Coooold Weekend :)

I spent this last weekend freezing my ass off. Saturday I had planned to ride to the coast, but with the clouds and low temperatures I wasn't sure I wanted to go. I finally went out around 9:30 AM headed for my starting point in Woodside and on my bike by 10:35. It was already really cold and the sun had yet to show itself. My destination was Pescadero and eventually Tunitas Creek. There were lots of cyclists out on the roads so there was plenty of company at varying sections of the ride (though fewer on the long stretch into Pescadero). Arriving in Pescadero I got there just in time to miss the crowds. There was an organized ride from Western Wheelers that day and so there seemed to be about 30 or so cyclists at the bakery I love to go to out there. They were within 5 minutes of leaving which was perfect so I got my sandwich and went out to chill.

The ride up Stage was a little chilly, but not bad. It was when I got to Tunitas that I was really freezing my ass off. It was about 42.5 F about halfway up and I was tempted to start peeling off the layers, but when I took my long Wombat gloves off, my fingers turned numb! Was feeling really tired by the time I got to the top so was ready to start down the other side. However, it wasn't much warmer on the other side and going down Kings Mtn Rd with the temps around 43 F and the windchill at [who knows] was making things really chilly ;).



Sunday Nahoko and I had planned to make a day trip to Bear Valley; making this our last expected trip for the 2008/2009 snow season. We were a bit nervous about the weather, but as it turned out it wasn't all that bad. Quite cold, only sunny for a little while, but considering our (i.e. my) track record with the weather up in the mountains this was a picture perfect day. Got in some great runs once the icy top layer softened. The diamond and double diamond runs on the backside where a blast. No more rocks to dodge like last time ;). Wish there was more time to go (not to mention $$$), but there's always next season. Right now it's ride time...this upcoming weekend though might not be that great (more rain in the forecast).

Training

Been slow to start, but I've started riding again with some consistency. That riding though has been limited to indoor riding on the trainer I bought a few weeks back so that I can ride in the evenings when I get home late from work. Anyway, made it out to the coast this last weekend and boy it was beautiful. Here's the route I took. Bought new wheels for my bike (Easton EA90 SL) and so this was the break in ride. Much stiffer than my old wheels, which seemed to help a bit, but also rolled very nicely (perhaps my old wheels would have done well if I simply had the bearings repacked ;)).

Here's my route from MapMyFitness.com.

So damn lazy

After several months of really not doing anything active I am paying the price. The last major bike ride I participated in was in October and I had already been slacking off for 2 months. With work eating up most of my time and patience during the week it's been difficult to force myself to stay active.

So while my overall weight has only increase a few pounds, I clearly have gained some unnecessary pounds and lost some good ones ;). Picked up a trainer for my bike so that I can ride when I get home late in the evening during the week and no longer have the excuse of "it's too dark outside". As part of using the trainer I've realized that my legs have lost a lot of muscle that I spent time building up and now have to recapture.

What I'm hoping is to be able to build back that muscle in the next few months and that in doing so the "unnecessary" pounds will go away as the good pounds come back (yeah I'm dancing around the words, so what :P). I'm planning to ride the first century this year in April so I still have a few months to go, but I need to drop about 10 lbs by the end of March and of course get back in that "groove" (the groove should be easier than the pounds).

Time to get to it.

Bakersfield

Back in Bakersfield for the third time this year and surprisingly it's quite warm (well not that big of a surprise). I'm back here with my coworker for another bike tour. It's the Spooktacular that I attempted last year and got rained on for the 3rd time in 2007 so only finished slightly less than 100k. The weather this year is excellent and should be quite warm as the morning chill wears off. My previous visits to Bakersfield were in May as I was passing through to camp along the Kern River to do some fishing for Memorial day and again for my friend's graduation from college.

I hadn't planned on attending because I'm picking my girl up from SFO on Sunday morning and figured my counterpart wouldn't be leaving till Sunday morning to go home. Turns out he's leaving after the ride so works out perfectly. Though I haven't been riding so not sure how tomorrrow will go, but I'm going to attempt the Horrible 100 once again and will do my best...here it goes!

Now if I could just get my iPod to finish syncing then I could go to bed!

Shasta Summit Century 8.3.2008

Before the Death Ride Granger had sent out an email at work to several of us asking if there were any takers for this century (an understatement calling it a century) up in Mount Shasta on August 3rd. Looking at the website I was a bit concerned, but said "let me finish the DR first ;)."

DR came and went, time to decide. The Shasta ride has several options, though I signed up for the big one (135 miles and around 16000'). I wasn't really thinking I'd finish, but giving it a good try sounded like fun. The route resembles a clover leave so that if I can't continue the ride back to the start, rather hotel, isn't that far away (well no up hill at least).

The day started at 5:30 AM (well 4:45 waking up at least) with a large group of Granger's friends all leaving together. I knew they'd all leave me the dust (many of these people are double century riders so I'm somewhat out of my league, but still fun nice people). I kept up with them throughout the ride to the base of the first climb, but that was it ;). The first climb was a long one for sure. Not many breaks on the way up, though not steep, you don't get that many opportunities to rest up...so just keep riding! It was starting out to be a beautiful day and the climb at that hour was wonderful. The scenery matched with the weather and the sunrise was making for an excellent morning ride.

The climb took a while given the distance, but the descent was fast and fun (though some nervousness in avoiding the many pot holes that fortunately were marked well, but anything in the shade I had a hard time seeing). No cramps, no issues, no problem...on to climb 2. Climb 2 took a long time, but again incredible views. The temps were still ok though going up as the day progressed. There's a rest stop 5 miles from the top that I definitely needed in order to eat a bit more, but all in all wasn't feeling bad...still no cramps. I'd started popping enduralites from within the first 45 minutes...hmmm, maybe it works. I had considered turning around and heading for the 3rd climb so that I would have time to make the fourth climb that goes up Mount Shasta itself, but couldn't resist the last 5 miles up this hill. There are a few very steep sections that really get your heart going and your legs burning so it takes some pushing to keep going, but not too bad really (it doesn't go all that long really). Saw Granger and several other members of the morning group shortly after leaving the mid rest stop so knew I wouldn't likely see them again till the end of the day.

Resting at the top enjoying a soda (gotta love regular soda when riding...I always drink diet so regular is a nice treat) a PCT thru hiker came through. Cool! PCT = Pacific Crest Trail that goes from the Mexico border to the Canada border. It's a long hike ;); see here for more details. He'd been out since April I think he said so needless to say he was a bit dirty, but definitely has my props giving my longest trek was 7 days...inspiring!

Left for pass 3 and got there relatively quickly. The climb was only really any challenge for the first 2 miles then it just goes on and on for a while longer, but not bad. Again the scenery was wonderful! This ride was worth the drive (aka money) to go up just for the scenery alone. The top of the 3rd climb was this lake that honestly looked very inviting. I considered jumping in, but opted against it...next time!

I left after 20 minutes (I was just relaxing) and decided to see how long it'd take me to get down before decided to go for the last climb. Needless to say I was already at 94 miles at the top of the 3rd climb so it was already going to be a century by the bottom of the hill so it was a good day no matter what. As I got to the bottom it was clear that I wouldn't make the top of Shasta before dark or at least would miss the closing times for the rest stops. I decided to not go up seeing as it was 5:15ish when I got back to the beginning (first rest stop was closing at 5:30 about 6 miles up the 14 mile ride).

The two best parts from the whole day...
* Beautiful scenery
* NOT A SINGLE CRAMP! (will definitely try more enduralites at next year's DR)

Totals (approx):
110 miles
11500'

Here's a few views from the day...enjoy!

Death Ride - detailed

OK so I haven't been back to post in a while, but that's because I've been really busy (work and personal life are quite busy these days and only getting worse).

Anyway, the Death Ride was another amazing ride and much improved over last year (so something is going right). I had a plan in place for how I would make the cutoffs and while I was actually slightly ahead of schedule, cramps settled in on pass three (actually at the top of pass 2) to delay my ascent and thus end up missing the Woodfords cutoff by about 25 minutes :(.

Early morning:
The morning began at about 3:20 AM as I awoke prior to the alarms going off and eventually just jump out of bed to shut the alarms off one minute before the whole room was noisier than hell! I had about 4 alarms set ;). The plan was for a leave time at 4 AM and we stuck to it. Myself, Nahoko, and Glenn (coworker) were out the door of Glenn's father's house in Minden at 4 AM and on our way out to Turtle Rock.

Starting out:
We parked a mile or so from Turtle Rock in order to not have to climb this last hill back to the car (in case I did make 5 passes that is), plus it afforded a nice little warm up. Glenn and I both left at about 5:10 AM, only to be stopped at the Turtle Rock turn off about 10 minutes later because I did not have lights. There was plenty of light out with the sky around blue and yet the officer would not let us proceed with the warning that his superior was down at Markleeville handing out citations for those without lights (I have no comment on this :|). Officially on the road at 5:30 AM I headed for the first climb up to Monitor Pass. Glenn had actually left before me because he did bring his headlight and needed to find the mens room somewhere up ahead so I was on my own for the rest of the ride!

Monitor Pass #1:
The early morning climb was a breeze (though there was no wind to speak of)! There were lots of cyclists around me, just as last year, however, this time I was keeping pace with the bulk of the group and was feeling very strong. The temperature was quite nice given the hour and so I already felt quite warm. The first 3 or 4 miles seem to go for a long time for me, though not tough without being able to see much ahead of those miles it seems to go on a while. After making the bend to the left and seeing the open meadow (not to mention the road following up the mountain side further), I felt energized! I charged up a bit more and maintained a great pace to the top, making it about 30 minutes faster than last year (though still slower than the mass majority I'm sure ;)). Total time up - 1 hour 15 minutes (approx).

Descent to HWY 395 :):
God I love this descent! For those who hate those of us who blast down the hill I apologize, but it's just too much to resist :D! I think I was averaging about 38 MPH (though hard to tell), but quite often was over 45 and maxed out at 52 MPH :D! This year I noticed a significant fewer number of riders already climbing back up as I descended.

Monitor Pass #2:
The first 4 or 5 miles are nothing (basically back up to the "water boys") and just take some time to grind out (though there were some people already falling victim to the climb). I was feeling terrific and so energized that I just kept finding reasons to push just a tad more (likely to be my downfall at the top of the climb). About 2 miles or so from the top, I had just slowed down to get my heart rate down a bit and I hear someone say something in my direction. I turn...it's Granger (my other friend on the ride)! Granger is a very strong rider and had started some time after me, but of course managed to catch up anyway ;). He was surprised at my current position, but of course there was a long way to go overall. I sped up for just a minute to chat, but he was focused on his ride as I should be too so I said to enjoy the ride and backed off. No stops again on this climb. Total time - 1 hour 35 minutes (not sure how I was able to make up so much extra time, but that's 1 hour better than last time).

The descent down monitor west wasn't much to speak of, but before leaving the top I had to get some help from the REI guys to get some dirt and rocks out of my Speedplay cleats and in the process was bending my leg in a very weird position and got a huge cramp...let the troubles begin :(.

Ebbetts Pass #1:
With the cramps that I felt first on the top of Monitor I knew Ebbetts was going to be a long ride. I slowly rode my way up to the first rest stop about 8 or 9 miles from the top. I needed to refuel and stand in the bathroom line so I spent more time than intended, but that's ok, my leg needed it ;). My ride continued with some strain, but it wasn't until about 3 miles from the top that my leg started giving out and I was feeling dizzy. It wasn't super hot, but hot enough that riding in the direct sun was taking it's toll. I should have been popping the eduralites much more often. I was only about a 1/4 mile from the top when I had to stop again because my leg cramped up to the point that I couldn't move my leg let alone peddle. It was at this time that Granger passed by going the other direction seeing me standing there stretching (he figured I cramped up...good guess). Got to the top without much more effort and then looked around for Nahoko. No Nahoko found..."did she go over to the other side?" is what I was asking myself.

I went ahead and started my ride down to Hermit's Valley. Close to the bottom I saw Nahoko (also saw Glenn closer to the top)! She was on her way back up and looked like she was doing welll.

Ebbett's Pass #2:
I stayed a while at Hermit's Valley to cool down. The weather was nice, not too hot and not too cool, and there was still a Pepsi left! Had I left about 30 minutes sooner I might have actually made the Woodfords cutoff, but that's ok. Not much happening at Hermit's Valley seeing as most people had already moved on. I started out and quickly was on my own (again not many riders by this point).

As I was climbing a few people came by and passed along with me passing a few people. On the way up, closer to the top, I heard the thunder crash! I looked up and couldn't believe my eyes; dark clouds, much cooler temperatures, and me thinking, "not again." Arriving at the top, there were the people wearing big garbage bags and the ground was somewhat wet. The guy at the top was warning us to be careful on the descent because it was slippery. All I could think was, "why me??" I have such bad luck with weather and cycling. Had 3 rides last year in the rain, hail, and snow, not to mention near freezing temps average on most of the ride while in Tahoe in September (I missed the snow fortunately, but it was snowing on parts of the ride). I started down the hill...

It quickly started sprinkling and then it started coming down harder! As I was passing the rest stop I saw Nahoko standing there in her own garbage bag :) (so cute). Her brakes weren't working all that well and she was VERY cold. She had decided she couldn't go on, but still 3 passes! COOL! She and others were catching a ride back to Turtle Rock. I told her I wasn't going to attempt 5 passes (though my cramps were COMPLETELY gone following the cooler temps) due to not having enough time. Being the sweet guy that I am I told her I'd go back to the car (her car), get the car, and pick her up at Turtle Rock.

Shortly after I left her, the heavens OPENED UP! It was like the Tierra Bella in Gilroy 2007 all over again! It was coming down so hard that there was a thick layer of water on the road and I could barely see anything let alone potholes (I didn't hit any fortunately). It was actually hurting (besides freezing my ass off) so I wondered if there was hail, but I couldn't see any. Later I was told it was definitely hailing that some could see it bouncing off the road. The lunch stop was kinda funny, I was going to stop and grab a sandwich, but as hard as it was raining, everyone was huddled under the canopy. I laughed, got some water (could have just opened my bottle and held it up ;)), and rode off. I kept it at a reasonable speed due to the rain still falling hard, but it let up after about 3 miles and then I started flying! It felt great! Disappointing that I was so late because I felt like hitting that 5th pass, but no time available :(.

Passing Turtle Rock was a great feeling and as I arrived back at the car that sense of accomplishment settled in (if only accompanied by a bit of disappointment from not completing all 5). I got cleaned up (in the rain that had started to fall there now too) and started driving to to Turtle Rock (remember we parked a mile or so before it).

When I found Nahoko she was very worried about me (so sweet :*) because it was taking me a while, but honestly I was moving pretty quickly, but she had been waiting a while because of getting a SAG back.



Conclusion...
It was a great ride of which I had already forgotten how bad it hurt. I was already thinking about the next year's ride by that evening. The plan of attack is definitely improved once again so I'll be more prepared both in training as well as during ride electrolyte intake (a big issue I think). Till next year...

Death Ride 2008 - post

It's over! I'm done! Unfortunately did not complete the entire ride :(. It was a great ride with beautiful weather, smokeless skies (for a change), and relatively mild temperatures. The day was an early start with us starting our ride at about 5:20ish (the cops wouldn't let those of us without headlights continue...despite the skies already being blue and plenty of light to see outside).

Will have to post an official ride report as soon as I have time, but here's the summary...

Completed 4 of 5 passes
92 miles (approx)
11000' elevation gain (approx)
9 hours actual riding time (approx); same as last year, but with one additional pass
Rain, hail, and lightning from the top of pass 4 back to the car
Temps seemed to be in the mid to upper 80's, but not certain


And Nahoko finished an amazing 3 passes!!! She skipped pass 2, thus not going down that 9 miles to 395 from the top of Monitor (at the advice of myself and Granger) and instead turned around after climbing Monitor 1 and headed for Ebbetts to climb pass 3. She decided to be brave apparently at the top of pass 3 and headed down the backside of Ebbetts to climb back up pass 4 (once you're down there, there's little choice but to climb back up, unless you want to ride on the back of a motorcycle while holding your bicycle). She made it back up to the top and was being rained on all the way to the next rest stop. I'm so impressed :). Way to go dear!!!

Another writeup to come...

Strawberry Fields Forever [metric] Century

I had so much fun on last year's SFFC that I had to go again. I had planned to ride the century (as in the real century), but because I had asked Nahoko to join me, we did the metric century instead. Course I should be riding as many centuries as possible before the DR in oh, less than 2 months, but I enjoyed riding with her :). It was really exciting to see how well she did! Way to go dear!!!

Let's start off by saying it was a bit chilly on Sunday (the 18th) morning and seeing the fog, including driving through it, as we made our way to Watsonville was a bit discouraging considering neither of us really brought that much extra clothing. Granted I had knee warmers and arm warmers, without long finger clothes I'd have been numb. We both had long sleeves on (well I had arm warmers on) for the first stretch to the rest stop, but after that it was down to short sleeve jersey's (we had skipped the leg warmers and/or tights when we left the car so shorts was all we had on the bottom half).

The first "climb" of the day as we made our way out was fun. I tried to get a bit more out of it so I upshifted and then alternated between standing and sitting. I have found that forcing myself to stand has really increased my endurance for doing so. While I still tire relatively quickly compared to some, I notice a significant improvement over last year (thank god because that was embarrassing at last year's DR when even standing up, I couldn't make the bike move any more trying to go up the 3rd pass).

First rest stop was a bit busy, and the coffee line was long (but I wasn't going to miss my coffee). Nahoko didn't want to wait for me :(, so she took off, with the expectation of me to catch up at some point. What I thought was only about 15 minutes of lead time for her, must have been more like 30 because it took me just under an hour to catch her and I was moving a lot faster than she was (not that she was moving slow I just was working it hard to try to catch up) and she even stopped a few times to take pictures. I was glad I caught her because Tustin Rd was coming up soon ;).

As we got to the bottom of the hill on Tustin Rd I told her to take it slow and not to push anymore than she could do. With that I took off and road to the top (amongst all those pushing their bikes up..yes it's that steep). The only relief in climbing that (I'm still weak, that climb hurts) is that it's very short, but someone said it peaks somewhere around 18% (don't have a way to verify that though). As I neared the top, there was LOTS of people catching their breath and I'm sure a good portion had walked and still had to catch their respective breaths.

Then as I was waiting for Nahoko on the top, I saw something amazing! Nahoko was riding! And getting close! As I watched her struggle up the hill, I started thinking to myself, oh please don't tip over. I don't know how fast she was going, but it wasn't that fast....who cares she was still pedaling! With that she finished and made it to the top! So proud of her :)...

The day continued on with a nice lunch (not before another hill though that everyone was saying "oh, I forgot about this one" (I was one of them), and head wind into the next rest stop and finish. Nahoko finished her first 100km ride! Way to go!!!

Bike to Work Day 2008

This week has been bike to work week (actually I think the whole month is supposed to be bike to work month though not sure why May, but who cares), but today was the "official" (if there is such a thing) "Bike to Work Day". I started riding in on this day 3 years ago and that was part of what got me interested in getting a nice road bike. I remember that first BTWD on my mtn bike and it was miserable ;). Now it feels like nothing, which of course is a good thing.

Today was different because I was riding with my girlfriend. We both work in Menlo Park within a few miles of each other and so our routes are the same. Though we generally don't ride to work together because I um, don't need to get in as early as she does (also known as lazy from her interpretation). We made a point of stopping at as many Energizer stations as we could this morning to get some free goodies (the coffee cake was really good, I should have gotten more). A couple of free bags, some munchies, water (for the ride home since we both already had filled water bottles), and of course coupons! Now for a trip to Sports Basement with our 20% off coupon.

What made today even more fun, was the heat. Today was officially a Spare the Air Day here in California and so one or another we shouldn't drive, but riding was a bit hot. At 7 am it was already in the mid 70's and climbing. By the time we got to work, it was HOT! The ride home was going to be fun so I decided to stick around and keep working (Nahoko headed back to San Mateo on her own while I was going back home to Sunnyvale). Despite leaving at 6:45 with the temperature greatly reduced I got cooked on the ride home and walking in the front door I looked/felt like someone had sprayed me with a hose.

This weekend should be fun...we're both riding the Strawberry Fields Forever century (well metric century anyway) on Sunday. I did it last year and it was one of those rides where you might gain weight as opposed to lose it while riding ;). The chocolate covered strawberries (with whip cream) are the main draw. Can't wait...!

To the coast!

I've ridden to the coast several times this year already, but yesterday's ride was a bit different. I hadn't been feeling well most of the week, however, still decided to go riding yesterday with Nahoko. The original plan was to ride out from Sunnyvale, up Old La Honda, and finish out around the Portola loop. Instead I talked her into riding to the coast via Old La Honda and San Gregorio. This of course meant riding back Tunitas Creek ;).



Our time up Old La Honda (44 minutes) was a little slower than the previous time (42 minutes), but still ok. I usually do about 32 minutes (give or take a minute), but it's nice to slow it down a bit. Instead I just lower my gear selection and make it a bit tougher to pedal (hopefully giving me a bit more practice for upcoming challenges). Once reaching Skyline we didn't bother to stop and instead just made our way down the west side.

It took quite a while to get to San Gregorio because of the wind and because we just weren't riding that fast downhill. Only a short stopover in SG to get something to eat (most of the sandwiches, actually all but one, were already gone) and drink. Going up that short stretch of Stage Rd was a pain in the ass with the wind in our faces. It was clearly having an affect.

On Tunitas though, the wind was nonexistent (excluding the occasional gust in the lower portion of the road). Once reaching the trees, there was no wind, but it was chilly. One fun thing we saw on the way up, was near the bottom there were some tadpoles in a small pool of water. Thought about bringing a few back with us in an empty water bottle...though we decided against it ;). We took our time and eventually made it. Nahoko made it up without stopping. We only took a rest at key points like the wood bridge and the crest of that fun 1.9 mile stretch.

Nahoko's shoulder was hurting quite a lot by the top of Tunitas and so even riding downhill on King's Mtn Rd was going to be a bit painful, but fortunately it wouldn't require much effort to get back to the truck.

Long day (plus mountain pass info)

After last weekend's century completion (only my second one so far after deciding in Feb '07 to complete one) I thought I'd head out again for the weekend and attempt a good long ride to the coast and back via San Gregorio and Tunitas Creek. Well the ride was going quite well, but as I got closer to finishing Tunitas, I realized that certain body parts (specifically one) were really hurting badly. Let's just say I could sit down any longer and still had a long way to go to get home :|.




The original plan was to turn around and go back up King's Mountain Road, but I wasn't able to sit to ride home and so knew going back up King's, wasn't going to happen ;). I took what I thought was the shortest route home heading back for Foothill Expressway and did the best I could not to sit (tough to do all things considered). Total mileage for the day was only 75, but still came out to about 5170'. Actual ride time was slow as always compared the vast majority of serious riders, but not bad for me. After 6 hours and 17 minutes (not counting about 25 minutes worth of "breaks") I was finally walking back into my place in Sunnyvale. It's funny, the more I do these rides, the better I feel, and yet I still find myself asking [myself] during each long climb "wtf was I thinking?" I'm sure when on the DR in July I'll be saying that during the ascent of the backside of Monitor pass (just as I was doing on last years ;)).

Speaking of Monitor pass, I had been wondering when the various passes in the mountains would be opening or if they had been opened already. Found the following details that show when various passes were closed in the past and when they were opened. As you will see Monitor pass was opened on 4/9/2008. Sweet! Maybe I will go up there next month as originally planned and if I'm lucky, maybe Ebbetts will also be opened as I much more enjoyed that pass ;). And of course, there's always Sonora pass (yet to be opened) when I'm at Pinecrest Lake this coming August for the yearly camping trip.

Sierra Nevada pass closures

Tierra Bella 2008

Been somewhat busy and haven't been posting in a while (obviously). Several rides since the last posting including a ride to the coast that included a late night return home. I got a late start when I decided to head for Page Mill and head for Tunitas Creek via Pescadero and thus didn't get home till about 8:50 PM. The return ride consisted of a ton of bugs smacking me in the face and seriously limited visibility, but I made it. Total mileage was 87 for the day with better than 6k feet I think (I forget, will have to check it out later).

This past weekend on Saturday the 19th was the Tierra Bella. I had been waiting for my opportunity to attempt the century again after last year's monsoon ride. Though the route was changed somewhat with no ride up Metcalf, the change was to go up to Henry Coe (quite climb in itself). Started out around 7:10 AM and rode to the first rest stop with my friend Scott and his dad who were doing the 60 K (our routes were the same for the first 16 miles or so). The pace was a bit slow to the first stop ;), but that was perfectly ok as it was fun to get out and ride with them both once again. They had introduced me to this tour back in 2002.

It was pretty damned cold till I finally hit Thomas Grade (the first step in heading for the top of Henry Coe) and so I was actually quite welcoming the climb for a chance to warm up. Seemed like forever when climbing up that hill, but finally made it along with dozens of other cyclists. As the wind picked up while at the top, it was clear how cold it would be on the way down and what was in store for me eventually when riding back to the start.

The last climb of the day was up to Gilroy Hot Springs, which I remember as being quite short...I must have a short memory because it was anything but short (course I was a bit sore by this point too). The wind was to my back while heading there so not too bad. After finishing the loop and heading north on Franklin in Gilroy, the wind showed just what it could do. I was barely managing 6 MPH. Turning west I could maintain 14 MPH, but the wind was constantly knocking me off balance.

What was really fun, was shortly after crossing highway 101, I reached Santa Teresa once again. As I turned south, with the wind to my back, I started FLYING! Generally speaking I'm pretty slow compared to most riders, but on the flats I can hold my own. I was averaging 28 MPH (without any real effort) and for about a min was holding 30 MPH with just about average power output. It felt great to suddenly get the boost of speed after barely moving not long before that.

As I arrived back at the college, I felt really good to have finally completed another century! Considering I tried 4 centuries last year (not including the Death Ride) and was rained on for 3 of them (one being the Tahoe Sierra with the hail and snow combined with near freezing temps over most of my ride too) I was thrilled to finally get the chance to see if I could repeat my 2nd century. Best of all they still had pie and ice cream at the end ;).

Great weekend

I love having Good Friday off when most others do not :). Although at times it would be more fun to have some friends off so that we could all go do something for the weekend, but it does allow me to just go have some fun on my own. This time I went out for a ride and ended up with 73 miles logged for the day (though my avg speed sucked as usual; we won't mention what or how long it all took ;), but at least it was somewhat normal for me).

Rather than drive somewhere close to where I would be riding, I just left from home (save gas) and road over and up Montebello. This meant passing by the accident site for those two poor cyclists from a few weeks ago. There's a small memorial setup for them and definitely makes you think about what can happen.

Made it up Montebello with only seeing a couple of cyclists pass me on their way back down. I made it up pretty quickly compared to passed rides then turned around at the top for a rather chilly ride back down. I decided I wasn't done climbing so I decided to head for Portola and ride Old La Honda Rd too. As I got there I was having second thoughts (my legs were a bit tired), but road it anyway. Took a bit longer than normal, but that's ok. It was wonderful weather so even inside the trees in the shade it still was comfortable.

Made my way to Woodside and out a few miles on to Canada Rd before turning around at 52 miles out and headed home (course home was still 21 miles away ;)). Aside from my rather sore ass and exhausted legs, I still felt pretty good (definitely a positive feeling knowing what's coming).

Saturday was other activities including an attempt at basketball and bowling (clearly I suck and basketball and bowling, well, I USED to be good ;)). Sunday my legs have really been hurting so I've been taking it easy...

There's always the story of Nahoko's fish and frogs, but I'll discuss that later.

Death Ride 2008

Well it's official, my name was selected from the big hat of names to ride in the Death Ride for 2008. The sad part is no one else (or so I thought) was selected that I know. As it turns out one of my coworkers who signed up (someone who did it last year and finished was selected, but originally he said he wasn't going to sign up so I hadn't looked for his name). That coworker is still deciding what he wants to do because his wife said after last year's completion...

"I finished! Never again!"

...or something to that effect ;).

I'm definitely excited knowing that I get another chance to redeem myself and complete that hellish ride, but at the same time thinking to myself, "WTF did I get myself into once again!?" With 4 months left to go and knowing that I haven't even really begun to start training I now have no more excuses...I have to get riding!

The benefit over last year, is that this time last year I was about 25 lbs heavier and so had lost 20 of that to get to the ride weight for last year. This time I plan to do the same, but only about half of that 25 is necessary this time. So with that it'll put me about 15 lbs under last year's ride weight...hopefully that'll benefit my legs, lungs, heart, etc enough to keep me moving through the mountains. While my weight last year wasn't really a problem, I really needed to be lighter; for me personally I just needed the additional stress lifted off my heart and of course the less weight on my legs definitely would help. Currently around 190, the goal is around 175 lbs by July 12th. It's doable...

...now I just need to find some people capable and willing to spend hours on a bike training (riding by myself is so boring and unmotivating ;)).

Feeling better

After a really miserable week and not being able to do anything over the weekend I'm finally feeling better. I was really itching to get out on Sunday when I was feeling a lot better, but common sense forced me to stay in and take it easy for one more day. Must have been a 3 day flu.

Tuesday now and though I'm feeling quite better I'm still feeling that stuffy head and tightening in the chest that came on strong with my cold, but it's not bad. Was really hoping to get out and ride to work this morning, but as it turns out it was good that I overslept and wasn't really feeling well enough to ride as I didn't leave work till around 10:30 PM.

On a sad note from this last weekend, two local cyclists (local to the bay area at least) were killed when a sheriff deputy crossed the lane divider and impacted the cyclists (I believe there were 3, but 1 survived). I know the area quite well up there around Steven's Canyon Reservoir as it's one of the places I like to go riding and have never felt unsafe (though a few drivers really could stand to SLOW DOWN just a bit and give MORE ROOM there is generally enough room for cyclists and cars). Kinda scary since that is the area I was considering to go riding on Sunday around the time that the accident took place.

Till next time...

My New Head Protector

Finally have a helmet that fits! It's not that my other helmet doesn't fit, it's just that it didn't fit quite the way I would like (personally I didn't like the look all that much). My other helmet is a Trek which I bought almost 5 years ago (I think, but can't remember for sure). It doesn't get enough airflow and feels huge on my head. Though it does still provide enough protection so I'll be using it for mtn biking instead.

As for the road bike, I was hoping to get a Giro Atmos because I liked the design and colors, but though I thought medium was an ok fit, it just didn't leave enough room for my head. The large was huge and I practically had to tighten it all the way and still it wouldn't stay put. The guy at Sports Basement suggested I try Bell. I checked out the Speed R and it fit quite nice. I was a bit bummed about the color selection, but I had a 20% off coupon and intended to get a helmet so I decided on the yellow/white pattern.


Now all I need to do is stop feeling bad so I can get out and ride. I've been fighting a cold for a few days (ever since the hike on Sunday). Feels like a chest cold, but so far it hasn't gotten all that bad though it is keeping me from doing much else (getting up to go to work each day takes a bit of pushing too ;)).

Lazy February

Ok so the Tour is over (Levi retains his title), the weather is a bit flaky at times, work stressful, and I was incredibly lazy in February ;). I had expected to be doing a lot of riding and of course the gym, but it just didn't happen. Partly due to my bike wheel damage, some due to it being quite cold still, and part just because there were other things I'd rather be doing.

Well with all that, March 1st is here and so I decided to head out to go ride Old La Honda and Alpine rd (the west side of Alpine). Not a long ride by any means, but still a nice bit of climbing. 35 miles and around 3700 feet for the day. The wind was picking up so as I passed my truck on the way to ride Canada Rd (my truck was parked at the Woodside town center) I just couldn't bring myself to keep going ;).

That was Saturday, on Sunday I was thinking about riding up Mt Hamilton or Montebello, but Nahoko wanted to go hiking instead. The weather was great for either, so I decided her idea would be more fun for the day. Heading over to Pescadero Creek County Park (which really is comprised of several parks linked together) we started at Heritage Grove and made our way towards Hiker's Hut (which we never saw, but I did find it in a picture online somewhere today.

Once reaching the ridge line from Heritage Grove, we kept going and took Brook Loop trail for a nice long walk through sun, trees, down the hill, across a creek (with visible waterfall), and back up through switchbacks that seemed neverending, and eventually back to the ridge line to make our way back to the truck.

There are several small waterfalls in the parks from what I found online, but this was the only one we saw for the day.


Anyone want a banana...........slug?


An absolute gorgeous day!


It was a wonderful day with plenty of great pictures to show for it. Next up, Mt Tam (for hiking and mtn biking).

TOC Stage 3

Took today off to go watch stage 3 of the Tour of California and what an experience. Though it was relatively short lived given the speed at which these guys ride, it was drawn out because the riders were so spread out (or "splintered badly" as the CHP put it on his loudspeaker as he drove by ahead of the front two riders). Well worth the pain for myself in climbing Sierra Rd to watch it all transpire.

I got to the staging point with my coworkers on Landess at 680 at the Target there around 12:10 PM. I was the impression we had said 12 to 12:15 leaving time (depending on when everyone was there) and so although I left later than planned because I was watching the tour online I didn't think I was "late". Apparently they were waiting for me and had expected to leave no later than noon so not sure what happened; I will check the email when I get back to the office tomorrow to see what time we actually said. I was ready to go in less than 5 minutes and although they all left ahead of me by about a minute, I still caught up to them at Sierra Rd traffic light...let the fun (pain) begin.

It's about 5 km to the top (around 3.6 miles or so on my odometer) thought as usual for the first climb, I kept wishing and hoping that the top was right around each and every next turn :(. About halfway up my lungs were dying and my throat wasn't much better, but I knew I had the strength to make it. I was being passed by riders constantly (keep in mind these are not the pros that are passing me ;)), but I rarely let that get to me seeing as it happens all the time. I passed my share of people at the bottom, but not sure I can count those.


As I neared the top one of my coworkers had turned around and said you're almost there (the plan was to reach the top, turn around, and stop about 200 meters or so below the top to catch the riders as they went by, without having hundreds of people around)! He was right as it was only about 100 meters or so to go (I'm using meters because a sign not far behind me at the time had said 200 meters to KOM). There were so many people the top that I was having to go really slow to weed my way through them to officially (for myself) make it to the top (part of the race is the KOM or King of the Mountain, but for me I felt like the POM or Pawn on the Mountain).

Turned around to go down a bit and find my group. We stuck around and watch each and every rider go by (often times one at a time ;)). There were a couple of small groups of 5 to 10 and the peloton went by as well, but clearly riders had been separated from it as it was much smaller than in the first two stages. Got to see Leipheimer and Gesink go by neck and neck(that would be them in the picture).

We made it back down to the bottom just in time to see Paolo go by and the pack not too far behind.

What a day...

Is he smiling? Cool!

Here comes the pack!

I think that's Hincapie on the right (I'm new to the sport so still coming up to speed on who's who)...look at his knee, did he have a bit of an accident? Ouch!

The remainder of the pictures I took can be found in my public Picasa album.

Tour of California!

It has begun! The Tour of California began this weekend on Sunday with the Prologue in Palo Alto. A short 2.1 mile course, these riders are moving fast!! Unfortunately with my bike spoke broken, it is at the shop still, but a coworker had an extra wheel that I could use and fortunately it worked just fine (despite being a 9 speed cassette instead of the 10 speed on my wheel).

Nahoko and I rode up to Palo Alto around noon to watch the riders race through downtown University Ave and into the Stanford campus. It was very exciting, not to mention a great day for riding (though a tiny bit chilly) for the what looked like thousands of cyclists in town for the race.

The sore point of the day for me was as we were just passing the Sunnyvale Caltrain station, the rear tire blew! Now, when I say blew, I don't mean, "pop" I mean, "BLEW"! First there was a little smoke that Nahoko saw, I heared this strange sound like something was stuck in the tire, but then all of the sudden, "BAM"! Sounded like a gun going off. Needless to say the tube was unpatchable with a 3 inch tear in it (not sure what happened, but now I owe my coworker a new tube). Fortunately my replacement tube held out for the remainder of the day to and from the event.



Looking forward to this Wednesday's stage 3; I'm taking the day off along with some coworkers to go ride up Sierra Rd in San Jose to go watch the riders suffer up that grueling climb (oh yeah, I haven't actually ridden it yet, so I'll be suffering as well).

Hopefully I'll have my wheel back on Tuesday ;)...