Wow, this was a tough century, advertized as 7700 feet, depending on which version of the GPS data (I logged the Garmin Training Center versions climbing at 7,937 feet, but the Polar logged 7300 feet. After upload to MotionBased.com, its algorythms increase the GPS readingst to 8600 feet. It was alot using either number.

This was a club event for our club, and there were two groups, the young & the fast, and the older and/or slower, the later being the one I fell into. 7 of us road together. The ride starts at Bay Meadows race track in San Mateo and heads up towards Crystal Springs, and then down the Peninsula to Portola Valley, where the first big climb of the day is, Old La Honda Road climbs up to Skyline Boulevard, and then down the other side. The road down is nicely paved, not much traffic and I was able to follow Chris and try and work on downhills and cornering.

The third rest stop was at Stage Road, where we begin another 1/3 of the climbing, up Stage Road, a brief downhill stint on Highway 1 and then up Tunitas Creek Road, a nine mile climb, blessedly in the shade and much cooler on this day than it probably was earlier in the week. After crossing Skyline Boulevard, the descent down Kings Mountain Road was much more technical, the type of road that I need to work on feeling more comfortable. Unfortunately, Chris and Anne had already began the descent, but I did try and follow Scott, but the road has many hairpin turns and all, so I finished the last stretch alone.

From there, we more or less reverse course, in the sun for the most part and with temps in the 90s, quite warm, and while we were on Foothill Expressway for about 5 miles, the bulk of the last 20 mles meant climbing all the gentle downhills we had in the morning and another 1200+ or more. By the time I got to the last rest stop, I was maybe a bit dehydrated and felt lightheaded for a few minutes, and so I finished the last 8 miles at a slower pace.

The ride was a lot of fun though, always great fun riding with club members (and fellow WeEndure member, pathos/Brian.)

http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/invitation/a...