Saturday, June 27, 2015

2015 SMR 22

Saw a roadside memorial on my way to The Mountain - near the fire house on Walnut... I figured somebody got hit in the crossing there where the trail is.

After a couple of really hot days - today was perfect.

Wildlife Encounter - BIG flock of turkeys at Diablo Ranch

Brought a banana instead of a Clif Bar to eat at Junction... it was perfect.

We gave this guy a hard time for having a squeaky chain.


My hands were going numb and feeling kind of bruised...I think it's time for a new pair of gloves... hardly any padding left and the stink doesn't come out in the wash anymore.



At Summit, I met Nancy - she was wearing her new Terrible Two jersey and I congratulated her on the awesomeness of finishing that ride last week.  From now on I'm going to refer to her as Terrible Two Nancy.



On the way home, I stopped at the memorial and found out that it was actually for a dog named Gino.  He had gone missing from his home in the neighborhood a few days earlier and was found dumped in the canal with his legs bound like some kind of mafia hit.  There were a few people there who knew the story and filled me in.  Anyway, the memorial also included signs asking for help finding Gino's killer, but no number to call or web page to visit.



Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Marin Museum of Bicycling

Diablo Wife and Diablo Daughter took me here for Father's Day.  It's in Fairfax, which is a town with a huge cycling presence... all kinds of bikes everywhere.

Met Joe Breeze and his wife who were running the place (for the day at least) and they actually seemed to enjoy answering all my questions and telling stories.

The first part of the tour is the exhibit on the early evolution of bicycle design - they had a hobby horse, a penny-farthing, a shaft-drive bike, and a few other really interesting antiques showcasing the changes in materials, drive trains, and geometries.

The second part was the exhibit on the evolution of the mountain bike from the early pioneers including Mr. Breeze himself, to a modern double-sprung 29er with disc brakes.

Also on display was Vincenzo Nibali's bike from the 2014 Tour de France - the one he rode on the last day into Paris.  It was a striking contrast to the wrought iron contraption from 1820 that was only a few feet away.

The "Mountain Bike Hall of Fame" exhibit was mostly just posters and a trophy... interesting history but not much to look at.

There was also a library that had the kind of books you could browse for hours - like a Schwinn maintenance manual from the 50s.

The souveneir shop had T-shirts, water bottles, and books.  Picked up a water bottle and a book called Goggles and Dust with a hundred photos of pre-1940's Euro races... the kind where guys have tires wrapped around their shoulders and stuff.

Joe said that they're mostly counting on "word of mouth" advertising for the museum - I may have slightly over-stated the influence my blog has on the cycling public but he was eager to accept my offer to promote the attraction.  So if you go visit - tell them "Diablo Scott sent me".

























2015 WNR 10

Closest Wednesday to the Solstice, so a bunch of us decided we should do the Summit.  Kevin and Evan had never been much past Junction before so they were stoked.  I kept telling them to do a slower pace on NGR so they'd have plenty left in the tank for Summit Road.  Everybody made it fine.

A few folks who couldn't get an early start showed up later to do the Junction but we didn't see each other until it was all over.

It was hot, but not killer hot - very enjoyable.

Wildlife Encounter:  two deer





Holy cow, Scott was right about this last bit.

Made it!




Elmar said if this were Switzerland there'd be a restaurant
at the top and all the cyclists would be having a beer.


Saturday, June 20, 2015

2015 SMR 21

Sposed to be 80F by 11 so not too warm.  We've been having a pretty mild summer so far.

JB at the Gate - normal ride to Junction but then he had to turn around and I did Summit by myself.

Diablo Shoutouts to:  Sergeant Slow, Smooth Joey, Tuck, Dudley, Kasters, and Rivendell Mark.





Saturday, June 13, 2015

2015 SMR 20

Started without JB - found out later he had forgotten his water bottle and had to turn around back home.

Sgt Slow got a new bike - custom Steve Rex,
 I had plenty of time to read the logo.
 Wildlife Encounter:  deer.  Lots of lizards today too, and big black biting bugs.

Deer

Custom Waterford guy with the
Davis Double jersey leap frogged
with us all the way to Summit


About a third as many bikes as last week, and about twice as many cars.  Everyone was being DiabloSafe and DiabloCourteous.


Wednesday, June 10, 2015

2015 WNR 09

We had a heat wave the last few days, then it cooled off, then today it RAINED!  It was supposed to stop in the morning so I figured the ride would go on and packed my bike in my truck.  But it rained until 3pm and everyone else who planned on coming cancelled except me and Elmar.


They were concerned about improper clothing and wet roads but it was really no problem at all - by 5:30 the Mountain was mostly dried up and the only damp spots were under trees that were still dripping... and it was warm and still.

My new desktop wallpaper

Didn't see any other riders on the whole Mountain until about the Ranches when one woman was coming down... then two guys passed us above Chainbuster, and that was all.  There were a few more riders coming up as we were coming down around the Loading Dock.


Passed 'em-Passed me Ratio:  zero to two

Wildlife Encounter:  a deer and a bunny


Don't get up to Juniper very often on a WNR... it was nice.

Saturday, June 06, 2015

2015 SMR 19

Beautiful weather today... warm and clear and still.  Hundreds of riders enjoying The Mountain.

I could feel the legs from the hard effort Wednesday night.

Green Eggs and Ham Jersey - HA!

Diablo Shoutout to Kasters

There was a guy at Juniper that appeared to be having a medical problem.  Had a riding companion with him and a ranger talking to both of them.  Didn't appear to be a crash and he appeared to be uninjured, but he was lying down on a picnic bench.  Just after we went by, an ambulance came up from below and then a helicopter landed somewhere near there... I stopped for video but they were out of view from up higher.






Yes indeed, my blurry black triangle thing appears to be a permanent problem with my Contour camera.  Fortunately it's near the edge of the field and doesn't ruin too many photos.

Blurry black triangle thing on the right.


OK, checkout this bad driver.  I'm taking the right lane so cars behind me can turn right - then I keep taking the lane until I get past the street on the other side of BART so those cars can turn right.  The right lane ends just ahead at Bentley where I'm going to turn right.  Now virtually all drivers understand what I'm doing and see it as a safe and courteous maneuver.  It works up to a dumbass driver level of 9, but this guy is a 10.  He squeezes past me while he honks, then cuts me off with a right hook.  I think he wants to go to the garage sale on the left but he thinks I'm following him to have a confrontation so he doesn't park, goes slow and then brake-checks me.