I've got two more training rides under my belt since my last post. Two weeks ago we headed out to Sunol to ride the popular Calaveras Road. I've done this ride many times and it's one of my favorites for a number of reasons: it's scenic, rural, has little car traffic, some climbing, rolling hills, and fast descents.
Ah, lovely Calaveras Road...I could feel my strength gaining on this ride. After all, I've been training solidly for about one month now. But I was quickly slapped back and reminded of my apparent lack of conditioning when I attempted to climb a short optional hill, affectionately referred to among local cyclists as "The Calaveras Wall."
The Wall is short- only .4 miles, and really that's all you can handle since it's a 15% grade. I'd done it once before and remember it being hard, but not as hard as it was this time! Thankfully no other riders were close enough to hear me gasping for air and whining while I grinded up this hill, my body contorting in pain as I yanked on my handlebars in a bid for momentum, red-lining the whole way. It was really awful and I almost bailed out twice, but some misguided part of me wouldn't stop trying to pedal and slalom up the hill.
As you can see in the first photo below, not everyone on the team was able to ride up The Wall. For comparison, photo two shows pro riders ascending The Wall during stage 3 of the 2009 Amgen Tour of California. Hey even those guys look like they're riding pretty slowly up it. Okay, but the difference is that their slow is probably 12 mph up this hill, while my slow is 3 or 4 mph to bike-almost-falling-over-from-lack-of-momentum. You could have beat me walking on this one.
The Wall is short- only .4 miles, and really that's all you can handle since it's a 15% grade. I'd done it once before and remember it being hard, but not as hard as it was this time! Thankfully no other riders were close enough to hear me gasping for air and whining while I grinded up this hill, my body contorting in pain as I yanked on my handlebars in a bid for momentum, red-lining the whole way. It was really awful and I almost bailed out twice, but some misguided part of me wouldn't stop trying to pedal and slalom up the hill.
As you can see in the first photo below, not everyone on the team was able to ride up The Wall. For comparison, photo two shows pro riders ascending The Wall during stage 3 of the 2009 Amgen Tour of California. Hey even those guys look like they're riding pretty slowly up it. Okay, but the difference is that their slow is probably 12 mph up this hill, while my slow is 3 or 4 mph to bike-almost-falling-over-from-lack-of-momentum. You could have beat me walking on this one.
photo by Garrett Lau
http://www.flickr.com/photos/garrettlau/sets/72157614001932867/
Last Saturday we rode over the Golden Gate Bridge and did the Paradise Loop- another one of my favorite rides. I love the fact that I didn't need to drive anywhere- just rode my bike to the meeting point in the Presidio and did the ride.
The Paradise Loop takes you over the bridge and down into Sausalito. From there, you climb a moderately challenging hill along Camino Alto. Eventually you make your way to Paradise Drive, a rolling, winding road in the hills. I pushed it pretty hard here and really felt for the first time this season that I'd got my mojo back.
When you emerge from the hills, you drop into Tiburon, where everyone stops at Caffe Acri for an obligatory bathroom break and espresso. I always enjoy seeing cyclists here in their gear, relaxing on the patio with their croissants and lattes- it's oh so Bay Area, I think, and it's the kind of riding you look forward to once your training season is over.
After prying ourselves from the comfort of Caffe Acri, it's back to the roads and trails skirting the Bay. I was pleased with myself for drafting off three faster guys on my team, averaging 17 mph and not getting dropped. You then hit Sausalito again and begin the slow climb back to the bridge. The thing is, it's much windier in the afternoon and therefore much more of a challenge getting home. The bridge has crazy wind, and if that isn't enough, you have to deal with all the Euro-tourists on their rent-a-bikes, dangerously riding three abreast, one hand on the handlebars, one hand holding a camera, completely oblivious to oncoming bike traffic. I've had a close call here once before, but this time made it back unscathed, and beat the rain. All in all, a really lovely day.
Caffe Acri in Tiburon
http://www.flickr.com/photos/garrettlau/sets/72157614001932867/
Paradise Loop from San Francisco - 42 miles
Last Saturday we rode over the Golden Gate Bridge and did the Paradise Loop- another one of my favorite rides. I love the fact that I didn't need to drive anywhere- just rode my bike to the meeting point in the Presidio and did the ride.
The Paradise Loop takes you over the bridge and down into Sausalito. From there, you climb a moderately challenging hill along Camino Alto. Eventually you make your way to Paradise Drive, a rolling, winding road in the hills. I pushed it pretty hard here and really felt for the first time this season that I'd got my mojo back.When you emerge from the hills, you drop into Tiburon, where everyone stops at Caffe Acri for an obligatory bathroom break and espresso. I always enjoy seeing cyclists here in their gear, relaxing on the patio with their croissants and lattes- it's oh so Bay Area, I think, and it's the kind of riding you look forward to once your training season is over.
After prying ourselves from the comfort of Caffe Acri, it's back to the roads and trails skirting the Bay. I was pleased with myself for drafting off three faster guys on my team, averaging 17 mph and not getting dropped. You then hit Sausalito again and begin the slow climb back to the bridge. The thing is, it's much windier in the afternoon and therefore much more of a challenge getting home. The bridge has crazy wind, and if that isn't enough, you have to deal with all the Euro-tourists on their rent-a-bikes, dangerously riding three abreast, one hand on the handlebars, one hand holding a camera, completely oblivious to oncoming bike traffic. I've had a close call here once before, but this time made it back unscathed, and beat the rain. All in all, a really lovely day.
Caffe Acri in Tiburon
No comments:
Post a Comment