Category: touring (Page 4 of 12)
Friday, October 21, 2011
Stage 6, our last day of riding, would take us back to Petaluma, where we began Sunday, October 16.
I was a stronger cyclist when I rode into Petaluma than when I rode out on the 16th. We all were I think. I was tested more as a cyclist on this tour than on the tour we did last year – because of the climbing – we actually rode more miles in the tour last year. I plan to build on what I learned and on my increased fitness – leg strength primarily – and continue to work on both during the off-season.
By the end of today my bike computer would say we had ridden 245 miles and climbed 16,753 feet.
Stage 6 began as all our days did, around the table at breakfast. After breakfast I beat it over to the car and trailer to make sure our stuff got on the trailer!
We had another cool, brilliantly sunny day! The weather could not be beat on this trip. I had heard October was the best month to visit this part of California, based on our experience I have to believe it is.
After getting everything ready to go for the day’s ride we paused for pictures. We were a picture happy group!
Today’s route on paper appeared that it would be the least scenic of the week. We were leaving the coast behind and would ride through predominately farmland. The highlight of the day instead of being beautiful scenery would be food: the Tomales bakery and later in PetaIuma lunch at In-N-Out Burger – both of which I looked forward to.
While we did ride mainly through farmland – I happen to like farmland and wide open spaces both of which dominated the landscape of day 6. It definitely had its own beauty.
The route followed rolling terrain with a couple of “memorable†climbs – memorable in that they hurt. The most “memorable†climb was right before Tomales and Mike was up at the top taking pictures and offering encouragement. Hope I looked better than I felt.
How I felt improved significantly when I came to Tomales bakery and got even better after some kind of delicious breadstick thing which I inhaled. The bakery was crowded with cyclists from a local club and our group was there as well.
Shortly after leaving Tomales we turned onto the locally well-known Chileno Valley Road. I can see why it’s a favorite of cyclists – very little traffic, nice surface, easy up and down terrain and beautiful open space. Gaye, Rod, Mark and I rode it together. None of us were in a hurry for the day to end so we stopped frequently to take pictures and enjoy the ride.
Where the hell are we?
Once we left Chileno Valley we were on the outskirts of Petaluma. We worked our way through town and over to our lunch stop.
After lunch it was a short ride to the hotel where everyone was busy getting ready to leave.
I was sorry to see the tour end, I loved riding every day, but who doesn’t. Unlike last year’s tour there was no “farewell†dinner the evening after our last day of riding, most of the group left the afternoon we returned to Petaluma Sheraton so goodbyes were quick.
We began as a group of 16 strangers but ended as friends. That’s what happens on a bike tour if you’re lucky. My new friends are people I wish I lived closer to so we could bike together.
With any luck at least some of us will ride together on another tour some day.
I would add that Undiscovered Tours is an exceptional company. From the guides, Mike and Neal – to the bikes and gear – to the accommodations – to the route – it was all topnotch.
I’ve enjoyed reliving the tour writing the blogs and posting pictures, I hope you’ve enjoyed reading them. I love riding and I love writing about riding and the places we visit. It would be great to have a deal where I could do different bike tours and write and post pictures about them – have blog will travel!
October 20, 2011 – Day 5
A funny thing happened on the way to Bodega Bay – we were dropped.
By everyone including the team car! In the words of Paul Sherwen and Phil Liggett we were in no-man’s land.
Not really, but I love Sherwen and Liggett–isms and, we kind of were in the middle of nowhere or at the very least, seriously off the back.
When we went down with our bikes to meet everyone else – no one was around. Initially we thought maybe they were in another area of the Sea Ranch Lodge property so we walked around a bit looking but then it dawned on us that everyone had GONE. And we still had our luggage.
So I did what anyone would do in that situation – I pulled out my camera and started taking pictures.
How did we manage to get left behind? What happened was after our group breakfast Mark and I took a walk along the path in the fog. My understanding was because of the fog we were going to leave a little later than normal; typically we met at the car about 9:30am.
The already beautiful and serene bluffs overlooking the ocean that the lodge sits on were even more so in the fog.
The walk was worth the time it took, we got to the parking lot to meet the others at 9:45. Once we went inside to check with the front desk, the woman working said we had just missed them by 10 minutes. She put in a call to Terry, Mike and Neal and left messages, we left our luggage and filled our bottles with water.
The Ride:
We headed out onto Highway 1 and the fog was THICK! I was really wishing I had my flashing Blinky taillight. We stayed close to each other and since Mark had on the brighter of the two jerseys he rode in back. I was nervous about riding in fog and traffic. I can be more than a little paranoid about getting hit by a car but as they say – it’s not paranoia if they’re really out to get you… I have been hit before, back in 1995 but once hit – always cautious.
Riding on Highway 1 though made the fog, traffic and nerves all fade into the background. Who hasn’t dreamed about riding (or driving for that matter) on it. It’s the day of the tour that I most anticipated. It lived up and surpassed all expectations.
At times Highway 1 took us through deep and cool woods, other times high on cliffs overlooking the ocean. And still other times almost level with the sea, but then only to go back up (and up) to where the only thing between you on your bike and the ocean below was a few hundred feet of air. No guardrails, just you and the cars and trucks, the white fog line and the dirt shoulder.
I didn’t really think about any of that until later. My mind and heart and soul were immersed in everything that surrounded me. Total immersion in what lay to my right and in riding.
The fog came and went but the beauty and peacefulness went on and on.
Mark had fun on the descent in the two pictures just above. He had to slow because of the travel trailer. He was still smiling when I caught up to him.
We were to have lunch in Jenner at the Café Aquatica but didn’t expect that any of our group to still be there but lo and behold they were! Neal, Mike and Joelie were there and Gayle and Rod were just heading out. Neal hung around to ride with us – no one gets left behind motto of tours – and Mark and I had lunch – a delicious bowl of clam chowder – the best of the trip for me.
Jenner is a tiny town but on the map with cyclists because of the great riding nearby. Jenner is also where the Russian River meets the Pacific.
After lunch Neal, Mark and I rode together – sort of easy rolling hills – still with plenty of beautiful scenes to try and capture with a camera.
It was a short ride from Jenner to Bodega Bay and our lodging for the night, the very pretty Bodega Bay Lodge. When we checked in we were informed there would be wine and cheese at 5 so off to shower and dress. Beer before shower, but not wine, just wouldn’t fit.
We enjoyed another beautiful sunset.
Tonight was our last dinner together. What a fast week! What a fabulous week! What a fabulous group!
The one thing I regret is we didn’t get a group photo of everyone. Too bad, we were really a nice looking bunch.
We dined in a private room at the Duck Club and pretty much everyone had a camera, or an IPad or both. Lots of pictures were taken and downloaded/uploaded and lots of laughs shared. It was a great evening.
 
When dessert looks and tastes this good it deserves a picture.
For the day we rode 41 miles and climbed a surprising 3201 ft.
October 19, 2011 – Occidental to Sea Ranch via King Ridge.
Queen Stage
I had heard of King Ridge Road from Levi Leipheimer’s Gran Fondo but didn’t really know anything about it. I follow Bicycling Magazine on Facebook and a month or two ago they posted a link to Levi’s Gran Fondo and referenced King Ridge so I followed the link and then proceeded from there to read more about it.
What I read made King’s Ridge sound more suitable for professionals than a cyclist like me. One article I read written by an ex-professional racer described the descent as very technical and dangerous if you weren’t extremely careful. The climb up King Ridge sounded tough but there is usually no danger in climbing unless you slow to a crawl and can’t unclip so you fall over Arte Johnson style.
Tough climbs hurt your legs, maybe hurt your pride but they don’t usually cause you any lasting harm – so I was okay with the climb – the descent however, had me worried.
Sometimes you can know too much (or think you know) and this was definitely a case of that. Living in Oklahoma we don’t have any serious climbs other than rolling hills, this would be the toughest climbs we had ever done or sagged, whichever the case might be.
As it turned out it was a fantastic day of bike riding. An epic day! The most climbing (4300 ft. approximately of ascent) and the toughest climbs I have ever done. It was also a day in the saddle I will look back on with fond memories and a sense of pride because of the beauty of King Ridge Road and the way it pushed and tested me. It hurt like hell at times but I loved every minute of it.
A few parting shots of the Inn at Occidental’s garden
Here is how the day went:
Leaving Occidental was cool, both literally and figuratively. For the first 5 miles or so we pedaled easily along the heavily treed Bohemian Highway. The morning air was damp and cool and the road was dark because of all the tree cover.
We came across a group of totem polls; it may have been after we turned off of Bohemian, I don’t remember for sure. Several different animal totems, all colorful; the dog was my favorite.
I took that smiling dog totem to be a good omen.
The ride continued easily to Cazadero. Our team car was waiting so we stopped to refill bottles and pick up gels and snacks (a couple of the nut clusters and a handful of peanut butter pretzels) good stuff. Fuel for the legs and all that!
From what I had heard the climb up King Ridge would start almost immediately after leaving Cazadero. Barb, Gayle, Rod, Mark and I rode together. Director Sportif and Soigneur (sans massage and musettes) Neal and Joeli, drove the team car and provided support the entire way across King Ridge. The faster group of Andrea, Peter, Marla, Mike, Jerry, Gord, Char, David and TG Mike were off the front.
When the climb started it wasn’t immediately steep but it got that way pretty quickly. We kind of all scattered once the climb started in earnest – we were in our own private purgatory – to quote Paul Sherwen.
Taking Neal’s advice, once it got steep I got out of the saddle and pedaled slowly using my weight to turn the pedals, trying to time my strokes to my breathing. When I needed to I stopped but I didn’t walk. My goal was to ride the whole way.
Stop and rest but no walking – my mantra. TG Mike had said something to me earlier in the day as he rode by that stayed with me and that I used as motivation the rest of the ride: Ride like a champ.
I rode within myself stopping when I needed to. If I saw something I wanted to take a picture of I did. I was surprised at all the fall foliage along the route. The scenery, vegetation and terrain, changed each day it seemed. All of it was beautiful but today surpassed everything else we had seen to this point.
The further we rode the steeper it got. Climbing out of the saddle helped. It went against everything I had learned and also practiced, normally I did the majority of climbing seated, spinning an easier gear. Standing worked so that’s what I did.
When it got really steep and difficult I stopped a lot. As it got steeper it was more difficult to clip in and I often couldn’t get the pedal in the right position to clip in and I would have to float that leg and try and clip while my right leg did all the work. Very tiring and very frustrating!
On one section after trying repeatedly to clip my left foot in (I use Look pedals) I gave up, unclipped the other foot and hung over my handlebars trying to catch my breath – just when Neal and Joeli showed up. They told me later they thought I was throwing up. I can see why, I felt like throwing up!
Neal gave me a pep talk and I continued to ride and stop as needed. Thankfully he didn’t tell me the worse was yet to come – or maybe he did – by then I had severe bike coma.
The road continued up and the views got better and better. Reward for all that effort.
The picture just above on the left is looking down the road from the first summit (1620 ft. elev.). Neal and Joeli were there and the rest of the gang came up too.
We had some up and down hills for a few miles. More spectacular views too.
The sunlight was beautiful the way it came through the tree tops.
The pavement continued to go up too, but not as steeply. Steep enough though.
Things were going okay and then we came to Oh-Shit Corner, aptly named because that is exactly what I said when I saw it. The steepest thing I have ever contemplated riding up. Gayle rode up and we stared at Oh Shit together. Neal and Joeli were there and we discussed how to best negotiate it. Neal offered to give us a push start just like the pros get when the team car stops for them. I don’t know how he did it but he did for both Gayle and me. Thanks Neal!
The push worked because we made it to the top of Cima Coppi 1730 ft. elevation – our hors categorie climb for the tour!
As a reward, we had several miles of fun descents and easy climbing. Then we rode along the top of the ridge what breathtaking views. You could see for miles and miles. And I took picture after picture of one stunning view after another.
Riding along top made for spectacular views and experience. It was quiet and undisturbed by traffic or people. It wasn’t flat, just gentle rolling hills and twisting roads.
A bit further up the ridge you could just catch sight of the Pacific on the horizon.
We stopped at Tin Barn road for a very good picnic lunch and a little rest and took relish in the fact that the most difficult part was behind us.
The only daunting thing in front of us was the tricky descent. I think we all pictured worst case scenario. We had an option to go 10 miles further but have an allegedly (I say that because the group that did it suffered through more steep climbs) easier descent I guess that part was accurate. Thankfully we chose the regular descent.
The descent wasn’t as bad as advertised but then I kept tight control on my speed. The descent we had done between Summit 1 and Cima Coppiâ was fun and fast. I did it at probably twice the speed but it also wasn’t as shaded or rough and had less traffic than this descent down Skaggs Springs road. The descent down to Highway 1 was dark, steep, twisty with blind corners and cars. At times I took it very slow, slower than needed probably. It wasn’t as bad as I expected but I was really happy when it was over. Mark on the other hand loved it, probably even more than he hated all the climbing, and flew through the descent.
At the bottom of the descent was the beautiful Pacific and Hwy 1!
Riding north on Highway 1 we encountered our first strong headwind but no one cared- we were riding along the Pacific ocean.
Pulling in to Sea Ranch Lodge was thrilling, because of the beauty and great views and also because we had conquered the legendary King Ridge!
In celebration I used my new rule of, beer before shower. There were adirondack chairs for taking in the views and that’s where we found the rest of our riding group. We traded stories and laughs and enjoyed the beyond gorgeous views. Of all the lovely places we stayed, Sea Ranch was my favorite.
After another great dinner several of us sat around the fireplace in the bar and talked about our favorite subject, cycling, and picked Mike’s and Neal’s brains for tips on riding better and stronger. The week was winding down, only two more days of riding. I am always kind of sad when these tours are over, not just because of the riding but because of the people on the tour with us, including our guides Mike and Neal. Great scenery plus a great group of people always makes for great cycling.
Tomorrow’s ride would have more of that as we rode down the coast on Highway 1 to Bodega Bay a classic ride, with a twist.
Today was a tune up for the queen stage tomorrow. I’m a big fan of the Tour de France and the toughest stage of the Tour is known as the Queen stage and without a doubt stage 4 would be our toughest day.
After breakfast we packed up and left the H2 hotel and its sparkling water. Today we would ride through Armstrong Woods and on to Occidental about 40 miles. I didn’t know much about the area (except for the redwoods) but from the looks of the route sheet we were in for a climbing warm-up at the end of the day.
Little did I know we wouldn’t have to wait for the end of the day.
We had another beautiful day! Amazing luck with the weather this trip. We originally were signed up to do this trip in June but had to cancel and reschedule for August. We had to cancel then too so we rescheduled for October. I’m glad we did because the weather and the fall color couldn’t be beat.
Today was a day I had really been looking forward to: seeing the redwoods. We left Healdsburg the same way we came in yesterday passing the Hop Kiln winery again. Not a problem, all of the scenery was so gorgeous it was nice to see it again. Plus you notice different things traveling the other way.
We were rolling along and decided to stop and take a picture – the first of the day – my stop – when Mark’s bike decided to throw him off. In the road on a blind corner. I was afraid a car would come along and since they wouldn’t see him they would run over him – so being the loving wife I am I screamed “GET UPâ€!
When he didn’t right away I did what any other loving wife would do I moved myself into the corner so they would see me and hopefully not run over either of us. As Mark pointed out a couple of times, most recently just now, there were no cars around. I say you can’t be too careful.
I bring this all up because as I was going through the pictures I couldn’t figure out why I took the following three pictures – until Mark reminded me.
The last one is pretty and I guess the reason I originally stopped to take a picture.
After leaving Westside road we traveled on the fairly busy River Road for several miles riding on the shoulder. We turned off onto Rio Nido Road then turned on to the Armstrong Woods road. Path might be more accurate. It was very narrow and seemed to have a stream flowing over it. It was unbelievably dark because of all the trees. The road was steep but rideable until we got to the section where the water was flowing. Once my back wheel started to slip I unclipped and got off and walked until it flattened out. The temperature dropped quite a bit – only filtered sunlight could get through the tall dense cover of trees. It was really cool and once we reached the park entrance it got even better. Green and dark. The further we rode into the park the darker it got.
Neal took us to see the oldest redwood in Armstrong Woods – the Colonel – at 1400 years old, and the tallest (by 2 feet) redwood Parson Jones. In addition to be dark and cool it was also incredibly quiet. I could have spent hours there, the trees were truly awesome.
We left the park a different way from how we came – I’m sure we were all happy about that. The ride out was also pretty and on quiet roads. Pretty quickly we came to Guerneville and the Coffee Bazaar. After a pretty light lunch we were back on the bike and headed to Occidental with Gayle and Rod.
There were two tough climbs on the last part of the ride (565’ and 870’), I had to walk part of the second one. If you’ve walked your bike up a steep hill you know that riding up the hill is actually easier than walking – not to mention easier on your pride. If you can keep pedaling fast enough to keep from falling over that is. I panicked and unclipped and couldn’t get going again. Gayle is a strong cyclist and pedaled up both – way to go Gayle! Mark and Rod rode together trying to see who was going to be last and have to buy the beer. Either way there would need to be beer.
Once the last hill was crested it was downhill into Occidental. What a pretty town! Actually the last hill wasn’t crested until we rode up the STEEP drive to the Occidental Inn. I knew for sure I was going to fall over – only pride and stubbornness kept me upright. It was close let me tell you. Once the bikes were dropped off we were off to the bar. Beer before shower is my new rule of thumb.
