93.2 miles, 8:20 minutes of moving time (about 10 hours total time out), and 8,134 ft of climbing. Not too shabby! I really want to shoot for a 100 mile ride now, and the ultimate adventure will be 1 wheel, 10 hours, 100 miles, 10000\u2019 of climbing. It would be insane, but we have to have goals!\u00a0<\/p>\n
I feel like I\u2019m currently in \u201cmedium\u201d shape, working up to \u201cgood\u201d shape for this years UNICON in San Sebastian, Spain. I pretty accurately remember how I was feeling at various points on the ride, and I\u2019m finally going to write about it before it fades from my memory.<\/p>\n
From my house, there is a long steady up along Summit Rd, which turns into Highway 35 (Skyline Blvd)\u2026and then it gradually just keeps climbing until I hit Castle Rock state park. After that point, it is some downhill until the top of Highway 9. Along the way, I was munching a little bit of food to keep me going; mainly dried pineapples and some nuts. I recall taking a break after the first hour of riding, which is shortly after I passed Black Road, and then again at the parking lot at the top of Highway 9 where it intersects with Highway 35. I was trying to pace myself and get the cycle meter to average 10mph; that way I could shoot for 100 miles in 10 hours of riding. It was difficult to do with all the uphill, and I was averaging about 9 or so at that point.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After I passed 9 I started to question if I\u2019d be able to do the entire loop; my legs weren\u2019t feeling all that great after 20-30 miles, and it was going to be really hard to do the entire thing. But I kept going, and stopped at the Palo Alto city side to take one of the few pictures I captured:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0![\"IMG](\"http:\/\/www.corbinstreehouse.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/IMG_6379.jpg\" "\\"IMG_6379.jpg\\"")
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I was originally thinking of going all the way to La Honda (84), but once I hit the top of Alpine Rd I saw a few bikers and asked them if it went down to the Ocean. They said it did, and that it was really an awesome way to go. I was sort of wanting to take some sort of short cut at the point. My legs were doing okay (but not great), but I knew I wasn\u2019t even at the half way point.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m so glad I went down Alpine! I\u2019ve never been down the road before, and it was amazing. The long downhill was pretty tiring though, as I had to keep spinning. I was passed by a group of bikers once I got to 84; they commented about how I was crazy. Little did they know how far into the ride I was!<\/p>\n
84\/La Honda was tough. It was mostly downhill, and I stopped every hour to rest a short bit and eat some food. I brought an Avocado for high fat\/energy \u2014 I\u2019m not sure that was the best food choice. Shortly after I stopped I saw a small store\/food place in San Gregorio. At this point I was seriously questioning the sanity of what I was doing, and what I would do to get home if I couldn\u2019t make it. I was starting to dread the possible hills along Highway 1 back home. I pulled in and got an expensive drip coffee and chocolate bar. I gulped the coffee down, rested a bit, and headed back on the road, feeling super re-energized and back to being strong again (coffee!!).\u00a0<\/p>\n
I hit highway 1 and started heading south. The coffee and food was kicking in, and I pounded up the ~8% grade hills with no trouble at all. The scenery was amazing along the coast, and it was an incredibly beautiful day!<\/p>\n
I stopped every hour or so to just rest my bum, and re-energize. It was tough, and I was leaning over the uni handlebar and just pounding away at the pedals at a slowish speed. I passed by Ano Nuevo and thought about the elephant seals.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At this point, I was looking forward to hitting Davenport. I hadn\u2019t ridden this part of 1 before, and there were a lot more ups than I expected, making it difficult. But past Davenport and to \u00a0Santa Cruz I\u2019ve ridden a lot, and knew I could make it. So, once I hit Davenport I pulled into the cafe and got an espresso and piece of pie. It was lovely! The food and caffeine kicked me awake again, and I started pedaling towards town.<\/p>\n
I hit Santa Cruz in no time at all; still riding not super fast, but not super slow either. I thought about the easiest way home\u2026and figured I\u2019d do the short hill climb up Graham Hill Rd until it hit Felton. I had to take a break going up the largest climb\u2026and motivate myself to keep going. Once I was at Felton I knew home was in reach and started cruising up the back roads to my house.<\/p>\n
At this point, my legs were done. I had to walk some of the steep bumpy back roads. I could have forced myself to ride, but I was nervous that I would be tearing up my leg tissue. In the end, I think I would have been fine, as my legs weren\u2019t ever really super sore during the next few days. More \u201ctired\u201d than anything else.<\/p>\n
The ride was tough, but I made it!<\/p>\n
Four days later, I did the 20 miles to work one morning for \u201cunicycle to work day\u201d and 20 miles back! Ultimate training. Unfortunately I\u2019ve slacked off the past week and a half and need to get in the habit of doing some more longer rides again.<\/p>\n
\u00a0Here\u2019s an overview screen shot from Strava:<\/p>\n
![\"Screen](\"http:\/\/www.corbinstreehouse.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Screen-Shot-2016-05-16-at-7.46.00-PM.png\" "\\"Screen")
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