Route to Pacific Beach

On May 17 I wrote that the group session had ended the day before at around 445 so I got down to the ferry as fast as possible. I had my bike. It was a taxi which was a surprise. The trip to the convention center was fast and the pilot didn't ask for my ticket. I asked a couple of companions for advice and they said my route to Pacific Beach was probably OK.

I rode to Broadway and got two tickets before checking the map. My phone was nearly dead so I photographed it. Then I headed to the airport.  I ended up following another rider halfway there. He was coming from North as we headed west. The path is really a sidewalk interupted by parking cuts. The bay side was mostly water but occasionally marinas.

The path changed near the Sheraton and then I was alone on the path. I crossed Harbor near Halsey. I took that path through the park to Roosevelt, crossed Rosecrans to Willow and Tennyson. I ended up on Voltaire and road to Ocean Beach.

I parked, put my jacket in my bike and went to Lucy’s. I talked to a local. He worked at the airport for the Navy. He repaired ancient radios for a living. He thought it was ironic. He suggested I go to Mother’s, so I did and got tacos. They were cold. I wasn't impressed. I had a near heart attack when I discovered I had left my key in my jacket. However, it was all right.

I rode to the beach for a photo and then went to Mission Bay. The path took me through crap roads and the OB bridge was not fun. I barely had time to catch the sunset on my phone before it died. I did get a photo but only after the sun went down.

I remembered Mission Beach and Pacific beach from when I visited an acquaintance in La Jolla. When I got to the main drag I went exploring but I knew I was running out of time.  I took Mission past La Jolla Blvd and found a place on Turquoise called Bar Key. Unfortunately, they were not able to charge my phone. Once I had finished my fries I took Baryl to Grand or something and got back to the beach path.

I took the same route over the San Diego River back to Ocean Beach but took Nimitz instead even though it was getting dark. I thought I wouldn't like it but it wasn't bad. The other side was also OK. On Harbor I took the sidewalk and passed the airport and made sure to be very assertive. It worked out and I got passed Broadway after the last ferry. However I went and caught the ferry from the convention center instead.

There was a lady from the conference on the boat but no bikes other than mine. I got into the room fine and spent the next hour winding down. I was asleep at 11.

In the morning of the day that I wrote this I was up at 7:30 and got a meal at the lobby but it didn't seem like the conference was really worth my while so I went back to the room.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.

Slow and Chatty

It was 915 when I headed to the ferry building and met an acquaintance around 1015. We boarded the ferry and at Sausalito went to the Bayside. The ride up Bridgeway was quick. I realized that she was slow and chatty. We took the standard route to Sycamore and took a break. I caught some air and she left for a bit. Then we went up Horsehill and checked the route up Blythedale.

She was impressed with Horsehill and Meadow Sweet. The Lakeside Drive and Miller turns were also interesting to her. We returned on Corte Madera Creek - some of which she remembered. I got pictures of us in Cal park hill tunnel and I had a beer on the ferry. Later we bumped into her friend. I said bye at Octavia and ate at Mercury.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.

Had a Dance Party

On 15 April I wrote but I was getting ready to go to East Bay bike party. I was eating a delicious meal with my friend. When I left I rode to Civic Center and had a snack. I noted that eating a lot and drinking water is the best way to do bike party. When I was settled I sat through the ride to Fremont looking at Twitter.

At the station I met the guys and one guy was crazy. There was a random sitting with us waiting to get picked up. I passed out fliers.   The ride left and I felt shitty. I knew the route and new I had had water. I told myself I would leave when I ran out of flyers.

I wasn't really riding with anyone. At some point I started handing fliers out on my bike. I gave one to an organizer and she noted that someone had given her another one. I got close to the flag several times but mostly stayed behind. Occasionally I gave a flyer away. Mostly I gave them to couples.

At the first party stop I saw one of the guys and talked with one of the riders from SJBP. I was alone for a little bit and then I found the guys. Another organizer told me not to fret on sharing so we went out and talked to people

I bumped into my an old college classmate then. I was really surprised and also happy.  However, I was less interested in hanging out. I laughed a lot though.  She introduced me to her friends - one was from Berkeley the other Marin. The party stop ended so I said goodbye.

We were on the Bayside of 880 at that point. We went through some suburban stuff. The ride slowly broke from the town though and we started passing through wetlands and industrial areas.  I noted that someone driving a Camaro head hit a rider. The guy was really angry. Other riders had caught up with the driver. I saw them at a park a little while later. I tried to suggest to other riders that we move along.

I passed out as many flyers as I could. I gave one to one of the guys. We ended up at the baylands and I estimated about 300 riders. I passed out a few more flyers. I met a woman who had come on Tweed the november before. I interacted with the guy that rides the recycle bike.

I bumped into my old classmate’s group again. We talked for a bit. I didn't feel like hanging out with the guys so I decided to tag along with her group. My last flyer went to random people.

We raced back to Warm Springs station. My old classmate was at the back the whole time. We met at the front of the station and all of us made it on board. We ended up in the back with one of the music bikes. We had a dance party. The crazy guy was the crazy person in the train. He told me no one liked me.

When we got to 12th street most of the guys had gone but my old classmate was still headed with her group to Berkeley. I saw one of the bartenders from my neighborhood on the westbound platform after I said bye to the bikers. I went to Civic Center. I ate a meal and went to bed.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.

A Bunch of Freaks

On April 1 I wrote that I texted my old college classmate, the inspector, and rode through the Haight to meet him. I broke a few laws getting to Embarcadero. I had taken McAllister and had to run some lights. I also avoided bad drivers.

My acquaintance met me at the station and then we went to the crêperie and talked about stuff before Critical Mass started. Later i introduced him to the guys. We also saw a bunch of freaks.  When the ride left it went down the Embarcadero to Mission Bay. My old classmate was impressed at AT&T Park. The Mission Bay leg was kind of boring and the return to the Ferry Building was too.

I was happy when the ride started up Mission Street. I suggested to my acquaintance that we go to Japantown. We rode up Octavia. He was really happy with Hayes Valley. We took Laguna to Post and locked our bikes up. We looked around the neighborhood and then sat down at a well regarded noodle house..

We had discussed a lot of stuff from the old days when the meal came. I was surprised that he knew so much about Japan. However, he had planned several trips there – one was coming up in a couple of months.

When the time came we got the bikes. The inspector was thrilled at the ride down Laguna and said he would fill his bikes tubes when he got home.  At the apartment my friend had just arrived and I was able to help her. I introduced her to my old classmate as we brought the bikes up. I showed him the apartment and when my friend was done we sat drinking tea talking. They talked about a lot of things. We discussed old classmates. He told us that his girlfriend was finishing her degree. I walked into the corner and then bought some stuff at the liquor store before going to bed.

This is an occasional series chronicling my life. This Notebook Analysis series is meant to be contemporaneous piece developed as an agglomeration of my notebook pages. In each of these posts I used my notes to develop my recent thoughts.