Today, I rode in the Ride For A Reason with a group of other cyclists from work.

This was the first time I have done this ride and wasn’t sure what to expect. All I heard was that it was a great way to spend a half day on a bike while supporting some very worthwhile charities. With the focus on improving the lives of those fighting Parkinson’s disease and cancer, the RFAR benefits the Davis Phinney Foundation,Livestrong, UC Davis Cancer Center and Triumph Fitness Program.

As bike rides go, I wouldn’t normally have done this one. Driving almost 60 miles to do a ride less than that has always been an unofficial no-no in my book. I enjoy riding centuries out on the open road. The ride, however, was absolutely worth it.

This ride was a party from the start. The start line was at Nimbus Flat at Lake Natoma. There was great food and drinks and tons of raffle prizes. They were giving away bikes to the top fundraisers and had other great prizes. The cool things was that you could buy raffle tickets for $1 and put them into whatever drawings you wanted to. The general raffle had some of the best giveaways, including 4 pairs of Oakley Livestrong Jawbone sunglasses. The ride started at 8 AM and the ride was a 12-mile loop along the beautiful American River bike trail.

Along the route were great themed rest stops with more food, drinks and prizes. At the Beale Point rest stop I took my chance at horseshoes and won a couple of small prizes. With each stop I also got more tickets to enter in the raffle. The volunteers (there must have been hundreds) were arguably the most energetic and friendly group of volunteers I have ever seen at a ride!

After the first loop, including Beale Point, I went around the circuit two more times. Lunch at the end was better than at any other ride I’ve done: bar-b-qued steak and chicken, caesar salad and rice from The Outback Steakhouse. Of course, I was hungry, but I wasn’t there to eat. I wanted to win something. Before the raffle winners were announced, John Crews, the owner of Bicycles Plus in Folsom, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, gave a very touching speech. He got choked up a little and it was then I realized the power of this ride. My eyes welled up as he thanked the organizers, volunteers and riders. I didn’t win anything in the raffle but it was still a lot of fun to see everyone else win great prizes.

In the end, I logged 44.4 miles and had an awesome time. The big difference with this ride was the fact that none of it was on the open road. That was nice because of lack of car traffic. It was challenging at times because of the amount of other bikes and joggers out on the trail. On the other hand, it was so cool seeing families out on the ride and everyone was cautious and careful. I will definitely be doing this ride again next year!

I did take a few pictures. Check them out here.

Yesterday, just like in 2007, I rode the Party Pardee Century with Mike and his son Spencer. Howard Park in Ione greeted us with chilly temperatures. It was 29 degrees when we pulled in and probably didn’t get much above 30 for the first hour on the road. I dressed appropriately for the ride, meaning that I froze for nearly the entire first hour. My face was so cold I would have surely sounded drunk if you tried to carry on a conversation with me. I can deal with cold feet and legs. What made the first hour and a half tough was that my hands were frozen. Even though I was wearing long gloves, I felt like I had ice blocks on the ends of my hands. I rode 5 miles or so sitting up with my hands held tightly under my armpits. It helped a lot and allowed me to eventually to use my shifters. I also stayed in a lower gear then normal and tried to keep my cadence over 110 until I got warm.

The Sacramento Bike Hikers sure know how to put on a great century. This year’s theme was Puttin’ On The Ritz. Almost all of their volunteers wore top hats and they had costumed volunteers at all the rest stops. The check-in was very smooth and fast. They had tons of great food at the start and even better food at the rest stops. My favorite item was some concotion made with fresh blackberries and cream cheese. They had that sitting next to the container of Nutella spread. I grabbed a couple of quarter-bagels and slapped some of each on them. There were also a ton of fresh fruit and plenty of water, cytomax and lemonade. At every rest stop the volunteers were very friendly and supportive.

As for the ride, I was reminded why this is my favorite metric century anywhere! The route treats us to some of the best views in the foothills and by the Lake Camanche and Pardee Reservoir. Then there are the hills. That’s why I love this ride. This is not an easy ride-in-the-park metric century. With 4200 feet of climbing, it’s a good challenge for this early in the year. I still ride a triple and I was able to stay in my center ring over all of the climbs. Near the end of the day, on the last climb, I was tempted to pop down to my little ring but alas, I persisted up the hill without it.

Mike and Spencer rode very well. Spencer had not ridden in months and probably hadn’t climbed since the last time we did this ride. His strength continues to amaze me! Mike, the best riding partner a guy could ask for, fought the hills and came out victorious. Although he will tell you that he suffered (duh, we all did) through the hills he still made it to each peak and still ended the day strong! As he always does, Mike was there with plenty of encouragement and just a little bit of smack-talk.

The other thing I love about doing rides like these is the people. Riding all day and “talking shop” with a bunch of other cyclists is a great way to spend the day. At the last stop I ran into David who I met at last years Sunrise Century and of course Allan, the guy with the music. At the end of the day, as we packing up, I asked a passer-by to take our picture (the one above). The guy that took our picture just happened to be a guy that I found on Twitter the night before (@smflash). What are the odds!?!

Stats:
65 miles
4:51:00 on bike
13.4 MPH
4200’ of climbing
2 sunburned legs

Great job Bike Hikers! You put on another great event. See you next year!

Check out the pics here.

Today I rode the Pedaling Paths to Independence metric century. Long name, but great ride. In its inaguraul year, this ride was put on by the Community Center for the Blind and started at Linden Elementary school.

My riding partner Mike picked me up at 7:30 and we drove out to Linden where we met up with Mike aka, “Death Ride” – a name he earned from me after riding in the Death Ride after only training for three weeks! We hit the road at 8:50 and headed straight into a gnarly head wind.

The first rest stop came a bit too soon, at mile 12 in Farmington. We stopped for a minute and then took off ahead of Death Ride. He passed us a few minutes later and we never saw on the route again. Our route took us out to Milton Road and back up near the town of Jenny Lind. We were both pretty happy that we had a pretty decent stretch of road with a tail wind.

The flyer said there was 1,300 feet of climbing. Didn’t sound like a lot but given how early it was in the riding season, that 1,300 was plenty!

The rest stops were stocked very well and the volunteers did an excellent job making sure everyone had what they needed. We met a lot of other great cyclist that came from all over northern California to ride this new century. I kept gawking at all of the new bikes and gear I saw and by the end of the day Mike convinced me I needed a new bike (not going to happen!).

As for the cars out on the road – many were courteous, some were not. There was a lot of cars that flew by us without giving us an extra inch of room. Luckily, from what we heard, there were no accidents out on the course.

We got back to Linden about 2:00 and had a great lunch from DaVinci’s. Again, the volunteers did an excellent job making sure there was plenty of food and drinks to go around. Pleasantly, and unlike many rides I’ve done, they did not skimp on the portions either. After a half-day on a bike I was hungry and they were glad to fill me up.

Overall, the ride was excellent! The course was challenging and interesting. The volunteers were friendly and accomodating. These guys did a great job on the first try. I will certainly be adding this ride as my regular early season metric century!

Stats
67.31 miles
4:46:17 on bike
Fair amount of climbing
Google map of route

My trusty steed!

Check out the rest of the pics here.

Tonight, on Harney Lane, east of Devries Road and west of Davis Road, I achieved my 10,000 mile goal – nearly a month before my fifth anniversary on the bike. Last December I set the goal to reach that number on or before July 16, exactly five years since I started riding. In order to make my goal, I’d need to ride over 1,800 miles in just over six months. For many riders I know that would not be much of a challenge, but given that I only rode 1,100 miles last year, 1,065 in 2006 and 1,800 in 2005, hitting 1,800 in half a year was going to be tough.

To mark the occasion, here are some stats.

2003 1,179.21 miles
2004 2,951.92
2005 1,804.92
2006 1,065.19
2007 1,174.64
2008 1,832.67

10,008.55 miles 7/16/03 – 6/19/08
678:25:27
15.157 average speed
391 rides

3,481 miles on Trek1000

6,519 miles on Specialized Roubaix

I’ve met a lot of great people being out on my bike and I know I’m not winning an award here but I did want to thank a few particular people.

Mike and Harold – I’ve logged over 1,600 with these two guys after I met them in ’06. I had been off the bike for a few months and just ventured out for a slow spin. After a few miles I saw them ahead of me and fought against my legs to catch up with them. After that ride we stayed in touch and I have truly enjoyed getting to know them and sharing quite a few Sundays with them. Two kinder and more generous guys would be tough to find.

Chuck – the friend that got me into cycling. I kept talking and talking and talking about riding. Well, he was the one that told me to shut up and buy a bike. I did and then a few weeks later he showed up at my door and proceeded to kick my butt every ride I ever did with him. “Cycling rewards consistency” was the only thing he said to me more often than, “c’mon!”. He gave up a lot of his time to ride with me and Bill (the Newman Bike Club) and eventually taught me how to climb. He doesn’t ride anymore but I still hear him in my ear every time I go uphill. He was the one to show me what became my favorite ride: Mt. Diablo, which I re-visited 19 times. Now Chuck, get back on your bike!

Dawn, Emily and Makenzy – my awesome family. I am so lucky to have your unconditional support. You have never, not even once, complained about the time I spend on my bike and are always waiting for me to hear all about my ride, sometimes in excruciating detail. Every moment I spend on the bike is a moment away from you guys and I appreciate that you support my crazy hobby (is that what it’s called). I love you!

My bros – you’ve even gone out and rode with me (some more than others) and you all have always made me feel like Lance Armstrong. Let’s ride!

Starting at about mile 8,700 I started taking a picture every time I hit 100 miles. Check out my 100 Miles at a Time pics on Flickr. Also, check out my other ‘bike’ related posts here.

By the way, for friends and family that think 1,800 miles in 6 months, or 10,000 in 5 years, is a lot, check out Michael Buckingham! This guy puts on some major miles. Check out his blog here.

My next goal? To reach my next 10,000 in 1,239 days – that’s November 11, 2011 – less than 3.5 years. At just under 3k miles per year I’m pretty confident I can hit that one before Mike and I turn 40!

Ride on! Ride on!

Today I rode the Canyon Classic Century for the first time. This ride, put on by the Modesto North Notary, used to conflict with the SIerra Century. I’valways wanted to do this ride since it goes over one of my favorite climbs in the area – the Del Puerto Canyon, just west of I-5 in Patterson, California.

My alarm woke me up a little after 4 AM and I was out the door by 5. I arrived in Patterson, registered and hit the road a little after 6. The last couple of days had seen temps hit near 100 so I was bracing myself for a hot day. It was a warm morning but there was a little chill in the breeze. My hope is that it would still be there on the first climb which was coming pretty quick.

After a quick spin to get out of Patterson I got to Del Puerto Canyon, a slow starting climb with some awesome views.

I made pretty good time up to to Frank Raines Park. I’ve done this climb before and it helped knowing it well. I did not push hard up the first half of this climb because I knew that the worst was yet to come. The 15 mile climb took me up about 1,100 feet but the next 9 miles would take me up another 1,200 feet! After a quick water refill I turned right at the top, for the 17 mile trek up and down Mines road.

After a longer than normal lunch in Livermore I headed out for a short, but nasty, climb out Tesla and Corral Hallow Roads. I heard about a tandem couple that hit a deer flying down Mines road. It was starting to get hot but there was a tad bit of a tail wind which helped a little. I tried to stay in my center ring on the climbs but at this point I had to drop to my triple. My center was just a little too big… maybe I should consider a double.

Finally, the ascent ended and after some pretty fast descents the climbing ended and was heading back to Patterson, through Tracy, with a nice tail wind. After the mile 75 water stop I met up with Greg from Taft. We talked about all the normal things you talk about on a century and after I told him about my nearing my 10,000th mile in 5 years he told me that he crossed his 10,000th mile on this ride – and he also beat his goal, by two weeks, by doing it in less than two years! Wow, that’s awesome!

Finally, after 7 hours on the bike, I made it back to Patterson and after a pretty good meal headed home.

What did I love about this ride? Well, it is a beautiful course, great climbs and awesome views. I also liked that, for the century route, there was no double-back, it was different roads the whole way… I love that! The volunteers were all very friendly and the rest stops were great. There was tons of fruit and food at each. They even had ice-chests with soda, vitamin water and energy drinks at most of the stops. At the mile 75 rest stop they even had awesome homemade cookies and red licorice. The food at the end of the ride, tri-tip, salad, bread and chili was great. They also had tons of cold drinks on ice, even my favorite, RC Cola! I don’t drink a lot of soda but at the end of a ride like this I want one and RC rocks!

What did I not love? I do not like Cytomax. I just can’t drink it. Next time I will remember to bring my own mix (Powerbar Endurance). Almost every century offers Gatorade and some people complain that they’d prefer Cytomax so I can understand why they went with it. Also, there were not a lot of other riders. They offer a few different courses but even in the beginning there are not a lot of people. I spent a lot of time out there without another rider in sight. I have no idea why this ride doesn’t get more riders, it really is a great ride.

Overall, the Canyon Classic is definitely a ride I will do again. Great views, great climbs, great people and rest stops.

Stats
109.21 miles
7:17:07 on bike
A lot of climbing
15.0 miles per hour

Oh, and the tandem couple? I heard the that captain broke his wrist and the stoker busted her lip, the bike will need some repair and deer just “bounced off” and ran away quickly.

Check out the pictures. I ended today with 9,945 total miles…stay tuned for the big 10,000… coming soon!

Today was the 12th Annual Lodi Sunrise Century. I arrived at Lodi High School around 5:30 in the morning. Registration didn’t open until 6 but I was eager to make an early start given that it was already 70 degrees at 5:30. Registration opened a few minutes early and I got back to my car to unload the bike just after 6:00 AM. I chatted with the rider who parked next to me, mostly about how hot it was going to be.

I rolled out of the parking lot at 6:10 AM and a minute or so later, the guy who parked next to me, Dave, pulled up next to me. This was his first time riding the Lodi Sunrise Century but had ridden many centuries, and even some double centuries, in the past. We were matched pretty well (even though I had to work hard to stay with him) and we spent the entire ride together.

We rolled into the first rest stop in Clements at mile 20. It was already starting to get hot so we got some food, refilled our bottles and headed out.

On our way to the lunch stop, 30 miles ahead of us, was a little over 2000 feet of climbing. The wind was mild and the heat was bearable for being so early in the day. The climb over Pardee dam and around the resevoir was tough after putting in 300 miles in the last couple of weeks. Even though I faced the climbs on the Prima Vera without going into my little ring (yes, I ride a triple) my legs wouldn’t let me have the same success today. I quickly found myself in my granny gear… it was after all, approaching 85 degrees!

After the first big climb there was a perfectly placed water stop. They had a few snacks there including delicious banana / peanut butter / M&M treat.

The food at the stops was excellent. Fresh fruit, granola bars, tons of sweets and nuts.

On the way back home after the lunch stop we had a little bit of a head wind but it was the heat that would become debilitating. Had it not been for Dave, who took more pulls than I did, I might not have made it to the end. The wind started to kick in, albeit not as bad as in year’s past, and the temperature quickly got to the mid nineties. When the wind started to get hot it felt like we were cooking in a skillet as the heat radiated off the road. Again, the water breaks were placed in perfect spots and I filled up both my bottles at every stop.

We struggled for the last several miles but finally rolled back in to the parking lot a few minutes after 2:00 PM. After we cleaned up and the bikes were put away we made our way to the cafeteria for, hands down, the best post ride meal ever! I picked the bar-b-qued chicken over the tri-tip and was amazed to get a full quarter of a bird… yum!

What I loved about this ride? Great course, great climbing. Awesome rest stops with tons of great food and cold water. SAG all over the road. The friendliest ride volunteers I’ve seen in a very, very long time. Perfectly placed water breaks. Small snacks at the water breaks.

What I didn’t love about this ride? To no fault of the organizers, I always dread the 9 mile straight shot on Clements road between miles 60 and 70. Every year I describe this portion of the course as riding on the “surface of the sun”. This year, it was hotter than that!!!

Overall, my toughest ride this year. In fact, probably one of three or four toughest rides I’ve ever done. Ideally, I would love to be able to start at 5:00 AM. I am still very surprised that this ride doesn’t have a bigger turn out. The volunteers, at every stop, were so kind and generous. You can tell that this group really enjoys putting on this ride.

Stats
103.17 miles
6:54:31 on bike
3240 feet of climbing
14.9 miles per hour

So far this month, I’ve already done 406 miles, more than any month since July 2004, and it’s only the 17th. I ended today with 9,629 total miles, only 371 to hit my next goal. I put up a few pictures, check them out here.

Thanks for the ride, Dave!

May is bike month.

This week is bike-to-work week.

Thursday is bike-to-work day.

I’ll admit here, I don’t fully understand the month/week/day stuff so I rode to work on Wednesday. I just know I like the excuse to ride to work one day a year. Since a ride from Stockton to Pleasanton is about 65 miles on a bike, I will likely continue to only do this once a year.

I left the house this morning at 5:15, a little later than I was planning to. It was already pretty warm with the temperature near 60 degrees when I checked at 4:45 AM. It was warm enough that I didn’t even bring arm warmers so I was happy! Having done this ride before, I had mentally prepared for a windy day. I would, after all, being riding through Tracy and Livermore. Once I turned west on Mathews road I was pleasantly surprised that there was very little wind. Last year’s ride-to-work day greeted me with the worst wind I had ever faced. Not this year. I would get through the back roads of Tracy and Old Altamont road with hardly any wind. My luck came to an end when I flatted near mile 48. No complaints from me; I hadn’t had a flat in about 700 miles! I made it to the office about 9:50 AM and after a quick shower was actually working.

The hardest part of riding to work is actually the work day and the ride home. Riding 130 miles is tough, only tougher with a 6-7 hour work day in between. I ate all day long, literally. I went from meeting to meeting with food and water to make sure I wouldn’t bonk in the evening.

I walked out of my office about 4:15 and hit the road about 4:30. I had a pretty ugly head wind all the way to Greenville and a little bit up Old Altamont road. Riding through Tracy was strangely calm with no wind to speak of. With 30 miles to go I picked up the mental energy to make it home.

As I approached French Camp I took off my sun glasses because it was getting too dark to see. I forgot to bring a headlight and didn’t bring clear lenses. I caught a few bugs in my eyes which was not as concerning as riding through some of the very dark neighborhoods in South Stockton. Next year… bring clear glasses and headlight.

After a quick stop to say hello to Fred & Flower who were in their front yard talking to the Schwann’s guy I made it home at 9:30. Hey Fred, why was the Schwann’s guy there so late?

Today’s ride was awesome, perfect weather and I had great legs.

Stats
129.01 miles
8:03:50 on bike
15.998 miles per hour

The secret? Tell everyone you know, including the local TV station, you’re going to ride in to work and home again. That way, when you feel like chickening out, you realize you can’t. How would you break it to that TV station?