Flutterby™! : Autumn Solvang Double 2006-08-28 16:15:31.820416+00

Autumn Solvang Double

2006-08-28 16:15:31.820416+00 by Dan Lyke 6 comments

Bahahahaha! So on Sunday's ride Curt said "why don't you do some longer rides?", I mentioned that I was thinking about trying next spring's Solvang Double, and then maybe going on to the Davis Double and our Mount Tam Double worker's ride, for the California Triple Crown. Curt says "I think you're up to one of the real rides".

So today I do a little searchin' around, see that there's a Fall Solvang Double that should be beautiful, and I run across Colin talking about Curt:

Curt Simon is a nice guy most of the time but he does have a way of getting under your skin. He throws out ideas in such a way that make you think they are your own after awhile. Like you actually want to do this or that double century, this or that Brevet or even PBP. For a while I was even thinking the 508 was my idea and even a good idea at that. I now understand the clever and subtle ways I was manipulated.

So, yeah, anyone want to hang out in Central California on October 21^st?

Thinking longer routes: AdventureCycling.org has a few.. and you can ride with them if you have a $budget$.

I still have all my strip maps and local guide books from my cross-country Trans-America Trail trek in 1976 (from BikeCentennial, the precursor to Adventure Cycling), if you'd like to take a look and/or make duplicates...

However you'd be aghast at the countries and places I've visited with little more than a crude map and a handheld GPS. If it's just me.. That's a lot of the fun.

- I was browsing the Solvang site.. 15hrs for 200 miles = 14mph.. Hmm.. I wonder if my ankle would hold out that long. They show people doing it in 11 hours? 18mph for 200 miles.. Wow.

Sigh. Looking at schedules and budgets I'm realizing that there's really no way to make the Fall Solvang Double work for me this year.

I'm thinking that the right way to do the California Triple Crown would actually be to volunteer for some of the rides nearby and then ride the worker's ride with other volunteers. The support will be a little sketchier, but the company will probably be cooler.

Diane, I'd love to take a look. I definitely don't think I'm going to get the month and a half or so it'd take to do the country in the next year or two, but one can scheme. And if Charlene ever gets to the place where we can do some longer tours I'd be overjoyed. I see a lot of folks on the Canada to Mexico (or subsets thereof) route pedaling down Sir Francis Drake here in Marin. There's always a good conversation there.

I know a guy who's done the appalachian trail in segments.. a chunk a year. I'd love to bike a few states with you, maybe even ones out west.

Depending when y'all make plans for this, I might be interested in reprising my Thunder Thighs in the western states. Give me plenty of warning, though, 'k?