I had a great time today putting in some miles on my road bike, heading up to Fairfax, down to Alpine Lake, up to the Seven Sisters and down the front side of Mt Tam. I rode close to 60 miles with nearly 5,000' of climbing. Being the last weekend of solid riding I wanted to make sure I put in enough hours and miles before I head out to Colorado.
I started rather late in the afternoon, so I didn't come across to many riders on my way around Alpine Lake and up to the Seven Sisters climb. I was feeling pretty tired having ridden hard on Saturday, but I managed to put in a really good time overall for the entirety of the loop, starting and ending at the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge.
The Seven Sisters climb is by far one of the hardest and most beautiful sections of road in the Bay Area. It overlooks the Pacific Ocean to one side and Mill Valley to the other before dropping down the south-facing side of Mt. Tam.
The view coming down will never get old. From the top I can see the city and neighborhood we live in. The descent is super fast. I hit 40mph in some sections, but wasn't fully comfortable carving into some of the curves. The road surface had this smooth and shiny quality I wasn't sure if I could lean into them or wash out completely.
On my way back I was feeling it in my legs, barely being able to turn the cranks over. I ran out of water and food, but as soon as I felt the cold bay air I was re-energized. I even sprinted a few times with a fellow rider on my way into Golden Gate Park.
I'm feeling really good coming into my last week of preparation at sea-level. I've done all the training I could do in terms of fitness. The next test will be acclimating to high elevation while conserving my energy before the big day.