25 August 2012

Solo ride

It was cloudy and chilly in the morning, so I delayed starting out, and when I did start out, it was still cloudy and chilly. I headed up Hwy 9. By the time I got to Felton, it was sunny. I took Glen Arbor to Ben Lomond and continued up Hwy 9 to Boulder Creek, then headed out on Hwy 236. I turned left and headed up China Grade for the first time since 2008, over 4 years ago. In 2008, I did the climb in about 21:29. This time, I did it in about 20:56, which is pretty close to the same time. The upper part of Hwy 236 had been repaved since I last rode there a month earlier, and there was residual loose gravel, but the road, though still somewhat bumpy, was much smoother than before. I headed down to Hwy 9, then up to Saratoga Gap. This would be the first time I climbed the upper part of Hwy 9 since 2010, when I did it in about 31:28; this time, I did it in about 31:38. The upper 2 and half or so miles were also newly repaved since I had descended it a month earlier, and there was more residual loose gravel. There was the hot dog stand and lots of cars at Saratoga Gap. I turned right and headed up Skyline without stopping. There were lots of cars parked around the Castle Rock entrance. At the end of Skyline, I headed left on Bear Creek, then rode the length of Summit Rd and then headed down Soquel-San Jose, which also had been repaved in places and I had to stop at one spot where only one lane was open. I was tired and hungry as I headed up Laurel Glen, so I stopped at the top after having ridden almost continuously for 4 hours and ate a snack. I headed down Mountain View and Branciforte, parts of which also had been repaved, back to town and then back home.

18 August 2012

Solo ride

It was warm and sunny. I headed north on Hwy 1, and it felt like I had a tailwind at first, but soon, it became a headwind, though it was not too bad. At the bottom of the gulch of San Vicente Creek just south of Davenport, the speed detector said I was going 30-31 mph. I continued to Swanton and continued on Swanton, where it was still a bit windy until the valley. After the climb, I continued down to Hwy 1, turned left and headed south with the tailwind. There were a number of cyclists on Hwy 1 both ways, but I saw none on Swanton. My top speed going down to Scott Creek was around 47 mph. Just north of Davenport, the speed detector said I was going 29 mph with the tailwind. At Bonny Doon Rd, I turned left and went by 3 cyclists who were going slowly as if they were waiting for something. I went by 2 more on the curvy part after the bridge and before the straight leading up to Smith Grade, another on Pine Flat just after the upper intersection Bonny Doon, another 2 a little before the Bosch Baha'i sign, and caught up to 1 more just as she stopped at the bus stop just before Empire Grade. I turned right and headed down Empire Grade. As I approached Heller, the light was green, but, to the left, I saw a car on Heller approaching the intersection, so I sprinted for it and beat the light.

11 August 2012

Solo ride

It was sunny and warm, though there was still some morning coolness when I started out. It would be pretty hot in the mountains, with forecasts predicting high temperatures in the 90s in Boulder Creek. This would be my first real ride on my bike after it had been overhauled a week earlier, and it felt good. I skipped riding last week because it was cold and it even rained a little.

Hwy 9 by the Tannery had been repaved, so it was no longer a bumpy turn from Encinal. I headed up Hwy 9 through Felton, taking Glen Arbor to Ben Lomond, and continuing up to Boulder Creek. I headed out on Hwy 236, and started up Jamison Creek at 11:30. I felt much better than I did the last time, 2 weeks earlier, when the climb took me between 25 and 27 minutes, and I would guess was around 26:30, but my GPS had been turned off then, so 25-27 minutes is the most precise estimate I have. It was pretty hot, but it was mostly in the shade. There were short stretches in the sun around the 1.42 marker, around the 1.33 marker, and somewhere around .7-.6 miles to the top. I got to the top at 11:54 for an estimated time of 24:19. I turned left and headed down Empire Grade.