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Bicycle Touring
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My love for bicycling started when I was a kid riding my bike to school each morning. I built some strong legs riding the stiff headwinds often experienced in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas. I joined the Navy and eventually was stationed in Virginia Beach, VA in 1977. It was a year later that I purchased a new ten speed bicycle and started riding the local roads. A good Navy friend at the time introduced me to some members of the Tidewater Bicycle Association. A couple rides later I was
riding a Schwinn Le Tour III bicycle and completing my first 100 mile ride round trip from Virginia Beach, VA to Elizabeth City, NC.
The Tidewater Bicycle Association (TBA) in Norfolk, Virginia is still a very fine club.
The following year I decided to brave the cold weather and ride a 300 mile (Triple Century) round trip from Norfolk, VA to Buxton, NC. Gee, I was nuts then but it was a really fun challenge.
There is something to be said for getting out there and enjoying nature and your surroundings on the open road. I made lots of friends and attended various cycling events and TBA club rides. There were a lot of fun bicycling experiences in Virginia and North Carolina. Two of my favorite rides included the Great Peanut Festival Ride(TBA) out of Skippers, NC. I rode that ride when it was just getting its start. I kept a small newspaper article listing the names of the participants that year. These days the event is bigger and more of a weekend event. TBA's annual Knotts Island Century is another fun ride worth riding if your in the area. TBA's organized Eastern Shore Weekend outing was a lot of fun but I am not sure if they still have such a club event these days. Generally everyone would gather their bikes and gear and carpool across the Chesapeake bridge. We would unload the bikes and enjoy two days of wonderful cycling with a night of camping.In 1981 I purchased a new custom built McLean frame and parts from Colley Avenue Bicycle shop in Norfolk, VA and then moved to Vallejo, CA which is located in the San Francisco Bay Area. I made a trip to a bicycle shop in Napa, CA to have the new touring bicycle assembled. THe next day after getting my new bike I was riding the scenic roads of Napa Valley enjoying the good California sun. The cold and sometimes snowy Winters of the East Coast were no more. I discovered a whole new brand of bicycling in California and the clubs here really know how to throw a party. There are many Century & Metric Century bicycle ride events held throughout California each year. Some of my favorite rides I completed include the Death Ride in Markleeville, CA and the Davis Double Century out of Davis, CA sponsored by the Davis Bike Club - both rides held annually in the Spring. The Death Ride is still looked upon as one of the toughest rides in the country due to the amount of climbing required to complete the three different courses (all varying distances). During this timeframe I also decided to join the Valley Spokesmen Touring Club home based in Dublin, CA. My enjoyment of long distance cycling has primarily been through participation in Century and Double Century rides over the years. The ultimate experience was completing a solo Trans-America bicycle trip on the backroads of America. The crossing was achieved in two stages; Reedsport, OR to Denver, CO (July 1983) and Denver, CO to Virginia Beach, VA (June 1984). I was not able to get enough time off from work to do the whole USA crossing at once. The memories of the people I met and the beautiful scenery made this a memory I will cherish for a lifetime. Check out Adventure Cycling Association's web site for maps for your trip across America. I rode the TransAmerica Trail during my first stage of the trip and then elected to parrellel the trail route from Denver, CO to Virginia Beach, VA. I took a solo nine day trip from Seattle, WA to San Francisco in 1982 as a warm-up for the USA crossing. |
Bicycle Racing
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I decided to purchase a cherry red color De Rosa SLX Professional racing bike in San Leandro California and take up racing in 1984. I became a licensed USCF racer for a few years and proudly wore the racing jersey of the California Pedaler Team when I raced. There were also many fun times hanging with the pals at the California Pedaler Bicycle Shop in Danville, CA.
I had the need for speed and they could understand the real high one gets from bicycle racing. Most of the centuries I rode were usually done within 7 1/2 hours. Well I wanted to test my abilities with the racers. The experences enjoyed with racing were fun and I managed to make a lot of friends within the racing circles of Northern California.
The criteriums were the most exciting and the road races were tough. The most enjoyable race was the Tour De Comstock Pro/Am in Reno, NV. The desert terrain was just beautiful. The time trial was started out of a casino in Sparks, NV and I got to ride a criterium in towntown Reno, NV.
Most of the races were here in Northern California and I was lucky enough to enjoy some racing opportunities in Canada and Japan. Some of the best training rides with other racers were held weekly up beautiful Mount Diablo very close to where I live now. On a clear evening you can see the California Sierras in the East. In early 1992 I was experiencing some burn-out and it was time to put the bicycle away for a while with the exception of a ride or two each year at South Lake Tahoe. I took up interests in international freestyle wrestling. I enjoy attending professional races and watching the racers compete. I have included some pictures below and I hope you enjoy them. |
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The Comeback
| In March 2009 I started my comeback to road cycling. I got my bicycle overhauled at B & L Bicycle Shop in Davis, CA. I created a log below of a few of the rides that mark steps toward returning to long distance bicycling. The first ride was tough and it's been like starting from ground zero again. |
| Event | Date | Distance | Time | Summary |
| Davis Bike Club Ride | 3/14/09 | 30 miles | 3.0 hours w/extended breakfast stop | Davis, CA to Winters, CA roundtrip. First ride on the bike in over 9 years. A flat ride with some headwinds. |
| Tour of Napa Valley Metric Century | 8/16/09 | 69.5 miles | 6.5 hours | First major goal of two accomplished with this ride in personal comeback to long distance bicycling. Course included 3,000 feet climbing elevation and most miles road on single ride in over 9 years. |
| Different Spokes Club Ride | 1/15/10 | 45 miles | 4.0 hours w/extended lunch stop | First ride of the year with only about 500 feet climbing elevation and first ride after about 2 months off the bike. My legs muscles were feeling it on the mild climbs. |
| Solvang Century | 3/12/10 | 100 miles | dd | Solvang, CA, 6am |
| Wine Country Century | 5/1/10 | 100 miles | dd | Santa Rosa, CA, 6am |
| Lodi Sunrise Century | 5/15/10 | 100 miles | dd | Lodi High School, Lodi California, 6am |
The Bicycle
| Currently use my Cherry red 1983 DeRosa Professional as my primary bike for my comeback to long disance road cycling. The DeRosa is 59cm c-c ~ Columbus SL ~ Campagnolo Super Record ~ Cinelli handlebars ~ San Marco Rolls seat ~ Mavic Open Pro road rims ~ weight @ 20.5 lbs. I would love sometime to purchase another road bike but the prices have skyrocked so I'll stay with my bike that has carried me to many fine roads along the countrysides of America, Canada and Japan. |
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The Gallery
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Favorite Bicycling Links
| I am a Life Member of the League of American Bicyclists. If you would like to really get involved in supporting bicycling on the national level this is the right organization. I recommend checking out the California Bicycle Coalition to support bicycling in California. I held memberships locally with the Different Spokes Bicycle Club and the Valley Spokesman Touring Club. Both these Bay Area clubs are superb. If your interested in becoming a amatuer racer check out the USA Cycling web site. |
| I have placed below some links to local clubs that sponsor some very good bicycling event rides. I can personally recommend these rides to you since I have done each of them once or twice in the past. My favorite rides of the ones below are the Most Beautiful Bicycle Ride in South Lake Tahoe and the Sequoia Century. I encourage you to participate and ride a metric or century ride at one of these fine events. Also, I included toward the bottom of the list some links to some good web sites regarding the Bicycling Hall of Fame, Versus TV and Sheldon Brown's Bicycle Glossary. |
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