Monterey Day Two

Today we rode north on the Monterey Bay Coastal Bike Trail up past Marina, California. Unlike yesterday, the trail was quiet with few users.

The first area of interest was Sand City. As you may have guessed, there was a lot of sand.

The offshore wind hitting the steep dunes gave ample updraft for this guy to sail up and down the shore over and over.

Next stop was the Fort Ord Dunes State Park.

After Fort Ord the trail became even more deserted.

I even got to hit a little singletrack.

We ended up with almost 29 miles. Fun ride with great scenery.

This evening we walked to Cannery Row where we had a wonderful seafood dinner to finish off the weekend.

Later.

Monterey

Jenn and I slipped away today for a quick weekend trip to Monterey. We arrived at noon, checked in early, and quickly left for a ride. We rode to the wharf and had some chowder in a bread bowl before heading south on the bike trail. Out in the bay we saw a cruise ship, something we had never seen before.

I couldn't make out the name, so I used the camera to zoom in.

After a little research I learned that The World is apparently the world's largest private yacht. You can live on it if you want, although it's a bit pricey. Fill out an application on the web site if you're interested in that sort of thing.

We continued on the bike trail, an experience not completely unlike a real-life game of Frogger. Brain dead tourists walking five across, weaving newbies on rental bikes, dogs, joggers and racing roadies all make for an interesting experience. Still, the scenery is worth it.

At the end of the trail we continued on Ocean View Blvd. The traffic was light and traveling slow, with a wide bike lane. Riding along the ocean was cool.

Then it was on to Sunset Drive with the same great views.

And the same on 17 Mile Drive.

On the way back we witnessed this surfer being eaten by a shark.

Tragic and unfortunate, but it's the natural order of things. Sharks need to eat, too.

His buddies were bummed out.

We ended up with a little over 20 miles. After a shower we headed to the Cannery Row Brewing Company, which I learned doesn't actually brew beer. Seriously? On the plus side they had a bunch of beer selections. Unfortunately the food was just OK.

That's it for now.

Later.

Blue Moon

Jennifer and I made it out for a ride together today for the first time in a couple years (thanks, Grandma and Grandpa).

We climbed up through Incline Village to Highway 431 where we continued for another few miles.

Jenn doesn't get to ride as much as she would like, but she always impresses me when she does. We climbed for seven miles and almost 2,000 feet before turning around.

I'm relatively sure many of my male friends (you know who you are) would have pulled over and puked at some point.

Anyway, another great day in Tahoe.

Later.

Roll of the Dice

Even though the forecast called for rain well into the late afternoon, I decided to take my Salsa Fargo to work and ride home yesterday. When it came time to leave work, the rain had ceased in Sacramento. Texts from home reported rain up in the hills, though, some 39 miles away by bike.

Angry gusts blew hard from the south-east, hitting me with nasty crosswinds for the first half of my ride. The empty bike trail made me wonder if everyone else knew something I didn't. Periods of warm sun interrupted by dark, cold clouds made it difficult to stay comfortable. I finally opted for a jacket; I prefer heat over cold any day.

While riding over the levee the wind seemed to strengthen, bullying me from my right, and I rode at an exaggerated angle to the ground as I leaned into the heavy air.

Once I entered the singletrack, the forest protected me from the wind. The rain left the trails in perfect condition—damp but not muddy.

Leaving Brown's Ravine, my route turned south-east. The real climbing began just as I turned into the wind. Almost every tough climb seemed to conspire with the wind all the way home, doubling the difficulty while halving my speed.

Rain cells blew across the sky, low and mean. At the summits it seemed like I could reach up and touch the clouds.

After 3.5 hours in the saddle, I rolled down the driveway a little after 7 p.m. A lengthy bike commute makes for a long day, but a good one.

Later.

Prius

On Thursday Jenn was rear-ended by a Ford F-250. The guy had no insurance, which is awesome.

Thankfully she is mostly OK. It could have been much worse. She sustained some neck and back injuries, but she is on the mend with hopefully no long-term issues.

The Prius, however, was on life support for a few days before ultimately being declared dead.

I knew as soon as I saw the car it was totaled, being a small unibody car with a large bank of batteries in the rear. The fact that none of the doors opened and closed very well meant there was no saving it. Not pictured is the front end damage from being pushed into the car in front of her.

We didn't own the car very long, but it was a good car. No complaints. However, Jennifer has now written off small cars forever, so we will have to look for something bigger to replace it.

Later.

Done

I ended up getting sick and didn't ride the last two days of the month. I considered going out for a very short ride just to set my personal best, but I didn't want to risk making my cold any worse. So 604 is once again my total. Unfortunately, a couple guys passed me in the last week and put me down into sixth place.

Right-click and open in a new window to see full size.

I guess there's always next year.

Later.