First of all, I know what Coach Patricia will say to me. That is "what were you thinking!?" I know, I know, but it was "only" the summit. The one thing I should have realized (and I did but won't admit it) is that I have NOT ridden up the mountain for almost 2 years! In fact, I have done virtually ZERO road riding in the past 2 years. That I was on a new bike and maybe should make sure all my brake cables were adjusted before I descended 10 miles back down. That maybe I wasn't really ready at an endurance/physical level.
All I can say is "oh well." :-)
So I headed up on the new bike. I was interested to see how the climbing would be with compact cranks. I have ridden up Mt. Diablo dozens of times on my 53/39 and 27/12 set-up. So what would it be like with a 50/34 on the front? All I can say is that there was definitely a difference. I spun up (actually meandered up) to The Junction (~ 6 miles up) and felt great. Since I had not ridden anything like this for 20+ months I was quite happy with my progress. So I decided to go to the top. Heck, it was only 4.2 mile further. So I did.
Was fun to be out there and even gave a shout out to local pro triathlete Chris Lieto as he cruised by me while I was taking pictures (my Roberta Gonzales impersonation). I assume it was one of his last hammers up the mountain before Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii in two weeks.
Anyhoo, I did overdo it. It was hot. I was tired this afternoon. But I did it!
Here are some pics from the ride:
A look out over the tri-valley.
Curry Point. ~ 1,500 feet.
There were a few folks at the junction.
If you looks closely you can make out Curry Point below.
Quick stop at the overlook. That is the San Francisco Bay over my right shoulder.
Done! Now it is 10 miles back down!
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