John Aylward Photography

Today’s Highlights:
We started our day with a group picture, all wearing our new jerseys. Eighteen riders left together at 7:00 and rode in a group for the first several miles before going off at our own paces. The temperature started out around 50, and a steep one mile hill warmed us up early as we traveled west to reach the Pacific ocean. Once near the shore, the temp dropped to 45 and a thick fog made it quite chilly. We stopped briefly to document our departure from this coastline. Then turning away from the shore, we climbed the hilly San Francisco streets and worked our way up to the Golden Gate bridge. It’s a magnificent site and we were lucky to have a beautiful clear sky this morning for a clear view of the bridge and bay. Apparently, the west side of the bridge was open only to bikers. Traffic was light which made it very easy to cycle across and also stop for pictures. On the north end of the bridge we rode through the beautiful town of Sausalito. I made a stop at the Renovo Bike showroom. They make awesome looking wooden bikes, and it was a nice treat to see them on the first day of this cycling adventure. The remainder of the day had very comfortable weather.

Our cue sheet had four pages of instructions today, requiring a lot of navigation. This slowed down our normal average speed a little. Plus some of us did bonus miles by overshooting a few turns. Much of the middle of the ride was through small towns without any notable scenery. The last 20 miles or so skirted the north side of San Pablo Bay. A strong cross wind came off the bay which added a lot more work to our travel. We were on highway 37 which had a lot of fast traffic and a messy shoulder. It wasn’t too pleasant, but there were some nice views of farm and ranch land.

I rode part of the day with Ken and my roommate Bud, and with Andy, or alone. Generally, we were far ahead of the rest of the group. I was the third person to reach the hotel today. I guess my training paid off. I’m ready to do it again tomorrow.

Day 01

Statistics: Zoom and pan the map to explore the route.

Time: 6/2/2013, 6:53:39

Duration: 07:55:21

Ascent/Descent: 3509 ft 3475 ft

Distance: 74.45 M

Today’s Highlights:
I arrived in Burlingame, south of San Francisco, in the wee hours Friday morning. Later that afternoon I went through registration with the crew, reassembled my bike and organized my gear. About half the riders had arrived and the remaining came in today. There are only 13 people who will be riding all the way from California to Maine. Several others are signed up for smaller sections, so at most we will have 18 riders on any given day. There is a crew of four providing support.

I took a short ride this morning to make sure everything was working properly. A father-son team, Tom and Tommy, from Colorado joined me. We rode the Bayshore Path along the southwest shore of San Francisco Bay down to the San Mateo Bridge. The round trip was an easy 15 miles. It was a beautiful calm morning with a bright blue sky and comfortable temperature, and we enjoyed the sites along the way.

In the afternoon the entire group met for orientation and an overview of tomorrow’s route. Then it was off to a Mexican dinner. My roommate, Bud, arrived today. A very cool guy and very experienced rider.

Our message board highlights tomorrow’s schedule. Breakfast at 5:00 am, load the luggage truck at 6:30 am, start riding at 7:00. Now that’s my kind of vacation!

Pictures Of The Day: Click any thumbnail to see the photos in full screen mode.

Day 00

Statistics: Zoom and pan the map to explore the route.

Time: 6/1/2013, 7:07:50

Duration: 01:19:46

Ascent/Descent: 35 ft 43 ft

Distance: 14.40 M