David Multer

Yesterday’s stage of the Tour of California was a blast, so Charlotte and I are back on the road to watch the riders leave Seaside for the long ride out to Paso Robles today. Bob Roll is here too along with plenty of bikes. Gabe is in school, so unfortunately he’s not able to collect more autographs for his hat. Plenty of great riders getting ready to roll from Radio Shack, Garmin, Rabobank, and BMC. The start is so much quieter than in Livermore, almost a bit like rolling out on a small training ride. Livermore sure did a great job yesterday. ...

It’s the time of year again when the biggest road cycling race in the USA comes to our neck of the woods, the Amgen Tour of California. This year Gabe is working to get tons of autographs from some of his favorite riders on a cycling hat. Some of his favorites include: Jens Voigt, Johan Van Summeren, Laurens Ten Dam, Oscar Freire, Lars Boom, Bernhard Eisel, Taylor Phinney, and George Hincapie. ...

Gabe is racing today in the legendary Cat’s Hill Classic today. I suppose it’s a classic having been around for 38 years, rolling over rough pavement, and including a killer 23% grade hill. Gabe and I previewed the course a few days ago, but now it’s time to watch the Cat 3s (including quite a few juniors) enjoy the hill. The junior 15-16 pack comes racing around for their climb up the hill. ...

It’s that time of year again for the SVEF Mt Charlie Challenge. I’ve been doing this every year since the very start, and last year Gabe did the 50K for the first time. This year he’s definitely doing the 100K ride and he’ll be kicking my ass. Time to get the festivities rolling and get those riders out there in support of our schools! Who are those handsome devils? Gabe will be racing through the course with John Magliato, while I bring up the rear. ...

The Sea Otter Classic is a major racing event for cyclist from everywhere that just so happens to be in our backyard. This of course means that the competition is going to be crazy, and I can see that Gabe is hoping to just hang in there. It’s a tough, hilly course and the Specialized juniors dish our plenty of pain. I know Gabe enjoyed riding next to Phil for a little while. ...

After a week of driving all over the southwest, Gabe and I are back on the road out to the Modesto area for the Turlock road race. It’s a beautiful day, a great course, and a small field, so Gabe is hoping for a good placing. It’s a 2 lap route for a total of 53 miles, and there are a couple of other fields out at the same time. ...

This morning’s plan was to ride up Mingus Mountain through Jerome, after first doing a recon of the route with everyone in the car. We decided to bail once we saw how narrow and busy the road was, and it didn’t help that it was starting to rain as well. We had to make do with some huge views and a very nice lunch in busy downtown Jerome. Then it’s a nice stop at Tuzigoot National Monument to burn off some of that no-ride energy. Gabe is quite the goofball. ...

Gabe and I are off riding this morning down through beautiful Red Rock Canyon, Oak Creek, and Cornville. Meanwhile the girls are off enjoying some fabulous hiking in Sedona over at Jordan Park. Then it’s over to Walnut Canyon to check out the ruins. And because you can never get enough ancient ruins, it’s over to Wupatki National Monument.

After spending last night in Flagstaff, we’re off to the south rim of the Grand Canyon. We had planned to ride our bikes along the south rim out to Cameron, but it’s really cold and we’re both a bit tired from yesterday. Good thing we decided on some sightseeing as I think I’ve spotted a great red Gabe creature off in those rocks. A few dramatic poses that left Gabe holding on to Charlotte pretty tight. ...

Our road trip continues as we head out of California through Lake Havasu as our first hotel stay last night. It’s quite a busy little spot with the lake, parks, sunshine, and of course the London Bridge. We head back west a little bit to the town of Topock as our starting point for today’s ride up through Oatman and on to Kingman. It’s another hot day in the desert, and there’s plenty of good climbing ahead. ...