ROUTE DETAILS:
We ride 395 miles of the beautiful California
Coast
 The
best resource for route info on the Pacific Coast is "Bicycling
the Pacific Coast" by Vicki Spring & Tom Kirkendell
(The Mountaineer Books, Seattle, WA), usually in stock at REI.
In addition to turn-by-turn routing, BCP includes maps &
elevation profiles. It has side trips, must-see stops & points
of interest. Our touring group has used BCP for over 20 years
&
found it to be invaluable.
The Cal Coast tour will follow the Pacific Coast Bike Route (green
signs posted by the State) for the most part. We're taking a
more scenic &
quieter route out of San Francisco. The route follows Highway
1, paralleling where there is a practical alternative.
Here's the dailies including total elevation
gain:
Day 1: 34 miles; 2,400 ft
Day 2: 52 miles; 2,150 ft;
Day 3: 50 miles; 2,000 ft;
Day 4: 43 miles; 2,554 ft;
Day 5: 67 miles; 4,534 ft;
Day 6: 57 miles; 1,730 ft;
Day 7: 44 miles; 1,950 ft;
Day 8: 48 miles; 1,400 ft.
Highway 1 was developed to handle all kinds
of vehicles so there are no killer gradients. There are many
long climbs, however. For training purposes, get into good enough
condition to enjoy a hilly 50-60 mile ride.
On a tour such as this, you'll be doing 20-30 miles, kicking
back for lunch & a break, then another 20-30. That's all
you have to do all day so if you take your time it's quite accessible.
One of the keys to enjoying a tour is comfort on the bike. Now
is the time to sort out saddle, handlebars, riding position,
pedals, etc., all the stuff that has potential to cause aches
& pains. A saddle that you may not notice on the Saturday
BCI coffee ride may feel like a board after 40 miles. The other
comfort item that's my personal hot button is GEARS - lots of
'em & really low. Too many people bring racing bikes on tours
& by Day 3 regret their choice. If you have any questions
on equipment selection, feel free to contact me. Every year I
think I've made all the mistakes that can be made cycling, but
I always find at least one more!
Doug Peterson
dougnmel@cox.net
If you like online stuff, check out Map
My Ride.com Search for "San Francisco" "20-50
miles" & there are 752 routes available... "Half
Moon Bay" gives up 56 routes including "HWY1 Half Moon
Bay to Santa Cruz" & Half Moon Bay to Olema (North of
San Francisco) The system gives great mapping detail and generates
a profile of elevation.
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