We leave the office and head through some business parks, under the freeway, past some horse ranches and up to the hills. We pass Xerox and some other well know Silicon Valley companies on the way to the trail. Lots of people are out on noon-time walks or runs. We spot a couple of hotties on the bike path. I consider stopping and saying something cool like 'say, would you ladies like your picture taken for a web site?' or 'Can I buy you a fish sandwich?' I reconsider and keep riding.

Ned of Gears almost gets run over by a Soccer Mom driving a Lexus who wasn't paying attention at an intersection. Scary. I tell Ned that I have brought a camera and that we are going to take some pics for a web site. I don't mention that it is Singlespeed.net. I don't want to discriminate against gearies. Ned is on a schedule and has to be back for a meeting. We end up losing him in the middle of the ride.

We enter the park and start climbing. Pete and I overtake Ned of Gears on the climb since those gears seem to be slowing him down. Pete and Ned are grumbling about being old and complaining about not being able to ride that much recently. There is some talk of having to work long hours, ski season taking away from biking time, etc.

Pete, passing Ned of Gears.

Here's me (DAS) on a little steep section by the lake.

Pete, smile, San Francisco is behind you!

Pete catching some air.

DAS catching some air.

DAS, steep climb.

DAS, bombing a rutted section.

Pete, dropping in.

Pete, descending, with Mt. Diablo and the bay in the background.

It's a clear day and you can see San Francisco behind Pete's blinding orange jersey.

The ride has some fire roads, some single track, and steep drops and some steep climbs. It's mostly exposed since we are in the foothills. This area consists of rolling hills, oak trees, some creeks and spots with of poison oak. It's a mild hill with no technical sections to speak of. Some areas are heavy with clayish mud since it rained recently. About 5 miles west of here you will find the Santa Cruz mountains where there is some serious riding. Remember, this is just our one hour noon time spin. I'll have to chronicle a longer, more serious ride at a higher elevation some other time. This park is the closest Open Space Preserve to town so you'll find a lot of dog walkers and horses here. It's pretty quiet midweek at lunch time and crowds are not a problem. This is also a great place to do some trail running. A couple days ago I was riding here and I spotted a Bobcat.

We finish climbing and make our way down through the oak trees, along the ridge, across the creek, and back to the trailhead. We get back on the road and make our way back to the office. On the road there are always lots of road bikers. This is bike heaven no matter what kind of bike you ride. This is what I have to remind myself when I'm back at the computer 15 minutes later.