The weather forecast has predicted little besides 80-degree temps and sunny skies this week. Wind is something that you expect but hope doesn’t come your way. Something you can’t really plan on is people drive-by-shooting at you from minivans after you crest a ridge. But that, plus the occasional cow in the middle of the road, are the sorts of unexpected challenges you encounter while cycling through Northern California.
Heading out for an early afternoon jaunt at 12:30 p.m., the group got off to a slow start as one rider had to return to the house for a backup bike after his seat post cracked. Once they were back together, the seven riders sped out onto River Road, past the Korbel vineyards and due west toward the Pacific Ocean. The relatively easy terrain got tricky in a hurry as wind pouring through the valley gave the riders a 30 mph headwind. The wind made things especially tricky for those riders on deep-section carbon rims, and the smooth paceline which had been established earlier soon disintegrated.
Salvation, though, was literally on the horizon as the riders hit Route 1 and started descending south through gorgeous rolling terrain along the Pacific coast. After a brief stop at a scenic overlook, the team turned inland onto Coleman Valley Road for a muscle-grinding climb up pitches over 15 percent. The road climbed through farm pastures on both sides—cattle guards were a constant hazard for the riders—and apathetic cows crossed the road with no care for the cyclists baring down on them.
The group had splintered before the summit, and as the leaders blasted down the backside at speeds topping 45 mph, a couple of the stragglers had to stop to fix a dropped chain. While they were bent over their bikes, they looked up to see a teenager leaning from the open door of a green minivan driving past them. He wasn’t offering to help. He was aiming some sort of CO2 pistol at them, either bb or pellet gun. Unfortunately, the video camera strapped to one of the bikes ran out of juice before the shooting along the grassy knoll, so we don’t have any evidence to turn over to the police. Luckily, the kid was a lousy shot. No one was hit.
After a brief stop in Occidental to regroup, the riders had a blazing descent back down to river road and another paceline drag home to complete the loop. In all, the team covered some 51 miles over the second day of testing with about 2,500 feet of climbing.
Thursday’s plan calls for another 50-miler, through the heart of Sonoma County wine country. It won’t have Wednesday’s majestic views of the Pacific, but the scenery should be plenty nice and the winds should be gentler. Hopefully the locals will be, too.
All photos: Ariel Zambelich/Wired 
