After months of silence from Caltrans and Alameda County we finally have word on Redwood Road. Since it was shut last spring due to the road collapsing towards EBMUD’s San Leandro Reservoir, we had just been assuming that Caltrans was “working on it.” Apparently not, for now we have word that the reconstruction of Redwood Road will begin next Tuesday September 12. Getting those ducks lined up must have been one herding job! In any case the repair is expected to be completed by January 2018. Whatever that means–probably plus or minus a couple of months depending on unexpected problems they find during repair, unforeseen problems with the contractor, and what our weather will be like this winter. And yes, it’s going to stay shut until it’s completed. Speaking of weather, long range forecasts to date seem to believe that this coming winter will be neither an El Niño nor a La Niña type…which means they have no idea how much precip we’ll be getting.

On another topic entirely, we all have enjoyed riding in Niles Canyon, right? Well, except for the high-speed death machines who blow by inches from us because we essentially have no road shoulder. There have been at least two cyclist deaths in Niles in the past couple of years from cars hitting the cyclists from behind. Every time I ride in Niles Canyon I hammer as hard as I can to get the hell out of Niles as quickly as possible. Niles Canyon may have been a pleasant, scenic corridor 30 years ago but today it’s a major commuter corridor, making cycling there an iffy proposition if you value your life and safety. On Saturday September 30 Niles Canyon will be closed to all car traffic from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. From 7 to 8 a.m. only cyclists will be allowed to use the road; after that it’s open to everyone else. This is a special event put on by Alameda County Supervisors Richard Valle and Scott Haggerty to promote the creation of a “Class 1 trail” in Niles Canyon. You can see more information here. The club will be putting on a ride that day going through Niles Canyon to take advantage of the car-free day and to be able to enjoy Niles Canyon, which is actually quite scenic, without the threat of cars on this narrow passage. For details go to the Different Spokes Ride Calendar or click here. You can bet there are going to be a lot of cyclists there, including us!

Less than one month to go and 2016 will be one for the books, yet it’s not too early to be thinking about next year and the Next Big Ride. Many cycling clubs don’t yet have information available about their centuries and even if they do, registration has yet to open and details are currently a bit sparse. But at least you can peruse the calendar and figure out those weekends you’re going to dedicate to a hundred-miler. Although 2016 was an El Nino year, other than January when rain was near epic it actually wasn’t too wet. Training for an early century in winter wasn’t that hard. This year is forecast to be a La Niña year, which tends to have normal precipitation. We may be able to enjoy even more riding days in 2017 without having to pull on rain gear! These are the usual suspects up to early June 2017. Most rides from June on have little or no information up yet. A follow up post will highlight the centuries of the latter half of 2017.

January

1 Sunday. Resolution Ride. This is Different Spokes’s own ride up Mt. Diablo on New Year’s Day.  If you’re already semi-fit or at least willing to suffer, it’s a great way to start off the New Year. Open to anyone and no fee! If it’s not raining, it will be a mosh pit at the summit—Valley Spokesmen, Grizzly Peak Cyclists, and Diablo Cyclists all respect this day and have club runs to the summit.

21 Saturday. Tour of Palm Springs. $75. Registration is open. 10/25/50/100-mile routes. Down south typically receives much less rain than we do, so this one is a safe bet for dry riding. But if it’s dry, there will a huge crowd. A few brave Spokes have driven south for this one.

February

12 Sunday. Velo-Love Ride. $50. Registration is open. 40/60/100-mile routes. Chico Velo annually celebrates Valentines Day with the Velo-Love Ride. V-Day falls on a Tuesday, so Sunday February 12 is the closest weekend date. Because it starts in Gridley, which is close to Yuba City, the drive is even less than going to the Chico Wildflower. Nice tour of the rice fields and Sutter Buttes in the Sacramento Valley. The post-ride meal is really good too! A small and friendly ride.

25 Saturday. Pedaling Paths To Independence. $45. Registration is open. 25 or 65-mile routes. This is a pretty easy metric in the Valley that is a benefit for the Community Center for the Blind. It’s cheap too at $45. Mostly flat so it’s not too demanding (unless the wind is blowing.) Starts in Linden, east of Stockton.

March

11 Saturday. Solvang Century. $125 online/$115 mail in. Registration is open. 50, 70, or 100-mile routes. This is an extremely popular Southern California ride starting in Solvang. It’s about a six-hour drive from San Francisco so it’s close enough for us. It regularly attracts 5,000+ riders. Consequently lodging at the last minute is scarce; book early or plan on sleeping far away. One year we couldn’t get a room any closer than Santa Barbara. Perhaps SCOR, the organizer, has heard some of the criticism because this year the enormous registration fee will include the bbq lunch at the end that they used to charge separately for. The rest stop goodies have in the past been merely perfunctory (think:they loaded up at Costco).

April

1 Saturday. Tierra Bella. $60 until 1/16/17. Registration is open. 35, 63, 100, and 123-mile routes. Cap of 2,000 riders. A club fav and it’s close by to, in Gilroy. Great roads that are not suburbanized yet. Post-ride meal is pretty good too.

8 Saturday. Bike Around The Buttes. $49 online/$56 mail in. Registration is open. 18, 40, or 100-mile routes. Starts in Sutter just west of Yuba City. If you didn’t make it to the Velo-Love Ride, this ride covers similar territory at a warmer and drier time of the year.

8 Saturday. Cinderella Classic & Challenge. $58. Registration opens Jan. 4. 65 or 85 mile-routes. Limit of 2,500 riders and they always sell out in advance. Starts in Pleasanton. Valley Spokesmen’s 41^st annual women/girl only ride. Classic roads of Contra Costa County, which is rapidly being suburbanized. Male Spokers may want to do our Evil Stepsisters ride in lieu, or you could volunteer to work the event and support women cyclists!

8 Saturday. SLOBC Wildflower Century. $75 before 1/21/17. Registration is open. 46, 64, 76, and 99-mile routes. Starts in Creston. SLOBC also puts on the Lighthouse Century later in the year. Great roads in Central California. The Wildflower takes place the same weekend as the Eroica, so you can do both!

9 Sunday. Eroica California Gran Fondo. $150 before 3/31/17. 40, 73, 87 or 127-mile routes. Starts in Paso Robles. Ride mixed surface roads in Central California on your vintage steel bike. That would be…almost no one in Different Spokes. But you can always troll EBay for a classic bike although they are no longer cheap due to the Eroica! The original Eroica in Tuscany makes a lot of sense but these knockoffs in disparate locations such as California and Japan seem, well, forced, shall we say. But the dirt roads are truly awesome!

15 Saturday. Sierra Century. $64 before 4/1/17. 41, 65, 69, or 102-mile-routes. Starts in Plymouth. Scenic Gold Country route with the well-known Slug Gulch climb.

22 Saturday. Sea Otter Gran Fondo. $110 before 4/3/17. 51 or 92-mile road routes. Also offering a 22-mile mtb route or a 32-mile gravel route for $90.

23 Sunday. Primavera Century. $65 if before 12/31/16. Registration is open. 25, 63, 85, or 102-mile routes. Starts in Fremont, but is not BARTable because Sunday service starts too late to make any of the rides except the 25-mile.

29 Saturday. Mount Hamilton Challenge. $20? 125 miles. Pedalera BC hasn’t yet announced the 2017 Mount Hamilton Challenge but there is little doubt they will offer it again. It’s dirt cheap because you bring all your own food to be sagged for you. Starting in Santa Clara riders roll up Hamilton and down the back side and back.

29 Saturday. Motherlode Century. $75? 35, 66. 81, or 95-mile routes. This is another one that isn’t up yet. Unlike the venerable Mt. Hamilton Challenge, the Motherlode is of recent origin so perhaps it is already defunct. Last year registration opened on Jan. 1, so we’ll know shortly. This ride starts in Coloma in El Dorado County. It’s a longer drive than the Mt. Hamilton Challenge but it is a traditional century and won’t have to schlep your own food.

30 Sunday. Chico Wildflower Century. $75 before 1/31/17. Registration is open. 12, 30, 60, 65, 100, and 125-mile routes. This is a club favorite. A group usually arranges to have dinner together the night before. Booking lodging requires advance planning! If you can take Monday off from work, so much the better because you will almost certainly be whipped after the ride and the excellent post-ride dinner; driving back right after is just a chore.

May

6 Saturday. Wine Country Century. Fee? 35, 65, 100 and 125-mile routes. Registration opens 2/1/17 and it will sell out in a matter of days. If you want to ride this one, do not delay. This ride is great for tandems, and the food is excellent. In various years the rest stops have offered make-your-own burritos and fresh coffee—now these folks understand cyclists!

7 Sunday. Delta Century. $45? 25, 62 and 100-mile routes. No information yet but registration is supposed to open this month. Last year the cap was 500. Starts in Lodi. If you’re looking for a flat century, this is it: the century has a total elevation gain of 37 feet!

7 Sunday. Grizzly Peak Century. Fee not yet announced; registration not yet open. 76, 102 or 110-mile road routes; 78 or 100-mile mixed terrain routes. Capped at 1,000 riders. Starts in Moraga. The GPC is most definitely not a flat route–it’s a climber’s ride. This one always sells out, so don’t wait too long after registration opens, which I am guessing will be around the New Year. Last year the GPC featured a mixed surface option; this year there are two mixed surface rides. See you there!

20 Saturday. Davis Double. Fee? Registration opens 3/1/17. There is only one route: 200 miles, baby! Starts in Davis.

21 Sunday. Strawberry Fields Forever. $65 before 3/16/17. 30, 61, and 101-mile routes. Limit of 1,200 riders. Registration opens 1/1/17. Starts in Watsonville and takes in the Santa Cruz mountains.

June

4 Sunday. Sequoia Century. Fee unknown. 100 and 120-mile routes. No information yet at the Western Wheelers site but this one always takes place. Route changes every year but starts at Foothill College and goes over to the coast and back.

2017 will be the 35th anniversary of the founding of Different Spokes San Francisco. My, how time flies when you’re having fun. The very first LGBT cycling club, founded by a ragtag bunch of touring and recreational cyclists in the same year as the founding of the Gay Olympics Games, officially opened for business with the first ChainLetter in November/December 1982. Of course, planning and organizing went on months before that. Somehow we’ve managed to survive, and survival is the name of the game these days for small clubs. It’s not like we’re part of a league such as Gay Softball or the Gay Bowling League—we’re just one club. Shortly after we were founded other LGBT cycling clubs sprouted up, some of them even adopting the same name. A few have vanished, including Sacramento’s River City Cyclists and San Diego’s Rainbow Cyclists, but some seem to be doing well such as Different Spokes Southern California (which used to be Different Spokes Los Angeles) and Sydney Spokes in Australia. In the early Oughts we were in danger of folding, but the proposal to dissolve the club and become a subunit of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition seemed to reignite a flurry of activity that has since revitalized our club. As with almost all clubs, a small group of fanatics enthusiasts keeps us afloat and we owe thanks to the various incarnations of our Board as well as generations of ride leaders for giving us an administrative and emotional home…and all the fun rides and events.

I’m very grateful that Different Spokes is still here. You probably are too whether you’re an oldster like me or a new member. How would like to mark this milestone? If you’ve got any ideas, respond back to the DSSF blog or to the DSSF Yahoo! Group. Planning for the 30th anniversary got off to a late start. I’m thinking that if we start planning now, we might actually be able to pull in some of les Anciens to help us celebrate. A banquet perhaps? Specific rides? Revive Guerneville or Tahoe? Let’s talk!

OMG, no bicycles! What happened to the club??

The Orinda Pool Party is coming up in just two short weeks! I thought this might be a good time to share a short history of Different Spokes’ favorite East Bay event. Although many current Different Spokes members think that the Orinda Pool Party is an original idea, it is not. That honor goes to former member Sue Melly and her partner Andrea, who opened their Walnut Creek house to the club for an East Bay Pool Party back in 1997. The East Bay Pool Party lasted at least through 2001 before vanishing. I was living in SF at the time and I never went to it probably for all the reasons that many current Different Spokes members don’t come to the Orinda Pool Party now: it’s ‘far’ from SF, it’s a short ride, and it’s ‘too hot.’ Oh, and add ‘Why would I want to swim??’

Zoom forward a few years. Roger and I are living in Orinda and we have a pool, which coincidentally we don’t use all that much. Roger and I are talking about Different Spokes, the need for more social events, and what we could do for a ride that was ‘something different’. What about a pool party? Roger was game, so we went about contriving a ride plus party. The party part was easy to devise: jump in the pool after the ride and then have a post-ride meal. So you see, great minds think alike, or imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Of course the ride part of the Orinda Pool Party is quite different from the rides that were part of the original Annual Pool Party. Sue and Andrea live in Walnut Creek and the rides started in Berkeley and went to their house. In contrast the Orinda Pool Party, which we have offered every year since 2009 except 2011, its mainstay ride has been that classic East Bay training loop, Pinehurst-Skyline-Grizzly-San Pablo Dam Road. One quandary of the current Pool Party is that it is very difficult to create an easy ride because of where we live, which happens to be in the Orinda hills on a hellishly steep road. The only way to offer a flatter alternative would be start a ride on the “flats”, say Orinda BART, and finish it there with a car shuttle to the house. Except that we have no street parking in our neighborhood and that makes bringing cars to the house a potential problem. Maybe some day we’ll figure it out. In its current form the rides are probably too forbidding for Spokers who prefer flatter rides. But nothing prevents folks from skipping the ride and coming to the party afterwards.

The original pool party was a club fav—25 people showed up in 2000—and the Orinda Pool Party entertained about the same last year. If it grows much more than that, we’ll have to charge admission—just kidding!

This year we’re following the same worn, comfortable rut: we’ll grill up some Aidell’s sausages and provide homemade pesto from our garden along with a simple Caesar salad; participants bring appetizers or desserts. We realize that schlepping goodies plus your poolside amenities is too hippie for most Spokers, so just bring your stuff to the start and we’ll haul it up to the house for you so that you can do the ride less gravity-impaired. You’ll enjoy grinding up Pinehurst so much more without that hummus and veggie plate strapped to your back!

In addition to the ‘standard’ ride we are offering a new long route. This route goes up to Skyline by Redwood instead of Pinehurst, and after a short visit to the Montclair district of Oakland head steeply up Snake and Shepherd Canyon to the top of Pinehurst where it rejoins the other route.

And don’t forget to RSVP no later than Friday, August 12! See the ride listing on the DSSF website for details and information.

Several century rides I listed in the December 13 post were uncertain at the time. Note that some fees have increased due to the end of early registration. Here are some updates:

 

April

9 Saturday. The Cinderella Classic and Challenge. Women and girls only. $58. Registration is currently open. Registration capped at 2,500 but is still open. Registration will end on March 27 regardless of whether the event is sold out (but it usually does). Note that Different Spokes’ Evil Step Sisters Ride, which usually is the same day as the Cinderalla, is one week earlier this year, on Saturday, April 2.

17 Sunday. Primavera Century. All sold out except for 25-mile Fun Ride. But the latter starts late enough that you could take BART to the start. $30.

23 Saturday. SLO Wildflower. $75. Not sold out yet but limit of 1,400 riders.

24 Sunday. Mt Hamilton Challenge. Still no details yet and time is running out. Hard to believe this Bay Area cycling institution won’t take place. Let’s hope they pull it together.

24 Sunday. Chico Velo Wildflower Century. $85. Registration is still open. Capped at 4,000 this year.

30 Saturday. Motherlode Century. $85. Online registration ends on 4/26.

30 Saturday. Tierra Bella. $65. Registration is still open. Capped at 2,000.

 

May

1 Sunday. Grizzly Peak Century. $60. Not sold out yet but just a few slots left.

7 Sunday. Wine Country Century. Sold out.

21 Saturday. Davis Double. Registration opens 3/1/16.

27-30 Weekend. Great Western Bicycle Rally. $72.50 until 3/1, then $87.50. Registration is still open.

 

June

5 Sunday. Sequoia Century. $70. Site indicates that 1,022 slots are still available. The Sequoia is a members-only event; registration includes membership in Western Wheelers Bicycle Club.

11 Saturday? Canyon Classic. Still no information up on their website.

18 Saturday. The Terrible Two. No information yet but registration opens 3/15/16.

18 Saturday Mile High 100. $75. This ride is taking place despite the devastating fire.

25 Saturday. DSSF Gay Pride Ride. Our very own Gay Pride ride before the big day!

25 Saturday. Alta Alpina Challenge. $100. Also known as “the other Death Ride.” Registration is open. Apparently no limit on the number of registrants.

 

July

9 Saturday. The Markleeville Death Ride. $125. Registration is still open so the limit of 3,000 has not yet been reached.

23 Saturday. Devil’s Slide Ride. $83. Registration is still open but fee goes up on March 31.

30 Saturday. Santa Cruz Mountain Challenge. $65. Registration fee goes up to $75 on June 30.

 

August

6 Saturday. Marin Century. $85. Fee includes one-year membership in Marin Cyclists.

14 Sunday. Tour D’Organics. $90. Fee goes up on May 1.

7 Sunday. Shasta Century. No information yet. According to granfondo.com, “The Mount Shasta Chamber of Commerce hopes to host the Mount Shasta Summit Century in 2016. Due to the stepping back of some veteran members of the organizing committee, arrangements are in flux.”

20 Saturday. Crater Lake Century. $75. The event date is tentative as they await approval from the NPS. Limit of 350 for the century and 50 for the metric. Fee includes your entrance fee to the national park.

21 Sunday. Tour of Napa. Registration opens on March 1. Limit of 2,000 and they will sell out.

 

September

10-17 Week. Cycle Oregon. $985. This event usually sells out very quickly but you can still register for it. Don’t delay if you’re interested.

17-18 Weekend. Unknown Coast Weekend. $75 (camping) or $100 (cabin). Registration will open 4/15/16. Another great Chico Velo ride.

24 Saturday. Lighthouse Century. $75. Registration opens May 29 and they do sell out. Limit of 1,400 riders.

 

October

1 Saturday. Levi’s Gran Fondo. $170. Registration is open for all routes except (of course) the two butchest “Panzer” rides.

8-9 Weekend? Tour of the Sacramento River Delta. Still no information yet. Was $105 last year, with motel stay.

15 Saturday. Foxy Fall Century. $55. Registration opens August 1.

2015 is winding down and now’s the time to start planning your 2016 big ride schedule. Century and gran fondo rides in California have a nasty tendency to fill up and before you know it registration is full. If you want a complete but slightly overwhelming list of rides, you can view what has been announced plus some speculation on as-yet unannounced rides at granfondo.com. I’ve summarized below the ones near the Bay Area and the most popularly attended by Spokers with registration information as well as a few other “important” rides that are shorter. I’ve also added my comments. Pricing is generally for the century (100-mile) option for early registration. Prices go up as you get closer to the date assuming the event hasn’t sold out (and many do). Keep in mind that El Nino is supposed to hit us in January so expect a lot of rain January through March.

January

1 Friday. Resolution Ride: this is the Different Spokes ride up Mt. Diablo. It’ll be crowded because Valley Spokesmen, Grizzly Peak, and Diablo Cyclists and god knows who else will all be heading up the same day. Unless it rains this day; then we’ll see who is really committed!

23 Saturday. Tour of Palm Springs. $70. Registration is open. Although in SoCal, a few Spokers have gone down to jumpstart their seasons. Tends to be dry but this is a big El Nino year, so if you’re a gambler, by all means.

February

14 Sunday. Chico Velo’s Velo-Love Ride. This used to be called the Rice Valley Tandem Ride and it’s usually on or close to Valentine’s Day, hence the name. $40. Registration is open. A low key event with a flattish ride around the Sutter Buttes outside of Chico. Starts in Gridley, just north of Yuba City—a bit of a schlep but a great ride. The meal at the end is worth it. Has a real “locals” feel rather than the usual mass-event mosh pit vibe.

27-28. Saturday/Sunday. The North American Handmade Bicycle Show. This is not a ride but we are exceptionally fortunate that this event has returned to our area. $22. In Sacramento; you can even take the Amtrak to it. Go ogle the incredibly beautiful bikes and meet the artisans, and maybe even order a new frameset! This is like Eros for bike nerds. Do not miss this event!

March

12 Saturday. Solvang Century. $125. Registration is currently open. It’s a long after-work Friday drive down to Solvang but you get to amble back home on Sunday. (But DST does begin that morning.) Solvang is a big event but BikeSCOR seems to have scaled it back from megahuge craziness with a cap of “just” 3,000 now. That’s still a lot of bikes on the same roads! Personally I’ll probably never do this event again because the cost is high and the rest stop food is Costco-perfunctory. And the after-ride meal isn’t even included. Seriously? But if you haven’t done it before, it’s a nice ride without a lot of elevation gain. (FYI major parts of the route have plenty of places you could stop on your own and get food way better than the mediocrity you find at the rest stops.)

April

9 Saturday. The Cinderella Classic and Challenge. Women and girls only. Boys get stuck with Different Spokes’s very own Evil Step Sisters ride instead. $58. Registration is currently open and is capped at 2,500. A very well organized ride with a party vibe. Lots of tutus and tiaras.

9 Saturday. L’Eroica. $150-200. Registration is open. If you can’t afford the time and money to go to Tuscany, this is the next best thing. Ride gravel/dirt roads on your pre-90s road bike, i.e. no clipless pedals, no STI, no disc brakes—no technology past about 1987. Last year was the first time Eroica took place, near Paso Robles. Food is supposed to be awesome.

17 Sunday. Primavera Century. $60. Registration is open. Sponsored by Fremont Freewheelers, this is one of the easiest to get to as it starts in Fremont and loops through the East Bay. Technically it’s BART accessible but on Sundays you couldn’t get from SF to Fremont before 8:58 a.m. so you’re stuck doing the 25-mile fun ride. Food is decent and the ride by Calaveras is a must-do. The metric allows you to finish in the early afternoon and get stuff that you have to get done before Monday done!

23 Saturday. SLO Wildflower. $75. Registration opens 1/3/16. I’ve never done this one but it’s supposed to be beautiful. Starts in Creston, east of Atascadero. The wildflowers this year should be outrageous after we get the rains.

24 Sunday. Mt Hamilton Challenge. No details yet. Sponsored by Pedalera Bicycle Club this is a classic Bay Area event. Ride up Mt. Hamilton and down San Antonio Valley for the full 100-mile loop or just ride to the top and back down the front. You have to bring your own food though!

24 Sunday. Chico Velo Wildflower Century. $75. Registration is open. Capped at 4,000 this year. A Different Spokes fav even though it’s a four-hour drive away in Chico. A group always heads up the day before and spends the night in a motel with a group dinner that evening. The only minus is that after the ride you have to schlep back to the Bay Area in order to get to work the next day. Beautifully run despite growing to 4,000 riders, although Honey Run is a rolling mosh pit with excellent crash potential. Rest stop food is okay but more than once they’ve run out, which is very bad. Hopefully they’ve straightened that out by now. The after-ride meal is excellent. Can be hot weather. El Nino rains should mean stupendous wildflowers too. Motels fill up so reserve early.

30 Saturday. Motherlode Century. $75. Registration opens 1/1/16. Starts in Coloma and roams through the Gold Country, a hilly ride.

30 Saturday. Tierra Bella. $60. Registration is open. Capped at 2,000. Sponsored by Almaden Cycle Touring Club in San Jose. This is another very popular Bay Area century that always fills up. The history of this ride is that it will either be a fantastic day or else you’ll get rained out badly; I’m guessing this year it will be the latter (but I could be wrong!) Starts in Gilroy, not too far of a drive, and takes you through still scenic roads. But they might not be in ten more years. Food is great—I especially like ACTC’s thinking out of the box, like offering hot ramen soup! Oh, and coffee too.

May

1 Sunday. Grizzly Peak Century. $55. Registration information should be up before the end of the year. Capped at 1,000. Sponsored by Grizzly Peak Cyclists in Berkeley. This is a low profile event with a mellow vibe. As with the Primavera, BART’s Sunday schedule means you’re stuck having to drive to the start despite Orinda BART being just up the road from the start at Campolindo High School. Ride through a long series of East Bay hills from Port Costa down to Castro Valley. The food is homemade and very Berkeley (but yummy). The “metric” is about 75 miles and is enough. Some of the rest stops have cold Coke!  The meal at the end is mo’ bettah too.

7 Sunday. Wine Country Century. Registration opens 2/1/16 and will sell out in about 24 hours, so don’t delay. Both the century and the metric go through beautiful countryside and are tandem-friendly. Rest stop food is usually well thought out. One year we had hot coffee at rest stops; another year it was burritos quesadillas! There is a lunch stop AND an after-ride meal! The lunch is sandwiches and the after-ride meal even has a vegetarian entrée choice. One of my favs.

21 Saturday. Davis Double. Registration opens 3/1/16. One of the flatter double centuries but it can be hot some years.

27-30 Weekend. Great Western Bicycle Rally. $72.50. Registration is open. This event seems to be declining in popularity but it’s been sold to a vendor who is trying to reinvigorate it. Back in the day this used to be the annual gathering of DSSF and DSSC with a smattering of Rainbow Cyclists from San Diego. A huge assortment of beautiful rides in the Paso Robles area. Well worth doing but sleeping in a tent next to 101 is only for the young (or hard of hearing). Getting a motel room is hard unless you reserve well in advance. Family friendly. Former Prez Phil Bokovoy still goes to it!

June

5 Saturday. Sequoia Century. $65. Registration opens 1/4/16. Another venerable Bay Area century, sponsored by Western Wheelers. Starts in Palo Alto and goes over the Coast Range. A fair amount of elevation gain but not crazy high. Food is fairly good. Very popular but also capped.

11 Saturday? Canyon Classic. Date is uncertain but this is probably right if they follow previous years. Starts in the Valley in Patterson and goes up Del Puerto Canyon, which is not well traveled so really pleasant. A long but steady ascent up to the Junction at Mines Road with a return through Livermore and over Altamont with flat farm roads to conclude. Can be hot. Don’t do it for the food but the route is well thought out and different from our usual routes.

18 Saturday. The Terrible Two. No information yet but registration opens 3/1/16. Just a double century out of Santa Rosa with about 16k vertical gain. This is the Death Ride at sea level. Think you’re butch? Then this is the ride for you.

19 Sunday? Mile High 100. This is in the 2015 burn area near Lake Almanor, so whether it will go in 2016 is currently a question mark.

25 Saturday. DSSF Gay Pride Ride. Our very own Gay Pride ride before the big day!

25 Saturday. Alta Alpina Challenge. Also known as “the other Death Ride.” They had a big fire last year too, so information on the 2016 ride is uncertain. Registration is now up; cost is about $100. At least you can hoof it back for Gay Pride the next day although you might be dead meat.

July

9 Saturday. The Markleeville Death Ride. $125. Registration is open, usually sells out. Not cheap but everybody who likes to climb should do this ride at least once. Capped at 3,000. That’s a lot of people on these alpine roads so you’d better like crowds and descending at speed with…everybody. Unless you go way early to acclimate you will feel the altitude. But hey, you get to do Ebbetts, Monitor, and Carson passes!

23 Saturday. Devil’s Slide Ride. $78. Registration is open. There used to be a nice, small ride called the Giro di Peninsula that started at Bay Meadows, which is no longer. Well, that seemed to have killed the GdiP too. Now we have this ride that goes over Devil’s Slide. I’ve never done it so you’re on your own.

30 Saturday. Santa Cruz Mountain Challenge. $55. Registration is open. I haven’t done this one is years but it used to be loads of fun. Lots of climbing in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

August

7 Sunday? Marin Century. No information yet. In 2015 it was $80. I haven’t done this one since the year it grew to monstrous size. It used to be capped at 1,000 and then it grew into the thousands. The year it exploded we arrived at the first rest stop and it was four-deep with people scrambling to get snacks. I haven’t been back since but maybe it’s calmed down. The rest stop food was so-so but the lunch stop in Petaluma and the after-ride meal were excellent, including hot pizza!

7 Sunday. Shasta Century. No information yet. A few Spokers have gone up and done this one and they loved it. A long drive up but way off the beaten path.

13 Saturday? Crater Lake Century. No information is up yet. I haven’t done this one but I have ridden around Crater Lake. A bucket list item for sure: the ride around the lake is incredibly beautiful and scenic if you have good weather.  But it’s a long schlep so you’re better off making it a long weekend trip rather than hustling up and back.

14 Sunday? Tour D’Organics. No information yet. If you don’t want to do the Marin Century, this is an alternate that covers similar terrain. All the food is supposed to be locally grown organic stuff.

14 Sunday? Tour of Napa. No information yet but it should be on this date. Can be very hot but an excellent route with great food.

September

10-17 Week. Cycle Oregon. No information yet but sign up to get an alert on when registration opens because it fills up immediately. It’s not easy to get on this ride but it’s a must-do. Ride a different route through rural Oregon every year but you do have to like camping (don’t we all?)

17-18 Weekend. Unknown Coast Weekend. $75 (camping) or $100 (cabin). Registration will open 4/15/16. Another great Chico Velo ride. This one starts in Humboldt and tours the redwoods over two days, 65 on Saturday and 35 miles on Sunday.

24 Saturday. Lighthouse Century. $75. Starting in Morro Bay the ride goes up the coast past San Simeon and then returns to Hwy 46 and heads inland towards Templeton and then back to Morro Bay.

October

1 Saturday. Levi’s Gran Fondo. $170. Registration opens 1/11/16. I’ve never done this one partly because the cost is high. It’s a gran fondo, which means you get a timing chip. But it’s not a race—yeah, right! I hear the food is good. The roads are challenging and they’re Sonoma County roads, which means they are full of potholes and cracks. But it’s supposed to be awesome!

8-9 Weekend? Tour of the Sacramento River Delta. No information yet. Sponsored by Valley Spokesmen, who also put on the Cinderella. This is an easy two-day ride from Brannan Island in the Delta up to Sacramento and then back the next day. Explore scenic Delta byways, 60 miles each day. Can be hot and there is usually a headwind returning to Brannan Island. The lunch stop on Saturday is decent and the after-ride burgers on Sunday are delish. You stay at the La Quinta in Sacto and dinner is on your own. We love this ride!

15 Saturday? Foxy Fall Century. No information yet but this is probably the date. A good way to end the season with a fairly easy century starting in Davis and roaming through the Valley with a few hills along the way. Lots of Spokers usually attend this one.

There it is in the photo: the new Carquinez Scenic Trail, beckoning… I shot that photo through the locked gate at the western end of the trail a couple days ago. Carquinez Scenic Drive, the long abandoned county road connecting Crockett and Martinez above the Carquinez Strait, will soon be reopened. It could be open for public use as early as this Friday, Halloween, but no later than Saturday, November 8. The road was closed to car traffic in 1983 and left to decay. But it’s always been open to pedestrians and cyclists willing to hazard the narrow, winding road with broken asphalt and missing sections due to storm runoff. Like a vision out of “Planet of the Apes” it was civilization returning to its original form—large weeds sprouting up between the chunks of road, rusted signs, and a slow, crumbling ambience. A few years ago the East Bay Regional Parks District agreed to assume control of the road and the final stages of resurrection are complete. The road has been rehabilitated, the cliffside stabilized, and striping freshly painted and signs erected. Cars will still be banned and the road is even being incorporated as part of the Bay Trail.

Riding along Carquinez Scenic Drive was one of the popular rides in the early days of Different Spokes when it was called “the Port Costa Loop”. In fact the ride was offered for the first time in March 1983 perhaps because the road had been closed and suddenly was a lot more cycle-friendly.

In a way it’s sad that it’s been “improved”. The road has mostly intact albeit crumbling but it was easy to cycle on a road bike. The sections which had slid away were easy to roll over although one might never know from winter to winter how much of the thin trail would still be intact and the only “damage” would be a little bit of mud on your bike if it were wet. The views along the cliff are nothing short of spectacular on a sunny day and shouldn’t be missed. At least now more people will be able to enjoy them.

On Saturday November 22, assuming the weather is favorable, we’ll roll out from Orinda and take in a big loop through West Contra Costa County and check out the renovated Carquinez Scenic Trail, née Drive. You’ll also be able to ride through historic Crockett, home of C&H Sugar, and go up the back (easy) side of Pig Farm before tackling the Three Bears. Of course, you’re free to check it out yourself beforehand if you can’t wait!

For more information, go here.

Have you ever looked at the Different Spokes ride calendar and wished there was a ride posted on a Tuesday, a Wednesday, or just any weekday? Maybe you have a weekday free because you have a non-standard work schedule, are between jobs, or are “of an age”, or maybe you just want to play hooky from work. True, during the summer when the days are long we have a few after work rides squeezed in before sunset. But what about an honest to goodness ride during the day, maybe even including lunch?

On Tuesday, April 9 your wish will be granted. Join fellow Spokers with a 39-mile lunch ride to the Upper Crust Deli in Pacifica! For details go to the ride calendar.

If you can’t make this particular ride but would like to come on other weekday “work” rides, be sure to contact Tony to let him know when you’re free and the type of ride you’d like to do.

The 37th edition of the venerable Cinderella Century takes place on Saturday, April 6. This ride can bring out as many as 2,500 participants and is probably the largest women-only ride in the country, if not the world. Last year’s ride was bombarded with heavy rain and horrific, near-horizontal winds. But this year’s prolonged drought is making it look like it will be a delight time (well, at least for cyclists). Riders can do the 65-mile metric “Classic” or push their limits with the 95-mile “Challenge.” Both rides explore the Livermore and San Ramon valleys. Registration is still open but if you’re at all interested in doing the ride, don’t delay as the Cinderella can sell out. To request a registration form, point your browser to this site: http://valleyspokesmen.org/email.php?email=cinReg

Despite never having ridden the Cinderella, I have always been a big supporter of this ride. Roger and I are also members of Valley Spokesmen (sic), the sponsoring club, and we have worked the event for years, usually doing registration. Like AIDS LifeCycle, the Cinderella Century is more than just having a good time; a significant portion of the proceeds is donated to women’s organizations throughout the Bay Area including the Women’s Cancer Resource Center, Big Sisters of the East Bay, Stand Against Domestic Violence, and Planned Parenthood. So, it’s a fundraiser as well albeit on a different model than LifeCycle.

Although boys can’t ride, they can participate by volunteering to help put the event on. The Valley Spokesmen puts out an annual appeal to its members and it seems to get enough volunteers, perhaps just barely. But it certainly won’t hurt to contact them if you are eager to help out. You can contact the team at: http://valleyspokesmen.org/email.php?email=cin

Different Spokes has for years put on its own ride, the Evil Step Sisters, on the same day, a romp over Mt. Tam. It’s not on the ride calendar yet but hopefully someone will step forward to lead it this year.