I headed over to Oakland today to have a little adventure with T. Dibbs. We were living in fear of getting soaked, but the rain held off and I had one of the best rides I've had since... well, Pine Flat was pretty awesome, so lets just say it was easily in this season's top five. I've never climbed Mt. Diablo before and everyone has been giving me a lot of crap for that. I keep trying to explain that I've been riding on the Peninsula for years and the idea that you'd have to drive to ride is just complete nonsense.
So I felt a little stupid dragging myself out of bed at 6:30 this morning to drive to Oakland, but it was well worth it. The climb itself is just shy of an hour (50 minutes if you're lighter than I am), which is pretty much unheard of in the bay area. I kept seeing signs marking every 1000 vertical feet and they just kept coming, though not quickly enough for my liking. Having become accustomed to the riding around Davis, it was a real treat to be able to bang away on a climb for almost an hour. No, I never thought I'd say that either.
It was so cold on the descent my mouth went numb and I couldn't speak clearly, much to Tyler's amusement, but aside from that the whole ride was just a gift. I went to spin an extra half hour and by the time I got back to Tyler's place there was a big bowl of spaghetti and meatballs waiting for me. Awesome ride + meatballs + Amy's insane homemade cookies = happy, happy, Ryan.
I did get stuck in a wee bit of traffic on the way back to Davis, which wouldn't have been that bad except the old Windstar has a short circuit. The car thinks the doors are open all the time and if its traveling less than 20 MPH it bings like crazy! I get pissed enough with traffic alone, but when you toss in an incessant, deafening binging to remind me that I'm stuck in traffic its almost unbearable. I seriously considered pulling to the side of the road and using a rock to find the source. So its more my transportation than Peninsula snobbery, but I just can't help it: I feel like a chump driving to ride.
1 comment:
Ryan, great blog! I have never climbed Mt Diablo, despite all those years of riding around the Bay Area. Someone should arrange a Tour de Classics -- a series of classic rides around the Bay Area that every Bay Area rider should do. (And that person should wait until I"m in the states to do it - ha!) Great to see you livin' the dream, and thanks for linking to my humble blog.
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