Finally.......

Rain, not usually a friend to cyclists, finally showed up for the first time in 2015 this weekend.  But that's ok.....we really need it!  It was the driest January in San Francisco in 150 years of record keeping.  Not just dry, but there was no rain at all.  None at all....0.0".  So this weekend it is welcome!  Missing a day or two of riding ain't no big deal.   And I've been lucky in that I've been able to ride every weekend this year anyway.   Not bad.  Today (Sunday) it only rained in the morning, so I probably could have ridden later in the day.  But I chose not to.....it's nice to take it easy for a change!

So, what's the real news?  None, really....so how about some silly ride names from my strava posts?  Oh and this....I got a GoPro camera for Christmas that I hesitate to mount on my bike...I always thought they were a little geeky.  But who knows...I may try it soon!   But for now, here are some wacky ride names from the past few months.

GoPro Hero 3 - mount on the bike?  Not sure.....

11/27/2014 Berkeley, California - Two Turkeys and a Spaniard (Mike, Jeff and Jean-Marie)

12/06/2014 Berkeley, California - JMMM Roll (Jean-Marie, Mark and Mike)

12/07/2014 Berkeley, California - Sunday (Not So) Holy Rollin'

12/12/2014 Albany, California - Wet roads? Who cares....let's ride! (Patrick G sighting) (with Amy)

12/13/2014 Berkeley, California - When the rain stops, they all come out - Lots o' Mushrooms, Green Grass and Cyclists (with Stef, Mark and Jean-Marie)

12/20/2014 Berkeley, California - Peets/Danville (Start with Jean-Marie, Lou, Chris and Mark and part way return with BBC, until they dropped me on Wildcat. That means coal in their stockings....)

12/24/2014 Berkeley, California - 'Twas the day before Christmas and I snuck in a ride. Too early for Santa. Too early for hide (of reindeer).

12/26/2014 Berkeley, California - Almost Touching the Farallones....Super Clear Day! (w/Lou and Chris)

12/30/2014 Berkeley, California - Felt like a Sirocco, Mistral, Vent(oux) or just plain WIND! (w/JM and Chris)

12/31/2014 Glen Ellen, California - Earning my Champagne....New Year's Eve ride!

01/01/2015 Glen Ellen, California - Ignoring "Private Road" signs (Dead Ends) on New Years Day

Beautiful Sonoma view on my New Year's Day ride.

01/04/2015 Berkeley, California - Pedestrian Pinball ---OR--- A Sunday Ride on the Richmond/Emeryville Bike Trail

01/11/2015 Santa Cruz, California - Santa Cruz Weekend, Day 2 (Dan's Birthday Ride - When does this hill end?) (with Jeff, Steve, Dan and Lauren)

01/16/2015 Berkeley, California - Electra Glide Lunch Ride

01/24/2015 Berkeley, California - Slow Steady Solo Ascent to the Saddle (Halfway up Diablo on a gorgeous winter day)

01/31/2015 Berkeley, California - Ride on beautiful January day with no arm/leg warmers......Priceless. 0.0" of rain in January.....Not so priceless.

02/01/2015 Berkeley, California - "No Deflations" on the Pre-Superbowl Ride! (with Jean-Marie, Lou and Chris)

11/23/2014 Berkeley, California - I've run out of witty names (with Dave H, Jean-Marie, Lou, Chris, Stef and Mark)

Riding in 2014 (acc'g to strava)

-->  Strava has rolled out a couple of new functions for 2015, including this look back at 2014 using posted data.  Kind of interesting, but it doesn't make me want to pay money for an account.   It's really just a bunch of numbers.

http://2014story.strava.com/video/77170

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Ho Ho Ho! <|:)}

To More Great Riding in 2015!

Catching Up.......Some Traveling and Not Much Riding

Paris sign: "No entry, EXCEPT bikes"

As the intro to this blog says, not everything here is about cycling.  So, just like a lot of internet content, this first picture is not necessarily true!   ;-)   With less riding due to dark afternoons, rides have become less frequent.  But anyway, here's a update about what I've been up to....some traveling with a little bit of riding.

I've been "trying" to run a bit too!  I've gotten out there 3 or 4 times recently, so I guess I can say my foot recovery is complete!  Riding hasn't bugged me for a few months, but walking, never mind running, took a bit longer to return to normal because of some bumpy scar tissue on the ball of my foot.  But all is well now.  Yeah!

Check out my "blog-within-a blog", a short recollection of our trip to France.  It's more about a reunion, castles, food and the trials of traveling with a compulsive person than about riding my bike.  It's all part of the story (with pics) found here:  http://bit.ly/1FKLzBR

Until next time, when I have a ride worth writing about, it's over and out for now!

Mike heading out for one of the few rides he took in France (That's Caryn chasing)

Riding Less, but Riding More.....Interesting!

It's Nov 8th and we're back from 3 weeks of vacation on the east coast and France!  Although cycling wasn't the purpose of the trip, one always needs to strive for "mobile meditation" as Robin Williams once said.  And that we did.  We were able to get a few rides in CT with friends and then on the trip to France as well.  While always important to me, the rides in France seemed even more so.  The traditional French seem to want to entertain their guests 24/7, but we're not like that.  We need a little "tranquille" or down time.  And that for me would mean a nice ride, checking out the local environs.  Luckily, the house we rented had 2 good bikes that we could use.  We were in the town of St. Cyprien, in the middle of the Dordogne River valley, near cro-magnon caves,13th century castles and small scenic villages.  There was plenty to see on these rides, no matter how short!  And the weather more than cooperated, hovering in the high 60s and low 70s.  It's back to reality now, but here are a few pics of the scenery from the rides.  Formidable!

Caryn leading Raphael up a climb near Les Eyzies

The bike I used.....pretty nice VTT set up more for the road.  No labels, so I have no idea what brand it was!

Brave or clueless?  Neither.....just an experienced Parisian cyclist.

An old WWI bridge that's now only for non-motorized transit....Le Pont du Garrit near St. Cyprien

Horses on the road to Les Milandes, the castle once owned by American jazz singer, Josephine Baker.

Caryn ascending the road up to Castelnaud, one of the many castles on the Dordogne River.

Caryn, Mike, Jeff and Stirling the day after the Head of the Charles crew race, riding to Hammonasset Beach in CT

Just Enjoying the Bike!

Well, if you read that last entry, you'd think cycling really sucks.  But I want to ensure you, that's not true!  I've been doing some great rides lately and hope to continue so through the rest of the year!  I had a chance to ride with a number of friends from the "Memorial Day Ride" in Napa, Sonoma, and Santa Cruz lately.  Lots 'o hills, varying weather and great company with invariable fun!

It hasn't really rained for months, but we started one ride in the sun in Napa, but got caught got in a little downpour at the top of Trinity Grade in Napa.  Rainbows and thunder were the order of the day too, which are not typical here in predictable California.  Descending a 10% corkscrew road in the rain is no fun.  But moments before we got to that stretch, the rain slowed and the roads dried for us on those steep sections back to Napa on Dry Creek Rd.  Later that weekend, we headed south to Santa Cruz to ride down in the flats of Watsonville and Aptos to the steep redwoods where the fog enveloped us, to the loop of Swanton Rd off Hwy 1, where we discovered an old steam railroad.  We enjoyed roads I hadn't been on for years (or at all!).

Mike and Kathleen goofing around at the Swanton Railroad Museum

Keeping a saw horse at the RR museum safe from accidents.

Then last weekend, the Bay Area Indian summer kicked in with temps in the high 90s, and I did a couple of rides where pouring water on your head made more sense than drinking it.  One started in San Francisco, with thick, low fog at the bridge (and 63º), followed by sunny, sweltering 97º in Petaluma about 40 miles later.  And finally, today we did the classic (almost) century ride from Berkeley to Davis, returning on the train.  We had great weather, favorable winds (most of the time!) and fun pacelines heading up to Davis.

So, it's been a time to just enjoy the bike!  Soon, there'll be a chance to ride different roads with opportunities in CT and the southwest of France.  Keep an eye out for a report soon!

GG Bridge from Sausalito

GG Bridge from Crissy Field, San Francisco

Cockeyed selfie at the fog-shrouded GG Bridge (see the tower??)

Our Winters, CA sugar blast stop on the way to Davis - 18 miles to go!

Chickens in a bike shop window, Solano Ave, Albany, CA (why not?)

Be Responsible or Pay The Price

Cycling is an elegant activity.  Commuting, exercising, socializing, racing, sightseeing, escaping the crowds, grocery shopping, even schlepping your kids.  You and a bike can do all these things.  That's the good news.

The bad news is that there's been a tension between cyclists and what seems like everyone else (cars, trucks, pedestrians, cops, etc.).  I'm convinced part of it is competition for limited space.  Part of it is impatience.  And part of it is conceit (it's my damn road!).  We all want to get to where we are going in an efficient manner, without delay.  And I think too often when people are on their bikes, they do it without concern for others.

It seems like whenever I ride with one friend, another story of a bike/car confrontation is told, inevitably with the "innocent" cyclist being hit.  I'm not so sure it's always that one-sided.  The news wasn't good this past weekend around here in Berkeley when a local guy was killed after allegedly running a stop sign and plowing into a car.  One cyclist friend knew the guy (they were neighbors) and said the crash victim wasn't one to follow road rules.   Witnesses said he blew stop signs just before it happened.  I originally thought this was another person trying to capture one of those strava KOMs on a descent.  (Disclaimer.....I have a strava account and it's fun.  But let's be sensible.)  He wasn't some kid....he was in his 60s, a long time cyclist.  Whatever the reason, the fellow isn't around anymore.  Is that worth getting a KOM?  Or getting home a little quicker?  Or experiencing the thrill of just blowing through stop signs?  Last week on our Tuesday night group ride, one of our guys decided to pass a motorcycle and a car on a descent and then blew through a stop sign at the bottom.  Fucking foolish and we all let him know.  No one was hurt and he seemed to understand that wasn't the brightest move.  Lucky.  Then this weekend, another friend said he heard a case of a cyclist hitting a woman in Central Park while she was walking, rendering her brain dead.  Not lucky.  The event has apparently resulted in more animosity towards cyclists in the already hostile environment of NYC.  Not the first time.  Not the last time.  (A similar case happened in San Francisco's Castro not long ago while a cyclist was aiming for a KOM.  The pedestrian he hit died.)  Again, too many people competing for too little space?  Or stupidity?

I know that cycling can be one answer to getting around quicker in congested conditions.  It can be a beautiful sport, a way to get out and enjoy the back roads, or a cost-effective, low environmental impact mode of transportation.  It can be a stress reliever.  But use a little fucking common sense.  The bottom line....share the road.  There are assholes out there who drive aggressively.  So ride defensively.  Don't be another asshole.  Be courteous.  Signal your intentions.  Wave when someone lets you go ahead of them.  Do all these things and more.  Get used to it.  It'll save your ass.  It's better to enjoy cycling than use it aggressively.  Don't stoop to the level of those redneck pickup truck drivers who hit the pedal on their smelly diesels, covering you with black soot.  Don't be the next guy blowing through a stop sign on Spruce, hitting an innocent driver or pedestrian.  Someone is going to get hurt.  Or worse.  And likely, it'll be you, the cyclist.