Blowin' in the Wind

Next week is our club's big event, when we host hundreds of cyclists on a tour along some of our favorite roads. We'll be working hard then, so today we ride (and raise an alert if we see any potential problems along the way).

It was a sunny cloudy kind of day. Chilly.

Windy, too. Oh, look! It's another Aermotor.

Rolling (still green) hills, ranches, farms, suburban sprawl ... we have it all.

The wildflowers peaked a week or two ago, but this year the reservoirs along the loop are nearly full. What a welcome sight!

I am now so accustomed to low water levels, sad to say, that I thought I saw a bunch of sticks poking through the surface of Chesbro Reservoir. (Wrong! Waterfowl.)

I was motoring along with the tailwind I (finally) deserved when I was startled by loud wingbeats at close range. Not one, not two ... five turkey vultures perched near the side of the road. I made no move toward their prize—a carcass in the ditch—so they paid me little mind.

They are not the most attractive creatures ... unless you're one of them, I suppose.

A healthy 55 miles, with 2,160 feet uphill and into the wind.

I reported three patches of broken glass, which I hope will be swept away before next weekend. The biggest problem is one we can't fix: Starting last year, the Santa Clara County Board of Health got carried away. Safe food handling is not enough. Whole fruit only! (Which means: lots of waste.) Snacks must be bagged! (Which means: lots of waste.) No homemade nut breads—our signature and popular treat. (Which means: disappointed riders, and fewer of them.)