SOME SHORT NOTES

In just six more days I'll depart for Los Angeles. I am going to ride a used bike I bought last fall. The last two years I rode a steel frame made by Trek called a Lemond Buenos Aires. In November I purchased a carbon fiber Trek frame from a local rental shop that was a couple of years old. It is very light and nimble and I wanted it because I had visions of riding a 'double century' this spring. I can't say I came very close to that undertaking. With my slow start training, and competing engagements, I had nowhere near enough preparation to seriously consider doing a double before the AIDS ride. Perhaps, if I don't suffer too much on the way to LA, I'll consider one of the many doubles later in the year. Of course the two easiest (same mileage, but less climbing) are Solvang and Davis, and they are gone until next spring.

Here is a picture from my last long ride, up Rockpile, a ridge that runs parallel to Lake Sonoma for about 12 miles. It is a spectacular ride, mostly up, but with views of raw California oak woodland as well as vineyards, as you can see here. That ride, Healdsburg to the end of Rockpile, and then back through Geyserville was about 70 miles. The amazing think about that road is how few cars there are and how clean it is! I think the Army Corps of Engineers actually sweeps the first 5 or 6 miles, since they maintain the campgrounds and trail access up there.

I met some friends in Geyserville who were heading back the way I'd come, to Dry Creek, so I turned around and went with them. It made the ride a little longer for me, which was good, and I enjoyed the company. The total ascent on the ride was over 5500 feet, which means it would have been a great training ride for a double ... if I had only done one or two of those every week for a couple of months before a double!

At the end of Rockpile there is a gated "toll" road called Kelley Road. It goes out toward the coast almost to Annapolis. I had the good fortune to drive it once after buying some redwood from a small mill out that way. I think the road was built by the Army Corps of Engineers, but sold off as surplus just shortly after we moved to Sonoma County. Here is the sign at the entrance to Kelley Road. There is no toll taker, but a locked gate at both ends insures that only the folks that live on the road and pay the owner the "toll" can use it.

Also at the end of Rockpile is a ranch sign, saying "Cooley Ranch - 13 miles." It is quite satisfying to think that there are still ranches, within a stones throw of Healdsburg, thatare that far in off a county road, and maybe, still being worked.

This week there are only some short rides, to keep my legs warm, but not a time for serious distance or endurance. After Wednesday, no more riding until Sunday. And that's a long one, San Francisco to Santa Cruz, with a cold start. If San Francisco weather is true to form it is bone chilling getting out of the City. It takes a long time for 2500 riders to exit the Cow Palace, and then it is stop and go until we reach Ocean Beach and the start of the hill up toward Daly City.

I don't know if I will be able to post here from the ride. But there are daily updates from the ride, both video and stills. After Friday the 29th, there will be daily updates about the ride here. There is also a twitter feed, but I don't think I am ready to enter that world... just another technologic distraction.

I hope to post once more, before going to San Francisco on Saturday morning.

Thanks again for your interest and your support.

IF ONLY APRIL WERE A LITTLE LONGER

This is the ride I did on April 18th.

Thirty days has September, APRIL, June and November ... I could have used a few more days to get on my bike last month. The other things I was doing got in the way of the consistent and steady training habits of the last two years. One of them, the Healdsburg Visioning Project, has its first milestone tomorrow night, and those efforts should become less intense in the near term.

A couple of weeks ago I did a wonderful ride (see above), that, at the end of the day, was just at the edge of my capacity. I ended up taking a nap late in the day, like on the Geysers a few weeks earlier, but I wasn't cramping ... I was just tired. Because driving to the start of a ride is anathema to me, I chose to ride to the start of a training ride that friends were leading. They started in Sebastopol, at Ragle Park. So I rode there from Healdsburg (17 miles) at 7:30 in the morning for a 9:00 AM start. We rode out to Occidental and then down Bohemian Highway to Duncans Mills. I had a great croissant with some coffee.

From there we headed out Highway 116 to Highway 1 and took a left. Our eventual destination was Tomales. The Sonoma Coast State Park is this incredible string of beaches and bluffs from the Russian River down to Bodega. I never appreciated it as much as I did riding by on a bike. It was a beautiful day and there were many people on the coast - most coming north, not in the south bound lanes. Which was a good thing. There are a few places where the bluff is eroding and the shoulder almost isn't.

There is a detour around the town of Bodega Bay, called Bay Hill, which some strong young guy from the City said was really beautiful. But it is a hill. I was riding with Roxanne, another Healdsburger, doing the AIDS ride for the first time. We happened to be riding close to one another, behind many others and decided to take it ... for the promise of spectacular views of the coast. On this Saturday there was a wonderful fog bank over the Bodega Headlands, but the surf line was clear. We were definitely rewarded by the views but we paid the price of a long hard climb! (It turned out we were the onbly two who opted for the detour. The 'strong and fast' riders in the lead just stayed on Highway 1 and braved the traffic in Bodega.)

We made a right turn at Highway 1 (oops!) but lucked out before we'd ridden too far and saw a couple of others from our group going the other direction. We would have been very disappointed to ride into Bodega after working so hard to avoid the weekend traffic! Rode down Highway 1 through large ranches and grassland to Tomales. PB&J for me... and some chocolate ice cream. Coming back inland from Tomales turned into a bit of a struggle as we had stiff head winds. And finally, to totally demoralize the few of us who were riding together, the route map mislabeled a turn and we rode an extra 6 miles to reach Roblar Road and the meander back to Sebastopol and Ragle Park.

About 5 miles from Ragle I decided I really needed a rest and so I said goodbye to the riders I was with and lay down on the first mowed driveway we passed, ate some more PB&J wedges (I make them in Pita bread and quarter it), drank, took some electrolyte tabs, and closed my eyes. The sun was warm and I think I slept for about 25 minutes. I got back on the bike and stopped to visit friends on Watertrough - another 15 minutes respite, and then I rode into Ragle Park and seeing no one from the training ride, continued on to Healdsburg. I stopped again at friends on Eastside Road but no one was home. So I sat on the porch, soaked in the setting sun and took another break. And then home. Total of about 105 miles, with the ride to and from the start.

Regular routine: iced my knees, took an aspirin, ate some protein. Then to the gym for a shower and sauna. And back home. I had hoped to hear my friend Michael play at the Palette Cafe, but after a dinner I fell into bed and sound asleep! I was beat.

Two days later, on Monday, I met two friends and we rode up to Cloverdale and back to Healdsburg over the Geysers. This turned out be a challenge also, but I made it without mishap or too much suffering. About 65 miles. And since then only sporadic rides, short and intense. And workouts at the gym. Going to the gym just doesn't do it for me and the truth is, its hours on the bike that make the AIDS ride a comfortable and satisfying experience. You don't need power or speed, just endurance!

I have raised almost $5000 for the AIDS Foundation. I plan to make one more pitch. Its never too late to ask, and no amount is too small. I am always surprised by the generosity of the communities I know. So thank you, in advance and after the fact. You are wonderful!