Fourth annual Century Ride bridges Tufts schools

The fourth annual Tufts Century Ride brought together approximately 70 students, faculty and alumni from the Tufts community on a bike ride last Friday.

This year's ride was organized by Provost and Senior Vice President David Harris and his office in collaboration with the Tufts Cycling Team and Quad Cycles, an Arlington bicycle shop.

The full 106-mile ride passed through three Tufts campuses -- Medford/Somerville, Boston and Grafton -- according to the Office of the Provost's website. Participants were able to choose to ride distances of 18, 44, 88 or 106 miles.

The bike route began at the Medford/Somerville campus, went along the Charles River into Boston and then headed west en route to the Grafton campus, according to the Provost's website. The Century Ride ended at Ballou Hall, where food, drink and a cheering crowd awaited.



Harris started the Century Ride in July 2012, shortly after joining the Tufts community, with the intention of meeting fellow Jumbos.

“I thought, how am I going to meet people?” he said. “I don’t want to wait until September. I want to get to know people now.”

Harris said he looked at the distances between the university's Boston-area campuses and realized a route connecting the three campuses would add up to around 100 miles, or a century in cycling terms. He decided to invite Tufts faculty members on a bike ride along this route, and the event quickly grew bigger than he had anticipated.

Harris, who oversees all eight Tufts schools, said he enjoys uniting people and places on the ride, giving Jumbos the opportunity to see what he calls a unique constellation of schools.

“It’s really a special place with all these different parts, but if you don’t try, you can stay in your silo the whole time,” he said.

Noah Epstein, captain of the cycling team, said the team enjoys the opportunity to meet fellow Jumbos.

“It’s like a rolling social event that brings everybody together,” Epstein, a senior, said.

Epstein said one Century Ride participant considered ending the ride early but ultimately persevered and finished at Medford.

“I was proud,” Epstein said.

One of the participants, Kenneth Weitzman, said the ride was an exciting chance to explore the various Tufts locations.

“I’ve never actually been to any of the other campuses,” Weitzman, a sophomore, said.

Another Century Ride cycler, Justin Richer said he really enjoyed the experience.

“I’ve been wanting to do it for about four years, and it was awesome," Richer, a student in the School of Dental Medicine, said.

On the road, Harris said he enjoys connecting with people in a context where official titles disappear.

“Many people see me as the provost, but I just see me as Dave,” he said. "[During the ride,] they’re not thinking, ‘I’m riding with the provost.’ They’re thinking, ‘I was with that guy Dave. We went on a ride. We talked about this that and the other.”’

The logistics for the ride are planned months in advance, according to Harris.

“Two weeks out, we start watching the weather closely,” Harris said. “You just hope it’s not going to rain.”

The first Century Ride, held in 2012, had only 30 faculty bikers. That number grew to170 registered bikers for last year's ride, according to a Daily article published on Sept. 22 of last year.

Harris said he was pleased by this year's event.

“I really think this was our best ride ever,” he said.

Produced in Collaboration with Tufts Podcast Network. Listen to the audio segment here.