Sedgemop 

Thanks! That's quite the old jalopy.

Fat Tire Trader 

That's Luciano. He is 20 time national amateur cyclo-cross champion of Italy. He has a lot of experience on mountain bikes too.

JoeBass

I was one of the riders that missed that lunch loop turn off. The only markings at the turn that I saw were a sign pointing left for the short route riders and a sign pointing right (down Peachy Canyon) for the medium route riders. That's my brother in Davester's first photo, directly in front of him in the tri-color Molteni jersey, and I was right in front of him, in the yellow jersey (you can just see my back pockets in the photo).

Bad Lag

Congratulations to all!

rm -rf

Wow, a 1920 era bike. With 1x3 gearing, and shifting by loosening the axle wingnut and moving the chain by hand. It has wood rims, I think. Sketchy sidepull brakes. Two spare tires. New spokes? And a bell.

That's hardcore!

The full size photo link.

repechage

Reads pretty rewarding for those who rode.
The tire delamination problem... Sometimes what you don't know is just as well, very fortunate that it did not completely let go.
It will be interesting to read how a warranty claim is handled. Manufacturing errors do happen.
Please Otis, let us know.
I think that even if the organizers augment the food options next year that a musette bag would be smart from the get go.

rhm

Looks like a pretty great ride! Lovely scenery.

Did everyone drink their bottle of wine?

Fat Tire Trader 

The bike was a "barn find" in Italy. All of the parts are original except for the rims which were rotted. It has new rims made by Ghisallo. Cerchi Ghisallo - Home Page

Bad Lag

10,000 entries available and they SOLD OUT!!!???

It took a while for that to sink in,... that's a lot of people.

Oldairhead 

Wow, that's a lot of misinformation! I'm not blaming anyone but I don't know how stuff like that gets out there. According to the officials there were about 700 registered riders. About 100 or so did the long route (along with myself). Most riders did the shorter routes. Look at the number plates, you wont see any number higher than the 700's.

It was a great event and a good showing for a first year event with only 5 months of organizing available to them. This event will never see 10,000 riders, it just could not handle that amount of people. In Italy 5500 riders is too many, and Britannia at about 2500 is good but when it grows it may suffer from it's success as well.

I'm just back from the event and was cruising through the posts and had to jump in and respond to this. I'll have some pics to post later. By the way, for those who were at the event that was my old Beemer with the sidecar along with my 1962 Legnano which I rode. Right now I am laying claim to having the oldest bike to finish the long route. Anyone want to challenge that with an older bike?

justin1138

I rode the long route on Sunday. The ride itself was pretty dang epic. For me, one of the highlights was being handed a can of cold Coke at the top of Cypress Mountain. Sucking down that sugary goodness while taking in the view of the rolling hills out to the ocean was worth all the suffering getting up there. I really enjoyed all the gravel too. It made line choice on some of the descents a bit more interesting.

I plan on coming back next year, just with wider tires and bar end shifters.

The cap was 1000 people. I heard only 600 or so registered.

Sedgemop 

Pretty sure I've seen him in L'Eroica Italy photos too. Wearing the same jersey and cap.

bikingshearer 

Simply a fantastic day. I would agree with Guy Gadois as to the plusses and minuses, but to me, the minuses were far, far outweighed by the plusses. What an amazing collection of bike porn, up close and in person. One comment on one of GG's minuses: the Santini folks took orders for the Eroica California jerseys, and they honored the special event price for them ($120 vs. $150 or so for regularly. it's a good looking jersey, and I am looking forward to getting mine.

I did the 43 mile ride, and it was plenty hard enough for me. Of course, as a serious Clydesdale with a 44x28 low gear (I usually run a 30x29 triple), it was pretty much guaranteed to be plenty hard enough for me. My personal disaster was the dirt climb to the second rest stop (the Olea olive oil ranch). It is definitely double-digits - definitely a walker for me. Small problem - I forgot to loosen my Binda Extra toe clip straps. They were advertised back in the day as keeping your feet firmly in place because they do not stretch. The ads were 100% accurate. I didn't have enough speed to be able to bend down to loosen them and i couldn't pull my feet out (believe me, I tried), so I had two choices: crash, or gut it out to the top of unpleasantly double-digit climb. I did not crash. However, I did hurt. A lot. At the top of the hard climb part (there was more road to the ranch that was gentle up or flat) and as soon as I could unclip, I pulled over, stopped, and gulped air as quickly as I could while the people who started walking when I wanted to and who I left behind with my undesired climbing walked by, all wondering if I was about to barf up a lung. That little unplanned output of energy pretty much cooked me for the day - I was never really recovered, feeling sluggish the entire final 16 miles. But all of that is on me, not the organizers.

I unfortunately had to miss the councours due to an intervening scheduling conflict, but there were so many unbelievably cool machines on the road and at the finish area that that ended up being minor disappointment.

Speaking of Rider #1 mentioned in previous posts, he was a real character. One of the bikes on the road was a 70cm (that is not a typo) early 1970s Cinelli. The owner let me through a leg over it. I'm 6'3 and usually ride a 62cm to 64cm frame. I could place my feet flat on the ground while straddling the top tube, by just barely with the bar crunched unpleasantly into my naughty bits. Rider #1 is not tall, but at the first rest stop, he climbed on the big-boy bike. When he managed to get onto the saddle, his foot could juuuuuust reach the pedal - at the very top of the stroke. It was quite a hoot.

Regarding equipment - modern components are better than the "classic" stuff. Clips and straps suck. Old brakes (mine were Universal 51s, a 60-plus year old design) do not work nearly as well as new dual-pivots. Brifters are much easier to use than downtube shifters. But lugged steel still rules.

Bottom line: The course was great, the weather was perfect, and I had a wonderful time. If L'Eroica cames back to Paso Robles next year, I'll be there. You should be there, too.

bikingshearer 

Nope. 'Tis not I, although I have a similar profile to the guy in the orange jersey. No, I was on a blue 1961 Bianchi wearing a sky-blue with white panels Bianchi jersey.

Oh, and without trying, I hit the Major Sponsor Sweepstakes: Bianchi frame; jersey made by Santini; Brooks saddle; Giro helmet (I was old school from the neck down but went full modern from the neck up - there are limits to my nostalgia insanity); and Continental tires (25mm Sprinter Gatorskin tubs, they worked flawlessly). I did not do this on purpose - the only thing I bought after knowing who the sponsors were were the tires, and those were replace a set of narrower Contis. No prize for being an unintentional shill, though.

MileHighMark

Those dirt roads look like they'd be a blast! Well, at least on my modern bike with low gears and fat/ter tires.

djkashuba 

Perhaps you are referring to this fellow? He told me that the frame was made with the help of Tomassini while Tomassini was working at Cinelli. Gentleman ran a shop in Reno and sold Lemond his first bikes.

Eroica California by djk762, on Flickr

Bad Lag

I read the number in an earlier post. It took a =while for it to sink in that 10,000 riders would be a HUGE event. Actually, I am glad it was no where near that many. That many riders in that area would be a total mob scene.

bikingshearer 

That's the guy. His name is Rick. I remember seeing his eBay posting for that tall Cinelli's twin (he ordered it a couple years after he got the orange one in case anything happened to the orange one). Quite a character (and I meant that in a good way) - he would cheerfully talk to, and share opinions with, pretty much anyone. He told me about Tomassini helping build the frame, but I missed out on him selling bikes to Lemond, not that I'm surprised.

Ed.

Well that looked a hoot. All WE need is some organized person to put together such an event in the Northeast.

iab

So glad you volunteered.

Ed.

Well I can produce, on a moment's notice, an ~ ten mile loop, quite hilly, including the infamous 'Rattlesnake Hill', that very roughly follows the circumference of a ~600 acre lake. Around, and around, and around we go!

djkashuba 

Eroica California by djk762, on Flickr
Eroica California by djk762, on Flickr
Eroica California by djk762, on Flickr
Eroica California by djk762, on Flickr
Eroica California by djk762, on Flickr
Eroica California by djk762, on Flickr

djkashuba 

Eroica California by djk762, on Flickr
Eroica California by djk762, on FlickrEroica California by djk762, on Flickr

abstract

The central area of the park contained the concourse, vendor booths and the start/arrival and was filled with vintage and classic bikes, mostly of Italian manufacture. The sun was out, shining brightly and making it hard to get a decent photo of the bikes on display.


I think the course was plenty tough enough for my endurance level. There were many, many hills with rocky ascents and slippery, gravel-filled road transitions on the medium route. It took all of my concentration to pick out the best line of attack and to avoid getting a wheel stuck in a rut. I’m happy to say that I never fell over! I’m also very pleased with the 30mm Schwalbe CX Pro tires I selected. Luckily, I didn’t experience any tire cuts or flats and I did have complete confidence in them whenever I unavoidably glanced against several rocks. What did happen though, was that by the end of the ride my seat post and saddle had slid down about one and a half inches from all of the jostling and frame juddering, but I had not noticed it one bit until I got home and saw that my saddle was now lower than the handlebar! My handlebar-mounted video camera too, constantly had to be repositioned. Many of the video clips I made now have tilted horizons, yet exhibit very dynamic looking perspectives!


I walked the bike a fair amount of the time towards the end of the ride as my legs did not have much more to give. The route signs were sometimes hard to read as they were rather small in size and lacking clear direction until one arrived closer to the sign. At times, when no reassuring signs were visible after several miles at a stretch, I rode in fear of having possibly missed a turn-off but this never happened as I managed to make all of the turns.


I carried a musette bag and brought enough water, almonds and raisins just in case there wasn’t enough food at the rest stops and I am very glad that I did. I was very tempted to take on the generous bottle of viognier at the first rest stop but opted instead for water. I only partook in a small glass of rosé at the third and last stop as a small personal reward for having successfully completed the route up to that point. That wine paired satisfyingly with the cold cuts and pasta meal.


My guess is that there were about 600 + riders. I don’t recall seeing any “race” numbers below 101 nor above 700 something. In fact, my “race” number was actually one hundred more than my online registration number, so I am guessing that they began numbering entrants at 100 rather than 001.


On the whole, my gearing was just about right for the course with a 37T front and a 28T rear. I of course could have made good use of a 30+T, but I would still would have had to walk up many of those steeper climbs. On the route, I ran into only three other Peugeot bikes, which surprised me since a lot of those were imported and sold in the US back in the 1970s. The slightly longer wheelbase I set up was pleasantly noticeable. (I had removed the rear dropout axle stops to gain an extra half inch).


On arrival, I was greeted by a few well-wishers who stood behind the barricaded corridor through which cyclists would re-enter the park and this was very welcomed after a hard day in the saddle! All in all, it was a fantastic day filled with beautiful vistas and quiet moments in the tree-shaded canyons and on the backroads of Paso Robles. I met several riders on the route too, who cheered and gave encouraging words to one another. I did not knowingly meet any other BFFers, but maybe next time!


view 1


view 2


rest stop 1


2nd rest stop: olive oil & bread and Belgian style fries


3rd rest stop: cold cuts, pasta and rosé wine


concourse


Eddy Merckx bike

Peugeotlover

Thanks everyone- great reporting and PHOTOS!
Really enjoying it, almost like having been there, those wide angle views are perfect.