23 December 2006

Kirby Park to Monterey

Elkhorn Slough It had been cold all week, with freezing temperatures in the mornings, so I bought gloves for winter rides. The club ride this week would start from Kirby Park at 9:30. For some reason, I thought it would take over 2 hours to ride there, so I started around 7. It was cold, and, despite the gloves, my fingers were freezing. My toes also started to freeze. At a few places, patches of wetness from the rain earlier in the week that were in shade had a hint of frost. It was even colder up in the mountains, so it was a good thing that this ride was along the coast.

Along Water and on Soquel up to 41st St, numerous lights turned red just as I would have arrived at the intersection, had I not slowed when they turned yellow. The one at Harbor High was especially galling, as there was no traffic, yet the cross street got a green. Beyond downtown Soquel, the lights were no longer out to get me. However, as I approached Cabrillo, the sun, low in the sky, was shining directly in my face, which was blinding. I would be plagued by the sun in my eyes on stretches of Soquel and San Andreas. I hoped it wouldn't be a problem on the return trip, but, to a lesser degree, it would be, as the afternoon sun would be to the west, and this would be an out-and-back route. When I was in the shade, the sun would be blocked, but the flip side was that it was colder. From San Andreas, I took Thurwachter, McGowan, and Trafton, and the sun would be mostly to my right. After that it was Salinas, Hall, and Elkhorn to Kirby Park.

I arrived at Kirby Park at around 8:40, about 50 minutes early. I should have started around 7:45, and it would have been a bit warmer as well. So I waited. I took a picture of Elkhorn Slough. At least the sun was warm and there was no wind. Eventually, the other riders arrived and I got signed in. There were eight riders when we started, including two on a tandem, and a new guy who had also done the Page Mill Low-Key Hillclimb five weeks earlier. We took Elkhorn and Castroville Blvd, then Hwy 156 through Castroville to Nashua, where we stopped at Pezzini's, and we were joined by 4 or 5 more riders.


Turtle Bay Taqueria We continued along the Monterey County bike path all the way to Monterey. The group I was in missed the turn onto Figueroa at the Municipal Wharf, and, not knowing where it was, continued to the Fisherman's Wharf, where we found a map on a wall that pointed us in the right direction. We headed to the Turtle Bay Taqueria for lunch, and I took a picture. One guy didn't want to eat and took off.

After lunch, we returned the same way we came, reversing the route, with another stop a Pezzini's. At the entrance to Kirby Park, I continued along Elkhorn, riding the final 27 miles of this 100+ mile ride solo. I was starting to feel low on energy, so my pace slowed along Hall, Salinas, and Trafton to the long stretch of San Andreas. I decided to stop at Hernandez Market in Soquel for a coke. As I approached Seascape Blvd, I considered getting something at the Seascape shopping center at the other end of the road, but decided not to. Back on Soquel Dr, the afternoon sun, low in the sky, shone directly at my face at times, just as it did in the morning. At the Hernandez Market, I got a Sprite and took a break, becoming aware of the lactic acid burning in my legs for the first time. After getting back on my bike and pedaling, however, I was no longer aware of the burning in my legs. At Ocean and Water, the light was green, and I didn't have to stop. Whee! That almost never happens.

16 December 2006

Davenport, Swanton, and Smith

Davenport It was a cold, cloudy day, with rain forecast to start in the afternoon to evening, so it was a chance to get in a ride before the rain arrived. The rainy season has arrived. I didn't ride last weekend due to heavy rain. The club ride was scheduled to start at 8:30, 8 or 9 from Capitola, which caused some confusion. I decided to show up between 8:30 and 9, and arrived at around 8:45 and got signed in. Some who arrived earlier had already started off, since it was cold, though not freezing. One guy, arriving later, when unloading his bike, had a spoke in his front wheel caught in his pedal. It took some time to get that untangled.

And then we were off, getting warmed up along Brommer, around the yacht harbor, by the boardwalk, along West Cliff, to Natural Bridges, where some of those who had started earlier were waiting. After a little more waiting, we headed for Davenport, first taking the bike path paralleling Hwy 1, which was being cleared by mostly Harbor High students on their mountain bike team. After going through Wilder Ranch, we turn onto Hwy 1, forming a train being pulled by a tandem, whose riders had earlier this year ridden across the country, so they were pretty strong.

Davenport was a stop for coffee and snacks. I took a picture, which I'll add to this post once I'm able to access it. While we were there, a big tourist bus pulled in. Eventually, I went with a group headed off to Swanton. Somewhere along the way, I remember hitting a rock on the road that I didn't see. After the descent into the valley, the two fast guys went off ahead, and I went with them. Near the top of the climb, I felt my rear tire going soft. It must have been the rock I hit earlier causing a slow leak. I replaced the tube and pumped it up. It took a lot of strokes to inflate the tire to a reasonable pressure. I was stopped for about ten minutes, most of which was pumping up the tire. I continued up and over the summit, and back down to Hwy 1, then headed back to Davenport.

At Davenport, those that I was riding with earlier that were going to climb Bonny Doon had already left or were about to leave. I stopped and had lunch with a few others that did a shortened out-and-back along Swanton. After lunch, I headed off solo to climb Bonny Doon, about a half hour after the others climbing it. After working up a sweat on the climb, the initial steep descents of Smith Grade chilled me. The road was also lined with duff, so I had to be careful. The last part of Smith Grade climbed steeply to Empire Grade, so I was again working up a sweat, only to be chilled on the Empire Grade descent.

2 December 2006

Tour de Santa Cruz

The club ride was scheduled to start at 8:30 from Capitola, so I got started at 8. It was close to freezing in the morning, and the ride to Capitola was very cold. It was a sunny day, so it was warmer the rest of the day, though it was still cold in some of the shaded areas. At Capitola, I signed in and got a route sheet. Unlike last week's turnout of 8, there was a large group on this ride.


Natural Bridges We started off on Jade and Brommer at a relaxed, social pace in a large, strung out group. Intersections split up the group a little by the time we headed through the yacht harbor. At East Cliff, we headed over the trestle bridge, by the beach boardwalk, and along West Cliff to Natural Bridges, where we stopped for a regroup. I took a picture. A few riders who only had time for a short ride would head back to Capitola, including one who had to run a bike shop. We were also joined by a couple of riders who didn't want to get up early enough to go to Capitola.

We headed out of Natural Bridges at an easy pace in a few big bunches, riding through the westside neighborhoods, passing by Mission Hills Jr High, crossing the High St pedestrian bridge over Hwy 1, and heading down to the river path. From the path, we took Water. The route sheet had us turning up Market to Branciforte, but, since the underpass to Hwy 1 was still closed for improvements, we continued up to Branciforte, then took Goss to Branciforte. Around this time, the two hammerheads started upping their pace, so I went with them. The longer route headed up Glen Canyon to Scotts Valley, then back down Granite Creek to rejoin Branciforte, while the shorter route continued straight up Branciforte. The three of us took the longer route. The sunny upper part of Glen Canyon even had a warm breeze. We continued on Green Hills, passing by the old Borland buildings, which were no longer occupied by tech companies. The one formerly occupied by e-Mu was occupied by some health care company. The ones formerly occupied by Starfish and Rainmaker were vacant.

We continued on Granite Creek, Branciforte, and Mountain View to the next regroup point at the top of Mountain View. We caught up to a small group that took the shorter route just as we were reaching the top. During the regroup, some riders in the club on a ride of their own stopped by. In continuing, some decided to head down Laurel Glen to avoid the steep ups and downs of Rodeo Gulch. We then headed up Rodeo Gulch, and the two hammerheads and I went ahead of the rest on the climb. Then, after the steep descent, it flattened out a little, and they took off, so I had to work really hard to stay with them. We then took Soquel past Cabrillo College before looping back to Soquel for the lunch stop at Gayle's Bakery.


Rodeo Gulch The remaining route was just a short trip back to Capitola, so I was planning on heading straight home after lunch. However, one guy said that he'd go back and climb Rodeo Gulch, and since it was only 1 and the day was warming up, I decided to chase after him up Rodeo Gulch. I never did catch up to him. I stopped to take a picture right where Rodeo Gulch starts climbing steeply.

I continued backtracking the route I had ridden earlier in the day down Mountain View and Branciforte. Since Granite Creek was the most significant leg in which my personal best was still from 2005, I headed up it, trying for a good time, and got a new best by almost a minute and a half, thanks to the cooperation of the stoplight at the Hwy 17 north entrance. I continued through Scotts Valley down to Felton.


Felton Quarry From Hwy 9, I turned right onto San Lorenzo by the Bigfoot Museum, since Google Maps showed that it climbed up to Felton Quarry Rd, which led to Empire Grade. I figured I'd try and see if I could make it to Empire Grade, and, if I couldn't, I'd just turn around. It started as a steep, straight climb, with grades up to 15% according to the signs for descending trucks. After the steep climb by a residential area, it became a more gentle climb through the mountains. The quiet reminded me of the upper part of East Zayante. The climb started becoming steeper when I came upon a closed gate to the Felton Quarry. I took a picture of it. The right sign on the gate was a long-winded no trespassing sign. The left sign on the gate warned of cancer causing substances in the area. I turned around and headed back down to Hwy 9, which I took back to Santa Cruz and home.