Trek 420 - thanks for the ideas - I hadn't thought about the bay trail on the west side of the bay - I'll definitely check it out. I'll check the Velogirls site as well (kinda shy still about riding with others...)

About how long are these rides you mentioned (without doubling?)

Yeah - the Emeryville ride is really nice, past dog parks and bird sanctuaries. The evenings are especially nice - great sunsets, and always a decent cross/head/tail wind! I say to myself that if I find it boring, I'm not paying enough attention!

BTW - congrats on competing the ALC4 - I ws glued to Spazz's reports and followed the photos on the site daily - I had friends riding and crewing. Now they're all starting in on me - "Don't you want to do it next year?" I'm not saying anything yet, but I think I'd like to work up to a metric century by the end of the summer or fall , and maybe 100 miles by the new year ? (First time acknowledging these goals - uh oh!)