Davis to Folsom by Reno Wheelmen's Prez

Mike with Mayor Linda Budge and Sacramento County Supervisor Don Notolli

Originally, I had signed up to ride the NBG ride from Folsom to Reno.
Saturday night I was still in Reno with no idea how I was going to get to
Folsom for the start. Fortunately, things just always seem to fall in
place, and a fellow cyclist's mother was heading back to Sacramento on
Sunday night, and offered a ride and a place to stay (and later breakfast as
well). Surely a sign of good things to come.

Since I was in Sacramento early, I decided to go to Davis and join the
festivities there as well. The next morning I left Sacramento and rode a
quick 25 miles to downtown Davis. I was pleased to be passed by several
cyclists commuting to work along the Yolo Causeway. A beautiful bike path
along the causeway makes this easy. Davis claims to be the #1 biking city
in America, and certainly lives up to this claim. Virtually every road was
bike friendly, and there were people riding everywhere.

We had a great meeting with Mayor Ruth Asmundson and others. I had never
seen so many high-wheelers, and it was a real spectacle watching them. I
also met Patrick, riding his unicycle. What an inspiration, although I
might think him a bit crazy to undertake this adventure. Time will tell.
After the group left Davis, I waited along with Patrick and Jack Martin for
Don Loomis to arrive. Don had been in Rio Vista the night before, and had
to battle some pretty tough headwinds to get to Davis. After a short while,
we spot this white blur. At first we thought it might be the bicycling
angel, but in the end, it turned out to be Don, wearing a bright white suit,
and looking like a lab worker from a cleanroom somewhere. We exchanged
hellos, and we were on our way to Sacramento to meet the mayor there.

As we neared Sacramento, I asked Jacque Graber(a truly amazing high-wheeling
enthusiast) about our next meeting with the Mayor of Rancho Cordova. It was
now 11:30, and we were slightly late to meet the mayor of Sacramento. But
we were scheduled to meet the Mayor of Rancho Cordova at 12:30, and that was
another 25 miles up the road. It didn't seem right to stand up the Mayor,
so I decided to race ahead and at least let her know the status of the other
riders.

I was about 10 minutes late in meeting Mayor Linda Budge, who had waited
patiently for us along with County Supervisor Don Nottoli. I had a great
time chatting with them, and we did a little presentation so as to get Don
involved since he was unable to return later when the main group arrived.
Mayor Linda Budge returned later, and from the pictures, it looks like it
was a great event.

After waiting around for a while, I was able to contact the Mayor's office
in Folsom (with help from Linda) to make them aware that we would be 2 to 3
hours late to our 2 pm appointment. Unfortunately, Mayor Steve Miklos was
unavailable for later, so I rode ahead once more to meet with him per the
original schedule. I arrived a few minutes early, and a little later, along
came Jack Martin, who had obviously ridden pretty hard to get there on time.
We had a little ceremony, spent some time looking over maps and talking
about the city's cycling vision, and then Steve had to leave. I dipped my
head in the river, which was unbelievably refreshing, given the 100 degree
temperature, and then waited until about 4:30. At that point I had to leave
in order to make my next stop in Pollock Pines before dark. There were some
pretty nice side roads that avoided hiway 50, and Green Valley Rd, which I
had been told was to be avoided, turned out to be a decent route to
Placerville, with only occasional narrow shoulders. The traffic was
moderately heavy there, but it was also rush hour, so it was to be expected.
Since I ride so much in the city, most of the traffic and narrow shoulders
didn't really bother me, but if I had a 200 lb rig like Don, I would be a
bit more concerned.

From Placerville, Carson Road would parallel the freeway up to Pollock
Pines. The route started to get hilly, but this stretch winds through the
famous Apple Hill area, so there's plenty of great scenery to keep you eyes
busy. From Pollock Pines, I decended Sly Park Road to spend the night with
some friends and get some much needed rest. After 122 miles and 13 hours in
the saddle, a cool shower, and a great dinner, I was out.

Postscript:
Sadly, from Old Town Sacramento on I was to spend no more time with the rest
of the group. Everything about the ride was great, but I would love to have
spent more time with all the great folks that showed up for the event.
Thank you Martin for the inspiration and your seemingly endless supply of
energy! You made this happen!!

I felt bad leaving Don and Patrick behind, but I had to be back for work on
Wednesday, so I couldn't wait. Both of these guys showed a lot of spirit,
and a great attitude. I just wish I had time to do the whole trip with
them. Maybe next year!!

Hats off to all of you, and thanks for the great riding!!

Mike Damon
President, Reno Wheelmen
spokebloke@charter.net

Please visit our website at: http://www.renowheelmen.org