A: Sacramento's Version of Hills

Q: What is the Wind?

The only difference between a hill and a head-wind is that you can usually see the hill coming. You can plan for it. E.g.: I'm going to ride hills today. Wind is unpredictable. You can't ride around it. You can be rolling along on a flat road and BAM turns into a "hill."
Aye.
On my way home from work on Friday it was pretty nice outside, barely breezy, and so light! -- I figured I had a couple hours of sun left and thought I'd go for a ride. So I changed, geared up, and headed out, waving to the cop stationed on my street corner as I left (huh? Don't know. Hopefully nothing more than a speed-trap). As I rounded the corner out of my neighborhood, I looked up at some flags marking something or other and they were blowing straight out. So what? Well -- it takes about 20 mph winds to make a flag stand straight out.
I was in for some Sacramento hills.

Here are some photos from my recent after-work rides (I'm digging the DST).
I guess this photo didn't really come out -- but if you left in the left lane you'll see, not a car, but a tractor coming toward me. Maybe next time I'll wait for it to get closer.



Wednesday evening I left a little later than I meant to (indecisive), and cut over from the levee road to the River Road via Babel Slough. Turned left and saw all the pretty horses.

I found out the next day that the horses belong to some women in my a.m. classes. Kind of a small world out here in the country.
The there was a sign that said if I go right, I'd turn on Pump House Rd and if stayed straight-ish, I'd be on Babel Slough. I knew Babel Slough went all the way through to the River Road, so I stayed on the road. After less than half a mile, the pavement ran out.
Here's where the sidewalk ends.

So I turned around and went back to the sign, read the street signs again -- apparently it had turned so it was marking the roads wrong (I guess). Gravel roads are not good for skinny tires.

A couple of shots from the road:



Friday evening, after fighting with the wind for 15 miles, that is, fighting to maintain about 15 mph while riding into 15-20 mph headwinds, I turned left on Willow Point and suddenly was cruising at 18-20mph. The wind wasn't exactly at my back, but it also wasn't coming straight at me. Then I saw this, an oasis in the distance:

Recognize it? That's the Sugar Mill! I didn't stop by. Not because I didn't want to, but because it was closed.
Heading back, it was smooth sailing for part of the time, really bumpy for other parts, and then my left wrist started experiencing searing pain. I think it was the nature of the road and . . . something else. Felt like nerve pain. I guess we'll see if it happens tomorrow and go from there.
Here's a little welcome-back-to-town
And on the bridge on the cusp of coming back to town, some of my favorite graffiti around:

That's right.