Longest ride yet! Beat the record set with the Thanksgiving Ride. Rode out at noon from San Jose to Los Gatos. I experienced some problems early on similar to this one. However, I fixed it by clearing the carburetor (I loosened two screws in the carburetor to let out its contents). After a short lunch at a local Costco, the motorcycle was good to go.
From Los Gatos, I took the winding roads that go through the mountain ranges to Watsonville, CA: Big Basin Way, Skyline Blvd, Summit Rd, Highland Way, Eureka Canyon Road, and Corralitos Rd. Here’s the path I took.
In Watsonville, I went straight to the beach to see the Pacific Ocean. Here are some pics from the ride.
It was already dark by the time I rode back to San Jose. I took the Hecker Pass Road through the mountains. It was a difficult ride because the headlights from the oncoming traffic were too bright. Once I got to Gilroy, I took Santa Teresa Blvd thinking that it go straight into San Jose. I got lost for a while until I found Monterey Road. I had dinner (a burger, fries, and a drink for $2.50) at Sno-White Drive-In in Morgan Hill. Here’s the path I took.
Went to my friend Helen’s house for Thanksgiving. She lives in Oakland, CA about 55 miles from where I live. It took me 2 hours to get to her house because I only took side streets to avoid the freeway. Here’s the path I took to get there.
So full from turkey, stuffing, gravy, and dessert, I started riding home at 10pm. I didn’t get home until 12:30am because I got lost after getting to a freeway and exiting immediately. I also changed routes to avoid traffic on N Capitol Ave. Here is my circuitous path back to San Jose.
This is the longest ride I’ve done in one day. Started at 6020 miles and ended at 6153 miles: 133 miles!
One of the observatories on the Copernicus Peak of Mt. Hamilton.
Rode up Hamilton Road to the Lick Observatory. The Lick Observatory is on Copernicus Peak, the highest point near San Jose (4360 ft). This is the path I took.
Hamilton Road has some scary sections. Very tight turns with high dropoffs, turns with loose rock, narrow roads with oncoming traffic, and bumpy pavement. I felt vertigo in some parts and thought I won’t make it up. Here are some pics from the trip.
I got lost on my way to lunch at Costco; the intersection between Capitol Expressway and S Capitol Ave was confusing.
Rode a lot today (56 miles). This is the farthest north that I have taken the motorcycle. Here’s my riding path:
- Worked at IBM Almaden Research.
- Volunteered as a judge in a science fair at Latino College Preparatory Academy.
- Went to a friend’s housewarming and birthday potluck in Mountain View.
- Back home in South San Jose.
View of Guadalupe Reservoir
Rode around the mountains near San Jose and saw the reservoirs along the way. Here’s the path I took. The reservoirs I saw (in order) were:
- Uvas Reservoir
- Chesbro Reservoir
- Calero Reservoir
- Almaden Reservoir
- Guadalupe Reservoir
Check out the pictures of the ride.
After the ride, I stopped by Target to get wine for an Iron Chef Cook with Zoe’s friends.
I logged about 100 miles this day. Whew!
Went to the Caltrain Diridon station to catch the train to San Francisco. The weather was quite gray. I saw Helen and Mark at the Ferry Building and we saw the mushroom festival.
When I arrived at 7pm, the weather had turned into rain. I waited until the rain subsided to drizzle and braved the wet road so I can get home. However, I had difficulty riding because I couldn’t see through my helmet. After a mile of riding, I decided to stop by a Wendy’s. As I parked, the motorcycle lurched forward and died as I lowered the gears to first. I found that the clutch cable had snapped. Oh snap!
I left the motorcycle in the Wendy’s parking lot and took the bus home :(
Went to brunch at Southern Kitchen in Los Gatos, CA with Ferleine, Shenna, and Ryan. I had grits and pork chop! After brunch, we had a photo shoot around the motorcycle.
We also went to Vasona Reservoir, Tapioca Express in San Jose (Snell & Blossom Hill), and Santa Teresa County Park. This is the farthest I have ridden the motorcycle (28 miles).
Unfortunately, while riding up the hill to the park, my motorcycle experienced some problems. The speed would not go above 30 miles per hour, even when I rolled the throttle completely. I assumed that it may have overheated or did not have enough fuel, so I let the motorcycle rest for half an hour and fueled it up on my way home.
