This very talented and fast bike rider, Janine, organizes this group ride every year from San Jose to Santa Barbara. It is four days of bike riding, approximately 360 miles in total. I say ‘approximately’ because there are variations on mileage each day and you can always get in a sag van to rest.

The logistics for this ride are quite incredible and after 19 years of having it, Janine has it worked out to a science. This year was an all-time record of 54 riders in total. There are three vehicles – one for luggage, two for rest stop food/fuel. There are rest stops every 25 miles or so. About half the riders volunteer to “sag” a vehicle (drive) for one leg. This way, people that want to rest get to rest and the riders all get supported along the way.

Day 1: San Jose to King City, 114 miles

This year, we did the “inland route” – which means we didn’t hit the ocean until day 3. It took me about 6 hours and 20 minutes, but the cool weather, super tail wind, and some very fast drafting in a pace line made for a quicker than usual ride. My upcoming Ironman includes a 112 mile bike and I expect it will take me between 7 and 7.5 hours for that portion.

We landed in King City at Motel 6 (always lovely…not). We had great Mexican food in downtown King City (turns out, the options for dinner in King City are Mexican, Mexican, Mexican, or Taco Bell). Everyone went to bed early to get started by 8am the next morning.

Day 2: King City to San Simeon, 100 miles

This day had less miles, less tail wind, lots of climbing, and I rode solo most of the day. The kicker for this day is the headwind you get on the coast the last several miles. To avoid that, most riders take a detour on the infamous Santa Rosa Creek Rd. It is at least 17% grade, up to 20% in portions. Rather than kill my knees, I walked my bike up much of it. I’m not proud! Going down the other side was just as bad – very rough road, very curvy, and very steep. I’m pretty sure my brakes were on fire, but I’m glad they didn’t fail me. It took me 6 hours for 100 miles and I was pooped. Coach Dave planned an hour long run after. My brother and I ran along the coast. Amazingly, the wind had died down and it was a very pleasant and calm run.

Day 3: San Simeon to San Luis Obispo, 40 miles

Day 3 is always the best. It is a short day for a much needed break. And ending up on SLO is always fun for my brother and I, since we went to college there. I felt a twinge of sore throat in the morning. Concerned about getting sick (aside from having a really sore rear end), I decided to sag the second leg of the day. The first leg of today was a 25 mph speed race down the coast. Some amazingly fast bikers decided they were in a hurry and I did everything I could just to hang on to their wheels. When we got to SLO, we roamed around downtown SLO, reminiscing about all the shops that were the same and raising our eyebrows at all those that have turned over.

By evening, I was sicker than a dog. I felt terrible – coughing and sniffling and just worn out. I took a big dose of Nyquil and was asleep by 8:30. I even missed the group dinner and Indian Jones movie.

Day 4: San Luis Obispo to Santa Barbara, 107 miles

I felt only slightly better on the morning of the 4^th day. But I wanted to get through it to put the mileage on my legs and work on some more “mental toughness” – something I lack. A group of ~20 of us left an hour early and rode to a great breakfast place in Pismo Beach. That took almost an hour and a half, so then we were running pretty late. The 3^rd leg of the day included a 16 mile, very gradual climb. There was a group of 5 of us, working together in a paceline and we stuck together the whole way. We each took turns pulling at the front. Slow going up the hill, but the time went by quickly. Here’s a picture of our group – I’m the 4^th one in line. The reward was fantastic…a nice long downhill. There was too much wind to hit 50 mph (what most riders can hit going down the hill), but I think I was going over 40. (Note: you would never look at your speedometer to check your speed while flying downhill!) As the day wore on, I felt better and better. I rode that cold right out of my system! Okay, maybe not, but I was happy that I made it through the ride.

The group traditions in Santa Barbara are always fun. All new riders have to blow up a swim cap over their heads. Biggest head wins. We always have a group dinner/banquet. The more people drink, the more stories are told and the more people brag. It is quite a sight.

Day 5: Drive home, 294 miles

Our drive home was uneventful, but quick. The rented UHaul with all the gear and bikes showed up just minutes after we arrived. So, I got my stuff and jetted out of there. I was anxious to see Dave and Kevin at home. Then the three of us went to a friend’s house to celebrate my 35^th birthday. I must have eaten 8 plates of food (I think I’m still hungry) and three German chocolate cupcakes. It was all good and fun for such a long day. Kevin got to lick as many beer bottles as he wanted since I was too tired to stop him.

The Ironman is quickly approaching. Just three weeks away from yesterday. The Memorial Day Ride was a perfect bike primer. This past weekend was my last long, tough weekend. I ran 20 miles on Friday, took a rest day on Saturday, and then swam and rode on Sunday. I competed in the .75 and 1.5 mile swim races at Lake Del Valle in Livermore. Then I met up with my brother afterward and rode south toward Mt. Hamilton. We rode up Felter Rd, which is the back side of Sierra Rd (one of the steepest climbs in the bay area). The view from the top was incredible – like we were on the moon! My legs are completely dead tired today, but we start tapering. This weekend will be just a 3 hour ride, an Olympic-distance triathlon on Sunday, and plenty of rest. Rest. Ahhh. Rest.

This weekend was a big EEW! Epic Exercise Weekend. This was my second weekend of epic exercise. I was too tired to blog about the first one, so I’ve included a summary of both weekends here.

Ironman Coeur d’Alene is 64 days away. My training has been going quite well. Other than some creaky knees now and again, I’ve managed to stay injury free (for which I was rather pessimistic). I’ll just give you some highlights from my first EEW and then tell you about this weekend.

My first EEW was March 21 – 23^rd. On Friday, my parents and brother and his family went to Natural Bridges Beach. They took Kevin with them and I rode my bike, the long way, to meet them that afternoon. I headed north to Portola Valley and went up and over Old La Honda. Then I rode out toward the coast on highway 84 to San Gregorio. That is one of the most beautiful stretches of road. I turned left on highway 1 and rode down the coast. I hit Davenport at mile 70 and was at a real low point. I called Dave to whine a little. But I had perfect weather, a view of the ocean, and was out riding my bike on a Friday. Dave was in his cubicle, staring at his computer. He wasn’t terribly sympathetic. J I turned left on Bonny Doon Rd and rode some steep sections on Smith and Empire Grades. I saw a few signs like this one:

Finally, I got to go downhill and meet my family at the beach. It was a total of 85 miles with over 6000 feet of climbing. I was pleased with how good I felt at the end.

The next day, Saturday, Laura and my brother and I went for a 65 mile ride in the east bay. We did a bit of climbing and rode by Calaveras Reservoir – another very beautiful stretch of California road. We got lost for a while in Milpitas and added an unnecessary 6 miles onto our route, including a lot of crappy roads and city traffic.

Finally, I ended my epic weekend on Easter Sunday with a 10 mile run. The tiredness really set in about halfway through and it was everything I could do to keep from walking. I averaged a 9:00/mile pace, but was going pretty slow by the end.

A nice easy swim on Monday was about all I could muster.

My second EEW was this weekend. My brother and I did the Tierra Bella Century ride, starting at Gavilan College in Gilroy. It was unbelievably cold at the start, with pretty brisk winds. It was hard to get motivated, since riding the bike only causes more cold winds in your face!

We rode north past the Uvas and Calero Reservoirs. Then we headed east. Around mile 40, we started up a 10 mile climb to Henry Coe State Park. There were some tough, steep sections and the climb seemed to last forever. But for the first time on the ride, I was finally warm enough to take off my jacket! We turned around at the top and came back down and headed south, then east again to the Gilroy Hot Springs. I started whining at mile 70, but then got a second wind 10 miles later. My brother was waning around mile 76. But we saw lots of different people all day, and it was fun to ride alongside for a bit to catch up, hear stories, and get motivated again. The bike lanes were lacking for most of the ride, so we rode single file almost 100% of the time. There were even police cars requesting that riders go single file – the safest option anyway. Other than the 10 mile climb, the ride was pretty flat. Florida flat. Long, straight stretches where you could hunker down in the aerobars and just go like a hamster.

After the ride was over, we switched to our running shoes and caps and went for a 15 minute jog/run. The first 5 minutes felt awful, but after that, our legs forgot that we had been biking for the last 6.5 hours and it felt easier.

The support for this ride was fantastic. They had over 200 volunteers directing traffic, parking, and helping out at aid stations. The aid stations had plenty of food, with quite a variety – hot soup, salted red potatoes, pretzels, fruit, and all the common sugary stuff like cookies, brownies, etc. At the finish line, several Mexican food buffets served enchiladas, rice, beans, and salad. I was “practicing” my Ironman nutrition – seeing if I could drink 350 calories per hour, so I skipped most of the rest stop food. My brother said his PB&J sandwich tasted really good!

After a very, very long day, I got home and made two egg casseroles in preparation for our second annual Great Race brunch. The final stage of my 2^nd EEW was a 12 mile run (on Sunday). Seven of us met at our house at 8am and ran to downtown Saratoga for the start of the Great Race run. The race was 4 miles one direction to downtown Los Gatos. At the finish line, I turned around and ran 6 miles home. Stephanie joined me and we gossiped all the way home – which turned out to be mostly uphill!

John was the top finisher of our group with 9^th place overall (out of 1454). Fred got 10^th. Eduard was the first finisher of our “Dads on Parade” (the fathers running with baby joggers) with a 5:55/mile (!!) and ended 26^th overall. Derek, another baby jogger pusher, is “featured” in the Los Gatos online paper for his 45^th place finish. Dave finished 56th, giving Kevin his first blue finisher’s ribbon. Stephanie ran sub-8 minute miles, and I was happy with my sub-9:00/mile pace (which I held for all 12 miles).

We had 20+ people for brunch after. Our newly landscaped backyard was perfect for the party – lots of patio space, BBQ counter space, and hot tub space! Everyone rehashed the day, ate lots of food, and was entertained by all the kids. We are lucky to have such great friends with which to spend time!

This past week many sports celebrities headed into town for the Tour of California which starts Sunday in downtown Palo Alto and ends at the quad at Stanford University.

We were fortunate enough to have babysitters for two nights this week so that we could go shmooze with the celebrities.
On Wednesday night we went to see Phil Liggett “the voice of the Tour de France”. He had lots of great stories to tell about his years covering the tour and professional cycling in general. He has entertained us over the years with comments like “he’s in a spot of bother” when describing a rider trying to summit a big climb Kevin begged his Mom to get a picture with Phil!

The evening with Phil was at a local Los Gatos winery located on the site of a historic Jesuit Novitiate It was a very cool venue high up on the hills behind Los Gatos.

Friday night, thanks to our local triathlon club and one our club members, Carl Guardino we got to see Ironman World Champion Chris McCormack do a radio show at a local station. Here is a link to where you can hear a repeat of the radio show. My question to Chris is 45:20 into the interview.

We heard how he got started in triathlon, quitting his job as an accountant in downtown Sydney to become a full time athlete. We heard about the dinner conversation that evening when he told his parents he was quitting his job to become a triathlete We learned that if they ever make a movie of his life, he wants Johnny Depp to play his part! It was a great interview and the audience really enjoyed being able to ask questions about his racing career and his training regimen.

Afterwards Macca was nice enough to pose with the triathlon club for a group photo.

A quick update. Below are some picturs from the Prologue stage of the Tour of California in Palo Alto.

Last night, Heather and I were invited to the grand opening of my triathlon coach’s new cycling facility in San Francisco. We took the opportunity to eat a nice dinner in the city at Betelnut and then went to the new indoor cycling facility. The big draw of the evening was last year’s Tour de France winner, Floyd Landis.

Floyd joined a group in a spin class and then sat down for a Q&A with my triathlon coach, Michael McCormack. They talked a lot about last years tour and how the press said he didn’t have “panache”. He said he tried to make up for that with Stage 17, the day he broke away from everyone! He also said that “It’s not my hip that’s currently preventing me from racing”.

Overall, it was a very fun start to the weekend!

Now that we are expecting Baby LeRoy in September, Dave has been kicked out of the upstairs bike room and has been relegated to the basement. That may sound harsh, but we’ve fixed up the basement to be quite the hip place! Dave painted the basement room walls a warm brown color.

We bought a small blue love seat and a flat-panel LCD television.

At some point in the future, we’ll build a wine rack and some shelves for the stereo components. The rug Dave bought in Morocco many years ago fits right in, and the computrainer is hooked up and ready to use.

In order to get cable television into the basement, Dave undertook a hideous job of running coax cable from the attic above the garage to underneath the house. We spent about 15 total hours getting this cable routed to the right place. Dave was under the house and in the attic every day for about a week. We ran into all sorts of problems. With such tall ceilings, there isn’t much room in the attic. And the house has big cement barracades underneath, which make it challenging too. We now have the coax cable prepared and sitting behind the basement wall, ready to plug into the television. BUT, we have to drill a hole through the 9″ thick cement wall to get the cable through. Between Dave and my Dad, they have spent at least two hours solid of drilling with an electric drill, slowly chipping away. Every once in a while, they’d hit a rock in the cement, and

all progress would stop. As of tonight, they have drilled 5″ into the 9″ wall. Ugh – a long way to go. Is this what it’s like to try and chip your way out of prison with a hammer and a chisel? The stairs leading down into the basement have a skylight, which is 20 feet up from the stairs. We decided not to risk it, and hired someone to paint that part. We plan to line the walls of the stairway with triathlon race photos and medals (mostly Dave’s, but I have a few too!).