BBC “Makeup” Spring Moxie, April 6th 2024 Ride Report

 Brett Nelson, BBC Ride Coordinator

The winter of 2023 has been very wet and cold for northern California. Several of our “special” rides have been canceled because of rain. The original BBC Spring Moxie was rained out both on Saturday and Sunday of that weekend. Eric suggested we try to do the Moxie April 6th, 2024 as a “makeup” ride.

It was a cold Saturday morning, so we all met at the Fairfield Grill at 9:15 for a rollout at 9:30, a little bit later than usual.

We had some new people along for the ride including: Tara and Nathan, Tom and Delphine, Cara, along with regulars Bob, Marvin, Kalani, Mike, Craig, Kathy, Sam, Scott, and Eric.

For the Spring Moxie we follow a clockwise route, starting up Suisun Valley with the loop through Gordon Valley. The countryside was beautiful with dark green hills and sunny/blue skies that day. Water was still running in the creek along the road.

We stopped to regroup at the “T” of Wooden Crossing and Suisun Valley Road, then continued to a rest stop at the little country school before turning right onto Highway 121. The road has some rollers and short steep sections in that section, and we regrouped a few times on the way to the Markley Cove launch ramp on Lake Berryessa, where we got some snacks and drinks at the marina office. They were all out of Hot Pockets though. Back on the bikes, we pedaled up to the overflow spillway drain next to the Monticello Dam, where this year, there was water actually spilling over as the lake was full. The spillway drops 200 feet and there was actually one woman from Davis who died after she swam into it in 1997:

  https://sadendings.blog/emily-schwalen/#google_vignette

No one from BBC went swimming to the spillway during our Moxie however. We hopped back on the bikes and had a nice descent below the dam, and rode through the Putah Creek Valley until we reached our lunch stop at Lake Solano Park, just across the creek. The park has bathrooms, some cool water for refilling our bottles, and some nice picnic tables to sit on for a break.

Heading home, we followed Pleasants Valley Road back against a moderate wind, then paralleled highway 80 (also known as “the 80”) back to the start at Fairfield Grill.

All told the ride was about 60 miles and 3200 feet of climbing. Thanks to everyone for the team spirit, camaraderie, and thoughtfulness on the ride!

If this sounds interesting, we’ll be doing the counterclockwise version of this ride in the fall: hence The Fall Moxie!

Tall Joe’s 80th Birthday Ride: Point Richmond to Tiburon: March 28, 2024

 Brett Nelson, BBC Ride Coordinator

BBC Christmas Party and Annual General Meeting

by Craig Snider

For the first time since December 2019, the BBC Christmas Party and Annual General Meeting was held indoors in a home!  Last year’s meeting was held at the drafty Bruehol Taproom in Benicia.  This year 20 members rallied at Craig Snider’s home on December 10th for drinks, a Potluck meal, general membership meeting, and gift exchange.  Energy was high as we sipped fine wines and sampled appetizers in the comfort of a warm home instead of the chilly outdoor events of years past.  Elle Hands organized the affair which began with a lively cocktail hour followed by a delicious selection of culinary delights and desserts.  After dinner, club members retired to the living room for the general membership meeting where board members recapped the year’s activities and discussed future events.  The meeting culminated in all current Board members and Directors being re-elected to another 1-year term.

New Year’s Day BBC All-Club Ride: 1/1/2024

by Brett Nelson

Tradition has been that the BBC rides around the City of Benicia, going through various neighborhoods where we don’t normally ride to celebrate the New Year, greet fellow citizens on their morning walks, and then have a nice breakfast in town.

Who was there? Alan Geng, Bob Hyde, Peggy and John Ericson, Nancy Lund, Steve Bahr, Cande Medrano, Joe Pritchard, Scott Overfield. (Craig Snider and Sue Medrano met us at the Benicia Grill later.)

It was cold but not windy. The rain had stopped and the day felt newly washed, a good start for 2024. After discussing the route in general, we headed under the freeway and up Hastings, climbed toward the top of the city. We occasionally regrouped to enable the group to remain mostly together. We rode through Water’s End neighborhood with views over the delta to the Antioch Bridge visible in the distance and then headed down Rose Drive to the Benicia State Park to regroup. We headed back east along K St through the downtown area of Benicia, down into old Benicia by the Arsenal, stopped at the historic Clock Tower briefly, synchronized our Apple Watches , and then headed back toward 5th Street and up toward the 780 freeway. We toured the area below the cemetery and then headed Northeast on a nice descent down 2nd Street toward Benicia Grill for breakfast. We enjoyed a private back meeting room for the meal and talked about the New Year. It was discovered during the discussion that Cande Medrano had ridden more than 13,000 miles in 2023, enough to go to New York City and back twice! It was a good time to chat and a great way to start the new year.

After breakfast, we rode down through the Industrial Park, back along the waterfront under the Benicia Bridge, and into town to finish the day.

Miles: 18 miles + ride home from Benicia Grill, about 23 miles for the day.

Bike the Bridges & Brewfest 2023

Special Olympics fundraiser
by Craig Snider

With 90-degree heat predicted for the afternoon, downtown Benicia was filled with cyclists eager to make an early start on the 14th Annual Bike the Bridges & Brewfest. The October 7th event drew 900 riders and raised over $178,000 for the Special Olympics.

Greg, Chase, and Joy Andrada (Wheels in Motion) were set up at the bottom of First Street and tuned up several bikes while we waited for fellow BBC riders to arrive. At 7:30 our group gathered for a quick photo before departing. BBC riders included Sam Kennedy, Craig Snider, Bob Hyde, Debbie Souza, Dan Mone, Ajit de Silva, Alex Dronkers, Billy Babcock, Jake White, Kalani Keala, Cande Medrano, and Rafa Hernandez-Perez. Some riders rode alone while Kennedy, Snider, Babcock, and Hyde punished each other on the familiar Metric Century route. Segments included the Benicia Bridge, Scenic, Crockett Blvd, Franklin Canyon, Alhambra Valley Road to Pinole, the “Shami Shoreline” and the Lake Herman loop.

It may seem odd to ride familiar BBC routes for a special event, but it was really fun seeing so many other riders enjoying our “backyard” segments. Welcomed were the two rest areas! The first is at Balestrieri Family Farm on Alhambra Valley Road and the second is near the Maritime Academy pool. Chase Andrada was manning the Wheels in Motion mechanic station there.

A feature of Bike the Bridges is the Crockett Boulevard KOM. Riders are timed for the two-mile climb from Crockett to Cummings Skyway. BBC racers included Jake White and Rafa Hernandez-Perez finishing 3rd and 10th of 46 riders in the 40-49 age group. Debbie Souza was 2nd in the 60-69 age group and Ajit De Silva finished 16th out of 46 riders in the 50-59 age group. Also competing was Alex Dronkers who finished 19th of 38 women.

Several club members supported the event by volunteering. Steve Bahr and Dan Mone provided SAG services, driving their cars to rescue several stranded riders. Nancy Lund, Craig Snider, and Bob Hyde supported the bike corral. Club members were spotted enjoying good food, beer, and music at the Brewfest with offerings from a dozen local breweries. We look forward to supporting this fun event again next year!

2023 Bike the Bridges & Brewfest fundraiser

Summer in Northern California has been mild this year but is slowly coming to a close, and cooler weather will soon be on the way. Labor Day Weekend marked this year’s Tour de Fuzz(TDF) benefit ride. TDF entrance fees help support the local law enforcement chaplaincy, a group of 70 volunteer chaplains who assist the Sonoma EMS first responders 24/7 by providing emotional and spiritual support in times of crisis. We’ve done this ride now for several years, usually, the 100 km route, although there is a 100-mile event called the “Commando” ride (clothing is required though) which is also possible.

We had a good turn-out for this year’s event, including Craig Snider, Bob Hyde, Scott Overfield, Tall Joe Pritchard, Kathy Nelson, Elle Hands, Carla Gaines, Candy Medrano, Sam Kennedy, Ron Holloway, Dylan Powell, and Manuel Olague. 

We met at the Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center in Windsor at about 7:15 am to check in, an hour's drive by car from Benicia. There was a light misting rain on the way there, and this mist continued. After taking BBC team pictures in front of the blue and white balloon “START” arch, we all pedaled north up the east side of the valley by Chalk Hill through the rolling vineyards. Chalk Hill was named by founder Fred Furth in 1972, a pilot and vintner, who saw the volcanic ash chalky streaked amphitheater valley from the air and thought the area “might be good for growing wine grapes.” He was right. 

 There wasn’t a lot of automobile traffic, and it was quite pleasant as we warmed up in the cool misty morning air. There are a few hills at the beginning and the group got a little strung out. We would regroup occasionally to keep an eye on everyone. There was a rest stop in Geyserville at the northwest corner of the route, after passing through Jimtown, which was named after a man, you guessed it: “Jim”(Patrick) who established a general store there in 1893 after coming out from Iowa by oxen-yoked wagon with his parents. We passed the Jimtown general store on the ride, now a local historic landmark, just before pulling into Geyserville. 

Sam Kennedy appeared at the Geyserville rest stop, having caught up to the group after he started later than us. Dylan Powell had decided to do the 100-mile ride, as he was leaving for a new job in Colorado next week, and wanted to get a full century ride under his belt, so had left earlier. 

After the Geyserville rest stop and a brief climb, we headed out along a dog leg to the Lake Sonoma Recreation area and then back to the main route, south down the west side of the valley along West Dry Creek Road. This is a very fast narrow section of the ride with a slight descent and small punchy rollers that allow the group paceline to move along quite efficiently, sporting the snappy yellow kits of BBC. It started to rain harder on this section of the course, though, to where we were actually getting wet, but it was still warm enough that no one seemed to mind. We did get a lot of thin mud on our bikes, faces, and arm warmers. It was better not to ride directly behind the rider in front! 

We stayed together, except for Sam and Craig who pressed on ahead as a “breakaway” group, passing a lot of cyclists along the way. Traffic continued to be very light, so we could use most of the road in the curvy descent. At the southwest corner of the route, we crossed over a long green bridge above the Russian River and arrived at the last rest stop. We saw no Russians. We did catch up with Elle Hands just before the rest stop, who was riding as she usually does annually in the TDF with her extended family, sporting their very sharp blue “Cyclopaths” cycling jerseys. After some chatting and refreshments, we headed east across the lower end of the course through the residential and business section of the valley ending up at the Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center again for the after picnic/party. Cheerleaders with pom-poms celebrated our completion as we went beneath the blue and white balloon arch of the FINISH, and a band played. The smell of barbecued food beckoned. Refreshments included micro-brewed beer on draft and local Pinot Noir wine. We sat at a picnic table and enjoyed the company and stories from the day. It was a good day to be alive. One of our members, a retired firefighter who loves the TDF ride, has been battling health problems all this year, but even now in his late 70’s rode fast, strong and proud all day long. You would never know that he had chemo a week ago. You inspire us, Joe.

We heard later that Dylan had been involved in an unfortunate crash on the rain-slicked 100-mile route, breaking his bike’s rear derailer hanger, but only suffered some skin abrasions. Overall, he was okay but was disappointed that he couldn't finish the century ride. We will miss Dylan as he moves to Denver, Colorado this week, where he will get EVEN stronger and faster in the thin mile-high air. 

The TDF ride is so popular each year that it’s very typically sold out several months before the event, so if you want to do it next year, make sure to sign up ahead of time. Several of our club members wanted to go but couldn’t get registrations. You can actually go online right now and sign up for next year using your email without any deposit required, guaranteeing your place in 2024. Not much in life is guaranteed. Get some.

https://www.tourdefuzz.org

TDF Ride Summary: 62 Miles: 2100 feet climbing. 

June 2023 BBC Special Ride:

“Tour of the Napa/Sonoma Alps:” Mount Veeder, Trinity, Cavedale, and Dry Creek Road with a rest stop at French café Les Pascals in the town of Glen Ellen, former home of author Jack London.

June 24 th 2023 was designated as a “special” BBC ride, so we used a route that Kenny Leduc had created a while back which winds through the forests and hills of West Napa Valley and Eastern Sonoma Valley. Special rides generally start out of town to explore outlying areas. Here is the route:

We drove to Dry Creek Park in western Napa, just 30 minutes from Benicia, and parked the vehicles to rally at 8 am. We started pretty early because the days are getting a bit warm this summer. BBC members in attendance included: John and Peggy Ericson, Scott Overfield, Rafa Hernandez-Perez, Craig Snider, Julie Jennings, Manuel Olague, Ron Holloway, Bob Hyde, Marvin Ruiz, Kalani Keala, and Kathy Nelson. Marvin and Kalani had ridden to the start from home, to add on some miles for “extra credit.”

We started off as a group pedaling up Mt Veeder Road. The little creek alongside the road still had some water in it which is pretty unusual this time of year. It was very lush and green in the canyon as we rode. The road had been damaged at various points due to the heavy rains this past winter. As the path curved up through the canyon, sometimes the right side of the road pavement was washed out, but we were able to pass through on the left side of the road. The road continued to climb through the cool forest of redwoods and red-barked madrone trees, and near the top at Marker #3600, the road was completely washed out where damaged asphalt had fallen into the creek, which required us to stop. We dismounted and walked through without any problems. A side benefit of the road conditions, though, was that there wasn’t much automobile traffic. We arrived at the top of Mt Veeder, where they used to have a bagpiper play during the Tour of Napa Valley Century several years ago, and had a brief rest. We descended the east side of Mt. Veeder and then began to climb up Trinity Road to the top of the mountain. This became quite steep near the top but remained cool and mostly shaded with a slight breeze. There was some rebuilding and construction going on along the side of the road due to the past years’ fire, evidenced by blacked tree trunks, and whining chainsaws were heard at various points. Arriving at the top of Trinity Road, we took a break at the little

Mayacamas Volunteer Fire Station, where we refilled our water bottles from the tap and discussed the upcoming descent. There were 10-12 other cyclists at the fire station, as it is a common regrouping/rest stop for the area. Trinity Road descent has an average grade of 9% so is quite steep, but the pavement was in good condition. There were a lot of gentle curves and very little automobile traffic, though we caught up to a car in front of us requiring us to take it slower than usual. Arriving at the bottom, we crossed over Hwy 12, and pedaled through a densely forested neighborhood, eventually ending up in the town of Glen Ellen. The author Jack London lived there from 1909 through his death in 1916, and there is a Jack London State Historic Park you can visit up the road, which includes his burned-out hunting lodge called the

Wolf House, hiking trails, as well as his gravesite under a large red boulder from the Wolf House. Jack wrote in 1913:

Organic, sustainable, and biodynamic-themed Benziger Winery and the Valley of the Moon winery are close by, but we didn’t stop there on this trip.

We arrived at Les Pascals French café in Glen Ellen and parked our bicycles. Some got sandwiches at a local deli as there was a long queue out the front, while others got French specialties at the café. They offered rich smooth quiches, flakey French pastries, and espresso or drip coffee. We are able to get a table in the back courtyard for everyone to sit in the dappled shade and chat about bikes and life.

After a brief rest and refreshment, we saddled up and headed south from Glen Ellen. We had to stop briefly when Kalani’s electronic rear derailleur suddenly froze and went into “Crash” mode. It would have been difficult or impossible to ascend the next climb without a derailleur, so he stopped to sort it out, but after a quick “How do I get my electronic derailleur out of Crash Mode?” inquiry on the internet he had the little fella clicking along nicely again. We headed south again and made a left onto Cavedale Road. Two years ago, we had done the same climb, and the road had been in bad shape with potholes and washouts. Fairly recently, the entire road has been re-paved all the way to the top! This made it safer but it still wasn’t “easy,” as the road is 5 miles long with about 1925 feet of elevation, an average grade of 7.3 %, and much steeper pitches at times near the top. There were some beautiful views along the way, with modern-style houses perched at the top of the hills with panoramic windows looking out over the Sonoma Valley. We slogged up the climb and made our way back to the Mayacamas Fire station to regroup, rest, refill the water bottles again, and get a snack. Then it was back on the bikes for a delightful descent, this time making a right turn onto Dry Creek Road near the bottom. The pavement was a bit rough, and we had to watch the surface carefully. The descent was otherwise pleasant winding through the shady canyon. The traffic was light, and it was not difficult to keep up a good pace. We arrived at the bottom of Dry Creek Road after passing through the vineyards on the west side of Napa Valley, at Dry Creek Park, stowed our bikes on the vehicles, and headed home. Our overachievers, Marvin and Kalani, continued home on their bikes, getting a lot of extra miles for the day.

Stats: Total mileage for the day was about 44 miles for those that did the core ride, with 5100 feet of climbing.

Brett Nelson

BBC Ride Coordinator

“The only bad ride is one that didn’t happen.” Unknown Author

"Tour de SF Bay, a 3 Bridge Ride”

By Brett Nelson

Riding by the San Francisco Bay on your bicycle has a lot of benefits, including beautiful views and cool breezes. The SF Bay Trail will eventually encircle the entire bay, making for some great rides. Recently, road construction was completed on a bypass route for bicycles from Yerba Buena Island to Treasure Island. There was also a new ferry line established from Treasure Island to the SF Ferry Building. This makes it possible to do a loop of the Bay, crossing 3 bridges on your bicycle in one ride!

Grizzly Peak Century Ride Recap– May 7, 2023

by Bob Hyde

The Grizzly Peak Century has been a long-standing ride for the Benicia Bicycle Club.  Club participation this year, however, was down from previous years mostly because this organized ride encompasses many of the routes our club normally rides.  Nevertheless, several diehard members participated: Scott Overfield, Bob Hyde, Dan Mone, Ron Holloway and Manny Olague.  Most of us elected to ride the 72-mile route with 6,100 feet of elevation.  This route was modified from previous years due to road damage from the excessive winter rains and the start/end location being moved from Campolindo High School to St. Mary’s College (allowing the ride to now provide beer with the end-of-the ride BBQ). 

We had a chilly start as is typical especially as we rode through the beautiful redwood forest on Canyon Road.  However, we quickly warmed up as we climbed the infamous Pinehurst Road and Skyline Blvd to intersect with Grizzly Peak Road (over 1000 feet of climbing at this point).   The view from Grizzly Peak Road was breathless with a beautiful panoramic view of the San Francisco Bay.   In past years, the course would exit Grizzly Peak Road and then traverse through Tilden Park with a nice descent down Wildcat Canyon Rd to San Pablo Dam Road.   The Wildcat Canyon descent was closed due to rain damage so the course only dipped into Tilden Park for a rest stop.  So, we continued on Wildcat Canyon Rd in the opposite direction through Kensington and then snaked through several neighborhoods until reaching Arlington Blvd and eventually landing on San Pablo Dam Road in San Pablo.  Thank goodness we had downloaded the course to our GPS otherwise we surely would have gotten lost.   

Another interesting twist this year was the course included riding the San Francisco Bay Trail through Hercules and Rodeo.  Our club rides this trail often and have informally named this the Shami Shoreline trail in honor of Joe Shami a BBC member and Bay Area cycling legend who introduced this route to our club.  Lucky for us the day was pleasant and not too hot so the climb up McEwen in Port Costa was a nice challenge but not overwhelming.  The ride had several well positioned rest stops that included excellent homemade baked goods.   Before finishing, the route climbed over Pig Farm and then on to the Bears so we were more than ready to reach the finish at St Mary’s College to relax, listen to live music, have a nice BBQ dinner and even a couple of beers for those wishing to imbibe. 

Primavera Century Recap

by Craig Snider

BBC members rallied in Fremont on April 23rd for the Primavera Century hosted by the Fremont Freewheelers Cycling Club. Twelve BBC riders braved the cold and misty morning, rolling out at 7:30 am from Mission San Jose High School. Participants included Bob Hyde, Peggy Ericson, John Ericson, Craig Snider, Elle Hands, Joe Pritchard, Alex Dronkers, Ron Holloway, Scott Overfield, Manny Olague, and Julie Jennings (all riding the 100K route), and Brad Andrews riding the full 100-mile route. The cold foggy start had several riders wishing they’d worn warmer clothing (full finger gloves, knee warmers, windbreakers) as we encountered misty/drizzly conditions.

The cold was finally relieved by the first climb which warmed us until we reached the first rest stop where we enjoyed hot coffee and snacks. After the break, we pushed on to Calaveras Road where we climbed a 14% “wall” that had several other riders walking bikes up the steep pitch.

What followed next was a seductive romp paralleling the gorgeous Calaveras Reservoir with breathtaking views of the water and verdant hills. The undulating road was graced with gentle rollers that teased a climb only to top out and urge speed on the descent. A shapely road indeed, graced with perfectly formed curves that aroused the senses with each sweep. If that weren’t enough, the pavement was perfect - silky smooth and blemish-free - cycling at its finest!

Eventually, we reached the end of the reservoir and began our descent toward Sunol. We formed a pace line and headed to town aided by a nice tailwind. A welcome break in Sunol allowed us to fuel up for the return trip as the foggy conditions gave way to blue skies and sunshine.

Being an “out and back” route we had a second go at the enticing Calaveras Road, savoring every smooth and perfectly engineered curve as we sped back toward Fremont. We regrouped at the final rest stop and pressed on to the 62-mile finish where we grabbed lunch from a host of food trucks and relaxed on the lawn listening to live music.

For most of us, this was our first “Century Ride” of the season following Carla Gaines's amazing 100-mile finish of the Cinderella Classic in Livermore on April 15th. We’re looking forward to more centuries when we’ll join friends to explore new routes and scenery in the region. Next up, is the Grizzly Peak Century, Sunday, May 7, in Moraga.

BBC Spring “Moxie” Ride Recap: Saturday, March 25th, 2023

By Brett Nelson

Bike the Bridges & Brewfest, October 1, 2022

by Craig Snider

Elle Hands and I were bicycle marshals at the gnarly intersection at the Magazine Street 7-11 when we spotted a slow-moving rider climbing the Magazine Street overpass. Soon he came into view - a young man with Down syndrome pedaling a full-sized tricycle. It was a tender moment that reminded us of why we were there.

This was the first year that Bike the Bridges (Special Olympics fundraiser) was held in Benicia, with BBC supplying 14 volunteers for rest stops, ride marshals, bike mechanics, and the Crocket Boulevard KOM time trial. The team effort paid off as the event raised $152,000 (exceeding the goal of $110K) for the Special Olympics.

Afterward, volunteers were treated to a free BBQ lunch and “all the beer you can drink “ from 14 local breweries. We met up with club members who rode the course and enjoyed the festivities, including a live band and dancing on the First Street Green.

Hats off to BBC Community Liaison Director, Nancy Lund, for coordinating with event organizers and finding jobs for BBC volunteers Ginger Edwards, Kemal Abuhan, Joe Pritchard, Bill Dewolf, Mike Dunn, Craig Snider, Elle Hands, Peggy Ericson, Aldy Antonio, Bob Hyde, Suzanne Hyde, Masood Vydyarakat, Greg Andrada and Chase Andrada.

In all, 676 riders registered for the event including BBC riders Dave White, Steve Bahr, David Molloy, Andy Miller, Ajit de Silva, Candy Medrano, and Bob Hyde (Bob rode the course AND ride marshaled!). Also completing the 50k route was my new son-in-law, Kevin Ardon. This was Kevin’s first organized ride and first ride with clipless pedals. I am hoping to see him on our regular club rides soon!

It was a joy to have a “Century Ride” based in Benicia. With our two bridges, we’ve long enjoyed our challenging and scenic routes. What fun to share our town and surroundings with the broader bike community, giving back to the cycling community, and supporting a worthy cause in the process. Kudos to BBC! Looking forward to next year’s event!