Weekend Rides, April 25-27

[Norse]

Saturday was raw, chilly and blustery, but I had a test ride scheduled so I went out and did an estimated 20 miles or so on a Specialized Roubaix. Yesterday was gorgeous - got up to 60! - and DP and I had tix to the Twins' baseball game so we road our hybrids there - about 9 miles - and then she took the bus back to take care of the pets before heading over to her family's for Easter dinner. Using mostly the trail system, I rode my bike over to her family's after the game for total mileage yesterday of 22. It was a fantastic day!

[Bike Writer]

Easter Sunday I had a short bike ride with my Godson on a bike path that winds through their subdivision. We had fun after dinner spending some one on one time together doing something we both enjoy, I forgot how much fun it is to go riding with a kid.

[kacie tri-ing]

I was able to get in another century this weekend, which was a great one. It climbed up chandler mountain in Alabama. It was a small one in an inaugural year, but on a gorgeous course and well supported. Time to taper for my big race now! My husband (in the picture) had a great--and very fast ride--and I felt strong throughout!

[luv2climb]

I read that these three climbs in the foothills were tough climbs, so naturally I had to do them They are all in the Newcastle/Auburn area in Placer County, CA. As usual I recorded video of all the good climbs, so here they are.

Garmin Connect data for the entire ride: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/81350751

Ridge Road. This was the "easy" one compared to the next two. Maximum grade was only 11% near the top, and I accidentally caught up to a couple of women who had started the climb before me. The conversation with them is in the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyKjhQc9Qbk

Chili Hill Road. This was steep and painful! Maximum grade was 17%. At the top I saw a cyclist taking pictures of his son who was climbing the hill. I mentioned that I recorded my climb and he liked that When his son got to the top of the hill he saw my camera setup and was very interested as he also wants to start recording his rides. He also loves watching cycling videos. I told him I would be uploading all the good climbs to YouTube later on that evening. His father said he is trying to get his son into cycling. I told him his son has a climber's build and he agreed. He said his son had the Andy Schleck look

When I got ready to upload the videos I noticed I had a new subscriber to my YouTube channel. When I uploaded the first video it immediately got a view and a thumbs-up. It was the kid on the hill.

I think his father will have no problem getting him interested in cycling

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnT0vfuP3iY

Glenview Road. This was also steep and painful, and was the next to last climb in the ride. Maximum grade was 19%

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22q2zixhX18

Here's a picture from the top of Glenview Road. I rode my Specialized Sirrus hybrid with road wheels and tires:


Specialized Sirrus at top of Glenview Road climb by kittyz202, on Flickr

[ladyicon]

luv2climb, looks like you have beautiful roads to ride on. I was getting tired half way up with you, looking for the top

[luv2climb]

luv2climb, looks like you have beautiful roads to ride on. I was getting tired half way up with you, looking for the top

Thanks I love going up there and getting away from all the typical urban BS.

I didn't know where the top was until it was in sight on these climbs, since it was my first time riding these hills. That made things interesting