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Day Six, Lompoc to Ventura
Back to the Coast
The elevation for today's ride looks intimidating, as the first 18 miles are all uphill. However, it's a gentle climb, and by the time we reached rest stop 1 at mile 15, it's not until I looked back that I realized there was a grade. On previous ALC's, after 4-5 days of riding, there's an emotional low-point, a time when I say "enough already" and I'm looking to click my bike cleats together three times. It wasn't so bad this time around, though I was grumpy for the first segment this morning. There is a whole series of emotions I go through on the rides, and the funny thing is, if I just keep pedaling, the next one comes around soon enough. I had some caffeine at rest stop 1 and by the time I was back on the road, I was feeling better.
Typically the final few miles of this climb are enshrouded in fog and it's quite chilly, but today it was clear. While there have been highs and lows, the weather overall has been quite temperate this time around- I think this is the best weather we've had on any of the rides I've done. (See, climate change can be your friend!)
The route today started inland at Lompoc and headed out to the coast. It's nice to be back along the ocean, with some amazing views. When we got to Santa Barbara, there is this incredible vista overlooking the ocean and the boardwalk and the town. A local group hosts a special rest stop called the "Paradise Pit", with great ice cream and strawberries and cookies. I tried not to gorge too much, knowing I had a couple dozen miles left in the day. Three scoops of ice cream, two cookies, and a handful of strawberries doesn't really count as "gorging", does it?
Today's route was 85 miles long. I try to be zen about this experience, to enjoy the moment, not race ahead, yadda yadda. But seriously, for the last 8 miles today, it was really all about the destination and not the journey! I just wanted to get back to camp, shower and sit still for a minute.
Day Five, Santa Maria to Lompoc
Red
You could look at today's distance (42 miles) and think of it as a "rest" day. Then again, you'd be ignoring the numerous climbs that populate the route. Today is also "red dress day", one of the most picturesque days on the ride- seeing a long line of cyclists in red evokes the red ribbon symbolizing AIDS awareness. It's also an opportunity for inclusion- everyone, regardless of gender or orientation, is invited to channel their inner diva and come up with an outfit you can't believe someone would wear on a bike.
Now that today's ride is done, the big hills are behind us, and it will be smooth riding from here to L.A. There's a lot of talk about "building community" out here on the road, and it's true- by this point, there's lots of familiarity, and it's kind of like being back in the dorms in college- you can just walk around and run into a bunch of people along the way and chat. Tonight I was brushing my teeth when two riders I met on the Lucas Valley ride walked by. We had a spirited conversation for several minutes, while the toothpaste was still foaming up in my mouth. Finally, I ended the conversation with "I have to spit now; see you tomororw!" Not something I'd do in everyday life.
Day Four, Paso Robles to Santa Maria
Evil Twins
Another long, great day. 97 miles. Up at 4. On the road by 7. 11 hours on the road. 16.2 mph average. More later! Time for sleep.
My parents and brother are vacationing down here, so that they can see me along the way. (That, and my parents are fond of staying on the ocean.) This being a long day, I got up extra-early so I could get up and out early.
The route began with a pair of hills called the Evil Twins. What makes them particularly evil is that there are actually more than two peaks, so you get to the top of the second one thinking you're golden, yet you're less than half-way done. Still, we nailed these hills, and before we knew it we were at the crest of the hill, the ceremonial half-way point to LA with a beautiful view of the ocean, followed by an amazing nine-mile descent.
We stopped for coffee in Cayucos with my family, and then they caught up with us at lunch. It was nice for them to see what it's like on the inside of this cult community.
It was a long ride today, with lots of stops. Add in some mechanical trouble and two flats in my group, and you've got us near the back of the pack.
There was a nice distribution of rest stops about 8-12 miles apart, but between rest stops 3 and 4, there were eighteen miles. Eighteen long, windy, rough miles, riding across this flat agricultural land with nothing to protect you from the wind. Rest stop 4 was all about replenishing, and bracing for the last stretch. Fortunately the harsh crosswind became a tailwind, nudging us back to camp and making the last few miles nearly effortless. We got in late but not as late as on day two. Enough time to shower, eat, and get ready for another day of riding.
Day Three, King City to Paso Robles
Quadbuster
Today's big hill was Quadbuster, which consists of roughly eight miles of climbing. There is a rest stop 1/3 of the way in, so we're talking 5-6 miles of climbing, the last two of which are pretty steep, which gets challenging, but I made it without stopping. That was the biggest hurdle of the day, and it was nice to get it out of the way. We took a new route out of town, so today's ride was 11 miles shorter than in previous years. 105 miles yesterday, 66 today, but with hills. (Tomorrow is long and hilly. Woo hoo!)The rest of the day has some long, slight grades but is otherwise flat. The best part of the day is the end, on the outskirts of Paso Robles where we ride by some nice, scenic vineyards and a pumpkin patch. That's a welcome relief from the stretch we do on 101 (yes, the freeway), which was miserable. Fortunately it's brief.
Another highlight was lunch in the town of Bradley, population 120. The school throws a fundraiser bbq that pretty much funds their entire extracurricular program for the year. (Oh, and I just learned that they fund college scholarships with the money as well.) Hamburgers, hot dogs, chili- all the fixins of a home town cookout.
The weather was perfect today- usually it's a dust bowl heatwave situation but today was hot but not insane. I'm feeling good and looking forward to the big day tomorrow.
Day Two, Santa Cruz to King City
Full Day
Wow, what a full day. It was an uncut, directors edition with special features type of day. I woke without an alarm at 4:30 (8 hours after going to sleep) and rolled out around 7:30, but didn't get to camp until 6:45 pm. And it was mostly flat so I averaged 15.8 mph (despite the fact we left Santa Cruz during rush hour and averaged 10 mph for the first 15ish miles).
It's not that we were moving slowly; it's instead what they call a time-management problem. Lots on the agenda. In addition to the usual four rest stops, lunch, and water stop, there's the artichoke stand, the swimming hole, and the cookie lady. We did it all.
The time problem started at the artichoke stand. There were only two bathrooms (as opposed to the copious facilities at the "offical" stops) so the line was long and slow. Before you know it, they were waving the incoming riders past the stop and threatening to SAG us if we stayed. This became the pattern for the rest of the day: ride fast, stop and hang out, then get booted out. All in all it made for a great, fun-filled day.
Getting into camp so late has its drawbacks. After setting up camp and showering it was a race to get in and eat two dinners before they closed at 9 pm. Yes, two dinners. ALC and cruise ships: the two times it's acceptable to gorge. I still woke up hungry the next morning.
Day One, San Francisco to Santa Cruz
and we're off
I decided to do a leisurely 80-mile ride to Santa Cruz today. Oh, and I happened to ride with 2,500 other riders and 500+ support crew. Then again, it wasn't particularly leisurely, at first anyway. Today is the only day when everyone leaves at the same time, so the first several miles are a total cluster. Then there's this challenging stretch along hwy 92 with some serious traffic, that I have been dreading. Once I got past that, the day was downright glorious. Whether I brought everything I need or not, whether I've trained enough or not, there's not much I can do now. We're underway. All I need to do is ride, and eat, and sleep. What a way to spend a week.
After lunch was the best. There's nothing like riding several miles along the California coastline on a clear day. It was cool and overcast in the morning, but not too much so, and then the sun came out, but with enough wind to keep it mild. Oh, and the tailwinds! In the afternoon there was a point where I was doing 22 mph uphill, and I felt like Superman.
And there were some special guests today. My friend Pete showed up for Opening Ceremonies, which was super nice so early in the morning, and my co-worker Kevin happened to be driviing down the coast to go surfing when he saw the ALC lunch stop at San Gregorio beach. Amazingly, despite the crowd, he saw me ride in, after only waiting about 20 minutes.
I saw a few things today I'd never seen before on the ride. There was a tandem recumbent. And a tandem road bike with three people (is that still called a tandem?) I got passed by a couple on a tandem wearing fake fur and tinsel. And there were some Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence who did the ride in full makeup. That was probably the biggest surprise. I spoke with one of them and she hadn't ridden in face before, saying "I expect to look like The Scream by the end of the day". I ran into her at lunch and she was still looking fabulous.
So all in all, I'd say it was a successful day. That, and the donation total continues to grow. I've now exceeded my goal, and people are still giving. You all rock! I have a script that texts me when the total changes, and it was so cool get a text during the ride today. Thanks so much to all the people who have contributed to the SF AIDS foundation in support of the ride. Collectively we have raised more than $11 million this year. Can you believe that?
To see pictures, blogs, etc during the ride, visit experience.aidslifecycle.org. You can also leave a message of support on my ALC home page.