Date: Sunday, December 8Meet time: 9:30 a.m.
Ride-out time: 10:00 a.m.
Meeting place: Parking lot at Villa and Franklin streets, Mountain View (across from the Tied House) (map)
City: Mountain View
Rain policy: Heavy rain cancels
Category: 2 - moderate pace (10-12 mph)
Terrain: 3 - rolling hills with some steep climbs
Miles: 32
Description:
Our third prelude ride begins with a trip to Foothill College and the little climb up Taaffe Road, which might not hurt as bad because we're doing it at the beginning of the day. (Route through Los Altos Hills is subject to change, depending on the status of a major water main project.) After that, we'll take an easy ride to our rest stop in Menlo Park and then head counterclockwise around the Portola Valley loop to our main destination of the day: Egdirtsew.
Egdirtsew? That's reverse Westridge! In the forward direction, Westridge is quite steep -- and, in fact, it's how we'll begin our first official Quadrophenia ride in January. But in the reverse direction, it's considerably mellower, relatively speaking. The biggest challenge is the mind game that you'll play as you confront not one, not two, but three false summits on the way to the top of the hill! After that, it's all icing on the cake: the usual route through the Arastradero Nature Preserve and back home via the wooden bridge from Palo Alto to Mountain View.
There's a bit of climbing on this ride, but it's fairly well spread out across the day. Ride With GPS reports about 2,630 feet of climbing; most GPS devices will report a little bit less.
This ride is Caltrain- and VTA-friendly. The first southbound train of the day leaves SF at 8:15 and arrives in Mountain View at 9:29. We're about four blocks from the station.
These rides are for experienced cyclists who know to safely handle their bikes on climbs and descents. Please RSVP even if you're not sure you're attending. We use the RSVPs to plan support (including free bagels!), and if the weather might cause problems, it's important that we be able to reach you. Also, join our Facebook group to get additional updates and scintillating conversation.
Click here to RSVP
RSVPs are requested but not required.
