31 August 2007

Stanford Hospital

Blake Wilbur Clinic Since I had a doctor appointment and X-rays at Stanford today, I took the day off. I decided to ride there and back, and figured I could get there in under 4 hours. I hoped that I wouldn't be stuck waiting in the waiting rooms for so long that I wouldn't be able to ride back before dark, as, last time, I was there for over 4 hours.

Also, I originally planned on taking Pierce, Mt Eden, and Stevens Canyon from Hwy 9 to Foothill, but, due to wildfires between Montebello and Redwood Gulch, Stevens Canyon was closed yesterday. So I decided to take another route from Hwy 9 to Foothill, heading up Saratoga-Sunnyvale and taking one or another of the roads leading to Foothill. I wound up going into Cupertino and taking Stevens Creek.

I got up early, and headed out before 7am on my old bike with toeclips, since I didn't want to walk around the hospital in cleats. This would be the first time I would ride on Hwy 9 on a real weekday, and, just like on the weekends, there was lots of traffic between Felton and Boulder Creek. I even saw the light by San Lorenzo High red for the first time. Beyond Boulder Creek, the traffic was light, just like on the weekends. My hip bothered me quite a bit, so it took me about 2:10 of total time to get to the top, which was a few minutes more than I expected.

On the way down, I saw a bunch of Porsches and a cop car stopped in a turnout. At Redwood Gulch, there was a sign saying the road was closed. At Saratoga, I turned left onto Saratoga-Sunnyvale, and took that giant road lined with strip malls up to Stevens Creek, and turned left. I turned right at Foothill, and the first four traffic lights turned yellow just as I approached. How annoying. Finally, the fifth one stayed green.

I turned right at Alpine, then right onto Sand Hill, then right onto Pasteur, and headed to the orthopedic clinic. There weren't as many people there as the last time, so it all took less than two hours. The doctor said my X-rays looked good -- my bones and the screws hadn't shifted around. I guess the bone was healing too. I should make another appointment in about 6 months.

I was hot and sunny when I started back. I took Sand Hill and Portola to Old La Honda. It was 12:57 when I turned onto Old La Honda. Despite the shade, it was pretty hot on Old La Honda. There was some traffic on the bottom part, about 8 cars. There was only 1 car after the one-lane road sign. It was 1:25 when I got to the top, so my time, which was 27:43, was about the same as my last time, which was 28:00. I turned right at Skyline, then left at 84 and headed down to the coast.

After La Honda, I faced cool coastal headwinds. They were slightly chilling, but it was also sunny. With my hip bothering me, I didn't feel like going hard into the headwinds, so I was going pretty slowly. Finally, I got to San Gregorio and stopped for a break. I got a 7up at the store.

When I got to Hwy 1, it was overcast. The sign said 38 miles to Santa Cruz, and I was tired. There was somewhat of a tailwind, but it wasn't much help. The windsock after Waddell was at about 70-80 degrees, sometimes sagging down to under 45 degrees, sometimes picking up briefly to 90 degrees. I guess it was windy enough, as there were a half dozen or so kite surfers at Waddell. After Dimeo, on the hill to the left, I noticed 6 or 7 cattle lined up and walking slowly north along a fence. I saw a calf about 50 yards behind that group also by the fence.

Finally, I got to Western, and, as usual, had to run the light to turn left, and headed up the hill.

25 August 2007

Felton-Empire and Bonny Doon

Top of Felton-Empire It was cloudy when I headed out to Capitola for the club ride. At three straight intersections on Water and Soquel, as I sped up on approaching green lights with cars approaching on the cross streets, the light turned yellow, so I had to stop, which was annoying. I got to the start early, and got signed in. As is typical with the Felton-Empire ride, the turnout was light, with about a dozen riders at the start.

We headed out, taking East Cliff, around the yacht harbor, East Cliff again, then the riverside path, where we lost a rider to a flat, but gained a tandem and another rider. At the upper end of the path, we crossed the parking lots to River Street and headed up Hwy 9 to Felton, where we regrouped at New Leaf. Two riders had second thoughts about the descent on Bonny Doon and decided to head up Mt Hermon to Scotts Valley instead.

I forgot to note the time at the start of the climb up Felton-Empire, but it was 10:22. I started up in a group of three. About halfway up, it became a group of two. After the steepest bit that followed a left curve, I felt a little like puking and couldn't keep up. I was the second to the top, and it was 10:50. Since I didn't know what the time was at the beginning of the climb, I didn't know how long the climb took, but I was hoping for something under 30 minutes. This would be the third time I climbed Felton-Empire since breaking my leg, and the times were 45:17, 38:36, and, for today, 28:17, 17 minutes faster than the first time, and a new personal best, beating the old best of 28:36. My gearing was 34/23 for the entire climb.

Regroup at the top. The tandem headed off on Empire Grade, because they live nearby. We continued onto Ice Cream Grade. Near the school, three riders were headed in the other direction, so we stopped and they joined us. They had climbed Bonny Doon Rd rather than Felton-Empire, which was not an easier climb, but does have less traffic. We then looped around on Bonny Doon Rd, which was the ride leaders favorite part, and stopped by the winery. Then came the big descent that was a little windy as well, before heading up to Davenport.

We had lunch at La Costa. I got a burrito that was pretty big. After lunch, I was feeling stuffed, so I sat in all the way back to Santa Cruz. I was still feeling full on the initial climb up Western, and I felt like puking again, so I took it easy after that.

18 August 2007

Solo ride - Montebello

Montebello gate It was bright and sunny when I got started. I had never climbed Montebello before, so I headed out to give it a shot. Heading up Hwy 9 to Felton, I got a scare when a fast oncoming jeep was in my lane. I guess he was trying to apex a turn, since there was nobody around but him and me. Motorists sometimes forget that they are operating a dangerous, heavy machine, and forget their responsibility to not endanger others on the road.

Hwy 9 starting somewhat after Boulder Creek had been repaved up to about a quarter mile before the Hwy 236 intersection. The last time I rode this section, the 4th of July, it hadn't been repaved. I got to the top in a little more than 2 hours and continued down. There were lots of cyclists climbing up from the valley side as usual. I turned off at Pierce and then Mt Eden.

On Mt Eden, at the edge of the park, there was water stop set up, and cyclists were approaching from the other direction, and turning around at the stop. I wonder what was going on. After turning around they would continue along Stevens Canyon. I stopped at the base of Montebello, but the other riders continued.

After a snack, I headed up Montebello. It reminded me a little of Soda Springs at first, but more so after the flat section in the middle. A dark gray pickup sped by inches from my left shoulder and honked. I guess some motorists use their vehicles as tools of aggression. Every other motorist on this road behaved responsibly, though, slowing as they approached, and passing by when the way ahead was clear. A half minute later, I heard honking from ahead. I guess it was the pickup again. When I got to the school where the flat part started, I overtook a couple on mountain bikes. I guess the pickup was honking at them.

There were views of the bay to the right. After the flat part, I was reminded a little of Page Mill. After the road became one-lane, I was reminded of the upper part of Montevina. Finally, I got to the gate, and stopped to take a picture and rest a little. Then I headed down cautiously. My GPS said my top speed was 52mph, but I think that was some glitch. I then headed back on Stevens Canyon, then up Redwood Gulch to Hwy 9. Redwood Gulch was so hard that I decided to skip Hwy 236 and Jamison and just take Hwy 9 all the way back.

On the climb up Hwy 9 from Redwood Gulch, there was a constant threat of pulling something in my right hip when seated, and, whenever I tried to push a little harder, I would pull something. Standing would give relief to my hip, but it wasn't steep enough for that to be comfortable for long and I was too tired to shift to a bigger gear. After the long crawl up those 3 miles, I got a coke from the hot dog stand and rested in the sun. Then I took Hwy 9 all the way back to town.

11 August 2007

Pescadero, La Honda and Tunitas Creek

Lower Tunitas Creek Rd It was cloudy when I started off around 7. The club ride was starting from Pescadero at 9. The ride to the start had the type of riding that bothered my hip the most -- hammering into the wind while seated. At first, there wasn't much of a headwind. Then, it picked up a little. The wind sock to the left at the descent to Waddell was at 45 degrees. It was briefly sunny in spots, but mostly cloudy. After Año Nuevo, the headwind was mostly moderately strong. At Gazos Creek Rd, I turned off and got immediate relief from the wind as well as the smell of manure. After the ups and downs on Cloverdale gave way to the wider, flatter two-lane Cloverdale, the headwind was back, though less than before. At the end of Cloverdale, there was a stream of 5 or 6 joggers turning from Pescadero Rd onto Cloverdale. Finally, I made it to ride start.

I got signed in. There were a number of guests on the ride from San Francisco. There was also another ride taking the same route up Tunitas, and I think those riders were mostly from San Francisco. After the leader reviewed the routes, we got going along Stage. At the machine gun skeleton statue, I noticed a smaller gun-toting skeleton statue to the right for the first time. On the first climb, I took a moderate pace and went ahead on my own. On the second climb, I overtook some riders that had started earlier. It was also drizzly from the second climb all the way to San Gregorio.

I didn't go into the store at San Gregorio, since it was still pretty early. I headed out with a group, and, a little ways into the climb, went ahead with two others. There were multiple groups of cyclists descending. Next was the descent on Hwy 1, and then Tunitas. At the beginning, I dawdled a bit so that the rest could catch up. There was also a tandem doing another ride -- they had started riding at Daly City, and were headed to Foster City. After Lobitos Cutoff, one guy went ahead so I went with him for a while. Eventually, I had to drop back. The route sheet had the route going up Star Hill and Swett to Skyline, but since that wasn't brought up in the route discussions, I figured most people would continue straight up Tunitas, so I decided to do that too. And I was right. After a break at the top, we headed down to Sky Londa.

I got lunch at Alice's Restaurant, and got a grilled ham and cheese sandwich and a lemonade. The route sheet then would take the route down West Old La Honda and Hwy 84, then Pescadero Rd back to Pescadero. Another option on the sheet was to go to Alpine, then down to Pescadero Rd and back to Pescadero. However, I and another guy who had ridden to the start from Boulder Creek would continue to Hwy 9, then down Hwy 9 and Hwy 236. I led the way at a tired pace. At Hwy 236, the other guy went ahead, and I let my pace get even more tired.

I took a break at the park headquarters and got a soda and ate a snack and rested in the sun. There were lots of visitors there. The headquarters had the campgrounds full sign up. After the break, I continued on 236 at a tired pace. I got to the bottom of Jamison at 3:21, and climbed it at a tired pace. The dead skunk was still on the 1.33 sign. I got to the top at 3:54, but the GPS wouldn't register, so I guess my time would be around 33 and half minutes, the first time my time got worse on this climb since my injury. Then, I took Empire Grade back home. The batteries in my GPS died around 4:45, so I had to make up a time for when I got to Bay St. 4:52 seems reasonable, and would give a time for the final descent that was a little worse than recent times.

4 August 2007

Ninth Annual Santa Cruz Mountains Challenge

Little Basin rest stop Since I was working the rest stop at Little Basin, and had to be there at 8, I wanted to get going by 6:30, but wound up running about ten minutes late, even after skimping on breakfast. It was cold and foggy, so I put on a windbreaker. I headed out on my old bike in regular shoes, since I didn't want to work the rest stop in cleats. Gravel from roadwork on High St plinked on my downtube as I set off.

On Hwy 9 to Felton, the fog cleared, but the sun was only sporadic, mostly being hidden behind the mountains to the east. At one point there were signs warning of horse crossings, with crossing guards stationed at the crossing. I saw two horses on the trails to the right. I guess some equestrian club had something going on. I continued up Hwy 9, then turned left onto Hwy 236 at Boulder Creek, and got to the rest stop at 8:11.

I helped keep the food and drinks stocked. The first few riders came through around 8:50. At first riders trickled through, stopping only long enough to get their bottles refilled and to grab a few snacks before getting back on the road. Later, riders would stay longer to chat and rest. A few waves came through, causing lines to build up for water and gatorade. I saw a former co-worker for the first time in a year, and met his wife, as they were doing the ride. It was sunny and kind of hot, as I was wearing a volunteer T-shirt over my jersey. By 11:30, most of the riders had passed through, so I was free to go, and headed out around 11:45.

It was 11:58 when I got to the bottom of Jamison Creek. I saw quite a few people walking up. Last year, I only remember seeing one person walking. The dead skunk was still on the 1.33 sign. At around a half mile to go, a guy on a DeRosa caught up to me, then rode behind me. When the end was in view, he burst ahead. I was really hot in the T-shirt, and when I got to the top, I stopped for a few minutes and sucked down gatorade. It was 12:28 when I got to the top, with the climb taking 30:06, so each time I've done this climb since breaking my leg, I've improved. Since the next stop was less than two miles away, I didn't bother to top off my bottle at the water stop here. At the next stop, I just didn't feel like eating, even though I hadn't eaten very much all day. I had a hard boiled egg and piece of bread with a little bit of lettuce and tomato, and sucked down a can of soda. As I headed out, I had a few vinegary pickle slices that were really good.

As I headed down Pine Flat, I blew a nosefull of snot, then noticed that there was someone behind me. Oops. Sorry. He was from LA and had lost his route sheet, so he wanted to follow me. We rode together down Pine Flat, up Martin, Ice Cream Grade, then down Felton-Empire to Felton. Then I pointed him left up Mount Hermon, since he was doing the 60mi route.

On the way up Zayante, I was pretty hot and tired, so I decided not to push hard. I was much slower than I was the previous year. I stopped briefly at the water stop just before Middle Ellen Rd to get my bottle topped off. The upper mile and half or so, there were sections where I was going maybe 5mph, with a 5mph tailwind, so the air was absolutely still, and I was in the sun. That T-shirt was not comfortable then. The next rest stop was a little before Bayview. I still didn't feel like eating, so I just had a can of soda and topped off my bottle.

I continued along Summit, crossing over Hwy 17, Old Summit, then back to Summit, then down Soquel-San Jose. At one point, a bloated pickup truck passed me, with a road-raging woman sticking her head out the passenger window yelling something incoherent. I didn't know what that was about. I was riding on the right side of the lane, and I wasn't weaving all over the place, so I wasn't doing anything wrong that I could tell. Later, a couple of riders that were behind me said that the truck coming around the corner behind me slammed on the brakes and seemed to lose control. I never noticed that, but I guess that's what the people in the truck were bent out of shape about. My theory now is that the driver of the truck, after getting by the cyclists behind me, floored the accelerator in impatience, then saw me when coming around the turn and had the jam on the brakes, losing control. It was a close call that I didn't even realize it at the time, and could have turned into a horrible matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. On the little climb, a pack of four riders went by me. I tried for a little while to jump on, thinking it would be nice to suck wheel for a while, but just didn't have the energy.

On Laurel Glen, I caught up to a group of maybe 6 or 7, including the 4 that passed me earlier. When the climbing started, two of them went ahead, so I went with them. They would be the ones that later told me what happened with the truck earlier. At the top, I stopped briefly at the water stop, but my bottle was pretty full, so I continued down Mountain View. There was a group, so I sucked wheel along Branciforte and the first half or so of Granite Creek. The two from before and a guy on a Rambouillet went ahead when the climbing started. I was a little ways behind them, and the rest wound up too far back for me to see. I was dreading the last part of the climb after the Scotts Valley city limits sign where it would be in the sun. I made it, then took the descent, crossed over Hwy 17, then crawled up to Scotts Valley High, arriving at 5:13. The routes officially closed at 5, so I was a little disappointed that I didn't make it there by 5.

I still didn't feel like eating, but I had a piece of vegetarian lasagna and two cans of soda. There was ice cream, but I didn't feel like having any. At 6, there were 3 riders left on the course, including my former co-worker. His wife rode the 60mi route, and was worried. When I headed for home, I saw him riding up Glenwood, so he was ok. I went down Scotts Valley Drive, then down Glen Canyon, then back home. It was almost 7, so the ride took over 12 hours.