Final Stage: Dipping into my bag of courage!

Last day from Bodega Bay to Sausalito met us with climbs are quads could barely overcome. From steep and short with little descending in between to long and gradual that forced you to find your tempo and maintain it. I had the honor of leading the group into the city with my GPS2009 navigation system (aka writing all the turns on a strip of paper and then taping it to my top tube) with no wrong turns along the way! Some pretty attractive bike paths along the way, but none too attractive than the riders on them. Welcome to San Francisco!!

The final count: 786 miles for me (about 820 for Gia b/c she didn't have to sag,wah)

Quad measurement : 21" even (somehow I lost a 1/4 in, probably on the climb above)

Things I've learned from road signage:

"Passing lane 1 mile" means you are starting a climb

"Vista point 1/2 mile" means you are almost done with the climb

"20 mph slow w/curve symbol" means sweet descent ahead, don't hit your brakes

7% grade with semi-truck symbol sloping down means "yeah! I just did that!"

Things I've learned from Paolo:

"I'm feeling mellow today" means he's going to hammer

"My sleep was marginal last night" means he's going to hammer

"I'm going to take it easy today" means he's going to hammer

But what can I say? HIS quads are huge and he's yet again conquered another ride on his fixed gear. A reminder that age doesn't mean you have to get older. 

It was a great journey with unforgettable terrain, beautiful views, and refreshing company. Riding your bike for this long is kinda like the road of life itself: sometimes it sucks, sometimes it's exciting, scary, frustrating, but at the end of the day it's just a blessing to be alive to do it all over again.