Pauline, Chris and Gail show that they can Brighten a Rainy Ride!
Wednesday, April 8: A group of 11 intrepid VeloRaptors headed up Mt Diablo. They started in Walnut Creek, and took an intricate route through the neighborhoods that took them to the south entrance. They then proceeded up the south side and picked up another VeloRaptor at the junction, making a tidy dozen. After enjoying the view from the top they descended the north side, and midway down an agitated rattlesnake added a bit of extra excitement to their day. The first rider to pass the snake must have upset the creature, because it was coiled and ready for those that followed, even striking at one or two! Fortunately, downhill speed was to the riders advantage and no one was snake bit by the experience. Weather was perfect! Thanks to Kathy T. for organizing and leading this fun ride.
A couple of Wednesdays ago, I was cruising down Redwood Road toward Little Pinehurst with a bunch of VeloRaptors on our weekly ride. The road was dry and fast and my heavy bike was sailing along at about 25 mph, and as usual while descending, I felt no resistance when I turned my pedals. But then, starting up Pinehurst I also felt no resistance. Whoops, I thought – I somehow dropped my chain. Having no choice but to stop, I turned my bike over and saw the reason: there was no chain! I literally did drop it. John, one of my cycling buddies, came up behind me and quipped “I think you lost your chain back up the road.” Assuming my ride was over, I tried to call my wife for a ride home, but there was no cell service. My Lyft app didn’t work either.
I figured I’d have a long walk back to Skyline and Joaquim Miller and cruise home downhill. Just then a guy came riding down Pinehurst toward us. “Need anything,” he asked.
“Well, I lost my chain up the road there.”
“I’ll get it,” he said as he sped away up the hill as effortlessly as I had come down it.
I started the long walk home, but when I got to the old fire station, that same rider came toward me and casually commented “I found your chain . . . and I have a chain tool to fix it.” He showed his ‘quicklink’ tool and went to work. His name was Dave and he was riding from Castro Valley. We chatted about the campaign Bike East Bay was supporting to restore a bike lane that politicians were proposing to remove from the city’s bicycle plan. Within a few minutes he removed a broken link from the chain, put the chain back together, and had it back on my bike! “You know, I feel like I’m part of a bicycling community. I can’t thank you enough,” I said.”Well, yes. Your work with Bike East Bay contributes to that community, too. We each bring different skills to our hobby.”I couldn’t have agreed more, but I forgot to get contact info for Dave, so if you see him, let him know the repair worked and I got home safely. I now have a new chain and a heightened respect for the cycling community we share.
Tom Willging
VeloRaptor Cycling Club
Oakland, CA
For the past few years the VeloRaptors have organized a spring get-a-way, 3 days of biking around Paso Robles. This year was no different, and due to the popularity of the trip, we scheduled two groups that went down on successive weeks, March 22-26 and March 30-April 2.
Reports from the first week indicated that the weather was warm and the rides were great. The following week, the weather was a bit cooler – and was also great for biking’
Here is a slide show from the second week put together by Paul L. showing the flavor and many highlights of the trip.
click here for the slide show
The March Monthly Metric to the Greenest Green Ever on Morgan Territory happened in a most disjointed manner. The ride was scheduled for March 18, but ended up being postponed due to an unusual March heat wave. But with our upcoming excursions to Paso Robles, only a few folks ended up doing the ride, and on different days to boot. Here are their comments:
From Phillip G: Kurt and I had a great ride today – moderate temperatures, not much wind or traffic. And very green! Plus a few wildflowers, but not a ton. But, I’m sure it will still be very green for a Wednesday ride.
We found the water at Morgan Territory Staging Area – at the far left corner, next to the bathrooms.
Got a little surprise there – probably 20 or 30(?) Harleys and other big motorcycles in the parking lot, on a fundraising ride for colorectal cancer awareness. Our timing was great – they were heading north, so since our breaks coincided, we completely missed passing them in the opposite direction on the (narrow) road completely. Much safer and quieter!
Then a few days later – Fred M and Dale P did the ride. According to Dale: Fred and I had a gorgeous ride on the Morgan Territory loop Wednesday, and I’m happy to report it’s still as green as ever!!
Question: Would Fred have enough stories to entertain me all the way up the big climb?
Answer: Absolutely!! And then some!!!
The February Monthly metric covered one of the best bike rides in the Bay Area. Starting in Nicasio, the route heads north along the Nicasio reservior and then turns northeast toward Petaluma on Pt. Reyes-Petaluma road where one encounters the first climb. Once over the top, a nice downhill took us to the Nicasio Valley Cheese Factory for a pit stop. A half mile later we took a left on Hicks Valley Road and enjoyed to rolling hills of Marin. Hicks Valley Road ends at a T intersection with Marshall-Petaluma at the western base of Wilson hill – the second climb! This one is no joke, an even 10% grade that seems to never end. Dale and Steve are glad to be on e-bikes!
The descent down Wilson hill is fast and exhilirating! After a couple miles we turned left on Chileno Valley road which is just a great road to bike. It is just one pastoral scene after another for 14 miles and is mostly devoid of cars. We did see a few well behaved ag trucks
Chileno Valley road ends in another T at Tomales-Petaluma Rd and here we took a left turn toward Tomales.
Tomales is known among cyclists as the bakery there makes a great rest-stop. Unfortunately and unbeknownst to the ride leader, the bakery and deli both close on Tuesday and Wednesday during the winter months. But, there was a food truck and between that and the grocery store we made due. Here we are, repleat and ready to head out for Tomales Bay.
The weather during the ride to Tomales was overcast and cool, but the clouds started to dissipate when we reached Tomales Bay where the tide was OUT.
We had a fabulous ride down Route 1 and into Pt. Reyes Station for coffee and pastry at Toby’s, before pedaling back to the start in Nicasio.
The Monthly-Metric has been revived for 2026, but the January version wound up a little short! It was cool and foggy at the start in Orinda, and conditions didn’t really change as we cycled to Lafayette then over Reliz Valley Rd to Martinez. Moreover, there has been utility work on Reliz Valley Rd and the usual smooth and speedy descent, was instead a bumpy search for smooth pavement. Reaching Martinez, we warmed up with coffee and pastries at States Coffee. The planned route continued along the Carquinez Scenic Byway where the cold (45 deg) and fog persisted. Since we are an adaptable and resourceful group, we contemplated a alternative return route. Turns out that one of us (Gary) had never biked over the Bears, so we opted to head for Pig Farm hill and the Bears (Bear Creek Road). This turned out to be and excellent decision, as this route was fog free, the hills were green and the temperature was a balmy 54 degrees and climbing!
We ended up with 39 miles and and 3100 ft of ascent, so we have a bit to make up of future metrics!
We observed two very large pigs on Pig Farm hill. At first glance I really thought that the black and white one was a cow, but then its bigger partner appeared for the photo op.
A few of us stopped at the top of PAPA bear to honor Gary, resplendent in his VeloRaptor jacket, on his maiden trip over the Bears.
Returning to Orinda, a few of us enjoyed a great lunch at Cafe Teatro and recounted our adventures!
Our Wednesday ride filled the table at SiSi’s cafe in Moraga. 15 VeloRaptors stopped for coffee, and enjoyed the cool December sunshine before heading back to Oakland over the East Bay hills.
Saturday (Nov 1) : To paraphrase the “We ARE traffic” motto of Critical Mass: We ARE Yoly’s clientele, especially when we take almost all the chairs.
This past Sunday (10/26) 13 riders ignored the fog and mist and enjoyed great comradery riding in the East Bay hills. Most of the group did the Wildcat/El Toyonal descent to Orinda and then enjoyed coffee, pastry and lively conversation at Si Si’s in Moraga, before climbing back over Pinehurst.
If you are unfamiliar with the El Toyonal option for avoiding the closure on Wildcat Canyon, the graphic below shows the El Toyonal route from Wildcat to Orinda highlighted in blue.
