“Cycling side effects may include sweating, euphoria, freedom, and general awesomeness.” —author unknown
Our daughter Michelle, Kyle, and our granddaughter Lyla returned from a two-week vacation in Del Mar, a beach city in San Diego County late Friday evening, and spent the night. Thanks to the generosity of my biking friend and neighbor, Bill Rothenberg, who lent Kyle one of his bikes and helmet we were able to embark on another biking adventure together. The three of us have ridden together twice before. We began with a pit stop at Starbucks for iced coffee-to-go in downtown Saratoga, made our way to the front of Villa Montalvo, once the grand estate of Senator James Phelan that was built in 1912, now operated by the Montalvo Art Center where we took a selfie together. We then made our way from Saratoga-Los Gatos Road over quiet little neighborhood roads to the top of Overlook Drive. We entered an open meadow with spectacular views of the valley. Kyle, an avid hardcore rider who owns a standard racing bike, had his first taste of riding an electric pedal-assist bike in higher elevations. After two and a half hours of riding, we headed home, but not before stopping in front of our former family home in Saratoga. I bumped into my former neighbor who runs a software company here and abroad. Bill took a photo of Kyle and me in front of the home we lived in for over 34 years before downsizing five years ago to a townhouse in Rinconada Hills. I met a fellow bike rider on our way home, and he joked that I was making him work hard to keep up as he had a standard riding bike. He was with his adult kids who were lagging behind him.
After arriving home, I went to the Farmer’s Market for steak and veggie burritos and vegetable crepes to go and a half-gallon of fresh-squeezed orange juice and had lunch with the family. Later in the day as the temperature surged we took Lyla for a swim in the pool, before they returned home to their home in Redwood City.
Today, Bill and I rode our bikes several miles along the railroad tracks and up some very steep inclines to and within Stevens Creek County Park. Before entering the park we rode up a steep hill as the temperatures soared to hundred degrees and hit a dead end. I struggled to get to the top, had to stop to catch my breath. On the way down we serendipitously ran into the same bicyclist I had met near our former home the other day who had recognized me. We chatted and he told us that his father who is 85 rides his bike in these parts. That was all the inspiration I needed that God willing I will be able to continue to ride for many years to come.
Before we entered Stevens Creek County Park, he also informed Bill and I that the hill we just climbed at the end of the cul-de-sac, is the home of Pro Football Hall of Famer, Ronnie Lott who played for the San Francisco 49ers and San Jose mayor, Sam Liccardo, whose San Jose home was vandalized with graffiti recently by protestors, protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
With temperatures spiking to 102, seven degrees lower than what would wind up being the high for the day, I was ready for a mid-afternoon swim. The pool in our gated community never looked so good.
