Mt. Hamilton ride New Years Day

Last water, is a fountain at Grants ranch about 10 miles into the ride. With
the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grants Ranch. It must be
really cold on the way down!

cel

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been doing this for years, after first being invited by a customer

way

Quoted message said:

back when. Ride up Mt. Hamilton on New Years Day. That way, no matter how
the rest of the year goes, you know you at least accomplished *something*

on

Quoted message said:

a bike!

People generally leave from the base of the climb (Alum Rock & Mt.

Hamilton)

Quoted message said:

about 8:45am. Some years you'll see a couple hundred people on the

mountain,

Quoted message said:

some years just a couple dozen.

There is no support, no food or water anywhere but the top (and the only
food is candy from vending machines in the observatory), nobody to haul up
your cold-weather gear for the ride back down, no patches. Just you & the
mountain and a bunch of other people enjoying themselves on a bike. And
probably a bunch of photos on a web page late that night.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

"cel" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Last water, is a fountain at Grants ranch about 10 miles into the ride.
With
the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grants Ranch. It must be
really cold on the way down!

cel

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been doing this for years, after first being invited by a customer

way

Quoted message said:

back when. Ride up Mt. Hamilton on New Years Day. That way, no matter how
the rest of the year goes, you know you at least accomplished *something*

on

Quoted message said:

a bike!

People generally leave from the base of the climb (Alum Rock & Mt.

Hamilton)

Quoted message said:

about 8:45am. Some years you'll see a couple hundred people on the

mountain,

Quoted message said:

some years just a couple dozen.

There is no support, no food or water anywhere but the top (and the only
food is candy from vending machines in the observatory), nobody to haul
up
your cold-weather gear for the ride back down, no patches. Just you & the
mountain and a bunch of other people enjoying themselves on a bike. And
probably a bunch of photos on a web page late that night.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

It is cold. At least this year, there is no snow or rain in the forecast.
I rode behind Mike's group one year and got caught in a freezing rain.

cell phone said:

Quoted message said:

I've been doing this for years, after first being invited by a
customer way back when. Ride up Mt. Hamilton on New Years Day.
That way, no matter how the rest of the year goes, you know you at
least accomplished *something* on a bike!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

People generally leave from the base of the climb (Alum Rock &
Mt. Hamilton) about 8:45am. Some years you'll see a couple hundred
people on the mountain, some years just a couple dozen.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There is no support, no food or water anywhere but the top (and the
only food is candy from vending machines in the observatory),
nobody to haul up your cold-weather gear for the ride back down, no
patches. Just you & the mountain and a bunch of other people
enjoying themselves on a bike. And probably a bunch of photos on a
web page late that night.

Quoted message said:

Last water, is a fountain at Grant ranch about 10 miles into the
ride. With the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grant
Ranch. It must be really cold on the way down!

I can be colder:

http://mthamilton.ucolick.org/public/pictures/snowpics/

I recall riding the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop
nonstop with no food or drink on an ideal 01 January day. It can't be
all that hard.

Jobst Brandt

In article <[email hidden]>,

Quoted message said:

cell phone said:

Quoted message said:

I've been doing this for years, after first being invited by a
customer way back when. Ride up Mt. Hamilton on New Years Day.
That way, no matter how the rest of the year goes, you know you at
least accomplished *something* on a bike!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

People generally leave from the base of the climb (Alum Rock & Mt.
Hamilton) about 8:45am. Some years you'll see a couple hundred
people on the mountain, some years just a couple dozen.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There is no support, no food or water anywhere but the top (and
the only food is candy from vending machines in the observatory),
nobody to haul up your cold-weather gear for the ride back down,
no patches. Just you & the mountain and a bunch of other people
enjoying themselves on a bike. And probably a bunch of photos on
a web page late that night.

Quoted message said:

Last water, is a fountain at Grant ranch about 10 miles into the
ride. With the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grant
Ranch. It must be really cold on the way down!

I can be colder:

http://mthamilton.ucolick.org/public/pictures/snowpics/

I gotta say that this is *not* my mental image of sunny California.

Quoted message said:

I can be colder:

http://mthamilton.ucolick.org/public/pictures/snowpics/

Current weather:
http://mtham.ucolick.org/techdocs/MH_weather/dias/

Dan

Last water, is a fountain at Grants ranch about 10 miles into the ride.
With

Quoted message said:

the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grants Ranch. It must be
really cold on the way down!

Several years it has been not just cold, but that sort of cold that goes
right through your gloves, a sort of cold that seems made worse by a fog
that somehow penetrates through whatever warm stuff you're wearing. On such
days you're really looking forward to that first climb on the way back.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

"cel" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Last water, is a fountain at Grants ranch about 10 miles into the ride.
With
the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grants Ranch. It must be
really cold on the way down!

cel

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been doing this for years, after first being invited by a customer

way

Quoted message said:

back when. Ride up Mt. Hamilton on New Years Day. That way, no matter how
the rest of the year goes, you know you at least accomplished *something*

on

Quoted message said:

a bike!

People generally leave from the base of the climb (Alum Rock & Mt.

Hamilton)

Quoted message said:

about 8:45am. Some years you'll see a couple hundred people on the

mountain,

Quoted message said:

some years just a couple dozen.

There is no support, no food or water anywhere but the top (and the only
food is candy from vending machines in the observatory), nobody to haul
up
your cold-weather gear for the ride back down, no patches. Just you & the
mountain and a bunch of other people enjoying themselves on a bike. And
probably a bunch of photos on a web page late that night.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

Quoted message said:

I recall riding the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop
nonstop with no food or drink on an ideal 01 January day. It can't be
all that hard.

Jobst Brandt

Jobst: If you were running a boot camp, I wonder how many people would
survive?

Seriously, you may be conditioned such that your body can take that sort of
abuse. The typical cyclist cannot, and certainly should not attempt to do
such a ride without food or water. Nor should they think that even minimal
food & water is OK, because "It can't be all that hard." The fact that you
(and a select few others) can do something is not an indication that it is
safe or sane for others to attempt.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

cell phone said:

Quoted message said:

I've been doing this for years, after first being invited by a
customer way back when. Ride up Mt. Hamilton on New Years Day.
That way, no matter how the rest of the year goes, you know you at
least accomplished *something* on a bike!

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

People generally leave from the base of the climb (Alum Rock &
Mt. Hamilton) about 8:45am. Some years you'll see a couple hundred
people on the mountain, some years just a couple dozen.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

There is no support, no food or water anywhere but the top (and the
only food is candy from vending machines in the observatory),
nobody to haul up your cold-weather gear for the ride back down, no
patches. Just you & the mountain and a bunch of other people
enjoying themselves on a bike. And probably a bunch of photos on a
web page late that night.

Quoted message said:

Last water, is a fountain at Grant ranch about 10 miles into the
ride. With the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grant
Ranch. It must be really cold on the way down!

I can be colder:

http://mthamilton.ucolick.org/public/pictures/snowpics/

I recall riding the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop
nonstop with no food or drink on an ideal 01 January day. It can't be
all that hard.

Jobst Brandt

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

Several years it has been not just cold, but that sort of cold that goes
right through your gloves, a sort of cold that seems made worse by a fog
that somehow penetrates through whatever warm stuff you're wearing. On such
days you're really looking forward to that first climb on the way back.

Well, I rode up Mt. Hamilton today (Saturday, 12/30), at around 11
AM. It was beautiful, cool but not cold, cloudless sky, very little
wind. The observatory thermometer said 49F, but my bike computer
read 60-63F most of the ride. It was colder in the valley than on
the summit. Descending was too warm, so I took my beanie off after
the first descent. I hope it's the same weather on Jan. 1.
--
terry morse - Undiscovered Country Tours - http://www.udctours.com/

I would agree 100% with Mike J. I think less than 5% of active bike riders
could do the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop without any
food, or water without ill effects. Most wouldn't make it, others would be
ill!

I remember doing this ride on a hot summer day at 113F and seeing the
buzzards overhead. I thought if I was riding along and ran out of water I
would just be buzzard bait! That said, in the winter would be the best time
if you had to ride it without water.

Jobst's DNA must be related to camels.

cel

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I recall riding the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop
nonstop with no food or drink on an ideal 01 January day. It can't be
all that hard.

Jobst Brandt

Jobst: If you were running a boot camp, I wonder how many people would
survive?

Seriously, you may be conditioned such that your body can take that sort

of

Quoted message said:

abuse. The typical cyclist cannot, and certainly should not attempt to do
such a ride without food or water. Nor should they think that even minimal
food & water is OK, because "It can't be all that hard." The fact that

you

Quoted message said:

(and a select few others) can do something is not an indication that it is
safe or sane for others to attempt.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

cell phone said:

> I've been doing this for years, after first being invited by a
> customer way back when. Ride up Mt. Hamilton on New Years Day.
> That way, no matter how the rest of the year goes, you know you at
> least accomplished *something* on a bike!

Quoted message said:

> People generally leave from the base of the climb (Alum Rock &
> Mt. Hamilton) about 8:45am. Some years you'll see a couple hundred
> people on the mountain, some years just a couple dozen.

Quoted message said:

> There is no support, no food or water anywhere but the top (and the
> only food is candy from vending machines in the observatory),
> nobody to haul up your cold-weather gear for the ride back down, no
> patches. Just you & the mountain and a bunch of other people
> enjoying themselves on a bike. And probably a bunch of photos on a
> web page late that night.

Quoted message said:

Last water, is a fountain at Grant ranch about 10 miles into the
ride. With the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grant
Ranch. It must be really cold on the way down!

I can be colder:

http://mthamilton.ucolick.org/public/pictures/snowpics/

I recall riding the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop
nonstop with no food or drink on an ideal 01 January day. It can't be
all that hard.

Jobst Brandt

In article <[email hidden]>,

cel said:

I remember doing this ride on a hot summer day at 113F and seeing the
buzzards overhead. I thought if I was riding along and ran out of
water I would just be buzzard bait!

Heh. I used to live in southeastern Minnesota, in the bluff country
along the Mississippi. On many rides I'd be cruising along with turkey
vultures floating overhead. It always made me wonder of they knew
something I didn't.

"cel" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I would agree 100% with Mike J. I think less than 5% of active bike riders
could do the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop without any
food, or water without ill effects. Most wouldn't make it, others would be
ill!

I remember doing this ride on a hot summer day at 113F and seeing the
buzzards overhead. I thought if I was riding along and ran out of water I
would just be buzzard bait! That said, in the winter would be the best
time
if you had to ride it without water.

Jobst's DNA must be related to camels.

Fortunately, it was a beautiful, if slightly cool, day for the ride. I saw
more people on the hill than I have in many years, possibly the most ever.
As usual though, there's something about the conditions at the very top that
make it seem much colder than it actually is, such that people were huddled
inside the area where they have the bathrooms and vending machines.

Vending machines which do, by the way, now take dollar bills! Unfortunately,
it appears they only like *dry* dollar bills, so best to keep them in a
plastic baggie.

As I finished slightly before noon, I saw just a few stragglers just
starting up, one of whom was in a very large gear pedaling very slowly and
not making much progress. Hopefully he'll make it before daylight runs out!
Most people started around 9am, with a few hardy souls returning as we were
heading up (they might have been doing the "watch the sunrise from the top"
routine, something that's never appealed much to me, being
not-a-morning-person). Looked like the last large groups of riders probably
started out around 10am or so.

Unfortunately, it was cool enough that I was wearing my thicker gloves,
which made using my camera very inconvenient, so not too many photos this
year. Darn. The problem was that I couldn't depress the slightly-recessed
on/off switch. Might have to glue a little something onto the glove.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"cel" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I would agree 100% with Mike J. I think less than 5% of active bike riders
could do the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop without any
food, or water without ill effects. Most wouldn't make it, others would
be
ill!

I remember doing this ride on a hot summer day at 113F and seeing the
buzzards overhead. I thought if I was riding along and ran out of water I
would just be buzzard bait! That said, in the winter would be the best
time
if you had to ride it without water.

Jobst's DNA must be related to camels.

Fortunately, it was a beautiful, if slightly cool, day for the ride. I saw
more people on the hill than I have in many years, possibly the most ever.
As usual though, there's something about the conditions at the very top
that make it seem much colder than it actually is, such that people were
huddled inside the area where they have the bathrooms and vending
machines.

Vending machines which do, by the way, now take dollar bills!
Unfortunately, it appears they only like *dry* dollar bills, so best to
keep them in a plastic baggie.

As I finished slightly before noon, I saw just a few stragglers just
starting up, one of whom was in a very large gear pedaling very slowly and
not making much progress. Hopefully he'll make it before daylight runs
out! Most people started around 9am, with a few hardy souls returning as
we were heading up (they might have been doing the "watch the sunrise from
the top" routine, something that's never appealed much to me, being
not-a-morning-person). Looked like the last large groups of riders
probably started out around 10am or so.

Unfortunately, it was cool enough that I was wearing my thicker gloves,
which made using my camera very inconvenient, so not too many photos this
year. Darn. The problem was that I couldn't depress the slightly-recessed
on/off switch. Might have to glue a little something onto the glove.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

I started up about 9:30 and was back down about 12:45. I was hoping to see
you or your group but guess I missed it. There were still riders leaving
about 12. There were quite a collection of folks climbing the mountain. By
9:15 most of the parking at Alum Rock was gone. I went down to the school
which is where I normally start anyway.

The only downside was the wind kicked up. About 6 miles from the top, it
started to blow Made the descent a bit colder than I was expecting. By
Grant's Ranch, it had warmed up. The wind did knock me around a bit, in
particular coming out of some of the turns. For those going up later, I
think the ride will be a bit rougher coming down. I think the wind will be
a bit worse.

Think about it. There was a reason the Clif Bar was inspired by a ride up
the backside of Hamilton. Read the book Raising the Bar, the story of Clif
Bar.

"cel" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I would agree 100% with Mike J. I think less than 5% of active bike riders
could do the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop without any
food, or water without ill effects. Most wouldn't make it, others would be
ill!

I remember doing this ride on a hot summer day at 113F and seeing the
buzzards overhead. I thought if I was riding along and ran out of water I
would just be buzzard bait! That said, in the winter would be the best
time
if you had to ride it without water.

Jobst's DNA must be related to camels.

cel

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I recall riding the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop
nonstop with no food or drink on an ideal 01 January day. It can't be
all that hard.

Jobst Brandt

Jobst: If you were running a boot camp, I wonder how many people would
survive?

Seriously, you may be conditioned such that your body can take that sort

of

Quoted message said:

abuse. The typical cyclist cannot, and certainly should not attempt to do
such a ride without food or water. Nor should they think that even
minimal
food & water is OK, because "It can't be all that hard." The fact that

you

Quoted message said:

(and a select few others) can do something is not an indication that it
is
safe or sane for others to attempt.

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

<[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

cell phone writes:

>> I've been doing this for years, after first being invited by a
>> customer way back when. Ride up Mt. Hamilton on New Years Day.
>> That way, no matter how the rest of the year goes, you know you at
>> least accomplished *something* on a bike!

>> People generally leave from the base of the climb (Alum Rock &
>> Mt. Hamilton) about 8:45am. Some years you'll see a couple hundred
>> people on the mountain, some years just a couple dozen.

>> There is no support, no food or water anywhere but the top (and the
>> only food is candy from vending machines in the observatory),
>> nobody to haul up your cold-weather gear for the ride back down, no
>> patches. Just you & the mountain and a bunch of other people
>> enjoying themselves on a bike. And probably a bunch of photos on a
>> web page late that night.

> Last water, is a fountain at Grant ranch about 10 miles into the
> ride. With the cold weather 2 bottle should be plenty from Grant
> Ranch. It must be really cold on the way down!

I can be colder:

http://mthamilton.ucolick.org/public/pictures/snowpics/

I recall riding the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop
nonstop with no food or drink on an ideal 01 January day. It can't be
all that hard.

Jobst Brandt

Quoted message said:

I started up about 9:30 and was back down about 12:45. I was hoping to
see you or your group but guess I missed it. There were still riders
leaving about 12. There were quite a collection of folks climbing the
mountain. By 9:15 most of the parking at Alum Rock was gone. I went down
to the school which is where I normally start anyway.

What jersey and bike were you riding? We must have passed not too far from
the top on my way down.

As for "my" group... I should have made things a bit more clear. It's not
really "my" ride, it's everyone's ride. I just provide the catalyst for some
to get out and do it. This year, it was quite a few people! At one point I
was riding in a group and someone asked if I was Mike, and I jokingly said
no. After a bit of confusion (others in the group knew who I was) I had to
clear things up.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

"John Michaels" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"cel" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I would agree 100% with Mike J. I think less than 5% of active bike
riders
could do the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop without any
food, or water without ill effects. Most wouldn't make it, others would
be
ill!

I remember doing this ride on a hot summer day at 113F and seeing the
buzzards overhead. I thought if I was riding along and ran out of water
I
would just be buzzard bait! That said, in the winter would be the best
time
if you had to ride it without water.

Jobst's DNA must be related to camels.

Fortunately, it was a beautiful, if slightly cool, day for the ride. I
saw more people on the hill than I have in many years, possibly the most
ever. As usual though, there's something about the conditions at the very
top that make it seem much colder than it actually is, such that people
were huddled inside the area where they have the bathrooms and vending
machines.

Vending machines which do, by the way, now take dollar bills!
Unfortunately, it appears they only like *dry* dollar bills, so best to
keep them in a plastic baggie.

As I finished slightly before noon, I saw just a few stragglers just
starting up, one of whom was in a very large gear pedaling very slowly
and not making much progress. Hopefully he'll make it before daylight
runs out! Most people started around 9am, with a few hardy souls
returning as we were heading up (they might have been doing the "watch
the sunrise from the top" routine, something that's never appealed much
to me, being not-a-morning-person). Looked like the last large groups of
riders probably started out around 10am or so.

Unfortunately, it was cool enough that I was wearing my thicker gloves,
which made using my camera very inconvenient, so not too many photos this
year. Darn. The problem was that I couldn't depress the slightly-recessed
on/off switch. Might have to glue a little something onto the glove.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

I started up about 9:30 and was back down about 12:45. I was hoping to
see you or your group but guess I missed it. There were still riders
leaving about 12. There were quite a collection of folks climbing the
mountain. By 9:15 most of the parking at Alum Rock was gone. I went down
to the school which is where I normally start anyway.

The only downside was the wind kicked up. About 6 miles from the top, it
started to blow Made the descent a bit colder than I was expecting. By
Grant's Ranch, it had warmed up. The wind did knock me around a bit, in
particular coming out of some of the turns. For those going up later, I
think the ride will be a bit rougher coming down. I think the wind will
be a bit worse.

John Michaels said:

Think about it. There was a reason the Clif Bar was inspired by a
ride up the backside of Hamilton. Read the book Raising the Bar,
the story of Clif Bar.

I recommend that as required reading for people in small businesses.
Gary Erickson went though it as did Tom Ritchey. Wheelsmith got eaten
by the syndrome and Gallo Wines did not survive as a family owned
company and is publicly owned today for the same reason.

Besides, it is an interesting story.

http://www.clifbar.com/ourstory/document.cfm?location=history
http://tinyurl.com/yxrqka

Jobst Brandt

Does anyone know the name of the rider taken away by helicopter on
Mt. Hamilton? On the descent, we were held up for maybe a half hour
while the injured rider got flown to hospital.

It happened on the second descent, after the first little climb. I
heard he hit his head and was knocked out for a while, but he was
sitting up after a while. We couldn't see what was going on, as they
wanted room on the road to land the helicopter.
--
terry morse - Undiscovered Country Tours - http://www.udctours.com/

I was riding a black 2004 Trek 5500 that I got from your shop. Had a yellow
jacket with black sleeves.

Sorry to hear that someone got hurt. I wondered about the sirens as I was
getting in my car. Known a few folks who have taken spills on that descent.

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I started up about 9:30 and was back down about 12:45. I was hoping to
see you or your group but guess I missed it. There were still riders
leaving about 12. There were quite a collection of folks climbing the
mountain. By 9:15 most of the parking at Alum Rock was gone. I went
down to the school which is where I normally start anyway.

What jersey and bike were you riding? We must have passed not too far from
the top on my way down.

As for "my" group... I should have made things a bit more clear. It's not
really "my" ride, it's everyone's ride. I just provide the catalyst for
some to get out and do it. This year, it was quite a few people! At one
point I was riding in a group and someone asked if I was Mike, and I
jokingly said no. After a bit of confusion (others in the group knew who I
was) I had to clear things up.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

"John Michaels" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Mike Jacoubowsky" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"cel" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...
>I would agree 100% with Mike J. I think less than 5% of active bike
>riders
> could do the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop without
> any
> food, or water without ill effects. Most wouldn't make it, others would
> be
> ill!
>
> I remember doing this ride on a hot summer day at 113F and seeing the
> buzzards overhead. I thought if I was riding along and ran out of water
> I
> would just be buzzard bait! That said, in the winter would be the best
> time
> if you had to ride it without water.
>
> Jobst's DNA must be related to camels.

Fortunately, it was a beautiful, if slightly cool, day for the ride. I
saw more people on the hill than I have in many years, possibly the most
ever. As usual though, there's something about the conditions at the
very top that make it seem much colder than it actually is, such that
people were huddled inside the area where they have the bathrooms and
vending machines.

Vending machines which do, by the way, now take dollar bills!
Unfortunately, it appears they only like *dry* dollar bills, so best to
keep them in a plastic baggie.

As I finished slightly before noon, I saw just a few stragglers just
starting up, one of whom was in a very large gear pedaling very slowly
and not making much progress. Hopefully he'll make it before daylight
runs out! Most people started around 9am, with a few hardy souls
returning as we were heading up (they might have been doing the "watch
the sunrise from the top" routine, something that's never appealed much
to me, being not-a-morning-person). Looked like the last large groups of
riders probably started out around 10am or so.

Unfortunately, it was cool enough that I was wearing my thicker gloves,
which made using my camera very inconvenient, so not too many photos
this year. Darn. The problem was that I couldn't depress the
slightly-recessed on/off switch. Might have to glue a little something
onto the glove.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

I started up about 9:30 and was back down about 12:45. I was hoping to
see you or your group but guess I missed it. There were still riders
leaving about 12. There were quite a collection of folks climbing the
mountain. By 9:15 most of the parking at Alum Rock was gone. I went
down to the school which is where I normally start anyway.

The only downside was the wind kicked up. About 6 miles from the top, it
started to blow Made the descent a bit colder than I was expecting. By
Grant's Ranch, it had warmed up. The wind did knock me around a bit, in
particular coming out of some of the turns. For those going up later, I
think the ride will be a bit rougher coming down. I think the wind will
be a bit worse.

Quoted message said:

Does anyone know the name of the rider taken away by helicopter on
Mt. Hamilton? On the descent, we were held up for maybe a half hour
while the injured rider got flown to hospital.

It happened on the second descent, after the first little climb. I
heard he hit his head and was knocked out for a while, but he was
sitting up after a while. We couldn't see what was going on, as they
wanted room on the road to land the helicopter.

Ouch! What time was that? I arrived at the bottom right about noon. Glad to
hear he was sitting up. The gravel didn't seem any worse than usual, maybe
even a bit better this year. Haven't gotten any emails yet from others I
know who were out there that day.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

"Terry Morse" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Does anyone know the name of the rider taken away by helicopter on
Mt. Hamilton? On the descent, we were held up for maybe a half hour
while the injured rider got flown to hospital.

It happened on the second descent, after the first little climb. I
heard he hit his head and was knocked out for a while, but he was
sitting up after a while. We couldn't see what was going on, as they
wanted room on the road to land the helicopter.
--
terry morse - Undiscovered Country Tours - http://www.udctours.com/

"cel" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

I would agree 100% with Mike J. I think less than 5% of active bike
riders could do the Milpitas-Hamilton-Livermore-Sunol-Milpitas loop
without any food, or water without ill effects. Most wouldn't make it,
others would be ill!

Jobst, what was/is the point of doing a ride like this without food and
water?

--
Mike DeMicco <[email hidden]>