The Length And Breadth
Updated: answers are now posted in the comments section; see the sixth entry.
The following trivia questions have all flashed into my head while it was going well over 55 miles per hour, soaked in caffeine, with one eye out for the cops. Answer these, and you are a true Road Warrior And Son Or Daughter Of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts:
1) What is only municipality in Massachusetts with a five syllable name?
2) How many municipalities in Massachusetts have but a one-syllable name? How many can you name?
3) How many municipalities in Massachusetts begin with "West"? A hint: there are more than ten!
4) What is the name and population of the smallest town (by population) in Massachusetts?
5) People in North Adams know that we are the smallest city (by population) in Massachusetts. What is the largest town?
6) Sort these drives from one town in Massachusetts to its "New" namesake in order of distance:
A. Bedford -> New Bedford
B. Boston-> New Boston
C. Braintree-> New Braintree
D. Marlborough-> New Marlborough
E. Salem-> New Salem
7) How many different Interstate Highways run within Massachusetts' borders?
8) What's the highest-numbered state route (that is, excluding US and Interstate routes) in Massachusetts?
9) How many state routes in Massachusetts carry an "A" designation (for example, Route 8A)?
10) Finally, a good long one that really earns you a Golden Fastlane if you nail it: starting on Mass Route 2 and heading east from Town of Williamstown, name every municipality you pass through before you make it into the City of Boston.
I was going to put the answers in the comments, but Tara convinced me it was more interactive to let you guess for a little while. What ya got, road geeks?
posted by Ross @ 9:19 PM
10 comments
10 Comments:
(1) Mattapoisett, if you count "oi" as two syllables and not a diphthong. (The official name of Manchester By The Sea has six)
(2) 8 - in fairness, I looked at the map about 6 feet away. I can't remember them all now (Rowe, Heath, Ware, Hull, Lynn,..)
(3) I'd have to look again.
(4) No idea.
(5) Framingham?
(6) Let me get back to you on that.
(7) 7? I'm probably missing one.
(8) 116?
(9) 4?
(10) Williamstown, NA, Florida, Savoy, Charlemont, Shelburne, Greenfield, and then we usually go to Northampton first, so I'm out.
WF
(hey, I've only been here 19 months)
You also have Colrain,Athol,Orange,then there is the place by the King George Bridge,the old mill town,I think one town before and one town after,...Hell... now I gotta look at the map....thanks Ross! I was going to nap!
Williamstown, North Adams, Florida, Charlemont, Savoy, Shelburn Falls, Shelburne, Greenfield, Gill, Montague,New Salem, Wendell, Erving, Orange, Ahthol, Philiston, Templeton, Gardner, Westminster, Leominster, Harvard, Littleton, Boxboro, Acton, Concord, Lexington, Belmont, Arlington, Cambridge, Boston.
How did I do?
I'll start backwards with the answer to the Route 2 question.
This list is the result of lots of driving and map consultation, so if this is wrong, then, well, keep in mind this is the Internet, and when it comes to free information, you get what you pay for. The cities between Williamstown and Boston on Route 2, in order, are:
North Adams, Florida, Savoy, Charlemont, Buckland, Shelburne, Greenfield, Gill, Erving, Wendell, Orange, Athol, Philipston, Templeton, Gardner, Westminster, Leominster, Lancaster, Harvard, Littleton, Boxborough, Acton, Concord, Lincoln, Lexington, Belmont, Arlington, and Cambridge.
I'm not counting villages or neighborhoods, so Shelburne Falls and Farley didn't make the list. There are weird jogs between Erving and Athol, and another between Littleton and the Concord Rotary.
It usually takes us two hours and somewhere between 15 and 30 minutes to drive the stretch of 2 between Routes 8 and 128, and we seem to be doing it three or four times a month. At night. The 24-hour Dunkin Donuts heading westbound at Exit 22 in Gardner is a lifesaver, but keep in mind it has no bathroom. You have to use the one at the Hess station next door, or wait 45 minutes to get to the next Dunkin Donuts, half a mile off the rotary in Greenfield.
I can't believe I forgot Lincoln - will have to hang my head in shame over that one.
OK. Here are the answers. But first, a correction to question 10: Tara points out the 40-foot stretch of Clarksburg at the tip of the hairpin turn...
As for the rest:
1) The only 5-syllable city/town in Massachusetts is North Attleborough.
2) There are ten one-syllable place names: Bourne, Gill, Heath, Hull, Lee, Lynn, Rowe, Stow, Wales, and Ware.
3) There are fifteen (out of 351!) municipalities beginning with "West": West Boylston, West Bridgewater, West Brookfield, West Newbury, West Springfield, West Stockbridge, West Tisbury, Westborough, Westfield, Westford, Westhampton, Westminster, Weston, Westport, and Westwood.
4) With a 2004 estimated population of 87, Gosnold, in Dukes County next to Falmouth, is the smallest town in the Commonwealth.
5) Snaps to Wes for the correct answer here: Framingham, population 65,598, is the largest town in the Bay State. That's over four times the people in North Adams, population 14,167.
That was the population quiz. We now move on to the roadgeek section of our show:
6) In ascending order:
Bedford-New Bedford, 72 mi
Braintree-New Braintree, 86 mi
Salem-New Salem, 87 mi
Marlborough-New Marlborough, 108 mi
Boston-New Boston, 121 mi
7) Thirteen interstates are located here: Interstates 84, 90, 91, 93, 95, 190, 195, 290, 291, 295, 391, 395, and 495.
8) Berkshire residents who didn't get this should be ashamed: the highest numbered state route is MA 295, contained entirely within the town of Richmond.
9) The A-routes: there are thirteen of these as well: 1A, 2A, 3A, 6A, 7A, 8A, 20A, 28A, 32A, 114A, 122A, 127A, and 146A. I don't know if these are meant to be the "scenic" spurs of each of the mainline routes or not, but it makes sense, having been on most of them. 127A up the North Shore definitely runs on the scenic side.
10) Again, the Rte 2 answer: North Adams, Clarksburg, Florida, Savoy, Charlemont, Buckland, Shelburne, Greenfield, Gill, Erving, Wendell, Orange, Athol, Philipston, Templeton, Gardner, Westminster, Leominster, Lancaster, Harvard, Littleton, Boxborough, Acton, Concord, Lincoln, Lexington, Belmont, Arlington, and Cambridge.
Rate yourself, according to this scale:
1-2 questions right: Go back to California, chump.
3-5 questions right: Yeah, I can look at Wikipedia, too.
6-9 questions right: Safe travels to you, O Mighty Road Warrior.
10 questions right: Ross, dude, you really need to find something more interesting to blog about. Or take a vacation. By train, though.
Ross - you, of all people, should have remembered West Peabody. You have some history there, do you not? Or have your days of travelling so overwhelmed your memory that you don't remember the first part of your life, when things were simple and Star Blazers was on every afternoon at 3:30?
Ross, how did the bowling go?
Amy: the bowling went great. Our own particular team of me & Tara, our friends P & K, Little Sister Tisha and her sister Kayla, thanks to a heroic last-second donation by the local firm of Paul F. DiLego, Jr, CPA, on Church Street (remember, y'all, it's tax time and Paul's still accepting clients), raised over a thousand dollars for Big Brothers Big Sisters. We won, basically. And I bowled a 130. Not bad for a long-time candlepin guy. Not good for a real bowler, but I never claimed to real bowlerism.
Amy, you also deserve to be publicly recognized for your contribution to the cause. We thank you profusely.
Look for a good sized article in Thursday's Advocate, as well. I can't wait!
Ross -- don't let me forget to send my check to BBBS. Margie
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