2015 ALC here we come

Today was our first, PG&E team but unofficial ALC team training ride, for the 2015 ride.  Emilia, Jan, Larry, Drew, David, & Theresa in the front.  We rode 25 miles that included a few hills.

Some Professional Face Shots

There are lots of professional photographers on the ride that, unlike other rides, share their photos for free.  Here are a few of our team members who "got shot".

David Haya

Harley Goldstrom

Erica Dedon

Mark Dedon

Owen Goldstrom

Day 7, Ventura to LA, we're done!

Day 7 is full of emotion and relief that we have made it to Los Angeles.  The ride is shorter than most days, just over 60 miles, and I know my bottom side was glad it was almost over.  We have lunch on the cliffs in Malibu, across from Pepperdine, in a lovely park.  Then we have only 16 miles to go to finish.  We ride most of the afternoon on Day 7 on the Pacific Coast Highway, overlooking the surf as we go.  When we ride into the Vets Center we are greeted by thousands of well wishers and it is very emotional.  We are all very grateful to have had the experience of AIDS/LifeCycle 2014.

Dave & Jan

John

Owen & Harley

Larry

Mark & Erica

Many of us have already registered to either ride or volunteer next year.  If you'd like to consider joining us, please contact us for more details.

Day 6, Lompoc to Ventura, Paradise Pit

Day 6 is relatively flat after the morning.  We have an interesting Cal Trans lane closure on a bridge & we ride on 101, actually on & off 101 several times, then through Santa Barbara & into Ventura on nicely paved bike trails.

Former Participants of ALC get together & provide ice cream, toppings & home baked goods to the riders in Santa Barbara at Paradise Pit.  This un-official rest stop is a favorite place for cyclists needing an extra sugar boost to carry us through the day.

At least 3 of us had large scoops of Mocha Chocolate Chip (full fat) ice cream

We end day 6 with a candle light vigil on the beach.  We walk silently in a procession, carrying candles inside paper cups.  Many people take photos of loved ones they've lost & set them in the sand by the cande

Day 5, Santa Maria to Lompoc, RED DRESS DAY

What started years ago as dress in red day, so it would look like a red ribbon going over the hills, has migrated to red dress day.  Don't think it's just the gay guys who sport red dresses, tutus & outlandish outfits, the straight guys tend to updo them.  Our very own, teammate Larry does that nicely, with a different outfit each year.

The hills on day 3 & 4 have names, but no one seems to mention, or give the hills names on day 5.  I'm not sure why, because they seem more difficult to me than the previous 2 days.  However, by day 5, you just take it all in stride, & enjoy the amazing views, as you slowly make your way up the hills.

One of the Roadies on Moto Crew asked to pose with Erica & Mark on their Red Tandem

Day 4, Paso Robles to Santa Maria

Rest stop 1 was at Jack Creek Farm & we found some other PG&Ers for a quick pose.

David, Jan, John, Harley & Owen

Emilia, Roadie at Lunch in Questa

You know you will have some uphill pedaling when the hills have names.  Day 3 we conquered Quad Buster, Day 4, the hills are nicknamed the Evil Twins.  We ride on some seldom-traveled roads and have spectacular views.  At the top of the second hill there are home baked goods and time to pose for 1/2 way to LA photos.
Mark & Erica rode a tandem bike this week.  They were one of only 2 tandems this year.  Theirs is a special one, notice the extra small wheels.

Erica, Mark & Glen

We wear our PG&E jerseys on Day 4 because Rest Stop 3 is at a PG&E facility.  The PG&E Community Center on Ontario Rd in Avila makes a great rest spot at the 61 mile mark.  John Lindsey came and took photos of us there.

John Tran, the traditional 1/2 way to LA pose

Larry at the 1/2 way spot

Erica & Mark on their special tandem

Mark & Erica

Erica & Mark, fun poses at rest stop 3, the PG&E site

Day 3: King City to Paso Robles

We woke up a little groggy, after two nights sleeping in tent city, but excited for the upcoming ride. Today we would conquer the hill affectionately known as "quad buster" and wind our way through the scenic landscape of golden California hills.  We wore our retro PG&E jerseys, from last year, and took a few groups pictures before hitting the road.

Back row:  Rick, Glen, Harley, David, Tim;  Front row:  Jan, Owen, Larry

Quad buster was early on in the ride, and proved to be a formidable, but not impossible climb. We got lots of encouragement from fellow riders and fans as we climbed and there was a small welcoming party as we reached the top. For those of us who trained in the Bay Area, we felt well prepared by the numerous hills we've been climbing for the past six months.

Jan reaching the top of Quad Buster

Rest stops are every 9 to 20 miles, sometimes in the middle of nowhere, for refueling, rehydrating, medical, sunscreen, bike tech and other applications I won't detail.

Lunch was another memorable event. We had lunch in the town of Bradley, which hosts a massive BBQ for all the riders to help raise money for their school arts program. There were lots of school children cheering us on as we arrived and taking our orders for lunch.

Harley, Owen, and family in a long line for the special Bradley Burgers

The last stop before reachig camp in Paso Robles was Rest Stop 4 at mission San Miguel. At Rest Stop 4, the volunteers put on an awesome performance, strutting their stuff on the catwalk.

John, Mark & Erica taking a break after the ride

It was another beautiful and interesting day on the AIDS LifeCycle. We all feel so fortunate to be a part of this amazing community and look forward to more adventures on Day 4!!!

The AIDS/LifeCycle riders are welcomed in many towns, but the children of Bradley go all out.

Day 2, Fields of green, Salinas to King City

Due to technical difficulties, we are posting the blog after our return.

Day 2 is our longest day, over 100 miles.  We had less than 1800' of climbing, but the roads are ag roads and very rough, they shake your body.  The winds, especially through Gonzales, slowed us down like we were on a steep grade, but the scenery is lush strawberry fields, leeks, cauliflower, artichokes and more, and some of the smells are mouth watering, and makes this day special.

David in the morning retrieving his bike from the "parking lot"

This is an un-official rest stop that is frequented by many cyclists
ordering artichokes in variations from fried to steamed or in cupcakes.
Those cyclists are part of team New Bear Republic.
They have a large team & raised over 1/2 million this year.

This water stop, in the middle of nowhere, was much appreciated.
It had homemade cookies, by the Cookie Lady, Otter Pops,
men in tutus, some twirling giant tie dye spinners, loud music
and cheerful faces to help us push through the wind.

Jan riding across bridge that goes
over the (un-official) skinny dipping spot.
This year, for the first time in 20 years,
there were leaches the riders found out
about the hard way.

Our team photo, after showers and dinner.
Jan, David, Owen, Larry (front), Cathleen,  Harley, Tim, Emilia & Vinny

Location:Santa Cruz to King City

Day 1: A Great Start

What an amazing day!!. This is my first year on the AIDS LifeCycle (ALC), and the shock of this amazing event is still sinking in.

We arrived at the cow palace between 5 and 5:30 am, heard some funny, insightful and inspirational words and were cheered on as we left the parking lot.

Jan & David, concentrating on starting the ride any minute,
for the crowded exit from the Cow Palace gates

The morning was cold, foggy (at some points you could barely see 20 feet in front of you) and windy, but we pushed on. We were well nuriahed by the roadies at all the rest stops and especially the lunch crew (who we are camping with).

The sun did come out a few times and shone brightly on the beautiful California coastline. The rest stop roadies also shone brightly in their costumes, such as Elvis, roller derby, October fest (minus the beer) and World Cup.

David, having done the ride before, knew some good photo spots

Then we were treated to some delicious food at dinner, some funy stories from the first day of the ride, and now we are trying to catch up on sleep, so we can be prepared for the long (108 mile) day tomorrow.

Thanks again to everyone who supported the PG&E Power Pedalers ad helped us raise over $53K!!! The ALC overall raised jut over $15M, which is a record amount and will truly help provide essential services and research to help end HIV/AIDS.

Have a great night!!!

Day Zero

Back row:  Tim, Rick, Glen, Erica, Harley, Owen, Mark
Front row: Larry, Jan, David

Photo of our team in street clothes.
Day zero we watch a safety video & complete our registration.  It is filled with lines and more lines, to get us ready for the week of lines.  On the ride we have lines for food, showers, toilets (guess I should say port-a-potties).  The love bubble has begun; 2300 cyclists and more than 600 volunteers, all taking care of each other, encouraging each other, in our effort to end HIV/AIDS.  We will meet Sunday at 5:30 am & ride out about 6:30, on our first leg to Santa Cruz.

East Bay riders take last training ride of the season, tapering off, only 50 miles

Harley, Owen, Jan, Larry and David, debut our new Power of Blue, PG&E jerseys.  We took our last training ride of the season, through San Ramon, Dublin, Pleasanton, Livermore and Danville.  Mostly flat, but hot and windy.

 We are ready to go 545 miles from SF to LA, starting June 1st!  Follow us on this blog.

Training ride, May 10, 2014

Owen & Jan before the decent down Calaveras Rd.

Owen & Jan at the top of Calaveres Road, just a bit past the reservoir, 1/2 way through a training ride, with 55 miles to go.  Two firsts for Owen.  His 1st Century & his 1st time to the top of Calaveres Rd.  This is just one of many training rides the team members do, to prepare for the week long 545 mile ride, that will start June 1, from SF to LA.  We were part of a group of 65 riders, all supported by volunteers.  The training rides start out at 30 miles long in January, gradually increasing to 100 milers, 3 weeks before the ride.

Training rides are under way

Training Ride Leader with David, Jan & Owen

Today we did an 85 mile training ride that took us over part of what we will ride on Day 1, June 1st.    We were in the saddle over 6 hours and counting breaks we were out training over 8 hours.  This is a typical day of training leading up the the week long June ride.  We have to get our muscles, endurance and bottom sides prepared on the weekends, since we all work during the week.  There isn't any other way to train for a 7 day ride.  We stopped at San Gregorio State beach for our lunch break.  One of the volunteer TRL's had our lunches in his car.  This is the same lunch spot we'll be at on day one, June 1st.

2014 bake sales

Thank you to All our generous supporters who donated so much at our 2 initial 2014 bake sales, one in SF at General Office, and one at the PG&E Bishop Ranch office. You helped our January fund raising a great deal. We look forward to our next sales Valentines week.

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Location:San Fran and San Ramon