“Choose Happy!”—Bubba, the Bubb Road Bear
My friend and riding partner Bill and I began our 21-mile ride to Big Basin Way, making a right at Pierce Road past the notable Mountain Winery in Saratoga. We continued to the left of Garrod's Stables and Cooper Garrod-Garrod Estate Vineyards to Mt. Eden Road where we made a left and stopped at a series of red corrals to visit with some friendly & gentle horses.
We then continued down a winding road toward Steven’s Creek County Park in Cupertino. I pulled over to the side of the road to take a drink of water when I noticed a large group of cyclists coming our way on the other side of the road. I quickly got my iPhone out to take a video of a peloton (from the French word, originally meaning ‘platoon’) or a pack of riders, from which the Peloton company got its name. It is used to describe the principle of surrounding the key rider with experts who together perform faster than one individual. Back in the day, Bill used to ride in a peloton pack. While it was fun to witness this colorful spectacle, we were happy riding independently and stopping to see the sights at our leisure. After reviewing the short video, note one of the cyclists in the peloton group was smiling, happy he was being filmed.
Bill and I then continued our ride toward Stevens Creek Quarry and made a turn around Steven’s Creek Canyon Road, stopping a few times to take photos of the Steven’s Creek Reservoir along the way. As they say it was all downhill from there. The last leg of our morning ride involved stopping to see Bubba the Bubb Road Bear. Tended by a Cupertino homeowner, the carved wooden bear was garlanded with flowers and a sign that reads: “Choose Happy!”
From there we road in some quiet neighborhoods and connecting with a dirt road along railroad tracks we have frequented many times and back to our respective homes at Rinconada Hills.
