The weather report said it would be 78 today; finally, a ride without leg warmers, without a base layer, and without toe warmers. Just what the doctor ordered, literally. I’m supposed to avoid riding when it’s really cold due to my Raynauds (a circulatory condition that cuts

blood flow to fingers and toes when cold) getting a bit out of control this year, so much so that I ended up with chillblains that became blisters that became infected open wounds on three fingers. Actually just two that became infected; one resolved by itself. The main effect it had on my ride was from the infection kicking up my white blood cell count enough that I had to go on some serious antibiotics (doxycycline) after the less-serious stuff (Keflex) didn’t do the job.

In the end, I don’t think it affected my riding all that much, especially since it was warm and the infection finally seems to be lessening. Kevin and Colin were with me, along with hundred of other cyclists out enjoying the day. Kevin and Colin got to have a bit of fun on Old LaHonda while I straggled in a minute and a half later; I was honestly surprised to get 24-something, thinking 26 would be more like it. I was having trouble breathing, trouble getting my heart rate to respond (it was initially staying too low, possibly from the antibiotic?) and just not feeling wonderful. But I got there.

Today’s ride was the usual Sunday route; Old LaHonda, Haskins, Pescadero, Tunitas. Passing by the Duck Pond in LaHonda there were just as many turtles as last week. A lot! Plus an unidentified black bird that looked like a small crane.

Haskins. It’s been a couple months since I’ve “owned” Haskins, and it looks like it will be at least a few weeks more. Kevin and Colin once again rode on ahead, although I managed to claw my way almost back to them by the top.

Pescadero- Not too busy at the bakery so we were able to go for the usual; Kevin and I splitting a chicken club sandwich (which, for the first time, had more than a hint of garlic), a large cookie for Kevin (which have gone way up in price; from $2.75 to $5) and chocolate pastry thing for me (still at the usual $3 price). Plus a coke each, of course. Colin got coffee down the street and a pastry I think? He self-fuels himself for the most part, carrying food with him.

Winds were mild or favorable but leaving Pescadero it got a fair amount colder as the fog moved in. No view of the ocean at all, just fog. Nice tailwind on the lower flanks of Tunitas, not that we’d ever admit to that, but we weren’t going for time. Kevin made that a certain thing with a stop just prior to where the real climb starts, thinking he was having a seizure (but it didn’t go beyond the “aura” stage, so he was quickly back up and running).

I wasn’t sure how I was going to do on Tunitas but it came as quite a surprise when Kevin hit the afterburners and literally flew away from me. I’ve actually got it on video and it’s quite impressive. I wasn’t going slow at the time; he was going FAST. He did get his best time ever for what Strava calls the “steep” section but missed the all-important “Hammer of Thor” PR because he imploded before it finished. Yeah, well, his version of an implosion is still a minute faster than my Strava best. I wondered it I’d see him before the end of Tunitas but saw him much sooner than expected, after the climb leveled out, because he had a real seizure and had to lie down for a few minutes until it passed.

Overall I’m pretty happy with the ride; my average weighted power was up at 201 watts which, for me, is respectable.

San Leandro? Really? That’s the closest place Kevin could be vaccinated by Kaiser, at 10:20am. Ironically, it’s the same time that my wife also secured a vaccination slot, also at Kaiser, but at the South San Francisco location.

The original plan was to drive to San Leandro, get vaccinated, then do a ride in that area, maybe Mt Diablo. But I generally try to avoid driving if possible, and thought maybe it was time to try a hybrid ride that included public transit. Could that be done?

So late last night I went over BART schedules and Strava estimates for how long it would take (by bike) to get from home (in Redwood City) to the nearest BART station (Union City). And it looked workable. BART leaves Union City at 9:34am, arriving in San Leandro, about 2.5 miles from Kaiser, about 20 minutes later. Should work. And, it did.

We left home about 7:40am and made it to BART with 15 minutes to spare. Of course, we used up 10 or so of those minutes just trying to figure out how to buy Clipper passes on their new machines, but hey, it worked. I’d by lying to say it was a lot of fun riding the approaches to the Dumbarton Bridge, as well as the bridge itself. It’s a real mess navigating the maze around Facebook, and the pavement in places is awful. And we had that coming and going!

The vaccination went without a hitch. The return ride though… a bit of a mess at first. I didn’t have time last night to really go over the route Strava was suggesting, so I didn’t trust a few turns and went rogue, making things up a bit as we rode along, in an area I really didn’t know my way around. But, you could see the hills, you knew about where you needed to get, so what could go wrong, right? And nothing really did go wrong, although the main drag we ended up riding was one red light after another.

We did find a pretty nice coffee place a few miles prior to climbing Palomares, where we had, naturally enough, coffee and bagel sandwiches. Fuel for the Palomares climb. Most interesting thing about Palomares are the amazing homes along the way. Definitely worth checking out, as opposed to just treating the climb itself as the main event.

Too bad Palomares doesn’t last; it gets pretty old riding those endless trails along the riverbanks through Fremont to the Dumbarton approach. Normally you’d think, great, get off the main roads, enjoy a peaceful experience for a while. But you can get too much of a good thing, and it sure felt like that after a while. But eventually you’re back on the Dumbarton approach and wishing, with its horrible pavement, you could be someplace else. Almost anyplace else!

Got home before 3pm, about 72 miles total, which I think is the longest ride in some time, for both of us. Just nowhere near enough climbing, a bit too much wind, and missed the smoother pavement on this side of the bay.