Yes, as Kevin and I passed the Flamingo House (or what’s left of it, as there are only a couple of Flamingos remaining) on yesterday’s traditional Sunday romp (Old LaHonda/Pescadero/Tunitas) we saw that it was for sale. And such a deal, just $899k!!! Looks like one of the few properties that hasn’t massively appreciated since being purchased though; in 2005, the current owners bought it for $765k in 2005. An appreciation of just 17% in 13 years, a time in which most properties likely gone up 100%? I blame it on the removal of the Flamingos. Nobody ever did a Flamingo census, far as I know, but estimates suggest that they peaked at around 200. So aggressive they were often seen down in the creek, possibly feasting on Alligator carcasses? There’s got to be a reason we’ve never seen Alligators in that creek.

Ride details- Kevin was feeling like he was going to throw up when climbing Old LaHonda, not because he was riding hard, just because he wasn’t feeling well. Wish I could climb Old LaHonda in just over 20 minutes on a day I felt sick! I arrived at the top about 2.5 minutes later; there’s definitely an issue for me needing more time to warm up, while Kevin can just go from the gun. West Old LaHonda still has quite a bit of gravel so don’t think about descending it too quickly, but it’s safe on a normal road bike. Just check your tires for nicks & cuts afterward. We did see a guy climbing West Old LaHonda pretty quickly and smiling, which got me to thinking he must be on an e-bike. Kevin confirmed that was the case. West Old LaHonda is getting a lot of e-bike sightings these days!

Haskins? Kevin was pushing, and I was holding on fairly well, although I was coming close to falling off just prior to the top. It took a lot to hang on, but I knew, if I could just hold on another 100 meters or so, Kevin would slack off a bit, and sure enough, he did. My Strava time of 9:40 for that segment is my fastest since 2015 so I’m good with that. For reasons I don’t quite get, Haskins and Stage remain the two climbs where I can still keep up with Kevin and, once in a blue moon, do a tiny bit better. Probably because, if Kevin’s having a bad day, he wears it on his sleeve. If I’m having a bad day, I just push through until I’m dead. And I’m not dead yet.

Pescadero- much busier than we expected! Likely due to the Pumpkin Festival in Half Moon Bay. And… no acceptable cookies. Kevin’s not a fan of the white chocolate & cranberry, the only type available, but settled for a Raspberry Crescent which, he said, is the pastry he chose on his first stop in Pescadero quite some time ago. Out of Coke too (unless you count Diet Coke, which we don’t).

Stage Road was breezy but not rudely so, despite early flags suggesting otherwise. Tunitas? We took it pretty easy on the run-in to the base, but I pushed pretty hard on the infamous “Hammer of Thor” section. I was just barely able to keep Kevin in sight at the end, and finished about a minute behind him. Had I known I was that close, I might have buried myself trying to catch him. Darn!

The good news is that, once over Haskins, Kevin felt like his regular self again, even telling me how much he hated the fact that Dad was right, again, how after you start riding for a bit, things do get better. Still works that way for me.