The ride from Berkeley to Davis is catching on! Is that good or not?

We did it again last weekend.....rode from Berkeley to Davis and took Amtrak home!  It's a good time and has sort of become "my ride", for better or worse.  I've always liked the ride, which is a nice round distance of about 100 miles and not all that much climbing for around here (4000 feet).  I've put the word out in the spring and fall and say "Hey, join me for another ride to Davis!"  And the number of folks that show up had been typically 3-6 or so.  That's pretty manageable.  But this time we had 23 people!  And that's when the questions start to pop up.  Where are the maps?  (no maps)  Will you wait for me? (for you, sure!)  Can I take a shower at your house?  (get in line, but make it quick....there's a drought!)  Will the rider speeds leave people in the dust?  Are there going to be enough spots on the train?  I just feel responsible for these folks, although that's a self-imposed flogging.  They are adults, after all.  But I wouldn't want to be left behind!

Pleasants Valley Road....one of the prettiest sections of the ride

Alright, they are "1st world problems", as a friend likes to say.  But if I do a ride like this, I just want to ride and be sociable, not be a sag wagon for slow riders!  In the end, it (mostly) worked out fine.   One friend did do the ride mostly by himself, but he was a sport about it.  There were 3 or 4 flats in the group, so that neutralized things a bit, since it was the fast people who flatted.  And there was a nice split at the very end, which allowed about half the group to take one train back and the rest of us the time to grabs some beers and food and get back only 45 minutes later.  Not bad.  And then a bunch of us headed to dinner at the new Bier Garten in the neighborhood....that's rather convenient!

Heading across the Carquinez Bridge (mile 30)

Next time, will I say "bring all your friends"?  When rolling together, the little peloton was fun!  When waiting around for arrivals, flats, etc., there were some anxious folks.  So I'm not sure....the smaller groups are nice too and that might be a better way to enjoy this trek beyond our normal foraging area.  We'll just have to see!

(Most of) the Riders at Steady Eddie's, Winters (crazy after 80 miles)

Steady Eddie's welcome sign for bikes

The ride home

PS  This just in.  This past Friday, a good friend (Lou) had a bad bike crash, losing 3 front teeth and needed 17 facial stitches.  He's home and recuperating, but it puts things in perspective....we had a great ride to Davis and no one got lost, hurt, or otherwise.  It was a great time and I just need to enjoy it and stop complaining about minutiae.  Get out there and ride!