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Tri-Valley Moto's Sunday Shop Rides

Shop Ride - First Sunday of every month
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Destination: Gazos Creek Grill/Hwy 1.
Departure: 9:00am from CALmoto

Sunday Ride Protocols

Ride notes: This is an informal ride, and as always, remember that this is a social ride; your safety and the safety of your fellow riders is paramount. As a reminder here are some basic group ride protocols which you may also find useful for your own rides.

Safe speed: The safe speed for road conditions will differ from rider to rider. You are responsible to pick a pace that is comfortable and within your ability. There will be plenty of opportunities to regroup. Never ride beyond your limits in an attempt to keep up with another rider!

Safe distance: Do not follow closely; leave a safe distance between you and the next rider. It is especially important to avoid following closely on secondary roads where you can't see around the next corner and circumstances can change without warning. Passing: If you must ride faster than the rider in front of you, put your blinker on and pass. If you see a rider behind you preparing to pass, move over. There is little point to passing when riding in a group, however. We all get there about the same time...

Lane discipline: Never cross the double yellow line! Always stay in your lane, and pick your line accordingly.

Passing: If you are prepared to ride faster than the rider in front, put your blinker on and pass. If you see a rider behind you preparing to pass, move over and give plenty of room. Don't speed up!

Stopping: If the group stops, pull off the road completely. When the group starts, be sure to look over your shoulder for approaching traffic before you pull out after the person in front of you. Don't assume it is clear just because they pulled out...

Breakdowns: The sweeps and riding friends may stop and provide assistance. It is not safe for then entire group to stop for one rider unless there is plenty of room to pull off the road.

Taking off early: It is fine to head home early, but it is appreciated if you let the others in the group or the sweeps know so we don't wait around or go looking for you.

Welcome friends, to the November 2nd shop ride. This will be a ride suitable for intermediate and experienced riders, on paved roads only. Some of the roads are very tight, with rough pavement and leaves, but take it slow and you should have no problems. This is a rain-or-shine ride, we are going no matter how bad the weather is! Be prepared for rain and cold along the coast.

Our route will be north on Middlefield from California BMW Triumph to Charleston which turns into Arastradero, left on Charleston to Page Mill, right on Arastradero just after the 280 stop sign, then on Alpine/Portola Valley/84/to Kings Mountain Road.

Kings Mountain Road crosses 35/Skyline and turns into Tunitas Creek Road. This road is bumpy, tight and requires caution, especially if it is raining. Nevertheless, we're taking it all the way to Hwy 1.

We'll follow Hwy 1 to Old Stage Road, just before San Gregorio. We'll stop at the San Gregorio General Store to have a coffee and collect everyone. Then we'll take Old Stage Road all the way to Pescadero. From Pescadero we'll take Hwy 1 to the Gazos Grill for something to eat. If the group is large we'll have to split up, and some people will have to eat at Duarte's, back in Pescadero. From the Gazos Grill we'll take Gazos Creek Road back to Pescadero, and then up the Pescadero/ La Honda road as far as Alpine Road. We'll go up Alpine, cross Skyline (35) and take Page Mill Road all the way back to 280 and home. I want to reiterate: these roads are tight, narrow and bumpy. They are great training roads but they are NOT fast and we don't want anybody blasting down Tunitas Creek, for example. These roads will make you a better rider, but you must exercise extreme caution.

Departure time is 9:00am from California BMW Triumph (We will not be making a stop at Tri-Valley Moto this month), coffee will be ready by 8:30. Be gassed up and ready to leave by 9:00am sharp. We'll have a short rider/safety meeting at 8:50. I want to earnestly request that all riders ride within your comfort zones. Stay within the safe limits of your riding ability, and work on being the smoothest rider on the ride, not the fastest. True riding skill is built on a sense of smoothness, control and a sense of line, not in trying to go fast. Practice performing the smoothest possible upshifts and downshifts by good throttle control and matching engine and road speed, and experiment with slight changes in body position and weight transfer to help control the bike in the corners. For this Sunday's ride we are going to set an easy pace, and anyone who exceeds that pace and passes the leader is on his or her own.

Don't forget that daylight savings time ends at midnight before the ride, so set your clocks back one hour to Pacific Standard Time.

I hope you can join us. Have fun and be safe! E-mail me or call (650.966.1183 ext.3) if you have any questions or concerns.

Ride Safely! ...and, all brands are welcome, of course...

Kari Prager

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