2017 SMR 18

First Summit ride in 5 weeks!  Today is gonna be HOT.

They're doing some re-paving on Walnut Ave... very rough, a little loose, and the asphalt smells terrible in the heat.  None of that tar splatter to clean off your bike though.

Today's special guest riders:  Juan from Davis and his Death Ride partner Steve from San Jose.

Still fighting the last remnants of the combo virus/allergy thing that kept me off the Mountain for 3 weeks... felt OK but low energy and a low threshold for panting.  JB said he was at a good speed anyway so we matched well.

 Not insanely hot yet... but all the ice in my water bottles was gone.

 Bugs were really bad...not so many of them but the ones that were there were big and mean.  Like they thought it was my fault it was so hot so they decided to bite me.  I'm calling them Assflies instead of Horseflies from now on.

New rule:  Cal Jerseys AND hot pink socks get autoblogged

 I was really dragging after Junction though - stopped at Juniper and Muir for rest breaks, and skipped the Summit Wall.  Trifecta excuse:  sickness, lack of training, and heat.

 Juan and Steve went down SGR for a Double Diablo.

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Bonus:  There's now a Mount Diablo app for your phone. Read about it below, download and install today!  This post from Colonel Al and the Mount Diablo Cyclists Facebook group.

MOUNT DIABLO APP

We now have a mobile application for use while in the Mount Diablo State Park! It is called “Mount Diablo” and is designed to provide you easy access to important information as well as report issues. You can check the weather out at the Summit or the Junction, get park info, contact park staff or report issues. To report an issue, just use your mobile phone, take a picture and the application captures your exact location and sends it to park staff. No more sending emails trying to describe where the issue was.

How do I get the application?

Go to the Apple App Store or Google play and download the application called: “GORequest” by GOGovapps, Inc. Once installed, run the application. If your location services are turned off, you will be prompted to turn them on. Depending on where you are in the park, you may be prompted to “Select a City”. If you are prompted, you will have several cities listed such as Pittsburg, Oakley, San Pablo, Danville, Lafayette and one called “Mount Diablo”. Select “Mount Diablo” from the list. It should be at the bottom of the list. If you are not presented with a list, the application will simply appear. If you run the application elsewhere in the Bay Area, you may not see “Mount Diablo” as a choice. Quit the app and wait until you get closer to the Mountain. This is a temporary situation and will be resolved in the coming months.  Please share the Mount Diablo App with all park visitors!!

2017 WNR 05

Recovering from a 2-week viral infection... still coughing and not breathing well... but The Mountain calls.

This guy was protecting a snake in the road.

I taught him the "throw rocks at it" method of getting the snake to move.
Not a rattler, not a whipsnake... must be a gopher snake.

 I do not understand the appeal of the group photo... but I'd be a jerk to complain.

2017 SMR 17

The heat wave begins.

JB is in Europe, so just me - and tons of riders in special event jerseys... like Team in Training, AIDS Ride, etc.

Turned around at Junction cuz I got work to do.

Auto blog for CAL jersey.  Actually this looks like a skin suit.

2017 SMR 16

71 Strava Flybys!  Yes, Death Ride training is in full swing.

Kind of cool weather-wise.  Glad I had my windbreaker.

Jeez, these Death Ride guys are smooth and fast

The million dollar view.

This guy was on his second Summit already.

This guy is a regular, I think he said his name was Ted.
He had a classic steel Cinelli with clinchers.  Also has a Gios.

Happy Mother's Day to all my mom-readers.

2017 WNR 04

Seven of us tonight.

No wildlife except bugs.

Jeez, it's COLD?

The Mountain is getting less green.

2017 SMR 15

I checked - here we are in May; 15 Saturday Morning Rides and this was only my FOURTH Summit of the year.  Mostly problems with the weather, but some of those misses were just wussing out I think.

Today's Special Guest Rider:  JUAN who's training for his SIXTH! Death Ride

Started off kind of cool, but looked like it would warm up... never did.

No wildlife encounters, no road kill reports, but there were a LOT of people enjoying The Mountain today.

Photo-Bombing is when you get yourself into someone else's photo.
What's it called when you take a photo of someone else taking a photo?
These guys were from a Daly City club.

2017 WNR 03

I think eight of us from work tonight, including a new hire, and a recently resigned!

35°C to start out though... that's hot.  I had frozen my water bottle to the slush point, but it was melted all the way by the time I parked.

Mom and Dad sent me some birthday money last week and I used it for a professional bike tune up at Big Dave's Bikes.  My cables were frayed and my shifting was a little off, and boy they fixed it up good.  Turns out my cable guide under the bottom bracket had lost a screw so it was only being held on by the cables and that was messing with my shifting.  I brought in a set of pretty cables I had intended to put on myself but hadn't gotten around to - glad I waited because they did a better job than I would've.

So yeah, a hot ride, a hard climb, and a nice descent.

Wildlife Encounter:  Turkeys.  Big ones.  Lots of them.  All over The Mountain.

Check out that beautiful new cable housing!

I love riding in formation.

Diablo Shoutout to Blog Reader MIDLAND who forgot to charge his electronic shifting system and had to use his little ring.

2017 SMR 14

Looked like good weather, but I sported my arm warmers.

Got really windy about Chainbuster.

Al said there were 45mph gusts at the Summit, so I went home, and JB went down Southgate with Justin who showed up after we got there.

This guy passed us like we were standing still.

There he is way up there already.