Northern California - weekend ride reports - where'd ya ride?

I rode my single from Woodfords through Markleeville and up Ebbett's pass. The road was closed from about half way up to the top so NO CARS! It was a beautiful thing.....The snow hadn't been plowed from the summit west, but it added to the adventure.....

Nice. Your own personal Death Ride.

My weekend started early. I took Thursday and Friday as a personal holiday (May 3 was my 40th bday). My wife, the best wife ever, surprised me with a set of Kyserium SL3s so I had to take them out for a spin. Rode up the American River Bike Trail, met up with a buddy at Sunrise, and then all the way up to Beal Point and back. Finished with 63 miles or just over 100km.

Then I swung back into downtown to meet my wife at her office, we picked up the kids, met my folks at the house, changed for dinner (Dragonfly, highly recommended) and a show.

Just about the best birthday ever.

Did a 30 mile ride tonight after work. No one on Foothill expressway but plenty of wind. Down to Arastradero, over to Page Mill and up the hill to Moody intersection. Down Moody to the U turn base and then right back up it and back down Page Mill to Foothill to Homestead and Bernardo. Slowly but surely I'm upping the miles.

Easy ride from Santa Clara to Crystal Springs. Very windy. Doing the Grizzly Peak Century Sunday, so had to take it easy.

Out on the Garden Highway for the windiest ride ever. Sucked going out, Much better coming back.

Rode tandem on Saturday Canada and 92 to Los Altos Hills 40 miles. This ride included 3X15 minute intervals at LT. Sunday, rode same route on road bikes.

Just got back on the bike a week ago following an injury. Had a nice ride on the Old La Honda-Alpine loop. Sure was windy out there today.

Saturday: South from Los Altos, up Mt Eden Pierce, Hwy 9. South on Skyline, Bear Creek, Summit, Old Santa Cruz Hwy, around the reservoir and into Los Gatos to watch the races. Back to Cupertino via a flat route. 60 miles

Sunday: Up Stevens Canyon, Redwood Gulch, Hwy 9. North on Skyline, down 84E, wandered through Woodside and Portola Valley. Chatted with Hermes and Cranky Stoker in Los Altos. Home via Foothill.
52 miles

Napa Valley. Up 29 and back on Silverado Trail. Tour De Cure-50 miler. Pretty breezy. I didn't have to walk the bent on any "hills".

Grizzly Peak Century. It got hot later in the day, especially when climbing mama and papa bear. But did not run into water issues ... just fitness issues.

Grizzly Peak Century. It got hot later in the day, especially when climbing mama and papa bear. But did not run into water issues ... just fitness issues.

uuuuhm.... excuse me.... where's the report???

uuuuhm.... excuse me.... where's the report???


Demanding woman.:rolleyes:

Demanding woman.:rolleyes:
what can I say? I wanna read about it! :p Good job on your ride today Sean!!

what can I say? I wanna read about it! :p Good job on your ride today Sean!!


Thanks. Need a report? Here it is. First we rode flats for 6 miles then we went up, then down, then up, then down, then up, and up some more, and still more, then down. That was it.:p :p

Thanks. Need a report? Here it is. First we rode flats for 6 miles then we went up, then down, then up, then down, then up, and up some more, and still more, then down. That was it.:p :p
smart a$$! I know what ride YOU did!!!! :p How'd it feel?

smart a$$! I know what ride YOU did!!!! :p How'd it feel?


Good. Im pain free after all the climbing so Im happy. Ill be ready for our memorial day ride.:D I was a bit tired today, and my legs were burning, but Ive only been on the bike for a week now. Unfortunately the cardio is lagging as I climbed at over 180 all the way up Old La Honda, and between 170 and 185 up Alpine.:eek: Another couple weeks and I should be fine.

Good. Im pain free after all the climbing so Im happy. Ill be ready for our memorial day ride.:D I was a bit tired today, and my legs were burning, but Ive only been on the bike for a week now. Unfortunately the cardio is lagging as I climbed at over 180 all the way up Old La Honda, and between 170 and 185 up Alpine.:eek: Another couple weeks and I should be fine.
yup, it'll be interesting watching me try to climb it and keep my HR under 135 :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:

yup, it'll be interesting watching me try to climb it and keep my HR under 135 :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:


No way. You just need to alter your schedule that week.

No way. You just need to alter your schedule that week.
I know.... but that's gonna be my excuse anyway :p

I know.... but that's gonna be my excuse anyway :p


No excuses, now if you'll excuse me I need to PM VMC.:eek:

No excuses, now if you'll excuse me I need to PM VMC.:eek:
ya think that's gonna skeer me????? HA!!!!! :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:

i rode from my house in campbell to shaw's cycles in santa clara, to set an appointment for a fitting..gonna send the measurements to roland della santa so he can build me a bike. woooot.

that was more of a utilitarian bike ride than exercise though; for fitness i ran four miles down the Los Gatos Creek Trail and back with my dog.

We did the first half of the Devil Mountain Double route (we broke it off at Mines Road and headed back North to Danville at that point). Still 108 miles, more than 9,000 feet of climbing. Good thing these TnT rides are supported.....Patterson Pass is tough.

JB

Saturday I rode the Wine Country Century 200K route with a bunch of friends. I haven't been riding much over the last few weeks and I knew I wasn't up to the full double metric, but I wanted to do the loop over Coleman out to the coast and back along the Russian River. I'd never been out that way, and it was a real treat - I posted pics from the top of CVR in the Wine Country Century thread. My lack of training caught up with me once we headed back inland along the Russian River past Guerneville. The hills on Mays Canyon Rd. & Green Valley Rd. really tired me out, so I decided to bail once we reached the Wholer Bridge rest stop. My friends (one of whom also hasn't been riding much, and the other two still recoving from the uber-hot Wildflower last weekend) were more than happy to bail out along with me, so we all headed back to the Wells Fargo Center, for a total of about 78 miles and 4100 ft of climbing.

Sunday my husband and I rode out to Sunol via the Alameda Creek Trail and Niles Canyon Road, and went to the Sunol 4-H Club Pancake Breakfast. On the way back we bought a box of cherries at a roadside stand along Niles Canyon - the benefits of having a large Fred saddle bag ;) It was 30 miles and about 10 feet of climbing :)

uuuuhm.... excuse me.... where's the report???
I posted it in SoCal forum, but I guess you found that already.

I posted it in SoCal forum, but I guess you found that already.
yup... got it ;)

yup, it'll be interesting watching me try to climb it and keep my HR under 135 :roflmao: :roflmao: :roflmao:
You're going up Old La Honda, keeping a HR < 135? Man, you are superwoman! I think I read 135 just getting on my bike! :)

I posted it in SoCal forum, but I guess you found that already.

No, I did not. I spent 3 seconds there looking for it and then read your "Fred" thread.:rolleyes: You should post your report here as well. Are we not trying to generate more activity?;)

Are we not trying to generate more activity?;)

I thought we were too serious for that :)



To the point, my weekend:
- Saturday a.m.: went to Cat's Hill race in Los Gatos, watched a bunch of teammates race, and also my daughter do the kid's race.
- Saturday p.m.: power/time trial up Hwy 9
- Sunday: 60 mile "recovery" ride, San José up to Los Altos, Old La Honda (despite it being a recovery ride, I think my HR was well above 135 ;) ) , West Old La Honda, descend 84 and home via the Portola loop, etc.

I thought we were too serious for that :)

Hey, weekend riding is SERIOUS. If we cannot do that...well were are...:eek:

To the point, my weekend:
- Saturday a.m.: went to Cat's Hill race in Los Gatos, watched a bunch of teammates race, and also my daughter do the kid's race.
- Saturday p.m.: power/time trial up Hwy 9
- Sunday: 60 mile "recovery" ride, San José up to Los Altos, Old La Honda (despite it being a recovery ride, I think my HR was well above 135 ;) ) , West Old La Honda, descend 84 and home via the Portola loop, etc.

What was your power up Hwy 9? It would be very interesting to compare the results against http://www.kreuzotter.de/english/espeed.htm. I think kreuzotter overstates power.

I was only testing for a portion of the climb, to obtain my 20-minute power...so I don't have numbers to compare to kreuzotter. I was doing a 20-minute effort, for use in calculating my FTP per Coggan/Allen's book. As for the results: let's just say, "cap'n, we need more power :D".

I thought we were too serious for that :)



To the point, my weekend:
- Saturday a.m.: went to Cat's Hill race in Los Gatos, watched a bunch of teammates race, and also my daughter do the kid's race.

No pics??? Come on, this is prime opportunity for some pics.

I did the Grizzly Peak Century today ... well, that's not entirely true. I did the first loop of the century, but today was not one of my best days. I barely rolled into the lunch stop at 71 miles, so I called it quits. Very demoralizing. Technically, I did not sag, because the century had a north and south loop. So when we finished the north loop, we were at lunch, and my car was just in the parking lot. Too easy to bail on this ride!

It all started out well. Registered a little before 6:30 am, and got going at around 6:45 am (long lines in the bathroom). It was a bit chilly. I had arm warmers, and my shell on, but I was wearing shorts and short fingered gloves. I knew we would be climbing almost from the beginning, so even though I was a bit nippy to start, they would come off (ME, control yourself! :D)

Best part of the ride was the first 20 miles (not only because I'm physically fresher, but because of the scenery).

http://web.mac.com/ronng/iWeb/rng/Grizzly%20Peak_files/P5050006.jpg

Of course, there is the ever present redwood scenes too:

http://web.mac.com/ronng/iWeb/rng/Grizzly%20Peak_files/P5050001.jpg

This was also my opportunity to experiment with my new digital camera. I think I'll need to get some cycling photography lessons from M.E. My shots don't turn out that well. Here are some more of the better ones I took:

http://web.mac.com/ronng/iWeb/rng/Grizzly%20Peak_files/P5050009.jpg

2nd Rest Stop:

http://web.mac.com/ronng/iWeb/rng/Grizzly%20Peak_files/P5050014.jpg

One thing I didn't like was on the way to the 2nd rest stop, they had some construction in the city of Rodeo, and had to ride on a one lane road that was the main drag in town. Terrain through there was pretty rough, so I had to contend with pavement and worrying if there were any cars on back of me, as I would be blocking traffic. Luckily, I got there when it was still early, and no traffic.

After the 2nd rest stop, that's what killed me. McKewen ... it was a killer climb. I have no idea what the grade was. I don't think it was as steep as Balcom, but it was about 3 times longer ... estimate 15-18% ... and this went on for a couple of miles. By this time, the sun was in full bloom, and it was about 90 degrees out. Heat and hill climbs ... not good for me. We then had mama bear and papa bear climbs to deal with. Although not as steep, it drains you, after the steep intense climbs of McKewen.

I was riding with one triathlete, and she was gracious enough to let me draft off of her. I hung on for dear life, even up to the last climb. By the time I got to lunch, all I wanted was food ... and it was good food. Too good I think. My body just didn't have the energy to get back on the road, so off I went to my car, and packed it in. Now, if the gang was there, it might have been a different story.

Stats:
Distance: 70.71 miles
Climbing: 6029 feet
Average Speed: 12.5 mph (ugh!)
Riding Time: 5:37
Total Time: ~ 7:30

I thought we were too serious for that :)



To the point, my weekend:
- Saturday a.m.: went to Cat's Hill race in Los Gatos, watched a bunch of teammates race, and also my daughter do the kid's race.
- Saturday p.m.: power/time trial up Hwy 9
- Sunday: 60 mile "recovery" ride, San José up to Los Altos, Old La Honda (despite it being a recovery ride, I think my HR was well above 135 ;) ) , West Old La Honda, descend 84 and home via the Portola loop, etc.


Are these races in Los Gatos every weekend? Where do they have them?

Went out with a friend for a ride near me, LOVE my kikapu and probably going to go for a ride on tuesday to either demo or skeggs or something.

http://img400.imageshack.us/img400/5343/jondhfg3.jpg

http://img361.imageshack.us/img361/4538/jondh2et3.jpg

http://img400.imageshack.us/img400/8836/inair2nz6.jpg

http://img361.imageshack.us/img361/8758/inairuv7.jpg

No pics??? Come on, this is prime opportunity for some pics.

Yeah, good point. Unfortunately I was armed only with my phone-cam with crapilicious resolution and image quality. My wife, whose responsibility it was to capture the action, was unable to get anything decent (it was a mad house) at the finish either. But, here's what I have:

Elite 4's race, a few laps in, lead pack on the climb:
http://img457.imageshack.us/img457/9088/chclimbcd3.th.jpg (http://img457.imageshack.us/my.php?image=chclimbcd3.jpg)

And here's my li'l racer munchkin ready for the start:
http://img457.imageshack.us/img457/1661/chkidsrx7.th.jpg (http://img457.imageshack.us/my.php?image=chkidsrx7.jpg)

Are these races in Los Gatos every weekend?
No, this is a once-a-year event.



Where do they have them?
Cat's Hill is a circuit, near the intersection of Saratoga-Los Gatos Road (Hwy 9) and Santa Cruz Ave (Winchester) in the residential area of Los Gatos.

You're going up Old La Honda, keeping a HR < 135? Man, you are superwoman! I think I read 135 just getting on my bike! :)
There's no way I'm going to be able to do that... I've been working on a program that has me building base at a HR of 135 or less.... and that day on my schedule is supposed to be a long slower ride... so I was JOKING!!!! :p

We left the tandem at home for a change and rode on our single bikes to Fremont Peak (near San Juan Bautista) with some friends. Fortunately, we were early enough to miss the hottest part of the day, but we saw lots of others grinding up the climb as we descended. The air was very clear and the view from the top was fantastic. Total miles: 106. Total climbing: 8,000 ft.

Saturday: mtn. biking in Wildcat/Tilden, about 18 miles.

Sunday: I fulfilled a long time ambition to do the Grizzly Peak Century. I rode for the first time last year and I was worn out after the first loop. I was determined to do both of them this year! We got to the lunch stop around 1:45 p.m. and I was feeling much stronger than I had last year, but I was still nervous about starting the second loop. My riding partner wasn't up to it, so I was on my own. It was definitely a challenge, but pulling up in front of the high school at the end was an amazing feeling and I'm still riding on it today!

I rode the Delta Century yesterday, a more or less 100 mile loop from Lodi out through the Sacramento Delta and back. I didn't really want to do this ride as I've done it before and it is pretty flat and boring. But, I had gotten a co-worker hooked on cycling last year and he was intent on doing this ride as his first century. I felt kind of obligated to go along (and I can always use the miles), so I went out and met up with him at the ride start.

What is already a fairly boring ride was made even more tedious by 15-20mph winds. For most of the 50 miles going out we were into it, and usually straight into it. On top of that, since it was The Delta, we were riding on the tops of levees so we were up relatively high with no real protection. And on top of that, the roads are a bit rough - not so much that you notice right away, but the cumulative effect of the road buzz wears you down. Even on a comfortable bike with a good saddle, body parts go numb and/or get sore.

Coming back was a little bit faster, as we alternated between a cross wind and a tailwind most of the way. But there were still stretches that had us doubling back into the wind, and the road continued to buzz.

We ended up doing the ride in 6:48 minutes, but it was boring, tiresome, and very, very tedious. Amazingly enough, the Garmin showed a total climb accummulation of just over 2,000' - musta missed it....

Took a few pics along the way, just to pass the time:

Endless flat roads:
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t267/jd6572/Delta%20Century/endlessroad.jpg

Life on The Delta:
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t267/jd6572/Delta%20Century/deltalife.jpg

Just coasting with a tailwind:
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t267/jd6572/Delta%20Century/tailwind2.jpg

A quiet slough, out of the wind:
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t267/jd6572/Delta%20Century/deltaslough.jpg

Chasing down some folks:
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t267/jd6572/Delta%20Century/chasing.jpg

Stopping for Twinkies at mile 80:
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t267/jd6572/Delta%20Century/twinkiestop.jpg

I also rode the Grizzly Peak Century, my third in a row. The weather was the best it could be, the views over the Bay were stunning, no fog, no haze, just razor clear. I was riding with a friend who had been sick for the last 2 weeks so we kept a steady tempo averaging 13.5 miles per hour but with some stops for pictures and long breaks at the rest stops. The food, as always, was fantastic.
After a long (my friend was going back home) and late lunch at the end of the North Loop I went for additional miles along the South Loop at around 4pm. Not enough time to complete the loop before the 7pm deadline but I wanted to get close to a full century. I ended turning back at the top of Skyline for a total of 91 miles and 7250' of climbing.
As mentioned by spingineer the Rodeo crossing was very bad. The good thing is they are finally repaving the road so next year should be good.
I skipped the Briones rest stop last year, I am glad I didn't this time. Very nice place to rest with plenty of grass and a good mix of shade and sun.

also did the GPC. i'd done almost all of the route in parts previously - except skyline southward following redwood, then back up to lake chabot.

by that point, i was completely blasted. the heat. the wind. not enough sleep the night before. not enough coffee the morning of. not eating enough during the ride (ironic). mcewen. pig farm. the bears. rheem. i was done. i thought of calling it a day and coasting down to castro valley bart. plus, if i took bart back to orinda, i'd probably still break 100 miles riding back to the h.s.

but, i was close enough to the last rest stop. i rolled in, had a soda, ate a bit more and rested awhile longer. then busted out all the corny mental exercises to push on thru after hitting "the wall". got back on the saddle and wound up feeling better and more focused the last 15 miles than i had all day long.

also did the GPC. i'd done almost all of the route in parts previously - except skyline southward following redwood, then back up to lake chabot.

by that point, i was completely blasted. the heat. the wind. not enough sleep the night before. not enough coffee the morning of. not eating enough during the ride (ironic). mcewen. pig farm. the bears. rheem. i was done. i thought of calling it a day and coasting down to castro valley bart. plus, if i took bart back to orinda, i'd probably still break 100 miles riding back to the h.s.

but, i was close enough to the last rest stop. i rolled in, had a soda, ate a bit more and rested awhile longer. then busted out all the corny mental exercises to push on thru after hitting "the wall". got back on the saddle and wound up feeling better and more focused the last 15 miles than i had all day long.
Great Slabby. You definitely did better than me. I'm not sure if my allergies also drained me, but I had nothing left in me by the time I finished the north loop. I kinda wished I hooked up with someone, as I think that's what would have made me finish the south loop. I just had no motivation at that point to continue. You had more will power than I did. Personally, I think it's McEwen that did me in.

Great Slabby. You definitely did better than me. I'm not sure if my allergies also drained me, but I had nothing left in me by the time I finished the north loop. I kinda wished I hooked up with someone, as I think that's what would have made me finish the south loop. I just had no motivation at that point to continue. You had more will power than I did. Personally, I think it's McEwen that did me in.

thanks, spingineer. yeah, after mcewen, i definitely had to dial it down some and ride at an easier pace if i were to try the south loop. the GPC was also the only event on the calendar so far for me - not like i'm crushing centuries every other week like you, bro.

thanks, spingineer. yeah, after mcewen, i definitely had to dial it down some and ride at an easier pace if i were to try the south loop. the GPC was also the only event on the calendar so far for me - not like i'm crushing centuries every other week like you, bro.
I may be doing the centuries, but not breaking any speed records. I am slooooooooooooooow

I may be doing the centuries, but not breaking any speed records. I am slooooooooooooooow
HUSH!!! That's my claim to fame.... nice try though :rolleyes:

HUSH!!! That's my claim to fame.... nice try though :rolleyes:
I'm pokey on the hill

On Saturday, we rode our tandem on the Alto Velo B ride which included a climb up Kings Mountain - 48 miles. Nice day and cool temperatures. Sunday, we rode road bikes from Canada and 92 to Peet's in Los Altos - 40 miles. We signed for up the Dunlap Time Trial - 6/3/07 in Winters, CA.