Pacificcoastcycleforacause's Blog

One would think that 10 hours of sleep would be enough for anyone, but I beg to differ.  Waking up this morning was not easy, but after an amazing breakfast and about 6 cups of coffee at a Brazilian restaurant in Santa Cruz (One of Steiner’s “Zones”), I and the crew were fully charged for the sunny day ride in front of us.

We left our hotel and rode along the coast to meet up and say big “Hello” to freeskiing’s super star’s Cody Townsend and Elise.  Great to see you two for the brief time that we did.  You guys rock and we are all coming back to catch some waves right outside your house ASAP!

The weather website we checked the night before was apparently lying about the wind situation for today with its prediction of north/northwest winds, but instead the wind we a terrible cross/headwind all day.  Spectacular actually…

The ride brought us through gorgeous beach Pacific beach roads to huge farm rich land consisting of strawberry field and other fields filled with fruits and vegetables.  The amount of farmland here is way more than I expected.

Navigating through the first half of our ride was a little complicated and we actually decided to ride on the Route 1 Interstate after we noticed that there wasn’t any signs stating was illegal.  Well you guessed it, we got pulled over on our bikes by the CHP and scolded for riding on the freeway, and luckily we weren’t sited.  I have to honestly say, I have never been pulled over on a bicycle before, but I do find it extremely hilarious.

After that interesting little situation, we headed into Seaside to meet Alex and the truck for a quick refueling of water/ClifBars/etc. and regrouping of riders, and then hit the road for the next 30 miles to Big Sur.

This section of the ride was yet again, amazing!  The views were incredible and I will let the images below speak for themselves.  And no, Jesse and Max did not jump the bridge in the images today. The conditions and size of the bridge were not desirable.

Tomorrow we will be climbing…I mean pedaling about 65-75 miles to Cambria, CA.  There we will be meeting up with the crew from Tahoe that we are “EXTREME”ly (you’re welcome Shane) excited about.

Stay tuned for the next blog from when that crew is onboard.

Max

Yes, I have to admit the long days of riding are effecting my after ride blogging ritual.  I am sorry.  Here is the highlights from the past two days.

Finally, after a great rest day in San Francisco, we departed the rainy city a little later than expected, and pedaled south into a nasty headwind all day long.

The ride started out slow, especially due to poor navigation through San Fran and some flat tires…typical. Then there was the south wind, rain and cloudy damp weather that would put a damper on the whole day.  This was not the best way to continue our ride after a great, relaxing, recovery day in the city.

The group separated once again, Steiner, Pep and our Canadian (Oh Canadian Eh?) friend took the lead after Jackie and myself had multiple flat tires. Then Jackie decided to call it a day halfway through the ride to assist our new support driver, Alex Obrien.  Maybe she wasn’t there to assist, but to help socialize with the hitchhiker that was picked up in Half Moon Bay who was doing the same ride as us. You meet some interesting people out on the road.

Half Moon Bay, houses one of the ride’s supporters, Go Pro Camera and Mavrick’s, the big wave mecca offshore break.  So after a quick stop at the Go Pro offices, Jesse and myself continued our drafting game to Santa Cruz, which was long and grueling.  Even the weather wasn’t as beautiful as it has been recently, so the amazing scenic ocean views weren’t up to par with the rest of the ride, although they were quite amazing.  Not to mention the amount of pumpkin farms and paths along Route 1.  I think I wore my voice out yelling to Jesse, “It’s the great pumpkin Charlie Brown” all afternoon long.

We arrived in Santa Cruz around 6:00pm about an hour after the first crew, and made a quick decision to clean up and hit the town for some Mexican food to recharge our rundown, sore and tired bodies.  The weather for the rest of the week and ride looks very promising so that is keeping out spirits high during the cloudy, wet weather. Tomorrow we have a long day to Big Sur so bedtime soon followed.

Two more days till Sherry, Ayla, and Tal meet up for some riding with the crew so everyone is very excited.

Till then…

Max

We have been on the road now for a little over 2 weeks, and the down days have been few and far between (only 1 day to be exact).  So we decided to take a day off in San Francisco to let our bodies recover, to sight see, and to relax.

We have been very fortunate to meet up with Adam Bunshoft (Jesse’s half brother) and his family here in San Fran.  They have been amazing to us and extremely kind.  From lodging, to dinners, they have been great and we cannot express our gratitude to them for it.

The day here in San Fran has been relaxing and a day to let our bodies recover from all the miles. Kyle Tanguay, a great friend from Connecticut and now lives in Berkley, met up with us for the day and joined the crew in their down day adventures…and also harmonized with me the lyrics from the Rancid song, “Another East Bay Night….” all day long. You have to listen to Rancid when you are in San Fran, it is the rules!

A short drive over to Berkley to meet up with some ClifBar people to replenish our nutritional supplies for riding and then it was over to the Bunshoft residence for some great Thai food.  Again, you guys are the best and it was great meeting you.  Thanks for everything.

Time for rest.  Tomorrow we are back “on” the saddle again to Santa Cruz to meet up with Cody Townsend!

Till then….

Max

15 Days of pedaling…nearly a 1000 miles…and we have finally reached San Francisco!  What a crazy experience it has been to this point.  Reaching this city has finally made us realize the actual distance we have covered in the short 2 weeks on our bikes.

The ride today from Bodega Bay to San Francisco was again a gorgeous ride, from the rolling farmland landscape, to coastal Red Tide overlooks on the Pacific, the ride proved itself to be top notch (like every single day so far on this trip).  I will let the mass amount of photos below speak for themselves…

Upon arrival to the outskirts of San Fran, we regrouped all the riders, and headed over the Golden Gate Bridge.  I can honestly say, I never thought I would ever be riding a bike over this massive bridge in my life.  But, I now can check it off my “bucket list” and say that I have, or should I say, we all have.  It was definitely a high light of the day.

We were lucky to meet up with Sherry McConkey for some drinks and sushi in the marina area of SF.  Great times had by all and it was the perfect cap to the day to have dinner with her.  We are all very excited to have her, Ayla, and Tal onboard come midweek.

Unfortunately, San Francisco is the last stop for Angeli on this trip.  She has to depart, but we are all very grateful for her help up to this point in the trip and couldn’t have made it without her.  A HUGE THANKS TO ANGELI AND HER SUPPORT!  Alex Obrien is now onboard to replace her, take some photos, and to keep the group motoring down the 101 and Route 1.

We will be taking a down day for recovery in San Fran, but will be hitting the road again to Santa Cruz early Monday morning.

Thanks for reading.  Enjoy the photos.

…and always remember, if you ride this far like we have, be sure to use a lot of Butt Butt’r!

Max

I know that I have been saying it this whole trip, but today’s ride was UNREAL!!!  I will let the photos speak for themselves below.

The crew separated from the start, so Steiner and I teamed up to spin out the soreness of the long 90-mile pedal the day before.  Neither one of us expected the beautiful ride in front of us.  It was top notch and by far the most amazing rides I have ever been on.  We pedaled about 20 miles on Route 1 from Manchester to Anchor Bay, where we fueled up on some double shots of Espresso at a quaint little coffee shop.  We continued on down the road along the curvy coastal road.  Mellow climbs and fast downs.  Such an amazing way to see this area of California.

By far the highlight of the day was the climb up through the clouds to a section of Route 1 that seemed like a postcard, better yet reality. Again, see the photos below.  The pictures speak for themselves. All the reasons as to why I am doing this ride wouldn’t leave my head while I was pedaling above the cloud layer.  It was surreal.

After the “above cloud experience” we headed down one of the best descents of the trip yet…extremely fast windy roads, switchbacks…the whole 9 yards.

The day ended in Bodega Bay, about a 70 mile ride for the day. The perfect recovery ride from the heavy pedal the day before.  Tonight we are staying at the Bodega Bay Dunes State Park right on the Pacific Ocean.  Not a bad way to spend the evening…listening to the waves crash and free sea air is good for the soul.

Tomorrow comes San Francisco!  Stay tuned…

Max

After a brutal day of pedaling in the rain, mother nature parted the skies and blessed us with some sun for the biggest day of our trip (so far).  The day started off from our cabin in Leggett, CA sounded by huge Redwoods and the damp forest air from the storm the day before.  A short, 6-mile mellow climb up the 101 would bring us to the Route 1 junction where we would turn and venture onto Route 1 and bid farewell to the 101.

Route 1 was going to show itself as being some of the hardest climbs we have experienced so far on the trip (maybe the whole trip). A 2000 foot vertical climb in the first 4 miles was a real great way to get the blood flowing, but beyond rewarding when we reached the summit and had a 6-8 mile downhill section through the forest.

A second climb of 1200 feet would come right after and then would descend down to the Pacific Coast once again.  The coast was extremely foggy and windy, south wind of course.  After all the climbing we endured in the beginning of the ride, we are graced with a decent headwind for 20-plus miles to Fort Bragg.  For the first time in the trip, I felt like I was going to “bonk.”  For those out there reading this blog who know what I am talking about, you have some sympathy for me.

The 20-mile push along to foggy coast to Fort Bragg was grueling, but we all made it to meet the truck for some lunch and replenishing of liquids and ClifBars, ProBars, Bloks, etc.  After a short lunch we decided to pedal on to Manchester.  Upon departure from Fort Bragg, we all thought our second half of the trip would be approximately 20 miles.  When I am wrong, I usually admit it, and this time, WE WERE WRONG.

The road was gorgeous, with lots of turns, short up and down hills, scenic views, etc.  Pep and I kept pushing on (so did the crew), and kept praying (and cursing) hoping the camp ground would be around the “next corner”, but when the odometer starts coming close to 90 miles, one wishes they could just fall over and sleep under the nearest bush.

From what we thought was going to be a 75-85 mile day, ended up being a 90 mile day with way more elevation gain and climbing than anticipated. We survived to pedal another day, and we will tomorrow from Manchester to Bodega Bay, CA.

Keep reading!

Max

California…sun, beaches, babes, warm weather…one would think.

Today was an excellent display of our commitment to this ride, and to make some ground on the road regardless of the weather.  What was forecasted as a party cloudy day, ended up being a 4 hour push through the pouring rain.  To our advantage, the storm is a southern disturbance, which brings warm temperatures and wind.

The mileage of the day was only around 60 miles, but with the weather is was more than enough….not to mention riding in the rain in Bigfoot country is extremely hazardous.

Highlights of the day were at a minimal, but included; Steiner getting two flat tires, max getting one flat tire (in a torrential downpour of course), socializing with some hitchhiking hobos under a bridge, riding road bikes on dirt roads, and did I mention pedaling in the rain?!?!?

The destination of the day placed us in Leggett, CA at a nice little resort tucked in the Redwoods, where we would dry off our soaked cycling clothes and relax for the big 80-mile day ahead of us to Manchester Bay.

Onward…

Max

Ahhhhhh…the first down day of the trip.  We definitely needed the time to let our bodies recover from the past 10 days of cycling, nearly pushing 720 miles!

A relaxed afternoon in Eureka would be our pedaling escape for the day.  Coffee, a walk through the local mall, magazines at Borders, a quick stop at the laundromat, a great Thai food dinner, and a viewing of Quentin Taratino’s new film. “Inglorious Bastards (a must see!) was the duration of the wet, rainy day.

Tomorrow we are hitting the road from Redcrest to Leggett rain or shine!  Let’s pray for shine.

Max

According to all internet weather sites, an enormous storm is predicted to slam the west coast, right where we are pedaling. So all that was on our minds was to get to our lodging at Redcrest Resort before the skies opened up with heavy rain and wind.

Today was a supposed to be a mellow 60 mile day, but with some technical issues and a decent headwind, the trip was not the easy pedal that we were expecting.  From Trinidad to Eureka there was a 35 mile ride on a border-lined interstate section of the 101….definitely was not the best riding we have experienced.  The key to the day was drafting through the wind.  It was a huge energy saver.

After a quick stop in Eureka at a local bike shop, where we re-met our Canadian friend, Andy, and got some supplies, we made our final push to Redcrest.  Again, drafting was crucial, especially with the south winds from the storm coming in.  We arrived in Redcrest around 3pm, just beating the stormy, wet weather and rented a cabin to lodge ourselves for two wet evenings.  Redcrest is an interesting town.  It has a vacated for 3 years General Store, a small restaurant, a post office, a couple porta-potties, a tree you can walk through, a Redwood treehouse, and a place to rent cabins, camping areas, and rooms…and it will be home from the next 2 days.  This is going to be an experience…

Wish us some luck through the storm! We are going to enjoy our first down day of the trip!

Max

Crescent City to Trinidad, CA

After spending a relaxing night in Crescent City at Pep’s brother’s house, we hit the road to Trinidad.  The morning was cold and foggy and right off from the start we had the largest, and steepest climb of the ride to this point (oh there will be another in a few days….excellent!).

The climb brought us up into the California Redwood Forest, which was surreal.  If you ever want to feel like a tiny speck on this planet, go stand next to a Redwood tree.  It will give you perspective as to how small we actually are.

We took a side, more scenic route, through the national forest where the roadways were lined with miles and miles of these enormous giants.  See the video and photos below.

We crossed paths with a Canadian biker from Whistler, Canada, who was also in route to San Diego. We got into a good pedal ton with him and worked the wonders of drafting through the wind for about 20 miles to Tinidad.

Upon arrival in Trinidad we realized how good our accommodations would be for the night; a nice cabin with room for everyone, and…..a HOTTUB!  Oh man, are we beyond stoked.

Tomorrow we are off 60 miles to Redcrest to wait out the insane tropical storm headed our direction.  Wish us some luck.  Looks like we are looking at some down time…