Date: Saturday, April 2
Meet time: 8:00 a.m.
Ride-out time: 8:30 a.m.
Meeting place: Three blocks west of the Mountain View Caltrain and VTA station, in the overflow parking lot at the corner of Evelyn Avenue and Franklin Street. (map)
City: Mountain View
Rain policy: Heavy rain cancels
Category: 3 - moderate-fast pace (12-15 mph)
Terrain: 3 - rolling hills with some steep climbs
Miles: 89
Description:
A new training route for 2011!
The first 33 miles of this ride are easy and flat as we head through Palo Alto, across the Dumbarton Bridge, and into Hayward. But then, get ready ... we're going to school!
Yes, really: We're going to climb through the Cal State East Bay Hayward campus on the route of last autumn's Seismic Challenge. If you were there or know somebody who was, then you already know that this hill (on the appropriately-named "Harder Road") is quite steep, and that's putting it mildly. But the views of the bay are nothing short of amazing. Once we reach campus, we're not done; we'll keep on climbing, all the way to the top of the hills at about 1,200 feet elevation. And because we climb, we must also descend ... down the thrilling Five Canyons Parkway into Castro Valley.
But wait, there's more. Next, we'll climb to the top of the Dublin Grade, but in the kinder, gentler direction. From there, it's a comparatively easy ride through Dublin and Pleasanton into Sunol and down Niles Canyon. There, our final climb awaits: the gradual ascent to the historic Mission San Jose district of Fremont, where we'll have the last of four rest stops before heading through Milpitas, San Jose, Santa Clara, and Sunnyvale on our way back to Mountain View.
Our outstanding volunteer ride leaders and SAG drivers will be on hand to help you succeed. Total climbing for the day is about 2,900 feet, but almost all of that is packed into the middle 35 miles of the ride.
Leaders: Chris Thomas, Kathy Sherman, Thomas Fortin, Bob Katz, Amir Barzin, Paul Vargas, Linda Kemmer, David Gaus, Randy Files
RSVPs are requested but not required. 