If You Like Climbing - Road Bike Route, San Mateo County, CA

(Picture source: Michael Maloney/SF Chronicle)

Day 2 of the Amgen Tour of California was a 117+ mile route from Sausalito, across the GG bridge (they closed it down for the tour...wow), and down to Santa Cruz. Parts of this route I can do with my eyes closed. It was great to watch them do the climb out of Sausalito at the start. It was basically a warm-up with the race actually starting on the other side of the Golden Gate Bridge to avoid any mishaps on the bridge. Yeah, of course they made it look so easy...while, for me in the past it was always my last hill at the end of a day of riding so my form (and mindset) was the complete opposite (LOL). For the ride across the bridge, the riders had to stick to one lane to avoid the built-in grates that keeps the bridge flexible, so, racing would be too dicey.

(Picture source: Getty images)
Anyway, I enjoyed watching the riders on one of my all-time favorite routes. If you like climbing, this is the ride for you to test your legs and your lungs. This route starts in Burlingame, up to Canada Road, out to Pescadero on the coast, and then back. On the way out to the coast, you have a Cat 3 climb (Old La Honda) and then on the way back, you have a Cat 2 climb (Tunitas Creek). Total ride is 85 miles, and 9500' of climbing. Climbing is really one of the best things of this route because of the dense redwoods and during the summer, the trees keep these areas shaded and cool. Also, traffic on both climbs is low to non-existent so it's all about you, your breathing, your legs, and your bike (and maybe some heckling from your cycling friends on a bad day...LOL). The best thing is that In-N-Out Burger is at the end of the ride and my reward would be one of their fabulous chocolate shakes. Route sheet courtesy of Velogirls.