Riding solo, I embarked on my one-wheeled journey at 10a from my apartment at Stanford University. What began as a beautiful day in Palo Alto quickly turned gloomy as wind and light rains hindered my riding for about 10km as I headed north towards San Mateo. After taking a quick stop at a local service station for some Gatorade (is it on you?), I drifted southwest towards the beautiful Crystal Springs Reservoir. Continuing south, I rode through the Edgewood County Park, passed Woodside and eventually over the rolling hills to Portola Valley, one of my favorite small towns in the Santa Cruz Mountains. I grabbed a bite to eat at the Parkside Grille and after connecting with the locals, continued back to campus. Overall, a fantastic ride!
Stats: Rating: 138
Distance: 65km (10km light rain)
Elevation Gain: 733m
Song of the Day:Whatever It Takes (Lifehouse)
3/8/2008
219
A cold and windy March morning, my friend Chris suggested we ride to San Francisco for day two of my qualifying ride extravaganza. We began promptly at 7:15am from our apartment at Stanford University and rode basically non-stop until we reached the beautiful city by the bay. Light rain plagued our ride for the first 10km until we reached the valley route via Canada and Skyline. The view was incredible! As we passed Crystal Springs Reservoir on Skyline, a group of cyclists training for an upcoming road race cheered us on as we pedaled our way to San Fran. Unfortunately, Chris got a flat tire about half way through the ride, around Millbrae, but it was no turning back. Since he was on a bicycle he would ride a few kilometers ahead, pump up his tire, wait for me and then take off again. While on Skyline on our way into the city, we hit major winds up some really steep climbs that almost blew me off numerous times. The cold temperatures plus windy conditions made for a truly unpredictable ride. When we reached Sloat, we chose to go towards the downtown area of the city to have lunch. After riding through the Castro District and passed AT&T Park, home of the San Francisco Giants baseball team, we stopped off for lunch at a New York style pizza parlor and enjoyed a large pepperoni pizza and Snapple; nothing better. Our ride ended at the Caltrain station at 4th and King where we got on the 2pm train back to Palo Alto.
Stats: Rating: 219
Distance: 80km (10km strong wind)
Elevation Gain: 1000m
Song of the Day: Wonderwall (Oasis)