TNT's Page Mill/Old La Honda

 TNT Death Ride Riders before departing.

This weekends training brought me to familiar territory down on the Peninsula.  I have often ridden these roads after work or on the weekends.  I used to go in to work start an experiment and then head off for a ride in the nearby hills only to return to finish the experiment after the ride.  I vividly recall one of my very first rides after I bought my first bike in fifteen years, or so.  I had no idea of what the local terrain was like and looked at a map and sketched out a ride of approximately 18 miles round trip from work.  I was thinking an hour, maybe and hour and a half tops.  On the 2-D map, highway 84 looked flat…I was gasping for breath before I ever reached the half way mark.  I know I was taught to read a topography map in school, but at the time I had totally lost that skill.

Saturday’s ride was my first ride joining a very friendly group of Team-in-Training Death Ride Riders for a fully supported training ride.  Unlike ALC, or other century ride training, the route was less about total distance and more about total climbing.  We started at 8:00 am sharp with a verbal descending clinic followed with a ride out towards Palo Alto and Page Mill Road.  Page Mill is a significant climb totaling an approximate 2,000 feet over 8 miles.   A rest stop waited at the top.  If I wasn’t chatting with random riders on the way up, I was signing Eminem in my head.

and because Eminem isn't the best music to get one up a hill, this soon replaced his music. 

 Jeff and Mark cresting Old La Honda

From the top of Page Mill it was a 7 mile jaunt along skyline with all the speeding cars and motorcycles to Alice’s Restaurant and Highway 84.  We descended Hwy 84 to Portola and over to Sand Hill to reach the next major climb of the day, Old La Honda.  Old La Honda is a benchmark climb in the bay area.  It is said that speed skater Eric Heiden holds the speed record of 14 minutes 10 seconds.  Unfortunately my fastest time up OLH is only 25 minutes.  I did not do it in 25 minutes today.  After the OLH climb we continued north on Skyline to get to King’s Mountain Road.  Usually I head south from King’s Mountain Road on Skyline and never remember that it is actually a pretty significant climb heading north (~800 feet).  I kept say the top was just around the next bend.  Can you say ‘cry wolf’.  As much as I enjoy the climbs, I dislike the descents.  I hate switchback descents.  The descent down King’s was cold and slow but we eventually made it back to Canada and the parked car.  

 Corinne, my TNT mentor, cresting Old La Honda with a smile

It was a beautiful day to ride.  Many thanks go out to Jeff, John G, Mark, John B, Alissa, and Jerry for being such great riding company.  Thanks also to Kevin for ride support, as well as all those peopling the rest stops.  Those potatoes and salt hit the spot on top of Skyline.

Marshall's 104

my Leukemia & Lymphoma Society fundraising page: http://pages.teamintraining.org/sf/touralps11/llitalien

 

Some days I feel like a turkey too, but not today 

(Just before the Marshall Wall climb).

This past week I had the luxury of deciding what weekend ride I wanted to do this weekend.  I could chose from TNT’s ‘Buddy’ Ride starting in Marin and probably would have included some variation of Alpine Dam/Mt. Tam, Chris’s Mountain View 70-miler, Joseph’s 100+ Marshall’s Wall, a few other organized rides, or strike out on my own.  It had been so long since I had ridden with Joseph that I opted to head for Marshall.

 Saint Helen's in Marshall, CA

Ride-out was at 7:30 am sharp from Peet’s coffee in the Castro.  In fact Joseph was just leaving when he saw me approach from down the street.  I must not be so tardy in the morning.  The route was the usual route to Fairfax which is two hours plus/minus a minute; god those stop signs get old.  We had traversed the eastern walkway of the Golden Gate Bridge as we had heard the staging had gone up on the western side and that the North Parking Lot was all torn up.  We only had to dodge one large group of Japanese tourists and a few hot runners.  It isn’t till we hit White’s Hill that the ride starts to become really enjoyable.  The sun was out, the temperature was warmer than expected, and some orange poppies were blooming.  We pushed a steady but moderate pace up White’s, up Nicasio, and up Alp du Fromage, arriving at the Cheese Factory near 11 am in good time.  The objective of the day was all about moderation, budgeting, and pacing myself so that I wouldn’t have a repeat of last weeks cramping.   

A semi-large group of Marin Cyclist that arrived at the Cheese Factory shortly after we did.

From the Cheese Factory we headed east to Hick’s Valley Road and then north through a gorgeous green valley.  It was here that Joseph gave a tutorial of serpentinite, a green and scaly metamorphic rock that has huge formation throughout California.  They run in bands and can be seen from satellite photos.  This next stretch of road is really what today’s ride was all about.  It was about taking our time rolling through these valleys enjoying the views and enjoying the nice long climb up Marshall’s Wall (~550 feet).    

 Joseph climbing the Wall.

 Joseph refueling at the top.

 View Northwest from the Wall looking towards Tomales Bay.

After riding the wall, we headed south towards Point Reyes for lunch at Whale of a Deli.  I’m sure they weren’t the best pork tacos I’ve ever had, but they definitely tasted like they were after 60+ miles and numerous climbs.  After lunch brought Olema Hill, the backsides of White’s and Camino Alto, and lastly Sausalito back into the city.  I was worried that we wouldn’t beat the rain, but we did.  We were home, shortly after 5 pm.  Tired and sore but not cramped.  Successful day of pacing and budgeting.

 Sneakers atop Marshall's Wall.  

Just to the right of the post in the far off distance, 

Mt. Tam is observed and just past that would lie the city.

A long beautiful day of riding in some of the best Marin has to offer.
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