Do You Road Bike?

[cheezy]

I love how he spanked everyone today after everyone (mainly the French) thought he was done due to yesterday's lackluster performance.

I still think it's up for grabs. Gotta love the hill climbing stages and especially the decents!

*I dunno where even Lafayette is. Lemme google and i'll get back to you.

**Duh, okay i've ridden through Lafayette, Orinda and Moraga but still....i'll get back to you.

 

[Harpo]

I love how he spanked everyone today after everyone (mainly the French) thought he was done due to yesterday's lackluster performance.

I still think it's up for grabs. Gotta love the hill climbing stages and especially the decents!

*I dunno where even Lafayette is. Lemme google and i'll get back to you.

**Duh, okay i've ridden through Lafayette, Orinda and Moraga but still....i'll get back to you.

Check your pm

 

[pelikan]

Woohoo, free from the oppressive schedule known as my daughter's dance camp. I can ride anytime/anywhere T & Th, and am dying to check out the East and North Bay. Any takers? Ill bring Testosterone Gel packs!

 

[cheezy]

I was going to do that Tour de Penninula, sounds like a fun ride. Instead i'll be doing 3 bears and the new Zampa (Carquinez Bridge-woohoo!) with the Oakland Yellowjackets. Anyone is free to join Saturday.

 

[pelikan]

I forgot about that , seems like a good idea to support the area since I have been down there almost everyday since May. Damn, I was gonna try and get back on the MX bike this weekend. Hrmmmm.

 

[pelikan]

Calvin, my weekend schedule cleared so I'll be there. I'll probably be in my Fox MTB jersey, fake cf helmet, red dress w/red flower in my hair. Lets hook up and see who can suck down the most free cliff bars & water!!!!

 

[MrCrash]

Before the weekend, I entertained the thought of doing the Marin Century. But after talking to a friend the night before, I was advised to leave my TT bars at home.

"Nothing says 'I want to ride alone' like a set of TT bars," she said. "If you were going to do the century, I'd just take em off."

So I removed them that evening, and woke up Saturday morning feeling a little flat. Due to a nerve problem in my neck, I hadn't been able to get a decent roadbike ride in for the past four weeks. On top of that, I had never ridden without my TT bars before. When I'm on "cruise control", I often use them as a bicycle version of Heli Bar risers, keeping my seating position more upright as I roll along. I wasn't sure if I could hack a trip that long, so I came up with an alternate plan.

One of my goals this summer was to knock out the three peaks in the area. Diablo, Tamalpais, and Hamilton. Since I've done Diablo already, I was told that Tamalpais would be a piece of cake.

So, I drove out to Fairfax, unloaded the trusty carbon fiber Giant, and had myself some cake

A shot at Alpine Dam, about 7 miles out of Fairfax:

 

[MrCrash]

I was feeling good on the climb out of Fairfax, passing a few riders while keeping my heartrate at manageable levels. To keep my confidence up, I told myself some rather silly mantras. Things like "You are going to flatten these hills! Crush these grades! Your strength only grows with each suffering rider you pass!"

Around that time was when a rider who was easily in his 50s zipped past. "There's my tow..." I thought to myself, as I clicked up a gear.

Difference being, I would downshift, sit and spin each time the grade got a little steeper, while he would stand up, crank, and a gap on me. I'd routinely close the gap on flats and descents, only to lose it again on the uphill sections.

"Uh oh, I'm in trouble when we cross the dam and get to the long climb," I thought to myself. And sure enough, he dropped me shortly into the climb, never to be seen again.

The ascent up Fairfax Bolinas, in the shade of the tall Redwoods:

 

[MrCrash]

Other cyclists on Ridgecrest - one of those most scenic roads anywhere:

 

[MrCrash]

Stinson Beach and beyond, a couple thousand feet down:

 

[MrCrash]

Over a decade ago and 250,000 moto-miles ago, I rode to the top of Mt. Tam for the first time, where I came across a couple of cyclists.

"You guys rode all the way up here?" I asked. "You guys are nuts!"

I guess I'm the one who's nuts now. I've gotta say though, it feels good!

 

[pelikan]

MrCrash, looks like you had a good ride. Mt. Tam is on my list of places to do once it cools down a bit (never been).

Good day at TdP. Lots & lots of riders of all sizes & types of bikes + perfect weather. Here's the BARF contigency posing (as per the terms of services).

 

[cheezy]

Wow, that looks like an awesome ride. Cool scenic pics. One of the great reasons (if not the only reason) to make those climbs. How many miles did you get in and to what elevation?

There is another good ride/good cause September 10, "Bike Against the Odds" ride against breast cancer if anyone's interested.

 

[MrCrash]

The temperatures were probably right around 80. Perfect, really. I probably wouldn't have even felt warm if I wasn't wearing all black gear.

Total elevation according to my Klimb.org mapping program was 4,400 feet. Summit was only 2600 feet, but the rolling hills on Fairfax Bolinas added a lot to it. Total Distance was 34 miles.

Right afterwards, I knocked out another 1000 or so feet of climbing in a 9 mile MTB trip to China Camp. My legs were done afterwards!

 

[Frodog]

I normally ride to Lake Beryessa in the poser corner. I try to ride 50 or so miles every Saturday. So if you guys want to ride Lake Beryessa, let me know.

Here is my rig.

 

[MrCrash]

I normally ride to Lake Beryessa in the poser corner. I try to ride 50 or so miles every Saturday. So if you guys want to ride Lake Beryessa, let me know.

Here is my rig.

Sick lookin bike!

I've been wanting to explore that area for a while. Once I'm ready, I'll definitely be getting in touch with ya!

 

[JnglstTICAL]

MrCrash, looks like you had a good ride. Mt. Tam is on my list of places to do once it cools down a bit (never been).

Good day at TdP. Lots & lots of riders of all sizes & types of bikes + perfect weather. Here's the BARF contigency posing (as per the terms of services).

dennngg....mackey with the ben bostrom side burrnzz!

 

[pelikan]

i'm planning on doing a ride wed. or tues. next week. not sure when but probably late morning early afternoon. planning on it being 3hrs or so depending how slow i ride.

start @ the end of skyline blvd in DC before 280S > sawyer camp > canada rd > "variation" > sandhill rd > and back w/ "variation". it's good for maybe 30ish mi. or so. and should be challenging at least for me.

Calvin, how was the ride? Couldn't make it that day for some odd reason.

If anybody is interested a friend & I are going to ride the 49 scenic route in SF early Sunday morning. He's a fit guy but new to cycling so it will be a relaxed pace, with breaks and maybe even an actual lunch stop. Plenty of pictures too!
Here's the loop.
http://www.sfvisitor.org/maps/html/49MileMap.html

 

[MrCrash]

My new toy!

I just picked up a Garmin 305 Forerunner to track my workouts a little better. This is just a fraction of the data it generated for my morning ride:

Marin > Los Angeles > Spruce > Grizzly > Euclid > Marin > Grizzly > Shasta > Wildcat > South Park > Grizzly > then back home:

Distance - 14.36 mi
Total time - 1:18:11
Avg Pace - 5:26 / mi
Avg Speed - 11.0 mph
Max Speed - 33.5 mph
Total Calories - 666 cal
Avg Heart Rate - 148 bpm
Max Heart Rate - 182 bpm
Total Elevation Gain - 2007 ft
Max Grade - 26%

 

[Atak Kat]

Re: My new toy!

I just picked up a Garmin 305 Forerunner to track my workouts a little better.

Nice toy. I've been looking at the 305 for awhile.

You should upload your data to Motion Based to see what your ride/data looks like.

-ak-