Throttle Therapy - Vernal Equinox Edition

We had three days of intensive throttle therapy this past weekend. It was very beneficial to us, so why not share some pics.

Starting out Friday morning, waiting at the start. First overnight trip on the new bike.


Heading down to the central coast for a weekend of riding, it would have been a shocking waste to bypass Gizdich, the classic pie ride destination.




Our route down to Gizdich was to slab it to about Coyote, then jump off 101 to find our way to Uvas Road. I had forgotten how nice the surface is right now. Ride it this year! We headed over Hecker Pass to get to Gizdich, and were hardly held up at all.

From Gizdich we made our way to Hwy 1, then cut inland towards Laguna Seca before heading over Laureles Grade to Carmel Valley, then it was out Carmel Valley Road where we stopped for a little roadside repast of salmon and brie on bagels. Yum!



Then it was on to Greenfield and 101, then out to Lockwood, past Lake San Antonio and Lake Nacimiento. Then we hit a few of the treasures on the west side of Paso Robles, Adelaida, Vineyard, and best of all, Peachy Canyon! No photos, but plenty of video. I haven't had time to even review it, much less edit it, so stay tuned for that.

By this time we had burned a lot of daylight, and decided to skip the last leg of the day out to Rossi's Driveway, and planned to hit it first thing Saturday morning. We then headed straight for the Airbnb for cooking, eating, and conversation. The view off the deck.

THE pie stop!!

Saturday

The forecast for Saturday wasn't all that promising, with a passing cold front and rain on offer. No worries.

From our house in Morro Bay we hit Hwy 41 all the way to Creston. Hitting Rossi's first thing in the morning is a great way to clear the cobwebs! This was the first of three rides on Rossi's this weekend - two downhill, one uphill Yeah, I'm the guy who thinks riding it downhill is more fun! Most of this is also in video, but here are a couple of shots at the junction with 58.



Plus a couple more inviting shots of 58.





We accepted the invitation from westbound 58 to get us back to Santa Margarita and southbound 101. The next delicacy on the menu was Tepusquet. I was a little put off by the number of skidmarks left by drifters (I've lost two riding friends to being taken out by drifters), and soon we saw more cars than I think I've ever seen on Tepusquet. Some were competent. One in particular was not. He met at a corner that was a left for me where he was taking his half out of the middle of the road. Closest call since my encounter with DIVINEZ (look it up). Most of this road is also in video, but here's a pick for your reference.



From Tepusquet we took Foxen Canyon into Los Olivos. Los Olivos was hopping on a rainy Saturday. I've never seen so many people there. I'm guessing there is a lot of pent up demand for little vacations. While messing about looking for gas, we passed a bakery in a suburb(!) of Los Olivos called Ballard. The bakery is called Well Bread, and it did not disappoint. We had lunch and picked up ingredients for dinner and breakfast. This little treat comprised of croissant pastry, asparagus, and ricotta cheese, and a bunch of seeds caught my attention. It definitely did not disappoint. Check it out.



After lunch we went looking for the sky. Yep, the legendary Camino Cielo. The last couple of times I've tried to ride it, parts of it have been closed, but Saturday the whole east side was open! arty Lots of video of this as well, including the cyclist we encountered who was climbing like a mad man! Seriously, the strongest climber I recall seeing outside of the pro peloton. We stopped near the top to get some shots looking down on Santa Barbara and Goleta. Just a stunning bit of riding. It's a good day when you're looking down at the clouds.







We were having a great time on our bikes! Steve is loving his 790, probably the best modern equivalent of the legendary RD350. The Goose is definitely idiosyncratic, but when I began to figure out how to ride it, it just came to life. I wasn't sure before this weekend, but I am now. What a bike!



We then wound our way down into Santa Barbara before making our way back to 154 to go back up to the Santa Ynez Valley to backtrack up Foxen and Tepusquet. No drama on the second pass running south to north.

Daylight was getting away from us, so we headed back to 101 to SLO to pick up 1 to Morro Bay and a feast of Mexican food.

(to be continued)

awesomeness ...

looking forward to the to-be-continued!

Sunday

The morning arrived with the air scrubbed clean and the hillsides glistening from Saturday's rain. Time for some fun. After breakfast and packing up, we hit the road to work our way back to the Bay Area.



Since we had to skip riding Rossi's a second time yesterday, our first intended stop was Creston so that we could ride down the driveway, then back up it again. However, the trip had other plans. In many of the classical hero's journey stories there has been a dragon, whether it was the one slain by St. George, or Smaug in The Hobbit. On our way to Creston we were ambushed by a whole pack of them.

They were laying in wait.



This guy had just devoured a surfer and was STILL hungry!



Fortunately, the bikes were fast enough to get away, even from the velociraptor!

Sunday was a day of repeats, riding old friends, and even discovering a new-to-me road. After the out and back on Rossi's, we headed back to Vineyard Road and Adelaida on the west side of Paso, then headed in the direction of Lake Nacimiento before turning off on San Marcos Road to get to San Miguel. San Marcos has a couple of outstanding features that would make it super fun on a motard or dualsport. It has a couple of big, paved drainage channels. I didn't hit them hard enough to get the Goose up in the air, but the possibility is definitely there. You're welcome.

Filling up in San Miguel, we headed up towards our old friend Indian Valley - Peachtree to connect with the bottom of 25. The monsters of the day weren't done with us yet. As if it wasn't bad enough to be ambushed by dragons, next we got chased by a landshark!



Good thing the Goose turned out to be faster than I had expected!

During the time he's had the 790, Steve has upgraded the suspension significantly, and the roads we were riding gave him plenty of opportunity to dial in the action. The Goose loved the rough roads, so we were happy campers.

The next stop was to marvel at some of the geography of California, featuring moving soil and lots of erosion, but first, I'm lichen this rock.



This tree shows us what it means to live on the edge.



If you've ridden 25, you know it's a hoot, even when the red mist descends dealing with traffic. We customarily get off of 25 before Paicines to ride Cienega up past Hollister Hills. It's a fun - if very bumpy - road, and it did not disappoint. We customarily stop on this part of the route to review how far we've come and how much fun we've had before we finish up the twisties and slab it home.

Your two guides appear to have enjoyed themselves!



Come with us next time. It's a journey you won't forget.

^^^^
Yes, I like where this is going.

That all looks / sounds like fun.

Yay!

Nothing like railing 41 into A-town for breakfast, then spend a couple of hours running 229 back & forth.

I'm planning to stay for the winter again in Morro Bay next year,
hopefully I won't get mandated again, , ,

I am lichen the smiles on those two veteran pilots!!

Always appreciate humor in a ride report!

Thanks, folks! It was a great weekend. Join us next time.

BTW, we averaged about 300 miles / day. Not bad considering how much of it was on twisty roads.

That was all sorts of a feel good vibe, ride report, thanks for taking us along. I've yet to ride Tepequest or Camino Cielo, but those two roads have been on my list for awhile.

budman said:

I am lichen the smiles on those two veteran pilots!!

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That lichen bit, I'm stealing that. I can't wait to find a lichen rock with the SO

matty said:

That was all sorts of a feel good vibe, ride report, thanks for taking us along. I've yet to ride Tepequest or Camino Cielo, but those two roads have been on my list for awhile.

Click to expand...

Check them out. You won't regret it.

Nice ride report!

bojangle said:

Nice ride report!

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Thank you!

Also, I posted a review of the V85TT, for those who are interested.