The 2015 PMC: Slow Coast

September 14, 2015

We originally scheduled our ride for August 29. This year, long time riding buddy Steve would accompany me, and we would be joined by our friend David. I was riding a lot, focusing on the San Mateo County part of the Santa Cruz Mountains this year, climbing Old La Honda, Kings Mountain, West Alpine, and Tunitas creek many times. Around August 19, I was at a peak and ready to "taper" for the ride. Right about then, I strained my lower back. I was off the bike for 10 days. I tried to reschedule for 9/2, but I was still not ready. Steve and David were ready to ride, so they did a reconaissance ride. Along the way, David hit a fist sized rock and crashed, breaking his collar bone. Nuts! Later that week, a major heat wave rolled in, with temps in Santa Cruz around 100 degrees. We didn't even want to think about riding. Eventually, we settled on 9/14.

Steve is quite fit. He has been riding a lot, and also running. In July, he ran the San Francisco marathon. In the 2 days prior to the ride, he did a 40 mile ride and a 17 mile run, both with lots of elevation. But with all of this training, even he pulled a muscle ("angry butt", he calls it). Me? With my back, and a pinch of Golfer's elbow in my right arm... We're a mess! On ride day, my back was just about sorted out, but with only about 20 miles a week average for 4 weeks, how would that affect my riding?

As usual, most pictures can be enlarged by clicking on them.
 

The Route and The Plan

Our ride plan was an extended Santa Cruz mountains coast ride of about 100 miles, with 5 rated climbs: Old La Honda, Haskins Hill (Pescadero Creek Rd), Stage Rd, Tunitas Creek, Jefferson Avenue. Map and elevation are below - the elevation estimate is a little high. I was concerned about losing my back again, so the plan was to start out easy, and test the waters. It's amazing how much you use your back for cycling.
 
Route Elevation

The First Segment

In the early morning of the 14th, fog moved back in for the first time in weeks, so we had overcast skies most of the day. A comfortable 61 degrees, with a little mist here and there. Certainly nothing like the 43 degree temps, pouring rain, and hail from last year. We had a lazy 9:30 AM start from Steve's house. I could say that my PMC jerseys were all in the wash, but basically my BMC outfit is the most comfortable, and matches the bike. Two out of three letters. Steve carried the torch for us, seen here sporting the 2012 PMC jersey.

We started with 12 miles of flat to rolling terrain before Sand Hill Road in Palo Alto, the intro to Old La Honda. After this 4 mile M-shaped road, we started up Old La Honda. This road hasn't been on our virtual PMC since 2006. Not my favorite climb, I found myself training on it every other week for months this year, and came to terms with it. We found a nice moderate pace, within about 10% of our idea of 'fast'. I charged ahead at one point so I could get a picture of Steve (below). So far, so good. It was a little chilly at the top, so we got out the jackets for the descent to La Honda. This was our first taste of the winds of the day, out of the west. Generally in long descents, I keep up with Steve using an aerodynamic position, but this puts a big strain on the lower back, so today, I fell behind on the descent. And then this little haiku sort of thing popped into my head:

Road. Shredded truck tire.
Strong wind from out of the west.
80 miles to go.

  The mind wanders on a long ride.
Start
At the start... BMC, PMC...
I've got most of the letters, anyway.
 
Fog above
From Sand Hill, fog hangs over Old La Honda
Steve
Steve climbing Old La Honda
 
From La Honda we made a left onto Pescadero Creek Rd and Haskins Hill. This has always been a favorite road to ride. It climbs through the redwoods of Sam McDonald Park. Silent except for the occasional passing car, this is a very nice short climb. The descent to Pescadero is quick and only slightly technical. Up until the last 3 miles before town, it's wind-sheltered, so we kept up a good pace until we cleared the trees and found the wind. Steve pointed out where David had met the rock - a place you would never expect it, only about a mile outside of town, hiding in plain sight. We pulled into Pescadero right on time for lunch at Arcangeli's bakery, famous for their artichoke garlic bread. We also found Slow Coast, which is an organization and shop that benefits local artisans. Steve had been at the Davenport location the day before. Pescadero is a must-visit if you're ever in the area.


sammac
Redwoods in
Sam McDonald Park
art
Steve selfie with
me in the background
slowcoast
Slow Coast - a perfect name for the day
argangel
Getting ready to roll at Arcangeli


The Second Sector

After lunch, I still felt pretty fresh. Steve was re-energized from the tri-tip special sandwich and an apple crisp. Leaving Pescadero, at the start of Stage Rd, the winds shifted, and for a brief time, we had a rare tailwind. Nice. I can recall riding this stretch in my smallest gear and barely moving! Stage is three climbs. By the second, I was starting to get an occasional hint from my back, so I backed off and tried spinning. Spinning isn't really my thing; I tend to power up climbs out of the saddle. No matter, there's more than one way to climb a hill, and here at the halfway point, there's still a long way to go.

Stage Road intersects Highway 1 between San Gregorio and Half Moon Bay. I tried to get a picture (right) of the coast, while starting a descent that tops out around 40mph, so sorry for the lack of focus! About half a mile around that bend is the right turn onto Tunitas Creek.

In the flats that lead up to the Tunitas climb, there is this little gem: The bike hut. This is a hut (as you can see) with tools, food, water. It was built by the owners of this organic farm. Run on the honor-system, it is very popular, and very useful. We tanked up with water, said "hi" to the chickens across the road, and headed for the toughest climb of the day, Tunitas Creek Road. Steve and I have climbed this several times. It is a beautiful road lined with redwoods. It's really silent; I don't recall a single motor vehicle. I was feeling pretty good, so I went out at a reasonable clip once the climb started. As expected, Steve caught up at the steep 12% section and started consistently moving away. Getting out of the saddle to try to catch up, I got a clear message from my knees: back off. I could hear Steve singing down the miles with a version of "99 bottles of beer". He was about 1/2 mile around a wide bend, and gaining ground. I was about 5 minutes behind at the top. 40 bottles to go. Good news, not much significant climbing left.

We went north on Skyline towards 92. The first time I rode this stretch of Skyline was in 1993 with David. This is another tree tunnel - redwoods and fir. It opens up about 5 miles north of Highway 92 for a wild descent. On a day like this, with fog coming and going, the wind in this area is very gusty, and it's all you can do to keep the bike upright and on the road, while descending at 35 mph. The turn onto 92, even with the traffic, was welcome. As it was moving a little slow, we just took up the lane and coasted to the Crystal Springs reservoir, turning south for the last 30 miles.
 

Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus tree tunnel on Stage Rd
 
Stage 1
View from Stage Rd near San Gregorio
 
hwy1
Descending Hwy 1 to Tunitas Creek
bike hut
The Bike Hut
 

Home Stretch

Recall our tailwind from the south at Pescadero? Well, here it became a headwind. Not huge, but enough to feel it. In addition, with the sun breaking out a bit, we could also feel this strange heaviness in the air - I think you call it humidity. Steve suggeted we break for water at the Pulgas Water Temple. I've been past this place dozens of times but never stopped in. This is the terminus of the pipeline from the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir near Yosemite, where we hiked just prior to last year's ride. What a fitting place to stop!

There was one more short climb, Jefferson road. It's a short climb, about 1 mile in length, which goes through the Emerald Hills section of Redwood City, leading to Alameda de las Pulgas (Flea Street). For the next 20 miles, the road is flat to rolling, with a bit of headwind. In the flats, it was easy to keep a good pace. In the shallow climbs, it was getting tougher, but I just found a gear that would get me though it. Interestingly, about 9 miles from the finish, on east Alpine Road, I was ahead a bit at one point. When the wind settled down, Steve caught up and asked me if I had seen the fist-sized rock in the road. I had not. They really do hide in plain sight!

Near the finish, Steve suggested a short detour over the I-280 bike bridge connecting Sunnyvale and Cupertino. I had driven under it many times, but I had never been on it. Neat! I was struggling a bit at this point. But with only 2 miles to go, all flat, we were happy to be in sight of the finish.
 

hetch
Crystal Springs is fed by Hetch Hetchy
pulgas
Steve at Pulgas - Great idea!
pulgas
Say "clean delicious water!"
bridge
I-280 Bike Bridge

Post ride

We rode 100.7 miles for the day, about 7700 feet of elevation gain. It was a good ride. Having done 100 miles total in the last 5 weeks, I'm not surprised that it was a bit slow, but that's ok. Finishing felt good. All the training paid off; I had the lungs and the legs, just had to compromise a bit on time. I was good and sore after the ride. Even that felt good in its own way. In comparison to last year, we had fine weather. Our water stops were well spaced. After a little rescheduling, we pulled it off. David is recovering, and we expect to be riding with him again in a month or so. The day after the ride, Steve and I met for lunch at Fiesta Del Mar Too in Mountain View for mole burritos, and started planning for next years ride. We talked about the ride, and about the good company. For me, next year means more stretching, more core strength training, and more riding. It will also be my 25th ride (26th year). Maybe a split east-west coast ride? We'll see.

Steve's family has had a tough year. His cousin John succumbed to pancreatic cancer in July. Another cousin is fighting ovarian cancer. He has as aunt and uncle who are cancer survivors. Several of my sponsors have family members locked in the battle. We ride hard to honor those who have fought and are fighting cancer, and to honor the memory of those we have lost. The PMC makes a difference and helps us hope. This chart shows how some of last years donations were directed. The PMC and Dana Farber are great organizations. It's why I've continued to work with them for 25 years.

There is still time to sponsor us. Click here for me, or click here for Steve Meier.

Thanks for your support!