Somewhere in San Jose

It was a dark and stormy ... no way Jose which is why I joined an ACTC ride today after lots of encouragement from my friend P to haul my tushy out of bed and into the saddle.

We started at the Berryessa Community Center with a route that had us meandering through San Jose neighborhoods at a speedy pace (and difficult for me to maintain), making our way over to climb Metcalf. The route included Yerba Buena Road, pictured above and below.




Yay yay yay, a stop. Boo boo boo, time to move on. Nice gang!






Shared details about Graham Baxter and Agile Compass tours with the man who took my photo.





Sigh, the gang exhausted me and I found myself having to walk up a good part of Metcalf. A guy in a pick up truck stopped to check on me. Such chivalry. Then again, it made me wonder how pathetic I must look for strangers to want to stop. Next, a guy on his motorcycle simply stopped and stared at me for a minute or two. Hmm, maybe I looked cute not pathetic?

One of the male cyclists came to fetch me and got me motivated to get back on the bike and finish the climb. He shared his tales about doing the Livestrong tour. What a nice guy.

In the end, we did 40 miles. Max speed 34 mph on one descent. My avg. speed of course plummeted from walking up Metcalf so we'll just skip that one. I enjoyed the ride and it was fun to bike with a group though I was mostly in the back and the last to finish. Shades of LKHC, eh.

Metcalf Loop

The telephone rings. It's The Boyfriend skyping me from another continent.

BF: Whatcha doing?
Me: Reading.
BF: Proust? Hegel? Aristotle?
Me: Bad Girls: 26 Writers Misbehave. They forgot to include me.
BF: Sigh.
Me: I'm going to do a bike ride today and then it's "Men in tights, men in tights!"
BF: Try to behave at the ballet.
Me: Oh, I'll behave alright. I'll be on my best bad behavior.
BF: I'm hanging up now.




I did a 20 mile loop beginning at Metcalf but not up Metcalf. I biked on roads that were uphill or undulating for the most part, starting with Basking Ridge/Hellyer. Exact route: Hellyer -> Silver Creek -> Farnsworth -> San Felipe -> Metcalf and some other road as well.





Silver Creek above and below.




Quite a pretty ride. Below is Metcalf.




And Metcalf again.

Took me 1 hr 56 minutes with an average speed of 10 mph and max. speed of 28 mph. I know, not exactly going to break any records. I'm going to enjoy the Spanish bullfighter tonight but I do miss my knight in shining spandex and wish that he could have gone on this ride with me.

Up next, the last of the LKHC for this year-- Mt. Hamilton on Thanksgiving Day.

Metcalf Low-Key Hillclimbs Week 7

Metcalf Mission (otherwise known as Week 7 of the Low Key Hillclimbs series)

Opening Scene: Covert Ops

Tuesday was spent doing recon about the climb. While only 1.8 miles, I stopped 3 times to do: 1) intelligence gathering (would I or would I not get up Metcalf?) and 2) to contemplate life (whine, cry, rant, rave, sweat). Having accomplished #2, I would say the mission was successful.

Saturday morning: The Boyfriend skypes me from another continent.

He: Bear Gulch was the last time for me to score for this year's series.

Me: But not for me!

He: You're not talking about biking, are you.

Me: I refuse to answer on the grounds that it might incriminate me.

He: Sigh. Listen Missy, your mission should you accept it, is to get up the hill without stopping.

Me: Yes Sir!

Showtime: Mission (Im)possible

Volunteer: Name?

Me: Agent 99.

Volunteer: Let's try it again.

Me: Holmes, Christine Holmes.

Volunteer: Number?

Me: Double 0 27 and remember Mister, I like my gatorade stirred not shaken.

Volunteer: I bet your boyfriend sighs a lot, doesn't he.

Me at the top. Mission accomplished. Yes, I got up Metcalf without stopping by staring at the asphalt almost the entire time and let me tell you what a picnic that was.... Several of us continued on Metcalf, descending into beautiful countryside. I think I may do this ride again tomorrow but in reverse making it even tougher because you know, I just can't get enough.

I wish The Boyfriend had been with me on the ride.