Northern California - Alternate Routes - SF Bay Area

Hi.

I'm looking for some alternate routes for my commute to work. I ride from San Pablo Casino (East SF Bay Area, California), on San Pablo Ave towards Oakland.

I've been trying to do HIIT training on my bike. Sadly, stoplights and arseholes making right hand turns without turn signals mess my timing up.

I'm hoping there's an alternate route I can take where I can do HIIT. I typically do 30 second - 2 minute and get up to 28-30 MPH on a flat stretch with my road bike.

Also, on my way home I'm looking for some nice grades. San Pablo Ave is relatively flat, I'd like a route that has hills, each bigger than the next.

Any suggestions?

Thanks
Jason

EDIT: I welcome a longer ride home. On my way to work I want to get there fairly quick, but on my way home, could take up to 15 miles for all I care.

Hi.

I'm looking for some alternate routes for my commute to work. I ride from San Pablo Casino (East SF Bay Area, California), on San Pablo Ave towards Oakland.

I've been trying to do HIIT training on my bike. Sadly, stoplights and arseholes making right hand turns without turn signals mess my timing up.

I'm hoping there's an alternate route I can take where I can do HIIT. I typically do 30 second - 2 minute and get up to 28-30 MPH on a flat stretch with my road bike.

Also, on my way home I'm looking for some nice grades. San Pablo Ave is relatively flat, I'd like a route that has hills, each bigger than the next.

Any suggestions?

Thanks
Jason

EDIT: I welcome a longer ride home. On my way to work I want to get there fairly quick, but on my way home, could take up to 15 miles for all I care.

Not sure what to suggest going to work, but for the ride home you try either (a) going over the hills and going home via San Pablo Dam Road (it ends at San Pablo right at the Casino) or (b) going home via the Arlington (starts at the Circle in North Berkeley, where Marin, the Arlington, Los Angeles and one or two other streets come together). Arlington goes up and down, and eventually dumps you on San Pablo maybe a mile south of the Casino.

Don't know where your work is, but I'd recommend from the Casino take a ride on San Pablo Dam Road into El Sobrante. You can get access to the 3 bears loop from Castro Ranch (although I'm guessing that's ~5miles from the freeway. Here's a link from Bikely - it's a great 18mile loop with 3 main climbs - mama bear, papa bear then baby bear. Those are good for training and are all on quiet, wide well maintained roads. If you head up Wildcat Canyon at the junction of SPDR and Bear Creek you've got even more climbs to choose from in Tilden Park. It's a bit further away from you, but they're great riding routes.

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/The-Bears

Work is in a 1 mile radius of the Emeryville Amtrak station. I live between San Pablo Casino and the Catahoula Coffee house (if you've never been, you really need to go. There's even a bike route to it! http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Catahoula-Coffee)

Beaker, thanks for the link to bikely.com I've been looking for a thing like that, wanting to do some rides on my weekends. As for the 3 Bears, I'll try that on a weekend... and after I get my cycling shoes. I don't think I'd want to try that with my Sambas. :twitchy:

Beaker, thanks for the link to bikely.com I've been looking for a thing like that, wanting to do some rides on my weekends. As for the 3 Bears, I'll try that on a weekend... and after I get my cycling shoes. I don't think I'd want to try that with my Sambas. :twitchy:

Ya never know - I got back into riding ~2yrs back. I started off just riding parts of the three bears, working up to the whole loop wearing sneakers on my 30lb hybrid - good stuff. The good news is, if you don't want to ride all the way out there, there's normally good parking at the intersection of SPDR and Bear Creek.

Ya never know - I got back into riding ~2yrs back. I started off just riding parts of the three bears, working up to the whole loop wearing sneakers on my 30lb hybrid - good stuff. The good news is, if you don't want to ride all the way out there, there's normally good parking at the intersection of SPDR and Bear Creek.

Wow that's hardcore. I ride in Sambas with the look style cleat pedals (Wellgo R1's). I slip a lot... thus the reason I don't want to do any serious riding until I get my shoes.

Not that I look like any less of a beeyoach trying to "justify" myself. :p

I don't own a car so I'd have to ride to the nearest starting point, so no worries about parking there! :thumb:

No, that's a good call. I was riding regular old platforms with sneakers (can't really imagine what that would be like now). I've got Keo sprints on my bike - I wouldn't like to try anything heroic on those without cleats+shoes.