Hall. It provides a chance to meet other cyclists and enjoy a free breakfast downtown. Cyclists love the word free, so there are sure to be plenty of bikers enjoying their breakfast burritos.

Boston has come a long way in a short time, from one of the worst places to ride in America to one of the best. Still, Dave knows that there’s much work to be done to convert people who are interested into people who bike.

In the meantime, why not join in the fun and give it a try?

For a round up of Bike Week events, go here.

Jonathan Simmons is a psychologist and an avid cyclist. His book, “Here For the Ride” will be published later this year.

By Jonathan Simmons, Guest Columnist

Looking for a way to get your kid to enjoy broccoli? Julianne Idlet, the founder and executive director of CYCLE Kids, believes that riding a bicycle can change kids' eating habits as well as their lives. Here's her story.

Julianne was a successful marketing executive at a high tech company until 2004. She also coached cycling at Harvard, and rode over 4,000 miles a year. And then she began learning about the skyrocketing rates of Diabetes Type II, cardiovascular disease, and childhood obesity. “That's when I realized that something had to be done.”

Julianne is not the kind of person to sit on the sidelines and watch. She left her successful career and started CYCLE Kids, a Cambridge-based organization that braids her love of biking with her passion for doing good and making a difference. CYCLE Kids works on what Julianne described as “A deceptively simple premise: we use the bike as a lever to get kids happy about exercise, nutrition, and riding a bike.”

CYCLE Kids partners with schools to offer a program for 4th and 6th graders to teach them about bike skills, road safety, nutrition and literacy. Schools that work with CYCLE Kids are provided with bikes and a teaching curriculum designed to improve emotional health and physical well-being. The schools in turn provide teachers, space, the time to run the program, and kids who are eager to bike.

The curriculum for CYCLE Kids was developed in collaboration with a nutritionist from Boston University and through funding from the American Heart Association. According to Julianne, “Our program is based on solid research and we have the data to show that it’s successful. Children who've participated in CYCLE Kids have shown a 70% increase in nutritional literacy. Also, 25% of the students learn to ride for the first time, 90% report using hand signals for the first time, and there’s a significant increase in the number of kids who ride to school.”

CYCLE Kids has been so successful that, according to Julianne, one principal installed extra bike racks in front of the school because so many children were riding to class. “We found that even kids who rode before (taking CYCLE Kids) now report riding more because they have friends to ride with.”

“Now we reach about 1,000 kids a year in programs that are primarily in the Boston area.
Bikes get kids fit and can help beat childhood obesity. The kids tell us that it’s more fun to ride a bike than to play a video-game. They tell us that bikes make them happy. They say that it’s always new when you ride, but when you play a video-game it gets boring.”

All of this sounds great, but does it work? CYCLE Kids has made such a difference that Cambridge and Somerville have both made it a mandatory part of their student curriculum. According to Julianne, “Teachers tell us that kids are more ready to learn after they come back to the classroom from our program.”

So why haven't more schools signed up to work with CYCLE Kids? According to Julianne, “The big obstacle to expanding the program is money. It costs $10,000 to start a program which pays for the bikes, the helmets, the training and the support materials.”

In the long run, that sounds like money well spent. In the short run, that's money that's not so easy to come by these days.

This is why CYCLE Kids is hosting the Breakaway Ride, the group's 2nd annual fundraiser at the DeCordova Museum on Sunday, May 20th. There will be three different rides, from a metric century (62 miles), to a 36-miler and a 5-mile kid ride.

The good news is that it's not too late to sign up and join the fun. Afterward there will be a celebration with music, massages, and food. And if you're lucky, perhaps some broccoli on the side.

Jonathan Simmons is a psychologist and an avid cyclist. His book “Here For The Ride” will be published later this year.

By Jonathan Simmons, Guest Columnist

My friend Robyn has always enjoyed cycling. For years she’s owned a series of hand-me-down bikes that did the job but just didn’t fit properly. This year she was ready for a new bike, one that fit and was fast and reliable. And preferably red. “So what do you think I should buy?” she asked me. Here’s what I said.

We began by talking about what kind of riding she hoped to do. Lance’s racing bike is perfect for climbing the Alps but utterly useless on a rutted dirt trail. Likewise, a commuter bike is just the thing to have for getting around town, but if you plan on doing a triathlon it will slow you down.

What this boils down to is that there are three basic choices for bikes: a road bike (or racing bike for those of us of a certain age), best suited for riding long distances, a mountain bike, ideal for riding on trails, and a hybrid (also known as a commuter) bike, what many of us use to tool around town.

No one bike can do all three. This means you either have to specialize, compromise, or own more than one bike. If owning more than one bike is an option, there are formulas for arriving at the ideal number (two of my favorites are: n+1, where n=the number of bikes you currently own, and p-1, where p=the number of bikes that will make your partner mad).

Robyn assured me she was only looking for one bike for now (that’s what they all say at first).

I respected her decision to start with only one new bike. After we talked about different scenarios it became clear that a hybrid would best fit her needs.

The next step in buying a bike is to figure out how much you want to spend. If you haven’t bought a bike in a while take a deep breath: you can drop anywhere from $300 up to $10,000 (or more) on a bike. If that’s not in your budget you can always use Hubway, Boston’s bike sharing program. You can also purchase a used bike, though it’s important to make sure that the seller can provide a receipt. That way you won’t inadvertently buy something that’s been stolen.

Once Robyn came up with a budget we talked about fit. The bottom line is this: make sure your bike fits comfortably. Fitting is both an art and a science. Fortunately most local bike shops will have someone who can determine what size is right for you.

By now Robyn was ready to try out some bikes. I suggested that she look at no more than three in one day and make sure she wasn’t rushed. Any more than that and she’d run the risk of being overwhelmed and less happy (also known as the tyranny of choice).

Robyn gave herself over an hour for an initial test ride. That way she’d have enough time to make sure that the bike of her dreams was truly the bike of her dreams.

All of this meant that Robyn needed to head over to her local bike shop. This is one of those times when virtual just won’t cut it. Fortunately, Boston is blessed with a plethora of bike shops. All of them have their own character, their own vibe, which means that there’s sure to be one that will work for you.

Once you’ve found the bike of your dreams, make sure to accessorize it. Lights? Definitely. A bell? Yes, especially if you’re riding around town. A mirror and a helmet? Absolutely. A lock? But of course. But what about streamers? I say yes, as long as they match the color of your bike.

After lots of conversation, a few test rides, and a week of “thinking it over,” my friend Robyn is now the proud owner of the bike of her dreams. Her only regret is that it’s not red.

Jonathan Simmons is a psychologist and an avid cyclist. His book, “Here For the Ride” will be published later this year.

Readers: tell us your bike buying tips.

Looking for something to do? Why not join MassBike’s Train Day Ride on May 12th, at 9am. It’s a 25 mile bike ride that includes lots of sightseeing with train stations.

On Sunday, May 13th, there’s the Blessing of the Bikes. The service is at 5pm at Hope Central Church at 87 Seaverns Avenue in Jamaica Plain. From 3-5pm the Boston Cyclists Union will provide free bike repairs at 633 Centre St. in Jamaica Plain.

The Christina Clarke Genco Foundation is hosting a Mother’s Day Memorial Ride that starts at Newton City Hall. The ride will commemorate Christina Genco and raise funds to support affordable housing, safe biking, and women’s lacrosse. A great ride for cyclists of all abilities, designed to support a great cause.

By Jonathan Simmons, Guest Columnist

When I first heard that Nicole Freedman was leaving her job as Boston’s Bike Czar I was shocked and saddened. There are no two ways about it: Maine’s gain is Boston’s loss. At least she’s not moving to New York.

I first met Nicole two years ago. I had just started writing the On Biking column for Boston.com and she was kind enough to join me for a ride. As we pedaled through rush hour traffic Nicole chatted with me about bike lanes, traffic calming, and the rules of the road: stop at red lights, don’t ride up one-way streets, and always use a set of lights at night.

During our ride Nicole took me down Commonwealth Avenue to show me where a new bike lane would soon be installed. I had my doubts about riding on the left hand side of the road but I trusted Nicole. She was the Boston Bike Czar, after all, plus she had ridden in the Olympics.

Riding down Commonwealth Avenue seemed confusing to me. But not to Nicole. She could see gold (a bike path and altered traffic patterns) where I only saw chaos. That’s the thing about visionary leaders, they can both imagine a better future and then do what it takes to make those dreams come true.

After our ride Nicole and I chatted about the usual things that two people who love bikes chat about: favorite rides, racing, and the best thing to eat after a ride (I think we both agreed it was ice cream). Even though it had been a long day Nicole was happy to talk with me about her ideas on how to make Boston an even better place to ride.

Nicole has worked on a number of projects that helped make Boston a more livable and inviting city. She helped organize the best ride in town (Hub On Wheels), made sure that Hubway (Boston’s bike sharing program) flourished, advocated for improved access to bicycles for underserved communities, coached the MIT women’s cycling team, made sure that over 1,500 bicycle parking spaces were added in just the past three years, and helped organize an integrated network of bike lanes- 50 miles and counting.

The fruits of Nicole’s labors are hard to miss. More and more people are biking, which many studies show is good for the economy, good for public health, and good for the environment. Plus the more people who bike, the safer it is for everyone: cyclists, pedestrians, and motorists, too.

I’m not saying that Nicole did this single-handedly. Even an Olympic cyclist needs a little help. Fortunately Nicole had the support of the mayor, as well as the legions of activists throughout Massachusetts. Their hard work has helped make Boston one of the best walking and bicycling cities in America.

So now what? Now, more than ever, it’s important to rally behind your local advocacy group to make sure that the gains from the past few years continue. Get involved with organizations like LivableStreets, MassBike, The Boston Cyclists Union, and Dot Bike (full disclosure: I am a contributor to LivableStreets) or your town’s local board of transportation.

Finally, make sure to keep riding and enjoying our city whether you’re getting around on two wheels or two legs. And have an ice cream in honor of Nicole, preferably chocolate chip (her favorite flavor).

Jonathan Simmons is a psychologist and an avid cyclist. His book, “Here For the Ride” will be published later this year.

By Jonathan Simmons, Guest Columnist

Late last fall my friend Lane and I decided to ride all of Boston’s 50-plus miles of bike lanes in a day. A 50-mile ride is something we could typically knock off in about 2 ½ hours. Boston is pretty flat, so we figured this would be a leisurely stroll.

Boy did we figure wrong.

Nicole Freedman, the Boston bike czar (at least until April 20th), sent me a map of the city's bike lanes. I’m no cartographer, but even I could see that our route was not contiguous.

This ride was going to be a little more complicated than I had originally thought. Also a little longer than 50 miles. Still, worst-case scenario, I figured we could do a modified route over the course of a day.

Even then, I underestimated our challenge by a factor of two.

We began our Tour de Boston (TdB) at 8 a.m. on a Sunday morning in Kenmore Square and headed west on Beacon Street. The cobblestones along the reservoir near Boston College made it feel like we were racing in Paris-Roubaix (otherwise known as the Hell of the North), the toughest one day race on the pro calendar.

My favorite sign on our TdB read, “Bicycles may take the full lane.” My second favorite sign was on the ground near the crosswalks along Commonwealth Avenue near Boston University. It instructed pedestrians to look left for cyclists before crossing the street. I know that won’t stop jay-walkers from darting out into traffic, but perhaps it will slow them down enough to avoid an accident.

As we rode across the Rutherford Avenue Bridge and looked down through the metal grate we could see the reflections from above bouncing off of the water down below. One more thing you miss when you’re trapped inside of your car.

We decided to ride to the Bunker Hill Monument. I’m here to report that hill is quite steep. Fortunately it is also quite short. By then it had warmed up enough for us to take off our ear warmers.

We took the water ferry across the harbor to East Boston. I almost convinced myself that I was on a cruise ship. Unfortunately, we docked at Logan airport. The roads around Logan are bad enough in a car. On a bike they’re a disaster. At one point I tried to hail a cab, moments before we almost pedaled down the ramp for the Ted Williams Tunnel. Fortunately we found the Blue Line, which we rode to Maverick Square.

From there we pedaled past Paris, London and Liverpool (the names of local streets), abandoned factories, and a strange set of concrete pilings on an abandoned Massport lot that looked like something you’d see at Easter Island.

In Maverick Square, I realized I was hungry. Actually, I was starving (bonked is the term cyclists use). The smell of fried food coming from McDonald's was so inviting that even I, a vegetarian, almost ordered a Big Mac.

By then, Lane and I realized that we were both too spent to ride another 30 miles. In fact, we were both too spent to figure out where to eat. Instead we rode along the Esplanade and headed back to Brookline. We wisely agreed to complete our TdB another day.

Once I got home I did the usual biker thing: I ate, I napped, and I showered. Sadly, in that order. I was too tired to do otherwise.

A little more than a month later we decided to head out again for part two of our TdB, though by now we knew that we would not be able to ride all of Boston’s bike lanes.

For the first part of the second stage of the TdB we were lucky to have Nicole Freedman join us. Nicole is a former Olympic cyclist and one of the nicest people I could imagine riding with. She’s smart, too. I bet Nicole could have figured out how to get around the maze of roads that surround Logan.

Nicole has done much to make Boston a more inviting place to ride. Still, there were some neighborhoods where we were not greeted with open arms. Like the guy who gave us the two handed bird for reasons I still can’t figure out as we sprinted past.

After two days of riding I was struck by the fact that we had only scratched the surface of what’s out there to see around town. We had skipped past farms, trucks selling cupcakes, and many of Boston’s bike lanes.

Our TdB was not fast and honestly, we didn’t ride that far. And yet it was fun. That’s how it is when you’re cycling. Even on a cold and windy day, a spin on your bike is sure to bring a smile to your face.

Jonathan Simmons is a psychologist and an avid cyclist. His book, “Here For the Ride” will be published later this year.

(TheHubway.com)

A Hubway map shows bicycle stations available as of March 29.

By Jeremy C. Fox, Town Correspondent

Boston’s Hubway bike-sharing system was back in full force on April 1, with many bike stations already in place since work began on March 15.

Related

Boston's bike culture

• Hubway bike system fully launched
• Cambridge signs Hubway pact
• 3/13 Grants for city's biking initiative to fund Hubway

For 2012, there are new locations at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, Seaport Hotel, and Cambridge Street in downtown Boston. Some less popular stations will be relocated to the new sites.

“There is a new barometer for spring in Boston,” said Scott Mullen, Hubway general manager, in a statement released by Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s office. “People mark the onset of spring by Marathon Monday and opening day at Fenway Park. Now they can add the relaunch of the New Balance Hubway to that list.”

Hubway launched last July 28 with 61 stations and 610 bicycles. According to figures released by the city, Hubway riders logged more than 140,000 rides before the season closed on Nov. 30. The system attracted more than 3,700 members in 2011 and almost 30,000 casual users.

“We are very proud of the success of the New Balance Hubway in its first year and look forward to its growth in 2012,” Menino said in the statement. “As warm weather returns and more residents are spending time outside, it’s great to see so many people eager to explore our great city through Hubway and our 50 miles of bike lane.”

Menino encourages Hubway users and all bicyclists to ride safely, observing traffic laws and always wearing a helmet.

The Hubway system offers three membership options for riders: an annual membership for $85; a casual, three-day membership for $12; or a casual 24-hour membership for $5. Rides less than 30 minutes are free with any membership. Longer rides cost from $1.50 for just under an hour to $75 for rides lasting between seven and 24 hours. Registered annual members receive a 25 percent discount.

Biking will be a little easier in the city this year, with new bike lines on Massachusetts and Commonwealth avenues — the streets with the highest cyclist accident rates in the city. Boston’s streets now have more than 50 miles of bike lanes.

Boston Bikes has plans to further expand the system, with new locations in Roxbury, Dorchester Jamaica Plain, and Charlestown, as well as the Back Bay and downtown. Brookline, Cambridge, and Somerville have plans to launch about 30 stations later this year.

Hubway users can locate stations near them by visiting http://thehubway.com/stations and download a free Spotcycle smartphone application at http://www.spotcycle.net/.

For more information about Hubway or to sign up for an annual membership, visit http://www.thehubway.com/. For more information on biking in Boston, visit http://www.cityofboston.gov/bikes/.

Email Jeremy C. Fox at jeremycfox@gmail.com.
Follow Jeremy C. Fox on Twitter: @jeremycfox.
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By Susan Meyers, Guest Columnist

“We're going to get whacked.”

That's what my friend Ellen says about this unseasonably beautiful weather. We're going to get whacked, she says, because you can't skip winter. It's like skipping that sad pile of wilted green spinach on your plate and going straight to the chocolate cake.

“What do you mean, whacked?” I asked Ellen.

“We're going to pay,” she answered. “After this amazing weather, we're going to be punished with a scorcher of a summer. Basically, we're going to fry.”

Other people think we've already gotten whacked. We've whacked ourselves, they say, by dirtying the planet. They call this gorgeous weather global warming. These mild days, they say, are nothing compared to the climate change that lies ahead. We've been selfish and irresponsible and we'll get what we deserve. Not so many years from now, no matter how warm and sweet the spring air, we won't be able to breath it. We'll be stuffed into gas masks, or hiding indoors, or washed away in a fierce unseasonable storm.

Maybe I'm a bad person, but I wasn't feeling the doom and gloom yesterday. I had my bike out of the basement for my first ride of the season, and I was feeling very intensely alive.

I saw my first big fat bumblebee of the year. It flew a surprisingly crooked path right in front of my bike for about four seconds. Still warming up those wings, I thought.

I detoured around a child's sippy cup lying on the edge of the road, a cute blue double-handled number with ducks on it. Dropped, or maybe flung. Hey kid, you have a tricycle to look forward to, and maybe you will get it this year.

The roads weren't pristine, but they weren't as bad as last year. Not much sand, not so much loose gravel, not as many potholes as I remember. At least in eastern Massachusetts, we've been spared the repeated freezing and thawing that so rudely disregards cyclists and jumbles road surfaces.

I'm the cranky bicyclist in the family. I'm the hold-out, refusing to trick myself out in skin-tight bike shorts, cunning zippered shirts, clip-in shoes, gloves, sleeves, multi-lens sunglasses, special socks, special anything. Ladies and gents, I bought bike shorts for a very hard bike seat in a spin class I took this winter, and I wore those babies out on my inaugural ride yesterday. All I can say is that I've been a fool.

I don't know, is this too much good weather? Are we going to get whacked? Will we be washed away, or will wildfires, carbon dioxide concentrations, Arctic sea ice melt rates, hurricanes, and heat waves make living on Earth extraordinarily different or difficult, in coming years? As according to Ellen's prophesy, are we going to fry?

I think it's my duty to get Ellen on a bike this spring. I should do it now, too, before we are crispy and toasted, and whether we toast ourselves or crisp up naturally. Ellen, let's do it. We don't know what's coming, but I promise you that on your bike, you'll feel very much alive.

Susan Meyers is a Brookline writer. Her memoir about sight, blindness, and her relationship with her brother, titled Check This Box If You Are Blind, was published last June by Climbing Ivy Press.