Ride the West Sep 09--Day 10 Garberville to Ft. Bragg

Hello Cycle Blogging Friends,

I'll make this short and sweet so my friend Larry Fariss can also complete his blog. Suffice it to say, we had a ride and a half today!

We knew in advance that there were a few hills out there, but when it was all over, we discovered there LOTS of hills out there. The first 20 miles took us through some more beautiful redwoods in the Richard Grove and along several "over the river and through the woods" roads adjacent to US Highway 101S. When we pedaled back onto 101, we crossed two brand new bridges constructed by CALTRANS, the California Highway guys. Both of these bridges were massive and named after two ladies. That made me think, how do you get a bridge or a highway or a redwood grove named after you? I know, I can Google it and find the answer, but I'm in a hurry here! After climbing the bridges, I passed Confusion Hill and confirmed what Mike Munk had called the tourist trap of all time. At the SAG stop at Standish Hickey, I did some long distance business with my bank, called Arlene and refueled for the next 55 miles and 5000 feet of climbing.

I absolutely love pushing up the hills and Leggett Hill and I got along swimmingly. The climb is listed at about 7 percent and that equates to moderate and forever. This 5 mile long hill takes about 45 minutes to climb when you are moving at 11, 10, 9, 8 or 7 mph. I used all these numbers along the way and kept trying to get back to the bigger numbers. When I left the hotel it was 50 degrees and I was darn cold. Climbing up the hill I was hot and dripping sweat for most of the climb. The road was smooth and the scenery spectacular throughout. When I finally crested the first hill I was tired and relieved to get at least a short rest.

The next 3-4 miles down hill was a blast with turns and twists that required my balance and steady braking given the limited sight distance. I was also looking for falling rocks and rocks hidden in the shadows that these giant trees cast.

And after enjoying about 10 minutes of 30-40 mph down hill, it was time to climb the next monster one crank at a time. Very few cars passed and the road remained nice throughout. The coolest part here is after another 30 minute climb, the down hill ending is followed by a grand view of the Pacific that has been hiding while we explored the redwood forests. As I screamed down the hill, the Pacific's beautiful faced poked out between some lush branches. As the road pitched and turned, more and more of the Pacific appeared and finally I was again standing on a vista that displayed views of the California coast that have awed me day after day. I said a quick hello to Debbie, a self supported cyclist traveling with a friend. Debbie took my picture and explained how much she enjoys the freedom that self support allows. She travels from hotel to hotel just like we do, but she drags all her stuff with her. Although this sounds somewhat appealing, I prefer to have America by Bicycle drag my stuff while I pedal as light as a 200 pound cyclist can be!

I pulled into the last SAG stop and immediately took off my Underarmor, my biking jersey and gloves and let them dry in the 65 degree sunny sky. Our stop was right on the embankment next to the beach. As I walked around and surveyed the area, I spotted 5 sheep grazing around the area, acting as if they owned the place. Eventually the SAG wagon showed up and I again refueled and shot the bull with arriving riders for about an hour and a half. I stretched, rehydrated and heard everybody's story about climbing the hills.

The last 20 miles were supposed to be much easier than the previous 48. However, I soon discovered that while the beach may be flat, the road along the coast is proverbially up and down and up. By the time I spotted the hotel, I was ready to call it a day and then some. When some of my buddies, including my roommate, Brian Cox, showed up, we all walked a block to get a scoop of ice cream. Mmmmmmm! Eventually I helped unload the luggage truck, took a hot tub and swim in the pool and called my brother John, Adam and Arlene. For dinner we killed lots of pizza dough and then figured out how we are going to attack the hills again tomorrow at the end of the day instead of like today, at the beginning. Join us tomorrow for yet another day in the saddle!