Lazy Sunday’s are meant to be lazy, right? I had raced the day before, and wanted to make use of my Sunday by going out for a leisurely stroll around the city. It was anything but leisurely. I faced a headwind that seemed to follow me in every direction. I wanted to slow my pace and get in a bit of recovery, but the wind just kept pounding me mile for mile. I won’t give in! I needed to clock in a couple more hours anyway, considering most of my week was spent recovering from the last race. It turned out to be a gorgeous day in San Francisco. (more…)
Mountain biking in San Francisco. You’ve got the trails around Mt. Sutro, a few trails in Golden Gate Park and the trails of McLaren Park. It’s not bad considering the city is 7 x 7 miles. This doesn’t count the illegal trails of Mt. San Bruno, which I have yet to explore. For a quick dirt fix I’ll hit up any one of the three parks if I’m pressed for time. In the photo above I’m overlooking Mt. San Bruno from the east end of McLaren Park. I just started riding the trails here, and only got to do the lower half of the park before having to head to work.
It’s fun exploring new neighborhoods, especially one’s you normally wouldn’t during the daytime or evening. I did an easy recovery ride around Hunter’s Point and up into McLaren Park, exploring industrial streets and some sweet single track. I woke up before 6 am with the plan of sleeping in a bit, catching the lunch ride in the afternoon, which I did as well. My legs are feeling a bit better, but not at 100%. By lunch time I was feeling punchier, and managed to hang with the fast group on the Wednesday’s Bailey loop. Tomorrow and Friday I plan on tapering off my efforts in preparation for the Sonoma Lake race.
After finally cleaning my bike from a month’s worth of built up dirt and sweat I took the trails of McLaren Park after work. The sun was setting so I didn’t have much time to fully explore the trails. They reminded me a lot of China Camp in terms of terrain, lots of dusted hard-pack single track.
It’s only a few miles from our new place in Dogpatch, Mount San Bruno being the other new personal playground. I explored maybe a fraction of the available dirt, coming across a small pump track towards the middle of the park.
It’s nice to know that I have a few good options, both mountain and road, considering I’m pressed for time. I do miss being close to the Marin Headlands, but it’s been a nice mental break getting to know a new part of the city.
We had a solid crew going out to Mt. Tam and back via Peter’s Headland Heifer route. We had a couple new faces join us, mixing it up. I suffered like a dog, having ridden to work the day before, and not getting enough rest or sleep, but I stuck it out and made it the whole way. (more…)
Did a big ride with my friend Musa this morning, 65 miles of dirt to the top of Mt. Tam and back. It was gorgeous weather all day long. I’m loving how my rides out to Tam have become my regular weekend ride, whereas earlier in the year I’d consider it a rather epic ride. I’m so used to putting in the long miles and lots of climbing, which is good, especially with the Leadville qualifier in Tahoe and the Leadville 100 not too far away.
On our way back I ran into my friend Steve, who happens to own an Open as well. He finally got his built up after months of piecing it together. Today was the maiden voyage of his super colorful beast of a bike. Go team Open!
I see this every day as I enter the office. It’s a memorial to Burry Stander, World Cup XC racer who lost his life in a car accident not too long ago while out on a training ride. So much respect for his talent. It’s a great reminder to value those you love as well as what you love.
With my new schedule comes a lot of changes, especially with my regular training rides. The one I don’t want to give up is thankfully conveniently placed in route to work. I got up earlier than usual to make sure that I had enough time to load up the car and drive over to the bride by 6:15am. I even had 20 minutes to spare. I rode with Brian and Jon this morning and put in a good effort all the way through, however my body was still feeling weak after an epic day last Saturday as well as doing an intense lunch ride the day before. (more…)
Had an amazing ride with some new guys up to the top of Mt. Tam and back via dirt. We rode over 50 miles and climbed over 8000′ by the end of the day. We ducked in and out of fog before climbing our way into the hot sun facing the west side of Mt. Tam. Musa and Drew put the hammer down in a number of sections, drilling me into the ground at some points. It was great to ride with fast people. I even came out of it with a few personal records going downhill along Dias Ridge. (more…)
It’s been a while since I’ve ridden out in China Camp. I had to bring my car in for an emissions check to our dealer out in Marin, so I decided to throw in a quick spin around the park to help get my legs back. It was a beautiful day in San Rafael, and hardly anyone out in the park.