All posts by Lucas

2023 Rides

Portland International Raceway Winter Wonderland

We moved to Portland over the summer, but haven’t had the chance to get out on the bikes. What better way to start than in full darkness, a few degrees above freezing, on a auto racetrack?

Portland International Raceway runs a drive-through holiday lights display, with special days for bikes. Anne discovered this earlier today and raced (ha) to get the bikes ready. Anne took the tandem with Max. Ruth and I rode solo bikes.

I found the first lap pretty stressful, with kids making sudden u-turns right in front of us. We stopped to warm up the kids with hot chocolate, and then the second lap was much quieter and nicer.

2023 Rides

Hello tandems, farewell Calaveras

We are moving to Oregon soon, but we needed to get one last Bay Area ride in. We actually had a whole list of rides we wanted to revisit, but moving has sucked up most of the time and energy available.

We ordered and took delivery on a tandem last year, though (see above) we hadn’t found the time to actually take it out until today. So today it was Anne and Max on Anne’s tandem, and Ruth and I on my new one.

Ruth is a seasoned stoker by now, but I’m still getting used to being the captain. It got a lot better once I gave up on mounting like you’re supposed to and just did it Daddy style. I climb on, clip in my right shoe, sit on the saddle, and slightly lean with my left foot on the ground (like I normally mount). Then Ruth climbs on and gets her feet in. The on count of three I release the brakes and we start pedaling. We practiced a bit in the parking lot before starting the ride proper.

The ride was lovely. It was a bit cool when we started, but warmed up enough that no jacket was just right both for climbing and descending. Vehicle traffic was pretty light, especially once we got past the entrance to the Sunol Regional Wilderness. There was a steady stream of other cyclists also enjoying a holiday ride.

We stopped for lunch on a dirt triangle. It was nice, except for when the wind kicked dust up into our faces.

Having Ruth on the tandem was nice. She provided a power throughout, and was responsive to occasional calls for “more!” Max did the same for Anne.

It was a nice farewell to Bay Area cycling.

2022 John Day Trip, 2022 Rides

Spray East Loop

We weren’t sure if we’d get a second bike ride in this trip. The weather has been on the warm side, and today the high is 94ºF. Not exactly ideal biking weather, especially when there isn’t much shade.

With an early start and a modest length, we decided to go for it. We debated between an out-and-back east along OR 19 (advantage: can turn back whenever if the heat goes against us), and a loop (advantage: probably more fun, more climbing to keep things interesting). In the end we decided to go for the loop.

We actually succeeded in getting out early, with a rollout time of 6:30. The weather was cool enough for arm warmers and kid jackets. Just outside of Spray we encountered a group of unleashed, unfenced, and unsupervised dogs running out of a driveway into the road to assert their dominance. Fortunately it was slightly downhill, so we scooted over and got away quickly.

The rest of the ride was just about perfect. It heated up, but got back just before 11am. The roads were all paved (despite Ride With GPS’s warnings) and in great condition. The kids counted a total of 20 vehicles across the whole day. The climbs were manageable even with our untrained legs. The kids kept good spirits and helped us up the hills. I’m glad we decided to go for the ride.

Tomorrow is our last day in Spray. We’ll probably just lounge around. The forecast is for 103ºF, so hanging out in an air conditioned house sounds about right.