Final thoughts from the bike seat...

So, the trip is over:  Mike & I cycled 475 miles down the coast of California & had an amazing adventure.  Thanks to everyone who supported us in so many ways.  I loved doing the blog & sending daily updates & photos out to everyone.


Some final thoughts:


- the coast of California is spectacular!  If you ever get a chance to see it from a bicycle, DO IT!  It's totally different than being in a car.  If you can't, then at least venture off the highways & find some of the back roads that take you through fields & little towns.  Slow down, roll down your windows, & take in all the sights, sounds & smells you would otherwise miss.


- if I had known how demanding this trip was going to be, I probably wouldn't have agreed to do it.  The hills, combined with the heat, were grueling.  But, do I regret it?  Not in the least!  It was one of the best experiences & physical accomplishments of my life.  


- the iphone was indispensable.  It was our phone, email, camera, GPS, alarm clock, internet, weather report, all rolled into one.


- you CAN travel light!  Those drip-dry fabrics really work & you need very few clothes....besides, nobody knows that you wore the same pants to dinner every night.  You're never going to see those people again!


- cycling is the ultimate mindfulness experience.  You have no choice but to be in-the-moment, constantly scanning ahead for debris, potholes, vehicles, anything potentially dangerous.  At the same time, all your senses are working, taking in the sights, sounds, colors, aromas & temperature variations.  The miles just sail by & there's no room for outside thoughts or concerns.  It's very freeing & peaceful.


- fundraising for Asmi International made the trip so much more meaningful.  It was fun working with Danielle on this project & seeing her passion & commitment to Asmi's success.  Virginia's help was invaluable in working out many of the logistics, including retrieving our car & organizing the barbeque & camping.  Thanks to both - we love you!!


- Mike was a terrific travel companion:  incredibly supportive, encouraging, & fun.  I'm thrilled we were able to experience this together.  Will we ever do it again?  Probably not.  The trip was just too perfect - we could never duplicate it.  Our months of planning, researching, & preparing were great fun & now we have wonderful memories to treasure.  Guess it's time to come up with our next adventure!!   

Thank You Video from Asmi Board

Asmi International still needs your support!

If you've been following my blog, you know that this bike trip started out as a celebration of our 60th birthdays.  However, it became much more than that when we decided to make it into a fundraiser for Asmi International. 

To date we've raised $5,285 and we're still hoping to reach our goal of $10,000 which will be used to fund Asmi's upcoming program in Liberia. 

The riders we met on the Arthritis Ride had to raise $3,000 to participate & half of that went to cover the cost of the ride. 100% of everything donated in support of Team Asmi goes directly to Asmi International. 

If you've enjoyed my blog, please consider making a donation, of any size, to Asmi International.  For more information, go to their website www.asmiinternational.org.

Thanks!

- Suzanne & Azul

Day 11 - Crossing the Finish Line!!

DAY 11 of the Asmi Cali Coastal Tour

Santa Barbara to Leo Carillo State Beach in Malibu (60 miles)
475 miles in total!

Today was a beautiful ride out of Santa Barbara.  We followed a bike path out of town then on to a bike lane that wound through Montecito, Summerland & Carpenteria.  Very picturesque & charming communities.  I was surprised to find that the bike lane goes almost all the way to Ventura, much of it right along the water.  

There was just one 5 mile stretch along the freeway but, even there, there was a wide bike lane/shoulder.  A few miles north of Ventura, you're back on a bike path that takes you right into town.  We headed to the train station to meet Doug & Amir  who joined us for the rest of the day.

We rode down past Ventura Harbor where many homes have docks right at their back door, then on to Oxnard.  As we neared Oxnard Shores, surprise! surprise!  it started to drizzle.  We decided to stop for lunch at Mrs. Olson's Coffee Hut which is a great old-style diner that serves huge portions.

Mike & I discovered it 30 years ago when we kept our sailboat at the Channel Islands marina.  While waiting for a table, the honorary mayor of Hollywood Beach interviewed us for a story on Mrs. Olsons & took our photo.

During lunch, it started pouring (those of you who are not from California probably can't understand why this is such a big deal but it almost NEVER rains this time of year!) and back on the road, we were met with sunny skies & huge puddles. 

At one point, Amir fell over & re-injured the knee he had scraped 2 weeks ago.  He literally just stopped his bike, was unable to get out of his rat traps,  & fell over.  Mike & I had managed to cycle hundreds of miles without a scratch & Amir becomes the first casualty of the ride!

We continued on past the naval station at Port Hueneme

& Pt. Mugu which was socked in with fog.  

It was like that all the way to Leo Carrillo - perfect riding weather.  At one point, I looked towards the water & saw a school of dolphins heading down the coast.  It was almost as if they were accompanying us on our last few miles.   We rolled into Leo Carrillo about 3 pm

& kissed our St. Christopher medals for bringing us home safely.  WE DID IT!!

A number of our friends joined us for a barbeque & celebration.

 

Day 10 - Almost there! (Friday's Post)

DAY 10 of the Asmi Cali Coastal Tour

Lompoc to Santa Barbara (60 miles)

Last night, I was really sick.  I was feverish & coughing up all sorts of 'guck' (sorry!). Mike was making contingency plans to get me home but I said I was riding no matter what! Mucinex & a good night's rest did the trick - I'd say I'm at about 70%.

Refugio State Beach

Today was our longest ride & it was also our last & highest climb.  We woke up this morning to an unexpected  drizzle.  The sky quickly opened up but the temperatures rained cool most of the morning.  Highway 1 out of Lompoc takes you through beautiful rolling hills dotted with oak trees & livestock.  

We had a 13.5 mile climb up but it was gradual & quite scenic.  When we got to the top, this was a welcome sign:

We were on Highway 101 for quite a stretch but there was a wide shoulder & it was nice to get back to the coast.

We saw this mileage sign & realized that we are almost home!

We decided to have lunch in Isla Vista 

& ride through the UC Santa Barbara campus.  We had gone to the UC Alumni Family Camp for 5 summers when the kids were little & it was fun to see the area again.  Man, did we feel OLD!

From UCSB to Santa Barbara (about 10 miles) is all on bike paths which was great.  We ran into some enterprising little girls selling lemonade for 25 cents

& had to stop, remembering when our girls had lemonade stands with the Baskauskases.

Santa Barbara is such a beautiful town with it's Spanish architecture & red-tiled roofs.  On one side, you have the ocean & on the other, gorgeous hills.  We rode along the bike path on the beach & onto the pier

before checking into the Motel 6 which is only a half a block from the beach.  It isn't exactly the Ritz but it'll do.

View from Motel 6

Tomorrow our friends Doug & Amir are joining us in Ventura for the ride into Leo Carrillo State Park.  Can't believe we've made it this far & that the trip is almost over.

 Last Sunset

- Suzanne & Azul (Suzanne's Bike)

Let's Talk about FOOD!

Mike & I always thought that food would be a major part of this trip.  We envisioned working up a big appetite & enjoying delicious, relaxing dinners every evening.  After all, we could eat anything we wanted, right?  Well, it hasn't exactly worked out that way.  

Don't get me wrong, the food on this trip has been great but not in the way we had anticipated.  First of all, eating is a very primal thing.  You burn a lot of calories while cycling and when you're hungry, you HAVE to eat ... NOW!  We find that breakfast is must. Many of our hotels offer a complimentary breakfast, with the Holiday Inn Express serving surprisingly tasty eggs & sausage.  Cereal, bagels & hard-boiled eggs also work well.  We grab some snacks for the road (my favorite is bananas & peanut butter) & also carry Trio bars & HEED sports drink which isn't too sweet.  We eat every hour or two on the road & sometimes don't eat lunch until we reach our destination at 2 or 3 pm.  By that time, we're STARVING & nothing sounds better than a burger, quesadilla, or tuna melt.  

Here are some of our most memorable meals:
Fish & chips at Barbara's Fishtrap in Half Moon Bay with our friends, Mike & Mary,

Delicious Thai green curry, pad thai noodles & salad with tofu & peanut sauce at Thai House in Santa Cruz, 

Tuna melt on rye & grilled cheese with bacon & tomatoes on the patio of the Monterey Brewing Co. in Monterey,

Breakfast served in our room at the Spindrift Inn in Monterey,

A giant carnitas from the Burrito Bar next to the River Inn in Big Sur - split it & sat in the shade overlooking the river,

The Ambrosia burger at Nepenthe in Big Sur - how could anything taste bad with that view? So fun having Virginia & Joe with us!

Tuna melt & turkey/avocado sandwiches for lunch at the Ripplewood Cafe in Big Sur - I love old-fashioned places with counters!

Dinner in our cabin at Big Sur

Another tuna melt (split) at Whaler's Cove Cafe in Gorda.  It was SO hot out, we poured iced water over our heads before leaving,

Big, old-fashioned breakfast (Ortega chilie & cheese for me; sausages @ eggs for Mike)  at Pine Tree Family Restaurant in Cambria - one of our few 'big' breakfasts.

Black & blue (grilled with blue cheese) burger & beer battered fries (the BEST!) for me & a grilled flat iron steak salad with blue cheese for Mike at Schooner's Wharf in Cayucos with an amazing view of the ocean & wharf (yes, the photo is real!)

The BEST barbecued pulled pork sandwiches as Fireside Grill in San Luis Obispo,

Gourmet clam chowder & long island iced tea at Steamers in Pismo Beach,

Yummy fish & chips, coleslaw & salad also at the bar at Steamers in Pismo Beach,

Finally, after a tiring ride into Lompoc, we found El Toro Bronco which had terrific enchiladas, tacos & a my favorite:  a giant carnitas burrito.  

I still have half for dinner tonight & Mike will pick up a tuna Subway sandwich to eat in our room at the Embassy Suites.  We're too tired to go out!

Day 9 - the hills. oh the hills.

 

DAY 9 of the Asmi Cali Coastal Tour

Pismo Beach to Lompoc (49 miles)

Today, there were some big hills ahead so we left early - also wanted to try to beat some of the heat as the route headed inland, away from the ocean breeze.  Past Oceano, we started running into cyclists on the Arthritis Ride.  They had started in San Francisco a couple of days after us.  We almost envied their SAG wagon & how light they were traveling but also felt just a little bit superior.  At one point, an ambulance with its' siren on sped past me and I thought:  "Don't let it be one of the riders!".  Then I saw it stopped ahead with a group of riders off their bikes and I said:  "Please don't let it be Mike!".  It wasn't.  One of the riders had hit debris on the road & went down, dislocated her shoulder.  Fortunately, it wasn't more serious but it was a good reminder to Mike & I of how careful we have to be.

We rode through more agricultural areas today.

At one point, I saw what I thought were orange  flowers growing but it turns out they were squash blossoms on zucchini plants - so beautiful.

I think I'll appreciate farmers & farmers markets even more after this trip.

We had been dreading Harris Grade which is a 3 mile switchback road with a steep climb. Turns out, it was closed for repairs so we were sent on a detour on San Antonio Rd.  It's a wonderful little back road with little traffic but it's desperately in need of repair.  We bumped along for about 6 miles before rejoining the old historic Highway 1 & our little 'butt-skis' were hurtin'!

After a long, steady climb

we rolled into Lompoc feeling tired but very fortunate:  We were safe, the  heat & hills had been manageable, & there was a comfy bed, warm bath & cold beer just up ahead!

ps. my cold is now in my head & chest & it hurts when I cough.  I wonder do I need antibiotics?

INTO THE ARCHIVES

Blog Post #11 "Honeymoon in Europe 1979"