Saturday A Ride: 8am choose your own adventure

It’s been a looooong time since the Saturday ride went up Bohlman, so no better time than a crisp fall morning to do it. We will start by going down foothill and through Stevens Creek Reservoir, stopping for water/bathrooms just before hopping over Mt. Eden and going down into Saratoga. If the group is up for it, we may choose to go up Redwood Gulch instead to get more Highway 9 descending time. Our time in Saratoga will be short, as we will immediately climb up Bolhman, with an optional On Orbit detour for the extra brave. A short gravel section will follow to connect us to the stunning Montevina descent. People tend to have no issues road biking this, but since gravel is now my personality I am bringing my gravel bike. We will then scoot around Lexington reservoir and climb the beautiful Old Santa Cruz highway and descend Bear Creek to get back to another brief gravel section connecting us to Los Gatos for a water/bathroom stop, and coffee/pastries if the group so desires before a lovely foothill paceline back home. Looking forward to exploring some new roads with you all! Please note the 8am meet time :)

Strava: https://www.strava.com/routes/3398526226863930744

Summary: ~68 miles/6.4k feet

Start: Summit Bikes Palo Alto

Time: Meet 8am, leave 8:10am, 9/6/25

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Wil Gibb

Saturday A Ride- Big Basin + Shake Shack

Saturday looks like better weather than the last big basin ride- so we’ll try take two on this. We’ll regroup at the top of page mill and bear creek, and probably take a quick stop in Boulder Creek. Additional water stops can be the fire station at Saratoga and Castle rock if needed. After the loop, we’ll descend 84 and head to Shake Shack. Pace is a somewhat arbitrary 3.5W/kg because that’s what everyone says for this ride, but lets keep it together on the flats/rollers.

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3396387280076036414

Summary: Foothill, Stevens Canyon, Highway 9, Skyline, Bear Creek, Big Basin Way, 236, 9, Skyline, Page

Start: Summit Bikes Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Steph Hart

Saturday A Ride 8/23 - Native Sons and Purisima Creek

Hello friends, this week we’re exploring some roads I bet most of you have never been on: Star Hill Rd (as far down as we can go) and Native Sons Rd. Brief history lesson: the Native Sons of the Golden West, an old ‘fraternal organization’ which actually first coined the term “The Golden State”, has a somewhat racist past. (From Wikipedia) In 1920 their president wrote that “California was given by God to a white people, and with God’s strength we want to keep it as He gave it to us.” Furthermore, “The Native Sons openly opposed Chinese, Mexican, and Japanese immigration and waged an unsuccessful legal battle for Japanese-Americans to be disenfranchised during World War II”. So anyway, with God’s strength I’m going to climb up Kings Mountain and pedal my Chinese ass right to their doorstep 😂

After Kings we’re doing those two out-and-backs before descending Tunitas to Lobitos/Higgins to Half Moon Bay. We’ll enjoy some coffee and snacks there (and maybe a big sandwich? Haha just kidding… unless….?) before climbing back up to Skyline via Purisima Creek (yes it is dirt but in theory it should be very smooth and road bikeable) and then descending down to 84 for WOLH. There doesn’t seem to be an abundance of water fountains on this route aside from HMB but it shouldn’t be too hot and we can refill at sky londa before going down 84.

I hope you will come offer me some protection against the Native Sons!

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3389693898329498506 - 82 mi / 9,200 ft

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto. Meet 9:00 AM, Roll 9:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Richard Red

AVA-E 8/16 Big Basin

Hi all,

We’ll be riding the classic big basin loop for Saturday’s A ride.

Water at Jamison Creek and Castle Rock. Regroup at top of Page Mill, Jamison Creek, Big Basin, Skyline climb, Castle Rock. 3-3.5W, no drop on flats and rollers. Split at intersection to continue down Skyline or down HWY 9 depending on where you live and how you want to get back. I will be going down HWY 9.

Meet at Summit Bicylces 9:00am, roll out 9:05am.

Remember to sign the waiver for non-members. Hope to see you all there!

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3391547923162796754

Rachel

Alto Velo Sunday A Ride 8/10/2025 - OLH - Tunitas - San Carlos Hills?

Come on down this Sunday for a classic Old La Honda to Tunitas A Ride. Do we ride OLH and Tunitas a lot? Yeah we do. But you know what, people would kill for roads like these. SO WE'RE DOING IT OKKK??

After ascending Tunitas, we will come down skyline north to 92 east. Then, we’ll bop and weave through the all-to-underrated hills of San Carlos.

We can stop at trading post if needed. We will definitely stop at bike hut. Pace is whatever your heart desires on the climbs and “ohana means family” everywhere else. Hope to see you Sunday! Brad

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3389052121764649978

Summary: 70 miles / 6700ft climbing

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 8:00 AM, Leave 8:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Brad Lovegren

Saturday A - 8-9 A (for Adventure) Ride to the North - Part 2

Part 2 - 86 Miles + 8600 ft of climbing + Mt Tam = Perfect
The plan is to meet at Arsicault Bakery in San Francisco by 8:30, get in line, and get a pastry and roll by 9:10. This should give you all plenty of time to park and have a pastry before we roll.
This is the route:
https://www.strava.com/routes/3388560060279656210
Cafe/Lunch stops in Olema and Fairfax.
I’m excited! Get excited!
Yay Bikes!

Sunday A Ride - 8/3 Half Moon Bay

Route for Sunday A ride will go to Half Moon Bay via Kings and then meander down the coastal canyons to come back via 84 and Page Mill. I plan to ride endurance pace, maybe into tempo on the climbs but everyone is welcome to push however hard they would like on the two main climbs and we can regroup at the top. Water stops in Half Moon Bay and at the Bike Hut

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3386462238244538174

Summary: 71 miles / 7,200 feet: Summit Bicycles > Sand Hill > Whiskey Hill > Kings > Skyline > 92 > HMB > Higgins Canyon > Purisma Creek > Lobitos > Tunitas Creek > Hwy 1 > Stage > 84 > Alpine > Page Mill > Summit

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 8:00 AM, Leave 8:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Jon Wells

Saturday A - 8-2 A (for Adventure) Ride to the North - Part 1

This ride will be led by Bernardo.
The plan is to meet at Arsicault Bakery in San Francisco at 8 a.m. and roll by 8:30. This should give you all plenty of time to park and have a pastry before we roll.
This is the route:
https://www.strava.com/routes/3385117869377500834
*Note that the goal will be to complete the double metric century, or the mileage of most days in the TDF, which they have to repeat 21 times. However, I am only asking for one day, so it's no problem.
Lunch will be at a burrito shop in Petaluma.
Maybe two cafe stops. Olema/Fairfax - Additional cafe stops may be available upon request.
I’m excited! Get excited!

**Also Note that this route follows a long part of the Marin Century Route that starts at six which is uncivilized!

Yay Bikes!

Sunday A -ride 7-27 Big Basin & Zayante

This Sunday the A ride is going to Big Basin and Zayante.

Pace:

You can go do your workouts on Highway 9 and Zayante climbs but please stay with group on all other segments/rollers/short climbs ( expecting 2.5-3 W/kg everywhere else). We will have a 20 min food stop in Felton, and water stops in Steven Canyon and Castle rock. Plan accordingly for food/water.

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3383862347082158646

Summary: 91 miles / 9,000 feet: Summit Bicycles > Foothill > Stevens Canyon> RWG > Hwy 9 > BC > Felton > Zayante > Skyline > Castle rock > 35 > Page > Summit

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 8 a.m., Leave 8:10 a.m.

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules

Ride Leader: Hoss Hayati

Saturday A-ride 7/26 - Mt. Umunhum and Shake Shack

Hi all,

I’m inspired by the latest mountain stages at the tour and built up an appetite for a ride with some tough climbing. So this week we will climb up Mt. Umunhum! It looks like the weather is good for it too, as it won’t be too hot. Since it is also our monthly Shake Shack ride, you can have that in your mind as you go up those steep grades :)

We will have a couple water stops along the way: Skyline fire station, Los Gatos trail (make sure to fill up here, as there is a good way and a mountain before the next water), New Almaden and somewhere in Los Gatos/Saratoga on the way back.

I’m aiming for a steady 3-3.5w/kg but feel free to go as hard as you want on the climbs — otherwise, we will keep the group together.

Regroups:

• Top of page

• Fire station

• Saratoga after descending 9

• Top of Mt. Um

• New Almaden water stop

Route:

https://www.strava.com/routes/3383858703146554934

Start: Summit Bikes Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Nico Perez

Saturday A-ride 7/19 - Pacifica to Tunitas

Hi all,

I figure most of you are sick of climbing after all the hills of Pescadero Road Race (thank you volunteers and congrats to all the racers!), but its the last weekend of the Bike Hut Classic and some of us have been out of town since the start of July and need to squeeze one effort in before the deadline (me). As such we will take the flat route through Pacifica and down HWY1 to the base of Tunitas. It should be a fast day for Tunitas as well with a 5-10 mph wind from the west.

Our stops will be at Devil’s Slide just after Pacifica and at the Bike Hut before we start climbing Tunitas

-Hannon

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3381026160334033062

Summary: 76miles /5800ft Sand Hill, Whisky, Canada, Sharp Park, Hwy 1, Devils Slide, Hwy 1, Hwy 1, Tunitas, Kings, Home

Start: Summit Bikes Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Hannon

Sunday A Ride 7/6 – Pescadero Loop and Tunitas

Hello cycling people,

Next weekend is Pescadero Road Coastal Classic! If you haven’t signed up yet, do so here! Tomorrow’s A Ride will be an opportunity to familiarize yourself with every climb, turn, and crack on the course. We’ll take Old La Honda and 84 through the mountains, and then complete 1.5 laps of the 28 mile Pescadero loop. Then we’ll continue north up to Tunitas where everybody can smash as hard as they’d like for the Bike Hut Classic. We’ll stop for water at Skylonda, stop for coffee the second time we pass Loma Mar, and then top up bottles at the Bike Hut before climbing Tunitas (or you can dump your water if you’re going for a PR).

We’ll be doing endurance on the flats and tempo on the climbs, with regroups at the top of significant climbs. I’ll make sure everybody stays together for the Pescadero loops, and then I expect to be mega dropped myself going up Tunitas.

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3375260308892238592

Summary: Old La Honda, 84, Haskins, Stage, 84, Haskins, Stage, HW1, Tunitas, Kings

Start: Summit Bicycles Palo Alto

Time: Meet at 8:00AM, roll at 8:10AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules

Ride Leader: David Domonoske

Saturday A-ride 7/5 - Bike Hut Classic

Hi all,

In this week’s A Endurance ride we will follow suit with the other rides and also go for the Bike Hut Classic segment, so make sure you have signed up.

We will head out on Foothill towards Stevens Creek and eventually go up Highway 9. I will keep a steady endurance (3 w/kg) pace throughout the climb but feel to go as hard as you wish. Do save some energy for the Tunitas effort though, as this is a long ride. 

Then, we will go along Skyline and descend west alpine. We will quickly regroup at the turn off to Haskins and go towards Pescadero, where we will make a coffee stop to refuel for the rest of the ride.

After the coffee stop, we will ride through Stage and go for the Bike Hut segment! Lastly, we will regroup at the top and go down Kings.

See you there!

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3373495690344445822 

Summary: 82 miles / 8,400 feet: Summit Bicycles > Foothill > Stevens Canyon > Highway 9 > Skyline > West Alpine > Haskins > Pescadero > Stage > Tunitas > Kings > Summit Bicycles

Start: Summit Bikes Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Nico Perez

Saturday A Ride 6/28 - Haskins Both Ways

Hello riders, I have been yearning for the beautiful scenery and vibes on Pescadero Creek Rd so this week we’re gonna take it both to and from Pescadero to enjoy the cooler temperatures on the coast. 3 - 3.5 w/kg depending on how people are feeling. Regroups at Sky Londa, top of Haskins on the way down, bottom of Haskins on the way up, and top of West Alpine (also don’t forget the mandatory snack/coffee stop in Pescadero). Then we descend Page Mill and go straight to Shake Shack where you will receive 1 (one) FREE milkshake or drink of your choice for your hard work!!!

As we’re riding part of the beautiful course of the Pescadero Road Race, please remember that we still need more course marshals and registration personnel. If you’re not racing please consider signing up to volunteer - it’s a huge team effort to host an event like this and your help is greatly appreciated. There will also be a volunteers ride for us after the race! Volunteer signup spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xhNReVqcTRYgTzlWRCy4hSkO2WJ5merA 

Hope you will join me for a nice day out!

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3373495690344445822 

Summary: 80 miles / 7,300 feet: Summit Bicycles > OLH > 84 > Haskins > Hwy 1 > Pigeon Point > Cloverdale/Gazos Creek > Haskins Backside > West Alpine > Page Mill > Shake Shack

Start: Summit Bikes Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Richard Red

Sunday A-ride 6/22 - Lobitos loop circuit race

Hello riders,
I hope everyone enjoys the great weather and the longer days that allow more cycling opportunities!
Since we're in the middle of a lull in the road racing calendar, this week's Sunday A-ride will be a bit different - we'll do a race simulation!
This will be a non-sanctioned, self-organized, low-key circuit race in one of the beautiful loops in the area - the Lobitos loop.
The goal is to sharpen skills, try new things (maybe launch a long range attack and see if it sticks) and if you're new to racing - it's a great way to experience what it's like. If you "retired" from racing, that's also a great opportunity to rejuvenate that bug.

Important note: There's very little traffic around Lobitos, but always be on the lookout for the occasional car, especially when merging onto Tunitas creek.
This will hopefully be a fun and non-stress environment, it's not worth taking unnecessary risks (careful on the descents).

We’ll start by climbing Kings in zone 2 / low zone 3 (but feel free to go faster if you want) as this is not part of the race. After a regroup at the top we’ll go down Tunitas until the Lobitos cut-off. That's where we'll split into small groups based on gender / age / cat (depending on who shows up), and we'll start the "race" going clock-wise on the Lobitos loop. We'll start each group 2 minutes apart to avoid mixing the groups (at least initially). We'll do 4 loops (more like 3.7), and the finish line will be on the top of the hill on the 4th loop, just before going down to Tunitas creek. The loop itself is ~7.5 miles, with ~1000ft of climbing. Fun!
For all of you flat-landers out there, keep in mind that the pure climbers will be climbing C2K just the day before, so there is nothing to worry about :-) No excuses.
After the "race" we'll climb back Tunitas, go south on Skyline and go down 84 back to Summit.
Water - we can roll to the bike hut either before/after the race as needed.

Everyone is welcome - See you Sunday!

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3367177765593848244
Summary: 72 miles / 8.5K feet, but only 30mi/4K in "race mode": Summit Bicycles > Kings > 4 x Lobitos Loop > Tunitas > 84E > Summit Bicycles
Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto. No registration fees - just show up.
Time: Meet 8 a.m., Leave 8:10 a.m.
Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules
Ride Leader: Shai Traister

Saturday A Ride 6/21: Diablo + Tam

Hello friends, this week we are blessed with the longest Saturday of 2025 so we are going to take advantage of all the daylight by climbing both Mt. Diablo and Mt. Tam on the same day. I was worried that Mr. Kessler’s 10k ft route last week might not have been enough for some people, so we’re gonna do 11k this week! Obviously this route cannot begin at Summit Bicycles; rather we are starting from the Walnut Creek BART Station at 8 AM (it’s a long day out so we gotta start early). A short warmup down Danville then up south gate and down north gate, then we’ll make our way toward the Berkeley Hills race course and Wildcat Canyon to get to the Richmond Bridge. Once we get to San Rafael and Fairfax it’s just the normal Alpine Dam/Seven Sisters route up to Mt. Tam that everyone is familiar with, and then we just need to get back to the Caltrain station or wherever you need to be to get home. Easy!

The goal of this ride is to just survive to the end so we will maintain a very reasonable endurance pace all day long. Regroup at the top of each climb. Water/bathroom stops are marked on the route.

We don’t get to do Diablo often so I hope people are excited to join, but I understand it is logistically challenging given the start/end points are different. If you are driving to Walnut Creek in the morning, you can take BART from Embarcadero back to Walnut Creek in the afternoon; if you are starting from SF, you’ll just need to take this train to Walnut Creek early in the morning. It’s a ~40 minute ride via the Yellow line and BART trains run every 20 minutes.

Additionally, for true climbing enjoyers this is only the first half of an optional “four peaks weekend” where after doing Diablo and Tam on Saturday, you can go do Umunhum and Hamilton on Sunday. Doesn’t that sound like so much fun?

Hope to see you there!

Route
https://www.strava.com/routes/3369840874290508572
124 miles, 11,300 feet

Start/End Location
Start at Walnut Creek BART Station (parking lot east of the station) https://maps.app.goo.gl/qm3Wjzpnpg3uBwBa9

End at Embarcadero BART Station or Caltrain SF Station

Time: Meet 8:00 AM, Leave 8:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Richard Red

Saturday A-Ride 6/14: All Roads Lead to Skyline

AV-Aer’s,

Is this right? We haven’t done 10,000 feet of climbing on a Saturday in 3 months? Well now is the PERFECT time to change that! We’re only one week out from Summer Solstice Saturday so let’s get those legs in good shape for the fun rides everyone has planned on the longest day of the year (I think Richard might have a special AV-A weekend planned). This weekend we’re doing the big 4: Kings, OLH, Page, AND Highway 9. Going up and down each one should make it easy for anyone to join the ride for as long as they want and split off wherever they like.

We’ll start with Kings and work our way south, regrouping at the top of all climbs. I will be trying my best to stick to a 3.5w/kg ceiling on climbs to ensure I finish the day with my legs attached. Yes, we will descend Old La Honda. We’ve all done it before. We will take it slow and descend in small groups if needed. Let’s take a quick break at Arastradero before Page Mill for water. After Page Mill we’ll stop at Main Street Bagels to refuel and get hyped for one more Category 2 climb. We can do this! After we conquer Highway 9 we’ll roll across Skyline to get to that elusive 10K number and then descend Page Mill a second time to get home.

It should be a great day for this ride. Forecasts say some cloud cover with highs in the 70’s everywhere we ride. I hope to see a lot of friendly faces out, even if it isn’t for the entire day! But those who do see the end get to say they did FOUR Category 2 climbs in a single ride!

Non-members are always welcome, but please complete the waiver once a year.

Please make sure to familiarize yourself with the ride rules as well.

Ride Leader
Kessler

Start / End Location
Start and Finish at Summit Bicycles, 392 California Ave, Palo Alto

Route
Link to Ride with GPS Route File
86 miles, 10,300 feet

Start Time
Meet: 9:00 AM
Leave: 9:05 AM

Regroups

• Regroup at top of Kings - Mile 15

• Regroup at top of OLH - Mile 26

• Water/Bathroom stop at Arastradero Preserve - Mile 34

• Regroup at top of Page Mill - Mile 43

• Coffee/Bagel stop at Main Street Bagels - Mile 55

• Regroup at top of Highway 9 - Mile 68

Sunday A-ride 6/8 - The holy trinity

Hello riders,

This Sunday we’ll be heading south and after a couple of short warm-up climbs we’ll be climbing Bohlman/On-orbit. After a regroup at the top and a short gravel adventure, we’ll go down Montevina. If the fruit stand is where it usually is at the bottom of Bear Creek we can get some light refreshments. We’ll then continue around the reservoir to climb Soda Springs, and descend back to the reservoir and climb Black rd. to Skyline. After a quick water stop, we’ll continue to Page mill and back to Summit.

Water stops - Saratoga if people want to top off before Bohlman, food stand at the bottom of Bear Creek (if present), Castle rock. Note: No soda at the top of Soda springs.

Endurance pace, with regroups on top of the climbs, so feel free to rip it.

Come for the entire route, or take one of the many shortcut opportunities along the way. Bring your climbing legs.

See you there!

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3238706090926003488

Summary: 75 miles / 10K feet: Summit Bicycles > Eden > Bohlman/On-orbit > Montevina > Soda Springs > Black Rd > Skyline > Page Mill > Summit Bicycles

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 8 a.m., Leave 8:10 a.m.

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules

Ride Leader: Shai Traister

Saturday A Ride 6-7-25

Hi friends!

Come join for my first time leading the A ride! I love Kings and Tunitas, and the cookies at Arcangeli Grocery Co, so I made this twist on the Pescadero loop to enjoy all three!

We will go up Kings and regroup at Skywood trading, then head down 84 to Pescadero. We'll stop at Downtown local/Arcangeli for some water/snacks mid-ride before heading over to tackle Tunitas! After that, it's a fun descent back down Kings and over to Summit.

Start Time: The A-ride meets at Summit Bicycles on California Ave in Palo Alto at 9 am Saturday. We will roll at 9:10 am.

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3365041733601493814

Summary: 86 miles / 8,000 feet: Summit Bicycles > Kings > Skyline > 84 > Pescadero > Tunitas > Kings > Summit Bicycles

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 9:00 AM, Leave 9:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules

Ride Leader: Maeve Roach

Sunday A Ride 6-1-25

ITS JUNE!!

I crossed paths with the A ride doing this route a couple weeks ago and was sad I wasn’t on it. So now we’re doing it again! Water in pacifica, or HMB if we’re really pushing the pace. Paceline down the coast, turn up 84 to WOLH, then stop for water before descending 84.

If people are feeling good we can go all the way down to Pescadero, up stage then to 84 for a little extra credit, but we’ll see what the vibes are like tomorrow.

Start Time: The A-ride meets at Summit Bicycles on California Ave in Palo Alto at 8 am Sunday. We will roll at 8:10 am.

Route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3364025549925242488

Summary: 82 miles / 5,300 feet: Summit Bicycles > Junipero Serra > Sand Hill > Cañada > Skyline > Sharp Park > Hwy 1 > La Honda > WOLH > Sand Hill > Junipero Serra > Summit Bicycles

Start: Summit Bicycles, Palo Alto

Time: Meet 8:00 AM, Leave 8:10 AM

Ride etiquette: https://www.altovelo.org/ride-rules 

Ride Leader: Nathan Martin