June 27, 2008

Thanks to the California Supreme Court, Trevor and I will be at City Hall making our relationship on the up and up (Friday June 27th). After seventeen years and one annulled marriage in 2004 (by the same CA Supreme Court), we will finally be exchanging rings. These aren't the rings we've ordered, but until they come in and we can take a pic they'll do. We always wanted our minister Johanna Nichols (formerly of Auburn Unitarian Universalist Church) to marry us, but with the referendum coming up in November we felt we couldn't wait. We know she would approve.

Day 7: June 7, 2008 (Ventura to Los Angeles)

61.68 miles

Again commentary kept to a minimum. I want to get these pics posted and I'll come back at a later date and give you all my wisdom gleemed whether you want it or not. ;-)

Above: The Ventura beach in the morning.

Below: Angles sending us off.

Where's Brent????

Below: Michael, Jon, Dave (front) and David and Cameron (back) at Rest Stop 1 not looking too bad for a week on the road.

Below: Patrick arriving at Peet's Coffee a few blocks from the finish at the VA center.

The remaining pics are from outside Peet's Coffee.

Larry's ALC7 Day 7 slideshow (a few pics from after and of course Thor's welcoming home):


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Day 6: June 6, 2008 (Lompoc to Ventura)

86.10 miles

My ass stopped being sore by Day 6. The soreness was prominent on Day 2 and 3. I only once used Butt Balm on Day 3, not too bad. The route from Lompoc to Ventura was a pretty hefty one considering we've been riding for 5 days. This was my favorite day of riding though.

Above: Randy posing while waiting for the route to open.
Above: Rest Stop on Highway 101 (Vista Point)

Two things that made today my favorite ride day is that the stretch of road between Rest Stop 1 and the Vista Point on Highway 101 is absolutely stunning (especially the canyon) and the stretch of road from Vista Point to Tuckers Grove Park was the absolute most fun riding of the entire ride. The PROPERLY spaced ride line (because WE DO NOT FORM PACE LINES ON ALC) was a blast. The riders I was riding with were a blast. Nice cruising speeds were met on roads with little interruptions by pesky stop signs and lights.

Below: Fellow riders waiting for us to be released from the Vista Point. Caltrans had to shut one lane of Highway 101 so that it would be safe for us to cross. Of course Caltrans had screwed up the placement of the cones initially so nearly 1700 bicyclists ended up spilling out of the Vista Point rest area. The extra time gave a chance to chat all around.

Above: Trying to save the day at the Vista Point.

Above: Santa Barbara

Below: Paradise Pit in Santa Barbara. Ice Cream, cookies, and strawberries galore.

Above: Surfers off Ventura.

Larry's ALC7 Day 6 slideshow:



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Day 5: June 5, 2008 (Santa Maria to Lompoc)

44.01 miles - Red Dress Day

Above: Chris painting my nails red. (pic stolen from Joseph)

Below: David and I.

Below: They've got the spirit

Originally 'Dress in Red' day so that it would look like a long red ribbon as riders climbed this day's hills.

Above: Cameron and John

Below: Michael and the long line of red.

I'll keep my commentary to a minimum so that you can enjoy the pics in all there fabulous-ness. Probably the hilliest day per mile by far. Told they will give names to the ones encountered on this day for next year to join the ranks of Quadbuster and Evil Twins. I'm partial to one of the names I heard floating around which was 'Heartbreak Ridge'.

Lesson of the day for next year = I must do better in planning what I wear. Some were just gorgeous. They say the ride changes lives. Never did I think I would be scoping out dresses for Red Dress Day as I pass shops.

Larry's ALC7 Day 5 Slideshow:


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Day 4: June 4, 2008 (Paso Robles to Santa Maria)

97.56 miles

Second longest day of the ride. Unlike the morning in Santa Cruz, everyone was up and moving from the tents much more quickly. Everyone up early and on the road early. Guess everyone learns their lessons :-).

Day 3's ride surprised me in the ride being more beautiful than I had expected. Large oaks lined the roads. Of course it may just having been riding through the vineyards that made me think it was so nice. Day 4, I had been told had a little bit of everything to ride through; farmland, woods, canyons, beach, city, etc... Today as we rode through Pismo Beach it felt, for the first time on the ride, as if we were transitioning from Northern California to Southern California. Pismo Beach is a gorgeous beach with the surf shacks and surfers to go with them. One of the most enjoyable riding days scenery wise.

Above: Waiting for Bike Parking to open at 6:00 am.

Below: View from Rest Stop 1.

A few miles after rest stop one begins the climbs up the 'Evil Step Sisters'. Two large hills to climb as far as the Lifecycle is concerned. At the top of the second is the official 'Half Way' mark. It's a beautiful outlook over the valleys all the way to the coast. The wind was blowing strongly. Mind you all week I'm hearing stories of how much fun descending the Evil Twins is with some riders 'claiming' to reach speeds of 49-51 miles per hour. Hogwash!! With the headwind going down the back side I was lucky if I reached 35 mph. It was a nice looooooooooong downhill, but to put that in perspective the tailwind going into King City that was pushing me up a hill had me going 22-25 mph. I felt as if I should have asked for my money back.

Above: Me strong.

Below: The cheering kids in San Luis Obispo.

Rounding a corner in San Luis Obispo to loud cheers and screaming was an awesome surprise. I treasured the pipe-cleaner contraptions the kids made and gave out. It was a great moment.

Today was also the day I was talked into going to the Hot Springs by Will. Very glad I took the time to stop and rest in the warm water. Good for the sore muscles. I do sincerely apologize to line of women I was passing towards the end of the day. Lifecycle does a great job of drilling into your head the need to be mindful of others safety at all times and to follow vehicle laws so as to not put the ride permits in jeopardy. All week I've been screaming 'On your left' or similar warning as I passed riders. For some reason as I was passing these women, I was saying 'On your RIGHT'. I was completely oblivious to what I was saying till I was passing the last rider and I realized what I was saying and corrected myself. Of course the last rider was shaking tell me that I was scaring her. She heard me on the left, but I was saying on the right, and I confused her. My apologies.

I was scared later as we were climbing El Campo. I was flashed by Ms. Bullhorn lady towards the top of the climb. Nearly fell over when I saw her chest ;-) To be fair, I don't think she was flashing me, but rather the woman in front of me. Thank God.



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Day 3: June 3, 2008 (King City to Paso Robles)

65.51 miles, Quadbuster day

The longest mileage day is followed by a relatively short day with one of the 'toughest' hills named Quadbuster. If you've followed my training I've done much more difficult hills (i.e. Henry Coe) but I was still grimacing a bit at the top. I should mention I had my morning routine down pat by day 3 and was standing in line waiting for the route to open before 6:30 am.

Below: The line-up waiting for the route to open.

I actually thought the approach to Quadbuster was more of a pain then Quadbuster itself. The approach was an ever so gentle incline that just went on and on and on. Literally a pain in the ass. The first rest area was just shy of the hill.

Above: Sunrise at Rest Stop 1.

Below: Smiles cresting Quadbuster. That's Michael 2nd in the background.

Lunch on Day 3 is in a tiny little town named Bradley. Of course we have to ride on Highway 101 and unbelievably bad pavement to get there. You have the option of having the ALC lunch or purchase some greasy cheeseburgers from the folks of Bradley. It cost, as it is fundraiser for the school, but after two days of chicken a nice greasy double cheeseburger hit the spot.

Above: Once again ahead of the packs in Bradley.

Below: Riders coming into Bradley as I get ready to leave.

Above: Grease theme at rest stop 4. I was a tad early. Shortly after noon. Filled water bottles had a snack and then was ready to go and head the last bit into camp but they were about ready to start a show. Parked my ass in a chair.

Below: I saw this bicycle as I was leaving Rest Stop 4. What caught my eye was the emblem of the state of Maine. This bicycle was made in Maine. The name 'Aegis' is also a Navy weapons system that is/was on a class of battleships that I worked on in a past life back at Bath Iron Works (summer jobs in College).

I was in Paso Robles fairly early and it was HOT!!! Paso Robles is a great place for people to princess because the hotels are so close. Princess = riders who sleep in hotels rather than tents on the ride. It was so hot that my brand new tire 'exploded'. The heat must have warmed my tire just right that it burst. The note below was strapped to my tent when I got back from swimming at David's hotel and AW root bear float. The tire had less than three hundred miles on it. I put them on just before the ride. Had to buy a new tire and now the front and back tires don't match. The horror. I kind of wish I was there when it exploded. I was parked directly behind the bike parking tent and I'm sure it blowing scared the bejeebus out of a few people under the tent. The bike also spent the night in the mechanic's shop overnight so some shifting anomalies could be fixed. I kept looking for Red Head Ranch but I don't think I rode past.

Larry's ALC7 Day 3 slideshow:


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ALC Day 2: June 2, 2008 (Santa Cruz to King City)

Above: Miss ALC7. Rest Stop 4

Below: Otter Pop Stop at Mission La Soledad

105.70 miles

If Day 1's lesson was to stay ahead of the pack, then Day 2's lesson was how to repack on the fly in the morning. Poor Michael covered for my lack of repacking experience by taking down the tent in the morning, which he had put up the previous afternoon. I clearly was not pulling my weight when it came to tent duties. No fear, it only took me that morning's repacking experience, the jumping and sitting and stuffing of the suit case (see day 6's post when it comes for a great light bulb going off moment) to figure out I needed a routine in the morning. On days 3 - 7 it went something like this: 1) Get up and go rest room around 3:30 - 4 am, 2) get another half hour of shut eye, 3) Michael gets up and out of the tent around 4:45 am, 4) I get dressed into my bicycling clothes that have been pre-warming in my pillow case, and put warmer clothes over 5) pack up my stuff (wake all the neighboring tents while I let air out of air mattress, roll sleeping bag, etc...) 6) exit tent and beat the lines at the breakfast tent 7) While I'm eating, Michael finishes and goes back to the tent to get ready 8) I finish eating, go clean up, and head back to tent, 9) I arrive back at tent while Michael is getting finished and I start to pack up the tent and then strip off my layers and squeeze them into the suitcase. That routine worked for the most part the rest of the week, but that was nothing at all like what I was doing on that first morning in Santa Cruz. Lesson learned again.

I was out of bike parking and on the road shortly after the route opened at around 6:45 am (route opens at 6:30 am). I was a lucky one from the horror stories told later. Evidently much later and I would have been in the packs trying to leave. I heard stories of it taking 45 minutes to leave bike parking and another hour to make it across Santa Cruz because of all the bicyclists. I repeat, learning to stay ahead of the packs was so yesterday's lesson.

Above: David, Michael, Patrick, and Jon at the first rest stop.

Below: I know it doesn't look like much, just waves crashing on the beach. But expand the size of the pic and see if you can find the pod (school?) of dolphins. I counted upwards of eight dolphins. Of course that tale stretched to 12-15 later in the day.

Below: Passed through a lot of agricultural areas on Day 2. Strawberry picking going on.

Day 2 is the longest day mileage wise. It also has the most 'distractions', such as the Ugly Mug in Santa Cruz, Artichoke stand, Otter Pops, Skinny dipping bridge, and the Cookie Lady. This being my first year and not sure of my abilities I only stopped at the Otter Pops (Awesome Bears) and the Cookie Lady (Awesome cookies, ugly drag ;-)). I would have stopped at the skinny dipping bridge but there was no one there when I went by. Next year maybe I shouldn't leave first thing in the morning ;-).

Above: Diane and Carol sharing a cooking.

Below: The Cookie stand.

After the cookie stand it is only a few short miles to Rest Stop 4 and the Miss ALC7 pageant. I should mention that all the rest stops all week generally have themes. Rest Stop 4 generally had the most decadent and delicious. The first pic of this post is of the 'contestants'. Leaving Rest Stop 4 there were 15 miles left before arriving at camp in King City. Usually I would be crying after 90 miles and knowing I had 15 miles more, but damn there was a nice tail wind pushing us up a hill and into camp. That tailwind is why the ride never goes from LA to SF. On day 1, there was a tail wind into Santa Cruz. We passed Sequoia Century riders going in the other direction and they did not look happy. Once into camp, I was able to set up the tent since Michael wasn't in yet. Not as tired as Day 1 overall. Felt great after 105.70 miles.

Larry's Day 2 Slideshow:

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ALC Day 1 - June 1, 2008 (San Francisco to Santa Cruz)

81.60 miles

Day 1 came and went. Alarm goes off at 3:30 am, I stumble out of bed around 4 am. Not too bad. Excitement/nervousness starts to set in immediately. I know I trained and trained and trained , with hours in the saddle, but the nagging question of was that enough still lingered. I had finished my packing the evening previous and fit all 'essentials' in one smallish suitcase, which I found after one night was not big enough. Every days clothing packed into labelled Ziploc bags, etc.

Above: Michael (tent mate) and I bringing our luggage to Truck E.

Below: David, John, and I (front) with Steve, Scott, and Trevor (rear). David and John are MEGA fundraisers, I'm talking 5-6 times what I was able to raise (EACH!!) . Damn good.

Since I was relatively early at orientation on Day 0, it just so happened that my bicycle was parked towards the end of the line as we were leaving the Cow Palace. I figure it took close to an hour for everyone to embark. Although I wasn't at the very end, I was probably in the later half to leave. Within two miles, before reaching Highway 1, a rider was down. Firetrucks, ambulance, etc. were quickly on the scene. As I passed the injured bicyclist was up and moving. However in Santa Cruz I learned that there were three crashes on Day 1 and that two of the three had thrown in the towel and gone home. Crashes can be extremely scary and hurt. I just hope that the packs of bicyclist on Day 1 didn't scare them too much, because the packs did spread out a bit on the following days.

Above: Joel and Jon in the center of a pack shortly after leaving the Cow Palace.
Below: A pack of riders climbing Skyline.

Day 1 was a definite learning experience. Although I had been warned by Michael, I stopped at Rest Stop 1 anyway. I had been warned, so I can only blame myself, but stopping at Rest Stop 1 cost me an hour riding. It seems everyone was stopping. The lines for the Porta potties took 30 minutes. The line for snacks and water refill another half hour. Thirty miles into the ride I figured out that I needed a strategy to keep ahead of the packs so that I could reduce the amount of time spent in lines. Lesson learned. Lunch was at one of my favorite places, San Gregorio State Beach. Above: Lunch at San Gregorio.

Below: The climbing of a hill placed immediately AFTER lunch.

Below: Lighthouse on Route 1.Finally made it into Santa Cruz in the mid-afternoon. 3ish if I remember correctly. Michael had the tent all set up before I pulled in. I was beat big time. After showering, watching riders arrive, and eating, I was in the tent and my head was aiming for the pillow by 7 pm. I think I even beat Joseph to sleep that night. Of course falling asleep at 7 caused me to wake at midnight thinking that it was time to get up and ride. I figured out on the way back from the bathroom that it was still a tad too dark to be morning. A few more hours of sleep and then awake every half hour starting at 2:30 am. I was fearful of oversleeping and having to be SAG'd. Stupid, I know. Above: Joseph and Cameron setting up Cameron's tent.

Below: Chris and Patrick, I think I feel asleep shortly after.

Slideshow of Larry's ALC Day 1:

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