Thanksgiving Rides

Thanksgiving Day. Mt. Hamilton (photo shot by Stephen Fong), the last ride in the Low-Key Hillclimb series. Oh, I got up the mountain alright -- in a car. A lingering cold prevented me from participating as a rider but not as a volunteer. Next up is the LKHC series party. As I told the event organizer, "Yeah, so, you can climb, but eh, can you party!" For sure, I will take first place. What is always funny each year is whether we are able to recognize one another without our helmets and biking clothes.






Come Friday I was better so I joined friends for an ACTC ride in the Los Gatos hills. It was rather cold with a heavy fog layer. We rode 17 miles including: University --> Shannon -->Hicks West --> Reynolds --> Shannon --> Kennedy --> parking lot.

Above: A short stop on Shannon in Los Gatos vicinity.

Documenting the pain of riding up Reynolds (off Hicks West), a short but steep climb. A good ride to ease me back into cycling after 2 weeks of fighting a cold.

Itsy Bitsy Spider

Saturday, The Boyfriend and I did Hicks (South) again which includes going through New Almaden.

The most exciting part of the ride besides admiring The Boyfriend was the tarantula I spotted in the road. You know it's coming -- yes, the spider probably crawled along Hicks faster than I did. Sigh.

The effect of virtually no rainy season. We could see ducks wading in mud.

He's probably thinking, "Great, I'm stuck with her for the next 7 miles." :)

Men with Muscles

The Boyfriend, another boy cyclist and I biked a loop including Hicks Road (North Side). A description from Western Wheelers:

Distance: 5.1 miles from Camden to Guadalupe Creek1.0 miles from Guadalupe Creek to Mt. Umunhum Rd.
Climbing: 420 feet from Camden to Guadalupe Creek (1.7% avg), 740 feet from Guadalupe Creek to Mt. Umunhum Rd. (14% avg)

My favorite line from the description: "This is tough...." No! Get out of town. You don't say. Actually, the Western Wheelers page is quite helpful.

Biking behind the boys, I had a good 5 miles or so to look at the back of their calves in action. What a nice distraction. Such definition shaped by years of marathon running and cycling. The Boyfriend has very nice thighs. Lovely bulges in all the right places. What can I say -- I have a hot Boyfriend who I adore. Except when he forgets the camera which he did once again.

The men shot off once we hit the beginning of the short but steep climb. I made it up though I did walk part of the way. I came across two deer in the road who darted off upon seeing me (I learned later that The Boyfriend and his friend saw them standing in the road as well).

Deer 1 to Deer 2: Oh my God, it's the chick with the 26 inch legs and puny muscles, run for the hills!

Next weekend I'm on my own (oh oh. Warning, warning, Danger! Danger! Will Robinson) as The Boyfriend is off to do the Death Ride. Boy, I'm sooooo envious. Not. Okay, a little bit. Hill climbs afford incredible views to see the world.

Ummm

It's been awhile since my last post. I have been biking. In fact, one day, I managed to do 72 miles in the Morgan Hill area and of course, I managed to stop at least 72 times as well.

Today, The Boyfriend (who once again forgot the camera) and I decided to tackle Hicks Road from the South side. From the parking lot, before setting sail, he noticed the mountain that you see in this post (image from SummitPost website). He wondered if we would be climbing it. Nah, I said. No way. No doubt you have already figured out that yes indeed, it would be our destination. Had I known, I probably would have gotten right back in the car and gone home to lounge in a chair at my pool, sipping one of those drinks with umbrellas.

We were dazzled by the spectacular scenery on the way to Hicks as well as enjoying the undulating roads. Once on Hicks, The Boyfriend, looking dashing in red, darted up it while I crawled up it slower than a snail. I came upon Sierra Azul preserve and Mt. Umunhum to my left. Sigh, another climb. For details on the climb, see the Western Wheelers page. The Boyfriend had long since left me in the figurative dust but I just knew he had gone to the summit so off I crawled once again. Well, after about a mile, I began to wonder just how far I had to go to get to the top. I began hallucinating about the pool, the handsome young attendant who would serve me the cold drink with the umbrella ... oh, alrighty, it didn't quite happen that way. I turned around hoping The Boyfriend would come looking for me. And sure enough he did to my delight.

We descended Hicks. Boy, it's even steeper on the North side. Naturally, The Boyfriend was already contemplating a return trip to tackle this side. Naturally, I was already contemplating getting out of it, lounging at my pool with the handsome pool attendant.... I tell you, I ought to bring a cell phone next time, call him while I'm climbing and make him listen to me whine and wheeze. He'll probably say, "Sorry wrong number." :)