Post-Julian Death March has been the opposite of mellow. Monday morning, we were up and out first thing in the morning heading towards Los Angeles. The Ergon Sprinter has been making its way up to Monterey, CA but we’ve been going to meetings and doing shop visits in different towns along the way. Translation: constantly on the go until falling into bed exhausted. That’s not to say it isn’t a great time with gorgeous sites to be seen and really great people to meet on the way!
In addition, we did a couple of “shop rides” which is awesome because you get to know the cool guys that work in the shop a little better AND ride their local trails. I normally rest for a day or two after a tough race such as the JDM. I’ve been totally blown on the bike the last two days, but doing my best to enjoy the sites and try not to think about the burning masses of lead that I was trying to turn in circles. It was the best possible scenario and tomorrow I get a rest day!
The green and hilly landscape is surreal, and I feel surprised when I suddenly see the ocean. It’s always a little weird to see the ocean and think that this is as far west in the US as you can possibly go, and how huge the ocean really is (and that most of the earth is covered by it!) One of my favorite things about Cali in the spring is all the flowers. The green hillsides are heavily sprinkled with yellow flowers up against the blue sky backdrop.
Monday, we rode in Topanga with Topanga Creek Cyclery. They are a very chill mountain bike ONLY shop and upon walking in the courtyard, we were offered a burger and later – homemade banana bread and coffee.
The plants were so big they were growing around the trail and this little flower just happened to take up residency here on the way down.
Tuesday, we made our way up the coast a little bit further ending up in San Luis Obispo, and Tyler from Art’s Cyclery and Fuzzy came out to ride! The wind coming off the ocean was brisk, and the strikingly lush hills once again reminded me of being on an island somewhere exotic.
Hazard Peak Trail
San Luis Obispo is quickly becoming a mountain bike mecca if it isn’t one already. 150+ people show up once a month to do trail work, and the city actually funds more trails. What? In Boulder, there are vehement city council meetings and people fighting tooth and nail to prevent new trails. I like the SLO attitude – trail users CAN get along, build sweet trails, and share this amazing place called “Earth.”
That’s a great picture to close this blog post. Goodnight!
