Social riding, part deux

Our friend Josh puts together an annual ride of friends from the Presidio in SF to Pt. Reyes Station and return, and Sunday Aug. 12th was the chosen date for this year. We gathered at the Sports Basement parking lot for an alleged 7:30A start, delayed while Erika did some early morning shopping for Sidi’s since she had left hers in Menlo Park. Lucky we were starting from a sports store that opens at 8:00A on a Sunday! Thirteen of us rolled out at the start, two attempted to join mid-stream, and one bailed partway (Fairfax); quite a crowd. Another interesting stat for the ride: 8 of the 13 starters are in the ‘legal’ field (6 attorneys, 1 paralegal, 1 legal recruiter).

The ‘bad’ for this trip:

• Some psychopath in an off-white older Ford pickup played a game of ‘how close can I get to the cyclists’ on Nicasio Valley Rd. Most of us he cleared by about 3-6″, one woman he got a bit closer and grazed her gloved hand with the bed of the truck.
• The two folks trying to join in the middle, riding with one of the starters who had waited for them in Nicasio, did the dreaded wheel overlap on Petaluma-Pt Reyes Rd. The one in the rear flipped, without serious injury. Not so lucky for the guy who had silently attached himself to the rear of the line; initial report was probable broken clavicle and probable separated shoulder.
• Too much stopping and waiting for others. What should have taken no more than 5 hours of ride time, 6 of clock time, absorbed 9 hours of our day on the clock.
• Three, count them, three flats among 13 riders and all three were all on my bike (1 rear, 2 front). I hate flats!

The ‘good’:

• Got to spend some time with friends we have not seen much lately.
• Despite riding sweep most of the ride, I got to get out and contest a couple of hill climbs. Had not had any good hill climbs in a while. Chris gave me a run up Camino Alto before taking the final sprint to the top. On Sir Francis Drake out of Olema it wasn’t a contest. Even though the legs were tired, it felt good to do some good fast tempo hill climbing!
• Spectacular weather, gorgeous views. From Sausalito on the way back you probably could have picked out individual bodies along the SF waterfront. Sorry there are no images to share; even with 13 folks there were no cameras present so the pics are all embedded in the memory chips of our brains.

Now it is time to get The Wife rested and ready for Dunigan Hills this coming weekend. And to find a 15T track cog for the new bike. And a replacement tire for the front with the nice sidewall gash.