Cycling the Tierra Bella Century, Saturday, April 8th, 2006
No Rain!
The 2006 Tierra Bella Century was really great in all respects: the route, the scenery, the food, the support, and most of all the weather – NO RAIN!!! With rain on 25 out of 31 days in March (for a record) and on all but one of the preceding days in April, the forecast for the century was for scattered showers throughout the day.
In fact, the ground was wet from fresh rain when I left home at 4 a.m. for the 86-mile drive to Gavilan College, Gilroy, the starting location, south of San Jose, CA, and the pavement alternated between wet and dry patches all the way. So I was convinced that I would get wet sometime during the day and carried a knapsack with rain gear throughout the ride. Actually, the sun appeared, and the weather became pleasant enough to cycle in shorts. The wind wasn’t bad either. But I saw only one other rider with a knapsack, and no-one else seemed to be prepared for rain. How did all the others know the weather was going to be so good and I didn’t? (Perhaps, they didn’t listen to so many weather forecasts?)
This was my second Tierra Bella Century, the first being two years ago. Last year, I sent in my check and entry form on March 13th, but they were returned because the limit of 2,000 riders had already been reached for this popular event. This year I mailed my registration on January 10th so as not to miss out again. (I refuse to register on-line using Active.com because of all the unwanted SPAM e-mails I get forever after!)
The main gate to the college was still locked when I arrived, so I had time for a most-welcome doze in my car. When the gate opened at 6:15 a.m., I found that I’d been waiting at the wrong place and that only volunteers from the Almaden Cycle Touring Club (ACTC), the sponsoring organization, were allowed to enter there. No matter. I was still early enough to find the proper parking area, assemble my bike, and be on-line minutes after registration opened at 7 a.m. Registration was very efficient this year! I could stand on any of the many lines and get processed, regardless of which letter of the alphabet my name began with. So I was in and out in no time. It was so fast that I barely had a chance to greet some of my clubmates from the Benicia Bicycle Club and find out just who had come. Being slower, I elected to start immediately knowing they would soon catch me.
I felt elation as my well-oiled bike rolled effortlessly through Downtown Gilroy with a group of strangers to the scenic oak-woodlands east of Gilroy called Hot Springs. For the last several weeks, I had been unaware I was riding on a cracked, rear-wheel rim that was rubbing against a brake pad. I kept wondering why I could no longer keep up with my club, even on the downhills, when I was pedaling as hard as I could in my highest gear, and they were all freewheeling. Climbing was extra tough too. I attributed the problem to my age – 71 -- because physical capability can deteriorate rapidly when you’re that ancient. But while carefully cleaning my bike late on Thursday afternoon in preparation for the century, I found the rim crack at the end of a spoke and ran pleading for help to my trusty bike mechanic Pat Stewart at Sharp Bicycle, Lafayette. The next day, Pat hand-built a new wheel for me that matched my other one. This was the second time that my rear wheel rim had cracked in two years, but the manufacturer stood by the one-year warranty both times, and Pat, as busy as he was, made it possible for me to still go to Tierra Bella.
Not only was my bike performing well, but the route this year on the Hot Springs/Canada Loop was so much more peaceful and relaxing. Last time, there had been a horsemen’s gathering in the area, and we were plagued with being passed every few minutes by horse trailers while climbing the narrow rural road that was little more than a lane wide. I couldn’t tell whether the route had been modified slightly now to avoid the conflict or if the horsemen had changed their date, but the result was terrific.
The first rest stop (13.3 mi) was at the same place as last time (Hot Springs), and a gentleman with a digital camera was taking snapshots of many incoming riders, telling them the photos would be on the organizing club’s website (www.actc.org) for free downloads. There was no waiting for toilets or the great snacks, including sweet orange wedges and sweet grapes. The subsequent long downhill was familiar. There was a fellow in an unusual Halloween suit warning us to be cautious. (Was he the same fellow who warned us about dangerous cattle grates in unexpected places in last year’s Wine Country Century 200-KM Ride?) The lush, green scenery was gorgeous from the continual rains. But the air was laden with allergens, and my nose kept running for the entire duration of the ride. So the four handkerchiefs that I’d brought to wipe off the rain came in handy anyway. (I could have used six.)
I felt really strong as we headed north through San Martin and Morgan Hill, passing through an upscale rural setting of nice houses with small numbers of cattle, sheep, and/or goats. The second rest stop (at 36.9 mi) was at the same place as last year (Coyote River Park, Morgan Hill), but the route to get there seemed modified to avoid much of the heavy traffic that passed us last time. This year, we didn’t take the Coyote Creek bike path, which I enjoyed last time, although I got a scare then when the riders behind me told me that my wallet had dropped through my poorly sewn jersey pocket without my knowing. (Thanks to them, I did recover it.) The new route this time was pleasant too. The food at the rest stop was just as good as last time, especially the rolled sandwiches.
On continuing north to San Jose on Monterey Highway, I passed a rider fixing a flat and asked the perfunctory question “Do you have everything you need? “No,” he replied, “Do you have a pump? My CO2 cartridge has run out, and my pump doesn’t work.” I stopped to help him fix his flat, losing ten minutes but happy to reciprocate for the help I got from strangers during the 2003 Napa Century when I was stranded after four flats. Even so, my club still had not caught me, and I was headed for the beginning of the notorious, 1.9-mile, 971-ft. climb up Metcalf Rd, San Jose, for which the Tierra Bella is famous (or infamous). As tough as it was, it was easier this time for two reasons, despite the fact that I’m two years older: (1) I knew what to expect and could pace myself accordingly, and (2) The weather was much cooler. The climb took 27 minutes at my slow pace, starting at Mile 47. What made it so tough was the continual steep slope and the many switchbacks.
I was nearing the top of Metcalf Rd at about 48.5 miles when the first Benicia Bicycle Club (BBC) jersey whizzed by me. It was Bill DeW. He didn’t notice me because I was wearing my Tierra Bella 2004 jersey rather than my club jersey. I called out to him, and to my surprise, he turned around and came downhill on that terrible slope to say hello. I felt guilty about spoiling his momentum and urged him to continue, which he did, zooming up the hill as though it were insignificant. A while later, Bob K. appeared, saying that Ed B. had had a flat, and that’s why they were delayed. Soon Ed B. and club president Joe M. appeared. We were all still climbing Metcalf Rd. When I reached the top, there was no third rest stop there, as there had been two years ago. But I was not completely wiped out, as I was then. In fact, I was still in relatively good shape. The motorcycle park at the top of the hill was still in business, but the noise of the motorcycles didn’t bother me at all this year, whereas I had found it terribly annoying last time while I struggled and suffered up that hill in the heat. Also, the United building at the top no longer had a sign saying “United.” (I seem to remember reading that they had downsized.) I stopped for a snack of dried fruit that I’d brought with me. Clubmate Mick W. passed by while my mouth was full, so I could only grunt my greeting.
There were some downhills but still some significant climbs before reaching the third rest stop at 57.5 miles, the Silver Oak elementary school on Farnsworth Avenue, San Jose. (This was different from last time, and in fact, this is where the 200-km route would diverge, whereas last time it diverged from the very beginning, forcing riders to make an irrevocable commitment to a ride distance beforehand, regardless of how one’s body felt during the event.)
At this third rest stop, I was able to socialize with the five other Benicia Bicycle Club members and also met a couple of friends from the Diablo Cyclists, Craig M. and John C., whom I had ridden with before and whom I could better keep up with if I pushed myself a bit. Craig said that his brother Brian M., a member of both cycling clubs, was also here, but I didn’t see him. Having ridden alone till now, I was torn between the two groups to ride with. On the one hand, there was club loyalty, but the club riders were too fast for me; on the other, practicality. When it came time to leave, I looked for Craig but didn’t see him, so I rushed to catch up with my club and was right behind them when we started the steep climb up Hassler Parkway about 2-1/2 miles from the rest area into a luxury residential development. While struggling up that hill, I realized that I’d left my knapsack at the rest stop. So back I went. I was so angry with myself! I had done the same thing in the Sierras in 2004, forgetting my knapsack at a breakfast stop and had to backtrack five miles while my companions were climbing Ebbets Pass. Fortunately, then, a SAG wagon helped me catch up with the others. This time, I had to do it with pedal power alone -- an extra five miles with an extra 500 ft of climbing at a time when I was beginning to get a sore seat and toes. On the way back, I saw Diablo Cyclists Craig and John, who were behind me, after all. I yelled to them why I was going back. They were the only ones who knew what happened to me, because the BBC riders were all ahead when I turned around. My knapsack was exactly where I left it, and I retraced my route feeling tired and disgruntled about the unnecessary extra work and the lost chance to ride with company. (However, I was able to remember that I was not forgetful when young.)
Despite my setback, there were still century riders in sight and all around me, as we passed through the Silicon Valley industrial parks on Hellyer Ave and Silicon Valley Blvd. Like last time, we found our way to Bailey Avenue and crossed under Highway 101, heading west past IBM. Fortunately, the traffic wasn’t so heavy this year.
After the familiar climb at the end of Bailey Ave., the fourth rest stop was again at Calero Reservoir County Park on McKean Rd in San Jose (at 72.4 + 5 extra miles). My two Diablo Cyclists friends were leaving as I entered.
The route to the fifth rest stop at Machado School, Morgan Hill, was much better this time, in my opinion, avoiding much of the heavy traffic, noisy motorcycles, and noisy sports cars that I found so wearisome last time in my fatigued state. The difference was that we departed much sooner from Uvas Rd by turning left at Oak Glen Avenue to pass by the Chesbro Reservoir, instead of continuing south past the Uvas Reservoir to Watsonville Rd. It was scenic and peaceful with only an occasional 200-km rider passing me. (More than 30 years had passed since the last time I cycled by the Chesbro Reservoir.) There were some lovely homes in this section of the ride.
At Machado School at 87.4 (+5 extra) miles, my toes and butt were really sore. This equalled the most distance I had ridden in 2006, because of all the rains.
Heading back to Gavilan College on Santa Teresa Blvd in Morgan Hill, a short distance later, I came across two cyclists fixing a flat. As I passed, I asked the perfunctory question, “Do you have everything you need?” “Yes thanks, Joe,” came the response. I stopped and turned my bike around to see who it was. It was two guys I knew. One was experiencing his fourth flat of the ride in his front tire and was wondering whether there was a foreign object still in the tire that he had not been able to clear. I waited while they put the wheel back together, hoping for some company on the final miles, which last time were very hilly with an extremely strong headwind. The four flats had delayed them in finishing their ride on schedule, and they were under pressure to be back home by a certain time. So when a SAG wagon came along and offered a ride, they wavered a bit. The only catch was that the SAG wagon was going back to Machado School first. They declined. A few minutes later, a second SAG wagon appeared and offered to take them directly back to the college. They couldn’t refuse. So once more I was riding on my own.
The route back to Gavilan College was not so simple as last time, because of ongoing construction on Santa Teresa Blvd. A sign said that it was due to be completed in 2005, but it obviously wasn’t, so we zig-zagged around that road -- sometimes on parallel streets on one side of it, sometimes on parallel streets on the other. (New homes were springing up all over. Gilroy is really growing in population!) Frankly, I was pleased with the new route, because it seemed to eliminate some of the steep, windy hills that made the return so difficult last time. This time, there wasn’t much wind to speak of. A traffic light separated me from the large group I was following, but the route was very well marked throughout, and I had detailed instructions on my handlebars. A lady followed me in.
The official route is 100.7 miles with 4930 ft. of climbing. My instruments said I had cycled 106.9 miles with 5495 ft. of climbing, -- the extra amount being due to my having to go back to Silver Oak school to retrieve my forgotten knapsack.
We completed our ride at 5:10 p.m. The official instructions said that supper would be served UNTIL 5 p.m., so the lady was not even going to check whether she could get some. But I remembered from last time that they kept serving till much later than 5 p.m., unlike some other centuries, and I urged her to go get food, because it was terrific last time. At that moment Joe M. was returning to his car near us, having eaten, and said that the food was really good and that they were still serving. So we both went, and he was right. I was given huge portions of chicken lasagna (my choice, but there was also vegetable lasagna), beans, brown rice, and salad. For dessert, there was apple pie with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream, like last time. My only disappointment was that there was only a small sliver of apple pie left, whereas last time, I got a big slice. There was also lemonade. I left feeling very satisfied. It was the right combination of food in the right amount. The entire 86-mile drive home was in daylight without rain or wet pavement.
My thanks to the Almaden Cycle Touring Club for a very enjoyable and satisfying day. I think this was the 27th year they have put on this event, and it was great two years ago, but even better this time. I’m happy to be a dues-paying member of ACTC, even though I live too far away to ride with the club.
Joseph C. (Joe) Shami
Lafayette, CA