Tag: Beer

120+ miles, a group of 15 great people, sunny weather, lush farmland and shady redwood forests, a few exciting hills, the kindness of strangers, good beer, and an action-movie just-in-time finish… easily one of my favorites. Read on for a longer than usual writeup in story form, with photos and details… Back in December I’d floated the idea of an overnight ride up to Russian River Brewing Co during the two-weeks-a-year Pliny the Younger release. Interest blossomed, we hashed out logistics, and by the day of the ride we were a group of 15(!): people I’d done long rides with as well as new friends-of-friends, on loaded touring bikes and sporty road bikes, people who’ve ridden centuries and people who’ve rarely biked more than 40 miles… and even someone who hadn’t biked more than 7 or 8 miles in a stretch (I’ll admit, I was a little worried, but he was a natural). ...

Pliny the Younger, after 11 hours of biking + standing-in-line

Beer Growlers by bike. Sure, it would be easy to just carry them in panniers or mesh bags… but for the heck of it, I made some minimal webbing-and-elastic structures custom fit to Speakeasy growlers, and which clip to a rack with three-point restraint so they don’t bounce around. Started a few weeks ago, but finally found time to finish (and test!) them. People at the brewery were amused. And the coffee porter made it to a friend’s party without getting too shaken up.

I can’t make it to either of these, but in case you’re interested: Saturday: Tour De Fat Sunday: Biketoberfest Marin

Six of us rode the Alpine Dam loop today (starting from various locations– my day was about 67 miles and 6 hours riding time). It’s still one of my favorite non-overnight Bay Area rides – the stretch along Panoramic Highway and the following “seven sisters in reverse” on Ridgecrest are scenic and exhilarating. I only took a few photos: Iron Springs brewery in Fairfax. The enchiladas were fine, but most importantly, they were calories. The dark rye beer was interesting. ...

Realized yesterday I was only 40 miles from Bierbrouwerij Koningshoeven (the only Trappist beer brewing abbey not in Belgium, a.k.a. “La Trappe”)– sounded worth a route change.

As planned (and despite the Severe Weather Warning and 70% chance of thunderstorms), four of us gathered Sunday morning to get a coffee at Farley’s and bike the flat 19 miles from Potrero Hill to the bottom of the Dipsea Steps in Mill Valley: Leaving bikes there, we met a larger group of friends who’d driven up, and hiked up the Dipsea Steps and along the beautiful exposed ridges of the Sun Trail: ...

Portland: a city that gets stacks of these signs printed up. biketoberfest luckytimingme