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Erma's Ride Reports 2004
Summaries of 118 rides by Erma riders
Reports of rides (Erma and otherwise) taken this year by the Erma's Diner riders (most recent at top), showing:
- Date of the ride
- Miles ridden
- Route taken (often cryptic)
- Riders who were there
- Report of the happenings
Submit Your Report
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Report archives:
2003 |
2002 |
2001 |
2000 |
1999
| 10/13/2004 |
36 |
Jackson,Stoney Creek Ione S.C. |
Steve H.,Gene,Don Strahan, Paul M |
| This ride should be entitled " Don't let the smoke get in your eyes' as there was a serious fire burnng up on hwy 88 where the road was closed. We had planned to go up Hale Rd (really) but since ash was everywhere we decidedf to go downhill to avoid it. It was anice uneventful but pleasant ride until we got to Ione where we could see the air. Next week Omo Ranch. SWH |
| 10/10/2004 |
74 miles **39 miles |
Fair Play loop |
John and Karen R, Chuck G. Larry and Gayle H, Steve H, Steve and Carolle, and Dave B** |
We had a great day, today was not about the bike, nor the time. No, today was about enjoying friends. Today we decieded to head up to Fair Play and have lunch. Steve H even had a glass of thier house wine, along with his plate of mussels. The food was good, but the service was very slow. It took an hour and a half, but the company was great!!
When we returned to the parking lot Gayle even has Birthday cheese cake for Carolle and myself...You can't beat these kinds of friends...Thanks
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| 10/3/2004 |
70 |
Plymouth - Camanche |
Steve M; Jim and Penny; Larry and Gayle; Mike E; Karen; John R |
Gayle and Larry's new Co-Motion tandem made its debut on a perfect day for cycling (what day isn't , except when it's raining ?). A beautiful tandem it is and it , as well as the riders, worked perfectly ! The plan for L & G's tandem shakedown cruise was to head for Mt. Aukum but in Plymouth we were advised not to venture into the Shenandoah area thanks to a zillion vino lovers scheduled to be in Erma Country for a "smashing event" of some kind. So , we headed back and rode out to Cammanche Blues . Turned out to be 69.7 miles that worked out just dandy for everyone ..... especially Steve M who got base miles started again after being out of training for awhile . No Carolle or Charity today .... CM was at home taking care of her "daughter" Cheyenne and CK was at work ! We missed them both. Good ride despite having to get up in the dark this AM. "Keep on the sunnyside". (JR)
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| 10/3/2004 |
30 |
Diablo Challenge |
Steve H. and 900+ others |
The crowd gathered early for the 8:30 start of the 25th annual diablo challenge. Riders from the whole cycling spectrum were there. Many racer type were busy on their trainers trying to warm up as much as possible. Others were pushing their way up to the start line so to be on the front of the pack. Then there were the mountain biker folks, unicycle folks. people with a trailer. and even a guy with a bicycle scooter. Something like the bay to the breakers but everyone wear clothes. I place myself in the midpack for the first time which made for a much more fun experience. I actually got to pass people-many people in fact, including the unicycle guy who by the way did the entire climb in 1 hour and 29 minutes. The last 100 yards is the most fun as it is a 18 percent grade and some poor fellow was 40 feet from the top and just sitting beside the road crying that he bonked!. After all the award presentations they let us go down in groups of 60-70 but we were pace by a range!
r on an atv at 25-30 mph-very bad idea! It meant the peleton was packed right behind him 4-6 abreast bumping trying to stay on the front but couldn't pass. If they had let us go it would have strung us out and be safter. It was like a downhill crit-very scary. May not do this again. SWH |
| 9/29/2004 |
35 |
Jackson Butte, Tabeaud Aqueduct Volcano |
Steve H.,Gene, Paul M.,John and Karen R, Jim G. as sag wagon |
Our peleton was smaller this morning as Kevin was cycling in Italy and Jimmy was sick. However he did manage to come out and follow his buddies to take pictures-undoubtedly a homework assignment. Paul took us through an amazing or sh---y way through Jackson finding all the road closures of which there are many. Climbing up Tabeaud all the deer were out so we were glad we were going up not down. Coming down Volcano-sutter creek again there were more herds coming out to feed as it gets cooler-watch out! We did have time for coffee and smoothies and John is getting used to the idea See you next week when our sag wagon fellow,Jim will be back on his bike. SWH
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| 9/15/2004 |
47 for all but Larry 51 |
Reverse Wildlife with a twist |
Paul, Lew, Larry, Don, & Jim |
A little cooler day arrived to greet a thin but enthusiastic group of Erma's riders today. We were forced to carry on without our spiritual leader, Dr. Steve. Steve will be impressed with the route we came up with in his absense, we were climbing the whole way, and then some. After riding past the casino, we headed around Butte Mountain and up Tabeau road. The only excitement to that point was that I thought I was going to die about halfway up to Pioneer, I was lucky enough to get up without to much whining. After a fun downhill ride to see Rosie in Volcano, Larry brought out the groans again when he suggested going up Ramshorn instead of heading directly toward our beloved smoothees. Happily Paul and Don took it easy on me, so Ramshorn really was not to terrible. We had a plesant ride down Shake Ridge and 1-2 road and then we fiiiiiiiiiiiinaly got to go get our beloved smoothees. We had another great day while everybody else was working, I know that it hardly see!
ms fair, but we are willing to live with it.
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| 9/12/2004 |
56 |
Sutter Creek - Stony Ford |
Jim, Don, Mike (56), Jaymee, and Kim (35) |
They being (almost) Brand-new, it fell to a small but fortunately well-above-average representation of Erma's veterans (Jim, Don, and Mike) to shepherd second-timers Jaymee and Kim to Sutter Creek and back via Stony Creek and uphold the standards of the un-club. The sweet-young-newcomers more than held their own, shaming the old farts into an add-on training loop of Irish Hill/Willow Creek (backwards - Don's got a theory ...).
The test will be whether they come back; should we set odds?
ME |
| 9/8/2004 |
47 |
S.C., Volcano, Big Trees, and back via Shake Ridge |
Dr. Steve, Paul, Ray, Hux, John, & Jim |
With another warm day on tap, we the intrepid old farts of Erma's Diner decided to go uphill to try and escape the heat. The big news of the day was the arrival of Paul's new Rex bicycle (very nice) and the return of Ray's Litespeed frame. Ray was having some handling troubles and the litespeed factory seems to have fixed whatever his problem was. As a result everybody in the group was happy except me because both Ray and Paul just smoked me on the climb up Ramshorn. As always the scenery was just great up above Volcano and it is always nice to cover an area that we don't see regularly. On the way down Shake Ridge one of the boys manage to accidentally run over the tip of of a squirrel's tail, an incident that surely gave both participants a thrill, with major injury to neither. Because I was off the back (as usual) and did not see this drama unfold, I had to ask Steve if the little critter had been hit squarely, his reply was no he just got a little piece of tail. !
After all this excitment the only thing to do was to go for drinks at the coffee house (yum)!
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| 9/5/2004 |
66 |
Penny's extra hot birthday route |
John & Karen, Chuck, Dr. Steve, Jim & Penny, Don, Special geust riders Steve & Irene |
We met again in Plymouth, which was nice enough to give us a little taste of what we would be missing later, cooler weather. Yes it is true that plymouth was on the cool side at eight in the morning, it is also true that it was twenty degrees warmer at the bottom of the first hill. Because Penny turned twenty-nine (again) everyone wanted to take it easy on her back problems, so we opted to ride down into the heat, instead of heading up to Olmo Ranch. This was also a significant ride because our good friends Steve & Irene chose to ride with us on their first tandem effort since Steve broke his leg training for the last edition of P.B.P.. We all knew they would be strong, and they were, we just hope they grace us with their companionship again. Unlike my birthday ride, this ride went off without a hitch, except for the occaisional case of char-broiled rider. To say it was hot was an understatement, people were stopping to take breaks in the shade at places Ermas never !
stop. Despite the heat we all made it back to the park and the brownies that Karen made in honor of Penny's birthday. When Irene said her birthday was the next day, it just added to the celebration. Even if it was a tad bit warm, or as Larry would say "tepid real tepid", we all had a great day and look forward to our next adventure.
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| 9/1/2004 |
69 |
Tour of the three Clintons |
Steve H. Hux, Paul, Don, John (THE DON), Lou (from Stockton), Bill (from S.C.), & Jim
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After riding so much in the heat this ride started off a lot cooler. We had a big crowd but we were sorry that A.A.R.P. stalwarts Gene and Ray were unable to attend. Today' ride did mark a momentous occaision because it was John's first A.A.R.P. after his last legislative session. While it is true that he is not officially retired, we are expecting to see a lot more of him in the next few weeks. We are looking forward to John being officially retired so he to can become a full fledged "Old Fart". The ride went off without a hitch, except for when we went by the casino in Jackson, I asked Steve if brought quarters for everybody to gamble with, Steve however inadvertantly left them in his bag so we just had to settle for stopping at Bill's. We did have a little excitement when we had a lapse of communication and the two Dons went over the graveyard hill instead of through town like everybody else. And then just for good measure poor Don got a flat at the top of the la!
st hill, I guess the tire wanted to make life as miserable as possible for Don. Don took the flat with his usual grace and we were soon at the coffee shop for smoothees.
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| 8/29/2004 |
69 |
TOur of the Napa Valley |
Jim & Penny |
| What better way could there be to celebrate ones birthday than to get up at four in the morning, drive all the way to Napa, and kill yourself going up Ink's grade? Penny couldn't come up with a better one so that is what we did. The weather was unusually hot for Napa, but aside from the heat the century was first rate. The roads were good, the food was yummy, and the scenery was almost as good as good old Amador county. The highlight of the ride was having the chance to ride with our freind from motorcycle racing, Hank Mini. Hank does a lot of mountainbike and cyclocross racing, and he is just now beginning to ride centuries. Hank really liked the easy going atmosphere and he really liked the food. In closing we just had a real good time on a special day in a special location. |
| 8/25/2004 |
48 |
S.C., New Chicago, the Hyw., Carbondale, Buena Vista, Stoney and back. |
Steve H., Paul M., Tim S., Ray, Bill, Jay, Paul, Don, Mark, Jim And a cast of thousands |
After cooking last week, the cooler weather was great until our leader came up with a bright idea, "because it is cooler today let"s go up Stoney Creek". I must admit that in the parking lot this did indeed sound like a good idea. However reality has a way of creeping up on you, just like it did to me on that last steep pitch before the high school. Starting out on New Chicago is always a mixed blessing, it is still steep and hard to get over, but early in the ride I am fresh enough to enjoy the beauty of the place instead of just admiring the lovely pavement at the end of a hard day. After regrouping when we got to the highway the race was on. We did a quick trip all the way down Carbondale and around to Ione. Because of time constraint Paul M. and Don left us at the water treatment plant and proceeded up Sutter Creek Ione road. After their departure we made our way up to Buena Vista for a break. We of course had just a lovely time riding up Stoney Creek, at least!
I did (no kidding) Ray, Tim and I had a great time telling old war stories (ok so I tend to jabber to much) on the way up the hill. Then it was time for the quick trip back to S.C. and smoothees, alas I had to get home and do homework (school seemed like such a good idea at the time I started), but I'm sure a good time was had by all at the coffee house.
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| 8/22/2004 |
64 |
Ione,SC Volcano Red corral,Jackson Stoney Creek |
Steve H. |
| Here I am on Sunday the only one here-I suppose everyone else is in church so I go it alone. Passed a couple of riders who know Ermas and they wonder where everyone is. St Volcano after talking to Rosie and the other riders I go my way and have a nice ride down. Have a cup of Mocha at Incognito where I am the only customer-in fact all of Jackson seems deserted. On home to where my cold fresh grapes await. Maybe more riders on Wednesday. SWH |
| 8/21/2004 |
63 For Jim & Penny 100+ for Dave |
Ride your Rex |
Dave Neff, Jim & Penny |
| The first annual "Ride Your Rex" event was a rousing success. I was must admit that I was a little skeptical about the idea of riding the bike trail in August, but Steve was able to arrange some cool weather for ride day. The ride went off with out any problems for Penny and I. We did have the usual amount close encounters with the inhabitants of the bike trail, but thankfully we escaped intact. Just before we got to the fish hatchery Dave Neff caught up and stayed with us for the rest of the trip. After we got back to W. Pond park we enjoyed the best after ride meal I remember in a very long time. It was a geat day with Dave and a bunch of non Ermas that I used to see all the time on the bike trail. Thanks to the eforts of Steve Rex and his family, friends and sponsers a lot of much needed money was raised to preserve the American River Parkway, the most remarkable recrational resourse in this area. |
| 8/18/2004 |
39 |
S.C., Jackson, Stoney Creek, Buena Vista, Ione, Ione-Sutter Creek, and back |
Dr. Steve, Paul, Hux, & Jim |
I was able to make my not so triumphant return to the gray haired peloton after missing last week. I was dissapointed to see that a major part of the regular group was A.W.O.L. ( like I was last week). the however in this case was that even if we missed our absent friends we were delighted that our good friend Hux had decided to join us. Because Steve was feeling ambitious "we" decided to ride into Jackson and immediatly up Hoffman, because it was only going to be unbelievably hot today. To be honest I thought it was a pretty good idea until we started out and I burst into a sweat 15 feet from the parking lot. We all had a nice time riding down Stoney Creek and then we checked out the pothole that reeked so much havoc on Sunday just outside Buena Vista. Every thing went great until we started up the climb to Sutter Creek and smoothees. While it seemed everyone else was going great I was dying in the heat, thank goodness Paul took pity on a corpulent, aging cyclist and hung with me. The top of lthe hill was almost as welcome a sight as the coffee house and smoothees. As usual I had a great day with great friends while my wife was at work (lucky me)!
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| 8/15/2004 |
66 |
Jim's twenty-ninth (yet again) birthday ride |
John & Karen, Dr. Steve, Chuck, Mike, Charity & son, Larry, Guy, Jim & Penny |
We began the the day in Plymouth with a nice surprise. Mike and Charity bought their son out to join the fun. The only problem is that in my advancing years my memory is not exactly improving, so I have admit that I forgot the young man's name. I am sorry about my little memory lapse, but what can you expect from an old fart like me? The ride started with the decent down Old Sac. road at a quick pace and pretty much stayed quick (atleast for penny and I ) for the rest of the day. Everything went pretty much as planned until we found a pothole as we were pacelineing (since it is my birthday I get to make up new words) toward Buena Vista and Dr. Steve got a pinch flat. Due to an unforseen road closure we got a little creative with the navigation back too Ione and enjoyed a nice brerak in town. Then on the way back to Plymouth the aforementioned pothole struck again when our front tire started going soft on Irish Hill road. As would be expected Penny and I were out th!
e back when we found our little reminder of hitting the allready mentioned pothole. As luck would have it, our very good friend
Stephanie stopped to see what was going on and agreed to drive up and tell the gang where we were. She met Chuck first and he came back to rescue us. Just after we hooked up with Chuck, John came back and remarked on how much fun it would be to make the climb a second time. Every one got back to Plymouth without any further problems. Chuck sat with us the last few miles and paced us up the hill, just about everyone took a turn sitting back with us and their efforts were most appreciated. Back in the park we had a bite of birthday cake and made fun of my advancing years. Thanks to everyone for all the good wishes! |
| 8/11/2004 |
36 |
wildlife |
Steve H.,Paul. Stockton Boy, Bill and Joanne Seaver, Don S.,Paul from Daffodils, Jay (Pauls father in law)
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This was the last ride for Jay before he returns to the east so we wanted to show him some real downhill twisties on Tabaeu. Going up S.C.. to volcano we were stopped by the Amador County road building folks. They are repaving more of the S,C,-Volcano Road so most of it will be unblemished asphalt. After repairing a flat in Volcano we headed up to Pioneer. Coming down Clinton Tabeau it was a very fast pace designed to humble some folks. Turning off 49 to 88 to go to Bills the local CHP took offense at our lack of stop at the turn. Fortunately Paul apoligized for us, shook his hand and gave him an offer he couldn't refuse so we are back in good graces. The usual smoothies in S.C. with conversation followed. See you next week. SWH
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| 8/8/2004 |
50; 35 |
Plymouth, Omo Ranch, Fairplay |
Dave B; Chuck; Mike E; Charity; Larry H; Karen ; John R (50)
Jim and Penny; Pat ; John H(35) |
Another start today from Erma's original starting point, Plymouth. Original plan was to just ride the Fairplay Loop and then, upon returning to base, take on WC and IH. In Mt. Aukum, Jim and Penny sent us on without them .....guess they didn't want us to enjoy the break too long ! So off we headed for Fairplay to have the route changed at the Omo/Fairplay intersection and climb up to Omo Ranch School. Dave B led the "charge" with Charity in pursuit. Karen , showing her good form, caught up with her. After enjoying a brief stop in beautiful Omo Ranch we enjoyed a great ride down the hill before taking a right turn and heading for Fairplay. For future note, the descent on Omo Ranch requires one to be watching for "boils" in the road caused by logging trucks. Heading back to Plymouth from Mt. Aukum we encountered the too frequent "one fingered salute" that cyclists have to endure and an even more aggressive Raider type fan as we neared the Shenandoah/ Fiddletown Rd inters!
ection. This last guy even pulled over and waited for us to come by so he could vent "up close and personal". "All's well that ends well" so it was still just another fine day to enjoy cycling with friends . "Keep on the sunnyside". (JR)
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| 8/4/2004 |
32 |
Watercourse |
Steve H.,Paul M.,Stockton boy,Jim G.,Don Strahan,Ray Lemo,Joanne and Bill Seaver,Paul from Daffodels, Jay Seal (father in -law).cameo by Dave T |
We had a big turnout with many guests anxious to ride with (the experienced ones) aarp. The watercourse ride had been decided on the previous week so we were pleased it wqasn't too hot. After introdutions and admonishment to keep it clean since we we had a real woman with ¨us (Joanne). It was a nice not too fast ride up to Volcano where we met Dave coming down so he joined us. In Volcano we discussed Rose as usual and prepared to climb. The ride up to Lockwood was the usual but the ride down to Fiddletown-that's something else. Steve and Kevin showed that old age and treacher¥ can sometimes beat youth if they work together. Absolutely suberb ride down!. Going into Plymouth we encountered a white pickup truck that almost knocked Jim off the bike and honked his horn continously at our single file paceline. He stopped in Plymouth where his wife used her extensive volcabulary-four to five words of explerives. Paul and Steve reassured him that he should move on while some of ou!
r comrades suggested his female friend had uncertain parentage and was significantly weight challenged. She made so much noise she stated she might have another myocardial infarction which would only vindicate Darwin. Anyway after that we had the usual somewhat warm ride up New Chicago and ride back to S.C.. Smoothies awaited and we will be back next week-hopefully with more of our new friends. SWH |
| 8/1/2004 |
64 |
Mt. Shasta Summit Century |
Jim |
| It is always nice to be able to ride through beautiful scenery on a nice day. Unlike some past efforts that included rain, this year's edition was held under sunny skies. The ride was very well organized, as usual, with very few problems. I do believe that that the organizers might have made the hills a little steeper this year. I know they are the same hills that we traversed in the past, they just seemed steeper this year. The day was made much more pleasant when I came accross Tom and Margie, some very nice folks that Penny and I have ridden with several times on other centuries. I should mention that they did the whole ride on their tandem (pretty impressive). The whole trip was just wonderfull, I met nice people in a great place, however it would be nice if they could make that last hill a little easier. So in closing if you are looking for a ride that is in the same difficulty range as the "Death Ride", only with less people, Mt. Shasta might be for you. |
| 8/1/2004 |
57 |
Plymouth, Old Sac, Sutter Creek Volcano, Lockwood, Plymouth |
John and KarenR,Steve H., Steve and Carol, Mike and Charity, Dave B. |
Today we started in Plymouth ,JR's choice to avoid the heat and we cetainly did that as going out of Plymouth into the fog was decididly brisk. Arm warmers in August?. It did however quickly warm up as we went up 16 to willow creek as even a very large rattlesnake was basking in the bike lane. Even our animal lovers decided to let him bask away. Going down Willow Creek we encountered our usual dog friends but noe decided to attack us. By the time we climbed to S.C we were definitely cooking. Up S.C -Volcano Road Dave Brubaker showed he is back to form as no one could stay with him to the town. In Volcano we met Kevin, Andy, Anita and the whole Stockton gang who were doing a " we got our mojo back ride"-very ambitious. Anita allowed us to touch her new all carbon "Cipo" bars on her new Calfee. Steve M. was soo excited that he was ready to roll over and have a cigarette. Karen and John showed us why Rams Horn is their favorite hill. We met together at Lockford and had a g!
reat ride down all the way into Plymouth. Using Plymouth as a starting point at this time of year worked out very well and we may suggest it again. |
| 7/31/2004 |
53 |
Ione,Plymouth,Stiner,Olstrom rd.to Fiddletown,plymouth and IH.
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Robert Nichols and AL the Pal |
I don't know......I guess it was an ermas ride! two weeks now,since I havent seen another ermas rider on Saturday morning.Where is everyone?I hope everyone is well!
Robert (from Lockeford) and I have really enjoyed this route.It's very scenic,fast, traffic is somewhat light and has good hills!We enjoy doingIHx2.Robert is always ahead of me especially now that he has FSA chain rings.If you like hills.And you would like to ride on Saturday morning.Come join us!Take care and I hope to see the ermas jersey soon!-AL |
| 7/25/2004 |
50 |
Standard "Saturday ride" |
John, Karen, Mike, Charity |
| 3 bikes, four people (Mike, Charity, John, Karen), standard Saturday ride (SC-Ione; creek road; Ram's Horn; Shake Ridge; SC-Ione). Vive le Lance! And that's what we assume the rest of you were doing ... ME |
| 7/21/2004 |
38 |
Tour of the three Clintons |
Steve H., Paul, Don, Larry & Jim |
| Because I don't seem to be having much luck submiting ride reports again, here is the quick version. It was pretty warm at the start so obviously Steve wanted to do the hottest ride we do, the water route, but cooler heads prevailed and we decided to ride in the direction of Jackson Family Sports to get the latest word on the day's time T.D.F. time trail. Everything went just fine until Larry decided to wave at a little kid, hit a bump, do a one handed table top, and slide right up to the kid's stroller. Larry was very little the worse for wear, considering he tipped over at thirty M.P.H. ( the kid did have eyes as big as dinner plates after the experience), what a tough character! I had to run off so I missed coffee with the boys, however I am sure they had a good time. JG |
| 7/18/2004 |
51 |
Ione up Stoney Creek to Jackson, around Butte Mountain to China Grade to Sutter Creek and back to Ione |
John and Karen Rovane, Larry and Gail Hayes, Mike and Charity Eaton, Jim Gray, Don Strachan, Tanya Vandrick, and Dave Brubaker |
After distributing the new gloves to raves and wows, the peleton left just after 8 a.m. John suggested that Dave Brubaker choose the ride since it was his first day back riding with Erma's (John forgot about two weeks ago!). So, without thinking, Dave suggested Stoney Creek.
A very few miles out, one tandem turned back because of "lost" camera. At Pardee, the other tandem turned around because the stoker couldn't stoke up the hills. So, John, Karen, Don, Jim, Tanya, and Dave continued the ride.
The total time was 3:54:20 in a day that simply got hotter and hotter and hotter--hotter than predicted. The group climbed a total of 4024 vertical fee and finished with no one nursing bruises, scrapes, or over heated bodies. In a word: the ride was FANTASTIC! DB |
| 7/17/2004 |
50 |
Sutter Creek Coffee route |
Steve H. and Gene with appearances by Coco and the Aussie Ermas. |
| I was still recovering from DR and such so riding with Gene seemed like a nice idea. All of a sudden going up Volcano Road we were passed by Bev, Chris, Coconut Al and the entire Aussie Ermas Branch. This invigorated us and it turned out to be a Ray Train but led by Bev. Bev said she need to do Charleston four times today. After I managed to hold my breakfast down at that no one would join her. So while we all went up Ramshorn sHe went up Charlston twice and beat us to the top! The other Aussie gilrs were also muy buff as were their mates (mytes to you). The ride down was the usual speed fest but led by women-what has the world come to? Gene and I repaired to the coffee house to have smoothies and ease our pain before the ride back. SWH |
| 7/14/2004 |
38 |
Tour of the three Clintons |
Paul, Gene, Stockton Boy, Ray, Don, Jim, and special guest old fart Harvey |
| When we left the fabled jumping off point for allmost every A.A.R.P. ride in Sutter Creek we found that while we were not a day late we were most definitely a Steve Honeychurch short. The absense of our team leader was mitigated by the addition of special geust old guy Harvey, who by the way came too us from Atlanta. Harvey was uniquely qualified to fill in for Steve because in additio to being a strong rider he is also a medical Doctor. So with our new leader in tow we bravely set out to see what the world had in store for us today. The weather was lovely and we had a good time showing Harvey the sights of beautiful Amador county. After checking in with Rosie in Volcano it was off to Jackson. On the way down Tabeau road we made the turn for the tour of the Clintons and began to jockey for favorable positions for the city limits sign sprint in Jackson. Just as the sprint was starting to get rolling Gene (Chipollini) pulled along Paul (Petaki) and commented on Paul's slow pace, and the race was on! Paul finally prevailed, but not with out a fight. It is not everyday that any of us can claim the advantage of youth, but today Paul did not sqaunder this rare oportunity. All in all it was a good day, everyone had a good time and we hope Harvey comes out to visit us again real soon. JG |
| 7/11/2004 |
93 |
3rd Annual Hayes Portola Century |
Steve & Carolle McGrath, Tanya Vandrick, and Michael Arreguin, Larry & Gayle Hayes |
| The 3rd Annual Hayes Portola Century was a great event! Steve & Carolle McGrath, Tanya Vandrick, and Michael Arreguin joined Larry & Gayle Hayes on Saturday night for a pre-ride dinner of spaghetti & meatballs, salad, rolls, and a German chocolate birthday cake baked by Karen Rovane (Delicious!). Sunday dawned sunny & bright. We headed out at 8:20 from Graeagle on two tandems and two singles. Mike had ridden in the Death Ride the day before and tried to convince us that he'd be slower than usual--wink, wink--but we weren't buying that. Our route took us up a gradual climb to Portola, then another out of Portola to Davis Lake. At the bottom of this first long and fast downhill, we made our way through valley towns of Beckwourth, Loyalton, Sierraville, and Sattley. This area was flat with a little more wind then we appreciated. The tandems and Mike graciously pulled me along and I was very grateful! Then began the hills--up 6 miles to the Yuba Pass and down to Bassett's Station for a hearty lunch. Then another 7 mile pull up to Gold Lake and a long downhill run back to Graeagle. Total mileage: 93. We had perfect weather and everyone rode well, despite some protest from Larry's back. Michael didn't appear to be fatigued in the slightest even though his two-day vertical elevation gain with the Death Ride and Portola was over 20,000 feet! We got back to camp, had leftover spaghetti for dinner, and called it a day. All in all, I had a blast riding my second century. If you ever have the chance to ride in this area, jump at it. Cheers! ~tv |
| 7/11/2004 |
63 (Chuck and JR): 50 (ME) |
IH, WC, Sutter Cr.,Volcano, Daffy Hill |
Chuck; Mike E; John R |
Well it wasn't as good a route today as The Hayes' Century in Portola but it was still a good to be out riding . A bit on the hot side at the end however. Mike was back from 3 weeks in Europe and was in fine form despite enjoying LOTS of good food. Charity was MIA today due to a cold she managed to pick up mostly likely thanks to the long flight home. Quite a few riders enjoying Erma Country this fine day and some riders and bikes look a bit unprepared for riding in such hilly terrain. One old 10 speed, sans handlebar tape, looked to weigh about 30 lbs.. Halfway up The Creek Rd. Mike figured 50 miles would be enough for today and headed for home to see how Charity was doing. Chuck and JR pushed on to Volcano and took a break in the park where Karen et al had just finished breaking set for "Aspirins and Elephants". Chuck and JR offered to change the route to go to Pine Grove so Karen could get home, change into cycling gear, and join us for the return trek to Ione. S!
he almost went for the offer but decided staying at home and relaxing sounded better. Even with a gentle breeze , going up Rams Horn was hot . Haven't been up "her" for too long and it showed. Upon arriving back in Sutter Creek it felt great to soak the ole head in some cold water before heading over the hump to Ione. Too early to tell yet but I'm anxious to see how the bypass is going to effect one of our favorite roads(Ione-Sutter Cr.). Thanks to Mike and Chuck for a good ride. Looking forward to the next ride and to hear about the Death Ride and Hayes Century. "Keep on the sunnyside".(JR)
|
| 7/10/2004 |
90 (Steve) |
Death Ride |
Steve H (90), Ray C (129), Ed (74), Pat Johnson (80), Dave N (129), Michael A (129), Sarah (129), Jerry (129) |
Saturday was one of the better Death Rides I have been on as the weather was not too hot and no rain. I started at 5:30 with the early dawn coolness. Going up Moniter Pass I was passed by Dave Neff, Mike A. like I was standing still (close to the truth I think) Met up with Ed and Ray later coming back the other way and we descended semi together. After we saw the guy lying beside the road with the two CHP.s we slowed alittle and as we got close to the bottom Ed heard a pop followed by a wobble. An inspection showed he had broken a spoke on his Krysium wheel. Now just try to get one of those in Alpine County! After many tries he got a new wheel and caught up with me going up Ebbets. I did see Pat Johnson coming up Moniter as we were going down. Ray and later myself went down to Hemet Valley. I was struck by how many ambulances were going up and down the passes picking up broken bodies and such-I didn't know they had that many in Alpine County.Again I saw Pat Johnson going !
up the east side of Ebbets-the only way I could tell he was still alive was because he was vertical-obvious heat was beginning to build and take its toll. Ray and Ed invited me to have lunch in Markleeville with their female friends instead of Wolf Creek which sounded good. I now owe Ray 1/2 Roast Beef sandwich. f . Sad to report I did not finish the fifth pass because I fell in with Evil Companions in Markleeville and thought home sounded better. SWH |
| 7/10/2004 |
56 |
Ione to Burson via Camanche.Pardee,Buena vista,Jackson Valley Rd.Ione |
Saxxon(?),Peter,Paul all from Sacto. area and Al the pal |
I was well awere of the special event for some of the regular Sat. riders.I hope they had a great time at the D.R.
So I was prepared to do some miles alone.Suddenly a blue Volvo showed up.Peter was wearing his Ermas jersy and I knew I would have some welcomed company today.The weather was wonderful.We caught up on some gearing conversation and most important we got some good quality miles in with a nice gooup of people.I sure hope to see you guys again!Thanks-Al the pal |
| 7/8/2004 |
40 |
Ione-Plymouth |
Chuck, Carolle, Karen, Paul, Al the Pal, Guy, John R. |
| This spur of the moment non-official Erma ride had quite a turnout. Leaving work on Wed. and being able to get in a ride was a gift and I was hoping to ride Thurs but didn't think it would be close to possible thanks to the legislature and "The Governator". The pace to Plymouth was pretty steady with a few going hard most of the way . The trip back was really good training with the pace being kicked up a few notches. Instead of returning on Irish Hill we took advantage of the tailwind and went straightaway on Carbondale and returned via Willow Creek. Al make it thru "The Weenie Dog Triangle" without incident although the black lab up the road came out just to give Al a bad time. From the "smile" on the dog's face he enjoyed the moment! Twilight rides are great and what a perfect way to end the day .... and made even better with Chuck picking up the tab at the Mexican restaurant ....Thanks Chuck ! (JR) |
| 7/7/2004 |
35,25*,30** |
Wildlife with Variations |
Steve H.,Paul,Stockton Boy, Don S.*,Paul from Daffodils** |
| We welcomed back Don from South America as he told us of his great adventures with his family there and welcomed Paul from Daffodils restaurant who was riding with us for the first time. We wanted to introduce Paul to the nice turns of Tabeau but he had to leave early to open the restaurant and bar but we will try next time. Don was just getting back on his bike after a hiatus and felt Vocano and back was just right. I thought for awhile I was at a CPC (Clinical-Pathological Conference) as we i discussed Congestive heart failure, pulmonary edema, HAPE, side effects of statins,gastroscopy, PSA.s prostatic biopsies but when the subject of bowel movement size came up I realized I was just with a bunch of old f...ts. The ride was good however as were the smoothies and the view in the coffee house was excellent.SWH |
| 7/5/2004 |
60, ?? |
Party Pardee |
Ray, Ed, Chuck, Guy (Schott); ??: Pat, Paul |
| Yes, he exists. Guy was there, as was Chuck for the Monday after the Fourth ride. Also new was Paul, brought out by Pat. Ray had his photos and sore legs to prove that he'd seen sunrise from the top of Half Dome on Saturday. Our (Ray's and mine) aim was to tempo a relatively steady pace for final DR rounding off training. We had fun and thorough conversations while warming up on the way to Camanche. Then Ray was warm and the soreness gone, so we tempo'd to Campo Seco turn, where Pat and Paul turned off to do CS loop. Nice tempo through the Burson area, the "no hills" area, and then around Hogan, we refueled at Jean's station and then had to work the stiffness out of our legs again, following Ray over to Pardee. By then, the day was pretty well warmed up and so was I. That's when Chuck read 101 on his computer. The final few miles were easy pace, finishing Guy's first Erma ride. Welcome to Guy and Paul. I hope you'll be able to come out regularly now. (EH) |
| 7/4/2004 |
64 |
Mt. Aukum Loop
|
Carolle; Karen; John R
|
Saturday's route was going to be "The Mt. Aukum Loop" but that plan was changed in Plymought so the 3 riders today thought it sounded like a route that was just perfect for today .... not too long or too tough and we'd be back in Ione by 1. Bob, Debbie, Gail, Jim and Penny were at the start also. Jim said he and Penny planned on taking it easy and that we should takeoff without them . Bob had a major route planned which would be his final training for the DR this next weekend. "The MAL" was a perfect ride since all 3 of us weren't "firing on all cylinders". However we still managed a good pace and went non-stop to Mt. Aukum. After a Gatoraide and a Grandmas CC cookie we headed for home and again ,non-stop. Had a good pace line on Old Sac. Rd. with each of us taking about a 30 second pull. By doing so that stretch went by very quickly. We gave it a pretty good go on IH and pulled into Erma's parking lot at exactly at 1 o'clock. It was good to be off the bikes since it was getting HOT. Another fine day, thanks. "Keep on the sunnyside". (JR)
|
| 7/3/2004 |
73, 54*, 40 |
Plymouth and back or SC, Jackson, Stoney |
Ed, Steve, John R*, Karen*, Chuck*; 40: Al the Pal, Hambone |
| An augmented Sat ride--with the return of John Hambright, even with a slightly tweaked back. Also augmented by a huge Stockton Bike Club group on the same IH-Plymouth course. Enough people wanted to get back from Plymouth that we all turned back. We returned via Willow Creek so Al could give a dog biscuit to a certain weenie dog he's grown fond of. At Sutter-Ione, Steve and I turned off to add some climbing miles in prep for the DR. Had a nice long stop at Incognito in Jackson before descending Stoney and coming straight back in, depsite Steve's protests that he wanted to ride more in the heat. JR and a few others did BV loop for extra miles after returning. Whom did I forget? (EH) |
| 6/30/2004 |
47, 83* |
S.C. TO Hwy 88 and return (Omo Ranch for Larry) |
SteveH.,Larry *,Paul,Ray from Stockton,S.B.,Gene |
| It was unseasonalbly cool so we thought we would climb up into the forest as much as we felt like today. S.B. brought along his loaner bike and the good news was litespeed was going to make good on fixing his Eddie Meryx frame and send it back like new. We missed Jim as he was vehicle impaired with his son back in the household. After stopping at Volcano we went all the way up to Big Trees with its "usual" hospitality. The ride up to 88 was bustling with widlife with deer everywhere. Where was Coconut Al with his hunting rifle now they they are all out? Excuse me Karen. At the top Larry went on up to Omo Ranch and reported the road is really messed up. Sierra Pacific is running a huge amount of logging trucks down the road since they just purchased the land and want to get all those nasty trees down. The rest of us went on down Shake Ridge dodging deer, turkeys and squirrels running everywhere. We did have time for our usual lunch and smoothies at the end of the ride. See you next week. SWH |
| 6/27/2004 |
58, 40**, 60***, 76**** |
Plymouth, Aukum, Fairplay, Omo loops (rider's choice) |
Dave B**, Chuck**, Patrick***, Jim and Penny**, Dave N***, Paul***, Steve and Carolle****, Larry H****, Ed (58) |
| It was great to see the Sunday gang, which I picked up in Plymouth. I got to catch up a bit with Dave and say hello to Chuck before they turned back. Then I got to hang out with the rest of the gang to Aukum. Then rode with S&C and LH to the Fairplay turn. I was looking for some steady hill climbing to top off the climbing I had done on Saturday in the Port Costa area. Several people have jokingly suggested I bring my single-speed bike up for a ride like Omo Ranch to 88. Well, it's not a joke anymore--it's reality. I rode Omo on a single-speed. At least my bike had only one choice in the rear. I split off at the Fairplay turn, heading up Omo. I climbed to the school and refilled water. By then I had a good sweat going, my legs were starting to feel loose, and my body-mind were settling into the climbing and scenery. Then, one shift, and my lever flung itself limply all the way over and my derailleur sprung definitively onto the smallest cog and wouldn't budge. The cable had broken at the lever. I was 5 miles from the top, meaning I was just about as far away from any "civilization" as you can get on that road--half way between the school and the highway. It was a lovely day, quiet, nobody around. I pulled off the roadway to assess. I did the only thing possible--tie off the cable (under my water bottle cage mount) so that I was in a gear other than my 12. I chose the 23 to be my gear-du-jour. That meant it would be my low (perfect for the remainder of Omo) and my high (not so great for the descents). I decided to keep climbing and descend Shake and Fiddle, rather than go back down Omo and face the Shenandoah traffic without gearing. The rest of the climb was actually fun. I had chosen the perfect gear for the remaining (moderate) climbing. I was actually in the "high" more than the "low." My first taste of descending frustration was on 88. I could not power over those bumps to keep up my speed. I had to coast, just sit on the bike and coast. I spun out at 18 MPH. The descent of Shake was more of the same, but especially frustrating and scary was Fiddletown Rd. I was purely at the mercy of my coasting, so felt out of control--not to mention embarrassed for going slowly and just sitting on the bike. It certainly made me appreciate not only gears but Ray's pulls, especially over those power hills near the top. Where we're usually at 25-30 MPH, I couldn't even pedal til my bike reached 18 MPH. Once I pulled into Fiddletown, I had to get across the "flat" part and then I had it made--the hill and descent would be suited to my gearing. My cable broke 25 mi into a 58 mi ride. At least I got in all the climbing I'd wanted to, even if I lost the descending. (EH) |
| 6/23/2004 |
37 for everyone except Steve and S.B. 5 |
Wildlife |
Steve H., Stockton Boy, (kinda sorta) Paul, Ray, Gene, Larry, & Jim |
| Everything started off in grand fashion, the entire core group of old farts were together for the first time in a few weeks. It seems that trivial matters such as illness, helping relatives move, visiting kids, and attending a daughter"s wedding all took precident over attending the weekly A.A.R.P. ride. Maybe a team meeting will be needed to remind everyone that A.A.R.P. rides are more important than anything else ( yeah right). I am happy to report that Ray survived his daughter's wedding and managed to get back home without any visible symtoms of his ordeal. Back to the ride, I was delighted to see Larry in the parking lot this morning, with only a short time before retirement he is in training to become an actual old fart instead of an honerary old fart. After getting together in the parking lot we bravely set out to see what fate had in store for us this day. And we did not have long to wait, S. B. broke his frame just a couple of miles down the road, Steve bravely volunteered to skip all fun of riding up Red Corral by riding back to the parking lot and getting a cup of coffee just to be sure S. B.got back safely, what a sacrifice! After the unfortunate "frame incident" everything went well. We had a great time despite losing two friends too the unfortunate "frame incident". Everybody was reunited in the parking lot at Sutter Creek and all but three of us went over to the coffee house and had an extra special good time. It is allways fun to hang out the A.A.R.P. gentlemen and I hope the frame difficulties are quickly behind us. JG |
| 6/23/2004 |
*10.35 |
Wildlife for some. broken ride for others |
Steve H,* Stockton boy*, Jim G.,Larry H.,Paul,Ray |
| This is a very abbreviated report for a very abbreviated ride for some. We are all happy to see our peleton regroup after absences, illnesses etc but the piper will be paid. We gone but five miles when stockton boy's bike began having a terminal rear wobble. Larry quickly diagnosed the problem. After being off the bike two months Mr. bicycle frame had decided he had enough and broke! The chainstay weld broke in half. Steve who was recovering from a respiratory infection quickly volunteered to return with broken steed and rider to S.C. and more coffee. Eventually the peleton returned home and took the bike to bicycle business where it was proclaimed out of waranty. More to follow. SWH |
| 6/19/2004 |
63 |
Saturday route with addition of Hale Rd Plymouth and return |
Steve H., Pam Mark ,Victor and Steve from Stockton |
| No Ermas were out but myself and 30 riders from Delta Velo and the foursome from Stockton. We had a nice ride up to Volcano to see Rose where the entire Delta Velo squad was congregating. We had decided to take Hale Ro from Daffodill Hill I thought but their idea was up to Lockwood ,down Fiddletown and go up Hale rd. I don't do UP Hale rd so I went down and they swore they would meet me on it coming up. You know what? Down is faster than up and Inever saw them again till I was driving home.It was a nice warm day for a solitary ride on Hale and down to Ione. SWH |
| 6/12/2004 |
70, 37* |
Irish, Willow, SC, Volcano, Grinding Rock, Pine Grove, Jackson, China Graveyard, return |
Ray, Ed, Victor*, Kim* |
| New rider Kim Vasquez, of Elk Grove, came out for her first Erma ride, just in time to take the place of Lee, who was getting tux'd up for his WEDDING. Ray was part of the wedding, but had time to get in a quick 70-miler beforehand. Kim said she came out for some hill practice, but the way she spun up all the hills with ease, she didn't show any weaknesses. She certainly has the right attitude--plannning a move to Grass Valley area so she can ride in the hills full time. Victor volunteered to guide Kim back from Sutter Ck since she had to get home for chores. So Ray decides to go UP, of course. I was up the creek--literally--scared of where Ray would lead us. I had a right to be wary. After a short sit-down with Rosie, discussing her mom's memorial service (no, she didn't cry, but her sister did), we headed toward Pine Grove. The first 5 times he said we were heading up Volcano-Pine Grove Rd, I was sure he was joking. After he yelled at me from a quarter mile up the road, I believed him and followed. It was a good leg-check. It was a lot easier than it was last time, but we both forgot about the second steep hill just before the highway. But Ray's bike held out, and my legs held out. Then down Irishtown for the first time in quite a while. We actually stopped to read the sign for a new development--41-acre parcels. Hope it doesn't get crowded down there. Then came the Clinton Rd TT course. Ray plowed into a major headwind. Everytime he ducked, I could feel it hit me in the face. He pulled us down to espresso, holding 27 MPH most of the time, despite the headwind. Unfortunately, Judy wasn't in the coffee house to see the new jerseys, but we did take the time for the traditional triple espressos before heading out to China Graveyard and SC. At the top of the hill above the school, we came across Jerry W talking with John Hockenberry and companion of the Wheelpersons. After a chat, Ray was really late, so he kicked in the afterburners, finishing S-I Rd with a 30 MPH pull into another headwind. What a great workout--riding with Ray in a hurry. That will be it for a while. Ray will be in Bear Valley and then other exploits between now and the Death Ride. The Shriners is next Sat--and then the Nevada City race on Sun, Father's Day (anyone available to help at the race or ride to Nevada City?). I'll be back on the 26th. Watch for Gabriel's announcement of a new intro ("rook") ride, probably 6/26. Thanks, Ray. See you at the Death Ride. (EH) |
| 6/11/2004 |
40-94 |
Ione, Mt Aukum, Fairplay or Omo Ranch, Shake Ridge |
94: Michael A; 64: Steve H; 57: Ed; 87: John R; 76: Larry H, Mike E; 40: Jim and Penny; 68: Tanya, Christy |
| Ride one for the Gipper we called this ride as our 40th President had his service. What better way to "honor" him but to go for a long ride. We were a diverse group with people joining up and doing whatever leg they wanted to and diverging at times but it all worked out well. It was nice to have Tanya and her friend Christy along who I'm sure will develop into a satrong rider. Ed and Steve joined up at Plymouth to do Omo Ranch as Professor Gray and his wife headed back. Hey! Did you know the "professor" got all "A's" again. We await for him to show up with his Phi Beta Kappa Key-not in the earlobeJim! Steve had his first cup of real coffee in a year at Plymouth so he was ready to ride to Kirkwood or someplace. Our Omo Ranch contingent had a great ride up to Cooks Station and a very fast pace all the eay down to Plymouth. We should do this route more in the summer-cool and shady. This was a nice warm up for Karen's debut tonight at the Volcano outdoor theater. A great funny show and the house was packed with Ermas trading food and wine and applauding when Karen got her roses. Good way to start the weekend. SWH |
| 6/9/2004 |
37 |
Widlife |
Steve H., Paul, Don, Dave R., & Jim |
| After being cooked on Stoney Creek a week ago it sure was different to start under cool and cloudy conditions. Because everybody was tired for various reasons we opted for the wildlife route (who would think Red Corral would be the "easy route") and started on our merry way, secure in the knowledge that our leader was back in the fold after a trip to the dentist's office kept him off his bike last week. After a very pleasant trip up the Creek road, we regrouped in Volcano. While we were talking to Rosie she told us that her mom had passed away, after giving Rosie our condolences we were off to see what other mischief we could find. Because the A.A.R.P. riders are so cautious and mature, we rode the whole way from the top of Tabeau road to Jackson at fifteen miles an hour while signaling for a left turn the whole way, except for when Dave very cautiously pulled the group at thirty M.P.H. on the flats just outside of town. After a nice visit with Bill and his lovely wife at Jackson Family Sports, it was off to the coffee house for smoothees and to wish Don farewell because he and his family are off to Peru for a month. We had the typical run of the mill A.A.R.P. ride, which means we got to hang with a great bunch of guys on what most likely will be the last cool day to ride in these parts for a while. JG |
| 6/7/2004 |
50, 70 |
Butte Mtn. Loop and Irish Hill and Willow Cr. |
Carolle, Pat J, Ron (50); Jerry W., John R (70) |
| After a zillion cyclists invaded Erma Country on Sat. and probably, albeit unintentionally, annoyed a few of the "natives" of northern Erma Country , today's route took us south to avoid "The Sierra's" main route. With perfect temperature and with zero traffic we enjoyed another fine day of cycling. E, where were you ? You planned on 2 days of riding! The trip up Stoney Cr. Rd. went by quickly thanks to lots of chit-chat and a gentle cooling wind coming off Lake Pardee. In Jackson, Carolle mentioned that she might head back and that Pat would go with her. Well, with a short sales pitch on how fast we'd complete the loop, we all headed for Butte Mtn. for what turned out to be a non-stop run back to Ione. A water stop was anticipated in Sutter Cr. but the road (Hiway 49) back and down into SC was blocked off at Sutter Hill Rd. because of the Italian Day Parade. All traffic was detoured thru back streets so we pushed on to Ione with just enough water. After taking on water, Jerry and JR moved out again and cruised on towards Irish Hill and Willow Cr.. The traffic remained very light but it started to get a bit hot. Made it back to Ione with our tanks drained and a little hungry. So, at Jerry's suggestion, we pulled into Larry's/ Erma's Diner where the lady working there acknowledge my Ermas Diner jersey. The food was actually pretty good (most anything taste good when you're hungry!) but for sure it didn't seem the same as when it was the home of our ERMAS DINER. See ya soon."Keep on the sunnyside". (JR) |
| 6/5/2004 |
75, 37 mi. on 6/5 and 6/6 respectively |
Lake Tahoe |
Myself and my friend Robert Nichols |
I had somewhat of a less epic ride on Saturday when compared to the SIERRRA CENTURY.
This ride started in Alpine Meadows.On Hwy 89 we headed towards Tahoe City and went around the Lake in a clockwise fashion.The weather was good and the scenery is always the best In South lake Tahoe someone in their vehicle must have thought I was riding with Lance. Robert does slightly resemble Lance, especially with his ALLISIO team uniform. They slowed down their auto and Yelled out the window "Shut up Lance"! Asides from that encounter no DOGS and plenty of cars on the road! The next morning we got up and rode to Donner Pass for a great view of the lake.The wind was a bit turbulant at the top and caution on the descent is a great thing to practice!The cancer ride was in full swing that morning as well,looks as though they had a great turn out!!!-AL |
| 6/5/2004 |
104, 65 |
Sierra Century |
Ray, Lee, Ed, Coconut, Mrs. Nut (Jill), Steve H, Sarah, Jerry, Tim (of Ione), Mike & Charity (95); 65: Anita, Andy, Larry H, Chuck, Jim & Penny, Paul, Gene |
It was a day of mixed feelings. Just as the life-flight helicopter roared overhead and landed in Plymouth to haul away a rider who crashed right where Barbara Anderson did on one of our rides a few years ago, we found out about what kept Steve and Carolle from the ride. We're all shocked and sorry. Another shock was somewhat more pleasant--the new "Republican" version of Jim Gray. "Who's that guy in an Erma jersey," I asked. As soon as I heard the voice, i knew, but I would not have otherwise recognized this new nearly hairless version of "Old Lead Bottom." As hard as it was to believe, Larry and I were the first ones standing outside the reg building waiting for others (not so suprising that Larry was there, though my early appearance might have shocked some). Most of us gathered, waited for Chuck's no-show friend (this so-called "Guy Shot," whom we all now consider made up by Chuck). At 7:30, we took off, though a few (Mike & Charity, Sarah, Jerry, Anita, Andy, at least) didn't wait for "Guy" to show up. Also not showing up but giving up their entries for good causes (namely Paul and Lee) were Hambone and John B. Everybody commented that there seemed to be more people this year. I'm not sure that's true, but we were certainly in the middle of a lot of cyclists on "our" roads. It was a very colorful display, with our new jerseys making a good show of it. After hearing about the crash, everyone was cautious on the first stretch of road. With Ray setting the pace, aiming at both finishing 200K as well as getting to Sacramento for dinner, we cruised at good tempo and were in Ione before we know it. A quick pit at the train and off to SC before we saw any of the other Ermas. Another quickie at SC, where we caught the nuts and Tim and Vic. Then tempo to Volcano, where Rosie was doing her best to greet all 2000+ cyclists. She recognized me and called me over to sit a while with her and tell me that her mom died this past week and that she hoped she wouldn't "start bawling" at the service. She squeezed my hand for a few seconds as I was leaving and asked me to come back next week when it was quieter. Ray and I rested on Rams Horn as well as the climb to Lockwood, saving up for the FF (Fiddletown Flyer). This was the second best one ever, I think. We took advantage of our local road knowledge to stay in front of a pack of racers, while flying past dozens of riders. The few who could get onto the train couldn't hold til the end. Another great one, Ray. Thanks. More recovery over Tyler with a quick Aukum stop so that we could bypass the Fairplay stop (which is at the park now). By the base of Slug, Lee was eager to go, Ray was rethinking his eagerness, and I was in pure survival mode. It was hot on Slug, but that was the good part. I was literally afraid I wouldn't make it as I grunted up the first pitch, realizing what a difference it makes to start in Plymouth versus Ione, hitting Slug 20 miles later in the ride and later in the day. But my hill-climbing ride to Nevada City showed up in my leg strength, and the pitches actually got easier as I went up. Not easy, but easier. When a tandem came up alongside me up on the ridge, I hopped on. We caught Ray, who couldn't jump on because of some cramping. Ray mentioned earlier that he hadn't drunk much. That combined with all the work he had done was coming back to haunt his leg muscles. That produced a first for me--getting my Slug pin before Ray got his. We missed the cutoff again for doing the 200K, but Ray had to rest his legs, and we had a lot of socializing to do as Erma riders and other friends showed up for the next HOUR AND A HALF we sat at the school. The funniest was when Sarah and Jerry separately told us the story of their wrong turn in Fairplay. Turns out they rode somewhere between 5 and 10 extra miles not only because of the wrong turn but because of not knowing the area and that they didn't need to backtrack to get to Slug. Needless to say, Sarah and Jerry's versions were different, so we had a good laugh with the two of them reconcling the stories, but also coming up with a new category for additional Erma miles--"Stupid Miles." Anyone who wants to claim such unnecessary mileage can just add a note on the mileage form, identifying them as completely useless for any practical or esthetic purpose and therefore "stupid." An hour and a half is a lot of time for legs to get stiff, but they unstiffened quickly behind Ray's pulls. We gathered up Jerry, Sarah, and guest and pulled them back to Plymouth. There we wiped ourselves off, stood in line and ate, bought photos, and generally reminisced about another good hard day of riding in Amador, the third Sierra Century this year for Ray, Lee, and me. Thanks, guys, and thanks Wheelmen for another well-organized event. (EH)
Another year, another Sierra Century--this was my sixth one and they are not getting any easier. Must be global warming. We gathered together and headed down Old Sacramento Rd., cutting quite a swath with our new jerseys and a 15-person pace line flying by the onlookers. Our pace line broke up somewhat on Hwy 16. Our own group of Larry, Chuck, Steve continued together all the way to Volcano, giving the Diablo Cylists a lesson in rotating pacelines on S.C.-Volcano Rd till we decided for them to take over. The ride down Fiddletown was its usual time trial, but Larry and Chuck found a fast tandem and the Dowlats, Jill's brother Joe and I couldn't quite catch them but Joe is a great downhill leader in the sense of Paul M. (Newton's Law). I thought I might just do the metric till Sarah (bless her cold heart) said I would be a wuss if I didn't so Slug Gulch again. With the promise of CPR from a professional I got up slug ahead of Coconut and company to find Sarah Ed and Ray waiting for me. After replenishing electrolytes and fluids, we went on down accompanied by many cramps. Al helped me limp in to Plymouth -home never looked so good. SWH |
| 6/2/2004 |
50 |
S.C., Willow Creek, Irish Hill, Buena Vista, Stoney Creek, to S.C. |
Gene, Ray, Paul, Don, & Jim |
| The day started a little on the warm side, but not unbearably so. Because were found ourselves to be a day late and a Honeychurch short, we were leaderless and left to our own devices. As a result of Steve's absence there was no chance of heading up New Chicago, so we happily planned an easier route. When we were riding through Sutter Creek toward Ione, Don suggested riding the cemetary route (Larry's cut off). By the time we got to the highway and turned toward Willow Creek the whining about the cemitary (mostly mine) had subsided and we happpily rode toward Irish Hill. After Irish Hill we had to decide where we wanted to go next, while we were engaged in a long debate (it was nice in the shade) Paul saw Lew (I hope I spelled your name right) from the Ione Police Department ride by. After introductions we rode to Buena Vista together. At Buena Vista Everyone was thinking of riding past Amador lake to Sutter Creek road and smoothees. At the time we were just getting ready to mount up, Gene says "hey lets take Stoney Creek". Let me tell you there were four very long faces in the group, but nobody wanted to disappoint Gene so we said goodbye to Lew and off we went. I can tell you that some of us struggled in the heat on Stoney Creek, but not Gene he just cruised up the hill like it was nothing (good man) even some of our equipment protested our choice of routes because Don broke a spoke. After getting to the top of Stoney Creek we stopped in the shade to take a minute to think of our missing leader Dr. Honeychurch, we knew he would be proud of us for taking such a silly route on a hot day, we only stopped to think about Steve, the fact that our resting place was much cooler than the rest of the area was just a simple coincidence. Then it was of to Sutter Creek for smoothees, WA HOOOO! JG |
| 5/30/2004 |
78; 67; 27; 20 |
Volcano-Lockwood Jct.-Fiddletown |
Steve M, Larry H, John R. (78): Mike A, Tanya, Carolle, Steve H., Don(Modesto), Rit (67): Karen (27); Jim and Penny (20) |
| The route for today's Sunday ride was going to be "The Standard Sat. Route" but was amended at "Daffyhill" to push on to Lockwood Jct. and then to Fiddletown. Steve H mentioned Hale Rd. but heard a chorus of "Hale no". Good turnout for another ideal day for cycling. Carolle and Steve abandoned their tandem and, as might be expected from these two "Triple Crowners" , they were indeed in fine form. So much so that CM, rather "TCM"(Triple Crown McGrath) wants one more "double" and Steve is now in training for "The Terrible Twos"! No cool breeze at the start made for a rather warm trek up Ione-Sutter Cr. Rd.. Thought that warm start would make for a hot ride later on but a nice breeze materialized keeping the temperature perfect. Jim and Penny, recently back from D.C. ,wanted to take it easy so they gave us "orders" to move out. After a water stop in "Roseyville" (Volcano) Karen headed solo for Pine Grove so she could return shortly to Volcano for theater "stuff" . Instead of taking Volcano-Pioneer she decided to take a shortcut ..... Volcano-Pine Grove ! That shortcut turned out to be a little shorter but reminded her too much of Slug Gulch. Erma's two T-2 riders , Steve M and Mike A, headed up Charleston while the rest of us went up Rams Horn. After regrouping at Lockwood Jct. we enjoyed the trip down to Fiddletown. There was some talk about heading for Ostrom Rd. but that motion was voted down so we went straightaway to Plymouth . At the intersection of Forest Home and Carbondale , just for a change of direction, we took a right turn and enjoyed the rollers. At Marlette and 5 Mile Rd. "Los Tres Amigos" (Mike , Steve M, and John) parted company with the peleton and headed for Buena Vista. When they returned to Ione Carolle was just about to take a nap. To everyone's surprize Gayle had driven to Ione to greet her hero Larry and even brought after-ride treats for us all. Thanks so much Gayle and hopefully you'll soon be back riding with us. Larry commented earlier how much he missed your company and we missed you also. Another fine day in Erma Country ....thanks. Until the next time, "keep on the sunnyside" . (JR) |
| 5/29/2004 |
88 |
Sacramento to Nevada City |
Ed |
| As an adventure and for a special sense of achievement by transporting myself under my own power to Nevada City for a weekend in the hills, I rolled out of my house late and pushed the pace a bit to make up some time. But after the M St. bike trail and several miles on the American River Bike Trail, I slowed to watch the graceful work of the women's NCAA rowing championships on Lake Natomas. Then off again to Beale's Point on Folsom Lake, the end of the bike trail. From there, my experience as a garbage man in Placer County kicked in. I knew the back roads to get me to Auburn without much traffic. Having lived in Auburn years ago, I was surprised how intuitively I knew the streets to take to avoid the main part of town and circle around to the Stagecoach Rd trailhead, now with an official parking area for the mountain bikers (no such luxury in my day), and around the bend to Bowman, the commercial area on the far side of Auburn on I-80. From there, the roads that John B and I know so well were my route til Weimar Crossroads took me over to meet Dog Bar Rd and my journey through what used to be completely rural and is now becoming yuppiefied. Then Rattlesnake Rd took me to the outskirts of Grass Valley. The Colfax Hwy, Brunswick, Old Tunnel, and Zion (thanks to Tour of Nevada City Bike Shop for the local tips) dropped me right into the downtown Nevada City so familiar from my days riding there to see the Nevada City Classic bike race. I rode part of the course through town and out onto the ridge toward my friend's. Out there, I encountered the steepest climb of the ride, but I knew I was nearly there. If anyone wants my route and advice on riding between the valley, through Placer County, up to Nevada County, give me a call. I have several routes up there. On Monday, I rode what is probably the best cycling roads I've ever ridden--out of Nevada City and through the little "towns" of Bridgeport, French Corral, Birchville, Sweetland, Tyler, North San Juan, and Camptonville. Lots of climbing. And you must stop at the old hippie store called Mother Truckers. (Ed) |
| 5/29/2004 |
30 |
usual coffee |
Steve H,,Hux, Hux's friend George |
| No one was ther when Hux and George met at Ione at 8 so they went on up to S.C. where I met them. From there we went on the usual Saturday route re-introducing George from Portland to the foothills. He loved the fact ther was no rain and the temperature was over 60 degees. Planning for a big ride tomorrow. SWH |
| 5/26/2004 |
39 |
Jackson Tabeau,Aqueduct, Vocano.Rams Horm Shake |
Steve H.,Paul,Coconut Al, Ray from Stockton |
| Our peleton was small because of illness, graduations but it was an ideal day for riding. Rayhad not been on this route for fifteen years so it was time. On the way up Clinton,Tabeau what do aarp riders talk about? Answer: different kinds of eggplant recipes of course. Al was going on how the east Indians really know how to cook it right, while Paul argued for the Italian style. I preferred it in Mousakka greek style and Ray complained all this talk made him hungry so we had to settle for balance bars. After discussing life with Rose and climbing Rams Horn we had a great paceline down and smoothies at the coffee house. SWH |
| 5/23/2004 |
65 |
SC, Red Corral, Thibeaud, Clintons, Stony Creek |
John, Larry H, and Chuck (85), Mike, Charity, Modesto Don, Steve H, and Dr. Mike (65), Paul (?), and Karen (27) |
| Trip leaders Mike and Charity chose the route they wanted to experience, not one they were competent to lead, but they've learned that Erma's never lacks for chiefs. The new jerseys kept us from getting lost and provided that extra boost of energy for Hoffman Street. Perfect weather, even a bit on the chilly side. Steve's friend Dr. Mike (a real MD from Walnut Creek) was a plus and we hope to have him back soon. Paul materialized in SC and dematerialized in Jackson, and Karen, muttering something about the spa and a book, peeled off in Pine Grove, as a subgroup (did you really instigate that, Chuck?) "peeled off," literally, in farewell. Larry on a half-bike pined alternately for Gail (hurry back!) and Dave but compensated by coaching us down the steeps and accepting a good draft in trade ("I respect tandems!"). John had something on Chuck and Larry (perhaps a photo of that Pine Grove farewell) and thus company for a final Irish Hill-Willow Creek 20. Six months and counting - thanks, Erma! ME |
| 5/22/2004 |
82 |
SC, Volcano, Lockwood, Fiddle, Aukum, Plymouth |
Ray, Lee, Ed, Coconut, Jill, Sarah, Jerry S, PJ, Vic, Murphys Dave, Pine Grove Dave (?), Victor (45), Denise (25), Stacy (25) |
| Surprise of the morning: Dave Rogers in the parking lot, waiting patiently for us to arrive and get ready. Also a surprise: Sarah, Jerry, and friends Vic and Dave--back for more. Ray, Lee, and I had planned on topping out at Omo and coming straight back Shake, but Ray had a time constraint (dinner and dancing). Denise and Stacy started in SC and met us on creek rd and Volcano. There, they headed back, but "What happened to PJ?" That old question was to be repeated many times during the day, as PJ pedaled backward, but this time it was answered by "There he is, barefoot and carrying his bike." Sure enough, there was PJ in the middle of main street Volcano, shoeless, toting his bike. We assumed another broken chain or other irreparable disaster, but once Coco started inspecting the bike that PJ gave up on, he found it was only a standard flat, despite PJ's efforts to destroy the tire and rim. A group effort, spurred by Coco got the tube replaced, tire checked and aired. Meanwhile, PJ's shoes arrived via a red SUV driven by a couple of young blonds, who were hosting a motorcycle gathering at the park right across the street, fortunately. From giving up and deciding to hitchhike back to Ione, PJ finished the ride without a hitch (except, perhaps, in his getalong, as some might say, but more about that in subsequent reports). Victor accompanied the women back down to SC and then continued to Ione. Dave Rogers headed back from Daffy. The rest were looking for Sierra Century miles and headed to Lockwood. The Ray Train towed the peloton through a huge headwind to Fiddle. Then we sauntered over to Aukum, where the math and the clock said we'd better head back instead of attempting Omo at all, so we did, stopping only for a quick espresso and the new gourmet shop in Plymouth (I still think Judy's is better, and certainly less expensive). The headwind out of Plymouth was even heavier, but Ray still managed 25mph into it. I don't know how. It was enough work for the rest of us--those who could stay attached to the train--to tuck in as low as we could get and hide behind Ray at that speed. One kiss from the wind and you would be 10 yards behind yourself. A good old-fashioned Irish peloton ride, mostly towed by--guess who--RAY. But then amid a flurry (and I mean a flurry) of elbows and knees, Ray easily took the sprint at the end too. Scary strong. Everyone else was nearby and regrouped for final chatter on the warm down into town. Ray, Lee, and I sat for a while, eating chips and cherries and discussing the merits of Lee's moving to Minneapolis (it was a short discussion) and his upcoming marriage. Good luck, Lee. Be sure not to be late again. (EH) |
| 5/22/2004 |
200 |
Eastern Sierra Double |
Steve and Carolle Mc |
Well, it s official. Carolle has successfully completed three double centuries; she now joins that elite group of Erma s that have completed the California Triple Crown series.
I would like to take this time to congratulate Carolle on a job well done! She had to work very hard to complete her last double. She completed two doubles back to back; with the last ride having just over 10,000 feet of climbing, and very strong headwinds. CONGRADULATIONS CAROLLE; CALIFORNIA TRIPLE CROWN FINISHER
I would also like to recognize, and thank Tanya Vandrick; Tanya offered to support Carolle and I this year on our Triple Crown attempt. She gave up a couple of weekends for us, and ran SAG support on the Solvang double and would have been there on Davis double had she not had prior commitments. And also worked the Eastern Sierra double. Tanya's presents and support were a very integral part in our success; Tanya was always upbeat and always knew what to say. Even when I doubted myself she knew we would finish. You are a very dear friend to us and we will always remember what you ve done for us. We can t thank Tanya enough for her support, or the many thankless hours she worked with Planet Ultra on these rides. THANK YOU TANYA! YOU ARE AWSOME!
This was shaping up too be a great weekend, first of all, I was going to spend the weekend with two beautiful women. Second, Carolle and I where going for our third double century, which would give us our California Triple Crown. And third, we were going to ride in an area we had never ridden before. But Mother Nature had a few tricks up her sleeve, and wasn t going to make this an easy ride. We headed over the pass on Hwy 88 to find the temperature s around 50 degrees, with lots of scattered clouds. We arrived in Bishop around 3:30pm; there was a rainstorm coming in, and very heavy winds, (Surprise, Surprise). We checked into our hotel, unloaded our gear then decided to look around the town. We found a restaurant that served pasta; we enjoyed a great dinner, than it was time to register for the ride. After we registered Carolle and I headed back to the hotel, while Tanya stayed to prepare PBJ sandwiches. Tanya got back to the room around 7:30pm, only to return for a staff meeting!
at 9:00pm (Like I said, thankless hours). As Tanya returned it started to rain, and the weather called for 30-35 mile per hour winds for tomorrow.
It was a mass start at 5:15am, we rolled out of Bishop through the flat lands of Owens River region, as far as the eye could see were taillights, and the sky getting lighter over the mountains. It was great to be riding. We headed north through the cattle ranches of Round Valley. The wind was starting to pick, and it seemed as though the single bikes though we were their personal shields, because they stayed right behind us until the first rest stop. We refueled, and then headed out for the first climb of the day towards Crowley Lake. The climb up Old Sherwin Grade was 6% and 11.2 miles long. We turned on Hwy 395 and rode too Crowley Lake Drive, which took us to our second rest stop. We rode out toward Mono Lake via Hwy 203, which was straight into the wind, and our top speed was only 12-15 mph. At this rate we would never finish, I was starting to calculate our avg. speed and dist. And knew we were riding too slowly. We made our way into the town of Mammoth, which is at 8000 ; we turned up Mammoth Scenic route and climbed to an elevation of 8230 , so as you can see our avg. speed did not improve on this section. Once at the third rest stop, we refueled and headed out, we turned south on Hwy 396 and climbed to Dead Man s Summit, 8041 this brought us to the turn for June lake Loop. We made it around June Lake fairly quick, with the wind at our backs on the backside of the lake. Once back on 395 we headed North to Mono Lake, lunchtime and the turn around point (104 miles). The first 100 miles took us eight and a half hours too complete; this had me a little worried that we might not finish in time. We enjoyed a very short lunch and headed out, we took Hwy 395 south to Hwy 120, which was called Sagehen. This road was another 16-mile climb at 6%. Once at the top we stopped at rest stop #6, now it was time for what Planet Ultra called the E-Ticket section of this route. They where right, we covered the next 28 miles in one hour and ten minutes, that put us at the last rest stop at around 6:00pm. Carolle and I refueled and headed out at 6:24pm, the last section was flat, with heavy crosswinds. After about ten miles the road turned, and the winds shifted to give us a tail wind, and like I told Carolle There is a God We made it back into Bishop at exactly 8:00pm. We covered the last 36 miles in one hour and sixteen minutes, we were both driven at the fact we would get to finish this ride, and do it in the day light. Thanks again to Planet Ultra, and to Tanya for your support. Congratulations too our newest California Triple Crown Finisher, Carolle. Smc
PHOTOS:
http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/smcg12003/album?.tok=phgC2KBBhbpM.ag0&.dir=/e132&.src=ph |
| 5/16/2004 |
83 |
Volcano/Lockwood Jct. |
Chuck; Al D; Jill; Jim (with short hair!); Karen; John R |
Perfect weather plus a route favorite definitely equals a first rate ride and today was such a day ! The route included Irish Hill , Willow Creek (Al, no weenie dog in sight!), Ione-Sutter Cr., "The Creek Rd." , Rams Horn, Lockwood Jct., Fiddletown, Plymouth etc.. Today, with The Sierra Century approaching, there were quite a few riders exploring "Erma Country". Riding Ione-Sutter Cr. Rd. it was very apparent that the bypass around Sutter Creek and Amador City had started and one wonders how long it will be before one of our favorite roads may soon have a few too many motorists. With this bypass, we may "lose" Ione-Sutter Cr. but hopefully gain use of new roads.... like soon to be "Old Hiway 49". Good steady pace to Volcano and after a Gatoraide stop in "Roseyville" we headed up Rams Horn aided by a cool breeze . At Lockwood Jct. (3000') the temperature was indeed ideal. But as we descended to Fiddletown we could feel the temperature gradually rise. Riding along Old Sa!
c. Rd. and Forest Home Rd. the warmer air was just a warning that it's going to get HOT pretty soon and that maybe this could be possibly the last time we ride this route late in the afternoon. On the subject of hot weather, Mike A gave me some Endurolyte to try and I'm "sold" on them after just one try. In conjunction with plenty of water, they worked fantastically and hours after the ride my legs felt better than ever. Sounds like a TV commercial ! Sorry about that ! Enough of that sales pitch. Back to the ride ..... everyone enjoyed a fairly tough route and it was good to have Jill back in the peleton .She must be secretly riding with US Postal since she is definitely on good form. Thanks again to all for making the ride so much fun and see you on the road soon. Until then, "keep on the sunnyside". (JR) |
| 5/15/2004 |
21 |
Irish Hill - Willow Creek Rd |
Gabriel, Olivia, Patty, JP, PJ
|
Today I was on a ride and I was the rider with the most Erma miles? How'd that happen already? (PJ)
Erma's semi-official entry-level riders group- Erma's Rooks - took to the road without the benefit of one of the sage masters who had steadily guided us before. Jon Purbeck, PJ Ramey, Patty Coauette, Olivia Gutierrez and I ventured into Erma's country on our own. We agreed to tackle Irish Hill, without being completely certain how we'd get back. But we placed our trust in PJ, our ride leader, and dashed off. We took the route through Five Mile Road and then on to Irish Hill Road. We rode Willow Creek Road on the way back to Ione, especially enjoying the descent. In all, to kinda quote Olivia "the ride rocked!" We're planning on doing it again next Saturday. Thanks to Olivia for organizing today's ride. GV |
| 5/15/2004 |
200 |
Davis Double |
Steve and Carolle, Dave N, Larry H and Hux |
We met up with Larry, Dave and Hux in front the Davis Vets Hall at 5:00am, after a few pictures, and some talk of Dave growing tit s while riding on the back of the tandem? Fortunately I came in on the tail end of this conversation. We rolled out at around 5:20am. As usual the pace was very fast and crowed. This tends to make me very uncomfortable, so I decided to retreat to the back of the pack. Larry and Dave The Animal Tandem were pushing the pace at the front of the pack, as for me; I was content to stay out of the mess. Once we got to the first rest stop I noticed that both our brakes where rubbing on the rims, after a couple of small adjustments, and some food we where on our way. What a difference. We headed out towards Lake Berryessa, riding through Winters. I knew it was going to be a long day. Not only did we have the winds to contend with (20-30mph) we also had the animal tandem to deal with. I think the latter was the hardest. Larry and Dave are so strong o!
n their single bikes, but when you put them on a tandem, WOW! That s all I can say. Not too many of us can match their pace, well maybe except Hux. He managed to hang with them all day. Carolle had to continue reining me in, and remind me we had a double next week. So thankfully Larry, Dave and Hux waited for us at the rest stops and at the top of the hills. As we headed out of winters we started the first climb of the day, this is when all the single bikes decided they didn t need us anymore and took off. Once at Monticello Dam (RS#2) I had to put my arm warmers back on, due to the cold winds. We continued to climb Hwy 128; we watched Larry and Dave ride away, with Hux in tow. The ride up Pope Valley Road was very slow (for us) but steady. This is where Hux had his first flat, Carolle and I stopped to help. Once we started our decent down the backside we came up on Dave and Larry who were helping a gentleman whom had crashed, they were putting his bike on the SAG vehicle while t!
he Highway Patrol and Paramedics were attending to!
the rider. (Looked like head injuries, and possible rib and lung damage) We made it to Middle Town (RS#5). Now the wind was a welcome element as the temperatures were starting to rise. After a short break, we started the real climbing of the day, the climbing started with Big Canyon Road, someone painted on the road 1/2 way there , This in its self-rises the spirits, knowing your working on the last half. We reached the top of Big Canyon Road (Elevation 2172 ) then enjoyed a great decent down Siegler Canyon Road to Lower Lake (RS#7 Lunch). We left lunch and headed across Highway 20 straight into a head wind, all of a sudden we heard Hux say ah shi#@@# he had his second flat, and this time it needed to be booted. But as faith would have it, the SAG vehicle just happened to be passing by at that time. Hux was able to purchase a new tire and tube. While he a was changing his tire Larry was on the cell phone with Gayle, Carolle ask Larry if she could talk to her, we heard Carolle !
telling Gayle; Larry and Dave weren t playing fair and they were betting up on us, and to tell Larry too slow down . Repairs complete we were on our way again. We started the last climb of the day, Resurrection Grade; again we watched Dave Larry and Hux ride away. Once at the top, you could feel the single bikes gathering behind for the ride in across the flats and down hills. (Ah yes the tandems were their friends again) We made quick work of the next 35 miles. We stopped at RS #9 (last one) changed out our sunglass lens for clear lens, enjoyed a cup of soup and then headed for home. Carolle and I pulled out headed of Larry and Dave, thinking they were with us, only too find out they had stopped to take a picture of Dave s new Tit s that s right, when they pulled up next to us we saw a very busty stoker on the back of Larry s tandem, and wasn t Gayle! Some how the picture got lost? Dave? We pulled into the Davis Vet Hall at 8:20pm. Carolle was still smiling and looking forwa!
rd to next weeks double, Larry was still riding st!
rong, and Hux showed no worse for the wear. And as for Dave, it seemed to be another Saturday stroll for him. It was great to be riding a double Century with Larry again. Hux is great to ride with when we saw him, and always fun riding with the Animal Mr. Neff. Thank you all for making this one the greatest doubles I ve ridden.
Dave had a great suggestion, that we make the Davis Double an annual Erma s ride. I think this would be great fun for all, and the more people we get together, the better.
Thanks again for a perfect day. SMC |
| 5/12/2004 |
37 |
Wildlife Route |
Paul, Steve H., Gene, Ray L., Coco Al, & Jim |
My goodness what a beautifull day. We had most of the regular compliment of old timers with one special guest old timer, Al. Today we had the very unusual circumstance of being able to do the wildlife route for a change because it has actually been quite a few weeks since our last venture down Tabeau road. The trip up the Creek road was very nice, there was quite a bit of water left in the creek. When we got to Volcano, Rose was nowhere to be found, so we just had to entertain ourselves. Immediatly upon leaving Volcano we ran smack dab into an absolutly, positivly, mind blowing historical event. What was this event guaranteed to change the course of human history forever? Paul and I were the first ones up Red Corral (no foolin'). Boy were we surprised! We are not sure exactly what happened, I guess we will just have to wait for modern science to figure it out. After Tabeau we made the customary charge toward Jackson. Sometimes Gene get's dropped before town, not!
today he lead the charge most of the way. What a stud! After getting beat up by Gene we stopped in at Jackson Family Sports to see Bill. Then it was on to coffee(thanx Ray) and a visit with a guy from Stockton. We had a great time on a great day. It sure beats working! If you guys see this, I hope Dave, S.B., and Al are all feeling better soon and back out with us.
|
| 5/9/2004 |
30 |
Coffee Route |
Steve H, |
| Where oh where was everyone on Sunday morning? They must have all been in church or taking their mothers for breakfast for they sure were not in Ione. The townspeople in Ione were getting ready for yet another celebration as the parking lot was blocked off and the overfull lot was sprayed with a water truck turning it into one big puddle of mud. After waiting around till 8:15 I decided to ride out of S.C where you could park not in mud. and did a nice loop up to Daffodil and ShakeRidge-this was in honor of my mother of course! SWH |
| 5/8/2004 |
101, 65, 45, 25 |
Sierra Century route w/variations |
101: Ray, Lee, Ed; 65: Coconut, Jill, Kim; 45: Al the Pal, Victor; 25: Olivia, Patty, Jonathan--with cameos by John, Karen, Gene, and dozens of Wheelpersons |
The ride was awesome. The view was beautiful. I never imagined that I would be riding in places like the places Erma's Diner has taken me. I thought that people that rode on those steep narrow roads were crazy. Crazy or not, I am in. The uphill climb was very challenging and reaching the top felt like a great accomplishment. The downhill was a bit frightening; Patty and I kept our hands on the brakes the entire time. I guess I am scared because of the horror stories that I have heard from Ed, then John B and Al--two down in one month. Yikes! I don't want to be next one to go. Al told me a disturbing fact, "There are 2 kinds of riders: those that have fallen and those that will fall." I asked if my fall in front of the bike shop counted. He didn't think so. For that reason, I will continue to hold onto my brakes. Maybe I don't get the same rush that Jonathan described, but hopefully it will keep me in one piece. (OG)
Ray had a time limit this week for our re-try of the Sierra Century route on the day of the Sac Wheelmen pre-ride. This time we did something right. We finished TWO HOURS earlier than we did the week before--same route, same riders. Ray, Lee, and I spent the last 5 miles trying to figure out where we frittered away all that time the week before. We weren't maniacs this week, but we did keep up a good tempo and took short breaks as much as possible. We nearly saw a head-on crash on Fiddle when a pickup passed us on blind curve. The Nuts, Kim, and we three swallowed our hearts and kept riding. Great fun, despite the chill at upper elevations. Didn't get to take advantage of those tandems on the 20-mi downhill---we were too far ahead of them, so Ray was our tandem. Major headwind coming out of Plymouth--"what headwind," said Ray, pulling us at 27 MPH--Lee and I were hiding for our lives from having that wind snag us. But from then on we took turns setting tempo and made an easy smooth pull into Ione, feeling relaxed and comfy and satisfied with a delicious ride. (EH) (PS--we plan to do same route but return via Omo and Shake on 5/22.) |
| 5/5/2004 |
89**, 73 |
The annual Honeychurch great Jesus Maria adventure |
Steve H., Ray L., Paul, Gene, & Jim, with special guests Larry*, Hux*, Ray C., and Ed |
| I really did not believe that I was going to be able to make this year's Jesus H. Tapdancing Maria festival of masochism, but thanks to my friend Doug at Rex cycles, my noble steed was once again road worthy, and thanks to my math teacher who changed our schedule, and thanks to a bunch of misguided effort on my part to finish an english paper, I was able to make this stellar journey (what was I thinking?). The truth of the matter is that this ride is probably the premere event on the prestigious A.A.R.P. calender. So as a result no old fart er I mean no distinguished A.A.R.P. gentleman will miss this ride without a good reason. The day started out clear and cool,thank goodness. With the exception of the kid from Stockton, the usual A.A.R.P. suspects were in attendance. We were also pleased to have Ed, Ray C., Larry, and Hux along as special guest old farts. As if riding up Jesus Maria isn't hard enough Larry and Hux had to add twenty miles to make it interesting, I Know Ray rode an extra eight miles and Ed rode some extra as well, I just not sure how much (I understand Ed is tight with the guy that posts these reports so I am sure his mileage will be corrected). Everything went off without a hitch on the way to Moke Hill except the major blowout of one of Ed"s tires. Fortunatly he was able to recover from this setback and was able to rejoin the gray haired peloton. After Moke Hill the fun began, first we rode the very exciting decent to the river, then we rode the very looooooooooong climb to the fire station. After riding about a third of the way to the top, a lady driving the other way slowed down to warn Paul and I, "It's a long way to the top" when Paul assured her that we were already aware of that fact, she looked at us like we were stupid and smiled while driving away. I actually had tears in my eyes when we finally reached the fire house, of course I had tears in my eyes the whole way up the hill from allergies but it still sounds nice. As usual the people at the firehouse were friendly and helpful, real good people. After the firehouse it was time to head back down the hill. It turned out to be a pleasant trip back to Moke Hill with very little traffic. The ride in from Moke Hill was real nice, I was able to benifit from pulls from my friends (thanks guys). It was really fine to get back to Buena Vista at the end of the ride. After all the day's effort Paul still had to drive all the way to the city, what a man, it was all I could do to drag myself to school. Steve's great fiasco er I mean adventure turned out just great! The weather was perfect, the scenery was great, it was really special to hang out with our special guest stars (thanks for coming out guys), and it is always cool to hang out with a special group of people like the A.A.R.P. guys. The only downside of the day was being without our injured friends Dave B., and that kid from Stockton. Hope to see both of you soon! One last note, I saw Al (of wiener dog fame) on May 8, He said he is feeling better and was looking forward to being out with the gang real soon. Good man! JG |
| 5/2/2004 |
95, 75, 57 and 50 miles
|
Omo Ranch Loop |
John R, Steve and Carolle (95 miles). Steve H, Ed, Paul M, Chuck G, and, Coconut Al (57 miles). Ron (75 miles). Pat J, John H, Dave R, Rit (50 miles) |
Heading down today was mind over matter, as I knew today would be a tough day, with temperatures in the 90 s and Omo Ranch loop planned for our route. We got to Ione to find a couple of new faces (to me anyway) There was Dave who is from Murphys and a gentleman named Rit, we also had Ron, John Burge's commuting partner. And we also had some Erma s return to the peloton today. Pat J came out to join us, and making his cycling return was John Hambright. And I got to tell you: he looks great, and rides like he never left. Welcome back John! Carolle received a phone call from Chuck at 7:45 am, Chuck had forgotten his food and water bottle, and said he would meet us in Plymouth, this worked out perfect, as we would be meeting Ed, Al, Paul and Steve H there. So, not wanting to make our guest in Plymouth wait we headed out across Marlette, and I must say, it s one of the first times I didn t need arm warmers or leggings, this just confirmed how hot the day would be. We rolled out across Five Mile Rd then up Irish Hill at a very casual pace, catching up with people we haven t seen in a while, and getting to know the others. We headed up Old Sacramento Rd to find Chuck back tracking our route. Just before the climb into Plymouth I had to test my bike handling skills, as did Pat, Pat had to avoid running into a rear wheel, and in turn I had to avoid his wheel when he move over, it was closer than I like to get to crashing, but Pat did an excellent job, and we were able to avoid going down. Once I got my heart back in my chest, we headed on up to Plymouth. Once in Plymouth John R presented John Hambright with a new Erma s Jersey. Once everybody was ready we headed up to the Flower Farm, were John H, and Pat turned around. The rest of us headed up to Mt. Akum store. I soaked my head in the water faucet. We enjoyed a snack. Now it was time for the hard part of the day, the climb up to Hwy 88. We had a great rest at Omo Ranch School, and then continued climbing to 88. Everybody decided to get more water at the CDF station on Hw 88. Once we refilled the race down the hill was on. We made it back to Fiddle Town in record time, refueled and headed for Plymouth. Once in Plymouth, we said goodbye to Chuck, Ed Ron, Paul and Al. it was just the three of us heading back to Ione. John took it easy on us on the way back. We rode across Irish Hill at a wonderful pace; I don t think any of us left anything out there. It felt great to be back at the cars, and in the shade, another perfect day with great people. We!
rode 95 miles and had 6000 of climbing, not bad !
for a days work. SMc |
| 5/1/2004 |
101, 50*, 20** |
inadvertent Sierra Century May Day ride |
Ray, Lee, Ed, Jill*, PJ*, Victor*, Dave R*, Rit*, Jim & Pennny*, Steve H**, cameo by Coco |
There we were, sitting on the bench at Mt. Aukum store. Somehow we'd ridden 50 miles. I was hoping to warm up and feel more like riding. Ray was Ray. Lee was, as always, Lee. Then came the shock. I had been cruising mentally, I guess. I vaguely remembered that our ride to Jackson had changed--Jill said Coconut was expecting to meet us in Sutter Creek; Steve wanted to ride only to SC and back, no variations. So we ended up in Sutter Creek. From there, we were going to coffee in Jackson, right? No, Jill and others had appointments, restrictions, doubts, uncertainties, lives to attend to. So up the creek we went. It was a fun run because I kept a moderate pace despite Lee. Not that my body had a choice, but I was anticipating one of those extended Ray rides, so I was pacing myself. At Daffodil, all the others turned off, and we were three for Lockwood and the Fiddletown Flyer. Ray was on fire, but not his hair. He pulled us unrelentingly against the headwind, smoothly carving every curve from the top, brakeless, urgent, driven. In Fiddletown, I was starting to feel a little better, but still was kind of hoping to hear "Ostrum" or even "Plymouth" as our next stop--but, again, NO--Mt. Aukum via Tyler. So there we were on the bench, and Ray was saying these seemingly logical things to a muddled mind: "It would be ridiculous not to go up a little farther. Lee's never ridden over 82 miles and never done Slug Gulch, so it doesn't make any sense not to ride Slug." Hell, I had no argument; it seemed so logical somehow. As I sat there stewing in my own sweat and befuddlement trying to calculate our mileage and finally had to ask Ray, the engineer, "Won't that be nearly 100 miles?"
He looked at me, shocked, and said, "Ed, it's the SIERRA CENTURY!" Ka-bong. That snapped me right back to a painful reality. We were sitting at Mt. Aukum and were only half way through our ride. Not only that, we had Slug Gulch to do. It did not sound like fun right then. Spiz was no longer enough. I rushed inside for a Dr. Pepper and some hot peanuts -- required eating for Slug. Well, Ray will have to give a report on how successful his teasing of Lee was on Lee's maiden Slug ride. I was off the back in the first 2 feet and stayed that way so successfully that Ray thought I'd turned around and climbed Omo Ranch Rd instead of Slug by the time I got to the school. The express train down Omo was amazing compared to my mental struggle up Slug (physically, I was ok, so the trip down was fun as well as fast). We stopped at Aukum only for a quick tightening to Ray's bottle cage (probably rattled loose on Tyler), then off again through Shenandoah and into Plymouth. There we visited the new gourmet market (espresso!) briefly and then were off for the final 20 mi. Ray did an amazing 27+MPH pull into a headwind to Latrobe, then Lee and I took turns for a while. On Irish, I finally felt pretty good--oddly only taking me about 90 miles to "warm up"--so I took the pacing position with the overworked Ray and PR-setting Lee quiet in eschelon since they had done so much work. By Ione, it felt to me like the easiest Sierra Century I'd done (fortunately, i was already forgetting some earlier parts). What a fun, unexpected, adventure of a ride to celebrate the inaugural weekend of our new-era jerseys--see photo link below. (EH)
PHOTOS:
http://ermasdiner.com/photos/jersey04/ |
| 5/1/2004 |
100*, 62** |
Wine Country Century |
Gabriel**, Larry and Gayle*, Peter & Susan** |
The WCC has become a birthday tradition for me, thanks to Susan. After a good night's sleep in Calistoga it was short hop to the start in foggy Santa Rosa. About half way through it burned off to reveal, as Larry says, picture-postcard scenes. Great roads, courteous riders and drivers, fine weather. What could be better? How about a sumptuous Italian feast at one of Napa's fine restaurants? Molto Bene - life is good! (PS)
The weather was cold and wet, (fog) for the first 35 miles, later in day the temp reached into the low 90's. The route had a little more climbing that I remember 4200' vertical. Some of the climbs ' peaked out in access of 17%, thank god they weren t to long. The ride was well supported by the Santa Rosa Bicycle Club. Rest stops were well stocked; lunch at Warm Springs Dam was very good.
The ride is well worth doing again next year. The majority of the riders were more considerate to fellow riders and vehicle traffic than I've seen in quite sometime. It s was a far cry from what I saw on the Pardee Party. (LH)
The ride began in the midst of cold fog which made the first 15 miles or so a bit uncomfortable for those of us who chose to ride without full-fingered gloves or leg warmers. My riding partner and I had pledged to each other we’d ride slowly to gather in as much of the scenery as possible. But the cold made us pick up the pace. Nevertheless, we still were able to enjoy some of the views. But the gray fog took something away from the expected splendor.
The full glory of Napa’s colors and sights were revealed as the sun finally drove the fog out, providing us with an endless array of scenes out of postcards and movies. The vineyards, wineries, old barns, gave us an unending supply of breathtaking views. The memory that most sticks in my mind was the sound of birds chirping away while a groups of horses pastured along the bottom of some hills that had unending rows of grapevines, seemingly manicured and gliding along the hillside. There are very few places on earth like it!
The ride included what now seems little more than a slope. It was a one-mile climb that other riders had described as murderous. I had some trepidation, but having accompanied my Erma buddies gave me the confidence to just take it as 62usine or simply going for a drive in the valley. It’s the best way to really see and enjoy the Napa Valley. (Gabriel) |
| 4/28/2004 |
45 for everyone but Larry 68 |
Steve Honeychurch's great Jesus Maria preview water route adventure |
Larry H., Steve H., Paul, Gene, Ray, & Jim |
| After freezing anything that was not covered up (real well ) completely off, it was nice to experience a warm ride on a Wednesday. The day started off on a high note when my back tire decided to go go south about a mile from the start. After a sorta quick tire change we were off to see what other mischief could be found. Because Larry does not seem to have enough sense to get off his bike after the first hundred miles, he is training for the 'Davis Double". As a result he started in Ione, to get a few extra miles in. Because he works in the same building as Dave Neff, I'm beginning to think that the afflictioin that causes the victim to actually think riding 200 miles would be "fun", might be contagious. I know I have been keeping my distance from everyone that seems to have this horrible bug, just in case. Because Larry was tired from his extra miles Paul, Ray, and I watched Larry and Steve ride away from us on the way to Volcano. On the Creek road we even saw the goose that represents that insurance company on T.V.. We got to Lockwood without any excitement and flew down to Plymouth. When we got to Drytown the moaning began in earnest, "man this is steep", "who's idea was this", "Gene is making us look bad again", etc.,etc., etc. When we got back to Sutter Creek the whinning was forgoten and it was time for smoothees. Unfortunatly I had to get home and Larry still had to ride back to Ione (glad I'm not riding a double). A good time was had by all, and it is always nice to have an honerary old fart along on the trip. It is always a special day when you can hang around with a great group of people like the A.A.R.P. boys. If either of you see this I hope the Kid from Stocton and Dave B. are back out real soon! JG |
| 4/25/2004 |
38; 62; 76 |
Plymouth, Fiddletown, Mt. Aukum, Fairplay,Mt. Aukum, Plymouth |
Carolle and Steve M (76)(23 animal); Pat Johnston (38); Dave N (?); Jim and Penny (62); Tanya, Steve H, Chuck, Mike and Charity, Karen, John R (76) |
| What a day ! If you like HOT, it was near perfect ! Where was Ed ? And, what a surprize to see Pat J back in the peleton and Dave N who got up at 4 AM to ride from home to Ione! What an animal! Just outside Plymouth, the McGraths, Tanya, JR and KR did a little cattle herding .... literally! One little baby cow (sorry Chuck a "calf") had gotten away from his buddies and was running up and down the roadway .... but not for long after Erma's to the rescue. The route; Plymouth, Fiddletown, Mt. Aukum, Fairplay, Mt. Aukum again for much needed liquid refreshments,and then back to to Plymouth for Mexican food ! We couldn't wait ! Sadly however, the restaurant was closed when we got back so we had to settle for pizza. But it wasn't the food that made it a great day ....it was great weather and great ERMA company. Thanks for the ride. (KR) |
| 4/25/2004 |
34, 100* |
Wildfower (and "Pressed Flower") Century |
Lucinda, John B, Ed*, Ron* |
Change is a good thing (sometimes). Though I had signed up in January to participate in this year's Wildflower, I had no idea I'd be riding a different route, on a different bike, with a different body, and with a different buddy. Due to my March run-in with a Chevy, I had to change plans when it came to riding around Chico. It was great. Instead of hill climbing and 100 miles, it became flat and 34 miles. Instead of my LeMond, it was my old Specialized touring bike (Brooks saddle and friction shifters). And instead of Ed, it was my wife (she's much cuter). My "knee therapy" ride was the perfect opportunity for me to finally get back out on the road at a pace that was perfect for the "now in training" Lucinda. We had the chance to ride north of Chico, actually climb one hill, and cruise into our first rest stop at a cute little B&B at mile 14. We watered up and headed out through orchards galore -- some just coming into bloom, and others looking like they were ready for harvest. Turning onto the River Road was a spectacular sensation of sight and smell. We actually kicked up the tempo coming back into town, so that I could see just how much my torn cartilage could take without talking back. Lu was with me the whole way and is now fired up for more. We rolled into the hotel parking lot in time to get back to the room and shower before checkout time (Ed had conveniently arranged with the front desk to let us check out at noon instead of 11:00). Not what I expected in January, but a great way to spend a day in April. (JB) BTW, I'll have a much better idea of when I can rejoin Erma rides after I meet with the orthopedist on Monday. I can't wait.
First of all, thanks to Ray for the "moderate" leg spin on Saturday, the day before the hottest ride of the year. The Wildflower was not the same. John B opted to ride with wife Lucinda on the Flatflower route, since he's still recovering from his crash and torn cartilage. So no JB for company and then the restaurant we've eaten at for years was closed. JB and Lu did fine, finishing feeling fresh, even after more than 900 feet of total climbing--mostly freeway overpasses. Both felt fresh and pain-free. Lucinda's ready to move on to bigger events now, including kicking some butt on Erma rides. JB will see orthopedist and go from there. It was lonely for me out on the century route, despite all the people and the familiar terrain--Honey Run is still the most beautiful climb I've been on. The climb to Table Mtn was exposed and hot. Lots of people on side of the road cramping. It was such a quick jump in heat, it caught just about everybody, even me. I had to take an Emergen-C and a pepsi at 75 mi to give me the boost for the final push, which was made considerably easier when I hooked up with four other guys to paceline in. I was tired all day (thanks, Ray), but thanks to our Erma terrain, the ride was not difficult--just not as much fun without JB for company. Crossed paths with Ron several times on his first Wildflower. At 75 miles, he was upbeat and comfortable, so congrats, Ron. (EH) |
| 4/24/2004 |
63 |
Mt Aukum loop |
Hux. Richard, Gayle & Larry |
When we arrived in Ione Our parking lot was cordoned off for the annual Ione flee market. We along with all the venders from the flee market were forced to park in the overflow parking lot. Soon after we arrived Ray, Sara and Jerry showed up, they were heading for Sutter Creek and beyond. We wanted a shorter and easer ride so we headed for Mt Aukum. Half way across Irish Hill we hooked up with Hux, I persuaded him to ride along with us. Hux is a proud grandfather again, he has 3 granddaughters and the new addition is an 8 pound grandson named Gavin.
Upon stopping in Plymouth we were greeted by Steve Honeychurch, Steve was on the business end of a pick; he was doing a little excavation for landscaping in the Plymouth City Park. Steve s wife Burney is the director of Plymouth park development. Steve should be given Erma miles (62 Miles) for performing community service.
We were about to pull out when Richard from Stockton joined us, he was going to have a sandwich at the diner in Plymouth; however he decided to do that another day. The trip up to Mt Aukum was a little harry with all the traffic due to the annual truck show and all the new wineries with their grand openings. After a short break at Mt Aukum we headed for Ione. Hux stayed just far enough ahead on Irish Hill for Gayle and me to think we could catch him. It s good to see Hux riding so strong again. We regrouped at the highway for a leisurely ride back to Ione. (LH) |
| 4/24/2004 |
24-64 |
Favorite Erma Route: a day at the (duck) races |
64: Ray, Lee, Sarah, Jerry, Dave R; 35: Coconut, Jill; 40: Ed; 24: Denise, Stacy |
Back in the saddle with the Ermas again! When Jerry & I arrived in Ione there was much activity as the locals were gearing up for "Town Garage Sale Day." Our usual parking area was taken over by a massive flea market, and we wondered, "What to do, Where are the Ermas?" After many months away we weren't sure of the Sat. AM routine. Luckily found Ray & Lee in what we learned was the 'back-up meeting place' by Ace Hardware, and Dave R. from Murphys found us there from his parking place in town. After a warm hello reunion and borrowing a water bottle from Larry & Gayle, they left on the tandem for Mt. Aukum. Our mini-Erma pack left for SC where Ray told us there were more Ermas to be found. Met up with Ed halfway up Ione/SC road, and we rolled on through the wonderful spring countryside to SC. There we were greeted by Coco Al and Jill - great to see them again, and were introduced to Denise and Stacey (on a beautiful new Lemond Zurich). This was to be their first trip up the creek road, and they did just fine! Coco & Jill obviously feeling frisky after their triathlon training and they zipped by us to set the pace with Lee & Dave. Rosey in her Easter bonnet holding down the fort in Volcano, and we regrouped there to plot the next leg of the trip. Denise & Stacey opted to head back down the creek road to SC, while the rest of the group headed up Rams Horn. Temperatures heating up, but a nice breeze & shade made the ascent tolerable, and the run down Shake Ridge is always a payback for the effort on RH. We hadn't witnessed the Ed & Ray Train for some time, and were again amazed when they put their pedals down and started to fly bringing Lee right along. Dave, Al & Jill hung on until they were out of our sight, while J & I decided to slow it down and enjoy the beautiful spring scenery (face it, we couldn't keep up!) Ray & Lee kept going into SC to meet Stacey & Denise before they left, and Al & Jill headed on home, while Ed left the pack to drive home where he was leaving shortly for Chico to ride the Wildflower Century the following day. Amazing how he could ride the way he did the day before a tough century! Hope you had a good ride at Wildflower, Ed.
Ray, Lee, Dave, Jerry & I were all that were left from the original pack, and they directed us up Sutter Home (it's just a 'little climb') hill to Jackson, Ridge Road to Argonaut where Jerry flatted coincidentally under the shade of a big tree. Time to relax a bit and cool off before the big ride down Shake Ridge to Buena Vista. Considerable headwind (isn't there always) heading back from BV to Ione, but Lee & Ray could sense the shared Solberg pain, and kindly pulled us along so we didn't lose our dignity. Happy to see Marlette Rd and the homestretch.
So good to be back in Amador with some of our favorite Ermas reminding us again why this elite bike 'club' has such a formidable reputation! Perfect weather for most of the ride with some heat to contend with on the final push. And of course, the maginificent spring show of green grass, blossoming trees, wild flowers, grazing cows, wild turkeys, peacocks to delight us. No errant dogs or squirrels to ruin our day! Thanks to all for a great cycling day! Sarah & Jerry |
| 4/21/2004 |
48,73* |
Sutter Creek Daffodill, Lockwood ,Hwy 88 and return via Shake Ridge and one,to |
Steve H.,Jim G.,Gene, Stocikton Boy, Paul M., Larry H.* |
| We thought it would be warm and planned on that premise but the weatherman lied! After much discussion we thought we would ride as high as we could in search for snow. No snow but plenty of cold. The trees all looked fresh with the rain from the day before and there were plenty of deer foraging everywhere beside the road. We were blessed? by a new addition, Larry Hayes who is now in"team in training" for his retirement date, August 1. He had to show us up by riding from Ione to join us but we will get him in the relaxed swing of things in no time. It was a great ride down all the way from Hwy 88 doing a pace line the entire way leaving time for coffee and fine jokes. Remember 5 May Jesu Maria! SWH |
| 4/18/2004 |
51 for Michial & Tanya, 67 for Chuck and Jim, 82 for the everyone else
|
Ione, Irish Hill, Sutter Creek, Volcano, Lockwood, Plymouth, Irish Hill, and back to Ione |
John, Karen, Steve & Carol, Larry and Gail, Michail, Tanya Chuck, Jim |
What a morning I had! My lovely tandem partner decided to take a pass on the days ride due to her ongoing injury problems, or maybe she was just tired of looking at my back (who could blame her for that). So in the insuing change of equipment I managed to get to Ione with out most of my riding gear. A quick call home brought my wonderfull wife out to meet me with my stuff. After getting back to Ione I was pleasantly surprised to see that Chuck had taken pity on me and waited for me. While we were getting ready we had the opportunity to say hi to Ed and a bunch of his fellow Wheelman. When we finally got on the road, Chuck and I planned to ride up Willow Creek to meet the group. But we didn"t make it that far, I got a flat right at the end of Willow Creek. At least we were just starting to get on the road when the gang made their appearance. From then on things actually went pretty well. Michail and Tanya had an appointment so they went down Shake Ridge. The rest!
of our intrepid little band pressed on for the summit of Lockwood Junction (if you are laughing at that desciption, try getting there on a tandem). After a quick wardrobe change it was off to greater metroplitan Fiddletown. After making our way to Plymouth, we were in Karen country and she was definitly on the gas. When we got to Irish Hill I did try to hold her wheel, to no avail. At least the two tandem crews took pity on me, and we rode in together. The rest of the crew were kind enough to invite me to join them them for dinner, but I had to decline, good thing too because the boss had eats ready when I walked through the door. One observation I would like to make is that it seemed that the Bike Hikers missed the date for Party Pardee, it was cold and trying to rain all day. Oh well maybe next year. Hey Al I am sorry you tipped over, hope you are back soon! JG |
| 4/17/2004 |
41*, 38**, 32***, 20**** |
intro: IH-WC; RC: Stoney-SC-WC-abort |
Ray*, Ed**, Al the Pal** (not counting ambulance ride), Victor***, Olivia****, Jon**** |
Intro ride: no rain, if a bit chilly compared to past weeks. Olivia and Jon negotiated Irish-Willow with ease. Ray, having a wedding in the afternoon, took off with the Pal toward Stoney and then Argonaut and SC. Victor and I peeled off at Sutter-Ione to backtrack and meet RC and AtP. Met them at top of "lookout" hill. Victor turned home at hwy. A few miles down Willow, a weenie dog ran right into Al's front wheel, flipping him. Al was hurting and stunned on the pavement for quite a while, both before and while the firefighters and paramedics tended him. We had help from poker run bikers, Wheelmen on a ride, several passing motorists, and the mail carrier. Ray and I got Al's gear gathered and back to Ione, then went to ER in Jackson to visit and arrange the transfer of gear, bike, and truck. However, he was released so quickly, he was released into Ray's custody. Therefore, we have photos (see below). As for the dog, let's just say for the sake of JR and other canine-sensitive folks that Ray and I had several discussions about who came out worse--Al or the weenie dog. At least the dog could get himself home; more than can be said for Al. But with only a minor shoulder separation and road rash, he should be back fairly quickly. He'll also be shopping for most of his cycling wardrobe--all of which was cut from his body by the medicos. Not the day we planned, especially when it had turned into a beautiful day, especially for riding. But we're here and we'll all ride again. I hope the newer riders don't read this report. Hey, Al--I forgot to tell you that a firefighter guy asked me to go tell the EMT, who was on cell phone to hospital, your age. When I told her, she said, "Five-OH? No way!" (And she'd been in there poking at your body.) When I walked back the big firefighter guy said, "You'll have to tell him that one when he's feeling better." (EH)
photos:
http://ermasdiner.com/photos/palcrash/ |
| 4/14/2004 |
47 |
Steve's Middle Bar Route of Deliverance |
Paul, Steve H., Joe, Ray, Gene, Stockton Boy, & Jim |
Due to a technical glich on my end that had absolutely nothing to do with the award winning Erma's diner web site, (as good a website as I have seen anywhere) [editor's note: this from a guy who has probably not seen another web site] my last literary gem was sent out into siber-space somewhere, so much for that Pulitzer prize. Meanwhile back at the ranch, the weather was a lot cooler this morning than it had been over the weekend. Everyone started the day with long sleeves and leg warmers. What a difference a couple of days can make! Because of the cool weather and our advancing years we decided we needed a mild, easy and gradual warmup, which can only mean one thing, straight up the hill to Jackson. After recovering from our warmup by riding through town it was off to do a little mountain biking on Middle Bar. It would fair to say that the road was a little bumpy on the desent, my wheels spent so much time off the ground it reminded me of my B.M.X. days. It was reassuring to have a doctor and a dentist along because you never know what wi!
ll happen when you combine a rough road with old fillings and old bladders. Thank god for the potty stop near the bottom of the hill. On the way up the other side Gene decided to go for the king of the mountain points and just flew up the hill. The quick ride down to Buena Vista was great, and while we were at the store we even met one of Pauls partners. After Buena Vista we paced around Ione and rode back over Sutter Creek Ione road. The rest of the guys flew up the hill, fortunatly Gene decided to take it easy on me and we cruised up the hill decussing high school track during the late sixties and early seventies. We read about it in a magazine, we couldn't possibly be old enough to remember that far back. JG |
| 4/10/2004 |
84*, 67**, etc. |
Irish-Willow, Standard, Willow-Irish |
Ed*, Larry**, Hux**, Richard (37), Gabriel (31), Steve H (45), Jim and Penny (50), Al the Pal (see separate report), Chuck (20), cameos by lots of others. |
Lots of transitions this weekend. Easter brought out some Sunday riders on Saturday, so it was good to see and ride with Larry and Chuck (for a while). The ride start time change didn't make everyone's news, so Steve and the Grays showed up at the old time. Al showed up on his time and had to chase us in his pickup, eventually driving to SC, backtracking and then taking off with John and Karen, whom we met in Volcano. We saw Andy and Anita's and Kevin's vehicles in SC and crossed paths with them at the top of Shake (they were doing a Honeychurch-type route). Of the "intro" riders, only now-vets Gabriel and Richard showed. Richard took off with us. Gabriel was late and had a flat, so sent us on and did his own ride (see below)--remember: Gabriel just started riding up here a month ago and finished his first century (Pardee) last weekend. Larry, Hux, Chuck, Richard, and I started over Irish-Willow. At the highway, despite our efforts to get him to forget about work for a while longer, Chuck couldn't and rode in. Climbing Sutter-Ione, we met up with backtracking Pal and Steve and then caught Jim and Penny. We all started up the creek, catching up, enjoying the scenery and chatter--as well as the effort. At Volcano, Steve had to get back to guests, Jim and Penny sent us on, John and Karen took the Pal to Red Corral. Hux, Larry, and I headed up Rams Horn. At the top, we coincided with Kevin and the other Stockton folks. We TT'd down Shake for fun. Then some shushing down Sutter-Ione. Hux and Larry headed in at the highway, while I finished with tempo riding on Willow and Irish to prep for the Wildflower in a couple of weeks. Great day to ride, especially feeling some shape returning to the body and seeing spring at its peak. (EH)
It took me a while to get out, but I finally did and boy was it worth it.. My wife had agreed to hang around, so she became my personal SAG. I rode up from Ione to Sutter Creek via Ione-Sutter Creek Road. Once in Sutter Creek, I kept riding toward Volcano. Beautiful ride! When I reached Volcano I was pretty spent, but after a short break turned uphill to challenge Daffodil Hill.
WHEW!!!! I actually impressed my wife. I’m sure you guys probably do this stuff all the time, but for me, this was the climb of my short cycling career. Luckily for me, I had a new granny gear installed this week, so it made the climb easier (24 teeth instead of 30). Anyway, the ride was exceptional for me. Lots of beautiful scenery, including the pine trees and wild flowers. But with the birds chirping away, water running down the roadside creek – including diminutive rapids through granite boulders in a few spots – it was beautiful. I hardly noticed the perspiration pouring from every pore on my body.
About a mile past Daffodil Hill I realized the few buildings I had just passed WAS Daffodil Hill, so I stopped. I decided riding down was not a good option after I noticed more than a few crazies speeding downhill. Rather than risk being run down by one of the Earhardt wannabe’s, I took the more prudent option of having my spouse drive me back to Ione.
Altogether, I rode 31 pretty grueling miles. But I’m feelin’ pretty good about myself. (GV) |
| 4/10/2004 |
45 |
half way Ione Sc.Sc.Volcano,Red Corral,West point,part of Railroad flat back to hwy.88 to Jackson to Sc. |
Al the PAL |
Actually Missed the start time,Ed,Jim,Chuck, Richard and Hux were on Irish Hill when I reached them.I was in the car hoping to meet up with them.I did.I went on ahead to restart in Sc.I backtracted for the benefitt of more quality miles.Once back in Sc after regrouping with Jim and Penny on the tandem as well as with Steve I decided to continue on to our next rest stop.Volcano.
About 2/3 of the way there I was pleasently surpriced to see John and Karen who were doing a loop from their home. At Volcano I opted to go with John and Karen. They assured me I could get good miles heading into Jackson by way of Tabeau. At the top of the hill John went back for Karen--They have been putting on some miles lately. We parted and on the hwy I was heading towards Tabeau when I saw a sign that read RED CORRAL, WEST POINT. I have a friend in West point.I did not find him because I ended up on the other side of hwy 26 on Railroad Flat road.Instead I saw a man in a red car over by the Poast Office.He called my name and I saw that it was one of Erma's-Gene!Turns out he has been training and is hoping to join our group soon! It was wonderful to see a familiar face.Speaking of faces,and nice people.An American Native reminded me that when we are acknowledge by the locals,it is of utmost importance to return the gesture-"It is a sign of respect"We shook hands and parted towards hw!
y 88.Eight mi. of up and down terrain,narrow roads but very beautifull scenery kept me focused on my task.Soon I was on hwy 88 and heading towards Jackson.In Jackson I stopped at the Sports center.Bill was busy working away on a customers bike.I refuled and headed up Jackson gate rd.soon I was back in Sc. and thankfull for such a glorious day to ride and be with friends.I can only estimate my total milage.The important part for me was that I did some good climbing and met some nice people along the route.-AL the Pal |
| 4/7/2004 |
37 |
Wildlife |
Steve H.,Jim G.,Paul, Satockton Boy Penny G.,Ed Gonzales,Don Strahan.Dave Taylor in a liesurly fashion
|
| We were welcomed by two great things-warm weather and a rider with two x chromosomes-thanks Penny. They both lived up to expectations It was nice to see Don on vacation for the week even tho' he worried about the intellectual progress of his students while they were out of school. Ed has joined our peleton after retiring from the state and I expect soon to see him doing the pulls up to Volcano. We rode up to volcano in a liesurly fashion till Dave made the break with S.B. pushing him. After climbing to Red Corral it was time to suck the tandem down 88-if you fell off you could not catch them. It was the usual exciting time going down tabaud with Steve showing that age and treachery and disregard for life will sometimes win. We had the usual sprinting at the end followed by much camraderie at Bills. Bck to the coffee house for ice coffees and solving the worlds problems. Goood to be back SWH |
| 4/4/2004 |
* 65miles, **45 miles |
Wild Life loop |
**Larry H, Jennifer and Jeff, *Steve and **Carolle Mc
|
| Today was a day to relax and spin, and watch for wild life. I rode down from home to meet up with Carolle. We had a very small group today, It was Carolle and I joining the Haye's family, minus Gayle. Jeff and Jennifer joined us for a leisurely ride up to the flower farm. We headed out of Ione around 9:15am, and headed out Marlette to Five Mile Rd. the pace would be much slower today, because Larry did'nt have Gayle pushing him. We headed up Forrest Home where we saw three Peacocks on top of a car, then once on Old Sacramento Rd we saw two Turkey's "Dating". We stopped long enough to enjoy the Very clean bathrooms in Plymouth, then headed up towards the flower farm. After a short break, we headed for home, we saw Red Tailed Hawk's, we even saw a Fox on Irish Hill Rd. It was a great day to enjoy the foothills, and great company, it's nice to slow down and enjoy the little things in life. Thanks again Larry for letting us join your family outting. (SMc) |
| 4/3/2004 |
65 |
Party Pardee |
Karen, John R, Chuck, Steve H, Coconut, Jill, Al the Pal, Larry and Gayle, Jim and Penny, Steve and Carolle, Mike and Charity, Don S and daughter, Ray, Ed, PJ, Sarah, Jerry, Paul, Gene, Victor, Gabriel (1st century), Anita, Andy, Vic, Joyce, Gail, Debbie, Bev (cameo), Peter and Susan--who else? |
Huge turnout for the season opener. Send in any comments or notes to be added here.
Despite the best intentions, we got a late start. Teach me to act my age. No more Friday night concerts until midnight!
It's much quieter at the back of the pack - we rolled out around 8:20 and had a great, quiet country ride on our tandem. Susan's first venture to Amador County this season, but we'll be back! Sorry to miss you all. (PS)
It was a most perfect day for cycling, and good to see so many of our old Erma pals out on their shiny wheels. We realized how much we have missed that gang! We will be out soon - if not this weekend (might do one final spring ski day, then empty out of ski locker and close up the condo for a few weeks) the certainly the next one. Look forward to seeing you then. (Sarah) |
| 4/3/2004 |
108 |
PP and More |
Karen and John |
What a fine day for The Party Pardee and it had to be the best weather in the history of the event. No rain or wind or a combination of the two ....what a shock ! It was so perfect that most of us didn't need "arms" or "legs" even at the start.
The little "extra" miles for the "PP" started when Karen and JR parted company with our buddies in Buena Vista. It was strange to all of a sudden to not be riding with a lot of cyclists but it was great to be still riding on such a perfect day. However, at one point on Irish Hill, I could tell Karen was wondering what the heck we were doing out here ! After taking a short break in Plymouth and Karen giving some nice folks from Nevada directions to Daffodil Hill (actually they asked for directions to "Tulip Hill") we headed back for Ione knowing "we had it made now". It was good to get back to Ione with our first 100 miles in 2004.
"Keep on the sunnyside". (JR) |
| 3/31/2004 |
46 |
Sutter Creek, to Hwy. Carbondale, Irish Hill, Buena Vista, Lake Amador, Ione, to Sutter Creek |
Paul, Some guy from Stockton, Gene, Dave R., and Jim |
| We had just a lovely day to ride. We were missing three guys because Ray had another obligation, Steve was still in Hawaii trying to get over being so distraught about everyone tipping over a few weeks back, and Dave B. was still on I.R. as a result of the incident that Steve was so upset about. For whatever reason we decided to leave Sutter Creek by riding the water route backwards to the highway. On the way to Carbondale we experienced our first flat tire. then on the way down Irish Hill we had a second flat. After an uneventful ride to Buena Vista, we rode back to Ione via the Amador lake route. All that remained was to ride back to Sutter Creek and the coffee house. Even though we were without our our spiritual leader Dave filled in admirably, so we were able to muddle through and have a good time. (JG) |
| 3/28/2004 |
47 |
CG's South route to Commanche south shore, deadend at lake, Burston, Valley Springs & back |
Peter S, Bob Dahlquist, Paul Menard, Joe & Jacob (dad & young racer) |
| What a lovely day - what a great turnout! We hung with the group to the South shore, then pulled ahead on the road to Valley Springs. Saw the sign for VS at the first intersection but must have made a wrong turn later as we ended up at the lake dead-end. Backtracked into Burston, then headed back more or less the same route. Sorry to miss the rest of the crew, but really nothing to complain about on such a glorious day. (PS) |
| 3/28/2004 |
27, 57, 60, 63, and 82 |
Blue Camanchee, New Hogan Dam, Silver Springs, Irish Hill, and Willow Creek |
Peter Saucerman, Bob Dahlquist, Debbie, Gayle, Joyce, Joe ? and his son (two new guys), Ron, and his friend, Rodger from Bike Hikers, (63) Jim, Penny (57), Don Strachan, and his Daughter (27) Chuck, Larry, and John (82) and Erma's own Italian language tutor Paul (60) |
Today s ride was as much about the culture of cycling as it was in enjoying good company and beautiful scenery. Paul (Paulo) feels that to truly understand cycling we should take up the Italian tongue of the cyclist. Here are just a few of the terms we learned today for use in next weeks Party Pardee. You may want to rent the Video "Breaking Away" just to brush up on your Italian before Saturday.
Car back - dietro
ahead - avanti
car up - davanti
lets go - andiamo
So you can experience the true beauty of today s ride, the report is submitted in Italian.
If your Italian is a little rusty ask Paul on Saturday at the Party Pardee for a rough translation, especially the part about leaving his front wheel at home. Don, we hope your daughter's leg heals soon, and that she will join us again!
Era un giorno bello per un giro della bicicletta.
Venti gente guid loro bicicletta oggi con Erma. Tre complet 82 miglio. Ci erano due squadre in tandem, Penny and Jim e Don e la sua figlia bello.
Paul ci ha insegnato il vocabolario italiano di un cyclist e promesso al E-mail noi un insegnante privato italiano di lingua per il partito Pardee della fine settimana prossima.
Paul ha dimenticato la sua rotella anteriore ma li ha raggiunti withy prima di Buena Vista. Abbiamo guidato le nostre biciclette al serbatoio blu di Camanchee in cui indossi ed alla sua figlia rimasta di nuovo alla riparazione la bicicletta e forniamo il pronto soccorso al piedino della sua figlia da un bullone di sporgenza nell'alberino della sede. Il penny e Jim hanno rimasto per aiutare. Il resto ha acceso alla diga di Hodan, alle molle d'argento, alla m. ed indietro all'eccedenza Pardee a Ione. John, Larry ed il mandrino hanno continuato a guidare la loro collina irlandese dell'eccedenza delle biciclette per altre 18 miglia.
Grazie tutto per un giorno meraviglioso particolarmente Larenzo, Giovanni, e Paolo.
Carlo Grigio
Avete dovuto essere là. |
| 3/27/2004 |
74 |
intro + standard coffee |
Ed, Ray, Lee, PJ, Michael Kale (OSV), Richard (34), Gabriel (34), PJ, Mark T (69), Tim (69) |
Yes, every day is a special day but for some reason a sense of deja vu overrode any sense of novelty for me this particular day. It was wierd. We did the intro ride route to Camanche Lake and back to Ione, a leisurely 24 miles; a nice way to wake up to the day. Ed rode his single gear/messenger bike for the intro, saying it helps his technique and besides, "It's fun." Not for me. I tried it on Friday and crashed fairly ugly; fortunately, the bike was okay (I'm fine). I met some new people on the intro route: Hope to see you again! Some stayed to do the coffee route, others left to enjoy the day elsewhere. Oh, yeah, weather: stayed in the 70s and was nice except for some cool breezes in the Sutter Crk/Volcano/Shake Ridge region. Ed drove the paceline on the creek rd. I held on until about a mile before Fabio and then had to pull back or I'd run out of gas. At Volcano, Rosie held court. After we adjourned, the group was split again as Mark and Tim headed back to Ione. Lee, Ray, Ed and I snailed up to Daffy, cheetahed down Shake, and didn't stop at SC but opted to onward to Ione. At lookout point I gobbled some GU, which was absolutely necessary at that point (about 3:30). L/R/E kept a good steady pace behind the Ray Train; I barely kept them in my sight. I was telling myself the whole time from lookout to Ione I got to lose 3-5 pounds before Pardee or it's going to be more grind than party. Speaking of Pardee, I hope y'all come out. See you Saturday. (PJR)
Michael had arranged to meet us at Camanche, but drove down Curran and paced us up for a while. Then we sat and got reacquainted for a while outside the (closed for vacation!) coffee shop. Great to see MK again even if not on a bike. We were a bit worried about traffic on Rams Horn and Shake because Daffy was still open, but the others reluctantly agreed to go "my" route since I had to get back. It was a pleasant surprise to find that the traffic was actually lighter than few weeks ago and getting through Daffy Hill was no problem at all. Thanks guys for a good one. (EH) |
| 3/27/2004 |
34, 24 |
Saturday intro ride |
Gabriel*, Richard, Brandon, Kim, Denise, Ray, Lee, Ed, PJ, Mark T, Tim, Mike E, Charity, cameo by Michael K |
Again, a great time. Because of few of us took a little longer to get ready, our Saturday "beginner's" ride was divided into two groups. Ed lead the first group while Ray remained behind with the second, smaller group. The second group rode at a little faster clip than the normal pace Ed sets, but no one in the group had a problem keeping up.
The first few ascents left Gabriel in his usual spot - watching for everyone's safety by keeping a watch from the rear of the pack for cars. Well, that duty lasted until the separation between Gabriel and everyone else reached the point where a cell phone would have been needed to warn of oncoming auto traffic.
Both groups met at Camanche Village where we enjoyed the mid day sun while we all chatted with Michael Kale. One larger group departed after a brief respite, navigating to Coal Mine Road where everyone enjoyed the descent. We all returned to Ione, copmleting a 24 mile loop.
At the conclusion, a smaller Erma's regulars usually keep going. This time, as they prepared to leave for Sutter Creek via Ione-Sutter Creek Road, Gabriel and Richard , acknowledging they wouldn't be able to keep up with the vets, started off to see how far they could go. It took Gabriel five miles before he realized his mind had written a check his body couldn't cash. Richard said he'd brave the road, determined to eat a hamburger in Sutter Creek.
Gabriel has vowed to make it to Sutter Creek and back before the end of summer. Any bets on the fat-boy's challenge? We'll see. (GV) |
| 3/27/2004 |
200 |
Solvang Double |
Steve and Carolle Mc |
Carolle and I arrived in Solvang around 4:00pm Friday to sunny skies and heavy winds. We hoped the winds would die down by tomorrow. After watching the local news they were forecasting mid 70 s, sunny skies, and 20-30 mile per hour winds. Their forecast was right on the money. We woke up on Saturday morning at 5:00am, rolled the tandem out to the starting line for a 6:30am start. It was nice to be finally riding, as my anxiety was getting the best of me, my heart rate was at 170 (normal is 130 at this pace) and this was in the first couple of miles! Once we started heading up the San Ynez Valley, thing started smoothing out, and Carolle was feeling great to be on her first double century, just keep saying, I feel great . We made it to CP1 (37.8 miles), which is in Sisquoc, at around 8:30am. The head winds were a force to be reckoned with, and this slowed our pace down considerably, I knew this would be a very long day. Especially since most the single bikes sat on our back wheel. (One of the drawbacks of riding a tandem) We stopped long enough to shed our arm and leg warmers, and eat a PBJ sandwich. We hosted our sails and headed directly into the wind, next stop CP2, which would be at Small Park. We refueled and headed out towards Morro Bay, the turn around point. I was hoping that once we turned around we would enjoy a great tail wind. I was wrong, the wind shifted and now we had a strong crosswind. We made it to Laguna Lake Golf club, this is 115 miles into the ride and it was time for lunch, and Carolle is still smiling. We enjoyed Subway sandwiches and a Coke, then back on the bike for the trip home. We must have been wearing a sign on the back of our tandem stating Shelter from the wind here because it seemed as though we had a line of bike sitting on our back wheel all the way in. We made it to CP5, the last one, and when I looked over at Carolle she was doing her 170-mile dance, The 171 mile shuffle . Carolle and I enjoyed a hot cup of soup mounted our headlight on the bars and headed up Centennial Rd, which is a four-mile climb. We only got about one mile up before we had to turn our lights on, it was a very scary decent in the dark. But once on Hwy 246 it was smooth sailing, because for the first time today we had a tail wind! The last ten miles, well I guess it s better then nothing. We pulled into the parking lot just before 8:00pm. Carolle felt great and was ready for her next double.
I would like to take this time to personally thank Tanya and Will, for their support through out the day, and voleentering for SAG support during this ride. You two were awesome!! Thank you for a great day. SMc |
| 3/24/2004 |
37 |
Widlife |
Paul, Gene, Stockton Boy, Ray, and Jim |
| Another great day only cooler. This time we were missing our spiritual leader, yes friends we were a day late and a Steve short. With Steve gone and Dave still on I. R. there seemed to be a little more elbow room in the grey haired peloton. It was a liitle more brisk on the creek road today, as a result of the cooler weather we didn't cook going up Red Corrall. After another charge down to Jackson, we stopped in to see Bill at Jackson Family Sports. After debating the pros and cons of various pedal systems (you people never thought we partipated in such an intellectual discouse did you?). After we left Bill's shop we headed back to Sutter Creek and more importantly, the coffee house and smoothees. While we had a great day, we missed our two absent friends and look forward to having everybody back together as soon as possible. JG |
| 3/21/2004 |
82-30 |
John Hambright Reunion Ride (IH, WC,Ione-Sutter Cr. Argonaut, Stoney Cr. and more) |
Steve H (30); Chuck (47); Jim and Penny, Paul (37); Don S; Tanya; Mike A; Larry and Gayle; Karen (59); Steve and Carolle (79); John R (82) |
| A good turnout promptly left Erma's parking lot (looks like the SBC has now decided it's theirs too) at 9 o'clock and headed for Irish Hill, Willow Cr., and Ione-Sutter Cr.Rd, so we could make it to Sutter Creek by 11 o'clock for a happy reunion with John Hambright. It has been a LONG time since we've had the pleasure of spending some time with John and how it was great to have him back in Erma's peleton. He wasn't riding this day due to laryngitis even though his M.D., has given him the "green light" to resume cycling. John plans to be riding with us in about a month and that day will be a fine day and one we all will be looking for to. We had a great visit and no one was in any hurry to leave the reunion. However, when John H mentioned that the only way he was going to get rid of the laryngitis was to "quit talking so much" we figured we'd better move on so his recovery would be more swift. Oh, even Ken S. showed up for the party and maybe he'll rejoin Erma's peleton about the time JH does. After such a relaxing stop no one was in a big hurry to get going but it was decided that heading for Argonaut and Stoney Cr. would be a good plan . Good pace as usual with the 3 tandems showing their good form . At the wishing well Chuck, Paul, and Jim and Penny took a right and headed for the barn while the others took a left . It was interesting going against the grain of our usual route by heading for Camanche Blues, Curran Rd., etc.. At the 5 Mile Rd. and Marlette intersection JR decided he had a little fuel yet to burn and headed solo for IH, WC, and 5 Mile Rd (again). When he returned to the lot ,much to his delight ,Karen was there waiting . She was going to hitch a ride with Carolle and Steve back to PG but decided that I'd need a chauffeur after the extra miles. "Right you are Ken". Well it was another great day to ride with friends made perfect by being able to visit and chat with John . See you in a month John and we'll be looking forward to your return and route. (JR) |
| 3/20/2004 |
82, 71, 24 |
intro: Camanche loop; then: Plymouth-Fiddletown-Ostrom loop |
Ray (82), Ed (71), Lee (50), Victor, Richard of Stockton (44), Olivia, Patty, Denise, Gabriel (24), JB (1), Coco, Jill (0) |
Old Man winter has left the building, and Spring has officially arrived. A beautiful Spring morning greeted us Erma regulars, as well as a several new faces out to join us on our "Cycling 101, Intro to Cycling" ride. Denise from Stockton, and Olivia and Patty from Sacto. Returning from last week Gabriel and Victor, and also Richard, who has been out with us before. JB also showed up just to say hi, and show us his "war wounds" from his altercation with the car. This week on the ride menu, we introduced them to the first part of the Party Pardee route, taking them out Old Stockton Road to Jackson Valley, and up Curran to Camanche Blues. Gabriel was feeling a little more comfortable, and showed more confidence. Ed (and PJ) had been prompting Olivia to come out for a ride for some time now, and she (and Patty) were eager to see what all the hoopla was all about and that's it's not just about dodging cars and riding on flat crowded bike paths in the city. After Camanche Blues, we took the downhill on Coal Mine, another first for all of us since we always come from the other direction. Denise really appreciated the heads-up on what to expect on the curves and the downhill. At Buena Vista, we headed for Lake Amador just to complete the circle. By the time we got back to Ione, we finally met up with Lee who suffered a tire blowout while attempting to chase us down. We also missed Coco and Jill altogether since they were planning on starting a little later and backtracking to find us. The route seemed to be the perfect intro for someone just starting out, with enough climbing that it was challenging, but not so much that they would never come back. Hopefully, after getting over their initial sore necks, backs, arms, legs, and butts, everyone will be back out for another ride. Thanks for coming out.
Here begins the second ride of the day. Olivia asked, "You're going to do 60 miles total, or an additional 60 miles?!!" Jokingly, Ed said "Yes, an additional 60." Little did he know what how true that would prove to be. Ed, Lee, Richard, Victor, and I took off for Irish Hill at a "slightly" faster pace than the previous 24 miles. Not wanting to "overcook" themselves, Victor and Richard turned back at the end of IH, while Ed, Lee, and I headed for Plymouth. We passed lots of other riders in and around Plymouth. Still feeling pretty good, I suggested a loop up to Fiddletown, around Ostrom and back into Plymouth. After a quick mileage/time calculation, Ed reluctantly said yes. Since Ed had just put in a few quality miles the day before, he decided to turn back halfway to Fiddletown and save himself the constant hammering and rabbit-chasing between Lee and myself, and meet us back in Plymouth. It warmed up nicely (but downright hot in the sun) as we climbed up Ostrom and over to Shenandoah. Lee and I flew down Steiner and back into Plymouth, making the loop in nearly an hour. We hooked back up with Ed, and headed for home. Just like horse headed for the barn, we screamed down to Latrobe, and raced over IH. It was a good fast ride in perfect weather. I finally felt as though we were making up for all those rained out weekends in January and February. Thanks for the ride! Hey Olivia, it wasn't quite 60 miles, only 58! (RC) |
| 3/19/2004 |
86-47 |
Mt. Aukum- Happy Valley Rd |
Jerry, John R (86); Steve H (50); Ed (47); Gene (50) |
| Any day we can ride in Erma Country with perfect weather is indeed something to enjoy and appreciate but to take off a day from work is somehow even more enjoyable. Such was the case today. Jerry , Gene, and John R left Ione in quite warm weather and headed for Plymouth to hook up with Ed and Steve H.. Once we met up with "E" and Steve it was decided to head straightaway for Mr. Aukum. Gene rode great despite not being able to ride too many miles the last month due to a bout with vertigo. At Steiner Rd. Gene decided to head back to Ione quite pleased with his performance and the 50 miles he would log. After a brief stop in Mt. Aukum Steve and Ed decided not to head for Omo Ranch but to check out the 2 bridges Jerry had found on Happy Valley Rd.. At Gray's Corner, instead of taking the usual left on E-16 ,we took a right and headed DOWN and then UP to Grizzly Flat Rd. where we actually did find Happy Valley Rd.. Before heading down HV Rd. we checked with a "local" about what to expect. The picture he painted didn't seem too inviting but before we could chicken out Jerry took off Being brave souls we followed albeit reluctantly. I thought for sure it was going to be like Hale Rd. but it turned out to be a fine road with good scenery and views. Steve was a bit concerned with too many lone males hanging around but I think they were just there in hopes that they might be chosen for a part in Deliverance II . Once back on E-16 there were a couple of longish pulls back to Gray's Corner followed by a good, quick pace back to Mt. Aukum and Plymouth. Jerry and JR parted company with Steve and "E" in Plymouth and headed for Ione. Pretty tough ride today and this time there was no adding miles by riding the Buena Vista Loop. This was Jerry's last ride being 59 years young for on Sunday he would hit the big 60 . Happy Birthday Jerry and thanks for a good ride. (JR) |
| 3/17/2004 |
39 |
Sutter Creek to Volcano to Big Trees and back via Shake Ridge |
Steve H., Gene, Stocton Boy, Ray, Paul, and Jim |
| What a beutiful day! The only bad thing was the absence of our good friend Dave Brubaker, who unfortunatly was involved in the now legendary pile up in Ione. While we were sorry not to have Dave with us it was nice to have almost everyone back together for such beutiful day( sorry you missed it Dave). The day was warm enough to ride the creek road in short sleeves, I had to remind myself it was still March (winter). The ride went off with out any problems and we even got a lesson in environmental clean up by the Big Trees Market. While we were all missing Dave, Steve was so upset he just had to fly over to Hawaii to cheer up. When we pointed out that the rest of us would like to cheered up as well, Steve refused to adopt all of us again. Well just have to keep asking. All in all we had a geat day that would have been better if Dave had been along. JG |
| 3/13/2004 |
79-32 |
Pardee loop with Irish Hill and Willow Creek |
John, Paul, Dave & Larry 79 miles
Chuck, Carolle, Steve, Tanya & Karen 62 miles
Jim, Penny 32 Miles. |
What a day to ride. We were unloading the tandem when Steve and Carolle arrived in their truck with 2 single in the back. They wanted to know where was Gayle; I pointed to Dave and replied this is Gayle. They promptly turned around and left the parking lot only to return several minutes later, I guess they were overwhelmed at the thought of Dave and me riding the tandem again. The day's route was the Pardee loop with Irish Hill and Willow Creek thrown in at the end just for fun. We parted ways with the Jim and Penny at the intersection of Campo Seco and Sandretto road. I was good to see Jim back on the bike so soon after falling off.
Steve taunted Dave and myself all day long, we didn't bite.
Tanya rode strong the entire day, even taunting the tandem from time to time. Her first century is coming up soon; she'll have no problem. We took a short break in Valley Springs before heading for Pardee, and the climb up from the Dam, Steve started with the talking trash, "I'll get you on the hill". We crested the hill just behind Chuck, Chuck came from nowhere, the only hint he was there was the creaking of his bike as be passed. Steve was nowhere to be seen. The rumor was Carolle was pushing Steve up the hill. The ride back toward Ione uneventful, except for Carolle and Karen freeloading by holding onto the tandems rack.
It's good to see John wanting to do extra miles again. He is once again living up to his name "Rovane 10 miles more". John, Paul, Dave, and myself did the extra loop. I admitted to Dave later that 62 miles would have been enough. Larry |
| 3/12/2004 |
67-22 |
Irish-Willow ("intro") and then standard coffee |
Victor, Gabriel (22); Jill (44 + 13 animal); Coconut (57 + 13 animal); Al the Pal, Ray, Steve H, Ed (67) |
| The first "intro" ride that wasn't rained out. Victor returned after a long absence, and Gabriel joined for the first time. I think we passed the test. They both had fun and seemed to want to return. Those "animals" Al and Jill arrived in the warm parking lot all bundled for winter, having ridden down from the Creek Rd. It was a fun tour of Irish Hill and Willow Creek to start, sticking together as a group, giving advice and encouragement as necessary. Victor and Gabriel headed straight in as the rest of us turned up Sutter-Ione. After a quick refilling, Ray promised to make up some time along the creek. He tempo'd with a gradual crescendo of effort til Fabio, where he jumped on his Dogma and took off. The Pal and I regrouped at the top and tempo'd to Volcano, followed by Coconut, bassoon, and Doc. Jill had an 18th birthday to prep so rode straight back down the creek. After sitting a while and getting reacquainted with Rosie, the rest of us took off up the Horn. Quite a bit of traffic, probably just people getting out on such a day, but maybe some in anticipation of Daffy Hill--keep an eye out for opening day. I bonked near the top of the climb and had to slow to zero for a while. Ray waited after the rest went on, giving him someone to chase, and my regretting that I'd have to hang on as Ray turned the first pedal of the year "in anger," as Phil says. I'm glad I was there, however. What a great reintroduction to Shake and the Ray Train. Fast and smooth, we soared up down and sideways, picking up Mr. Nut after the big valley and the other two at the S curves. Steve described the beauty of the all-Erma-jersey'd peloton leaning into that final curve before Papa Bear, carving that corner at full speed and zipping down and up. It didn't even feel as though my brakes had been slammed on--just a hill--a result of all that climbing JB and I did last week, I guess. It was a fun run with all of us finishing together. Coco took off home, and the rest of us refilled again because of the heat, and produced a good tempo swoosh down Sutter-Ione and then a good pull home. Ray and I ate chips and dried fruit, savoring the first full warmth day of the year--when the weather and the legs arrived at the same ride--and a good early-year ride with guests and the old gang. (EH) |
| 3/10/2004 |
39 |
A.A.R.P. Suter Creek to Jackson to Stoney Creek to Ione and back |
Steve H., Paul, Dave B., Al D., Gene, Stockton Boy, Ray, Jim |
| Here's the condensed version. Gene made his triumphant return to the grey haired peloton and made an even more triumphant departure just before all of the excitment. As for the actual ride it can be summed up best by saying we came, we saw, and we tipped over. (JG) |
| 3/10/2004 |
36,*25, 34** |
|
Steve H.,Kevin, Paul, Jim G.,Pg&E Ray, Coconut AL, Dave B.,* Gene** |
We started out on a day full of promise with the sun out and many riders. After discussing routes we headed up Sutter Hil to warm up and going towards Jackson. We figured it was time for our older group to try for serious time down Stoney Creek. With Kevin as athe leadout man the two of us did break 24 minutes. Dave and Al were 30 seconds behind showing old age and treacherry will still sometimes win. Paul was not doing any dardevil stunts downhill since his incident of several months ago and there were no attractive women to bring him home so we recollected at Pardee. Coming down to Buena Vista we admired their new barbeque pit which will be the main feature of the reopening of the restaurant there.
A nice paceline continued into Ione where Gene split off and then disaster struck! As we were riding down to the prison a truck came rapidly down a side street directly at us, stopped suddenly and then moved forward not looking at us. Brakes went on everywhere with much dodging about and then that familiar sickening crash. Jim was lying in the middle of the road with blood all over him looking like he had made love to a polar bear. saying “put me back in the game coach” or some such thing. Dave took a serious hit to his back and thorax and we were immeadiately concerned about chest injury or more. After initial assesment the EMT.S arrived and it was decided to air evac him so he could be evaluated at a trauma center. (Jackson does not have one) After seeing him off we were subdued by biked on back to Sutter Creek and took banana smoothies as our medicine. Next week we will try again. SWH |
| 3/7/2004 |
65-95 |
Fair Play Loop |
Carolle (22 Animal Miles), Steve Mc (22 animal miles) Steve and Carolle (96 Miles), John R. (81 miles), Karen R, Larry and Gayle (77 miles), Chuck G. (65 Miles), Stockton Don, Mike and Charity (76.5 miles), Dave B, Jim and Penny and Paul (61 Miles) |
Ah, Mother Nature was smiling today. Can you believe mid 70 s forecasted!
(Bring your sunscreen) Leaving the house we had to dress carefully, even though the temperature was 43 degrees it would warm up fast. Carolle and I rode our usual route down, and by the time we got to Ione the temerature was in the upper fifties, and promised to be much warmer. The weather was so warm that almost everybody left the parking lot in shorts, and those that choose to keep their leg warmers on, were quickly removed.
With sunscreen on, we headed out Marlette to Five Mile, today promised to be a fast day, with Mike and Charity on the REX tandem, with her new seat post, and a fresh tune up by Steve Rex, I m not sure what he did, but they were fast! And with Larry and Gayle back in the peloton, the pace was sure to get kicked up a notch. Dave, Chuck, Mike and Charity made quick work of Irish Hill, as for the tandems, (Except Mike and Charity) we were pacing our self s for the down hills. Once on Hwy 16 Larry and Gayle decided to push the pace, we managed to catch up with them only to hear Paul say My God as we passed. We regrouped at Plymouth, and then headed up to Mt Aukum. This is when Chuck, Dave, Paul, Jim and Penny headed back, Chuck and Dave where on tight schedules and needed to get back. We refueled then headed up and around the fair play loop. All we heard from John was I forgot how fun this loop was and we need to do this loop more . On the way back towards Mt. Aukum John and Karen passed us going up the hill like A Grand Prix Motor Car . We regrouped at the Mt Aukum store, and then enjoyed the great down hill run back to Plymouth. Don was riding so strong, even the tandems had a hard time keeping up with him, and that was on the down hills. We had the usual pace line down Old Sacramento Rd, then the Race across Irish Hill. Not sure who won because we were in the back (Way back). Can t find a better group of cyclist to spend the day with. Thanks for a great day. SMc (see Steve's photos for now at: http://ermasdiner.com/stevepix/ |
| 3/7/2004 |
65 |
JB's Toughest Birthday Ride |
John B, Ed |
JB and I have what's become a tradition of riding some "notable" ride for our birthdays in March (JB) and October (EH). Birthday boy's choice. John's been wanting to do the Iowa Hill-Foresthill loop from the World's Toughest Century for quite a while, so that's what we did. It was tough, fun, easy, spectacular, draining, exhilerating. JB's report writing was interrupted by a crash with a car. For now, I'll link his photos and my write up (too long for here):
PIX:
http://bdigitaldesign.com/jbbday/
WRITEUP:
http://ermasdiner.com/reports/jbbd2004.html
(EH) |
| 3/6/2004 |
52, etc. |
Irish, Willow, Sutter Creek, Willow, Irish & others |
John B, Ed, Steve H (20), Coconut, Jill (49), Steve and Carolle (65) |
Yes. Yes. Yes. This is, as Carolle said, why we ride. A fun reunion with Mr. and Mrs. Nut, who rode from home, as did the McGraths. Steve H called home and found that he had time for only a short ride. It's JB's birthday weekend, so he was completely off leash, loose and lovin it in the sunshine. He and I were doing a short "spin" to prep for the full birthday ride tomorrow--JB picked the beginning part of "The World's Toughest Century," of course. Lots of fun talking about Steve's distinguished photo in the paper, Jill's musical life, Coconut's lectures about homeownership and suggestions for land buying. Steve's stories about bringing culture to redneck country. Steve and Carolle's "homecoming" stories as well as how prep is going for the first DC of the year in a few weeks. From the looks of things, they should have no trouble. At Sutter Creek, the Coconuts went home and the McGraths took off for more miles. JB and I felt so good, we did Willow and Irish again. Besides, we had a lot more to talk about. One of the topics was how to get all the "interested" people out to ride on a day like this with a group like this so they can see how much fun cycling in the foothills can be. (EH)
PHOTOS: http://ermasdiner.com/march04
|
| 3/3/2004 |
36 |
Wildlefe |
Jim G..,Kevin, Paul M.,Dave B.,Steve H. Coconut Al,Newly retired guy from PGE. (SORRY) |
| Finally a beautiful day and a healthy group gets back together. We welcomed back folks have have been ailing (or been ale-ling) and change the date to wednesdays for the forseable future due to schedule conflicts. We retired folks have busy schedules. Leaving Sutter Creek and passing Coco.s house we gave the usual friendly geeting-AL-FLAAAC which wakened Al up from his slumber and he met up with us in Volcano. This was a very casual ride up the hill as we hadn't put on the usual winter miles . Downhill well that's a different story tho' Paul was not his usual racer boy yet as he wasn't sure there would be a beautiful woman to take him home if he crashed. At Bills we were greeted by the new super jock woman, Carol all dressed in her power-lawyer type outfit. Didn't get to talk to her much as she was on her cell phone most of the time doing deals. After speeding down to Sutter Creek we had plenty of time to solve the worlds problems over coffee. P.S I am beginning to hear the clamor for JESUS MARIA! That will be next month. (SWH) |
| 2/29/2004 |
61,*100,**31 |
Leap Year Special Event (Swim -Ride) Volcano, Daffodil,Hale (Hell?) Rd Fiddletown Plymouth Ione |
Steve H, Don S, John R, Karen, Chuck, Mike, Charity, Carol and Steve M.* Dave Taylor** |
| It was time to test the water after such a good rain when Karen said go to hell I thought she meant go to Hale-so we did. Charity showed up on a single bike for the first time in ten years. After she learned how to shift again she took off up to Sutter Creek unburdened with heavy body up front. We had put Debra Ortiz and her friend in Joyce's hand so she would not have endure 61 miles and 5000 feet of climbing. Ironwoman Carol and her consort Steve rode all the way down from Pine Grove to meet us in Ione. After a rest at Sutter Creek Dave Steve and Charity took off to Volcano-no surprise here. Dave rode on home to meet relatives at home. We climb to Daffy Hill and took off to Hale Road since Karen annouynced she was a "Hale Rd Virgin," never having been on it. Don Stahan took off downhill to the river Stykx while Steve and Carol burned up their brakes trying to slow their tandem. The crossing was just deep enough to get your feet very wet but also cooled off the tandems brakes. After an invigorating climb up we went down to Fiddletown where we met a very fast peleton from Sacramento . The ride on in to home was the usual fast bunch with Irish Hill the finishing touch. Excellent but hard ride. SWH |
| 2/28/2004 |
62 |
Party Pardee |
Larry and Gayle, Jim and Penny, Ray, Lee, Ed |
| Spectacular day with the clearest vistas of the Sierra peaks so far this year. As a special treat, the tandems showed up and let us ride with them for a while--despite Gayle's trash talking and other intimidations. Lesson for the day from Ray: even on a spring day with chill still in the air, you have to drink or you learn the hard way from your tightening legs on the climb up New Hogan. We all regrouped at Valley Springs, where the tandems told us to take off so they'd have someone to chase for a change. Then we regrouped again in the parking lot over chips and Girl Scout cookies, courtesy (well, at a cost) of my niece Nora (I'm hoping to get a discount next time by slipping in her name here). (EH) |
| 2/23/2004 |
75;53;47 |
Butte Mtn. via Stoney Creek Rd. |
Steve M; Jerry Wier; John R (75); Carolle ; Karen (53) Jim; Paul; Steve H. (47) |
Sunday evening the weather folks were very encouraging in that they predicted by Monday morning the rain clouds would have passed thru and that the day would be pretty good for outside activities. With that good news, JR jumped up and started making some calls. A ride had been scheduled for a 9 am start but after making quite a number of calls it was decided that we'd wait until Monday morning and touch bases again to decide on a time that would work for everyone and also give the roads time to dry. The forecast turned out correctly and after a few calls it was decided that starting at 11 would work into everyone's schedule. After the usual trip out of "downtown" Ione , we turned left onto 5 Mile Rd. and enjoyed riding straight into the warming sun's rays. On Curran Rd.,, Paul had a flat that was handled quickly thanks to a team effort. The unscheduled stop turned out to be perfect timing since it gave Steve M the opportunity to get a photo of a handsome ringed-neck pheasant. Heading up Stoney Cr. the temperature was ideal and before long we were in Jackson basking in the sun and found those of us, who weren't already enjoying retirement, wishing we didn't have to go to work the next day. After that break , Steve H, Paul, and Jim headed for Ione while the CM, SM, KR, JR, and JW enjoyed the loop on Butte Mtn. Rd. before heading back with hopes of taking on Willow Cr. and Irish Hill roads. The ride down Ione-Sutter Cr. was fast and a lot of fun as always. At the Highway 124 intersection, KR and CM decided that was enough "fun"for one day and sent SM, JR, and JW to enjoy Willow Cr. and Irish Hill w/o their company. Steve was firing on all cylinders on Willow Cr. but the Dos Amigos, JR and JW, were getting a bit hungry. On Carbondale Rd. our complaints of hunger pains got to Steve so we all decided to GU or Carb-Boom. Amazingly the go-go juice did its thing and brought us back to form as all 3 of us had a great go at it on Irish Hill. After that excitement we all wished there was enough!
time to head for Buena Vista. However, after feeding dog bones to Ione's finest resident, "Packer", the day was complete . In the parking lot Steve remarked "what a great day to be riding!". In the words of the MXC host Vic Romano of SPIKE TV, "right you are Ken". It was indeed a fine day and how the riding in Erma Country is only going to get better as the warm weather starts returning. "Keep on the sunnyside". (JR) |
| 2/15/2004 |
83, etc. |
Hogan Dam via Camanche Blues and Burson |
Carolle (23 Animal Miles) Steve and Carolle (77 Miles), John R. Chuck G. (83 Miles), Don S, Dave B. (56 Miles), Jim and Penny and Paul (53 Miles), Gayle (30 Miles??) |
Happy Birthday Chuck!!! Thank you Steve for purchasing and installing a new seat and special stoker bars on the tandem. (I think they made me faster!).
Today promised to be a perfect day, the sun was shinning and the temperature was a balmy 43 degrees in Pine Grove at 7:30am. I bundled up for the ride down to Ione, but by the time I reached Sutter Creek I had to shed all my winter clothing. The trip across Sutter Ione was filled with an abundance of sunshine, and lots of wildlife, Steve even got a great picture of a Hawk taking off from it s perch.
Like I said earlier, it promised to be a perfect day, and when John informed us that it was Chuck s birthday, and that Karen, (not riding today due to being on the injured list) would be meeting us back in Ione around 1:30-2:00pm for cake and singing Happy Birthday . What a great way to spend the day. So, the stage was set for a fast ride. The route today was Hogan Dam via Camanche Blues and Burson. As we started out from Ione everyone was happy to be out and enjoying the day. We regrouped at Camanche Blues with Senator Ortiz and friend still resting and planning on heading over Coal Mine Road and back to Ione. The Erma s peloton was back on the road and onto Burson. At Camanche Parkway the peloton split. Jim and Penny; Paul and Gail headed back toward Ione via Irish Hill and Willow Creek. Way to go guys, get those miles in! The rest of us turned right and on to Burson. We made our way thru the Jenny Lind area, as if we were on the Party Pardee. With kids out playing and being a good stoker, I waved from the back of the tandem.
Once up Hogan Dam, we enjoyed the company of Dave B. down to the gas station, i.e.: potty stop in Valley Springs. When all arrived we refueled with everything from PBJ s to Twinkies. (Dave Neff fuel). When Chuck was not looking, John made a quick phone call to Karen to estimate our ETA back in Ione for CAKE!!! I was fantasying out loud about one of Karen s home made Chocolate Cakes with White fluffy frosting and Coconut. With that thought at least in my head we headed out and on to Pardee, Buena Vista and took the Lake Amador tour back to Ione. Stopped briefly to feed Packer (the first time) and on the parking lot to find Jim, Penny and Paul and oh yes Karen with The Cake .
After singing the Erma s style Happy Birthday to Chuck, Steve and I, John and Chuck climbed back onto our steeds and headed out to ride Irish Hill and Willow Creek. Man, do I ever love sugar, and the thought of getting my first century for the year it got me up the hills and back to our car with a great head of steam coming into Ione and our Wing Man Chuck on our wheel.
Thank you again to everyone for a great day! Thank you Karen for the cake and Chuck for having a birthday and sharing with us. And a special thank you to my wonderful husband Steve and good friends Chuck and John for riding the extra 17 miles.
One last thing an extra special thanks to John for riding another mile with me so I had 100.3 miles and oh yes, thank you Packer . As you were the recipient of a double biscut day!!! CMc |
| 2/14/2004 |
50, 62 |
Valentine's Day Scramble |
Ed (50); Larry and Gayle (62); Al the Pal, Lee (50); cameos by Hux and John B |
| This was the first day of spring. Believe it or not, I rode from Ione without gloves--no gloves at all. It was that warm. Since I delayed things with a faulty tube, Al, Lee, and I took off after L&G, deciding to head toward Aukum after them, instead of the original vague plan for Stoney Creek. On Carbondale, we caught the tandem and found Hux, who joined us. At Plymouth, Al and Lee took off, and I never saw them again. Since Hux had ridden from home (talk about animal miles--try 70!), he was only going another few miles, so I decided to go to the flower farm with him and turn back, especially since I'd agreed to meet John B as he rode from home and give him a ride back. Hux and I time trailed to Forest Home, where he took off down 16. I tempo'd over Irish and got going as fast as I could. Even so, JB was at 104 and Irish Hill already. Once he saw how warm and clear it was in Ione, he wished he had been able to get to the regular ride. Meanwhile, Ray is snowshoeing in Yosemite along with lunch at the Ahwanee. Happy Valentine's Day. (EH) |
| 2/8/2004 |
71... |
Irish Hill, Sutter Creek, Volcano, Daffodil Hill, Shake Ridge & back to Ione. |
John R, Chuck/71; Tonya, Karen, Steve M./63; Paul, Ron/35; Michael A./70; Carolle M/ 85
|
| It was a great day with great weather and fantastic friends to share it with. Carolle did her animal miles, riding from home to the start. We saw Gail, Debbie, and Joyce at the start, but we were quickly dropped. We had a fun trip up the Creek Road, and not having been on Ram's Horn in a while it was like visiting and old friend. The trip down Shake included a blowout on Tanya's front tire. Luckily there is nothing serious that resulted. We are still trying to determine why two blow outs in two weeks on a brand new bike. If anyone has any ideas, let Tonya or Michael know. We ended up putting a 700cc tube in her 650cc tire and made it back to Ione without further incident. That is the latest news from Erma Country where the women are tough, the bikes are beautiful, and the men are above average. (CG) |
| 2/7/2004 |
56 |
Stoney, China Graveyard, SC, WC, Irish Hill |
Ray, Ed, PJ, Al the Pal (39), Peter (39) |
Whew! First time out with the Erma's gang this year - I knew it would be a tough ride for me, but all the more so since I, like, totally forgot I was sporting flat-land gears. It was a beautiful day, good company and gracious riding. Nice to see some old friends and meet some new ones. AND got a first look at both Al and Ray's new mounts! I've changed those gears now, will be better prepared when I return, in a couple weeks. (PS)
It felt great to get back on a bike after hibernating inside gyms. But it felt even better to be getting active again with familiar faces and bodies (Ray, Ed, Al the Pal) and meet new ones (Peter). We rolled out of Ione about 9:30ish; a little cool but the sun promised warm times ahead. I double-checked that I had actually grabbed Ray's new Pinarello Dogma when I picked it up; it's that light. En route to Stoney Creek I stopped to "take a leak," prompting the peleton to circle back to figure out what I was doing. "Oh," Ed remarked, "that's what the 'P' (in PJ) means." The twenty miles to SC were leisurely and pleasant. Stopped at Incognito to work on puzzles, view sketches, play music, and I checked the kitchen sink but (alas) no Weapon of Mass Destruction there, either. Then on to Sutter Creek-Ione road, where Al and Peter had to bid adieu while Ed, Ray, and I tacked on some more miles. Ray led Ed and I in a head wind on Highway 16; that part more than any of the day's ride felt like "training." At the end of Irish Hill Ray demonstrated the quickness of his Dogma, bursting ahead with a couple power strides. We eased into Ione, where Ray and I ate raisins, and Ed expressed his disbelief that up 'til then, I'd been wearing underwear briefs under my bike shorts. I don't think I should go into any more detail here about that particular conversation, but let's just say it feels better not to wear underwear while riding. (PJR) |
| 2/1/2004 |
24 |
Ione to Ione Michigan Bar Road, Carbondale, Jackson Highway, Willowcreek back to Ione |
Gail, Debbie, Bob S., John, , Karen, Steve H., Chuck, Mike and Charity, Steve and Carol, Deborah and Latisha |
Since this was going to be the first Amador ride for two newbies, Deborah and Latisha, John The Don had asked if they could ride with me and my group, the soft-core Ermas. I picked a route that wouldn t seem too intimidating for newcomers but would be nothing more than a warm-up for the hard-core Ermas. However, much to my surprise, the hard-core contingent rode with us on my route and packed up their bikes after returning to Ione.
How long has it been since the Ermas rode a mere 24 miles?
I think it was fear of rain that suddenly made my ride appealing to everyone. As sprinkles were falling on us, I pointed out that if the rain started pouring, we could cut short the ride and return to Ione via Irish Hill Road rather than Willow Creek. Fortunately, the rain never became stronger than a drizzle.
Chuck, Steve H. and John must be commended for their help to the newbies. While I was lying about how many hills there were still left to climb (actually I couldn t remember) the three guys were providing technical support, such when to shift and how to get out of their clips before falling. (GB) |
| 1/31/2004 |
40 |
Sutter Ck, Jackson, Stoney, BV |
Anita, Andy, Ray, Ed, Steve H (20) |
| Sun above and sun below, but cloud in Ione. At least we knew that all we had to do was climb Sutter-Ione to see the sun. How many times have we done that over the years? But first, we had to check out the details (and there are plenty) of Ray's new Pinarello Dogma, straight from Italy. I think this bike would be illegal in Le Tour--too light. It's carbon, titanium, and magnesium everywhere, even the saddle rails, and derailleur cage are carbon. Of course, it's also flashy and beautiful--red, yellow, black, silver. If you don't mind long downloads, you can see full-res photos at ermasdiner.com/raydog/. He brought a sample of his other set of wheels--his "light" set--Campy Neutrons with carbon hubs! There was lots of catching up to do on the ride to Sutter Creek, at least until i was dropped. Ray's trip, his tour of the factory (he saw the Fassa Bartolo riders' bikes). At SC, Steve turned back because of asthma attack and resting to ride Hale the next day. The rest of us were off to coffee at Jackson, where we hoped to meet Michael, but no luck. Instead, we drank and ate and talked about everything for about an hour. My favorite part of cycling ended and we had to get back on the bikes and ride Hoffman. Down Stoney, Ray put his new machine to the test, and it passed. Light, agile, stable. This will give you an idea: he says the difference between the Dogma and the Prince (a top of the line bike) is "black and white." At Argonaut we met Phong and some other Stockton riders, including one guy in shorts--turns out he just arrived from Michigan, so our weather feels warm to him. At Pardee, we once again coincided with Mike Cockrell and other Delta Velos, chatted a while there too, then off to get straight in to meet A&A timeline. By then the day was sunny and warm. Top it off with fresh blond brownies from Anita--that's a good day in the foothills. (EH) |
| 1/25/2004 |
72, etc. |
Mt. Aukum Route |
Carolle (93); John R., Michael A., Steve M., & Tanya (72); Larry, Jim & Dave N (60); Steve H. (40), Karen R. (20); Debbie, Gayle & Joyce (???) |
| Carolle rode down to Ione on her single with Steve following closely in his toasty warm vehicle. They rode out of Ione on the tandem. Larry and Dave N. went tandem too. It was a beautiful day and spirits were high. We rode Irish Hill to Plymouth where we met up with Karen. Then through Fiddletown (where we were greeted by the "friendly" blaring of a car horn. Was it something we said?!) to Mt. Aukum. As we left the general store, the sky clouded up and a cold wind rose causing jackets and gloves to be pulled from packs. We dropped Karen off in Plymouth and headed back to Irish Hill. It was Tanya's second time out with the group and she was startled on Hwy 104 when she flatted with a loud shotgun sound. Thanks to all who helped her change it in a timely fashion! Larry, Dave N. & Jim headed back to Ione while Steve, Carolle, Michael A., Tanya, and John R. added the Buena Vista loop because it was a great day to ride and too early to end. (TV) |
| 1/18/2004 |
65 |
Irish and beyond |
Carolle (22 Animal miles) Steve and Carolle (On the Tandem, 65 miles) John and Karen (65 miles) Dave Neff (65 miles) Larry Hayes (65 miles) Chuck Gray (65 miles) Jim and Penny (40 miles) |
Well, I guess it‚s official. Carolle has started training for her California Triple Crown. She rode her bike from home to the ride this morning, the weather was harsh, and at one point the fog was so bad, I could hardly see her riding down Ridge Rd, yes, I was in the truck (with the heater on) as her SAG support vehicle. I could get use to this job. Carolle gives new meaning to the term „Animal miles‰ as she was riding down Sutter/ Ione Rd she was talking too all the animals.
I pulled into the parking lot to find Chuck and Larry getting ready, Larry was on his „Half Bike‰(We missed you Gayle). They told me I was cruel to make Carolle ride down in this cold weather. But Carolle pulled in to the parking lot no worse for wear.
The parking lot started to fill up with Erma‚s; once I saw Dave pull into the lot I knew it would be a fast and tough day. The route for today was the Mt Aukum loop. We headed out across Marlette, and then out to Hwy 124, we opted to head straight and bypass Irish Hill. We rode out to Carbondale, and this is where Larry and Dave started pushing the pace, at one point Dave was taunting me with his Terrible Two Jersey, like I said, „It‚s going to be a long day‰ We rode up Forest Home Rd, then up Old Sacramento to Plymouth. Jim and Penny decided to head back to Ione, the rest of us headed straight up to Fiddle town. Once John fed Chatter we headed up to Mt Aukum, where we enjoyed some sunshine and great company. We bundled up for the first decent, then enjoyed a great pace line back into Plymouth. After we left the bathrooms, Chuck had to stop and fix something on his bike, Larry and I waited for him to catch up, then tried to catch Dave, John, and Karen, they managed to beat us to the stop sign. We made our way over to Irish Hill, knowing the race was coming. But the tandem just can‚t climb as fast as those animals can, and by the time we got to the top the singles were long gone. What a perfect day for riding. Thanks for a great day, hope to see you tomorrow. SMC |
| 1/17/2004 |
44 |
SC-Jackson-Stoney-Coal Mine-Camanche- Curran, etc |
Ray, Al the Pal, Ed (anyone forgotten??) |
| From memory: it was cold. We got coffee. Ray was distracted thinking about his trip to Italy for his new bike. Al was consumed with his plans to go to Rex to pick up his new bike. We pacelined very smoothly back to base, with Al complaining that we were killing him, but we were just trying to keep him from singing. (EH) |
| 1/11/2004 |
74 ... |
Comanche, up Stony Creek, around Butte Mt. Back to Sutter Creek then across Sutter/Ione, and for good measure, Willow Creek and Irish Hill. |
John and Karen (74 miles), Steve and Carolle (74 Miles), Mike and Charity (40 miles), Larry and Gayle (31 miles), Jim and Penny (31 Miles), Don (31 Miles), Paul M (21 miles), Cheryl (31 miles), Chuck (59 miles), Steve H (59 miles), Dave Neff (59 miles), Michael A (59 miles), and Tanya (59 Miles) |
Can you believe eighteen people showed up for today‚s ride! Must be something in the air, or maybe just the fact that it would be spring like weather in January. Whatever the reason, it was fantastic to be out with so many great people.
Ok, lets see if I can remember everything that happened today. First and foremost, we had a new addition to the Erma‚s peloton today, Tanya (Michael‚s friend) Tanya helped Carolle last year, sag three double century‚s. Tanya bought her new TREK 5200 yesterday, and decided to make her maiden voyage with us, she had no problems keeping up with the group, and showed us how strong she is in the hills, once she gets the gears down, look out.
You know it was going too be a beautiful day when you see the Red „REX‰ come out from its cover.
The large group of Erma‚s headed out across Marlette, with every imaginable conversation going at once, which made me forget all about the cold, and before you knew it we had made it to Five Mile Rd. We started the first climb on Five Mile to a lot of moans and groans, (The new cycling season is here) the pace continued on slow and steady, I thing everybody was enjoying each other‚s company to push the pace. We did encounter a small problem though, just as we were headed into Comanche we noticed the fog had started rolling in, and the roads were a little wet, and I thought John‚s „REX‰ might get dirty!! But John‚s bike handling skills proved to be in tacked, and he managed to avoid disaster. We regrouped at the Comanche store, and then headed for the Wishing Well, this is where the Erma‚s peloton started too split. Jim and Penny, Larry and Gayle, Don, Cheryl, and Paul headed straight down for a shorter route, hope you had great day, and hope to see you all soon.
We started with eighteen, but now eleven go on. The rest of us headed up Stony Creek Rd, the weather was hot, and it felt like summer while we were climbing. We regrouped at the top by the high school. I can‚t tell you who finished first, but I have a good idea. Chuck did say to John R „It‚s your turn to keep Dave N Company, because I‚m tired‰ (you would never know it by the way Chuck was riding). This is where the peloton split again, Mike and Charity headed back down Stony Creek. So now nine of us headed to the bathrooms in Jackson, and refueled for the trip up and around Butte Mt. Carolle and I were giving it all we could going up Butte, only to see Dave come back down to see how we were doing. Not only once, but three different times! (Got to love this group) we managed to make it to the top with out making the group wait too long. The stage was set for the pace line down Clinton Rd, Tanya and Michael decided to stay off the back. As for Karen, she knew the tandems back wheel is were she needed to be, and she never lost sight of it once, Dave and John tried to pull ahead on one of the climbs, but once we were over the top our momentum took over, and we were able to reel them in. Once back at the Bathrooms, it was decided to have lunch at Back roads Café, (Which was closed, so we decided on the Coffee house) which was a good thing because I was running on empty. We made it to Sutter Creek and the peloton split again, Chuck, Dave and Steve H headed back to Ione. So, the six of us headed to lunch, once we were refueled we headed across Sutter/Ione Rd. this is were the peloton split for the last time, Michael and Tanya headed back to Ione. And then there were four. We headed across Willow Creek, the pace was slow and easy, I think John was saving his energy for Irish Hill. Once across Irish Hill the fog stared to roll in, so our timing couldn‚t have been better. Another beautiful day, hope to see everybody next week. Looks like another great week on tap. SMc
|
| 1/10/2004 |
70, 50 |
SC, Jackson, Stoney, etc. |
Ed, Ray Al the Pal, and Dave B. (50); Steve and Carolle (70) with cameos by John and Karen, Gene
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What a difference a week makes. Carolle wanted to start from our house, (So the Training begins for 2004) and ride down to Ione and hook up with the Saturday group. We pulled out at around 7:30am and the temperature was 38 degrees, but felt much warmer. We headed straight down Hwy 88 too Climax Rd. Once we started climbing Ridge Rd. I realized I‚d put too many layers of clothes on for the day, who would have though the temperatures would go over 60 degrees today.
We dropped into Sutter Creek and headed across Sutter/ Ione Rd. We pulled into the Ione parking lot at 8:49am. Ray, Ed, Al „the Pal‰ and Dave B. were getting ready. Looks like another small peloton. I‚m a little surprised more people didn‚t come out to ride today. Carolle and I had made plans to hook up with John and Karen R. in Sutter Creek, so we headed out, knowing the Saturday group would catch us on Sutter/Ione Rd. We managed to make it to the last climb before they swooped us up. We had to stop for the ranchers who were herding two bulls down the road, which was ok except one of the bulls look at me and let out a loud moan as to say „Back off, these are my cows‰ I assured him there was no cause for him to worry, and off he went, we continued on our way. We all pulled into the bathrooms in Sutter Creek and the time was only 10:17, so we let the group know we were going to back track John and Karen‚s route to hook up with them. So, Ed and company headed up the Creek Rd, and we headed up Hwy 49 towards Jackson. We turned down Jackson Gate and turned up China Graveyard Rd. once we turned onto New York Ranch we ran into John, Karen and Gene. We turned around and headed back to Sutter Creek, once at the bathroom we refueled then headed up the Creek Rd, the temperature was perfect. We passed by Al and Jill‚s house to hear them yelling at us, and of course I ask them if they had stopped riding? Jill replied „No, just waiting for spring‰. As we headed up the Creek Rd we had a white van following us, and when they passed it was Al, he said he‚d been very sick, and that‚s why he wasn‚t riding. We hope your feeling better, and both you and Jill come out soon to join us. We made it up to Volcano to find Rose in her normal spot, we sat down and caught up on Rose‚s life. That‚s when Gene invited all of us to join him at the coffee house in Pine Grove, (his treat). Well, I don‚t need to say anymore, but when there‚s this type of refreshments offered, there‚s no keeping up with Karen, and I think if Carolle could have detached the back of the tandem and rode ahead of me I think she would have. Sorry more people did not show up today, to enjoy spring like conditions. Hope to see you tomorrow! SMc |
| 1/4/2004 |
75, 65, 40, 38 |
HAPPY NEW YEAR |
Steve (75) and Carolle (65), John (75) and Karen (65), Jim and Penny (40), Dave Neff (65), Steve H (38) |
| The problem with this time of year is getting motivated to leave the house, even when it‚s sunny. We started loading the bikes in the car, and the temperature was a crisp 26 degrees (Ouch) and we were going to go ride in this! But once we pulled into the parking lot, the temperature was a balmy 37. Brrrrrrrrrrr. Boy was it ever cold. But those who choose to stay home missed a great day of riding. It was great to have Penny G. back in the Erma‚s peloton again. Where „O‰ where has Larry and Gayle gone!! We unloaded the bikes (Yes, we rode our „half bikes‰) and bundled up for the trip across Marlette, I for one was very happy to be turning onto Five mile Rd. and start warming up. The plan was to head up to Plymouth and hook up with Steve H. We made it to the bathrooms in Plymouth to find Steve waiting patiently. We took a very short break, said good bye to Jim and Penny, Jim‚s still fighting his cold, and Penny wanting to start the year out slowly, they headed back to Ione. The rest of us headed straight up to Fiddle town. Once in Fiddle town, we regrouped at the bathrooms while John went and fed his buddy „Chatter‰. Then on to Mt. Aukum via Tyler, „Smooth as a baby‚s butt‰ a wise man once said. We refueled for the trip back down to Ione; the day was filled with a lot of great conversation, some hard pulls, and perfect weather, and of course, Erma‚s hospitality It‚s was great riding with Dave Neff again; I think he might enjoy ridding with mere mortals now and again, as a means of cross training. (i.e. slower pace) Once at the intersection of Marlette and Five-Mile Rd. John and I opted for some extra miles, so we headed out to Buena Vista, then by Lake Amador and straight into Ione. Thanks for a great start to the New Year. See you next week. SMc |
| 1/3/2004 |
41 |
Stoney, China Graveyard, Sutter-Ione |
Steve H, Ray, Lee, Steve and Carolle, John R, Karen, Jim, Ed with appearance by Dave R |
| With the annual New Year ride washed out, many were eager to get the season going, although some were apparently kept away by the cold. They shouldn't have been. It was a bit cold to start, but not bad. Within a few miles, everyone was warmed. Everyone (yes, even me) stripped off clothes for Stoney. By then, we'd done our catching-up chat as a peloton. It was great to ride--period. But all the better for riding with a full Erma group, fleshed out by riders we haven't seen for a while. We joined by Dave R who was heading opposite direction, but turned around. The air was perfectly clear, the sky was blue, the sun was (hard as it is to believe) warm. It was so warm that the Sunday riders stood and chatted in the park while the Saturday riders visted Judy and her espresso machine. We rode as a group the rest of the way, with everyone opting to go directly in--some to make travel plans for Italy (Ray) and some to rest up for the next day's ride. A perfect off-season ride on a perfect day that felt ike spring in January. (EH) |
| 12/14/2003 |
40 |
Ione Sutter Creek Road to Sutter Creek (coffee and newspaper) on to Stony Creek, down to Camanche |
Charity and Mike |
| The weather was threatening but we were not intimidated! Charity and Mike showed up - no one else was in Ione so we took off for a gorgeous ride up Ione Sutter Creek Road to Sutter Creek (coffee and newspaper) on to Stony Creek, down to Camanche and back to Ione. Just 40 miles - glistening creeks, great light and no traffic. Met only one cyclist. See you next time. |
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